Messages

1

Technical Support / Re: Clicking Sound in Headset

« on: July 15, 2022, 08:23:52 pm »

Just to say the aircraft is currently awaiting a repair to an undercarriage leg and recovering in new fabric, so no updates on this for a while!

Martin

2

Technical Support / Re: Clicking Sound in Headset

« on: December 04, 2021, 06:47:57 pm »

Sorry, I should have said we have flown with an ANR headset one side and PNR the other and have heard the clicks in both. Nothing to stop the ANR adding the noise to the common audio wiring of course. Or vice-versa even. The P3i antenna is a vehicle mobile-radio type mounted on the metal access plate into the rear of the instrument panel area. Something else to bear in mind though.

Last flight was an hour and we *may* have heard one click on approach, difficult to say though as it didn’t repeat. So still trying to work out whether it’s cured. Or not!

Cheers,

Martin

3

Technical Support / Re: Clicking Sound in Headset

« on: November 20, 2021, 07:25:36 pm »

It’s certainly a possibility Paul. If I knew when it was going to happen, and it lasted longer when it did, I could remove the P3i antenna connector and see if that stopped it. The connector is just accessible under the panel.

The dedicated supply for the PAW box has now been fitted (a deconstructed and hard-wired Anker unit as described on this forum) and the audio isolation transformer has been added between the PAW box and the audio amplifier. The intermittent regularly-spaced clicking hasn’t been reported since, although to be fair, the aircraft hasn’t flown many hours since the work was completed. So I’m keeping an open mind on a working result at the moment!

I’m also now wondering whether this could possibly be interference from electric fences. The airfield is surrounded by farm land and the clicks seem to be heard the most just after taking off, or on approach. Does anyone know how often electric fences pulse their volts into the wire? If it’s around two seconds I will go and look for one in the same area with an am radio!

Thanks.

Martin

4

General Discussion / Re: Ofcom EMF licence changes

« on: November 20, 2021, 06:51:51 pm »

I saw this appear in another radio environment so ran a calc for my son’s syndicate Jodel’s Trig radio and transponder, plus the PAW box. All three are within the OfCom safe EMF limits. If you would like to see a copy of the results just drop me a pm.

Cheers,

Martin

5

Technical Support / Re: Clicking Sound in Headset

« on: September 03, 2021, 03:58:48 pm »

Thanks all, some useful suggestions there. It’s going to be a couple of weeks now until I can get over to the hangar but will take those with me.

It’s easy enough to wire in an audio transformer (recovered from an old ADSL router) so will look at that first. There is some very low-level data noise present too, not too noticeable when the engine (O-200) is running, which that might help with.

We have an electronic reg, switching the dynamo field off makes no difference and the clicks don’t coincide with it stopping and re-starting charging. I did think about RF getting into the audio wiring so fitted bypass caps in the PAW audio amp. The P3i data bursts do sound about the right timing, but why so intermittent?!

I now have the parts to build a (5A max) analogue 12-5V converter and a heavier-duty USB power cable, so that will be trying that too - after soak-testing it on the bench. And I will certainly have a closer look at the Pi out of the aircraft.

Thanks again.

Martin

6

Technical Support / Re: Clicking Sound in Headset

« on: August 16, 2021, 07:38:22 pm »

Thanks. The click is still present with the transponder switched off, so it's not RF breakthrough from that. I have a small audio transformer so that can be fitted between the PAW output and the amplifier / Trig radio input. There is also some very low level data noise audible from the Pi which the transformer might help with as well? It’s going to be a few weeks until I can get to the aircraft to work on it again but I will try to remember to report back…!

Martin

7

Technical Support / Clicking Sound in Headset

« on: August 15, 2021, 06:03:43 pm »

Hi all,

We have a PilotAware Classic fitted in the aircraft which, except for the odd USB plug losing its connection, has been working fine for a few years. Recently a very intermittent clicking has started in the headsets which, by process of elimination and substitution, appears to be generated by the PAW box.

Once the clicks start, which can be 2 minutes into a flight, an hour into a flight, or not at all, they are only stopped by rebooting the PAW box. The clicks are very brief, sometimes regularly spaced every four or five seconds, or can be more or less frequent.

We have an audio amp fitted between PAW and the Trig radio and can switch the power to that off, so PAW audio can be muted if required without turning the whole box off. Switching that off seems to make no difference.

Has anyone experienced similar headset clicks and can offer us advice on fixing this please?

Thanks,

Martin

8

General Discussion / Update Over Wifi

« on: August 30, 2017, 04:51:02 pm »

Hi Lee,

Like many others I guess I download updates and write them to a USB mem stick on my (Windows) laptop. Getting to the PAW box, which is tucked away on the aircraft, involves step ladders and taking a panel off. Then getting the mem stick plugged in is another challenge! I guess we could run a M-F USB extension but I'm trying to avoid additional wiring.

Are there any plans for users to be able to update the PAW software over-the-air (OTA) via wifi, with the necessary file(s) on the root or in a dedicated folder on the connected PC? And having that as an option via the 'update' control panel selection.

Would anyone else find that useful?

Cheers,
Martin