Author Topic: No connection in Skydemon - RESOLVED  (Read 8220 times)

a1650772

No connection in Skydemon - RESOLVED
« on: February 27, 2020, 03:45:58 pm »
I have just purchased Pilotaware Rosetta and am having connectivity issues in Skydemon on my iPhone. If I try to connect using the Pilotaware option, I simply get the message "Connecting to Device". However, if I switch the Pilotaware settings to Flarm (TCP) and then connect using the Flarm option in Skydemon then it connects fine. I saw a thread regarding a similar issue here: http://forum.pilotaware.com/index.php/topic,1206.0.html  but could not see a solution posted. 
« Last Edit: March 23, 2020, 08:10:33 am by Admin »

Ian Melville

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #1 on: February 27, 2020, 04:37:59 pm »
Have you connected to the PilotAware hotspot?

a1650772

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #2 on: February 27, 2020, 04:51:06 pm »
Yes I have. And it is clearly connected because otherwise I assume I would not be able to connect using the Flarm option in Skydemon.

Ian Melville

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #3 on: February 27, 2020, 08:38:00 pm »
Sorry, Misread that on my phone screen. Thought you could not connect with Flarm.

Can you post a screenshot of your PAW Home and config page?

Can you also ensure that in SD the PilotAware option is the only Third-Party Device enabled

Admin

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #4 on: February 27, 2020, 10:34:44 pm »
there is an option on the PilotAware configure page near the bottom for connection method, change from Auto to PilotAware(UDP)

Thx
Lee

Matt S

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #5 on: March 06, 2020, 11:50:44 pm »
I'm getting the same issue using a Rasberry Pi with Pilot aware downloaded version 20190621. If I try to connect using the Pilotaware option, I simply get the message "Connecting to Device". However, if I switch the Pilotaware settings to Flarm (TCP) and then connect using the Flarm option in Skydemon then it connects fine.

mariko

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #6 on: March 07, 2020, 07:21:34 am »
I'm getting the same issue using a Rasberry Pi with Pilot aware downloaded version 20190621. If I try to connect using the Pilotaware option, I simply get the message "Connecting to Device". However, if I switch the Pilotaware settings to Flarm (TCP) and then connect using the Flarm option in Skydemon then it connects fine.
do you get bearingless traffic advices when using Flarm option in skydemon?
Ciao
  Mariko

exfirepro

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #7 on: March 07, 2020, 09:03:24 am »
HI Mariko,

You will get Bearingless target ‘Ring’ alerts on SD using the ‘Flarm’ (TCP) connection just the same as if using the ‘PilotAware’ (UDP) connection. The main difference is IIRC that if the ‘Flarm’ connection drops out it has to be manually reconnected, whereas the ‘PilotAware’ (UDP) option should reconnect automatically (as long as the PAW signal is still present).

Matt,

Several questions here. You say you are running 20190621 on a ‘Raspberry Pi’. Is this a ‘Home Built’ unit or a bought one? If bought, is it a PAW Classic or Rosetta? If Homebuilt, which Raspberry Pi are you using? How is it powered? What make/model of tablet are you using?

On the face of it, this sounds like a problem with the WiFi link between your pad and your PilotAware.  This can happen, for example, when the power feed drops when starting your engine and during the period when your PilotAware is rebooting, your pad may have reconnected to another WiFi link, such as in the Clubhouse - with no PilotAware feed. I saw this yesterday with a mate’s unit which did just that. Unaware of what was going on he realised was unable to get PAW going for his flight and so reverted to using ‘Location Services’ which gave position but of course no traffic info. I advise always rechecking that your  tablet (or other device) is still connected to your own PilotAware after engine start and before takeoff.

Another possibility is the WiFi connection itself. We have seen issues in the past with a couple of PAW / tablet combinations, though these are rare. There was an issue several years back for example where some users of the Google Nexus 2012 version found that their tablets refused to connect if the units were close together because the WiFi power was too high, though mine was always fine (I now mainly use an iPad Mini BTW). There have also been one or two isolated reports of connection difficulties with IIRC specific Lenovo tablets and possibly a particular Samsung model, but this is extremely rare. You can experiment with the WiFi transmit power setting in the PAW / Networks setup tab, but take note of the base settings first, make any adjustments in small steps and be aware that the unit has to reboot each time for the change to take effect ( so make sure your tablet is still properly connected after each reboot).

Let us know how you get on.

Regards

Peter

Matt S

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #8 on: March 07, 2020, 10:54:37 am »
Thanks Peter for the quick response.  I am doing a home set up before looking to install in my permit aircraft - I bought the 'PAW bridge' sometime ago. I have had it working on the earlier version of Pilotaware with the same hardware set up.  I am using a homebuilt set up using a Raspbery Pi 2 model B connecting with an apple mini ipad 2.  I cleared my home wifi from the mini ipad so that it remained 'locked' to the pilotaware wifi as I had noticed it was previously dropping the connection and reverting to the home wifi.  I've checked the pilot aware is picking up traffic but for some reason, Skydemon on my ipad mini 2 just doesn't want to want to connect to the pilotaware. Last night I did a full installation of the PAW software onto a different 16GB disk but that also has not fixed the issue.  I've been at this for hours and can't seem to work out what the issue is. I have tried different combinations of the network settings but to no avail. The homepage is showing all the 'greens' on he paw so power and receipt of signals all looks to be ok. I agree it feels like it's a problem with the network connection, specifically the pilotaware UDP connection.

exfirepro

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #9 on: March 07, 2020, 12:48:31 pm »
Hi again Matt,

The fact that you say your pad was previously dropping the connection and reverting to your Home WiFi leans me towards a problem with your PAW WiFi, though from your posts this seems strange.

You also say you are seeing the PilotAware Home Page with all greens, (presumably on your pad?) so the pad must be connecting to the PAW WiFi Hotspot, though the connection may not be robust.

When you say you checked that the PilotAware was picking up traffic, I take it this was from the PAW Traffic Screen? On your iPad or otherwise?

I take it you also saw Lee’s post further up and have changed the Connectivity in the PilotAware Configure Screen from Auto to PilotAware UDP?

(The ‘Auto Connectivity’ setting was introduced in 20160621 in an attempt to improve efficiency by allowing PilotAware to check which type of dataset their display device was asking for and only send that type of data across, but in some cases it hasn’t worked as intended, hence why we suggest deciding beforehand and selecting your preferred option here.)

You have presumably also made the matching selection in SkyDemon / Setup / Third Party Devices. This will normally run with multiple options selected, but for test purposes, I’d suggest restricting it to only the one option we’re trying to get to work i.e. PilotAware. I take it you aren’t using a Bluetooth GPS Receiver BTW (as per SD’s note). Please also check that you are using the latest version of SkyDemon.

This could still be a power issue - how are you powering the setup? Can you run the unit for a while then take and post a screenshot of the Home Page so we can see if there are any power issues showing.

If not, it would be worth trying another WiFi dongle (or upgrading to a Pi3 with built-in WiFi).

Regards

Peter

Matt S

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #10 on: March 07, 2020, 09:13:56 pm »
Hi Peter,

I have responded in line with each of your comments to make things easier.

The fact that you say your pad was previously dropping the connection and reverting to your Home WiFi leans me towards a problem with your PAW WiFi, though from your posts this seems strange.[ I don't think this is connected to the issue but needed resolving anyway.]

You also say you are seeing the PilotAware Home Page with all greens, (presumably on your pad?) [Yes] so the pad must be connecting to the PAW WiFi Hotspot [Agree], though the connection may not be robust.

When you say you checked that the PilotAware was picking up traffic, I take it this was from the PAW Traffic Screen? On your iPad or otherwise? [On the Ipad]

I take it you also saw Lee’s post further up and have changed the Connectivity in the PilotAware Configure Screen from Auto to PilotAware UDP? [yes, I have set the to 'Pilotaware UDP']

(The ‘Auto Connectivity’ setting was introduced in 20160621 in an attempt to improve efficiency by allowing PilotAware to check which type of dataset their display device was asking for and only send that type of data across, but in some cases it hasn’t worked as intended, hence why we suggest deciding beforehand and selecting your preferred option here.) [ok, makes sense]

You have presumably also made the matching selection in SkyDemon / Setup / Third Party Devices [Yes]. This will normally run with multiple options selected, but for test purposes, I’d suggest restricting it to only the one option we’re trying to get to work i.e. PilotAware. [Agree] I take it you aren’t using a Bluetooth GPS Receiver BTW (as per SD’s note) [No, wired GPS to the Raspberry Pi]]. Please also check that you are using the latest version of SkyDemon. [I did check that]

This could still be a power issue - how are you powering the setup? [Decent cable, purchased from ThepiHut and plugged into an extension socket with USB outlets. I could try a different 5v adapter plug. Is it the voltage or the amps that is most important? Or just the quality?]. Can you run the unit for a while then take and post a screenshot of the Home Page so we can see if there are any power issues showing.

If not, it would be worth trying another WiFi dongle (or upgrading to a Pi3 with built-in WiFi). [I hadn't thought of that. I have tried a Raspberry pi 3 (as the kids had one) with the PilotAware bridge attached but that also did not work and also seemed to have issues connecting to the P3I & Barometer.] I've attached a screenshot of the Pilotaware Homepage on the ipad for the Pi 2 model B but have noticed the most recent connections are not as good as when I was testing yesterday.  I'm now going to try and find a decent 5v adapter to see if that makes a difference.]

Thanks again for your help,

Matt

exfirepro

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #11 on: March 08, 2020, 12:09:20 am »
Hi Matt,

Thanks for the additional info.

Most of that seems OK. Power supply is critical, which is why I asked about that specifically. The supply needs to be able to maintain 2.1 amps without the voltage dropping below 5 volts - which requires a really good reliable power supply - and also requires a cable with power wires at least 20 AWG diameter (higher number = thinner cable) to minimise voltage drop. There is, however, no sign of a power issue in your screenshot, though you clearly didn’t have a GPS fix when you took the shot, which would in itself certainly mean no data transfer to SkyDemon at that time (though you did say you had 4 x Greens when you were having the problem earlier).

I would suggest ensuring a good solid power supply and then try the unit outside to get a solid reliable gps fix (you need at least 4 satellites for this) and see where you go from there.

Regards

Peter
« Last Edit: March 08, 2020, 07:55:44 am by exfirepro »

exfirepro

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #12 on: March 08, 2020, 07:56:11 am »
Matt,

Just reading back through your posts this morning - When you tried your kid’s Pi3, it wouldn’t work because the licence key is locked to the motherboard and without the licence key you aren’t going to get 4 Greens. If you decide on a permanent change of board, the licence key can be swapped over FOC by emailing support@pilotaware.com with your name and the 12 figure MAC addresses of the old and new Pi’s.

Regards

Peter

Admin

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #13 on: March 08, 2020, 09:18:10 am »
Hi Matt, Peter
Even when PilotAware does not have a gps lock, it still sends messages to SkyDemon
So SkyDemon should be displaying ‘0 gps satellites’, not ‘connecting to device’
Something else is happening here

To confirm
Ipad connected to PilotAware
Pilotaware set to output pilotaware udp
SkyDemon 3rd party device = PilotAware

SkyDemon message ‘connecting to device’
If so, That is very odd
 
Thx
Lee

exfirepro

Re: No connection in Skydemon
« Reply #14 on: March 08, 2020, 10:36:06 am »
Lee,

If Matt confirms the above settings, (which is certainly my reading of Matt’s setup from his previous posts), then that’s exactly what I would have expected.

If so, I agree, definitely something strange going on which I certainly haven’t been experiencing.

I wonder if it could be related to Matt’s version of iOS (which is... ? Matt), though I can’t think why it should be. I take it the RPi Kernel is OK? Matt did a fresh install, so it should be and he says he’s running the latest version of SD.

Mystifying...

Regards

Peter