Hi John,
I have just responded to a similar post (presumably from yourself?) over on the SkyDemon Forum. As I said earlier, we still need to do some more work to improve the audio reporting in PilotAware - especially regarding traffic on the ground, around airfields and when flying in groups, however as things stand, the following applies.
Having absorbed your advice Peter, and re-read the SKD manual and forum it would appear that as PAW sends its traffic data via WiFi to SKD where audio and visual warnings are generated, I should be able to turn off the PAW audio without loss of capability. Of course that depends on the PAW and SKD algorithms.
But with the limitation that SD doesn’t provide
any audio alerts for ‘Bearingless Traffic’ on any of its protocols, despite the fact that they are sent to it from PilotAware.
For my installation it also depends on how the PF traffic data that comes in to PAW via USB is treated. Is it managed just like any other PAW track and sent to SKD via WiFi as just another track? If so I may be able to turn off the PF audio, subject to a check that its own warning algorithm does not include some critical feature (which for gliders FLARM does).
Data sent to PAW from PF by the RS232/USB link is ‘parsed’ (compared and combined) in the PAW software, with the resultant ‘combination’ passed via WiFi to whatever EFB is the users’ choice.
In the case of SD, when using the ‘Flarm’ or ‘PilotAware’ Traffic Options, ‘Known Position’ Traffic is displayed visually as moving traffic on screen, (subject to preselected relative altitude filters) and ‘Bearingless’ Traffic is displayed by the system of concentric coloured rings (to indicate probable degree of risk) together with actual relative altitude and Reg ID/Flight ID for Mode S, or a Mode C Code for Mode C Traffic - unless ‘Display Registration has been deselected in SD/Setup/Nav Options. Audio alerts are generated solely from SD’s anti-collision algorithms.
If using the GDL90 protocol, however, no info (visual
OR audio) is currently provided by SD for ‘Bearingless’ Traffic.
A while ago Keith described the full suite of EC devices as "the gold standard" but I think that accolade may come with a sensor fusion hub that integrates all the systems and I envisaged PAW is that hub. When I was involved with Typhoon development, sensor fusion was the emerging key technology and the displays were able to present a single "air picture" but with icon shapes that told you where the data came from (on-board, off-board etc). And of course being bred in Lancashire we asked for the standard audio warning to be "ay oop, ay oop but that did not survive to production!
Do you know how I can bottom out the way that track data is managed thought the systems?
John
Interesting info John, but a bit expensive I presume!
My best advice taking account of the limitations above would be.. ‘turn the PF audio off in PF Config and rely on the SD and/ or PAW audio, depending on your viewpoint on ‘Bearingless’ Traffic. If you don’t want alerts from Bearingless Traffic, you could rely solely on the SD audio alerts, which operate via anti-collision algorithms, and include airspace and restricted area warnings.
If, however, you are concerned at not receiving warnings from the ~ 70%+ of traffic at GA levels broadcasting straight Mode-C or Mode-S (with nothing else), then you need to at least ‘mix’ PAW with SD audio - unless, or until we can (between us) come up with a better option.
Best Regards
Peter
