Author Topic: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?  (Read 3910 times)

falcoguy

Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« on: June 03, 2021, 09:11:21 pm »
I have a classic pilotaware. I have been suspecting it is not receiving adsb. I have brought it home , to test powered by usb power off mains. The Home Screen adsb is red and says unavailable Rx =0 (+0)
Status says volt=warning, freq=ok, thro =warning, temp 48.7/46.5, em =0, sg=0.
I have also tried replacing the dongle with a new noodled dongle with the same result.
Does anyone have any ideas, and what the colours and rx etc means please.
I have also occasionally seen the adsb box go orange after landing and checking.
However, I am not seeing the adsb traffic my friends are

Help appreciated

steveu

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #1 on: June 04, 2021, 01:02:53 am »
Sounds like your power supply is not up to the job.

You could try and run the unit with a higher rated PSU, and with/without the ADS-B dongle.

I would concentrate on getting the voltage warning cleared fist, before trying to fault find other isues...

Admin

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #2 on: June 04, 2021, 09:19:16 am »
I have also tried replacing the dongle with a new noodled dongle with the same result.
I presume this was meant to be nooelec ?

If so this could be the cause of the voltage warning, for some reason, these draw a lot of power.

Can you check what the supply is you are using (spec details etc)
are you using the USB power cable provided

Thx
Lee

exfirepro

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #3 on: June 04, 2021, 10:54:13 am »
Hi falcoguy,

To add some detail to the above comments and (hopefully) answer your specific questions.

1. Re the 1090 Status Indicator. Green means 1090 data is currently being received (+ figure increasing), Amber means no data received for something like the last 15 seconds - (so not unusual), Red means no data received since power-up - so there is either no 1090 traffic about, or you havea fault. The comment ‘Unavailable’ usually indicates no dongle present, or dongle is defective (or just not properly seated in USB port). Your initial post certainly implies that the original dongle has died, but it’s strange that you are getting the same effect with a replacement. Specifically, what model of NooElec are you trying as the replacement?

2. Reasons for failure to receive 1090 traffic are usually:-
    No traffic in range.
    Faulty (or poorly inserted) dongle.
    Antenna or cable fault - this can be tested by temporarily replacing the antenna/cable with a short length of thin wire carefully
    inserted into the centre only of the socket on the dongle (assuming there IS traffic about).

3. As advised above, your power issue may be due to your mains USB source being unable to maintain an adequate supply (it must be able to maintain a minimum of 5 Volts when the unit is drawing up to 2 Amps) or may be due to using an inadequately rated USB cable. (The supplied cables are rated with a heavy duty 20awg Power Wire, many readily available USB cables won’t meet this specification.)

Hope this helps. Please let us know how you get on.

Regards
Peter

falcoguy

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #4 on: June 04, 2021, 05:11:24 pm »
Thank you for everyone who is trying to help
The power supply is an apple 5.1V and 2.1amp.  The cable is juicybitz about 0.75m
I have plugged in again today at home and plugged into a different extension cable got Voltage=OK
With the original adsb dongle I got 'unavailable'
Plugging in the new NOOELEC Nano 2 NESDR I suddenly got
Orange block/with Unavailable RX=168(+0)
Quickly checking the traffic I appeared to see a korean air? HEX 71C007 HL8007 with ModeC/S I believe.

Nothing since.  With the minimal amount of aircraft in the air around home it is very difficult to test this thing out - well compared to when I built it.

Maybe there is a better ADSB dongle to fit - but I couldnt find any other recommendations

I am still not convinced its working - I certainly havent picked up any aircraft - even when I had it in the aircraft and I knew there were aircraft near me transmitting ADSB (SkyEcho).  I know it has worked in the aircaft before.  I am using a different GPS unit and ADSB aerial than in the plane for home testing

Any help or comments appreciated.

Id be so much happier if I could see a green ADSB box and see some traffic!

Subsequent to the above

I have been playing with the position of the Nooelec dongle in the usb ports.  The voltage warning seems dependant on which USB port the dongle is inserted.

I now have no voltage warning and the ADSB dongle reading 'Connected' but am currently on Rx=0 (+0)

Just have to wait I guess?

Is there a better adsb dongle to buy that uses less power?
« Last Edit: June 04, 2021, 05:41:16 pm by falcoguy »

exfirepro

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #5 on: June 04, 2021, 11:38:17 pm »
Hi again falcoguy,

I think Lee was referring to some of the other (higher spec) NooElecs. The NooElec Nano2 should be OK as we have used these in Rosetta before.

When you say you are still seeing no traffic, where are you looking - on the PAW ‘Traffic’ Screen via 192.168.1.1, or are you talking about on your Nav App? (Screenshots would help let us see what is going on). Can you post a screenshot of your Home Screen and Configure Settings please.

Where exactly are you - and is the unit running inside? In weak signal or remote areas this can have an effect on reception depending on building construction and materials.

Your comment that the presence of a voltage warning is dependent on which USB port the SDR dangle is in seems strange. That certainly shouldn’t be the case and makes me wonder if there is an issue with the Raspberry Pi motherboard. Hopefully the requested screenshots will help identify what is going on.

Regards
Peter

BobD

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #6 on: June 05, 2021, 09:24:26 am »
I am experiencing  a similar problem to Falcoguy. On a trip south this week with a fellow pilot, I could see his PAW for about 5Km, and he could see me better (probably due to better aerial positions than me ), but I was picking up no C/S or ADSB signals. I have a spare mouse GPS dongle, and will try that, but any suggestions why this should have happened  are welcome. I have attached home, configuration & traffic page screenshots.

Cheers

exfirepro

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #7 on: June 05, 2021, 08:34:57 pm »
Hi Bob,

Certainly nothing wrong with your GPS, but your Home Screen is showing a Power Supply issue (low voltage warning, which has been throttling the processor).

Although your 1090 SDR is showing as ‘Connected’, the unit is showing no recent 1090 traffic (1090 Status = xxxx (+0) and the only traffic on your Traffic screenshot is 3 x ATOM Ground Stations. There may of course just not have been any other P3i traffic about. This is also possible (though less likely) with 1090. Assuming there was 1090 traffic around, the most likely reason for it failing to display would be a dongle or antenna fault. You can easily test for an antenna fault by replacing the antenna/cable with a length of thin wire carefully pushed into the centre ONLY of the MCX socket (where the antenna cable plugs in). If you start seeing traffic, the problem is the antenna (or more likely the cable). If not, the dongle could be faulty, but you need to ensure that there was local 1090 traffic, by for example comparing with a tracking app such as Flightradar24.

Regards
Peter
« Last Edit: June 05, 2021, 08:44:52 pm by exfirepro »

BobD

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #8 on: June 06, 2021, 09:10:53 am »
Thanks Peter, I use a Charge 2 for power, and have an earlier screenshot from that day showing power ok, so I'll pursue the dongle & antenna question. Fortunately, I have a spare antenna from my early experiments. Unfortunately,  my classic PAW is buried behind the panel (one of the disadvantages of a permanent  installation). Maybe I'll take the opportunity  of upgrading to a Rosetta, whilst I have it apart.
Cheers


Admin

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #9 on: June 06, 2021, 11:36:23 am »
Hi Bob

might be worth contacting Jeremy Curtis regarding the Charge2
I recall there were some Charge2 devices with a firmware issue resulting in power problems,
he can give you instructions on how to obtain the info and fix this - if it is the case

Thx
Lee

JCurtis

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #10 on: June 06, 2021, 03:06:20 pm »
Hi Bob

might be worth contacting Jeremy Curtis regarding the Charge2
I recall there were some Charge2 devices with a firmware issue resulting in power problems,
he can give you instructions on how to obtain the info and fix this - if it is the case

Thx
Lee

The issue was some of the really early Charge2 units, from back in 2014/2015.  If Bob can drop be either his serial number, order number, or postcode from the order I can look up the order.
The e-mail address is on the website.

Designer and maker of charge4.harkwood.co.uk, smart universal USB chargers designed for aviation.  USB Type-A and USB-C power without the RF interference. Approved for EASA installs under CS-STAN too.

steveu

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #11 on: June 06, 2021, 08:42:41 pm »
Thanks Peter, I use a Charge 2 for power, and have an earlier screenshot from that day showing power ok, so I'll pursue the dongle & antenna question. Fortunately, I have a spare antenna from my early experiments. Unfortunately,  my classic PAW is buried behind the panel (one of the disadvantages of a permanent  installation). Maybe I'll take the opportunity  of upgrading to a Rosetta, whilst I have it apart.
Cheers

Jeremy is the expert and will correct me but you can connect a USB lead to some versions of the Charge 2 and it will talk to a laptop and tell you how much current is being taken.

I have tried this.

USB diagnostics. Program in use is PuTTY, 57600 baud, 8, N, 1.



JCurtis

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #12 on: June 06, 2021, 09:14:32 pm »
Thanks Peter, I use a Charge 2 for power, and have an earlier screenshot from that day showing power ok, so I'll pursue the dongle & antenna question. Fortunately, I have a spare antenna from my early experiments. Unfortunately,  my classic PAW is buried behind the panel (one of the disadvantages of a permanent  installation). Maybe I'll take the opportunity  of upgrading to a Rosetta, whilst I have it apart.
Cheers

Jeremy is the expert and will correct me but you can connect a USB lead to some versions of the Charge 2 and it will talk to a laptop and tell you how much current is being taken.

I have tried this.

USB diagnostics. Program in use is PuTTY, 57600 baud, 8, N, 1.

The original charger versions have a terminal interface as @steveu shows above, the v2 units use a Windows management program to get the port status and manage profiles.
Designer and maker of charge4.harkwood.co.uk, smart universal USB chargers designed for aviation.  USB Type-A and USB-C power without the RF interference. Approved for EASA installs under CS-STAN too.

BobD

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #13 on: June 07, 2021, 09:16:29 am »


The issue was some of the really early Charge2 units, from back in 2014/2015.  If Bob can drop be either his serial number, order number, or postcode from the order I can look up the order.
The e-mail address is on the website.

Thanks Jeremy, e-mail sent.

BobD

Re: Pilotaware classic adsb not working?
« Reply #14 on: June 24, 2021, 07:58:15 am »
I thought my problem  had been a temporary  hitch, as some adjustments  to the settings seem to bring the other traffic to being visible (whilst I was on the ground). However on a flight to Beccles yesterday, I could once again only see PAW traffic whilst in the air. After an offline discussion  with Jeremy, I'm fairly convinced its not a power problem. Are there any diagnostics I can run on the track files. After rebooting to collect the track files when back at home base, I could once again see Mode C, S and ADSB traffic. I didn't screenshot the home page during the flight this time, but I had all green indicators, except for an Amber on the 1090 indicator.
Weird!