FLARM - No GPS

[Dan Marotta]

It worked fine last time I flew but today, it was stuck on the startup
screen with 0 Satellites showing. I cycled the power a couple of times
with no effect. Both my ClearNav vario and my Dell Streak were both
receiving good GPS locks. The Streak reported 8 satellites.

The PF Portable had been stuck on my glare shield using Dual Lok
fasteners but, a few days ago I fabricated an aluminum plate to bolt the
portable to and then screw the plate to the glare shield. That should
make no difference, but I thought I would tell all.

Being new to this, I have no idea where or how to look for faults. The
PF receives switched power from the DC bus. It has 3 antennae hooked to
it, and its serial port is connected to one of the inputs of a
K6BT-Mux. The other input of the Mux is connected to the serial output
of the CN vario. The Bluetooth radio transmits to the Dell Streak
running XCSoar. On the Streak, I can monitor the interface traffic out
of the Mux. I saw sentences from the Flarm and the ClearNav vario. The
data stream from the CNv had good GPS information and the $PF sentences
appeared to have zeros instead of position data. That would agree with
the startup screen.

It's my understanding that, absent a good GPS signal of its own, the PF
portable should use the GPS data from the vario.

Can anyone offer any advice?
--
Dan, 5J

[Dan Daly[_2_]]

On Wednesday, November 23, 2016 at 8:08:52 PM UTC-5, Dan Marotta wrote:
> It worked fine last time I flew but today, it was stuck on the startup
> screen with 0 Satellites showing. I cycled the power a couple of times
> with no effect. Both my ClearNav vario and my Dell Streak were both
> receiving good GPS locks. The Streak reported 8 satellites.
>
> The PF Portable had been stuck on my glare shield using Dual Lok
> fasteners but, a few days ago I fabricated an aluminum plate to bolt the
> portable to and then screw the plate to the glare shield. That should
> make no difference, but I thought I would tell all.
>
> Being new to this, I have no idea where or how to look for faults. The
> PF receives switched power from the DC bus. It has 3 antennae hooked to
> it, and its serial port is connected to one of the inputs of a
> K6BT-Mux. The other input of the Mux is connected to the serial output
> of the CN vario. The Bluetooth radio transmits to the Dell Streak
> running XCSoar. On the Streak, I can monitor the interface traffic out
> of the Mux. I saw sentences from the Flarm and the ClearNav vario. The
> data stream from the CNv had good GPS information and the $PF sentences
> appeared to have zeros instead of position data. That would agree with
> the startup screen.
>
> It's my understanding that, absent a good GPS signal of its own, the PF
> portable should use the GPS data from the vario.
>
> Can anyone offer any advice?
> --
> Dan, 5J

I would try your Portable with a known working PowerFLARM GPS antenna - I have seen one bad antenna which we tracked down this way.

Have you redone the PowerFLARM firmware within 365 days? "From the March 2015 Update, every FLARM device needs to be updated with the latest firmware version at least once per year (rolling 365 days)." - from the FLARM.com website.

If you can get a .igc file out of it, in the header it says what type of gps it is, HFGPSType: (usually a 16-channel LEA-6A or NEO-6Q GPS receiver by u-blox of Switzerland). If the type is missing, likely a gps problem.

I would be very surprised/shocked if it accepted any external GPS signals from the vario, since it can be an IGC Flight Recorder (with the proper licencing)...

Dan
2D

[Dan Marotta]

Thanks Dan,

Since my PF Portable appears not to have the IGC license (by looking at
the spreadsheet file), I have never seen the need to download the igc
files - I get that from the ClearNav. I downloaded the igc files
yesterday but, of course, the SD card is at the airport. There was no
igc file generated for yesterday's flight due, I suppose, to no GPS.

I updated the firmware last month when I acquired the unit and it worked
fine until yesterday. I had planned to reinstall the current firmware
to see if that made any difference. I'll also look at my last generated
igc file and see what it says about GPS.

I don't know if there are any external GPS antennae on the field, but I
can check around. A couple of weeks ago, a friend (Renny) drove around
the airport with his portable in his car and each of our units detected
and displayed the other.

Dan
5J

On 11/23/2016 8:18 PM, Dan Daly wrote:
> On Wednesday, November 23, 2016 at 8:08:52 PM UTC-5, Dan Marotta wrote:
>> It worked fine last time I flew but today, it was stuck on the startup
>> screen with 0 Satellites showing. I cycled the power a couple of times
>> with no effect. Both my ClearNav vario and my Dell Streak were both
>> receiving good GPS locks. The Streak reported 8 satellites.
>>
>> The PF Portable had been stuck on my glare shield using Dual Lok
>> fasteners but, a few days ago I fabricated an aluminum plate to bolt the
>> portable to and then screw the plate to the glare shield. That should
>> make no difference, but I thought I would tell all.
>>
>> Being new to this, I have no idea where or how to look for faults. The
>> PF receives switched power from the DC bus. It has 3 antennae hooked to
>> it, and its serial port is connected to one of the inputs of a
>> K6BT-Mux. The other input of the Mux is connected to the serial output
>> of the CN vario. The Bluetooth radio transmits to the Dell Streak
>> running XCSoar. On the Streak, I can monitor the interface traffic out
>> of the Mux. I saw sentences from the Flarm and the ClearNav vario. The
>> data stream from the CNv had good GPS information and the $PF sentences
>> appeared to have zeros instead of position data. That would agree with
>> the startup screen.
>>
>> It's my understanding that, absent a good GPS signal of its own, the PF
>> portable should use the GPS data from the vario.
>>
>> Can anyone offer any advice?
>> --
>> Dan, 5J
> I would try your Portable with a known working PowerFLARM GPS antenna - I have seen one bad antenna which we tracked down this way.
>
> Have you redone the PowerFLARM firmware within 365 days? "From the March 2015 Update, every FLARM device needs to be updated with the latest firmware version at least once per year (rolling 365 days)." - from the FLARM.com website.
>
> If you can get a .igc file out of it, in the header it says what type of gps it is, HFGPSType: (usually a 16-channel LEA-6A or NEO-6Q GPS receiver by u-blox of Switzerland). If the type is missing, likely a gps problem.
>
> I would be very surprised/shocked if it accepted any external GPS signals from the vario, since it can be an IGC Flight Recorder (with the proper licencing)...
>
> Dan
> 2D

--
Dan, 5J

[[email protected]]

Are you using multiple GPS antennas? They can influence each other when in close proximity.

[Martin Gregorie[_5_]]

On Thu, 24 Nov 2016 09:57:14 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:

> Thanks Dan,
>
> Since my PF Portable appears not to have the IGC license (by looking at
> the spreadsheet file), I have never seen the need to download the igc
> files - I get that from the ClearNav. I downloaded the igc files
> yesterday but, of course, the SD card is at the airport. There was no
> igc file generated for yesterday's flight due, I suppose, to no GPS.
>
FLARM will write IGC files regardless of whether you have an ICG license
and software module or not. I assume PF is the same. The only thing that
IGC module adds is the ability to write a valid G record at the end of a
the log file and you only need that if you intend to submit flight logs
to a scoring system.

You can read the logfile on your PC with anything that can show the
content of a normal text file.

The other thing you may want to do is to submit your log files to the
FLARM range analysed (on their website) to see what detection range
you're getting, but this does not require the IGC module to be installed.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

[Dan Marotta]

I have two GPS antennae, one for the Dynon EFIS and one for the ClearNav
vario. They are on opposite sides of the Stemme's panel, about 2 feet
apart. There is no external antenna for the PF Portable. It worked
just fine on all flights previous to the one yesterday. I think my
ADS-B antenna is closer to the PF Portable unit now than it was before,
maybe 2 inches. Might that be the cause?

On 11/24/2016 11:46 AM, wrote:
> Are you using multiple GPS antennas? They can influence each other when in close proximity.
>

--
Dan, 5J

[Dan Marotta]

Thanks Martin,

As I said earlier, the unit did not generate an igc file yesterday which
I assume was due to no GPS lock. Since installing the unit about a
month ago, I've had only one flight near enough to another equipped
glider to produce an alert. I submitted that file to the range analysis
tool and the result was about 6 km around the front and sides with
practically nothing behind. That's reasonable considering my all carbon
fuselage and wings.

Next time I get to the airport, I'll have a look at some of the logs to
see what the GPS lines look like, but I don't thing that's where the
problem lies. The unit never locates any satellites. I'll also try it
with the ADS-B antenna removed from the proximity of the unit.



On 11/24/2016 2:17 PM, Dan Marotta wrote:
> I have two GPS antennae, one for the Dynon EFIS and one for the
> ClearNav vario. They are on opposite sides of the Stemme's panel,
> about 2 feet apart. There is no external antenna for the PF
> Portable. It worked just fine on all flights previous to the one
> yesterday. I think my ADS-B antenna is closer to the PF Portable unit
> now than it was before, maybe 2 inches. Might that be the cause?
>
> On 11/24/2016 11:46 AM, wrote:
>> Are you using multiple GPS antennas? They can influence each other
>> when in close proximity.
>>
>

--
Dan, 5J

[Duster]

Long shot, but when you fabricated the aluminum plate bracket, how did you fix it to the PF unit? Don't know if it came with mounting pts, but maybe steel bolt heads might cause some interference if you went through the case. Power input is OK, right?

[Dan Marotta]

A good question. I used very short brass instrument screws to affix the
unit to the aluminum plate. Power is fine unless there's a state other
than on and displaying "0 Satellites" and not on. Maybe the aluminum
plate is the cause (as I've only flown it once while attached to the
plate), but that goes against all I know about ground planes, etc.

I'm going to the airport today and I'll try these things in order after
moving the glider outside:

1. Power the unit up and wait to see if I receive any satellites, if
not then,
2. Move the ADS-B antenna, if not then,
3. Remove all antennae and replace with rubber duckies, if not then,
4. Remove the unit from the glider, use rubber duckies, install
batteries (now the aluminum plate is removed), if not then, WHAT?

I'll look at the .igc files that I've previously downloaded and see what
I can find about the internal GPS (I'm disappointed that it's not an
aviation grade GPS per the FLARM manual). Reload the firmware (which
was updated last month). Report back on my findings.

Sheesh... My MRX PCAS worked perfectly from day one.

Dan

On 11/24/2016 3:36 PM, Duster wrote:
> Long shot, but when you fabricated the aluminum plate bracket, how did you fix it to the PF unit? Don't know if it came with mounting pts, but maybe steel bolt heads might cause some interference if you went through the case. Power input is OK, right?

--
Dan, 5J

[Dan Daly[_2_]]

On Wednesday, November 23, 2016 at 8:08:52 PM UTC-5, Dan Marotta wrote:
> It worked fine last time I flew but today, it was stuck on the startup
> screen with 0 Satellites showing. I cycled the power a couple of times
> with no effect. Both my ClearNav vario and my Dell Streak were both
> receiving good GPS locks. The Streak reported 8 satellites.
>
> The PF Portable had been stuck on my glare shield using Dual Lok
> fasteners but, a few days ago I fabricated an aluminum plate to bolt the
> portable to and then screw the plate to the glare shield. That should
> make no difference, but I thought I would tell all.
>
> Being new to this, I have no idea where or how to look for faults. The
> PF receives switched power from the DC bus. It has 3 antennae hooked to
> it, and its serial port is connected to one of the inputs of a
> K6BT-Mux. The other input of the Mux is connected to the serial output
> of the CN vario. The Bluetooth radio transmits to the Dell Streak
> running XCSoar. On the Streak, I can monitor the interface traffic out
> of the Mux. I saw sentences from the Flarm and the ClearNav vario. The
> data stream from the CNv had good GPS information and the $PF sentences
> appeared to have zeros instead of position data. That would agree with
> the startup screen.
>
> It's my understanding that, absent a good GPS signal of its own, the PF
> portable should use the GPS data from the vario.
>
> Can anyone offer any advice?
> --
> Dan, 5J

Was there GPS jamming notam'd at the time?

[Dan Marotta]

If there was GPS jamming it would have affected the ClearNav and the
Streak, wouldn't it?

Today I removed the unit from the aluminum plate, reloaded the latest
firmware, performed a factory reset and - it still did not work. I had
the unit removed from the ship and had replaced the external antennae
with the rubber duckies. Yes, they were connected to the proper inputs.

The log file appears to show a proper start up with no faults. So where
do I go from here? Is there an internal battery which may have gone
dead rendering the GPS stupid? This thing sat for years before I
acquired it. Is there someone in the US who can repair these?

I've brought home all the files recovered from the PF portable in case
they're of any use to someone who knows how to use them. I've run out
of airspeed, altitude, and ideas all at the same time.

Dan

On 11/25/2016 2:03 PM, Dan Daly wrote:
> <snip>
> Was there GPS jamming notam'd at the time?

--
Dan, 5J

[Martin Gregorie[_5_]]

On Fri, 25 Nov 2016 18:33:43 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:

> If there was GPS jamming it would have affected the ClearNav and the
> Streak, wouldn't it?
>
> Today I removed the unit from the aluminum plate, reloaded the latest
> firmware, performed a factory reset and - it still did not work. I had
> the unit removed from the ship and had replaced the external antennae
> with the rubber duckies. Yes, they were connected to the proper inputs.
>
> The log file appears to show a proper start up with no faults. So where
> do I go from here?
>
Here's a quick list of the interesting stuff in the IGC logs written by
FLARM equipment. This comes from one of my Red Box FLARM logs but a PF
should log much the same data.

The first character on each line in the log is always the record type, so
in the following I refer to a line starting with A as the 'A record'.

The GPS type should be given by an H record. These are grouped together
and should immediately follow the A record. There are typically 10-15 H
records (my Red Box FLARM outputs 14). The one starting with "HFGPS"
gives the GPS type details preceded by the characters "HFGPS" and filling
the rest of the line.

If the GPS is working the log should include an F record from time to
time. This lists the navigation satellites (GPS, Glonass or Gallileo)
that the GPS can see. A new F record is written each time the set of
visible satellites changes. For what you're trying to find out, the F
record just confirms that your PF is seeing satellites

Apart from this, the rest of my Red Box logs are mainly B and L records.

Each B record is a 3D point showing where the glider is at the time the
record was written - no GPS signal means you won't see these in the log.

L records are proprietary to FLARM. AFAIK their formats are not
published so I don't know what they contain. However, its an easy guess
that their contents includes the data used by the FLARM range analysis
tool, i.e. the range and bearings of any other FLARM units yours is
talking to.

I hope the above is some use to you.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

[Dan Marotta]

Thanks for the information, Martin.

Here are results from the last IGC file generated by my portable unit:

HFGPSType:u-blox LEA-6A
..
..
..
F19130905101315182021252629

But all of these were recorded while my portable was receiving GPS
signals. Now that it doesn't receive the GPS signals, it does not
create an IGC file... I'm getting the feeling that there's no recourse
but to send it back for testing and repair. I wonder if there's any
warranty for a 4-6 year old unit that was just placed into service a
month ago. Probably not.

Dan


On 11/26/2016 3:11 PM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
> On Fri, 25 Nov 2016 18:33:43 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>
>> If there was GPS jamming it would have affected the ClearNav and the
>> Streak, wouldn't it?
>>
>> Today I removed the unit from the aluminum plate, reloaded the latest
>> firmware, performed a factory reset and - it still did not work. I had
>> the unit removed from the ship and had replaced the external antennae
>> with the rubber duckies. Yes, they were connected to the proper inputs.
>>
>> The log file appears to show a proper start up with no faults. So where
>> do I go from here?
>>
> Here's a quick list of the interesting stuff in the IGC logs written by
> FLARM equipment. This comes from one of my Red Box FLARM logs but a PF
> should log much the same data.
>
> The first character on each line in the log is always the record type, so
> in the following I refer to a line starting with A as the 'A record'.
>
> The GPS type should be given by an H record. These are grouped together
> and should immediately follow the A record. There are typically 10-15 H
> records (my Red Box FLARM outputs 14). The one starting with "HFGPS"
> gives the GPS type details preceded by the characters "HFGPS" and filling
> the rest of the line.
>
> If the GPS is working the log should include an F record from time to
> time. This lists the navigation satellites (GPS, Glonass or Gallileo)
> that the GPS can see. A new F record is written each time the set of
> visible satellites changes. For what you're trying to find out, the F
> record just confirms that your PF is seeing satellites
>
> Apart from this, the rest of my Red Box logs are mainly B and L records.
>
> Each B record is a 3D point showing where the glider is at the time the
> record was written - no GPS signal means you won't see these in the log.
>
> L records are proprietary to FLARM. AFAIK their formats are not
> published so I don't know what they contain. However, its an easy guess
> that their contents includes the data used by the FLARM range analysis
> tool, i.e. the range and bearings of any other FLARM units yours is
> talking to.
>
> I hope the above is some use to you.
>
>

--
Dan, 5J

[Dan Marotta]

No

On 11/24/2016 11:46 AM, wrote:
> Are you using multiple GPS antennas? They can influence each other when in close proximity.
>

--
Dan, 5J

[[email protected]]

I don't know if it's the same with the Powerflarms, but the old units output some error codes if there is a problem with the GPS module. This information can be read on the serial port during startup.

[Martin Gregorie[_5_]]

On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 10:55:37 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:

> Thanks for the information, Martin.
>
> Here are results from the last IGC file generated by my portable unit:
>
> HFGPSType:u-blox LEA-6A .
> .
> .
> F19130905101315182021252629
>
> But all of these were recorded while my portable was receiving GPS
> signals. Now that it doesn't receive the GPS signals, it does not
> create an IGC file... I'm getting the feeling that there's no recourse
> but to send it back for testing and repair.
>
If the PF can't read the A and H records and write them to the beginning
of the log maybe its got bigger problems than not finding the GRS
receiver, so at least contacting Flarm or the local rep to report that
your PF is not even writing the A and H records to the log and quoting
its serial number at them may be a good start. After all, it was working
and suddenly now its not.

*** One thought does occur: does the memory stick / SD card you're trying
to write the log to have a write protect switch? If so, it may be worth
making sure that its set to 'write' and trying the start the PF again if
it was write protected.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

[Tim Newport-Peace[_4_]]

At 19:45 27 November 2016, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 10:55:37 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>
>> Thanks for the information, Martin.
>>
>> Here are results from the last IGC file generated by my portable unit:
>>
>> HFGPSType:u-blox LEA-6A .
>> .
>> .
>> F19130905101315182021252629
>>
>> But all of these were recorded while my portable was receiving GPS
>> signals. Now that it doesn't receive the GPS signals, it does not
>> create an IGC file... I'm getting the feeling that there's no recourse
>> but to send it back for testing and repair.
>>
>If the PF can't read the A and H records and write them to the beginning
>of the log maybe its got bigger problems than not finding the GRS
>receiver, so at least contacting Flarm or the local rep to report that
>your PF is not even writing the A and H records to the log and quoting
>its serial number at them may be a good start. After all, it was working
>and suddenly now its not.
>
>*** One thought does occur: does the memory stick / SD card you're trying

>to write the log to have a write protect switch? If so, it may be worth
>making sure that its set to 'write' and trying the start the PF again if
>it was write protected.
>
Interesting...

ANY IGC-approved recorder should record a file even if there is no GPS
signal. This is so it can act as an Electronic Barograph. This is written
into the IGC Specification.

Note: SeeYou will not display a file without GPS data, nonetheless a file
should be created.

An IGC file should be created once the minimum movement has been detected.
Without a GPS signal this will be a vertical movement (launch).

If no file is created, this needs to be resolved. I seem to recall that
Flarm use the Real-Time Clock on the GPS board and if Flarm cannot read the
RTC, who knows?

On the subject of SD cards, before reformatting, please read
https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4/

An incorrectly formatted SD card is to be avoided.

--

[Dan Marotta]

Good thought about the SD card; it is/was not write protected. To
verify, I deleted everything in it (after saving to my hard drive),
reinserted it into the PF, took it out side, froze my butt off, powered
it up, and waited. No joy...

Before shutting it down I created a diagnostic dump file which can be
looked at HERE
<https://www.dropbox.com/s/gbf2xgoij6kb98r/PFP00960.DMP?dl=0> if you
know how. I also copied the log file to my drop box HERE
<https://www.dropbox.com/s/typrd4dz1a4g69t/PFP00960.TXT?dl=0>. Reading
it, it appears that the unit talked with the GPS and everything was OK,
but it never received any satellites. That makes no sense unless
there's a problem with the internal GPS antenna or circuit wiring.

The log file implies to me that, during startup, the unit was looking
for other files which it did not find. When I acquired the unit, it
started right up without an SD card (which I purchased later). What
might that mean?

Dan

On 11/27/2016 2:24 PM, Tim Newport-Peace wrote:
> At 19:45 27 November 2016, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>> On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 10:55:37 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>>
>>> Thanks for the information, Martin.
>>>
>>> Here are results from the last IGC file generated by my portable unit:
>>>
>>> HFGPSType:u-blox LEA-6A .
>>> .
>>> .
>>> F19130905101315182021252629
>>>
>>> But all of these were recorded while my portable was receiving GPS
>>> signals. Now that it doesn't receive the GPS signals, it does not
>>> create an IGC file... I'm getting the feeling that there's no recourse
>>> but to send it back for testing and repair.
>>>
>> If the PF can't read the A and H records and write them to the beginning
>> of the log maybe its got bigger problems than not finding the GRS
>> receiver, so at least contacting Flarm or the local rep to report that
>> your PF is not even writing the A and H records to the log and quoting
>> its serial number at them may be a good start. After all, it was working
>> and suddenly now its not.
>>
>> *** One thought does occur: does the memory stick / SD card you're trying
>> to write the log to have a write protect switch? If so, it may be worth
>> making sure that its set to 'write' and trying the start the PF again if
>> it was write protected.
>>
> Interesting...
>
> ANY IGC-approved recorder should record a file even if there is no GPS
> signal. This is so it can act as an Electronic Barograph. This is written
> into the IGC Specification.
>
> Note: SeeYou will not display a file without GPS data, nonetheless a file
> should be created.
>
> An IGC file should be created once the minimum movement has been detected.
> Without a GPS signal this will be a vertical movement (launch).
>
> If no file is created, this needs to be resolved. I seem to recall that
> Flarm use the Real-Time Clock on the GPS board and if Flarm cannot read the
> RTC, who knows?
>
> On the subject of SD cards, before reformatting, please read
> https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4/
>
> An incorrectly formatted SD card is to be avoided.
>

--
Dan, 5J

[Tim Newport-Peace[_4_]]

Dan,

I am not familiar with the log file, but the last lines of the log file
read:

00336.753 ERROR Insufficient supply voltage, shutting down
00336.754 ERROR Battery type: alkaline
00336.754 ERROR Battery voltage: 4.28
00336.755 ERROR External supply voltage: 0.00

Could this be a clue?

Best regards,

Tim.
--
At 21:34 27 November 2016, Dan Marotta wrote:
>Good thought about the SD card; it is/was not write protected. To
>verify, I deleted everything in it (after saving to my hard drive),
>reinserted it into the PF, took it out side, froze my butt off, powered
>it up, and waited. No joy...
>
>Before shutting it down I created a diagnostic dump file which can be
>looked at HERE
> if you
>know how. I also copied the log file to my drop box HERE
>. Reading
>it, it appears that the unit talked with the GPS and everything was OK,
>but it never received any satellites. That makes no sense unless
>there's a problem with the internal GPS antenna or circuit wiring.
>
>The log file implies to me that, during startup, the unit was looking
>for other files which it did not find. When I acquired the unit, it
>started right up without an SD card (which I purchased later). What
>might that mean?
>
>Dan
>
>On 11/27/2016 2:24 PM, Tim Newport-Peace wrote:
>> At 19:45 27 November 2016, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>>> On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 10:55:37 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>>>
>>>> Thanks for the information, Martin.
>>>>
>>>> Here are results from the last IGC file generated by my portable
unit:
>>>>
>>>> HFGPSType:u-blox LEA-6A .
>>>> .
>>>> .
>>>> F19130905101315182021252629
>>>>
>>>> But all of these were recorded while my portable was receiving GPS
>>>> signals. Now that it doesn't receive the GPS signals, it does not
>>>> create an IGC file... I'm getting the feeling that there's no
recourse
>>>> but to send it back for testing and repair.
>>>>
>>> If the PF can't read the A and H records and write them to the
beginning
>>> of the log maybe its got bigger problems than not finding the GRS
>>> receiver, so at least contacting Flarm or the local rep to report that
>>> your PF is not even writing the A and H records to the log and quoting
>>> its serial number at them may be a good start. After all, it was
working
>>> and suddenly now its not.
>>>
>>> *** One thought does occur: does the memory stick / SD card you're
>trying
>>> to write the log to have a write protect switch? If so, it may be
worth
>>> making sure that its set to 'write' and trying the start the PF again
if
>>> it was write protected.
>>>
>> Interesting...
>>
>> ANY IGC-approved recorder should record a file even if there is no GPS
>> signal. This is so it can act as an Electronic Barograph. This is
written
>> into the IGC Specification.
>>
>> Note: SeeYou will not display a file without GPS data, nonetheless a
file
>> should be created.
>>
>> An IGC file should be created once the minimum movement has been
>detected.
>> Without a GPS signal this will be a vertical movement (launch).
>>
>> If no file is created, this needs to be resolved. I seem to recall that
>> Flarm use the Real-Time Clock on the GPS board and if Flarm cannot read
>the
>> RTC, who knows?
>>
>> On the subject of SD cards, before reformatting, please read
>> https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4/
>>
>> An incorrectly formatted SD card is to be avoided.
>>
>
>--
>Dan, 5J
>

[Bob Gibbons[_2_]]

Have you considered replacing your batteries in the Portable?

From the last few lines of your dmp file.

00336.753 ERROR Insufficient supply voltage, shutting down
00336.754 ERROR Battery type: alkaline
00336.754 ERROR Battery voltage: 4.28
00336.755 ERROR External supply voltage: 0.00

Bob

On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 14:34:15 -0700, Dan Marotta
> wrote:

>Good thought about the SD card; it is/was not write protected. To
>verify, I deleted everything in it (after saving to my hard drive),
>reinserted it into the PF, took it out side, froze my butt off, powered
>it up, and waited. No joy...
>
>Before shutting it down I created a diagnostic dump file which can be
>looked at HERE
><https://www.dropbox.com/s/gbf2xgoij6kb98r/PFP00960.DMP?dl=0> if you
>know how. I also copied the log file to my drop box HERE
><https://www.dropbox.com/s/typrd4dz1a4g69t/PFP00960.TXT?dl=0>. Reading
>it, it appears that the unit talked with the GPS and everything was OK,
>but it never received any satellites. That makes no sense unless
>there's a problem with the internal GPS antenna or circuit wiring.
>
>The log file implies to me that, during startup, the unit was looking
>for other files which it did not find. When I acquired the unit, it
>started right up without an SD card (which I purchased later). What
>might that mean?
>
>Dan
>
>On 11/27/2016 2:24 PM, Tim Newport-Peace wrote:
>> At 19:45 27 November 2016, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>>> On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 10:55:37 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>>>
>>>> Thanks for the information, Martin.
>>>>
>>>> Here are results from the last IGC file generated by my portable unit:
>>>>
>>>> HFGPSType:u-blox LEA-6A .
>>>> .
>>>> .
>>>> F19130905101315182021252629
>>>>
>>>> But all of these were recorded while my portable was receiving GPS
>>>> signals. Now that it doesn't receive the GPS signals, it does not
>>>> create an IGC file... I'm getting the feeling that there's no recourse
>>>> but to send it back for testing and repair.
>>>>
>>> If the PF can't read the A and H records and write them to the beginning
>>> of the log maybe its got bigger problems than not finding the GRS
>>> receiver, so at least contacting Flarm or the local rep to report that
>>> your PF is not even writing the A and H records to the log and quoting
>>> its serial number at them may be a good start. After all, it was working
>>> and suddenly now its not.
>>>
>>> *** One thought does occur: does the memory stick / SD card you're trying
>>> to write the log to have a write protect switch? If so, it may be worth
>>> making sure that its set to 'write' and trying the start the PF again if
>>> it was write protected.
>>>
>> Interesting...
>>
>> ANY IGC-approved recorder should record a file even if there is no GPS
>> signal. This is so it can act as an Electronic Barograph. This is written
>> into the IGC Specification.
>>
>> Note: SeeYou will not display a file without GPS data, nonetheless a file
>> should be created.
>>
>> An IGC file should be created once the minimum movement has been detected.
>> Without a GPS signal this will be a vertical movement (launch).
>>
>> If no file is created, this needs to be resolved. I seem to recall that
>> Flarm use the Real-Time Clock on the GPS board and if Flarm cannot read the
>> RTC, who knows?
>>
>> On the subject of SD cards, before reformatting, please read
>> https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4/
>>
>> An incorrectly formatted SD card is to be avoided.
>>

[SoaringXCellence]

Dan,

My experience with the Portable PowerFlarm is that I need to replace the alkaline batteries every 4-5 hours.

I just went to the local low cost warehouse and bought a brick of alkalines and replace them every flight.

A better choice is to put rechargeable cells in the unit and the use ships power to run it. That leaves the internal battery for backup. Be sure to change the setting in the unit for the correct type of battery.

Mike

[Dan Daly[_2_]]

On Sunday, November 27, 2016 at 6:49:12 PM UTC-5, SoaringXCellence wrote:
> Dan,
>
> My experience with the Portable PowerFlarm is that I need to replace the alkaline batteries every 4-5 hours.
>
> I just went to the local low cost warehouse and bought a brick of alkalines and replace them every flight.
>
> A better choice is to put rechargeable cells in the unit and the use ships power to run it. That leaves the internal battery for backup. Be sure to change the setting in the unit for the correct type of battery.
>
> Mike

Link with FLARM recommendation for batteries for Portable:

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/rec.aviation.soaring/powerflarm$20portable$20batteries%7Csort:relevance/rec.aviation.soaring/rp5rNv1y80g/g17DkORP2XUJ

exerpt:
"...We have run various tests with high temperatures rechargeable
batteries and PowerFLARM.
I will spare you from the details, but the conclusions are:

1)
Recharging must take place in an area where the ambient temperature
does not surpass 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35C) as otherwise the PF
charging circuit will refuse to charge to prevent overheating.

2) Best rechargeable batteries to use (by far !) are:
Sanyo XX Battery Powered by eneloop, 2500mAh High Capacity, Ni-MH
http://tinyurl.com/PF-rechargeables

Make sure they are the XX 2500mAh type, Sanyo/eneloop also sells lower
capacity AA's

With these batteries we have repeatedly measured runtimes of over 9h
at 70C (158 F) ambient with full backlight.

We will update the manual accordingly.
Please also remember that PowerFLARM does not charge the batteries
when it is turned on.


See you all soon!
Urs
FLARM"

I checked and they're still on Amazon.

Dan
2D

[Martin Gregorie[_5_]]

On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 14:34:15 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:

> Good thought about the SD card; it is/was not write protected. To
> verify, I deleted everything in it (after saving to my hard drive),
> reinserted it into the PF, took it out side, froze my butt off, powered
> it up, and waited. No joy...
>
> Before shutting it down I created a diagnostic dump file which can be
> looked at HERE
> <https://www.dropbox.com/s/gbf2xgoij6kb98r/PFP00960.DMP?dl=0> if you
> know how.
>
I don't, so ignored it.

> I also copied the log file to my drop box HERE
> <https://www.dropbox.com/s/typrd4dz1a4g69t/PFP00960.TXT?dl=0>. Reading
> it, it appears that the unit talked with the GPS and everything was OK,
> but it never received any satellites. That makes no sense unless
> there's a problem with the internal GPS antenna or circuit wiring.
>
I think the clue is right at the end of the log:

00336.753 ERROR Insufficient supply voltage, shutting down
00336.754 ERROR Battery type: alkaline
00336.754 ERROR Battery voltage: 4.28
00336.755 ERROR External supply voltage: 0.00

...which looks as though the PF was running on an internal backup battery
because the external power was off or disconnected. However, the internal
alkaline battery (4.5v nominal?) seems to be rather old since it only
supplied 4.28v and the PF shut down due to low voltage.

From what that diagnostic log shows I think that if you replace the
alkaline batteries (not essential but a good idea anyway) and try again
with external power connected, the PF should work.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

[[email protected]]

Dan- If you decide you want to go with rechargeable and external power, I have a couple of the input plugs in the right size. Give me a shout next time you see me at the airport. Mark M.

[Richard[_9_]]

If you use external power you do not need batteries in the Portable Powerflarm.

If you do use batteries please read the following.

Rechargeable internal Batteries
The device features an internal NiMH battery charger only active when the device is turned off. When the device is turned off and electrically connected to the vehicle or aircraft battery (either via “Power” socket or power pins on the RJ45 socket), inserted batteries will be charged if the ambient temperature lies within the allowed range for charging NiMH batteries.
If non-rechargeable batteries are fitted to the device, never connect your device to an external power source (e.g. aircraft or vehicle battery)!
The internal batteries may only be charged if the device is resting on a non-flammable, dry base. When the device is being recharged, never allow it to remain unsupervised.
The integrated charging circuit will only charge batteries at an ambient temperature of up to about 40 °C (104 °F). If possible, charge your batteries in a cool, dry environment.

This is all in the manual.


Richard
www.craggyaero.com

[Richard[_9_]]

Power for the Portable Powerflarm.

Ensure any external power source is only connected in case no or only rechargeable batteries are in the device. External power might damage non-rechargeable batteries (risk of leakage).

Supplied power must be 12 V DC nominal at 500mA (between 8V and 27V DC, 24V DC nominal may require an additional adapter).
This power socket mates with a PP-012 connector (DigiKey part# CP-012-ND or power can be supplied thru the RJ45 port.

This is all in the manual.


Richard
www.craggyaero.com

[Dan Marotta]

Thanks, Tim, but I don't think so. I was shutting down the unit with
the knob when those lines were written. When I have it externally
powered for an hour it still does not receive satellites. And thanks
for taking the time to review the log.

Dan

On 11/27/2016 3:42 PM, Tim Newport-Peace wrote:
> Dan,
>
> I am not familiar with the log file, but the last lines of the log file
> read:
>
> 00336.753 ERROR Insufficient supply voltage, shutting down
> 00336.754 ERROR Battery type: alkaline
> 00336.754 ERROR Battery voltage: 4.28
> 00336.755 ERROR External supply voltage: 0.00
>
> Could this be a clue?
>
> Best regards,
>
> Tim.

--
Dan, 5J

[Dan Marotta]

Richard,

You are the first person to acknowledge the possibility of external
power which I've stated over and over again. I inserted weak
rechargeables simply to generate a log file at home. To repeat for the
last time - the PF Portable is powered externally via the ship's DC bus
in practice and, with external power it does not find any satellites. I
assure everyone, I've read the manual over and over. I've used screws
considerably shorter than the 10 mm maximum stated in the manual. And,
for the last time, I've run the unit with external power, rechargeable
batteries, and alkaline batteries and it still does not find any satellites.

Maybe I can find an external GPS antenna and see if it'll work that
way. I emailed Flarm support on Friday but have had no response. I'll
try again...

On 11/27/2016 6:28 PM, Richard wrote:
> If you use external power you do not need batteries in the Portable Powerflarm.
>
> If you do use batteries please read the following.
>
> Rechargeable internal Batteries
> The device features an internal NiMH battery charger only active when the device is turned off. When the device is turned off and electrically connected to the vehicle or aircraft battery (either via “Power” socket or power pins on the RJ45 socket), inserted batteries will be charged if the ambient temperature lies within the allowed range for charging NiMH batteries.
> If non-rechargeable batteries are fitted to the device, never connect your device to an external power source (e.g. aircraft or vehicle battery)!
> The internal batteries may only be charged if the device is resting on a non-flammable, dry base. When the device is being recharged, never allow it to remain unsupervised.
> The integrated charging circuit will only charge batteries at an ambient temperature of up to about 40 °C (104 °F). If possible, charge your batteries in a cool, dry environment.
>
> This is all in the manual.
>
>
> Richard
> www.craggyaero.com

--
Dan, 5J

[Martin Gregorie[_5_]]

On Mon, 28 Nov 2016 09:15:15 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:

> Thanks, Tim, but I don't think so. I was shutting down the unit with
> the knob when those lines were written. When I have it externally
> powered for an hour it still does not receive satellites. And thanks
> for taking the time to review the log.
>
Did you have internal batteries installed during this externally powered
trial? If so, what type were they?


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

[Dan Marotta]

No batteries were installed during use with external power connected
since the manual stated that alkaline batteries could leak with external
power connected and I don't have any rechargeables which are in decent
condition.

My wife compared the log file generated when the unit was working to the
log file generated after the unit failed and she found what looks like
some unexplained differences. I'm going back to square one to generate
a new FLARMcfg.TXT file and will try again with fresh batteries
installed since I'm at home and don't have access to external power.

I'll report back what I find...

On 11/28/2016 10:04 AM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
> On Mon, 28 Nov 2016 09:15:15 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>
>> Thanks, Tim, but I don't think so. I was shutting down the unit with
>> the knob when those lines were written. When I have it externally
>> powered for an hour it still does not receive satellites. And thanks
>> for taking the time to review the log.
>>
> Did you have internal batteries installed during this externally powered
> trial? If so, what type were they?
>
>

--
Dan, 5J

[Dan Daly[_2_]]

On Monday, November 28, 2016 at 2:50:59 PM UTC-5, Dan Marotta wrote:
> No batteries were installed during use with external power connected
> since the manual stated that alkaline batteries could leak with external
> power connected and I don't have any rechargeables which are in decent
> condition.
>
> My wife compared the log file generated when the unit was working to the
> log file generated after the unit failed and she found what looks like
> some unexplained differences. I'm going back to square one to generate
> a new FLARMcfg.TXT file and will try again with fresh batteries
> installed since I'm at home and don't have access to external power.
>
> I'll report back what I find...
>
> On 11/28/2016 10:04 AM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
> > On Mon, 28 Nov 2016 09:15:15 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
> >
> >> Thanks, Tim, but I don't think so. I was shutting down the unit with
> >> the knob when those lines were written. When I have it externally
> >> powered for an hour it still does not receive satellites. And thanks
> >> for taking the time to review the log.
> >>
> > Did you have internal batteries installed during this externally powered
> > trial? If so, what type were they?
> >
> >
>
> --
> Dan, 5J

Hi Dan. You might also want to reset the thing from scratch. See
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/rec.aviation.soaring/luke$20reset%7Csort:relevance/rec.aviation.soaring/hYQ8WNFITbA/Hzx35EMpDQAJ , in particular Luke's Aug 1 post.

I was having problems, redid firware, flarmcfg, nothing worked until I saw this and reset (obviously you have to redo firmware etc after reset. Works a treat now. Also did this for a club glider and it fixed that too. Going to do it every winter.

Dan
2D
still expect it is the antenna

[Dan Marotta]

I'll give it a shot, Dan. Lord knows, I've tried everything else.

Currently it's sitting out in my driveway in a zip-lock bag (since it's
snowing) and has fresh alkaline batteries installed. It has the
original CFG file and has been running for about 10 minutes with zero
satellites found. I believe it's the antenna, but will try your
suggestion in another 10 minutes...

Dan

On 11/28/2016 1:35 PM, Dan Daly wrote:
> On Monday, November 28, 2016 at 2:50:59 PM UTC-5, Dan Marotta wrote:
>> No batteries were installed during use with external power connected
>> since the manual stated that alkaline batteries could leak with external
>> power connected and I don't have any rechargeables which are in decent
>> condition.
>>
>> My wife compared the log file generated when the unit was working to the
>> log file generated after the unit failed and she found what looks like
>> some unexplained differences. I'm going back to square one to generate
>> a new FLARMcfg.TXT file and will try again with fresh batteries
>> installed since I'm at home and don't have access to external power.
>>
>> I'll report back what I find...
>>
>> On 11/28/2016 10:04 AM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>>> On Mon, 28 Nov 2016 09:15:15 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>>>
>>>> Thanks, Tim, but I don't think so. I was shutting down the unit with
>>>> the knob when those lines were written. When I have it externally
>>>> powered for an hour it still does not receive satellites. And thanks
>>>> for taking the time to review the log.
>>>>
>>> Did you have internal batteries installed during this externally powered
>>> trial? If so, what type were they?
>>>
>>>
>> --
>> Dan, 5J
> Hi Dan. You might also want to reset the thing from scratch. See
> https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/rec.aviation.soaring/luke$20reset%7Csort:relevance/rec.aviation.soaring/hYQ8WNFITbA/Hzx35EMpDQAJ , in particular Luke's Aug 1 post.
>
> I was having problems, redid firware, flarmcfg, nothing worked until I saw this and reset (obviously you have to redo firmware etc after reset. Works a treat now. Also did this for a club glider and it fixed that too. Going to do it every winter.
>
> Dan
> 2D
> still expect it is the antenna

--
Dan, 5J

[Dan Marotta]

Well, nothing has worked. Here's the GPS applicable stuff from the
latest log file:

00001.678 INFO Initializing GPS
00001.678 INFO river\lea5.c:427 Starting to scan baud rate
00001.678 INFO river\lea5.c:780 Trying 9600
00001.690 INFO river\lea5.c:435 GPS connected at rate: 9600
00002.697 INFO river\lea5.c:459 Initializing for PowerFLARM Portable
00002.697 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying Antenna
00002.739 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying Rate
00002.751 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying Time pulse
00002.769 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying Navigation
00002.787 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying SBAS
00002.799 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying POSLLH message
00002.811 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying VELNED message
00002.823 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying STATUS message
00002.835 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying SVINFO message
00002.847 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying DOP message
00002.859 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying TIMEUTC message
00002.877 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying GGA message
00002.889 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying RMC message
00002.901 INFO river\lea5.c:886 Applying HW message
00002.913 INFO OK

That looks to me like the GPS is working, but no satellites are being
found. Looks like I'll be sending it in...

Thanks to everyone who tried to help.

Dan

On 11/28/2016 2:24 PM, Dan Marotta wrote:
> I'll give it a shot, Dan. Lord knows, I've tried everything else.
>
> Currently it's sitting out in my driveway in a zip-lock bag (since
> it's snowing) and has fresh alkaline batteries installed. It has the
> original CFG file and has been running for about 10 minutes with zero
> satellites found. I believe it's the antenna, but will try your
> suggestion in another 10 minutes...
>
> Dan
>
> On 11/28/2016 1:35 PM, Dan Daly wrote:
>> On Monday, November 28, 2016 at 2:50:59 PM UTC-5, Dan Marotta wrote:
>>> No batteries were installed during use with external power connected
>>> since the manual stated that alkaline batteries could leak with
>>> external
>>> power connected and I don't have any rechargeables which are in decent
>>> condition.
>>>
>>> My wife compared the log file generated when the unit was working to
>>> the
>>> log file generated after the unit failed and she found what looks like
>>> some unexplained differences. I'm going back to square one to generate
>>> a new FLARMcfg.TXT file and will try again with fresh batteries
>>> installed since I'm at home and don't have access to external power.
>>>
>>> I'll report back what I find...
>>>
>>> On 11/28/2016 10:04 AM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>>>> On Mon, 28 Nov 2016 09:15:15 -0700, Dan Marotta wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Thanks, Tim, but I don't think so. I was shutting down the unit with
>>>>> the knob when those lines were written. When I have it externally
>>>>> powered for an hour it still does not receive satellites. And thanks
>>>>> for taking the time to review the log.
>>>>>
>>>> Did you have internal batteries installed during this externally
>>>> powered
>>>> trial? If so, what type were they?
>>>>
>>> --
>>> Dan, 5J
>> Hi Dan. You might also want to reset the thing from scratch. See
>> https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/rec.aviation.soaring/luke$20reset%7Csort:relevance/rec.aviation.soaring/hYQ8WNFITbA/Hzx35EMpDQAJ
>> , in particular Luke's Aug 1 post.
>>
>> I was having problems, redid firware, flarmcfg, nothing worked until
>> I saw this and reset (obviously you have to redo firmware etc after
>> reset. Works a treat now. Also did this for a club glider and it
>> fixed that too. Going to do it every winter.
>>
>> Dan
>> 2D
>> still expect it is the antenna
>

--
Dan, 5J