I have had many calls recently about range problems with Powerflarm.between your antenna and the target).
Most think it is related to the antenna. Sometimes yes and sometimes no.
Antennas are very simple. If you have metal or carbon fiber between your antenna and the target you will not see the target.
Antennas mounted below the panel cover will probably have degraded or no range. Antennas partially sticking out of the instrument panel cover also will have degraded range. These antennas may partially work in a thermal with a high bank angle (no block
If you have good antenna installations it is probably related to a damaged board in the PowerFlarm.
See this link for antenna installation
https://www.craggyaero.com/PowerFlarm/Application-Note-FLARM-Antenna-Installation-1.pdf
See this link for different antenna solutions.
https://www.craggyaero.com/cables_&_antennas.htm
See this link for PowerFlarm Testing and and repair.
https://www.craggyaero.com/powerflarm_fsp.htm
Richard,
www.craggyaero.com
Your antenna is a dipole (or in some cases, a 1/4 wave antenna which needs a ground plane). In both cases, the antenna should be as close to vertical in flight as possible; this maximizes the signal gain just above and below the horizon - our primarythreats. Richard's comments on carbon fibre or metal gliders shielding transmissions is correct, and we should push manufacturers into building flarm antenna locations that give good RF 'visibility' in all directions into the high performing and very
On 7/1/23 10:44 AM, Dan Daly wrote:threats. Richard's comments on carbon fibre or metal gliders shielding transmissions is correct, and we should push manufacturers into building flarm antenna locations that give good RF 'visibility' in all directions into the high performing and very
Your antenna is a dipole (or in some cases, a 1/4 wave antenna which needs a ground plane). In both cases, the antenna should be as close to vertical in flight as possible; this maximizes the signal gain just above and below the horizon - our primary
I just got back from a big glider event where some people were
complaining about poor PF performance.
It's become popular to install quarter wave whips on the glare shield,
along with a ground plane on the bottom side of the shield.
Unfortunately, people have gone overboard on the ground planes. If a
small one is good, a huge one must be better! I saw several that were
at least 7 x 7 inches.
Unfortunately, they were forgetting about GPS antennas that were mounted down lower behind the panel. One guy had a GPS antenna directly below
the ground plane! His PF sorta worked, but kept dropping in and out.
Flarms, Hawks, and other beloved electronics won't work at all without
good GPS reception. We remounted the gps forward to get it out of the
shadow of the ground plane, and he immediately reported much better performance. Hard to believe, but sometimes fixing one problem can
create others.
I fly a 26E, which has aramid in the nose apparently for crash
protection. A single dipole antenna down at the left rudder pedal works well. It's not an optimal position, but good enough. It doesn't let me
leach gliders at 40 miles, but I find collision avoidance for those
targets isn't needed.
-Dave
On Saturday, July 1, 2023 at 12:42:40 PM UTC-7, kinsell wrote:primary threats. Richard's comments on carbon fibre or metal gliders shielding transmissions is correct, and we should push manufacturers into building flarm antenna locations that give good RF 'visibility' in all directions into the high performing and
On 7/1/23 10:44 AM, Dan Daly wrote:
Your antenna is a dipole (or in some cases, a 1/4 wave antenna which needs a ground plane). In both cases, the antenna should be as close to vertical in flight as possible; this maximizes the signal gain just above and below the horizon - our
I have two dipole antennas Flarm B and ADSB in the nose of my ventus b it is fiberglass and they work well.I just got back from a big glider event where some people were
complaining about poor PF performance.
It's become popular to install quarter wave whips on the glare shield, along with a ground plane on the bottom side of the shield.
Unfortunately, people have gone overboard on the ground planes. If a
small one is good, a huge one must be better! I saw several that were
at least 7 x 7 inches.
Unfortunately, they were forgetting about GPS antennas that were mounted down lower behind the panel. One guy had a GPS antenna directly below
the ground plane! His PF sorta worked, but kept dropping in and out.
Flarms, Hawks, and other beloved electronics won't work at all without good GPS reception. We remounted the gps forward to get it out of the shadow of the ground plane, and he immediately reported much better performance. Hard to believe, but sometimes fixing one problem can
create others.
I fly a 26E, which has aramid in the nose apparently for crash
protection. A single dipole antenna down at the left rudder pedal works well. It's not an optimal position, but good enough. It doesn't let me leach gliders at 40 miles, but I find collision avoidance for those targets isn't needed.
-DaveDave,
I have found that the max flarm range is 5 to 8 NM , any thing over that is ADSB targets
Richard
On 7/1/23 10:44 AM, Dan Daly wrote:
Your antenna is a dipole (or in some cases, a 1/4 wave antenna which
needs a ground plane). In both cases, the antenna should be as close
to vertical in flight as possible; this maximizes the signal gain just
above and below the horizon - our primary threats. Richard's comments
on carbon fibre or metal gliders shielding transmissions is correct,
and we should push manufacturers into building flarm antenna locations
that give good RF 'visibility' in all directions into the high
performing and very spendy gliders they have for sale, though that
won't fix the problem for many, many years. Some factories are doing
this now, some don't seem to be.
I just got back from a big glider event where some people were
complaining about poor PF performance.
It's become popular to install quarter wave whips on the glare shield,
along with a ground plane on the bottom side of the shield.
Unfortunately, people have gone overboard on the ground planes. If a
small one is good, a huge one must be better! I saw several that were
at least 7 x 7 inches.
Unfortunately, they were forgetting about GPS antennas that were mounted
down lower behind the panel. One guy had a GPS antenna directly below
the ground plane! His PF sorta worked, but kept dropping in and out.
Flarms, Hawks, and other beloved electronics won't work at all without
good GPS reception. We remounted the gps forward to get it out of the shadow of the ground plane, and he immediately reported much better performance. Hard to believe, but sometimes fixing one problem can
create others.
I fly a 26E, which has aramid in the nose apparently for crash
protection. A single dipole antenna down at the left rudder pedal works well. It's not an optimal position, but good enough. It doesn't let me leach gliders at 40 miles, but I find collision avoidance for those
targets isn't needed.
-Dave
I have had many calls recently about range problems with Powerflarm.between your antenna and the target).
Most think it is related to the antenna. Sometimes yes and sometimes no.
Antennas are very simple. If you have metal or carbon fiber between your antenna and the target you will not see the target.
Antennas mounted below the panel cover will probably have degraded or no range. Antennas partially sticking out of the instrument panel cover also will have degraded range. These antennas may partially work in a thermal with a high bank angle (no block
If you have good antenna installations it is probably related to a damaged board in the PowerFlarm.
See this link for antenna installation
https://www.craggyaero.com/PowerFlarm/Application-Note-FLARM-Antenna-Installation-1.pdf
See this link for different antenna solutions.
https://www.craggyaero.com/cables_&_antennas.htm
See this link for PowerFlarm Testing and and repair.
https://www.craggyaero.com/powerflarm_fsp.htm
Richard,
www.craggyaero.com
I wonder if adding something like this https://v3.airspy.us/product/upu-fp915s/ to amplify the signal would help range? I include this in all of my OGN kits and it filters and boosts by 16db consuming only 50mA. I have a spare one I plan to try on myPF antenna B which is passive (rx only).
The problem with that preamplifier is that powerflarm transmits and receives on the same antenna. This preamplifier can't handle the transmit.
I plan to try on my PF antenna B which is passive (rx only)
I wonder if adding something like this https://v3.airspy.us/product/upu-fp915s/ to amplify the signal would help range? I include this in all of my OGN kits and it filters and boosts by 16db consuming only 50mA. I have a spare one I plan to try on myPF antenna B which is passive (rx only).
On 9/5/2023 1:04 AM, Davis Chappins wrote:
I wonder if adding something like this
https://v3.airspy.us/product/upu-fp915s/ to amplify the signal would
help range? I include this in all of my OGN kits and it filters and
boosts by 16db consuming only 50mA. I have a spare one I plan to try
on my PF antenna B which is passive (rx only).
I'd be curious if that helps. But I think the main limit to reception
range on a FLARM is the poor antenna. There isn't room in a glider for
a really good antenna, which needs to be about 3 feet tall - like the
ones (12 dB) typically used in OGN ground stations. A compromise
antenna that is about half that long (8 dB?) may be worth a try. If
your goal is to receive FLARM signals from far away.
Remember that FLARM was designed for short-range collision avoidance,
not long-range "radar". It is cool that despite that, and the poor antennas, we often "see" each other from 5, 10, 20 miles away. And OGN ground stations in open locations and with good antennas (and the
pre-amp) can receive FLARM transmissions (about 1/40-th of a watt!) from
up to 100 miles away.
To connect it to PF antenna A or either on PF Fusion (which tx/rx on both antennas) you could use https://v3.airspy.us/product/upu-fp915sb/The problem with that preamplifier is that powerflarm transmits and receives on the same antenna. This preamplifier can't handle the transmit.I plan to try on my PF antenna B which is passive (rx only)
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