Zaon MRX Portable Collision Avoidance System
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The same question was being asked on Glider Pilot Network > Welcome a few days ago. A very approximate sample at Lasham indicated about 50% of the cross-country gliders had FLARM. Lasham is one of the larger glider sites in the UK.
Sampling at less expensive clubs than Lasham would probably give a lower result but the figure is believed to be steadily increasing.
Sampling at less expensive clubs than Lasham would probably give a lower result but the figure is believed to be steadily increasing.
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About 15% of the UK glider fleet were Flarm equipped summer last year. Flarm was not legal in the UK until October 08. The gliders which are equipped are the ones most likely to be flying long distance. (from my Flyer articule)
Rod1
Rod1
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Powerflarm looks great and im sure Zaon will come up with some new product that equals it soon. Hopefully more gliders will start using FLARM in the future.
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Powerflarm does look good BUT the Mode A/C reception is non directional by the looks of it. That is a shame, the XRX is directional and pretty accurate in my experience and most of the time it plots the other traffic in the right place on the GPS screen. It would be nice to be able to buy a Powerflarm which could be hidden away and interfaced to a display device (like a GPS) but also had hull mounted antenna and could accurately plot Mode A/C/S ADS-B and FLARM - that would be a great product and i'd buy one.
I fear bureaucracy in the form of Major Mods would get in the way and drive the price up to the normal avionics minimum price of £10k though...
Tempted to buy a standalone Flarm to sit on the top of the dash though...especially for flights to the Alps.
I fear bureaucracy in the form of Major Mods would get in the way and drive the price up to the normal avionics minimum price of £10k though...
Tempted to buy a standalone Flarm to sit on the top of the dash though...especially for flights to the Alps.
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It just specifies the distance and altitude so I presume it is similar to the Zaon MRX as in non directional. Shame, if it was directional I'd consider swapping the Zaon for one. I did email the chap at LX Avionics a while back and suggested they support an output to devices that can accept a TIS input, such as the Garmin GPS's so that the traffic can be displayed on these devices, but I guess that isn't included. Not such a big deal as it has a decent display though...
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PowerFLARM is not going to have directional Mode-S/C/A reception. It warns like e.g. the ZAON MRX does, yet it offers dramatically improved warning-technology, avoiding nuisance/false alarms. ADS-B and FLARM reception of course are fully directional (exact GPS position and pressure altitude.)
To sum it all up: PowerFLARM wanrs from all other PowerFLARM equipped aircraft and also from:
1090 ADS-B: full 3D positon, at the moment mostly commercial airliners and Business-Jets
Mode-S/A/C: Ranging and exact altitude, nearly any aircraft
FLARM: full 3D position, nearly all gliders in Europe, many preorders in US
Obstacles
the PowerFLARM will cost € 1499,-- (£1321,--) and will be released at the AERO 2010 http://www.aero-expo.com/aero-de/besucher/news.php.
Yes it will be possible to power the unit completely on batteries.
You need 6 interchangeable AA-batteriesan the time is 8 hours.
Here the link for the english technical specifications.
http://www.butterfly.aero/powerflarm/fly/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=102&Itemid=174& lang=en
To sum it all up: PowerFLARM wanrs from all other PowerFLARM equipped aircraft and also from:
1090 ADS-B: full 3D positon, at the moment mostly commercial airliners and Business-Jets
Mode-S/A/C: Ranging and exact altitude, nearly any aircraft
FLARM: full 3D position, nearly all gliders in Europe, many preorders in US
Obstacles
the PowerFLARM will cost € 1499,-- (£1321,--) and will be released at the AERO 2010 http://www.aero-expo.com/aero-de/besucher/news.php.
Yes it will be possible to power the unit completely on batteries.
You need 6 interchangeable AA-batteriesan the time is 8 hours.
Here the link for the english technical specifications.
http://www.butterfly.aero/powerflarm/fly/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=102&Itemid=174& lang=en
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Hi Liam,
Did that info come from PowerFlarm?
If so, I'd say it's a disappointment. I'd certainly want directional warnings for mode a/c at that price.
The Zaon still looks a better bet I think.
dp
Did that info come from PowerFlarm?
If so, I'd say it's a disappointment. I'd certainly want directional warnings for mode a/c at that price.
The Zaon still looks a better bet I think.
dp
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I have been refraining from commenting on the direction issue but;
All the manufacture guidance I have seen and the CAA’s own CAP all recommend that you treat the directional data with suspicion and avoid traffic using the height comparison only. This is true of kit costing £25k, let alone £1k. In my experience it is very easy to avoid a collision given the MRX data (in VFR conditions). I think PF is a very interesting device and I hope to borrow one and do a write up for Flyer when it comes out.
On the UK Flarm figure of 15% of gliders, remember that was over a very short time and it is increasing rapidly.
Rod1
All the manufacture guidance I have seen and the CAA’s own CAP all recommend that you treat the directional data with suspicion and avoid traffic using the height comparison only. This is true of kit costing £25k, let alone £1k. In my experience it is very easy to avoid a collision given the MRX data (in VFR conditions). I think PF is a very interesting device and I hope to borrow one and do a write up for Flyer when it comes out.
On the UK Flarm figure of 15% of gliders, remember that was over a very short time and it is increasing rapidly.
Rod1
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The Zaon XRX traffic data is very good if mounted correctly. Mine gives very accurate results in a 270 degree arc around the front of the aeroplane. I get occasional spurious traffic info from traffic directly behind me but that is not normaly an issue and the heigh readout is good.
I see the Aera now supports Traffic from the Zaon:
I see the Aera now supports Traffic from the Zaon:
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Yes it did.
I think the addition of ADS-B and FLARM makes this unit stand out though, but i agree lack of direction is a shame.
Not sure what
"To sum it all up: PowerFLARM warns from all other PowerFLARM equipped aircraft" means though, I dont think it has anything extra over flarm.
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what would you buy at the moment or wait?
I considering buying a PCAS to be used mostly in Europe. A XRX or a powerflarm??
Does anyone know within what time frame or if there's a possibility that Zaon will introduce a new device soon??
My idea is, if GARMIN would have any sense of conker the aviation market some more, they would buy the Zaon company and integrate it all in there portable 496 with a screen that is a little bigger (but not as big as the 696), and add a rotating knob like on the GNS430.
I'm just wondering what to buy. And I'm also a little worried that the cockpit will de covered with cables powering the Zaon and a 496....
Thank you
Does anyone know within what time frame or if there's a possibility that Zaon will introduce a new device soon??
My idea is, if GARMIN would have any sense of conker the aviation market some more, they would buy the Zaon company and integrate it all in there portable 496 with a screen that is a little bigger (but not as big as the 696), and add a rotating knob like on the GNS430.
I'm just wondering what to buy. And I'm also a little worried that the cockpit will de covered with cables powering the Zaon and a 496....
Thank you
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To update the figure that Rod obtained last year, I understand that the number of Flarm units sold in the UK is now equivalent to approximately 25% of the UK gliders, and the figure is still growing.
Nobody knows for certain, but I suspect that there will be a higher proportion of cross-country gliders equipped with Flarm, than the average which includes all those that remain usually fairly local to their home airfield.
A small number of Flarm units have also been sold to power aircraft operators, I understand.
Re lack of direction information from transponders in aircraft detected by PowerFlarm: is it because there is only a single aerial on this portable kit, and consequently it cannot determine direction? ADSB and Flarm signals include the transmitting aircraft’s GPS coordinates, from which a comparison can be made with the receiving GPS position. I don't see how a transponder signal can give other than range (computed from signal strength) and height difference (computed from mode C transmission). If there is another way, could someone please educate me by saying what it is?
Chris N
Nobody knows for certain, but I suspect that there will be a higher proportion of cross-country gliders equipped with Flarm, than the average which includes all those that remain usually fairly local to their home airfield.
A small number of Flarm units have also been sold to power aircraft operators, I understand.
Re lack of direction information from transponders in aircraft detected by PowerFlarm: is it because there is only a single aerial on this portable kit, and consequently it cannot determine direction? ADSB and Flarm signals include the transmitting aircraft’s GPS coordinates, from which a comparison can be made with the receiving GPS position. I don't see how a transponder signal can give other than range (computed from signal strength) and height difference (computed from mode C transmission). If there is another way, could someone please educate me by saying what it is?
Chris N