|
nufmuff
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 5,
Visits: 7
|
Just wondering how best to connect the Safe Sky App with Sky Demon.
I would appear to need to connect Safe Sky to SD using the GDL90 option.
If I also use an external Bluetooth GPS (e.g Garmin Glo) to take advantage of the improved GPS receiver with SD, I need to “go flying” with “use location services”. The Bluetooth GPS won’t connect with SD using the GDL90 protocol.
If run the SafeSky App as well as SD and “go flying” with GDL90 I see the SS traffic on SD and a GPS position. That GPS position coming from the devices GPS receivers presumably via SS?
If I then add to the above my Bluetooth Garmin Glo I should also be getting an improved GPS position from the Glo on SD but via SS. Is this correct? This means I’m reliant on SS for my GPS position In SD?
If I use my SkyEcho2 with SD and “Go Flying” with GDL90 I get a GPS position from the Echo unit regardless of SS’s status. If I activate SS and take off with SS passing traffic and SkyEcho2 data to SD the aircraft position on SD looks like it’s tussling with itself ; constantly moving from one position to another. As if it’s oscillating between the Echo’s GPS data and the internal GPS data from the device?
How do I get a single accurate GPS position to SD (best way I’ve ever found to do this is Garmin Glo on the glare shield, great view of the sky, bluetoothed to device - never drops out / infinitely more reliable that SkyEcho2). And add the SS traffic on top - no GPS position from SS.
|
|
|
|
|
Tim Dawson
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 7.9K,
Visits: 8.8K
|
You can't. SkyDemon can only connect to one source of position and traffic data. I believe SafeSky has a pass-through feature whereby it can connect to another GDL90 source, and mesh that with its traffic data, and send that through, so that should work. It probably won't let you use the GLO though.
|
|
|
|
|
nufmuff
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 5,
Visits: 7
|
Thanks Tim. I’ve done about 300 hours flying using both a Garmin Glo and XGPS160 Bluetooth GPS receivers. Both normally operating at the same time, one being essentially a backup for the other on different devices. In that time I’ve never had to reset either and can only think of one occasion where I lost reception and that happened on both devices at the same time and resumed pretty much immediately.
I’ve done about 15 hours flying with a SkyEcho2 and have have several lost fix moments and 2 occasions of needing to turn things off and on to get it to reconnect. The practical reality of using this unit is that it creates unnecessary distraction. Forums are littered with similar comments. Wi-Fi in a GA cockpit for continuous connection to devices for so many reasons doesn’t seem like a particularly reliable connection system. The traffic the SkyEcho2 receives is also very limited or at least quite hit and miss!
How difficult would it be to allow SkyDemon to use your devices internal GPS sensors (which becomes your Bluetooth portable unit if connected) for GPS Position. And add the SafeSky (or sky echo) traffic on top so you can see it on your map? SafeSky seeming to give a much more reliable broader traffic picture than SkyEcho (and you can connect SkyEcho to Safe Sky as well if you wish).
|
|
|
|
|
Tim Dawson
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 7.9K,
Visits: 8.8K
|
Sorry, re-engineering SkyDemon to work around the shortcomings of third-party devices isn't something we really have the time for at the moment. If your SkyEcho does go offline, you can press the button on the banner to positively indicate you'd like to temporarily revert to Location Services for your position, and that will work fine. When your SkyEcho comes back, SkyDemon will automatically switch back to it. That will give you effectively what you proposed above, you just need to positively signal that you want to switch to the backup.
For what it's worth, I have encouraged third-party device manufacturers (including uAvionix, who produce the SkyEcho) to switch to using Bluetooth for more reliable connectivity with SkyDemon.
|
|
|
|
|
fruitloops101
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 34,
Visits: 133
|
+xSorry, re-engineering SkyDemon to work around the shortcomings of third-party devices isn't something we really have the time for at the moment. If your SkyEcho does go offline, you can press the button on the banner to positively indicate you'd like to temporarily revert to Location Services for your position, and that will work fine. When your SkyEcho comes back, SkyDemon will automatically switch back to it. That will give you effectively what you proposed above, you just need to positively signal that you want to switch to the backup.
For what it's worth, I have encouraged third-party device manufacturers (including uAvionix, who produce the SkyEcho) to switch to using Bluetooth for more reliable connectivity with SkyDemon. Tim I've had a long correspondence with uAvionix regarding SkyEcho disconnects. Long story short, the problem appears to be independent of the platform/version of the target device and they don't know what causes it. The best workaround we could come up with was to SPECIFY A WIFI CHANNEL IN THE SKYECHO SETUP (as opposed to having "auto" selected). This did not reduce the incidence of dropouts, however it very much speed up recovery times - down to a few seconds in most instances - so that it reconnected before SD even got around to displaying the dropout banner. Hope this might be of some help.
|
|
|
|
|
André
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 24,
Visits: 57
|
This was perhaps already stated, if so I didn’t quite get it.
I am planning on using the same setup; SkyDemon (SD), an external GPS (Garmin GLO 2) and SafeSky (SS). I understand the way it should be set up, selecting “GDL90” when “go fly” with SkyDemon. This way, SD gathers information about both other traffic, AND my GPS position, from SS. I’ve read about users wanting an option for SD to only gather traffic information from SS and get the GPS position data from local services.
What I still haven’t figured out is where SS gets the GPS data from? If I have hooked the external Garmin GPS up to the iPad, does SS get GPS data from the internal or the external GPS? If SS gets the GPS data from the external GPS, I guess it doesn’t really matter if SD takes the extra unnecessary step through SS to get the GPS data. Obviously it would be more elegant and probably more battery efficient if SD got the GPS data directly from the internal/external GPS…
Q1: Where does SafeSky get its GPS data from if the iPad is connected to an external GPS (eg. Garmin GLO 2)?
|
|
|
|
|
nufmuff
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 5,
Visits: 7
|
I have asked the “where does SS get its GPS data from” question on the SafeSky forum and as of yet don’t have a clear answer from the developers. I was just directed to the manual which doesn’t help !
What I’ve ended up doing is using SD on iPad with my Glo as its own entity ; i know this is reliable. And then using split screen on that iPad, running SS with my Sky Echo 2 connected but not connected to SD. This seems to give the best traffic display (as in the most traffic and the most accurate traffic display - SkyEcho2 on it’s own seems very hit and miss as far as seeing traffic is concerned). You can easily move the split in the screen left and right and even remove it by swiping. Doesn’t seem to impinge to heavily on battery consumption. No crashing or anything ……..
Just because it’s in the cockpit with you I also repeat that setup with my iPhone and another external Bluetooth GPS / SS etc. Good backup if anything goes amiss although you have to look at one app or the other on a phone. And you need to make sure you tell your devices to ignore one of the Bluetooth GPS receivers.
Interestingly, when I spoke to Garmin Tech Support some years ago about the original Glo unit, the guy said it has the same chip in it as the 6 and 750 units. You just have to make sure it’s looking up at the sky ie flat on the dash. If you sucker it to the window so you can see the LED’S, the reception is reduced.
|
|
|
|
|
André
|
|
|
Group: Forum Members
Posts: 24,
Visits: 57
|
+xI have asked the “where does SS get its GPS data from” question on the SafeSky forum and as of yet don’t have a clear answer from the developers. I was just directed to the manual which doesn’t help !
What I’ve ended up doing is using SD on iPad with my Glo as its own entity ; i know this is reliable. And then using split screen on that iPad, running SS with my Sky Echo 2 connected but not connected to SD. This seems to give the best traffic display (as in the most traffic and the most accurate traffic display - SkyEcho2 on it’s own seems very hit and miss as far as seeing traffic is concerned). You can easily move the split in the screen left and right and even remove it by swiping. Doesn’t seem to impinge to heavily on battery consumption. No crashing or anything ……..
Just because it’s in the cockpit with you I also repeat that setup with my iPhone and another external Bluetooth GPS / SS etc. Good backup if anything goes amiss although you have to look at one app or the other on a phone. And you need to make sure you tell your devices to ignore one of the Bluetooth GPS receivers.
Interestingly, when I spoke to Garmin Tech Support some years ago about the original Glo unit, the guy said it has the same chip in it as the 6 and 750 units. You just have to make sure it’s looking up at the sky ie flat on the dash. If you sucker it to the window so you can see the LED’S, the reception is reduced.
Thank you for the reply!
|
|
|
|