Chartplotter autopilot integration question?

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Deleted User YDKXO

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On my boat I have a Geonav 11C plotter on the fly helm and a Geonav 7C at the lower helm. In all respects each plotter seems to operate independently and one doesn't seem to be a slave of the other. The 7C at the lower helm is linked to the Raymarine ST6000 autopilot and I can use the Track function of the autopilot to follow a course plotted on the chartplotter as normal. The 11C on the upper helm doesn't seem to be linked to the pilot in any way so I can't use the Track function from the upper helm which is a bit of a pain 'coz thats where I mostly drive from. The other pain is that if I want to move downstairs to the lower helm, if sea or weather conditions deteriorate, I have to re- plot all the waypoints into the 7C at the lower helm unless I remember to do it in advance.
Is there any way of integrating both plotters such that one plotter is the slave of the other? Ideally I'd want the 11C at the upper helm to be the main and the 7C at the lower helm to be the slave.
Secondly, is it possible to integrate both plotters with the pilot such that I can choose which plotter drives the pilot?
I have to say that I would rather not change either of the plotters or the pilot to achieve this as all are still perfectly serviceable
 
Deleted User said:
On my boat I have a Geonav 11C plotter on the fly helm and a Geonav 7C at the lower helm. In all respects each plotter seems to operate independently and one doesn't seem to be a slave of the other. The 7C at the lower helm is linked to the Raymarine ST6000 autopilot and I can use the Track function of the autopilot to follow a course plotted on the chartplotter as normal. The 11C on the upper helm doesn't seem to be linked to the pilot in any way so I can't use the Track function from the upper helm which is a bit of a pain 'coz thats where I mostly drive from. The other pain is that if I want to move downstairs to the lower helm, if sea or weather conditions deteriorate, I have to re- plot all the waypoints into the 7C at the lower helm unless I remember to do it in advance.
Is there any way of integrating both plotters such that one plotter is the slave of the other? Ideally I'd want the 11C at the upper helm to be the main and the 7C at the lower helm to be the slave.
Secondly, is it possible to integrate both plotters with the pilot such that I can choose which plotter drives the pilot?
I have to say that I would rather not change either of the plotters or the pilot to achieve this as all are still perfectly serviceable
Click to expand...

How you have the nerve to come here and ask another technical question is beyond me, tut, tut, tut.
 
Mike, just been looking at the Geonav manuals, Page 81 for the 11c and page 72 for the 7c both talk of networking the plotters. It certainly reads to me that if you set the ethernet network up, you should be able to change the Easy Pilot functions from either plotter.

(No direct experience of your plotters, just reading the manuals)
 
Thanks nickd and PaulGooch for replies. I guess I should have read the manual but I wouldn't have known what an ethernet cable is anyway so your input is much appreciated!
 
Deleted User said:
Ah yes, the cables what connect the internet box in my house to the wall. Now I understand:)
Click to expand...

Thems the ones :) Get a big long one, connect to the upstairs plotter, route to the downstairs one and follow the setup gubbins in the book. Not sure of the exact specifics of your plotters Mike, didn't read the books in depth, but you can usually run the two plotters with a single chart and single GPS antenna if the are networked. (although two antennas doe give some redundancy)
 
Just drifting the thread ever so slightly...............

I never felt comfortable using the tracking function on the autopilot. I felt that I didn't want to rely totally on the electronics so I would always plot a course with waypoints - including at approx 10 mile intervals in straight lines - and was quite happy to reset the autopilot at each waypoint and to make small adjustments on the way if the boat started drifting from the plotted course.

When using full tracking mode I felt I was not fully in control of the boats actions, and that I wasn't concentrating enough on where the boat was pointed - what if i had made a plotting error and forgot the sandbank between waypoint a & b!

Probably just my paranoia but every time I tried full autotracking I always ended up switching it off. It was a similar feeling to driving the car without a seatbelt, it just didn't feel right

Martyn
 
PaulGooch said:
Thems the ones :) Get a big long one, connect to the upstairs plotter, route to the downstairs one and follow the setup gubbins in the book. Not sure of the exact specifics of your plotters Mike, didn't read the books in depth, but you can usually run the two plotters with a single chart and single GPS antenna if the are networked. (although two antennas doe give some redundancy)
Click to expand...

Big prob, Paul. The rectangular plastic plug jobbie doesn't look like its going to fit into the round 6 pin network connector socket on the back of the plotter. If I push it on hard enough, it'll work though, won't it? Otherwise I'm going to have to talk to my man what does
 
You will need a crossover, because I am sure you are not going to go via an ethernet hub.

Connecting the instruments
The installation of the Geonav Link network, to be carried out
only by skilled personnel, requires the use of Ethernet standard
cables and connectors (UTP cat. 5 cable and RJ-45 connector).
To connect several instruments to the network, use
the cable supplied for linking each plotter to an Ethernet standard
hub. To execute a point-to-point link between two instruments
only, use the cable supplied as well as a crossover.

It does say RJ-45, but as you say, it is NOT an RJ-45 connector!!
 
Deleted User said:
Big prob, Paul. The rectangular plastic plug jobbie doesn't look like its going to fit into the round 6 pin network connector socket on the back of the plotter. If I push it on hard enough, it'll work though, won't it? Otherwise I'm going to have to talk to my man what does
Click to expand...

Apologies Mike, i was going by the section on page 72 of the 7c manual :

Connecting the instruments
The installation of the Geonav Link network, to be carried out
only by skilled personnel, requires the use of Ethernet standard
cables and connectors (UTP cat. 5 cable and RJ-45 connector).
To connect several instruments to the network, use
the cable supplied for linking each plotter to an Ethernet standard
hub. To execute a point-to-point link between two instruments
only, use the cable supplied as well as a crossover.
Click to expand...

After looking at the pictures of the rear panel connectors, i see you're right, round 6 pin plugs.

What i suspect (and it's only an educated guess), is you'll need a special cable, that most likely fits the plotter and then terminates with a standard RJ-45 connector. You could then use an ethernet hub to connect the two together, or a cat5 crossover cable. It looks like Radar uses the ethernet connection too, although the manuals and Geonav website are a bit vague. Do you have radar Mike ?
 
PaulGooch said:
What i suspect (and it's only an educated guess), is you'll need a special cable, that most likely fits the plotter and then terminates with a standard RJ-45 connector. You could then use an ethernet hub to connect the two together, or a cat5 crossover cable. It looks like Radar uses the ethernet connection too, although the manuals and Geonav website are a bit vague. Do you have radar Mike ?
Click to expand...

Bugger, it was all so simple. Down to PC World, buy a telephone cable and Bobs yer uncle. Now you're talking goobly gook again! Yup, got radar and its definitely networked to the lower 7C plotter 'coz the little lollipop thing comes up on the screen
 
MedDreamer said:
Just drifting the thread ever so slightly...............

I never felt comfortable using the tracking function on the autopilot. I felt that I didn't want to rely totally on the electronics so I would always plot a course with waypoints - including at approx 10 mile intervals in straight lines - and was quite happy to reset the autopilot at each waypoint and to make small adjustments on the way if the boat started drifting from the plotted course.

When using full tracking mode I felt I was not fully in control of the boats actions, and that I wasn't concentrating enough on where the boat was pointed - what if i had made a plotting error and forgot the sandbank between waypoint a & b!

Probably just my paranoia but every time I tried full autotracking I always ended up switching it off. It was a similar feeling to driving the car without a seatbelt, it just didn't feel right

Martyn
Click to expand...

Hi Martyn, long time no hear. You still boating or not?

I dont see the difference between Track mode and Auto mode. The boat is going where it wants to go in either mode but at least in Track mode, there's a chance its going in the right direction. You're still going to keep a watch and make sure that what you see with your eyes corresponds to what the electronic chart tells you you should be seeing, surely? Or do you stick it in Track mode and retire to the cockpit with a bottle of vino collapso?:)
 
Deleted User said:
Bugger, it was all so simple. Down to PC World, buy a telephone cable and Bobs yer uncle. Now you're talking goobly gook again! Yup, got radar and its definitely networked to the lower 7C plotter 'coz the little lollipop thing comes up on the screen
Click to expand...

Right, but no radar upstairs ?

Assuming not, you could take a look and see where the cable from the network socket on the downstairs plotter goes. If it goes to a hub, just run the appropriate cable from the hub to the upper plotter. If not, you'll need to fit the hub, change the downstairs cable and run a new one upstairs.

I had need of a hub with my previous Raymarine plotter/radar. Raymarine wanted £3546343 for one, i used a 2nd hand bog standard PC hub from Ebay, 99p :) Just have to make sure you get one that'll run from 12v.
 
"Or do you stick it in Track mode and retire to the cockpit with a bottle of vino collapso"

Ah perhaps thats where I was going wrong :-)

You're right there is no difference but it just didn't feel right

Still boatless and enjoying having money in my pocket Mike.
 
MedDreamer said:
Still boatless and enjoying having money in my pocket Mike.
Click to expand...

Oh I enjoy that feeling as well but its very fleeting as the money soon departs my pocket and ends up in a bottomless grp pit:(
 
A word on Cat5e patch cables, most (nearly all) are single solid cores, but they are available in miltistrand which is much better suited to the vibrations aboard a boat.
 
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