EPIRB Hex number

[whiteoaks7]

I've just updated my EPIRB registration with MCGA and I have for the first time noticed the HEX ID number is an odd number of characters. If this is intended as a 'pure' hexidecimal number then that can;t be: hex digits come in pairs so a string of them has to contain an even number of digits. My EPIRB is in Greece so if anyone has one to hand (or the details thereof) could you be kind and let me know how many characters in the HEX string for yours.

Ta,

 

[salamicollie]

My documentation is to hand and the hex ID is an odd number of digits - 15

 

[robinwr]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EPIRB gives a good explanation - hexadecimal numbers are multiples of two when representing 16 bit values
Also the hex code field in the on-line registration form specifies a 15 digit number.
http://www.dft.gov.uk/mca/mcga07-ho...archandrescue/epirb/mcga-sar-epirb-online.htm

 

[prv]

If this is intended as a 'pure' hexidecimal number then that can;t be: hex digits come in pairs

Eh?

A hexadecimal digit is 0-F, representing 0-16 decimal. You can have as many or as few of them as you like.

You do often see them in pairs because 0-16 decimal is four bits wide in binary - if you have an eight bit byte then two hexadecimal digits is a nice way to represent it. But that's a feature of eight-bit bytes, not of the hexadecimal numbering system.

Presumably the ID on an EPIRB is not a series of eight-bit bytes, that's all.

Pete

 

[robinwr]

Sorry that should of course read "characters" and not "digit number" given that it is used as a code and not a numerical value.

 

[ms.lau]

15 characters on mine.

laura

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

Until this year I had always believed that it was 15 characters long. Not any more. One of the boats that I inspected for the Rolex Middle Sea Race had an EPIRB with an ID number that had only 14 characters. If I remember correctly, it was of Canadian make. There was nothing wrong that I could see after a very long inspection of the thing. In the end I made a note on the inspection sheet near where I wrote the ID that this was not a mistake.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

Eh?

A hexadecimal digit is 0-F, representing 0-16 decimal. You can have as many or as few of them as you like.

You do often see them in pairs because 0-16 decimal is four bits wide in binary - if you have an eight bit byte then two hexadecimal digits is a nice way to represent it. But that's a feature of eight-bit bytes, not of the hexadecimal numbering system.

Presumably the ID on an EPIRB is not a series of eight-bit bytes, that's all.

Pete

Being a pedant I should like to point out that 16dec is actually 10hex. F is 15dec

that's all

 

[Hoolie]

Eh?

A hexadecimal digit is 0-F, representing 0-16 decimal. You can have as many or as few of them as you like.

Absolutely! It can just be any number you like in base 16. You could choose 0-J which would/could be base 20.
I think it's just a way of making the 15 digits go further. Might change in future if they're in danger of running out again

 

[whiteoaks7]

Red face

Yep, quiet right, I've spent too many years looking at eight bit computers. A hex digit is only four bits so you can have a string of them any length you want. Humble pie is coming...

Here is a decoder for your own string courtesy of the MCGA http://www.cospas-sarsat.org/en/component/beacondecode/?task=showBeacon

Cheers,

 

[mcframe]

Being a pedant I should like to point out that 16dec is actually 10hex. F is 15dec

that's all

Did you have a good christmas? After all, 25dec is 31oct...

 

[Hoolie]

Did you have a good christmas? After all, 25dec is 31oct...

Excellent

 

[prv]

Being a pedant I should like to point out that 16dec is actually 10hex. F is 15dec

You are of course completely correct. I was thinking 16 possible values, and somehow turned that into the 17 possible values of 0-16.

It's a long time since I've done anything involving any base other than decimal

Pete

 

[Strathglass]

Ouch -
Brings back long lost memories of programming the 1130 computer using the 16 bit switches when I worked in Test engineering in IBM at Spango Valley.

Many many years ago.

How things have changed.

 

[emandvee44]

Epirb hex id

Just checked mine.

15 characters. Nos 7,8,9 are country code - in my case 235 - same as in a MMSI.

M.