Wonky Yeoman plotter

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JeremyF

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While waiting for the hull to dry between antifoul coats, I thought I'd calibrate a few more charts into the new-to-me Yeoman. The first couple seemed fine. The third behaved strangely. On the right hand edge of the chart, the read-out correlated with the chart, but moving the puck beyond a certain point cause a jump of 15 minutes in the display. I tried reentering the reference data, but still the same thing happened.

Any ideas, or should it be consigned to the bin?

<font color=red>Jeremy Flynn/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif
Dawn Chorus</font color=red>
 
If you've got the manual for it try seeing if there are some (re-)calibration steps which you can take - teach the machine where its edges are again. It may simply be that, with age, the device is "misunderstanding" the location of the pointer.

Jeff.
 
I didnt think you had to calibrate the puck to the actual edges of the mat. I thought that so long as the chart was clipped solidly to the mat, it looked at the relative position of the 3 reference points. But, I will read the section again in the manual. (Probably the world's worst manual though!)

<font color=red>Jeremy Flynn/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif
Dawn Chorus</font color=red>
 
If it is anything like normal tablet input devices for computers, you need to calebrate them so that the host machine "knows" what readings correspond to known points on the tablet. Once this is done then the machine can interpolate the position of the pointer, but with time it may be possible for the calibration to "drift". For example clicking point "A" is interpreted by the machine as point "B", with the associated errors being introduced into the system. NOt a good idea if you're going to base you nav on this.

Jeff.

Another late thought along a similar line. Does this have some sort of "non-volatile memory" - it must have, you are storing chart info. Does this need a battery to maintain this? If so, how old is it? Perhaps the calibration has been lost? Just a thought.
 
Another

Jeremy, you're using it on top of the Decca in close proximity to your RDF equipment, thats possibly making it upset? /forums/images/icons/frown.gif
 
Re: Another

To be fair, Jimi, I did look under the chart table to see if there was something electronic underneath the mat causing it to go haywire.

Dont be so rude about Decca's. They are very useful as doorstops.



<font color=red>Jeremy Flynn/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif
Dawn Chorus</font color=red>
 
I have got one of these and had nothing but trouble with it thus it's been slung in to the loft. I did think about sending it to yeoman for a repair until I heard their costs!
 
Did you have the chart calabration point too near the edge of the yoeman board as I have known similar to occur.

best results when the cal points are at least 1 puck widths from the useable edge.

IMHO a great bit of kit, where else do you get an ekectronic plotter with such a large screen
&
can up date the chart at no cost.


others have mentioned an internal batt, which holds the calibration points in memory.


David
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.euroboating.net>http://www.euroboating.net</A>
 
Thanks, David. I think that might just be the cause. Ive clipped the charts to the right hand side of the mat, so there is less than one puck's distance to the calibration point. I'll try securing it from the bottom, and try again.

I dont think its an issue with any internal battery; why whould that cuase it to behave so erratically?

<font color=red>Jeremy Flynn/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif
Dawn Chorus</font color=red>
 
The internal batt "remembers" the calibration lat longs for a particular chart, so if flat presumeably the chart references are lost, along with stored waypoints.

I dont know for certain as mine has not yet gone flat.

I rather suspect if it works at all, then wrong figures are an operator error, but could be proved wrong.

As I said earlier I am a great fan of the device which has another advantage in that windoze is not involved!

Have fun

David
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.euroboating.net>http://www.euroboating.net</A>
 
If you have any of the preloaded Admiralty Small Craft Folio charts in your plotter memory,one or two of them have incorrect lat/long references.I agree that you should not get too close to the edge of the plotter area although with mine if you do all the puck arrows flash together.I think it is a brilliant bit of kit and I use the Small Craft Folios with pre marked plotter points.Mind you if I had an all singing & dancing screen chart plotter I would think that was brilliant as well.
 
Yeoman plotters and inflammatory remarks

I think the most succint description (likely to cause apoplexy amongst aficianados of the device) was "the most expensive pencil ever produed..."

I'm afraid I graduated from paper charts to an early chartplotter about 10 years ago.

And before we have the usual subjective criticism - what do you see on the bridge of nearly EVERY commercial vessel?
 
Re: Yeoman plotters and inflammatory remarks

I know you don't want to get into a fight about how wonderful the yeoman is but I'll have a go anyway.

Most of the larger vessels, that use coastal waters, I have been on use radar to position fix & the last few Lifeboats I have viewed were fitted with Yeoman's.

There you are, I've got one & I think their great. Even my kids could position fix, with one, at the age of ten. Now thats good enough for me & it satisfies those who insist that you should keep a paper backup for when the electrics go down.

Martin
 
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