This is a late post for people interested in marine electronics and their characteristics. When I started reporting all the problems I had with the Simrad/Navico products, I promised to document the autopilot issues. Ok, finally, here it is. Sorry for the long delay, but I've been busy getting the boat up and running to Alaska, which we finally made it to... On top of that, I've been trying to get over the Simrad fiasco. But at the same time, I believe it's important to hold companies accountable for their products, and in today's world, sharing the good, the bad and the ugly is the best way to do that.
Here's how the system looked:
Autopilot computer AC12. This is the mastermind that implements the steering control and operates the hydraulic steering pump.
AP28 controller. This is a user control panel that allows you to configure and control the demo program. There were two of them, one in the pilot's house and the other on the flybridge.
RC42 rate compass. This is an electronic compass used to track where the boat is pointing and is an important part of good autopilot execution.
Rudder position sensor RF25. I had two of these to replicate. It is linked to the steering mechanism and informs the pilot of the rudder position.
HS70 Satellite Compass This is a second compass that determines your location and direction based on three Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers. It is a very precise router, and is used as a primary tool with the RC42 as a backup.
FU80 follow-up arms. These are the handles/levers that are used to position the helm rather than using the steering wheel. It is much like a tiller on a sailboat in that its position directly mirrors the position of the rudder, except it tells the pilot where to place the rudder and the hydraulic system does the work. They are very good for close maneuvering where you often need to quickly move the rudder from one end to the other. It is much faster than turning the wheel. By placing them at the wing stations, you can direct from there as well as from the cockpit or fly bridge.
NSO chart plotter. This is a multi-functional chart plotter that, among other things, is capable of functioning as an autopilot controller just like the AP28.
There's really nothing unusual about this setup, hence my surprise that I ran into so many problems. I can only speculate on the reasons, and I won't. It's really up to Simrad to figure all this out, and we hope they do.
Here are the problems I ran into, in no particular order:
The first and most frustrating problem is that I couldn't build a redundant autopilot system to my liking, even though Simrad told me in no uncertain terms that it would work. The idea was to have two computers, multiple control panels, dual rudder sensors, and two steering sensors, so that if anything went down I could continue to operate with little propeller fare. The pilot console has menus where you can select the rudder sensor you want to use, the heading sensor, and even which computer. When I was planning the system, I detailed what I was thinking of doing and asked Simrad whether it would work as I expected. They told me in writing that they would do exactly what I requested. This is what I purchased and built. Well, after hours and hours of banging our heads against the wall and dealing with odd configuration issues, missing configuration information, etc., we finally gave up on the idea of dual pilots and rewired everything so that I had one system with pre-installed spare parts that I could quickly switch to in case the need. Simrad later told me it wouldn't work (duhh) and that it was never designed to be used this way. Awesome, thanks guys.
I never figured out how to accomplish this, but several times the pilot got into a situation where he said he was using the RC42 compass, but was displaying direction from the HS70. Each one stated a slightly different title, so it was clear what was being used.
The pilot would also get into a state where even though I selected the HS70 as the main source, every time I turned it off and back on, it would revert back to the RC42. Under all other conditions and for all other sensors, it will remember the last selection through all power and restart cycles.
I also ran into a case where after selecting HS70 as the address source, it would display "-40" instead of "HS70-40". I basically lost the first part of the device name.
By the time the last few problems arose, I had decided to ditch the Simrad pilot as well. The pilot always guided the boat well, so I had no complaints on that front. But all of these interface and control issues were a huge time-suck for me, and I honestly had no confidence that Simrad made any priority to fixing them. As you can see, some of these issues are real issues and reflect basic operating errors.
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