Problem with contacts

[Pobb]

I have my gear indications on C37 pins 10/11 and 12.  I have changed the low resistance value in the .SFG file to 200 ohms.  However, the resistance value in the EMS appears to be at 10K, regardless of the selection made.  The gear indications are on the screen and when I use external resistance values to suit the 10k internal R, the voltages I require to change the indications for the gear position are what I need.  Because I have an aural warning circuit on these leads also, but isolated from the EMS by diodes, I need the lower internal resistance value on these contacts.  Removing the warning system from the leads makes no difference, so it is not causing the problem.

This is what I have entered for the gear indications in the .SFG file:-

sensor={
id=CONTACT
;VERIFIED
function=CONTACT
pins=C37_P10
name=N GEAR
        min_val=0
max_val=5
resolution=1
round=.1
is_piecewise=0
low_coeff={
c_x4=0
c_x3=0
c_x2=0
c_x1=1
c_x0=0
}
low_resistance=PULL_UP_200
low2high_cross=0
high_coeff={
c_x4=0
c_x3=0
c_x2=0
c_x1=0
c_x0=0
}
high_resistance=NONE
high2low_cross=0
}

When I go in to the Sensor Input Mapping page, I find that the sensor indications for these contacts is highlighted in red.  I do a change and save it, but the indications return to the red state.  It does not matter if I have 10K or 200 ohms selected in the .SFG file, the result is the same. 

I also have this same sensor indication problem for one of the capacitance fuel level probes.  The other capacitance probe, which is programmed exactly the same, is OK.

Do I have a programming problem, or an EMS problem?

 

[dynonsupport]

The contacts are not special and support 200 ohm pull ups no problem. We just tried it here and can use 200 ohms.

Below is the sensor we used to make 200 ohms work. Note we just called it "contact200" so if you put this in you can choose 10K or 200 ohms for any pin that supports a contact.

There is a chance the issue is the space in the "NAME" you have. I can't remember if we support spaces...

sensor={
      id=CONTACT200
      ;VERIFIED
      function=CONTACT
      pins=C37_P4 C37_P6 C37_P7 C37_P8 C37_P9 C37_P10 C37_P11 C37_P12 C37_P20 C37_P21 C37_P22 C37_P23 C37_P31
      name=GEAR
      name=CANOPY
      name=PHEAT
      min_val=0
      max_val=5
      resolution=1
      round=.1
      is_piecewise=0
      low_coeff={
            c_x4=0      
            c_x3=0      
            c_x2=0      
            c_x1=1
            c_x0=0
            }
      low_resistance=PULL_UP_200
      low2high_cross=0
      high_coeff={
            c_x4=0
            c_x3=0
            c_x2=0
            c_x1=0
            c_x0=0
            }
      high_resistance=NONE
      high2low_cross=0
      }

 

[Pobb]

Thanks, I will try the CONTACT200 entry.

According to this document, 'Making your own sensor definitions', spaces are permitted in the 'name' line. If I use external resistors to give me the required voltage I need for the indications I want with the internal resistor set at 10 k, everything works fine.

Will get back to you via email if the new entry does not solve the problem.

 

[randylsnarr]

Re: Problem with contacts "gear warning"

On my lancair 320 I have 2 switches, one is airspeed activated and one is a micro switch in the gear well. What I want to do is when both switches are closed, I want a "Gear" warning indication on both displays until the circuit opens again.

Does this have to go to one of the d37 ems 220 contacts or the d1000 contacts? My preference is to not have a gauge or indication, but just a warning if this condition exists. Also, I could not find where to set up contacts in the d1000 menu..

Thx!
Randy Snarr

 

[mmarien]

Use the EMS220 contacts as the SV1000 contacts are not functioning yet. Better there anyhow if you have two or more displays.

You need to do three things once the wire is connected.
[list bull-blacksq][*]First setup the pin. EMS SETUP>SENSOR INPUT MAPPING. Select the pin, the function (CONTACT) and give it a name. GEAR is a good one.
[*]Then in EMS SETUP>SENSOR SETUP setup the two ranges named OK and SPEED. See page 7-61 of the Installation manual. This also is where you setup the alarm. The GEAR SPEED range will have to be RED for the alarm to work. The other range can be any color.
[*]Finally in the EMS SETUP>SCREEN LAYOUT EDITOR go to the page you want the sensor to appear on and from the SENSOR button select the sensor. It will be called GEAR and display as a button.[/list]
So with the gear down on takeoff, the GEAR contact will be GREEN until the airspeed closes the airspeed activated switch. The contact will then turn RED and you will get a WARNING from Skyview. Putting the gear up will open the micro switch in the gear well and the warning will go away.

I don't know if you will get the warning if the contact is not displayed on the active ENGINE page. You can always hide the contact in another gauge. Check the ECU contact under the RPM gauge here:

 

[dynonsupport]

You can easily wire that switch to the EMS-200 as mmarian says, and have a display on the EMS. The system will throw an audio alert if you want it to, but this will be a generic "engine monitor" alert, not specific voice "gear". You cannot have arbitrary audio warnings in SkyView for user defined sensors.

We will throw alerts even if the widget is not on any screen, but you'll have a constant "EMS ALERT" in your message system anytime this is true, which is probably not what you want.

Now, all of this may be a moot point. SkyView 10 has support for retracts, with two options: GEAR OVERSPEED and CHECK GEAR. It will throw a GEAR OVERSPEED audio alert if you go faster than a user setting with the gear down, and a CHECK GEAR alert if you slow below a user set speed with the gear up. This may be what you really want, and no airspeed switch needed since the AHRS data is used.

 

[Bruce]

I am trying to make the Gear Alert work in my SeaRey amphibian with SkyView ver 10.0. Per the manual I set up Airplane Information AMPHIB, an EMS GEAR contact on its D37 pin 31, the EMS Sensor for GEAR: R1 Enable Yes Red 2.5-5.0V WATR and R2 Green 0.0-2.5V LAND, and a GEAR contact widget .

In flight, the gear overspeed warning, set at 80 KT, works fine. The gear alert warning does not sound when airspeed declines through its 45 KT trigger with the contact either in its Red or Green state. I also tried with the sensor alarm off and self-clearing.

When the alarm is on, and the contact is Red, I see a message "Contact Is In High State" or something like that. If I take the contact to Green and return to Red, I hear "Engine Monitor."

What's wrong?

 

[dynonsupport]

From the release notes for 10.1:

"Fixed: “CHECK GEAR” would not be annunciated correctly when the LANDING GEAR CHECK SPEED was set below 60 knots. "

So you need to upgrade to 10.1.