Personal Navigator
Manufacturers of moving-map navigation aids have charted different paths. One direction employs a dedicated bit of hardware designed and used solely as a GPS receiver and display. The majority of the handheld and all of the panel-mount boxes follow this route. Another tack is to devise a purpose-built display fed by a separate navigator, a la the Argus line. Still another way involves using an off-the-shelf computer as the basis for a map or navigation display and providing it information from a separate GPS tracker.
Trimble has taken the third route with its new GPS/moving- map offering, the GPS Map 110. Based on a Casio Z-7000 personal digital assistant, the Map 110 is fed position information by Trimble's own Locator, a computer mouse-shaped remote GPS receiver and antenna. The combination offers what the company says is unparalleled flexibility and upgradability. In fact, the Map 110's extensive database and operating software reside on a single, one- megabyte PC card inserted into the Casio's sole slot. As such, all the other resident functions of the Z-7000 remain — including notepad, calendar, address book, and Pocket Quicken checkbook/ expense ledger.
For pilots, it's the Trimble software that makes the Map 110 of interest. Using symbology and operating logic of the firm's panel- mount receivers, the 110 should be familiar to anyone with time in front of Trimble's other boxes. Main menu icons along the bottom of the touch-sensitive screen help you choose from pages with navigation information, waypoint statistics, nearest-waypoint data, flight planning, and E6-B-style calculator functions. There's also a direct-to key and a system-status menu behind the Trimble logo. Poke any of the icons with a pen or a fingernail and you're into the menu.
Beneath the main map screen, which uses most of the Casio's 3 2 4-inch viewing area, is a two-line information display that offers the standard navigation callouts — destination waypoint and the bearing, distance, and time to it; ground speed and track; and course- deviation indicator. By using the small four-point cursor control on the Casio, you can scroll through several other display options in the nav menu; the A button acts as a second Enter key, and the B button invokes a full-screen map display. The Nearest function keeps track of 30 points of all types — airport, VOR, NDB, or intersection. Flight planning for up to 20 plans of 20 legs each is also accommodated.
Plop the Locator receiver onto the glareshield, plug its single wire into the Casio's port, and you're ready to go. Even without satellite location data, the Locator is quick to find itself and, once rolling, tracks the space-bound transmitters with aplomb. According to Trimble, the Locator will track up to eight satellites and will remain on the ball for up to eight hours on four AA batteries. In our experience, the Locator ran between six and eight hours before the Casio displayed a low-battery warning. The Z-7000 itself uses three AA cells and is listed for between 25 and 50 hours life; we found the lower limit is about right, which Trimble spokesmen attribute to the fact that the Casio isn't allowed to sleep and its processor (a glacial IBM PC-XT equivalent) is made to run wide open while the map is in use.
For its part, the Casio performs well on the yoke. The monochrome liquid-crystal screen — which is said to have up to 12 times the number of pixels of popular handheld GPS receivers — presents decent, though not class-leading, contrast. Blame the touch-sensitive membrane for that. The display lacks backlighting, so the provided external yoke-clip light will have to be used at night.
Trimble has programmed the display to show airports, navaids, intersections, user-defined points, and outlines of Class B and C airspace and certain other special-use areas. Runway diagrams are available at certain screen ranges and include a clever reminder whenever a runway's preferred pattern contains right turns. You'll notice that internal segments of Bravo and Charlie airspace are missing, a regrettable exclusion that Trimble says will be remedied by early 1996. One of the prime advantages of the Map 110's architecture is that this upgrade will require only a new data card, not a physical reprogramming of the unit. (Still, omission of this feature will render the Map 110 at a temporary competitive disadvantage.)
In the air, the Map 110 ranks highly with the popular moving- map devices, especially so when you take screen size into account. There are 15 screen ranges — from 1 nautical mile to 400 nm — with most of the close-in ranges quite useful. A declutter routine allows you to specify the type of displayed information based on screen ranges; for example, you can have intersections shown at the 50-nm setting, but not at those ranges of 100 nm or more. Users can have the map reference track up or north up on the screen. An auto-zoom feature also keeps your destination or next waypoint on the screen at all times.
One clever feature allowed by the Casio's touch-sensitive screen is a waypoint-identifier scheme. Punch the WPT button and then touch the icon of any waypoint on the screen. The Trimble will then provide the facility information at the bottom of the screen. Unfortunately, you must accurately touch the icon, not the identifier, of the point you want, sometimes more easily said than done in turbulence. Also, the machine takes its sweet time dragging the information from memory, so you have to learn to be patient. (In fairness to Trimble, it's clear that the map-redraw routines take processor precedence over everything else, which is probably a good design choice.)
We have a few other nits to pick with the Map 110. The flight- planning logic is unnecessarily complex — especially compared to the bonehead-simple routines used in competing handhelds — and is relegated to the twin lines of text at the foot of the screen. Other moving maps let you use all the screen for arranging flight plans. Also, the touch-screen menus along the bottom are close enough to the icons for the Casio's other functions that you'll find yourself staring at the "Do you want to quit?" dialogue box from time to time. (The Z-7000 isn't up to multi-tasking, so you must leave the moving map in order to use its other programs.)
Even so, for a first effort with the Casio as a platform, Trimble has done an admirable job. We are hopeful that the company will take full advantage of the open architecture and implement upgrades with some alacrity and regularity. Certainly the Trimble is in the hunt price-wise at $1,095, including the Casio, Locator GPS, yoke mount, and batteries. A year's worth of quarterly database and operating-system updates will cost $295 but are being offered for $225 during the introduction of the Map 110. Trimble has decided to sell the Map 110 package direct, so you won't find deep discounts in the pages of Trade-A-Plane. While that might not be good news for the mail-order houses, the emergence of another capable moving map is cause for celebration for the rest of us.
For more information, contact Trimble Navigation, 645 North Mary Avenue, Sunnyvale, California 94086; telephone 800/865-4850.
FlightWatch kneeboard
In the grand scheme of kneeboards, you'll find greatly divided opinion. Some pilots of flat-earth proclivities eschew all complexity (and often do without) while choosing their weapons on cockpit clutter. Still others opt for cockpit aids with every bell and whistle conceivable.
In between is the FlightWatch kneeboard from Flightpaths. It's a simple pair of aluminum sheets, the larger measuring 9.5 x 15 inches, and the smaller, top panel taping out to 9.5 x 11 inches. These panels are mated at the bottom with a sophisticated tilting and sliding hinge; this permits the top panel to be opened 90 degrees, as well as cantilevered out about 4.5 inches. This allows access to more information on the bottom sheet.
The FlightWatch comes with six clips, one of which is large enough to firmly grasp one of the old (and soon to return) bound NOS instrument approach books. The clips on the top panel are arranged so that just about anything you want close at hand will have some place to tie down for that wild ride down the glideslope. A sheet of clear plastic is provided to cover checklists or any other documents you want protected on the top panel. A small strip of hook-and-loop material along the lower-right edge of the bottom panel (which is always exposed, regardless of the position of the top panel) will hold the free end of flight logs or your laundry list — it's up to you. Finally, a single nylon strap is responsible for keeping the FlightWatch on your lap; the idea is that you sit on the free end of the strap to keep the board from seeking the footwells in bumpy weather. This is a clever treatment, one many pilots may well prefer to firmly strapping a device to their bodies.
If all this sounds complicated, rest assured that the kneeboard proves quick to set up and use. About the only serious limitation is one of space. Cramped cockpits may not possess the real estate needed to allow full use of the FlightWatch's features. Some pilots may not find it comfortable to fly with the upper panel turned up. If you've got the room, though, the FlightWatch is a willing and handy cockpit-organizing accomplice. It's also very well built and simply designed. The FlightWatch sells for $50 and is available in many pilot-supply shops.
For more information, contact Flightpaths, 19531 Campus Drive, Suite 1, Santa Ana, California 92707; telephone 714/852- 9385.
Briefly Noted
Among the least enticing parts of primary (or even advanced) training is the review process. Few pilots relish grabbing a musty old textbook for procedural brush-ups. Air Sense International has another scheme, with its laminated study cards. These cards, modeled after military training aids, are intended to be slipped into a letter-sized three-ring binder. They manage to stuff onto the letter-sized sheets the salient points of these topics: airspace, instrument rules, aeromedical, and aerodynamics. For $5 each, these study cards are intended to be used as a brush-up and study aid. They are available direct from Air Sense by calling 800/636-9716. — MEC
With the plethora of aviation "stuff" available these days, no self- respecting pilot should be caught without an answer to the season's most-asked question: "What do you want for Christmas?" One of the more useful and versatile options is a new mid-weight flight jacket from Sporty's Pilot Shop. The lined, waist-length jackets offer good protection from all but the coldest temperatures. According to Sporty's, they don't restrict movement in the cockpit, as longer coats tend to do. The nylon water-resistant jackets feature snap- down shoulder tabs, two hand pockets, and an internal breast pocket. The left sleeve carries a zippered pocket and three pen holder compartments big enough to stow your mini flashlight. The jackets can be embroidered with one of 14 different aircraft models from balloons to airliners or the AOPA wings. The price is $81.95. For more information, contact Sporty's Pilot Shop at 800/SPORTYS. — Thomas B. Haines
McCauley Propellers of Vandalia, Ohio, has introduced its propeller repair kit for making field repairs to the company's BlackMac line of propellers. Designed to give mechanics the right tools to repair nicks on the leading edge and face of the propeller blades, the kit comes with instructions, diagrams, plus tools and materials to refinish blades. The kit costs $40 and is available from any McCauley authorized service center. For more information, call McCauley at 800/ 621-7767. — Peter A. Bedell
Unless otherwise stated, products listed herein have not been evaluated by AOPA Pilot editors. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors. However, members unable to get satisfaction regarding products listed should advise AOPA. To submit products for evaluation, contact: New Products Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701; telephone 301/695-2350.
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