NorthStar 6000i, Installation Manual

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SECTION SIX: Interfacing the 6000i system
6000i
Installation Manual, Rev. G Page 35
information from a navigation source, not a communications or sensor device—which transmits
completely different forms of data. Certain listening devices will only accept navigation data
identified as coming from loran (LC), GPS (GP), or an integrated instrument (II). The
6000i lets you
set its talker ID to LC, GP, or II to match what the listener device is expecting:
1. Check the listener device’s instruction manual to determine which “talker ID” codes it
will respond to.
2. At the
PORT 1 SETUP
or
PORT 2 SETUP
screen, press the cursor pad to highlight the
NMEA 0183 TALKER ID
option, then press
EDIT
.
3. Scroll through the three choices using the cursor pad to make your selection, and
press
ENTER
. The interfaced equipment will now receive the 0183 data in the correct
nav-source format.
Choosing the lat/lon precision
For more flexibility when communicating with a variety of other devices, you can set the precision
level of the 0183 position information output by the
6000i . The choice you make depends on the
equipment to which you’re outputting the NMEA data (for the number of digits of precision required
for that particular device, see the manufacturer’s instructions). You have three choices:
•
XX.XX’
(lat/lon precision to two decimal places (hundredths of minutes) or 60 feet)
•
XX.XXX ’
(lat/lon precision to three decimal places (thousandths of minutes) or 6 feet; this is
the factory setting)
•
XX.XXXX’
(lat/lon precision to four decimal places (ten-thousandths of minutes) or roughly
foot)
The 6000i conforms to the NMEA version 2.00 standard, and is also compatible with version 1.50.
Electronic and pen plotting devices typically benefit the most from three and four decimal places of
precision. However, many older devices (and
some current autopilots ) designed to operate with the
original 0183 and other formats can only function with two-place precision.
Choosing the output rate
The default rate for standard NMEA 0183 output is two seconds. The 6000i lets you use a
one-second update interval, a rate of 1 Hz, under limited circumstances, for NMEA and diagnostic
data output. Using the 1-Hz output option requires some thought when specifying either NMEA
0183 (NMEA version 2.0) or Raytheon (RAY 0183). Because there isn’t enough time to transmit a
large number of sentences within one second, you must select for output only those that are needed.
If you select more sentences than can be output in one second, the
6000i displays the following error
message:
SORRY, CAN’T DO THAT. TOO MANY SENTENCES FOR 1 SEC INTERVAL
In this case, you must select fewer sentences.
NOTE: Position information can be output and displayed to four
decimal places, but the ability to actually navigate with such
accuracy is limited by the accuracy of the Loran and GPS
systems. Therefore, choosing more decimal places doesn’t
necessarily increase navigating accuracy.