Onboard PC

Ive noticed since living in Singapore that humidity kill drives that are not left running.

 

well given that the Ryamarine is a single board computer running UNIX ( i think its BSD). Its really a PC in disguise. The Furuno Navnet 3D is embedded Windows XP , it even has a hard disk in some models!

 

PC Based System Rated to CFR 46

Given that Raymarine make their systems compliant with USCG CFR 46 http://www.ameradio.com/systems/certifications.html#CFR-46 and given that Raymarine have a history of making good marine navigation equipment then it would probably be a good idea to make a home brew system compliant with CFR 46.

Of course you can put a home brew PC based system in a pelican case and claim that it is CFR 46 compliant but is it useable - no it's not. You have to add a display and buttons and connectors and that is where things become and engineering challenge.

The other challenge is to make a navigation application that is as functional as a Raymarine system. Is Sea Clear as functional as a Raymarine - not by a very long shot.

My advice is to just spend the money and go and go a Raymarine or equivalent and save yourself a whole lot of time and heartache.

Patrick

 

It's a good job that some of us are more inquisitive than NormalBloke, otherwise we'd never progress. If you want to do it yourself, go for it. I have, it's fun.

Incidentally, CFR46 is roughly equivalent to IP65. That's not actually that hard to achieve with modern technology. You just need to start with the right kit.

Tim B.

 

Pish Posh, you can get plenty of gear that is as the above said, IP 65 compliant, it doesnt have to be hugely expensive either.

 

Examples Please

Which non commercial equipment is IP 65 compliant ?

 

Lots of things are. I make mine like that too.

6 = Totally protected against dust
5 = Protected against low pressure jets if water from all directions - limited ingress permitted


Why is it an issue ?

 

We use these monitors on shipboard and offshore installations:

http://www.hopeindustrial.com/

We have over 400 of these monitors in the wild and we have had nothing but great success. If you don't need touchscreen you can get a 15" for $650 that's panel mount and looks nice in a console. Properly mounted they are wash-down resistant. If you are operating in salt water I would suggest the NEMA 4x with the stainless steel bezel add-on.

 

Waterproof touchpads and keyboards are easy to find. A cool running laptop with SSD in a Pelican case with external display and inputs sounds reasonable if you want the flexibility of a PC (as compared to some dedicated device). I would expect that if it was turned on for awhile, it would warm up and drive out the moisture and could then be turned off. Small Atom laptops run at about 12 watts.

 

Hmm, popular subject. Let me add this to feed the pros & cons: - My latest boat came with a laptop (and tv) with the GPS/Chartplotter pre installed. Indeed, the seller even listed it as one of the main features of the boat! I hate it, hate it and will be removing it soon. I will replace it with a standard MARINE GPS/ChartPlotter. These things are designed for, and made for boats. The LapTop is slow to boot up; has a clumsy interface - mouse or mouse pad - when bouncing around at sea; hard to see clearly in sunlight; too bright at night, sucks the juice when the motor is not running; needs an inverter - from 12v DC upto 240v AC and then back down to 18v DC - go figure?. The onboard battery died ages ago; the laptop has to be removed and taken home to upgrade any patches to the software; is a security risk if left on the boat; is already out of date - newer, lighter hardware available; is not "waterproof" and I shudder to think how much rust is on any of the metal parts inside, etc.etc.etc...... As you can see, I am not convinced this is the best option. (By the way, I've already removed the TV and disconnected the power to the TV Areal up the top of the mast.)

I am a great fan of "stuff designed and built" specifically for the right use.
Glenn, would you like to make me an offer for my lot
Have fun with your decision.
Pierre

 

There has been a lot of focus on laptops recently, and frankly I'm not convinced about them either. They have a place where you need the portability between vessels, but otherwise why make a rod for your own back?

Personally, I'm more interested in the industrial-PC type systems, where you have a box remote from the display(s), which are then running industrial standard LCD sunlight-readable touchscreens.

As for slow booting, That is generally due to a bloated system (typically MS products) or poor setup (Linux). The latter can be recitified, but the former will require a re-install. All operating systems bloat with time to some degree, but Vista took this to a whole new level. Perhaps Win 7 will be better, but I'm not going to be spending my money on it, or supporting software running on it.

Tim B.

 

I agree with you, Tim. (About spending my money on it..). looking at the receipts that came with my boat, the previous owner spent just over $7k on the syatem. One can get a whole lot of "Marine GPS/Chartplotter" for $7k. Indeed, one could even buy two....

 

I'd just like to point out that I won't be using Win 7 at all (just in case anyone thought I'd inferred anything in my previous post).

$7k doesn't take that much effort to spend on a good system, depending on the level of environmental protection provided, touch-screens, screen-size etc. When you then add a sensible "PC Box" with solid state storage etc it adds up pretty quick (especially when you start adding software to the mix). And then you've got to add the cost of instruments.

Unfortunately, it takes even less effort to spend the same amount of money on a system which has a good collection of instruments, but a really poor front-end. This is what I'm trying (in my own way) to rectify. I think that the flexibility of PC-based hardware is actually very advantageous, and could enable the user to have a system that's tailored to THEIR requirements, not the manufacturers.

The advantage for me with having a PC onboard is having a large chartplotter screen, and being able to lay it out as I want it. Now all I need is some money for a new boat and some for the system!

Tim B.