DME PLB-110 Operator manual

PLB-110

FOREWORD

Thank you for purchasing the SATROTM Model PLB-110
personal locator beacon (PLB) from Astronics DME
Corporation.

We know you are excited about your purchase and eager to learn more
about how the PLB operates but some quick warnings are in order.

1 – Do not turn the PLB “on” unless you or a member of your group is in grave

and imminent danger. If you press the “on” button the distress signal will be sent
and detected by a satellite within seconds. No kidding. If you press the “on” button
the PLB turns “on” and search and rescue (SAR) forces will begin planning your
rescue and moving toward your location. Turning the PLB “off” without notifying
SAR organizations is still interpreted as distress signal. To learn more about the
meaning of grave and imminent danger see Section 5. To learn how to report an
“accidental” activation of the PLB see Section 8.

2 – Locate the PLB information marked on the orange side of the PLB. You will
need this information when you register your PLB with a national authority. This
information is also provided on a sheet of paper located inside of the box your PLB
came in. Keep this sheet of paper, with this manual, in a safe place. The country
that this beacon is coded for is an important piece of information. The country code
is identified on both the orange side of this PLB and on the sheet of paper. See
Section 2 for labeling and marking information.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD AND WARNINGS

SECTION 1 – TECHNICAL INFORMATION ............................................................. 1

SECTION 2 – PLB MARKINGS AND LABELS ........................................................ 3

SECTION 3 – COSPAS SARSAT SEARCH AND RESCUE SYSTEM ........................ 4

SECTION 4 – PLB REGISTRATION ......................................................................... 6

SECTION 5 – RESPONSIBLE USE .......................................................................... 7

SECTION 6 – OPERATION ....................................................................................... 8

SECTION 7 – CARRY AND OPERATIONAL CONFIGURATIONS ........................... 12

SECTION 8 – ACCIDENTAL ACTIVATIONS ........................................................... 12

SECTION 9 – CARE AND MAINTENANCE ........................................................... 13

SECTION 10 – PRODUCT SERVICE, USEFUL LIFE AND WARRANTY ................ 14

3 – Register your PLB. Why? It reduces the time it takes for SAR forces to get to

you by as much as six hours. If you are in grave and imminent danger then you are
likely to be in pain and six additional hours of pain (just because you didn’t register
your PLB) doesn’t sound like fun to us. See Section 4.

4 – Register your PLB. Now is the time to do it. That’s right… Now. It won’t take
long if you follow our general instructions provided in Section 4.

5 – Read this manual. It is important that you read this manual in order to
understand how the Cospas Sarsat satellite aided SAR system operates, what this
PLB can be expected to do, what SAR can be expected to do, how to use the PLB
and your responsibilities when using the Cospas Sarsat System.

TM

We hope that your adventures with the SATRO
But if you do activate this PLB then know that the Cospas Sarsat satellite system and
the participating SAR countries are ready and able to quickly locate and rescue you from
grave and imminent danger.

PLB always end with a safe return home.

Astronics DME Corporation

6830 NW 16
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309, USA

Phone Number: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.Astronics.com

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Terrace

PLB-110

SECTION 1 – TECHNICAL INFORMATION

GENERAL INFORMATION

Manufacturer Astronics DME Corporation, 6830 NW 16

Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309, USA
Name SATRO™
Model Model PLB-110
Operational Configurations On ground, above ground, hand held
Distress Frequency 406.037 MHz
Homing Frequency 121.5 MHz
Morse Code “P” Modulation Every 50 seconds (US protocol)
Distress Signal Life Minimum of 24 hours at -20° C on battery

expiration date
Homing Signal Life Minimum of 24 hours at -20° C on battery

expiration date
Distress Signal Output Power Minimum 5 Watts for 24 hours at -20° C

on battery expiration date
Homing Signal Output Power Minimum 25m Watts for 24 hours at -20°

C on battery expiration date
Activation Indicator White strobe flash every 3 seconds

GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM (GPS)

Integral GPS Receiver Located between “on” switch and PLB/

GPS self test switch. Keep clear and

pointed towards sky during self test and

distress activations.

GPS Accuracy Equal to or better than 110 meters
Geodetic Reference System WGS 84
GPS Indicator Green LED flash = Receiving GPS signals

Red LED flash = Not receiving GPS

signals – move PLB to another location

and make sure PLB is facing “up” with

clear view to sky.

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SPECIAL FEATURES

*Buoyancy Category 1: Floats in fresh/salt water (not

operational in water)

Strobe Light Minimum 1 candela, 20 flashes per

minute (± 5), for 24 hours at -20° C on

battery expiration date.
Waterproof 10 meters for 5 minutes
Lanyard Opening in case for lanyard
Compass Safe Distance 200 mm
Activation Cover Orange activation cover to prevent

accidental activation

*The PLB is buoyant but is not designed to float in an upright position and transmit a distress signal.
The PLB may not be substituted for a required EPIRB on a vessel.

DIGITAL DISTRESS MESSAGE

PLB Message Country Code All authorized PLB country codes shown

in Cospas Sarsat Guidance Document

S.007.

PLB Message Protocols PLB supports both National and Standard

Location – Serial Number protocols.

PLB Distress Message Programming Changes to beacon message made by

factory authorized service centers.

BATTERY PACK

Battery Replacement Period 5 years, after use in an emergency, or

expired battery witness seal

Battery Pack Chemistry Lithium Manganese Dioxide
Fresh Battery Pack Lithium Content Total lithium metal = 1.2 grams
Battery Pack Replacement Not user replaceable. Return PLB to

factory authorized service centers for

battery replacement and disposal.

TEMPERATURE RANGE

Operating Temp. Range -20° C to +55° C (-4°F to + 131°F)
Stowage Temp. Range -30° C to +70° C (-22°F to +158°F)

Battery Witness Transmitter clock captures total battery

use events and sets a “replace battery”

self test response when battery has been

discharged for more than 1 hour.

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PLB-110

PHYSICAL

Weight 4.3 ounces
Dimensions 4.09 inches long, 2.39 inches wide, 0.92

inches thick (pocket size)
Volume 8.99 cubic inches
Altitude 25,000 ft. max continuous (Decompression

8,000-35,000 ft., 15 sec.)
Color Predominately high-visibility orange;

translucent blue
Case Material Hi Impact Polycarbonate
Antenna Material Electroplated Stainless Steel

APPLICABLE STANDARDS & REGULATIONS

Cospas Sarsat T.001/T.007
RTCM 11010.2 with Amendment 1
USA FCC
ISO 9001; 2008
AS9100 Revision C

SECTION 2 – PLB MARKINGS AND LABELS

Figure 2 – Back of PLB

(Orange)

Registration Label
Applied By User

UIN Label:
Applied At The Factory;
Unique To Each Beacon

SECTION 3 – COSPAS SARSAT SEARCH AND RESCUE SYSTEM

In operation since 1982, 43 countries participate in the International Cospas Sarsat
System and the satellites, ground stations, Mission Control Centers (MCC) and Rescue
Control Centers (RCC) located around the world provide SAR services for nearly all
of the world oceans and land mass, even in areas where there are no formal SAR
agreements. See Figure 3.

Figure 1 – Front of PLB (Blue)

Antenna Latch Antenna

Strobe Light

Battery Pack With

Expiration Date

Self Test/GPS Test Button

GPS Receiver

Green/Red LED Indicator

ON/OFF Cover

(Activation Button
Underneath)

Self Test Instructions

Activation

Instructions

Figure 3 - Map of Cospas Sarsat Participants

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PLB-110

The basic Cospas-Sarsat System concept is illustrated in Figure 4.

Figure 4 – Cospas Sarsat System Concept

The System is composed of:

• Distress beacons (your PLB) which transmit signals during distress situations;

• Instruments on board satellites which detect the signals transmitted by your PLB;

• Ground receiving stations, referred to as Local Users Terminals (LUTs), which
receive and process the satellite downlink signal to generate distress alerts; and

• Mission Control Centers (MCCs) which receive distress alerts produced by LUTs
and forward them to Rescue Coordination Centers (RCCs), Search and Rescue
Points Of Contacts (SPOCs) or other MCCs.

You are the reason for the system!

SECTION 4 – PLB REGISTRATION

ALL distress beacons (PLBs, ELTs and EPIRBs) are required to be registered.

Why?

Registration is used by SAR organizations (and only SAR organizations) to talk to your
emergency contact person (or you if your PLB has been accidently activated) about what
medical conditions you may have, where you might be, whether you are traveling alone or
in a group and what you might be carrying.

Your registration form information and information from your emergency contact
are combined with historical SAR information and geographic and climate/season
information (based on the location of the PLB) to organize and plan the SAR mission.

If that doesn’t convince you then consider the pain you might be in (you activated the PLB
because you where in grave and imminent danger remember?) and the additional time it
may take to verify the activation is not accidental.

Let’s start the process…

Step 1 - Check the markings on your PLB. Is the country code the one for your country

of residence? If “yes” then proceed to Step 2. If “no” then contact the nearest factory
authorized service center and arrange to return the PLB for coding with the proper
country code.

Step 2 – Locate the paper registration form. New PLBs come with a paper registration
form for the country in which the PLB is coded and are pre-printed with the PLB unique
identification number (UIN). See SECTION 2 – Marking and Labels. Note: Look at the
paper registration form. You may find that you can register your PLB using the Internet.
Follow the instructions to register online but keep the paper registration form for your
records. If you are purchasing a pre-owned PLB then contact the nearest factory service
center for assistance.

Your PLB has been designed and built to be fully compatible with the system. Taking
proper care of your PLB, learning how to operate your PLB, understanding when to
activate your PLB and registering your PLB to ensure the fastest rescue possible are
covered in the next sections.

If you want to dig deeper into the workings of the Cospas Sarsat System please visit
www.cospas-sarsat.org.

Step 3 – Register online or complete the paper registration form and mail it to the
address shown on the form (see below for US references). You are encouraged to do so
promptly so you won’t forget. Once you mail it, you are done!

In the United States register online at www.beaconregistration.noaa.gov or mail the
registration form to:

NOAA SARSAT Beacon Registration

NSOF, E/SP053
4231 Suitland Road
Suitland, MD 20746

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PLB-110

All registration forms will be entered in the 406 MHz beacon registration database
within 48 hours of receipt. A confirmation letter, a copy of the actual registration and a
proof-of-registration decal will be mailed to you within 2 weeks. When you receive these
documents, please check the information carefully, and then affix the decal to the back
of your beacon in the designated marked area.

You will need to repeat this process if you change your address, change your country of
residence (the PLB will need to be recoded also), change emergency contact person (or
their contact information changes), sell the PLB to another person or dispose of the PLB.

If your PLB is lost or stolen, report it to your local authorities and contact NOAA at 1-888­212-7283 (or your national authority) with the following information:

• Police department name

• Police phone number

• Police case number

Check with local/national administrations to determine if a radio license is required.

SECTION 5 – RESPONSIBLE USE

This PLB is a distress alerting and locating device to be used when you or a member of a
group you are traveling with is in grave and imminent danger. It is a device of last resort,
for use when all other means of self-rescue have been exhausted; and the loss of life,
limb, eyesight or valuable property will occur without assistance. Deliberate misuse may
incur a severe penalty.

What does grave and imminent danger mean?

Distress Assessment (one person alone)

There are three factors to take into consideration. 1) The time it will take for rescue
personnel to arrive once you activate the PLB. 2) Your physical condition and expected
survival time. 3) Environmental conditions.

Rescue Arrival

An important factor is the time it will take SAR forces to locate you. Consider where you
are; where SAR forces with the necessary equipment are located; consider weather
and environmental conditions; and estimate how long it will take for them to arrive by
different methods (air vehicle, land vehicle, walking, etc.).

Physical Condition

If you are in immediate danger of losing your life; your expected time of survival is less
than 12 hours; or you can not safely make it to help before exhaustion/unconsciousness

then it is time to activate the PLB. You are the best judge of your physical condition.

Environmental Conditions

Environmental conditions can impact both rescue arrival time and your survival time.

Your PLB will broadcast for a minimum of 24 hours. If your assessment is you will lose
your life in 24 hours or less then its time to activate the PLB.

Being worried about personal survival is not a reason to activate the PLB. You must
genuinely believe that you can not extract yourself from your environment and survive
without the assistance of SAR forces.

Distress Assessment (group - more than one person)

The same three factors mentioned above are taken to into consideration, except the
ability of the person or persons in distress to communicate and assess their condition
change the dynamics of the situation. If any person in the group is unconscious, can not
communicate their condition to the group, or the group can not extract the person or
persons in distress without the assistance of SAR forces then activate the PLB.

SECTION 6 – OPERATION

The SATROTM Model PLB-110 is designed to be manually deployed and activated. It is
only to be activated in grave and imminent danger and when all other means of self-
rescue have been exhausted. When properly registered as required, the activation of the
PLB tells Search and Rescue who you are, where you are, and that you are facing a life
threatening situation.

To activate your PLB in a distress situation, follow these steps:

1. Rotate the antenna latch to unwrap the antenna from around the case.

2. Move the antenna into the upright position. The strobe light and antenna must be

pointed up to the sky.

3. Slide the ON cover to the right.

4. Depress the ON/OFF button for 1 full second.

While transmitting your distress signal, the red LED will flash every two seconds and the
strobe light will flash every 3 seconds alerting you that your beacon is active.

Antenna Position

For maximum performance you must deploy the antenna into the proper position (see
Figure 5). Be sure the antenna is facing the sky, the GPS receiver antenna is not covered
or obstructed, and avoid submerging in water. The device is intended to operate on or
above ground only. It is not intended to operate while floating in water.

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