Eagle Explorer™ is a trademark of Eagle Electronics
Eagle® is a registered trademark of Eagle Electronics
WARNING!
USE THIS UNIT ONLY AS AN AID TO NAVIGATION. A CAREFUL
NAVIGATOR NEVER RELIES ON ONLY ONE METHOD TO OBTAIN
POSITION INFORMATION.
Never use this product while operating a vehicle.
CAUTION
When showing navigation data to a position (w aypoint), this unit will show
the shortest, most direct path to the waypoint. It provides na vigation data
to the waypoint regardless of obstructions. Theref ore, the prudent navigator will not only take advantage of all a v ailable navigation tools when tra velling to a waypoint, but will also visually check to make certain a clear,
safe path to the w a ypoint is always available.
The storage temperature for y our unit is from -4 degrees to +167 degrees
Fahrenheit (-20 to +75 degrees Celsius). Extended storage temperatures
higher or lower than specified will cause the liquid crystal display to fail.
Neither this type of failure nor its consequences are covered by the warranty. F or more information, consult the f actory customer service department.
All features and specifications subject to change without notice.
Eagle Electronics may find it necessary to change or end our policies,
regulations, and special offers at any time. We reserve the right to do so
without notice.
ACCESSOR Y ORDERING ........................................................................................... 51
HOW T O OBTAIN SERVICE - INTERNATIONAL .............................INSIDE BACK COVER
HOW TO OBT AIN SERVICE - U.S.A. ONLY ..................................................BACK COVER
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Congratulations!
You have purchased one of the finest 12-channel GPS receiv ers Eagle™
has ever made. With its high contrast LCD screen, easy to use menus,
and outstanding performance, we think you’ll be happy with your Eagle
Explorer™ for many years.
GPS works from satellites that transmit information to the world at very
high frequencies. One disadvantage to this frequency is that it’s “line-ofsight”. In other words, the signals don’t bounce around like your local
radio or television. If you don’t have a clear view of the sky, or if you’re
inside a building (such as a house), the unit probably won’t be able to
pick up the signals from the satellites. This is common among all GPS
receivers.
Like most GPS receivers, your Eagle Explorer doesn’t have a compass
or any other navigation aid built into it. It relies solely on the signals from
the satellites to determine its position. Speed, direction of travel, and
distance are all calculated from position information. Therefore, in order
for it to determine the direction you’re tra velling, you m ust be moving, and
the faster - the better. This is not to say the unit won’t work at walking
speeds - it will. But the faster you travel, the easier it is for the unit to
determine your direction.
Another factor that influences the GPS’ position and navigation capabilities is called selective availability or S/A. This is small errors purposefully
injected into the transmitted signal from the satellites. The government
does this to degrade the system’s accur acy to civilian and foreign users.
Even with S/A, GPS is the most accurate navigation system e v er invented
on such a large scale. The Government’s accuracy specification is 100
meters horizontally and 150 meters vertically 95% of the time. In other
words, the position shown on your Eagle Explorer could be up to 100
meters in any direction from your actual position, and the altitude could
be plus or minus 150 meters from what’s shown on the screen, 95% of
the time.
There are two ways around the S/A problem. One is to have the government simply turn it off. In fact, there is gr owing pressure on them to do
that, but it’s not likely to happen anytime soon. The other method is to
purchase a DGPS receiver and connect it to y our Eagle Explorer . A DGPS
receiver (commonly called a beacon receiver), picks up correction signals broadcast from ground stations. The Eagle Explorer takes these
corrections and applies them to the position and altitude screens, giving
you much better accuracy.
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Even with S/A on, and without a DGPS receiver, your Eagle Explorer
gives you outstanding position and navigation information. Most people
are amazed when they actually use a GPS receiver and see what it does .
Please sit down with the unit and this manual and familiarize yourself
with them before using the Eagle Explorer in the “real world”. A simulator
is built in, which lets you practice.
INSTALLATION
The Explorer will operate from four AA batterie s, one DuraCell® rechargeable battery , or from 6 to 16 volts DC . An optional cigarette lighter adapter
is available to plug into a car or boat’s electrical system. The Explorer
automatically switches to external power when it’s plugged into the unit.
If, for an y reason, the external power f ails, the unit will automatically switch
to the batteries.
The Explorer does not require batteries when the external power is in
use, however they make a good backup in case of power failure.
BATTERY INSTALLATION
For battery operation, the Explorer requires four AA batteries or the optional DuraCell® rechargeable battery . We recommend DuraCell® alkaline
batteries, but other brands will work. You can also use rechargeable nicad batteries (however, they won’t last as long as standard alkalines).
Rechargeable alkaline batteries such as RayOVac® Renewals® will also
work.
Do not use heavy-duty batteries or
any battery type other than the ones
listed above. Do not mix different
types of batteries. (For example,
don’t use both alkaline and ni-cad
batteries at the same time.)
To install the batteries, first turn the
over on its back. Now push the two
tabs to the left and raise the battery
cover as shown below. The bottom
part of the case holds the batteries.
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There are “+” and “-” marks on a decal at the bottom of the battery compartment. Place the batteries into the compartment according to the
marks and replace the battery cover. The Explorer is now ready for use.
EXTERNAL POWER
Instead of batteries, the Explorer can operate on 6 to 16 volts DC from
an external power source. To use external power, an adapter cable must
be purchased (model CA-2) that will plug into your vehicle’s cigarette
lighter. To use this cable, simply plug one end into the connector on the
Explorer and the other end into the cigarette lighter.
KEYBOARD
The keyboard has twelve keys. The arrow keys are tied to most of the
features, letting you easily move the plotter’s cursor, navigate through
the menus, make selections from menus, and other tasks.
MODE
MENU
ZOUTZINENTPWR
WPT
EXIT
The WPT key lets you create , s av e, and recall wa ypoints and routes. The
MODE key s witches the unit between the three major displa ys: windo w s,
navigation, and plotter. To select different features, or to modify functions, press the MENU ke y . The Z-IN and Z-OUT ke ys zoom-in and zoomout your view on the plotter screen. The ENT and EXIT keys let you enter
or erase selections. The PWR key turns both the Eagle Explorer and it’s
lights on and off.
Note: T o pre vent an accidental power shutdown, you m ust hold the PWR
key down for a few seconds in order to turn the unit off.
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OPERATION
Turning Power On
To tur n the Eagle Explorer on, simply press the
PWR key. A screen similar to the one at right appears. Read the message on the screen, then
press the EXIT key to erase it. The Explorer is
now ready for use.
MENUS
Most of the Eagle Explorer’s adjustments and f eatures are found on “men us”. Pressing the MENU
key lets you vie w the menus. Different men u items
are added to the basic list, depending on which
mode (plotter, na vigation, or windows) the unit is
in. This gives you the features that are specific to
the mode you are in, but also has items that are
used on all modes.
Pressing the up or down arrow keys moves the
black box to highlight different menus on the list.
Pressing the right arrow key selects the highlighted menu item.
To erase a menu, press the EXIT key.
Finding Y our Position
Cold Start
When the Eagle Explorer is turned on for the very first time, it doesn’t
know where it is, nor what the local time or date is. I f you tell it your
position, time, and date, the unit will tak e much less time to lock-on to the
satellites and give you a fix or position.
However, if you don’t want to push buttons at this time, that’s fine. The
Eagle Explorer will lock onto the satellites and giv e y ou a position without
any input from you. This is called a “cold-start” . It simply means that the
unit is searching without help for the satellites that are in orbit. A coldstart can take over two minutes to acquire enough satellite data to determine your position, although it typically takes less time than that.
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To use your Explorer , first make certain you have a clear view of the sky,
free from any obstructions such as trees or buildings. Also, don’t try to
use it under a carpor t , covered boat dock, or inside a building. Turn the
power on, press the EXIT key to erase the opening message and watch
the display.
As you wait for the Eagle Explorer to find your
position, you’ll see numbers flashing on the display. Anytime y ou see flashing numbers , it means
the Eagle Explorer does not have a position! Do
not rely on any data that is flashing! Once the
Explorer locks on to the satellites and finds your
position, it shows a “Position Acquired” message
on the screen. It also stores the satellite data in
its memory. The next time you use the unit, it
should take much less time to lock on.
That’s all you have to do to find your position.
Your local time display may not be correct when
the cold start method is used. See the initialization section for details on
changing the time.
Finding Y our Position
Initialization
A cold-start as descr ibed above can take over two minutes to find your
position. A faster method is to initialize the Eagle Explorer manually. To
do this, first press the PWR key. Next, read the message on the screen
and press the EXIT key to erase it. Now press the MENU key.
Press the up or down arrow keys until the “GPS
SETUP” menu is highlighted. No w press the right
arrow key. Next, using the down arrow key, highlight the “INIT GPS” (initialize GPS) menu, then
press the right arrow key. The screen shown at
right appears.
This is the GPS initialization screen. The position, altitude, time, and date the Eagle Explorer
is currently using to find the satellites is shown at
the bottom of this screen. Changing these values
to your local position and time will speed the position lock.
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To change the position, press the right arrow key
while the “LAT/LON EDIT” box is highlighted. The
screen shown at right appears.
If your latitude is south, press the up or down arrow key to change it. If it is north, press the right
arrow key to mo ve the change box to the first n umber in the latitude. No w press the up arrow k ey to
increase the number or the down arrow key to
decrease it. Once the first number in the latitude
is set, press the right arrow key once to move to
the next number in the latitude.
Keep pressing the arrow keys until the latitude and longitude are set to
your local position. (Note: This position does not have to be very accurate. If you can get it within one degree of y our actual position, that will be
fine.) When it’s set, press the ENT key. The Explorer accepts your entr y
and returns to the GPS setup menu.
Now change the local time and date (if they’re incorrect) on this screen.
(Don’t worry about altitude.) When everything is acceptable, press the
EXIT key repeatedly to return to a mode screen. The Explorer will instantly use the data you entered to find the satellites in the sky. (The unit
knows which satellites will be av ailable at the position, date , and time you
entered. Therefore, it will only look for those satellites , making the search
time much shorter than a cold start which looks for all of the satellites
until it finds three.)
Once the Eagle Explorer finds and locks on to three satellites, it stops
flashing the numbers on the display. (Note: Altitude will still flash until the
unit locks on to the fourth satellite. It takes four satellites to determine
altitude.)
IMPORTANT!
If the data shown in digital numbers on any screen is flashing, it means
that data is invalid. DO NOT RELY ON ANY NUMBERS THAT ARE
FLASHING! Usually, this happens when the Eagle Explorer has lost
its lock on the satellites. The data that is flashing was the last known
when the unit lost its navigational capability.
DO NOT NAVIGATE WITH THIS UNIT UNTIL THE DATA STOPS
FLASHING!
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POSITION/NAVIGATION DISPLAYS
The Eagle Explorer has navigation, plotter, and windows group modes.
These screens were designed to show data that is used most often. The
three default screens are shown below.
NA V-1PLO T-1GROUP A
To change screens, simply press the MODE key.
A screen similar to the one at right appears. No w
press the up or down arrow ke ys to change modes.
(The windows displa y is shown as "GRP" (groups).
For example, Group A is the first windows group
on the MODE menu.) Press the right arrow key to
see more screens on each mode. When the desired screen appears, press the EXIT key to clear
the menu.
Note: For a list of abbreviations used on the displays, see the back of this manual.
Navigation Screens
There are two na vigation screens. Na v screen number one shows a graphical view of your trip , the other screen sho ws all na vigation details in large
digital numbers. You can customize the na vigation screens to show different data than the ones chosen by Eagle. See the “Customize Screen”
section for more details.
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Nav Screen #1
This screen is dominated by a compass rose (See
the screen at right.) Your position is in the center
of the circle, designated by an arrow that always
points straight up. Your trac k (direction of trav el) is
indicated by an arrow pointing down toward the
compass rose at the top center of the screen. Your
track in digital numbers is also shown to the right
of the arrow. On the screen shown at right, the
track is 167°. The line extending behind the arrow
in the center shows your track history, or path
you’ve travelled.
Your speed over ground or Ground Speed (GS)
shows in the digital box in the bottom left corner
of the screen. The screen looks lik e the one above
when you’re not navigating to a waypoint. (See
page 28 for information on waypoint navigation.)
If you navigate to a waypoint, the screen looks
like the one at right.
The bearing to the destination waypoint is shown
in the upper left corner of the screen. Bearing is
also shown by the large arrow pointing up to the
compass. The bearing is 176° on the screen at
right.
NAV-1
The lines on either side of the present position
arrow show the cross track error range. In other
words, (using the screen abo ve as an example) if
the arrow crosses the line on either side, y ou are
.10 miles to the left or right of the desired course.
A circle depicting your destination appears on the
screen as you approach the waypoint as shown
on the screen at right.
The digital box es on the bottom of the screen show
your distance to go to the destination (DIS), g round
speed (GS), cross track error (XTK), and course
(CRS).
Course (CRS) is the bearing from your starting
location to your destination. (Remember, course
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has nothing to do with your present position, except for your starting
location.) It’s shown as a dotted line on the NAV 1 display. This is shown
as a reminder so that if you deviate from your original course, you can
easily return to it. (A “course” is a proposed path over the ground. A
“track” is your actual path over ground.)
Nav Screen #2
This navigation screen shows na vigation information in large digital numbers. To view this screen,
press the MODE key, then press the up arrow
key until the “NA V 1” label is highlighted. No w press
the right arrow key. A screen similar to the one at
right appears. Press the EXIT key to erase the
mode menu.
This screen is composed of eight digital display
boxes, showing your track (TRK), and ground
speed (GS). The other box es show navigation data
when a waypoint is recalled, including bearing to
the waypoint (BRG), course (CRS), distance to
waypoint (DIS), estimated time en route (ETE),
and cross track error (XTK) along with a CDI. See below for more information on the CDI.
Course Deviation Indicator (CDI)
The CDI shows your distance to the left or right of
the desired course. You must recall a waypoint or
run a route to use the CDI. The vertical line in the
center of the box shows the direction to the destination. For example, if you’re travelling straight towards the destination, the line sta ys in the center of
the CDI. If you turn to the right, the line moves to the left, showing that
the destination is to your left.The CDI’s range shows in the upper left
corner. The default is 0.25 mile. The dots at the far right and left side of
the CDI represent 0.25 mile. If the line is on either of these dots, then y ou
are 0.25 miles off course. Remember, if the bar moves to the left, then
you are too far to the
right
of the desired course line, and vice-versa. On
the indicator shown above, we are almost 0.2 mile to the left of the desired course. You can adjust the CDI’s range through the “ALARMS/CDI”
menu .
Using the CDI with the plotter helps you visualize your position in relation
to the course. The CDI is on several of the Explorer’s windows.
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Plotter
The plotter lets you see your course and track
from a “birds-eye” view. If you’ve recalled a waypoint, the plotter show your starting location,
present position, and destination. However, you
don’t have to recall a waypoint to use the plotter.
To use the plotter, simply press the MODE key,
then press the up or down arrow keys until the
“Plot” label is highlighted. Press the EXIT key to
erase the mode menu. A screen similar to the one
at right appears. This is plot-1. The diamond flashing in the center of the screen is your present
position. The solid line extending from the diamond is your track, or path
you’ve travelled. The plotter’s range is shown in the lower left corner of
the screen. In this example, the plotter’s range is two miles from the left
edge of the screen to the right.
There are two different plotter screens available. Plot screen number 1
shows by default. Your current position displa ys at the center of the screen
as a cross surrounded by a flashing diamond.
To view the other plotter screen, press the MODE
key. Press the up or down arrow key to move the
black bo x to the "PLOT" label. Now press the right
arrow or left arrow key to select plot-2. This screen
(as shown at right) has navigation data displa yed
at the bottom of the screen in digital numbers.
This data is active whene ver you’ve recalled a way point. Press the EXIT key to erase the mode menu .
This screen shows bearing to waypoint (BRG),
distance to waypoint (DIS), ground speed (GS),
and track (TRK).
Use the Z-IN and Z-OUT keys to enlarge or reduce the plotter area. This
changes the plotter’s r ange. The available ranges are: 0.1, 0.15, 0.2, 0.3,
Pressing an arrow key while the plotter is on shows two dotted lines that
intersect at your present position. These dotted lines are called a “cursor”
and have a variety of uses.
14
You can move the cursor around the display by
pressing the arrow ke ys in the direction you want
it to move. This lets you view different areas of
the plotter , aw ay from your present position. When
it’ s turned on, the zoom-in and zoom-out ke ys work
from the cursor’s position - not the present position, so you can zoom in on any detail, anywhere
while navigating. The latitude/longitude of the cursor shows in the box at the top of the plot-1 screen
whenever the cursor is activated. The cursor is
also used to place and erase icons and wa ypoints.
Press the EXIT key to erase the cursor.
PLOTTER OPTIONS
The Eagle Explorer lets you customize the plotter
using the “Plotter Options” menu. To use this menu,
first press the MENU key, then use the up or down
arrow ke ys to highlight the “Plotter Options” label.
Finally, press the right arrow key. The screen
shown at right appears.
Plotter Orientation
Normally, the Eagle Explorer shows the plotter
with north always at the top of the screen. Thi s is
the way most maps and charts are printed on
paper. This is fine if you’re always travelling due
north. Wa ypoints y ou see to y our left corresponds
to the left side of the plotter, to your right shows on the right side of the
plotter, and so on.
However, if you travel any other direction, the plotter doesn’t line up with
your view of the world.
To correct this problem, the Eagle Explorer has a track-up mode that
rotates the plotter as you turn. Thus, what you see on the left side of the
screen should always be to your left, and so on. It also has a course-up
mode that keeps the plotter at the same orientation as your initial bearing
to the waypoint.
15
In the examples shown belo w , we're travelling southeast (about 150° magnetic). In the north-up view, the present position indicator appears to
move to wards the lo wer right corner of the screen. The anchor icon shown
on the right side of the screen is actually on our left. North is always at
the top center of this screen.
NORTH-UP MODECOURSE-UP MODE
TRACK-UP MODE
In the track-up view, the present position symbol (which has changed to
an arrow) moves straight towards the top of the display. As you can see,
the anchor icon is now shown in its proper orientation - to our right. A "N"
shows to help you see which direction is north when the tr ack-up mode is
on. Remember, in the track-up mode, the screen rotates as you change
direction. It always keeps your direction of travel (track) heading towards
the top of the screen.
In the course-up mode, the screen is locked into your original bearing to
the recalled waypoint, regardless of your track.
To select the desired mode, highlight the “ROTATE” label on the “Plotter
Options” menu, then press the left or right arrow keys until the desired
mode appears. Press the EXIT key to leave this menu
Clear Current Plot Trail
The line extending from the present position diamond on the plotter shows
the path you’v e t aken, This is the plot tr ail. To erase the plot trail, highlight
the “ClearTrail” label on the Plotter Options menu, then press the r ight
arrow ke y. A message bo x appears, asking y ou if you really want to erase
the plot trail. Follow the directions on this message box. The Explorer
returns to the plotter screen with the plot trail erased from the screen.
16
Grid Lines
The Eagle Explorer can place grid lines on the
plotter to help you see your position, or the position of waypoints and icons.
To do this, highlight the “Grid” label on the “Plotter
Options” menu, then press the right arrow key to
turn them on. Press the EXIT key to exit this menu.
A plotter screen similar to the one at right appears. The grid lines appear as vertical and horizontal dashed lines.
GRID LINES
Plotter Update
The plotter places a dot on your trail as you move. It determines when to
place a dot depending on either time or distance. By default, it places a
dot every three seconds.
To change the update method from time to distance, highlight the “Update By” label, then press the right arrow key. This moves the label from
“TIME” to “DIST”.
If you want to change the update time or distance , simply highlight either
the “UPDT RATE” to change the update time or the “UPDT DIST” to
change the update distance, then press the left or right arrow keys until
the desired setting appears. Press the EXIT ke y to erase the plotter menu.
ICONS
The Eagle Explorer has fifteen symbols or “icons” a vailable. These icons
can be placed anywhere on the plotter screens. These can be used to
mark fishing or hunting spots, boat ramps, rest stops, or whatever. You
can place an icon at your present position, or at
the cursor location.
Place Icon - Present Position
To place an icon at your present position, simply
press the ENT key. The screen shown at right
appears. Use the arrow keys to move the black
box to the desired icon. Now press the ENT key.
The plotter screen appears with the icon you selected placed at your position when you first
pressed the ENT key, not your present position.
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