Operating Handbook
For
Vizion 380/385 Series Autopilots
TRUTRAK FLIGHT SYSTEMS
1500 S. Old Missouri Road
Springdale, AR 72764
Ph. 479-751-0250 Fax 479-751-3397
www.TruTrakap.com
Table of Contents |
|
|
1. |
Revisions......................................................................... |
4 |
2. |
General Introduction .................................................. |
5 |
2.1. About Trutrak and your Vizion autopilot................ |
5 |
|
2.2. |
Controls ............................................................................... |
6 |
3. |
Autopilot Power Up ..................................................... |
7 |
4. |
Autopilot Display.......................................................... |
8 |
4.1. |
GPS Signal Status .............................................................. |
8 |
4.2. |
DG Display ........................................................................ |
10 |
4.3. |
Trim Annunciation ........................................................ |
10 |
5. |
Vizion Setup Procedure........................................... |
11 |
5.1. |
Lateral Setup.................................................................... |
11 |
5.2. |
Vertical Setup .................................................................. |
13 |
5.3. Contrast and Minimum Backlight Adjustment..... |
16 |
|
6. |
Autopilot Operation ................................................. |
17 |
6.1. |
Syncing the altimeter.................................................... |
17 |
6.2. |
Engaging/Disengaging the autopilot....................... |
19 |
6.3. Normal Lateral Autopilot Modes .............................. |
21 |
|
6.4. Normal Vertical Autopilot Modes ............................. |
26 |
|
6.5. |
Other Autopilot Modes................................................. |
36 |
6.6. |
Gyro Set Mode.................................................................. |
38 |
7. |
Quick Reference Cards ............................................ |
39 |
7.1. Vizion 380 Quick Reference ....................................... |
39 |
|
7.2. Vizion 385 Quick Reference ....................................... |
41 |
|
8. |
Suggested Autopilot Settings................................. |
43 |
8.1. |
Van’s Aircraft RV’s ......................................................... |
43 |
8.2. |
Lancair ............................................................................... |
45 |
8.3. |
Glasair Aviation .............................................................. |
47 |
Vizion 380/385 |
3 |
Rev - Initial |
1. Revisions
Rev Number |
Notes |
Date |
Initial |
Manual Created (VZ.12) |
20-Nov-13 |
Vizion 380/385 |
4 |
Rev - Initial |
2. General Introduction
2.1.About Trutrak and your Vizion autopilot
Thank you for purchasing this Trutrak product. At Trutrak, we strive to provide the highest quality avionics and autopilots available in the Experimental & Light Sport Aviation markets. The team at TruTrak are not only committed to quality, but to industry leading customer service and support.
We believe that the Vizion is the best stand-alone autopilot that we have ever created. This is no small accomplishment considering the huge success of the Digiflight II product line. The Vizion capitalizes on the simple user interface and supreme flight dynamics that were established by the Digiflight II.
Your new Vizion autopilot was created with both the VFR and IFR pilot in mind. The new Emergency Level Mode was designed primarily for the VFR pilot that inadvertently finds himself in IMC. The operation of the Altitude Select and Altitude Preselect Modes were designed to be extremely useable and useful in IFR flight, even to the extent that an Altitude Select can be entered and the vertical speed is easily adjusted to any desired value. This feature is extremely useful when initiating approaches or during step down approaches.
Please read this manual carefully and get to know your new autopilot. The operation of the Vizion is similar to Digiflight II, but there are many new modes with changes in user interface.
Vizion 380/385 |
5 |
Rev - Initial |
2.2.Controls
The face of the autopilot has a display for showing mode and other information to the pilot. Also on the face of the autopilot there is a MODE button, ALT button, and a KNOB.
Not on the face of the unit, but also integral pieces of the autopilot system are the control wheel steering button or CWS button, and the AP LEVEL button.
Most modes and features of the autopilot are accessed using
MODE, ALT, and KNOB.
There are a few different ways to utilize the MODE and ALT buttons, one is a momentary press and release, this will be called “press”. The other way to utilize the MODE or ALT button, is to press and hold the button until the display changes, this will be called “press and hold”. The press and hold function requires approximately 2 seconds for the hold.
Similarly to the MODE and ALT buttons, the KNOB has press and press and hold functions. The knob is also rotated for selecting new values for data entry. The rotation will be called “select”.
Like the MODE, ALT, and KNOB, the CWS button has both press and press and hold functions.
The AP LEVEL button has only the press function.
Vizion 380/385 |
6 |
Rev - Initial |
3. Autopilot Power Up
It is essential that the aircraft be stationary during the power up sequence!
The autopilot master switch should be in the off position when the engine is started. After starting the aircraft engine, turn on the autopilot master switch and keep the aircraft stationary as the internal gyros are initialized. This takes approximately 20 seconds during which time the display will first show the autopilot type and software version in lower portion of the screen. This is displayed for the first 10 seconds. Autopilot type and software version is shown in figure 3a.
Figure 3a
Following the autopilot type and software version screens, the display show the words PWR UP in the lower right, as shown in figure 3b.
Figure 3b
When the power up sequence is complete PWR UP will change to AP OFF, as shown in figure 3c. Once AP OFF is displayed, the aircraft can be moved without introducing centering errors into the internal gyros.
Figure 3c
Note: Before using the autopilot, an altimeter sync should be completed. See section 6.1 for altimeter sync instructions
Vizion 380/385 7 Rev - Initial
4. Autopilot Display
The autopilot display shows operating modes and associated data. It is also used to display setup mode screens and their values. When displaying operating modes, the left side shows lateral data and the right side shows vertical data.
4.1.GPS Signal Status
4.1.1.Autopilot Not Engaged
The current GPS signal status is indicated in the top left corner of the display. NO GPS is displayed when no valid signal is being received. This is shown in Figure 4.1.1a
Figure 4.1.1a
A flashing period is displayed in the upper left when a GPS signal is detected but no position information is available and the words NO FIX are displayed. This is shown in Figure 4.1.1b
Figure4.1.1b
A flashing asterisk (*) and GPS OK is displayed when the GPS position information is valid. This is shown in Figure 4.1.1c.
Figure 4.1.1c
Vizion 380/385 |
8 |
Rev - Initial |
A flashing plus (+) is displayed when GPS flight plan information is received via RS232 or GPS Steering information is received via ARINC 429. This is shown in Figure 4.1.1d.
Figure 4.1.1d
If the aircraft is travelling at a speed greater than 10 knots, and has a valid GPS fix (a flashing asterisk (*) or plus (+) is displayed), the display will show the current ground track or TRK. This is shown in Figure 4.1.1e.
Figure 4.1.1e
4.1.2. Autopilot Engaged
Similar to when the autopilot is not engaged, the current GPS signal status is indicated in the top left corner of the display. BANK is displayed when no valid signal is being received. This is shown in Figure 4.1.2a.
Figure 4.1.2a
A flashing period is displayed under BANK when a GPS signal is detected but no position information is available. This is shown in Figure 4.1.2b.
Figure 4.1.2b
A flashing asterisk (*) is displayed when the GPS position information is valid. TRK replaces GPS OK once the aircraft has 10 knots of ground speed. This is shown in Figure 4.1.2c.
Vizion 380/385 |
9 |
Rev - Initial |
Figure 4.1.2c
A flashing plus (+) shows when GPS flight plan information is received via RS232 or GPS Steering information is received via ARINC 429. This is shown in Figure 4.1.2d.
Figure 4.1.2d
4.2.DG Display
The upper left display shows TRK and the current GPS ground track only when there is at least 10 kts of ground speed and a valid GPS signal. The DG display is a gyroscopically enhanced GPS ground track. This enhancement creates a very easy to fly track based DG, which is free of the usual GPS based lag in many displays. The DG is shown in the upper left of figure 4.3a
4.3.Trim Annunciation
The scrolling bars in the middle of the display indicate a need for pitch trim adjustment. Bars scrolling up means trim up, bars scrolling down mean trim down. Figure 4.3a shows a sample screen with the trim annunciation shown in the center of the display.
Figure 4.3a
Vizion 380/385 |
10 |
Rev - Initial |
5. Vizion Setup Procedure
In the Vizion setup screens, pressing ALT will advance the page to the next setup screen. Pressing MODE will return to the previous screen. Rotating the KNOB changes the values. Pressing the KNOB exits the setup mode. NOTE: See Section 8 for suggested settings of many common aircraft.
5.1.Lateral Setup
Press and hold MODE to access the lateral setup menu.
5.1.1. LAT ACTIVITY
Selectable from 0 to 24. This setting controls the “sensitivity” of the roll servo. A higher setting will increase the reaction speed, too high will cause jitteriness. A lower setting will decrease reaction speed, too low will cause sluggishness. The LAT ACTIVITY setup screen is shown in Figure 5.1.1a.
Figure 5.1.1a
5.1.2. BAUD
Selectable from 600 to 9600. Most GPS settings will be either 4800 or 9600. This setting must be matched to the Baud Rate output of the GPS connected to the RS232 input of the autopilot. Consult the setup procedure for the GPS to obtain the proper baud rate setting. The BAUD setup screen is shown in Figure 5.1.2a
Figure 5.1.2a
Vizion 380/385 |
11 |
Rev - Initial |
5.1.3. BANK ANGLE
Selectable between LO, MED, and HI. This setting controls the bank angle in GPS Nav mode or the Track Selector Mode. It does not affect GPSS mode. LO provides approximately 12° of bank, MED provides 18°, and HI 24°, regardless of airspeed. The BANK ANGLE setup screen is shown in figure 5.1.3a.
Figure 5.1.3a
5.1.4. MICROACTIVITY
Selectable from 0 to 31. This setting is used to reduce the effects of lost motion in the system. Cable operated systems will need to use a higher value. Most pushrod control systems can use a value of 0. Obtain factory assistance before making large adjustments to this setting. The lateral axis MICROACTIVITY setup screen is shown in Figure 5.1.4a.
Figure 5.1.4a
5.1.5. GPSS GAIN
Selectable from 16 to 32. This setting is used to adjust the gain of the GPS Steering signal from a source device. Increasing the setting will result in a higher bank angle at a given point, up to the maximum of the internal limiter. The GPSS GAIN setup screen is shown in Figure 5.1.5a.
Figure 5.1.5a
Vizion 380/385 |
12 |
Rev - Initial |
5.1.6. YAW DAMPER?
Selectable between N and Y. Setting this to Y will engage an installed yaw damper with the autopilot. Leave this set at N if no yaw damper is installed. The YAW DAMPER? setup screen is shown in Figure 5.1.6a.
Figure 5.1.6a
5.2.Vertical Setup
Press and hold ALT to access the vertical setup menu.
5.2.1. VRT ACTIVITY
Selectable from 0 and 24. This setting controls the “sensitivity” of the pitch servo. A higher setting will increase the reaction speed, too high will cause jitteriness. A lower setting will decrease reaction speed, too low will cause sluggishness. The VRT ACTIVITY setup screen is shown in Figure 5.2.1a
Figure 5.2.1a.
5.2.2. MIN AIRSPD
Selectable from 0 to 399. This setting adjusts the minimum airspeed, in knots indicated, that the autopilot will fly. When this airspeed is reached in flight, the autopilot will flash a warning on the screen and drop the nose of the aircraft to maintain this airspeed. The MIN AIRSPD setup screen is shown in Figure 5.2.2a
Figure 5.2.2a.
Vizion 380/385 |
13 |
Rev - Initial |
5.2.3. MAX AIRSPD
Selectable from 0 to 399. This setting adjusts the maximum airspeed, in knots indicated, that the autopilot will fly. When this airspeed is reached in flight, the autopilot will flash a warning on the screen and raise the nose of the aircraft to maintain this airspeed. The MAX AIRSPD setup screen is shown in Figure 5.2.3a
Figure 5.2.3a.
5.2.4. PITCH REV
Selectable between N and Y. This setting allows reversal of the direction of travel and trim annunciation of the pitch servo without a wiring change. The PITCH REV setup screen is shown in Figure 5.2.4a.
Figure 5.2.4a
5.2.5. STATIC LAG
Selectable from 0 to 4. This setting is used to tune out gentle oscillations in the pitch axis. Increasing the setting will dampen an oscillation, but will also make the autopilot less reactive to altitude deviations. The STATIC LAG setup screen is shown in Figure 5.2.5a.
Figure 5.2.5a
Vizion 380/385 |
14 |
Rev - Initial |
5.2.6. MICROACTIVITY
Selectable from 0 to 31. This setting is used to reduce the effects of lost motion in the system. Cable operated systems will need to use a higher value. Most pushrod control systems can use a value of 0. Obtain factory assistance before making large adjustments to this setting. The vertical axis MICROACTIVITY setup screen is shown in Figure 5.2.6a.
Figure 5.2.6a
5.2.7. HALF-STEP?
Selectable between N and Y. This setting is used to tune out an almost imperceptible pitch oscillation where one step of the servo is too much adjustment. Set to Y to enable. The HALF STEP? setup screen is shown in Figure 5.2.7a.
Figure 5.2.7a
Vizion 380/385 |
15 |
Rev - Initial |
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