Mode1Mike

I'm using the Bwav 600mw system as a downlink. I'm experiencing cut-outs inflight at various angles of orientation. Currently...the antennae is in the aft fuselage, pointed straight down to the ground.

Does anyone have their antennae pointed upwards...and if so, how's it working???



Thanks for any help,

Mike

yb2normal

Generally speaking I like to mount mine down because it helps keep a clear line of sight between the antennas... mounting on top will put the plane between the antennas at certain times. Now having said that, I mounted the system on my Graupner Terry with the antenna sticking up and it worked fine.

Can you show a picture of both your airplane installation and how you set up your receiver? That will go a long way in helping to diagnose any issues.

At 2.4ghz, very small tweaks can have a significant impact. Moving the antenna a few inches in either direction can have a surprisingly large effect. When I'm mounting a system in a plane for the first time, I just duct tape it to the outside of the plane because I *know* I'll be moving it around as I look for an installation that gives me the best results.

Regards,
Bill

Fubar-One

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Mhale71

just a thought, i dont have one, but couldnt you trail the antenna from the plane?

yb2normal

Just tending the flock

Fubar-One

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Mode1Mike

Sorry, I lack the technology to post pics or video just yet. Which is a shame too...I got some great video on take-off, with the shadow of the plane on the ground during climb out. Pretty nice.

I also flew by video only at higher altitude...and I gotta tell you guys, that was good clean American fun!!!

I'll continue to experiment with Tx location and orientation, and keep you guys posted.

Deltageek2

I read a post of a radio amateur who did all the tech calcs on the signal propagation and he pointed it down and covered the bottom of the fuse with aluminum foil to act as a ground plane to the system. Seems the foil would blanket the RC antenna above to me...

I point my Mw TX stick antenna up out of the canopy thru a hole with great results. Not my area of expertise tho- I do video production for a living and just want the prettiest picture I can afford- a 2/3" CCD microboard cam with a Polaris TX- as I pilot my magic Porter 'Bomber' from a virtual pilot's eye view and record it to D8 simultaneously.

Another Amateur Radio guy put a YAGI antenna on a helmet since he reasoned he was naturally pointing his face at the plane at all times- voila! The perfect aiming system for a tremendously more effective directional antenna. I am sold on this system with only a few flights on it so far. The best and most consistent video I've ever gotten from the air. Reliable enough to fly it "under the hood" altho I only do that with a buddybox pilot backing me up- thus far.

I mount my directional antenna on a bike helmet- a Polaris SP-7 'wideangle' antenna with 10 db gain, and a 2.4 Ghz Mw Reciever with dual video outputs- one for the high resolution- 800 x600 LCD display for each eye- a Head Mounted Display- and quite an experience with the nose mounted cam! The other to the Line-In on the Digital 8 camcorder on it as well with plastic cable ties. A Lithium Polymer battery of 1500 Mah powers the downlink all day for cam recording and using the viewfinder or a hooded swing out LCD screen (which eats cam batteries quickly) for monitoring. For using the Head Mounted Display I have a 7 AH sealed lead acid battery in a backpack which powers them both and lugs all the gear nicely.

Deltageek2

Here's a link from the ATV guy who designed the CMOS MW link on the Solar Solitude for extreme high altitude use. See the charts for his antenna design and the signal propagation. ATV is great if you need higher power video transmission for larger planes and distances.

http://personalpages.tds.net/~dbeck/videotrans/

I am pleased with my present system which is unlicensed and fits my needs. The use of a directional amplified antenna mounted on a helmet points naturally at the plane as the pilot flies, not adding to his workload while providing the very best signal reliability I've ever had. A more powerful RX/ANT compensates for a weaker TX.