Fixed GPS
| Cruisers benefit greatly
from a fixed GPS. Deciding where to
position the gps has almost as many trade offs as a boat design.
My
final decision was to locate on a stud that allows positioning the unit
either within cabin or cockpit. My unit includes a sounder so has
dc/data, antenna, and transducer wires that don't need disconnected
when moving the gps from either side of the stud. With the
instruments held closely to the companionway opening, the
backrest provided by the cabin is not lost nor is visibility by the
helmsmen. |
 Adequate line is coiled and secured with Velcro to allow the unit to be moved to the pedestal guard along with a full featured remote auto pilot control. Visibility however on the bulkhead has proved to be adequate so its never been located at the pedestal guard. It is sometimes moved into the cabin at night so that the anchor alarm can be set and monitored. |
Having both the sounder and gps in one unit has worked well and saved space. The sounder screen is often used when in shallow areas to discern more readily the bottom contour as well as to check the bottom for weeds prior to anchoring. The gps is interfaced to the autopilot for "Track" steering. A pig tail also exits from the data bus connections between the liner and bulkhead with a 9 pin serial connector. It serves three purposes.In order to be so flexible, handheld to base gps transfers are made using a serial null modem connector. This was important prior to owning a lap top as the handheld was loaded at the family computer following waypoint and route planning for a cruise and that data was then transferred to the base gps. Some cruises have required close to 200 waypoints and 8-14 routes. To enter this data manually into a gps would be a major chore.
- It links the lap top computer to the gps for moving map display or transferring waypoints, routes etc. to the gps
- It allows handheld to base gps data transfers
- It links the handheld gps to autohelm should the base gps fail