NK2 at NMEA, happy stuff
Look how NMEA 2000 can make a guy grin. That’s Kevin Binnie, Systems Product Manager at Xantrex Technology, showing how his MS2000 Inverter/Charger can gateway to NK2 and hence display its operating status to...
Category: Network & control
Weather Caster 2.0, an Airmar WS update
This software (bigger screen here) is still in beta but it seems quite stable and adds a lot to the Airmar Weather Station, including a new name for itself, Weather Caster. Note the new pitch and roll dial;...
Raymarine E- and C-Series, the NMEA 0183 limitation
I think the input/output architecture of Raymarine’s C- and particularly E-Series is really quite good. In fact, I’m amazed that the E is still the only system out there offering both NMEA 2000 and Ethernet networking, though the...
Ultrasonic Weather Wars, w/ Raymarine as Switzerland
This example will be less funky once I get this whole test rig on the water, but still that’s an impressive screen shot. All that data is coming from, or calculated using, the NMEA 2000 output of Maretron’s...
Maretron Weather Station, first impressions
As you may have noticed from the antenna farm, I’m trying the Maretron Weather Station announced last fall. It’s hard to imagine an easier physical install…unscrew a T in the NMEA 2000 backbone, add new T...
NMEA 0183 wiring, why it bugs me
OK, I admit that at least half of the hideous mess above is the fault of yours truly, being sloppy with a temporary install, in this case interfacing a DSC VHF, a GPS, and an...
Simrad engine display, better than dials?
I wear a watch with hands, but I’m not crazy about traditional engine gauges, especially when there are rows and rows of them, and most especially when they’re digitally rendered. Yes, a screen like this SmartCraft/Northstar combo looks ‘wow’, but...
The power of Zeus, part 3
So what do I mean that the new Zeus propulsion system has nerves as well as brains? Well, hooked into the drive controller is an ultra high precision GPS and inertial navigation sensor which feeds it fast updates on...
Zeus 1, the most innovative electronics at Miami was a propulsion system!?!
Above is a 42’ Maxum that Brunswick, specifically the Cummins MerCruiser division, was using as a special demo boat at the Miami Boat Show. Obviously (bigger here ) it’s loaded with Northstar’s new 8000i multifunction...
Simrad Remote, a NMEA 2000 surprise
It made sense to me that Simrad’s WR20 RemoteCommander shared an innovation award with the Northstar 8000i at the Miami boat show. It uses Bluetooth to wirelessly connect (“up to” 300’, as they say) with...
