ADSB Installation

Oshkosh is coming up very shortly. My plan is to buy ADSB for my flying Skyview equipped RV-12. When I installed my Skyview, the ADSB box was not yet available, but I had asked a few questions and found that the minimum antenna spacing for the ADSB antenna was 36 inches. I found a location under the passengers seat that will accommodate the ADSB antenna, and provide (barely) the 36 inch spacing that I need. So I ordered the antenna from Van's, and went ahead and pulled the coax from the avionics bay, to that area under the passengers seat. I'm looking for anyone who has added the ADSB, to determine if I am better off buying the box from Dynon, or ordering the kit from Van's. Sure wish that I could take a look at the plan's from Van's to see what comes with the kit, as well as the ADSB box installation. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Tom

See this thread. http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=96221 If you have already built the RV12 the Vans method is a LOT more work and trouble.

I (and others) installed the box on the back (pilot) side of the baggage bulkhead. The Antenna is back on the bottom of the tail cone about as far back as you can reach from inside the plane to mount it. Buy it from Steins and he will make you a cable (plug on one end, pins on the other with plug separate) and give you some stick-on clips. Run the wire under the longeron up to the panel (hidden by interior kit) under the master switch and put in snap bushings there and along the way. After running the wire, put the pins in the plug. Easy.

This is a lot easier than dealing with more stuff like thick coax past the Rudder pedals! Of course you have already done that. Might as well get it from Vans for the mounting plate.

Bill, thanks for your thoughts. Your method sure sounds like the easiest way, for sure. I'll chat with the guys at Oshkosh, and make the final decision up there.

This is exactly how I installed it to avoid the deal with routing a long thick, coax through the tunnel. The system works perfectly for more than 40 hours now and I would not change a thing.

Has anybody installed ADS-B in a plane with the D180? It looks like Dynon has decided they are going to stick with the SV integrated unit. I put Freeflight in my Cherokee with a wifi link for ADS-B In. I'm pretty happy with it, but I wonder if NAVWORX might be a good choice for my 12. Does anyone have RV-12 operating experience with either?

You would need ADSB-out before you can expect meaningful ADSB-in information. That would require a Mode-S transponder in the D-180 avionics setup. I believe that there is a Mode-S drop-in replacement that would replace what Van's had shipped with the D-180. After that it should be possible to get traffic on anything that can handle the ADSB-in part (iPad, etc.)

Actually the mode S option with a Garmin 330ES would not be ideal. The footprint of the 330 is bigger than the 327, so it's not a simple swap. Going the 1090 route versus 978 MHz would leave me with no ADS-B in. What I would like to know is if anybody has actually installed an ADS-B in/out system n a D180 RV-12, and what is their level of satisfaction with it.

Thanks,
Rich

Hey Bill H (or anyone else who has done a similar installation):

Can you please post a picture showing how you mounted the ADS-B box behind the bulkhead? I'd appreciate it.

Thanks!

Too late for a pic! Covered by the interior now. Imagine the box is a paperback book. It is flat against the aft bulkhead, down low, to the pilot side of the plane. It isn't mounted on the removable piece, but next to it. From the baggage area all you can see are the 4 screw heads holding it. Use the box itself to mark them for drilling, then install it on the aft side.

The Dynon website has the manual and drawing of the box. it has 4 holes at the corners for mounting.

Ken,

I have a few posts on my blog that cover the ADSB installation on the aft bulkhead. Here are some pictures from it:





Here are the links to the articles dealing with it:
http://torstensrv-12.blogspot.com/2013/07/adsb-in-installed.html
http://torstensrv-12.blogspot.com/2013/07/adsb-in-wired-up.html
http://torstensrv-12.blogspot.com/2013/07/adsb-in-works.html

It was definitely one of the easier jobs to do.

Tom - Congrats on being in Sport Aviation!

Thanks Bill. I really felt honored, particularly to make it in the August issue, which is the issue that is passed out, free, to every attendee at Airventure.

Now, I'm looking for some thought about my ADS-B installation:
As I was finishing up my RV-12 last fall, and way before Van had an installation kit, I designed my own installation and did a prep. This was even before Dynon had units for sale, but I did talk with one of their Techs, and was given the minimum antenna spacing, as well as the fact that I could use the same stub antenna that we use for the transponder, or the blade type like Van furnishes with his kit. I then ran an RG-58 cable from the avionics deck to an area under the passenger seat pan, that meets the antenna spacing minimums, and I ordered another stub antenna from Van's. This would make my installation quick and simple. By the way, I did build EAB.

So now that Van's finally has a kit developed, I ordered it. I like the ADS-B unit mounting on the radio stack, but that antenna placement makes for a whole lot of work, and I'm not sure that it will be worth it, given the fact that my prep work would turn this into a simple morning project. My concern is that I am not an avionics guru, although, I did stay a Holiday Inn Express one night.

Anyway, I am looking for thought from someone with a bit more avionics expertise than me, and comments would be greatly appreciated.

Tom

I am no electronics expert, but I would use the antenna that you have already installed. What have you got to lose? If it doesn't work, then make changes.
Joe Gores

Right- give what you have a try. That new antenna is only receiving, not transmitting. It can't interfere with other antennas, they might or might not interfere with it.

Appreciate the tips, but I thought this was an ADS-B out device, meaning xmit. At any rate, I have the spacing that Dynon recommended, and I will give it a try. Also, I will post the results.............

Tom

todehnal said:

Appreciate the tips, but I thought this was an ADS-B out device, meaning xmit. At any rate, I have the spacing that Dynon recommended, and I will give it a try. Also, I will post the results.............

Tom

Click to expand...

It is an ADS-B in device. The SkyView uses the SV-XPONDER-261 as the ADS-B out device but you can use another "certified" transponder for the out.

Thanks!! That makes me think that antenna location may be a little less critical, as far as causing interference with other receivers

To the contrary! If you place the receiving ADS-B in antenna too close to the transponder TX/RX antenna it will pick up a whole lot of energy when the transponder is transmitting. This could affect the SWR of the transmitter/antenna combo but, even worse, it could overload the receiver in the ADSB-in box and eventually fry it.
When I installed mine I thought that any area under the seat pan, which would have been nice for the antenna cable routing, was too close to the transponder antenna. I put mine on the left side of the belly of the tail cone behind the aft bulkhead. That's also where I put the ADSB in receiver to keep the antenna cable short. Running 4 tiny wires from there to Van's blackbox was very easy to do.
I have excellent ADSB receiption with this setup (used the fin type antenna tuned for the ADSB frequency (UAT antenna) from Delta Pop Aviation).