Vertical Power is a "must see"

Marc Ausman was in town yesterday giving demos of his VP-200 product. Initially, I wasn't going to go out and have a look, because I didn't think I could afford his box, and I didn't want to waste his time. However, since SWRFI has been cancelled, there's not much chance to have a look at any avionics here in Texas anymore, so I decided to go ahead and "waste his time" a little. I have to say it was time well spent, even though I did get a nasty crack in my windshield on the way up to Georgetown (stupid dump trucks).

So, what's so great about the VP-200. You can go to the website, and have a look at all of the things that it will do for you, but to actually get a feel for its usefulness, I think you really have to see the product in action. Basically, what it does is to provide intelligent control of your electrical system during different phases of flight. The box will monitor all of the switched circuits in the aircraft, let you know how the system is functioning, and even turn things on or off for you, as needed, depending upon how you have programmed each circuit for each phase of flight.

The product does a lot of other things, and the website does a better job of describing its capabilities. I just wanted to convey that this is the type of product that you have to see in person. If you make it to one of the trade shows, I think it would be well worth your time to get a hands on demo of the product if at all possible.

Currently, the EFIS and engine monitor are becoming "must have" devices for your panel. I think the Vertical Power type of electrical system controller will be the next "must have" device for your panel. Now, I just have to figure out how I'm going to add $6K to my avionics fund.

Cheers,
Tracy.

I am really intrigued by this. Can put a final decision on whether to go that route or traditional wiring for a year, but will probably go with VP. Of course the single point of failure is a concern. On the other hand I've had traditional mechanical toggle switches and the like fail too.

Ralph, the single point of failure is a non-issue once you understand how the system works. Read the section on backups in the installation manual here on the web: http://www.verticalpower.com/documents.html

If you had a chance to go to Golden West Fly-In this past weekend, you probably saw the Vertical Power booth and their products. They really do have a genius product. It is a bit on the pricey side, but what is it worth to have a flawless electrical system?

Ralph,

I had the same concern about single point of failure when I first heard about the VP system. However, after seeing the demo, I was less worried. There are many single points of failure in our aircraft, and anything that is critical has to be dealt with. This is true whether you use a VP system, or not.

What I did see during the VP-200 demo was that the box helps with safety during different phases of flight. For example, lowering your flaps at 200 MPH is probably a bad thing. With a normally wired aircraft, this can happen by accidentally hitting the flap switch during normal cruise. With the VP-200, the software recognizes that you probably made a mistake, and will not allow this to happen.

Another example is the starter switch. Accidentially pressing this button while someone is standing next to the prop can have dire consequences. That button should only be engaged when you are sure that you want to spin the prop, so you have to enter a code to unlock that capability.

These guys have spent a lot of time thinking about optimizing how you interface with and monitor your electrical system. You owe it to yourself to take a look at what they have to offer. At least take a look at their document page that Marc posted (you can download their electrical loads spreadsheet for free). Also, they have a forum where they answer questions about their products, and electrical stuff in general.

Regarding single point of failure on my own aircraft, I am using a rotary engine, and I plan on using fuel injection. I have a single controller board that handles the EFI and Ignition systems. The board has two separate controllers, so there is some redundancy, but there is a single power connection. If I am really concerned about single point of failure, then I am going to have to buy another controller board, and I am going to have to deal with how to wire both boards into the fuel and ignition systems. I suspect that I will live with the single point of failure, and pay close attention as to how the board is wired up. Note, that I do not forsee getting my IFR ticket anytime soon.

Tracy.

I had to make room in the budget...

When I first saw the VP stuff, I thought, gee, that's neato, but I was petrified of having some box that thinks about stuff in control of my destiny. The more I looked at it, and REALLY read and understood the documentation, the more comfortable I became. It's possible to wire up "emergency power" to the essentials using the diagrams that VP supplies, so that with a flip of a switch, you've got power to the things that matter. After speaking with Marc of VP at great length, I was sold. He happened to be coming out to LA and was able to make time to come by and see my project, and then I was really sold. Super cool guy, and really smart. The quality of their stuff is really first rate. I'm currently in the middle of mounting everything up and getting ready to wire, and their system makes pretty easy work of a complicated setup. I really think it's just about the coolest thing about my aircraft so far. sorry about the unabashed praises, but it's really a great product from a great company.

cj