At 15:45 08 December 2016, Tom TK wrote:
Dave Walsh, have you installed the Antares hard/soft upgrade
yet for
"charg=
e plus". The software revision 6 provides for better charging
and
balancing=
of the batteries. There are two of us here in the US that are
going to
hav=
e this done in January. The factory is in the process of writing a
new
soft=
ware version 7, which ads a number new functionalities.=20
One of the more interesting functionalities is internet access,
which
would=
allow the factory to access the US aircraft remotely and even
perform
soft=
ware fixes and upgrades from Germany. On a side note; due to
improved
monit=
oring, version 7 will also make the recurring (normally annual)
inspection
=
have 3 years of validity, significantly reducing inspection costs
for EASA
=
certified aircraft. Version 7 is expected to be certified in the
autumn of
=
next year.=20

This thread seems to be drifting into Antares territory; the
Antares and FES (especially an Ultra-light FES self-launcher, i.e.
the Silent Electro) are very different sailplanes. They are only
similar in that electric power should get you to the nearest
airfield/home. In theory the "electrics" option should be more
reliable than the two stroke option, the downside is the much
reduced range of current "electric" systems. In this regard FES is
a much better "get you home" option than a self-launcher.

To answer the previous post I have software version 6.0
("Charge Plus"); it was already installed when I bought the A/C
two years ago. It allows you to charge the batteries to about
118-120%; I don't actually understand this (I'm a biochemist
not an electrical engineer) but what it means is that I can launch
from Sisteron (French Alps 1700 ft elevation, ~30C), climb to
about 5000ft (about the limit before the engine temperature gets
into the red), stow the engine and have about 60% battery
power remaining. If you don't use the "charge plus" feature the
remaining battery power is about 45-50%. These figures are for
10 year old batteries, with a total of 700 flight hours.
Looking at my considerable file of invoices I see that the upgrade
to software 6.0 was not cheap. I am told that one of the big
advantages of version 6.0 is that it prevents catastrophic total
discharge of the batteries which can happen through operator
error (for instance putting the A/C away, going on holiday, whilst
accidentally leaving the radio switched on). This, I am told, can
be a very, very expensive mistake as it requires replacement of
all 72 battery cells.
Version 6.0 "Charge Plus" has some limitations; the batteries
once charged to 120% have to be used, so the A/C has to be
rigged and the engine to be ground run to reduce power back to
100%. This can take quite some time! (There may be some
other way to do this buried in the software, but as all my
documentation is in German, I have never tried it).
Also if you use "Charge Plus" immediately before flight some of
the electronics and the batteries will be hot. I have heard various
opinions on whether this is a significant factor. I avoid this by
running Charge Plus overnight.

Here in EASA land I am not sure that the extended inspection
periods you mention are relevant?

On your side of the pond Dave Nadler (an ex Antares owner)
might be a good source of information?
Dave Walsh