PowerFlarm at Region 9 Contest

On Tuesday, June 11, 2013 11:15:00 PM UTC-4, Alan wrote:
In article anderson writes:

On Tuesday, June 11, 2013 6:56:35 PM UTC-7, mike wrote:



PowerFlarm works best if most gliders use it. Offering not to fly when more=

than a few glider are airborne or promising not to climb in the areas of g=

ood lift, while generous offers, strain credulity a bit.=20



I expect a fair amount of sincere rationalizing between now and broad Flarm=

adoption in the US. It's a free country, but I will continue to encourage =

as many of my soaring friends to voluntarily adopt Flarm as I can. 100% ado=

ption at contests is the short-term goal.



Is Flarm still a closed (secret) protocol on the transmitted signal? If

it is, opening it up for others to implement it (if desired), and to make

the standard public, might go a long way to acceptance by removing the

monopoly of the manufacturer.



Alan

It's neither open nor secret: it's licensed. There are multiple manufacturers
that have implemented it. Outside the US, FLARM units are more modestly priced
(e.g. starting at $700 for a basic Flarm Mouse). The US PowerFLARM unit
is higher priced because it supports other detection methods (ADSB and PCAS)
and because the FCC imposed additional testing for it to be legal here,
so only one manufacturer has jumped that expensive hoop.

I've installed the PF Brick unit in my plane so far. I fly in a busy area
(three class C airports within ~50 miles, plus lots of military traffic)
so a transponder is on the wish list. I also fly contests so FLARM was
a really good idea. At least with PF I get warnings about traffic.

Matt