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+-- Forum: Pypilot (https://forum.openmarine.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=17)
+--- Forum: General discussion (https://forum.openmarine.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=18)
+--- Thread: Autopilot_route plugin and pypilot (/showthread.php?tid=3160)
Autopilot_route plugin and pypilot - ironman - 2020-12-28
Just to share something I found out, and to (re)kindle interest in the OpenCPN autopilot_route plugin: When using the OpenCPN route/track function, the pypilot option 'gps' lights up by default, provided you set up a connection on tcp/20220 to pypilot. However, when using the autopilot_route plugin, pypilot does not show the gps option by default. The solution to this is to add RMC messages to the NMEA output in the plugin preferences (see image below). By default, the NMEA output is limited to APB messages only.
It took me hours to figure this out, only after tracing large parts of the pypilot code. The moment I realised I knew I had read it somewhere.
The GPS option in the pypilot interfaces only seems to light up when RMC messages are provided. The pypilot, however, only seems to use the content of the APB messages for following a track (XTE and BRG). This seems a bit weird, because XTE is in RMB messages and not in RMC messages. The OpenCPN route/track option provides RMB, RMC and APB messages by default.
RE: Autopilot_route plugin and pypilot - seandepagnier - 2020-12-30
I did not know this, so I'm confused by your finding. Normally only APB is needed in the plugin, and the other options are to be complete and output everything the internal route logic allows.
Normally opencpn itself forwards the the RMC messages, so it should not depend on the plugin. Are you sure the connection to 20220 is set to output on that port, and gps is received? I would check the opencpn nmea debugger and compare it with and without the autopilot route plugin enabled.
So to confirm, the RMC messages are sent when the plugin is disabled, but they are not sent when it is enabled unless checked in the plugin preferences? This seems wrong to me.
I will be sure to look for this when I get the chance to run more extensive tests of the autopilot route plugin.
RE: Autopilot_route plugin and pypilot - ironman - 2020-12-30
I should have mentioned that I'm getting the data from signalk now, so there's no nmea messages going into opencpn that can be forwarded.