moitessier hat - AIS reception varies by power source

[jaziniho]

Just away on holiday at the moment. I will try out a few tests when i get back. The aerial is pretty decent marine vhf antenna, though it is not yet mast mounted so perhaps a little close to the powered equipment.

Ill try with a longer USB cable to get the HAT further away from the converter. I can also try with the li-ion pack i have to compare vs mains, and using converter with engine on vs not for how clean the voltage is, different converter etc.

Once i'm back and have gone through a few permutations i'll drop an update back.

[SkipperEarly]

has anyone tested with something like "UPS PIco - Uninterruptible Power Supply HAT" to be added to the raspi +Moutessier.

[SkipperEarly]

... well nobody used the Pico .... but how about the StromPi3 ? - anyone used/tested the StromPi3 with the accu add-on on top of the Moitessier hat?

[Rooney]

... well nobody used the Pico .... but how about the StromPi3 ? - anyone used/tested the StromPi3 with the accu add-on on top of the Moitessier hat?

Hi,
I've not tested the StromPi3 yet, but according to the schematic of the StromPi this should work. However, the rechargeable battery must not be on top of the Moitessier HAT. This would dramatically reduce GPS performance. The HAT does not provide the 40-pin IO header on top anyway.

[SkipperEarly]

Thanks Rooney for replying.
Have in the meantime spoken to the developer of Moitessier HAT and got positiv feedback. - it should work!
BTW: Moitessier HAT will always be the top HAT - as no pins are put through. StromPI with battery will be sandwiched between rpi and Moitessier.
Will have to see if height of StromPi with Battery is not too tight and if ventilation is sufficient. Maybe I can find somewhere a "extend distance - pin - stacker" - (if you know what I mean
I am now planning to go that way.

[Albatros]

When you use the strompi3, per Default the Serial communication is blocked, because strompi uses a Serial console. I contacted Joy-it and they confirmed that. Only solution is to set the strompi in the "Serial-less-mode". It took me somte time to find out....here is a how-to

https://github.com/joy-it/strompi3/blob/...eitung.pdf

[Stuart]

Hi!

PaddyB has already mentioned a possible reason for your issue.
Most likely the performance degradation is caused by noise on the power supply, this might be either due to a noisy input source or the serial combination of the external switching regulator and the onboard switching regulator of the Pi, used to convert 5V to 3.3V. If using two switching regulators in series, they might oscillate and regulation is not reliable anymore. If the power source is unstable, sensitivity gets really worse.
Keep in mind to use low noise power supplies. The best solution would be a linear voltage regulator, no switching converter. However, in general, most converters are switching regulators due to its higher efficiency.  It is absolutely crucial to use only high-quality converters!!
I will add a list of recommended regulators soon. If there are suggestions from the community, I will test any suggested converter in the lab to have reproducible results.

Regardless of this post, I have already done tests in the past, comparing the reception performance using two different step-down converters. The difference is quite amazing!!! I will publish a video of the comparison in the next few days.

Regards,
Thomas

Help for an electronics newbie, please....

Does a "high noise power supply" interfere with the voltage to the Pi, or does it interfere with the radio signal?  If I use a remote aerial, for AIS, would that be OK?  Would the "high noise" supply also interfere with GPS?

As a newbie, I would much prefer to buy a module that just gives the right voltage (possibly mounting it away from the Pi).  I was thinking of something like this:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Power-Supply-...Sw3xJVbaVq
or
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Raspberry-Pi-...Sw5cNYcSC7

How can I tell if a power supply module is appropriate?

Any advice/pointers/products would be appreciated.

Also, if my 12V supply has a 3A fuse, do I also need a fuse between the power supply and the soldered connection to the underside of the GPIO pins on the Pi?

Thanks

[Luckbert]

Hi!

PaddyB has already mentioned a possible reason for your issue.
Most likely the performance degradation is caused by noise on the power supply, this might be either due to a noisy input source or the serial combination of the external switching regulator and the onboard switching regulator of the Pi, used to convert 5V to 3.3V. If using two switching regulators in series, they might oscillate and regulation is not reliable anymore. If the power source is unstable, sensitivity gets really worse.
Keep in mind to use low noise power supplies. The best solution would be a linear voltage regulator, no switching converter. However, in general, most converters are switching regulators due to its higher efficiency.  It is absolutely crucial to use only high-quality converters!!
I will add a list of recommended regulators soon. If there are suggestions from the community, I will test any suggested converter in the lab to have reproducible results.

Regardless of this post, I have already done tests in the past, comparing the reception performance using two different step-down converters. The difference is quite amazing!!! I will publish a video of the comparison in the next few days.

Regards,
Thomas

Help for an electronics newbie, please....

Does a "high noise power supply" interfere with the voltage to the Pi, or does it interfere with the radio signal?  If I use a remote aerial, for AIS, would that be OK?  Would the "high noise" supply also interfere with GPS?

As a newbie, I would much prefer to buy a module that just gives the right voltage (possibly mounting it away from the Pi).  I was thinking of something like this:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Power-Supply-...Sw3xJVbaVq
or
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Raspberry-Pi-...Sw5cNYcSC7

How can I tell if a power supply module is appropriate?

Any advice/pointers/products would be appreciated.

Also, if my 12V supply has a 3A fuse, do I also need a fuse between the power supply and the soldered connection to the underside of the GPIO pins on the Pi?

Thanks

Hello, everybody, 
I use the converter of the second left. 
I also want to get the best out of my system. 
Which is the better converter? 
 
@Rooco maybe you can give buy recommendations.  Just going by price is very difficult.  Some components vary a lot depending on the online shop. 
 
Greetings Jürgen

---

Is that an Option?

https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/bSQwTrPK

[Luckbert]

Or this

https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/b5UCYypi

[petter5]

I'm using two 18650 batteries , parallell coupled together with two damn cheap powerbanks bought at ebay.

Tutorial shown here: http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f134...ost2393825

Have been working flawless for two years now for a Raspberry Pi running an AIS station 24/7/365.

Why complex when it can be easy ?