[TG] ACU-100 / EV-1 Locations

[jrock836]

Quick question.. Will mounting the ACU100 next to the EV1 be okay, or will the ACU100 likely cause magnetic interference to the EV1?

[Tom - Raymarine - Moderator]

Hello jrock836,

You shouldn't do this. The ACU won't have much of a magnetic field when in Standby, but will have a larger (and, importantly, changing) magnetic field when it's handling larger amounts of current whilst the pilot is active. The likely effect is a fluctuating heading error on the EV whenever the pilot drives, which will then result in the pilot driving to try to correct the change in (apparent) heading and so on - a feedback loop which will result in very unpredictable pilot steering.

Regards,
Tom

[jrock836]

(01-19-20 07:32 PM)Tom - Raymarine - Moderator Wrote:  Hello jrock836,

You shouldn't do this. The ACU won't have much of a magnetic field when in Standby, but will have a larger (and, importantly, changing) magnetic field when it's handling larger amounts of current whilst the pilot is active. The likely effect is a fluctuating heading error on the EV whenever the pilot drives, which will then result in the pilot driving to try to correct the change in (apparent) heading and so on - a feedback loop which will result in very unpredictable pilot steering.

Regards,
Tom

Thanks Tom, that's what I figured, but I started second guessing myself when I saw the photo in this link. PracticalSailer.com gave the photo credit to Raymarine haha..

https://www.practical-sailor.com/marine-...stem-check

[Tom - Raymarine - Moderator]

Hmmm! Personally I wouldn't recommend that, but installations on boats are always about compromises and you have to install where you can. We had a test boat a while back where we had a choice of mounting close to the windscreen-wiper motor, close to the anchor well, close to the pilot pump or close to the 2x radars.