ADL165 User and Installation Manual 3 / 10 Version 1.00 - 07.02.2024
PLEASE NOTE: The ADL165 will show satellite signal even without an active satellite
service plan and will even be able to transmit data. But this data will not be processed
and the device will receive no data.
8 General Operation
The ADL165 is designed to be as simple as possible. Place the device on the glare
shield with the rounded side facing up. This is important as the internal antenna will not
work when upside down. Then power the device by connecting a Micro USB cable.
Note there are no switches or similar on the ADL165. Once it receives USB power, it
starts until power is cut.
9 USB Power Supply Details
The quality of the USB power supply is crucial. USB is specified at 5V but there will be
loss in cables etc. When operating the ADL165 you can check on the Config page of
the ADLConnect app the actual voltage measured by the device. That should not be
below 4.7V to 4.8V or there could be outages when the ADL165 is communicating with
the satellite. Also the voltage should be as stable as possible when the ADL165
transmits and uses more power. Some low quality USB outlets might not keep up with
that. Also using low quality or long USB cables can cause issues. On average the
ADL165 will consume approximately 500mA at 5V.
10 External Iridium Antenna
On the back side the ADL165 has got a MMCX connector which allows connecting a
separate wired Iridium antenna. This antenna will then work in parallel to the Iridium
antenna internal to the ADL165. Configurations where the ADL165 is placed on one
window and the second antenna is placed on another window opposite are possible or
also configurations where the ADL165 itself does not have any view to the sky and it
then operates only with the separate antenna. A typical 90 degrees MMCX connector
usually works best for the connection.
Figure 1 ADL165 Back side with MMCX Iridium antenna connector
11 Interconnect Options
The ADL165 supports all WiFi GDL90 interconnect options available on nearly all ADL
devices. This means you can interface to ForeFlight, SkyDemon and other WiFI GDL90
compatible apps. But the ADL165 does have pins on its bottom side for a wired
connection. Specifications for this interface will follow at a later date.
