L-3 TECHNOLOGIES ESI-500 Manual

Electronic Standby Instrument System
Aviation Products
Pilot’s Guide
for the
ESI-500 / MAG-500

Pilot’s Guide i
Methods and apparatus disclosed and described herein have been
developed solely on company funds of L3 Aviation Products. No
government or other contractual support or relationship whatsoever
has existed which in any way affects or mitigates proprietary rights of
L3 Aviation Products in these developments. Methods and apparatus
disclosed herein may be subject to U.S. Patents existing or applied
for. L3 Aviation Products reserves the right to add, improve, modify,
or withdraw functions, design modications, or products at any time
without notice.
L3 Aviation Products
5353 52nd Street, S.E.
Grand Rapids, MI 49512 USA
Customer Support [phone]
International [phone]
FAX [phone]
www.L3aviationproducts.com
ESI-500 Product Part No. 9200-15000-0101
MAG-500 Product Part No. 9200-15500-0101
Document Part No. 0040-15000-01 (Revision E)
© Copyright 2017
L3 Aviation Products
All Rights Reserved
Jeppesen® and NavData® are registered trademarks
of Jeppesen Sanderson, Inc.
Aviation Products
Distributed by:
Export Notice
This technical data has been released into the public domain in
compliance with EAR Part 734.7-11.
Pilot’s Guide
ESI-500 / MAG-500

Pilot’s Guideii
Document Precedence
This Pilot’s Guide provides general information about the operation of
the ESI-500 and the optional MAG-500. Refer to your FAA-approved
Airplane Flight Manual (AFM) and its ight manual supplements for
information specic to your aircraft. If there is conicting information
between the AFM and this guide, the AFM takes precedence over this
guide.
Revision Notice
Revision E updates references to the company name and web
addresses. On page 2-7 update the method of cycling power for
battery calibration.
Disclaimer
This Pilot’s Guide is subject to change without notice. The illustrations
in this guide are typical to the ESI-500.
Jeppesen® processes, compiles, reproduces, and provides the
subscription service for the Synthetic Vision databases. Like all aviation
databases, the information is ultimately supplied by government
agencies or other publicly available data. Because the information
is provided by third party sources, Jeppesen cannot guarantee the
accuracy and completeness of the data. Report any irregularities or
anomalies to Jeppesen at www.jeppesen.com.

Pilot’s Guide iii
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Description
Introduction..................................................................................... 1-1
Functional Description.................................................................... 1-2
Limitations ...................................................................................... 1-3
Specications ................................................................................. 1-5
Chapter 2 Operation
Introduction..................................................................................... 2-1
Pilot Advisory.................................................................................. 2-1
Power On ....................................................................................... 2-1
Splash Screen........................................................................... 2-2
Database Acknowledgement Screen ........................................ 2-2
Alignment .................................................................................. 2-2
Normal Operation ........................................................................... 2-3
Increase Display Brightness...................................................... 2-4
Adjust Barometric Pressure....................................................... 2-4
Pilot Menu....................................................................................... 2-4
Shutdown Procedure................................................................. 2-6
Auto Off Feature........................................................................ 2-6
Startup in Battery Backup Mode................................................ 2-6
Battery Calibration.......................................................................... 2-6
Database Update - 68DC and 71DC.............................................. 2-9
Unusual Attitude Display Operation...............................................2-11
Attitude Degraded Operation........................................................ 2-12
Heading Degraded Operation....................................................... 2-12
Initiate Manual Alignment ............................................................. 2-13
Pre-Flight Instructions................................................................... 2-14
In-Flight Instructions ..................................................................... 2-15
Chapter 3 Display Features
Introduction..................................................................................... 3-1
Attitude ........................................................................................... 3-1
Attitude Background.................................................................. 3-1
Pitch Ladder .............................................................................. 3-2
Roll Indicator ............................................................................. 3-2
Aircraft Reference Symbol ........................................................ 3-2
Slip/Skid Indicator...................................................................... 3-2
Attitude Invalidity ....................................................................... 3-2
Airspeed ......................................................................................... 3-3
Airspeed Units Indicator ............................................................ 3-3
Airspeed Tape ........................................................................... 3-3
Airspeed Digital Readout........................................................... 3-4
A irspeed Awareness Color Bar ....................................................... 3-4
Airspeed Invalidity ..................................................................... 3-4

Pilot’s Guideiv
Altitude............................................................................................ 3-6
Altimeter Tape ........................................................................... 3-6
Altitude Digital Readout............................................................. 3-7
Metric Altitude Digital Readout .................................................. 3-7
Altitude Invalidity ....................................................................... 3-7
Vertical Speed ................................................................................ 3-8
Vertical Speed Invalidity ............................................................ 3-8
Barometric Pressure Digital Display............................................... 3-8
Direction Display............................................................................. 3-9
Direction Tape................................................................................. 3-9
Direction Digital Readout ........................................................ 3-10
Heading Index ......................................................................... 3-10
Direction Invalidity ................................................................... 3-10
Air Temperature Display ................................................................3-11
True Airspeed Display ...................................................................3-11
Navigation..................................................................................... 3-12
Navigation Source................................................................... 3-12
Selected Course...................................................................... 3-14
Selected Course Arrow............................................................ 3-15
Desired Track .......................................................................... 3-15
TO/FROM Indicator ................................................................. 3-16
Marker Beacon........................................................................ 3-17
Lateral Deviation Indicator....................................................... 3-18
Vertical Deviation Indicator...................................................... 3-19
Synthetic Vision System............................................................... 3-19
Grid line Overlay...................................................................... 3-21
Terrain Alert ............................................................................. 3-22
Obstacles Alert ........................................................................ 3-23
Synthetic Vision Terrain Alerting Function ............................... 3-24
Reduced Required Terrain Clearance (RTC) .......................... 3-25
Imminent Terrain Impact (ITI) .................................................. 3-26
Synthetic Vision Invalidity........................................................ 3-27
Chapter 4 Messages and Indications
Introduction..................................................................................... 4-1
Display Conditions.......................................................................... 4-1
Battery Indications.......................................................................... 4-8
Appendix A
Record Of Important Information.................................................... A-1
Notes .............................................................................................. A-2
Table of Contents (cont.)

Pilot’s Guide v
List of Illustrations
Figure 1-1: ESI-500 ....................................................................... 1-1
Figure 2-1: Example of Attitude Aligning........................................ 2-2
Figure 2-2: Example of Normal Display and
Synthetic Vision Display ............................................. 2-3
Figure 3-1: Attitude Display Features ............................................ 3-1
Figure 3-2: Airspeed Display Features .......................................... 3-3
Figure 3-3: V
NE
Awareness Color Bar Cues ................................... 3-5
Figure 3-4: VNE Power On Awareness Color Bar Cues .................... 3-5
Figure 3-5: V
MO
Awareness Color Bar Cues................................... 3-6
Figure 3-6: Altitude, Baro, and Vertical Speed Display Features... 3-7
Figure 3-7: Direction Display Features.......................................... 3-9
Figure 3-8: Air Temperature Display ..............................................3-11
Figure 3-9: True Airspeed Display .................................................3-11
Figure 3-10: VOR Display Features ............................................ 3-13
Figure 3-11: ILS/LOC Display Features....................................... 3-13
Figure 3-12: GPS Display Features............................................. 3-14
Figure 3-13: Examples of VOR TO/FROM Transition .................. 3-17
Figure 3-13: Example of Marker Beacon..................................... 3-17
Figure 3-15: Synthetic Vision Display Features........................... 3-20
Figure 3-16: SVS %...................................................................... 3-21
Figure 3-17: Example of Grid Line Overlay ................................ 3-21
Figure 3-18: Terrain Caution Alert................................................. 3-22
Figure 3-19: Terrain Warning Alert................................................ 3-22
Figure 3-20: Obstacle Alerts......................................................... 3-23
Figure 3-21: Phase of Flight Denitions ....................................... 3-24
Figure 3-22: Reduced RTC Alert Condition .................................. 3-25
Figure 3-23: ITI Alert Condition..................................................... 3-26
Figure 3-24: SVS Invalidity........................................................... 3-27
Figure 4-1: Display Invalidities ...................................................... 4-1
List of Tables
Table 1-1: ESI-500.......................................................................... 1-1
Table 2-1: Pilot Menu List ............................................................... 2-5
Table 3-1: Required Terrain Clearances for the
Reduced RTC Alert Condition ..................................... 3-25
Table 3-2: Required Terrain Clearances for the
ITI Alert Condition........................................................ 3-26
Table 4-1: Indications and Display Conditions................................ 4-2
Table 4-2: Battery Indications ......................................................... 4-8

Pilot’s Guidevi
List Of Abbreviations and Acronyms
° Degree
°F Fahrenheit
°C Celsius
3D 3 Dimensional
AFM Airplane Flight Manual
AFMS Airplane Flight Manual Supplement
ALT Altitude
ATT Attitude
BATT Battery
B/C or BC Backcourse
BRT Bright
CAL Calibration
CHG INH Change Inhibited
CRS Course
DCM Data Conguration Module
DO RTCA Document
DTED Digital Terrain Elevation Data
E East
EAR Export Administration Regulations
ESI Electronic Standby Instrument
FAA Federal Aviation Administration
ft Feet
FPM Feet Per Minute
FR From
GPS Global Positioning System
HDG Heading
HPA Hectopascals
IAS Indicated Airspeed
ILS Instrument Landing System
lbs pounds
IM Inner Marker Beacon
IN Inches of Mercury
ITI Imminent Terrain Impact
kt/kts Knot(s)
LOC Localizer
MAG/mag Magnetometer
Max Maximum
mB Millibars
MM Middle Marker Beacon
min Minutes
MPH Miles Per Hour

Pilot’s Guide vii
List Of Abbreviations and Acronyms
NAV Navigation
NM or nmi Nautical Miles
NVIS Night Vision Imaging System
OAT Outside Air Temperature
OM Outer Marker Beacon
P/N Part Number
QFE Altitude Above Ground
QNE Barometric Pressure for Standard
Altimeter Setting
QNH Barometric Pressure for Local
Altimeter Setting
REQ Required
RTC Real Time Clock
RTC Reduced Terrain Clearance
SAT Static Air Temperature
SOC State of Charge
SN Unit Serial Number
STD Standard Pressure Barometric Setting
SYS STATUS System Status
SynVis Synthetic Vision
SVS Synthetic Vision System
SW Software
TAWS Terrain Awareness and Warning System
TAS True Airspeed
TRK Track
TSO Technical Standard Order
VHF Very High Frequency
Vcaution Start Speed Of Caution Range
Vmo Maximum Operating Speed
Vne Never Exceed Speed
Vno Maximum Structural Cruising Speed
Vs0 Minimum Steady Flight Speed
Vs1 Stalling Speed
VDC Volts Direct Current
VOR VHF Omnidirectional Range
W West
U.S. United States

Pilot’s Guideviii
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ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide 1-1
Description
Introduction
CHAPTER 1
DESCRIPTION
Figure 1-1: ESI-500
The Electronic Standby Instrument System is comprised of the panel
mounted ESI-500 Electronic Standby Indicator and the optional remote
mounted MAG-500 Magnetometer. The system provides the ight
crew with the display of attitude, slip, altitude, airspeed, and heading.
The ESI-500 provides a means of setting barometric correction and
adjusting the display brightness. In addition, functional upgrades are
available for navigation information and the display of synthetic vision,
including terrain and obstacles.
The ESI-500 is comprised of the following integral components: Active
Matrix Liquid Crystal Display, menu push button, a rotating knob
with push button, ambient light sensor, battery pack, solid state rate
sensors, accelerometers, and pressure transducers. A micro-SD card
slot is located on the front bezel and is used for software and database
updates. Pitot/Static port connections and one 44 pin connector are
located in the rear of the unit. Refer to Figure 1-1.
Synthetic Vision Display Standard Display

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide1-2
Description
Functional Description
The ESI-500 has interfaces for input and output of ARINC-429 data,
discrete output, outside air temperature input, dimming bus, RS-485
interface between the ESI-500 and MAG-500, and an I2C interface to
the DCM-500.
The battery pack automatically powers the ESI-500 and MAG-500
(if installed) without interruption upon loss of main input power. The
battery pack has three lithium ion cells that are recharged using aircraft
power. The battery pack includes monitoring and safety functionality
that provides continual operational checks and oversight of operation
to ensure the battery cannot be overcharged, overly depleted or
detrimentally charged due to temperature limitations.
Pitot and static pressures are measured through pitot and static ports
located on the rear of the unit.
The Data Conguration Module (DCM-500) is a solid-state device
that retains software and hardware conguration information for the
ESI-500. The DCM-500 is permanently attached to the aircraft via the
wiring harness.
A magnetometer (MAG-500) or an ARINC-429 heading source is
required for the optional display of heading.
Synthetic Vision is a 3-dimensional display of terrain and obstacles,
based on GPS location of the aircraft, attitude, altitude, and heading.
Synthetic Vision provides situational awareness to the pilot by providing
a means to aid in visually acquiring potential impact threats of terrain
and obstacles. Synthetic vision uses a terrain database consisting
of DTED (digital terrain elevation data) and an obstacles database
for the display of obstacles. Terrain is shaded to give dimension to
the terrain, water is shown in blue, and gridlines are shown to aid in
determining relative distances. Terrain coloring gradually varies based
on terrain elevations from green at lower elevations to brown to white
at higher elevations.

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide 1-3
Description
Functional Description (continued)
1. When congured to operate with a MAG-500 for heading
reference input; the use of heading is not authorized to operate in
the following regions due to magnetic eld unsuitability:
• North of 70° N latitude
• South of 70° S latitude
• North of 65° N latitude between 75° and 120° W longitude
(northern Canada)
• South of 55° S latitude between 120° and 165° E longitude
(south of Australia and New Zealand)
The heading will fail if the magnetic dip angle exceeds 82º.
Attitude and air data information is still usable.
Limitations
If the aircraft does not already have a TAWS or Terrain alerting system
installed, the Synthetic Vision should be congured to display alert
shading (red and yellow) of the 3D terrain display, for caution and
warning annunciations of terrain or obstacle impact.
The navigation function can be congured for VOR/ILS or GPS or
both. The VOR/ILS provides the following display indications: VOR/
ILS Indications, Navigation Source, Selected Course, To/From
Indicator (VOR), Lateral Deviation, BC Annunciation (Auto detected
with a heading input), Vertical Deviation (ILS), and Marker Beacon.
The GPS provides the following display indications: Navigation Source,
Selected Course, Lateral/Vertical Deviation, To/From indication, and
Desired Track. The GPS also provides own ship position for the
Synthetic Vision and for the Terrain alerting system

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide1-4
Description
Limitations (continued)
3. The Synthetic Vision (SVS) option has the following limitations:
• Areas with densely populated objects (exceeds 500 objects in
a ¼ degree square area) and are >200ft AGL may not show all
obstacles on the display (e.g. windmill farms).
• The Synthetic Vision alert function (red and yellow shading of
the 3D terrain display) does NOT meet the requirements of
TSO-C151 (TAWS) or TSO-194 (HTAWS).
• The Synthetic Vision function only works when the aircraft is
between 70° N and 70° S latitude.
• For QFE operation the Synthetic Vision must be disabled in the
menu.
2. Battery operation is inhibited due to low and high temperatures as
follows:
• Battery will not discharge when temperature is: > +65°C
(> +149°F)
• Battery will not charge when temperature is:< +5°C and >+40°C
(<+41°F and >+104°F)
• Battery capacity not guaranteed when battery temperature is
< -20°C (<-4°F). Battery may not be available when battery
temperature is < -20°C or > +60°C (<-4°F or >+140°F)
• Storage or operation in extreme high temperature >+90°C
(>+194°F) may cause the chemical fuse in the Battery Pack to
permanently disable the battery
Battery operation can also be inhibited due to low input voltage.
Refer to the troubleshooting section for corrective actions.
5. When the normal air data aiding source is lost for three minutes
or if the Pitch or Roll value is greater than 35° for three minutes
the ESI-500 can operate in an Attitude Degraded Mode, which
means that the ESI-500 is not operating within the normal
performance parameters. The pilot is alerted to this by an amber
“ATT DEGRADED” message on the display.
• Attitude information continues to be shown, but at a lesser
performance.

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide 1-5
Description
Specications
GENERAL
Weight: 2.75 Lbs (1.25 kg) MAX
View Area and
Angles:
Display has a viewable area of 3.5 in diago-
nal (70.56mm x 52.92mm)
Primary viewing angle range of +/- 35° in the
horizontal plane and -20/ +30° in the vertical
plane.
NVIS Capable: The display and bezel lighting are compati-
ble with NVIS lighting systems.
DISPLAY RANGE
Attitude: Pitch +/- 90°, Roll +/-180°, Yaw 0° to 360°
Altitude: Tape and Digital Readout range (-1,500 to
35,000 ft.)
Metric Readout range (-456 to 10,668 m)
Airspeed: Tape Viewable Range: 80 units (kts / mph)
Tape and Readout Limit, 20 to 300 kts (23 to
345 mph)
Baro Value: InHg: (16.00 to 32.50) STD 29.92
HPA: (542 to 1,100) STD 1013
MB: (542 to 1,100) STD 1013
OPERATION LIMITS
Vertical Speed: Altitude Rate up to ± 9,900 ft/min
Computed Airspeed: Up to 300 kts (345 mph)
6. For installations with a MAG-500, the Heading Degraded
operation occurs if the Roll value is greater than 11.5° for three
minutes, or if the “ATT DEGRADED” indication is shown. The pilot
is alerted to this degraded mode of operation by an amber “HDG
DEGRADED” indication on the display.
• Heading information continues to be shown, but at a lesser
performance.
• When air data is failed, heading is invalid.
Limitations (continued)

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide1-6
Description
Slip Accuracy: Accuracy +/-2°. No turn rate, no standard
turn bank angle. Release 1.1 the Range is
+/- 12° Release 1.2 and greater the range
is configurable at installation for +/- 7° or
+/- 12°.
Heading: Normal Performance for MAG-500 Installa-
tion
• Static heading error will not exceed
+/-2.0°
• Dynamic heading error will not exceed
+/- 6.0°
Degraded Performance for MAG-500
Installation (when the “HDG DEGRADED”
indication is shown)
• Static heading error will not exceed
+/- 12.0°
• Dynamic heading error will not exceed
+/- 24.0°
Latitude limits: +/- 70°. Dip angle exclusions
for Northern Canada and South of Australia.
The heading will fail if the magnetic dip an-
gle exceeds 82°.
When installed with External 429 Heading,
performance is based on External LRUs
performance requirements. Display error for
external heading is within +/- 1.0° of heading
source.
Attitude: Normal Performance
• Static pitch or roll ±1.0°
• Dynamic pitch or roll ±2.5°
Degraded Performance (when the “ATT
DEGRADED” indication is shown)
• Static Pitch +/-3° and Roll +/- 4°
• Dynamic Pitch Accuracy is less than or
equal to +/-6.0° in the range of +/-10.0°
and outside of +/-10.0°, the pitch is in the
correct direction.
• Dynamic Roll Accuracy is less than or
equal to ±8.0° in the range of +/-25.0°
and outside of +/-25.0°, the roll is in the
correct direction.
Pitch, Roll, Yaw Rate: +/- 300°/second
Specications (Continued)

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide 1-7
Operation
Specications (Continued)
BATTERY PERFORMANCE
Capacity: Provide at least 1 hour of power backup if
maintained and charged.
Capacity Minimum: 1 hour when tempera-
ture is -20°C to +60°C (-4° to +140°F).
Battery, Discharge
Temperature:
< +65°C ( < +149°F)
Battery, Charging
Temperature:
Between +5°C and +40°C (+41°F and
+104°F)
Battery Availability: Battery may not be available when battery
temperature is <-20°C or > +60°C (<-4° or
<+140°F).
Storage or operation in extreme high tem-
perature >+90°C (>+194°F) may cause the
chemical fuse in the Battery Pack to perma-
nently disable the battery.
Scheduled
Maintenance:
Battery calibration once a year.
Subject to requirements of 14 CFR 91.411.
Service Life: The ESI-500 has unlimited service life.
The battery has approximately 5 years of
service life; provided that the procedures for
maintenance are followed as detailed in the
Battery Capacity Calibration Procedure.
Shelf Life, Battery: The battery has a 5 year shelf life. The shelf
life is shortened if the battery is stored at
temperatures greater than +21ºC (+70ºF).

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide1-8
Operation
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ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide 2-1
Operation
Introduction
CHAPTER 2
OPERATION
This chapter describes the operation of the Electronic Standby Instrument
System. Details for display elements are provided in Chapter 3.
Power On
1. Depending on the aircraft use either the battery switches or
avionics master switch to apply power.
2. The indicator transitions through the startup sequence (Self Test
and System Identication).
3. The unit will begin normal start up displaying the splash
screen followed by the database acknowledgement screen (if
applicable).
4. If applicable press the Menu button to continue startup.
5. The unit transitions to normal mode operation beginning with
aligning attitude.
6. The alignment of attitude may require up to three minutes
to complete. The attitude message and progress bar remain
showing on the page until the unit is properly aligned. Refer to
Figure 2-1.
7. After alignment is complete the unit is in normal operation mode.
Pilot Advisory
For ESI-500 functions that require data from an external source, the
pilot should be familiar with the equipment that is providing the data.
For example, which GPS provides the data for the Synthetic Vision and
the GPS navigation displays, which NAV receiver provides the data for
VOR/ILS displays, and if heading data is not provided from the MAG-
500, what equipment is providing the heading or track data for the
direction display. This will help the pilot to understand how these ESI-
500 functions are affected by their source equipment, such as failures of
the source equipment or how different modes of operation of the source
equipment can affect the ESI-500 displays.

ESI-500
Pilot’s Guide2-2
Operation
Alignment
The ATT ALIGNING message is shown in the center of the screen with
a green progress bar below it. Refer to Figure 2-1. After alignment the
ESI-500 enters normal operation. Refer to Figure 2-2.
The alignment of attitude may require up to three minutes to complete
depending on the motion of the aircraft. The attitude message and
progress bar remain showing on the screen until the unit is properly
aligned.
During alignment heading is invalid and navigation information is
removed from the screen (if applicable).
Figure 2-1: Example of Attitude Aligning
In-air alignment should only be performed during
straight and level ight without acceleration.
CAUTION
NOTE
Alignment accuracy depends on current ight conditions and the
ability to maintain straight and level ight throughout the alignment
process. During abnormal conditions, such as high turbulence, the
unit may not be able to align. The status bar may show negative
progress and/or hold at zero progress until conditions improve.
Database Acknowledgement Screen
This screen is shown only if the Synthetic Vision option is enabled
via the option activation. The Database Acknowledgement screen
displays the following information: Terrain database name and cycle,
terrain database effective date, obstacle/NAV database name and
cycle, obstacle/NAV effective date, obstacle/NAV expiration date, and
the Synthetic Vision System disclaimer.
Splash Screen
The Splash screen provides the following information: System Name,
System Model No., Software part number, Firmware part number, and
if detected a DCM-500 error message.