Nasaco EASY NAVTEX Guide
CLIPPER
EASY NAVTEX
INSTALLATION AND
USER INSTRUCTIONS
NASA MARINE Ltd.
BOULTON ROAD
STEVENAGE
HERTS SG1 4QG
ENGLAND
(01438) 354033
MARINE INSTRUMENTS
DESIGNED AND
MANUFACTURED
IN ENGLAND
RoHS
2002/95/EC
TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE
INTRODUCTION
INSTALLING THE ANTENNA
INSTALLING THE DISPLAY
USING THE CLIPPER EASY NAVTEX
EASY NAVTEX TRANSMISSIONS
TO SET THE CLOCK
TO SET THE OPERATING CHANNELS
TO SET THE CONTRAST
TO SELECT STATIONS YOU WANT TO STORE
TO SELECT THE MESSAGES YOU WANT TO STORE
MESSAGE FORMAT
KEY FUNCTION SUMMARY
NOTES
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
NAVTEX STATION LIST
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2
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3
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4
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5
6
7
INTRODUCTION
The Clipper Easy-Navtex is a dual frequency navtex receiver allowing
reception of either the navtex national (490kHz) service or the
international (518kHz) service. Facilities are provided to program the
receiver for both stations and messages on each of the two frequencies.
The receiver is simple to use with all instructions clearly displayed on
the screen.
A compact stubby antenna is supplied with the receiver.
Whilst the receiver is designed to operate from the vessel’s 12 volt
system, it can be powered by domestic mains using a regulated 12
volt power supply ( not a battery charger). A custom power supply is
available from Nasa Marine spares department. When used in a
domestic environment it is important that the negative supply wire is
connected to a good ground (e.g. mains ground or a suitable water
pipe) to avoid interference.
INSTALLING THE ANTENNA
Owing to the low frequency nature of the signal, it is not necessary
to mount the antenna at a great height. However many types of
electrical apparatus emit interference and it is important that the
antenna is well clear of such interference. Troublesome items are
alternators, ignition coils, motors, strip lights, inverters etc. Select a
position as far from likely sources of interference as is practical
and mount the aerial using the flange on the base. Ensure that the
antenna is at least 30cms from other metal structures that are
parallel to it.
A pushpit mounting bracket is available from Nasa Marine spares
department. The bracket permits the antenna
to be mounted to any 25mm diameter horizontal rail.
Run the antenna lead back to the receiver. The cable can be
shortened or lengthened using standard 75 ohm coaxial cable.
Take great care when making connections. Power for the
active antenna is supplied by the coax so all joints should be
soldered and properly insulated. Alternatively a 7 metre
extension cable is available from your chandler, or Nasa
Marine spares department.
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Pressing LATEST takes you back to the most recent recorded
message. The signal spectrum can be displayed by pressing SIGNAL.
This is useful for checking signal quality and can be used whilst
messages are being received. From the spectrum screen you can
select VIEW, which takes you back to the last message recorded, or
INTRO (Pressing INTRO takes the receiver offline and allows you to
alter operational parameters. To prevent data loss INTRO is temporarily
unavailable when a message is being recorded.) where you can
either:-
(1) Press RECEIVE which turns on the receiver and takes you back to
the most recent recorded message.
(2) Press SETUP to allow you to set the real time clock, select the
operating channel (or timed switching between channels) or set the
contrast.
(3) Press RESETS to restore factory defaults with option to clear the
message memory.
(4) Press CHOICES to program the STATIONS and MESSAGES you
want to record.
TO SET THE CLOCK.
Press SETUP then CLOCK. Use the HOURS and MINUTES keys to set
the time on the 24 hour UTC (GMT) clock. (Note: if power is removed,
even for a brief period, the clock will need to be reset.)
TO SET THE OPERATING CHANNELS.
Press SETUP followed by CHANNELS, then press NAT'L to receive
permanently on the national (490 Khz.) channel or press INT'L to
receive permanently on the international (518 Khz.) channel or press
TIMED if you want preset timed switching between channels. For
preset switching use the SET key to select the desired switching point
and use the EARLIER and LATER keys to set the time that switching
occurs. During the white periods on the display your navtex will
receive on the national channel and during the black periods on the
international channel. Press DONE to exit this screen.
TO SET THE CONTRAST .
Press SETUP then DISPLAY. Use the LIGHTER and DARKER keys to
set the contrast. Press DONE to exit this screen.
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INSTALLING THE DISPLAY
The Clipper Easy navtex is not waterproof and should only be cabin
mounted. Select a convenient position for the display on a panel or
bulkhead. The site must be flat and the cavity behind the panel
must remain dry at all times. Cut a hole in the panel 103mm high
by 143mm wide. (The cut out in the cardboard packaging can be
used as a template).
Alternatively the display can be mounted on a cradle bracket available
from Nasa Marine spares department.
Unscrew the wing nut from the rear of the receiver and take off the
mounting clamp. Fit the “O” ring in the groove on the rear and place
the unit in the hole in the panel. Refit the mounting clamp, replace,
and finger tighten the wing nut.
Plug the power cable into the socket on the rear of the receiver and
connect to 12 volts. (The red wire to positive and the wire with the
black strip to negative. The unit is protected against reverse polarity).
Push the moulded antenna plug into its socket on the rear of the
receiver.
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USING THE CLIPPER EASY-NAVTEX
When power is first connected, your Clipper EASY-NAVTEX displays
the last message it has received. Pressing any key will turn on the
backlight which will stay on for four minutes after the last key press.
The keys will then allow you to view the previous message by
pressing OLDER or go to the signal spectrum screen by pressing
SIGNAL. Each time OLDER is pressed the display moves to the
message recorded prior to the one displayed ( Keeping your finger on
the key will continuously scroll back through messages.) whilst
pressing NEWER moves to the next message recorded. If the
message is longer than can be viewed on a single screen then the
keys DOWN and UP are available to scroll the message while TOP
returns to the beginning of that message.
Note:- The keys will be momentarily inactive whilst the screen is being
updated.
TO SELECT THE STATIONS YOU WANT TO STORE.
Each Navtex station has an `ident`letter. To select the station you want
to store follow the instruction below.
Press Stations and a list of international (518KHZ) and national
(490KHZ) stations will be displayed.
Use the NEXT and PREVIOUS keys to move the cursor through the
list. Use the FLIP key to change the highlighted character between
UPPER and lower case. The Easy Navtex will store Messages where
the station ident letter is in UPPER case and ignore stations when in
lower case.
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TO SELECT THE MESSAGES YOU WANT TO STORE.
Press MESSAGES then use the PREVIOUS and NEXT keys to scroll
through the list of messages available. Use the FLIP key to flip between
STORED and IGNORED for each message in the list.
MESSAGE FORMAT.
All messages start with a four character header. The first character in
the header is the station identification letter. The second character
identifies the message type and characters three and four the message
number. After the header the word "national" or "international", written
in lower case characters , indicates which channel the message was
received.
Then comes the body of the message followed by a number in
parenthesis. This number is a measure of reception quality being the
total number of errors received during the message. Most of these
errors will not be apparent in the message as they will have been
corrected by the Forward Error Correction system. The final character
confirming a message has been properly terminated is a hash symbol.
If a message is not correctly terminated an error message will be
printed in lower case characters.
KEY FUNCTION SUMMARY.
OLDER Go to previous message.
NEWER Go to next message.
LATEST Go to last message received.
DOWN Scroll down a message.
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UP Scroll up a message.
TOP Go to the top of a message.
INTRO Allows you to select RECEIVE, SETUP, RESETS and CHOICES.
RECEIVE Turns on the receiver and displays the last message
received.
SETUP Allows you to select DONE, CLOCK, CHANNELS and DISPLAY.
RESETS Allows you to reset factory defaults or to clear the display.
CHOICES Allows you to program the stations and message types you
want
to record.
CLOCK Allows you to set the clock.
CHANNELS Allows you to set the receiver channel.
DISPLAY Allows you to set the contrast.
DONE Exits the above.
"*" In the body of a message indicates a corrupted character.
NOTES.
In the unlikely event of a supply transient causing your navtex to
malfunction a system reboot is available. To re-boot:- First switch off
the supply, then restore the supply and then press all four keys
simultaneously.
The spectrum screen displays the frequency components of the
received signal.When no navtex signal is being received (Which is for
most of the time.) then the spectrum displays a bell shaped curve
centred about the middle of the screen. A navtex signal is made up of
components that are 85Hz at each side of the centre frequency so will
produce peaks on the spectrum at +85Hz and -85Hz.
The height of these peaks represents the strength and quality of the
signal.
The station and message indent letters together with the transmission
times are available on several web sites. A excellent site run by Frank
Singleton can be found at:- http://weather.mailasail.com/Franks-
Weather/Home
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.
QMy navtex screen is totally blank.
ACheck the inline fuse. Check that there is 12 volts on the power plug
with the centre positive. Try re-booting the navtex.
QWhen I come to my navtex the spectrum screen says "SET CLOCK".
AThe power has been interrupted and reset the clock to 00:00. You
will need to enter the current time if you want to use the timed channel
selection.
QI cannot receive certain stations or messages.
ACheck that these stations are in range and not programmed out.
Remember the same station has a different indent letter when
transmitting on National or International.
QI cannot receive any signals.
AEnsure that correct local stations are programmed in. Check any
joints in the antenna cable and remake if necessary. Set the navtex to
receive all stations and all messages on the international channel.
Leave the navtex on overnight with all other equipment switched off
and no connection with shore supply. If your navtex then receives
messages, try switching other equipment back on to discover which
device is causing the problem.
QWhy do I get poor results when in harbour ?
AThis is almost certainly caused by interference caused by other
electrical equipment. Shore power connections can conduct
interference on board. Charging systems and engine electrical
systems can also create a large amount of interference if not properly
suppressed.
QCan I run my navtex from the mains at home ?
AYes you can. You will need a 12 Volt regulated power supply.Do not
use an unregulated supply or battery charger as this could cause
damage. It is often necessary to connect the negative supply of the
navtex down to earth. The mains earth or a copper water pipe will
suffice.
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NAVAREA 1 NAVTEX STATION LIST
518 kHz = English language
490kHz = Local language (English in United Kingdom)
G 518 kHz Cullercoats United Kingdom
O 518 kHz Portpatrick United Kingdom
E 518 kHz Niton United Kingdom
K 518 kHz Niton United Kingdom
Q 518 kHz Malin Head Ireland
I 490 kHz Niton United Kingdom
U 490 kHz Cullercoats United Kingdom
C 490 kHz Portpatrick United Kingdom
A 490 kHz Malin Head Ireland
T 490 kHz Niton(French language)United Kingdom
L 518 kHz Rogaland Norway
M 518 kHz Jeløya Norway
N 518 kHz Ørlandet Norway
D 518 kHz Tórshavn Føroyar (Denmark)
P 518 kHz Den Helder Netherlands
R 518 kHz Sauðanes Iceland
S 518 kHz Pinneberg Germany
T 518 kHz Oostende Belgium
U 518 kHz Tallinn Estonia
V 518 kHz Oostende Belgium
W 518 kHz Valentia Ireland
X 518 kHz Grindavik Iceland
H 518 kHz Stockholm(Bjuröklubb) Sweden
J 518 kHz Stockholm (Gislovshammar)Sweden
I 518 kHz Stockholm (Grimeton) Sweden
B 490 kHz Oostende Belgium
E 490 kHz Sauðanes Iceland
K 490 kHz Grindavik Iceland
L 490 kHz Pinneberg Germany
Declaration of Conformity
NASA Marine Ltd declare this product is in compliance with the essential requirements of
R&TTE directive 1995/5/EC.
THIS PRODUCT IS INTENDED FOR USE ONLY ON NON SOLAS VESSELS
IMPORTANT READ THIS BEFORE
UNPACKING INSTRUMENT
LIMITED WARRANTY
Prior to unpacking this instrument read and fully understand the installation instructions.
Only proceed with the installation if you are competent to do so. Nasa Marine Ltd. will
not accept any responsibility for injury or damage caused by, during or as a result of
the installation of this product. Any piece of equipment can fail due to a number of
causes. Do not install this equipment if it is the only source of information and its failure
could result in injury or death. Instead return the instrument to your retailer for full credit.
Remember this equipment is an aid to navigation and not a substitute for proper
seamanship. This instrument is used at your own risk, use it prudently and check its
operation from time to time against other data. Inspect the installation from time to time
and seek advice if any part thereof is not fully seaworthy.
Nasa Marine Ltd. warrants this instrument to be substantially free of defects in both
materials and workmanship for a period of one year from the date of purchase.
Nasa Marine Ltd. will at its discretion repair or replace any components which fail in
normal use within the warranty period. Such repairs or replacements will be made at
no charge to the customer for parts and labour. The customer is however responsible
for transport costs. This warranty excludes failures resulting from abuse, misuse,
accident or unauthorised modifications or repairs. In no event shall Nasa Marine Ltd.
be liable for incidental, special, indirect or consequential damages, whether resulting
from the use, misuse, the inability to correctly use the instrument or from defects in
the instrument. If any of the above terms are unacceptable to you then return the
instrument unopened and unused to your retailer for full credit.
Name
Address
Dealer Name
Address
Date of Purchase
Proof of purchase may be required for warranty claims.
Nasa Marine Ltd.
Boulton Road, Stevenage, Herts SG1 4QG England
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