Renschler Solario User manual

RENSCHLERSolarioOWNERS MINI-MANUAL
www.renschler.de
TECHNICALDETAILSTheSolarioisasolar-powered
acoustic-onlyvariometeremployingabuffercondensorto
storeunusedenergy.Up-to-the-minutecomponentsmeanthat
solarpoweris feasibleinaninstrumentwhichisaboutthesize
ofamatchbox.Theabsenceofanybatteriesmeansthatthe
Solarioistheperfectback-up vario.Alternatively,you can
useitwithanaltimeterwatchtoprovideminimum-volume,
minimum-hassleinstrumentation.
In100% sunshinethesolarcell deliversup to40 times
thecurrentneededtopowertheunit.Surpluspower
chargesthebuffercondensor, whichcanprovideupto
45minutesofnormal operationwhenthesunlight
itselfisinsufficienttopowertheSolario.
TheprimarydesignbriefwasthattheSolariowill
alwaysoperatewhenitisbrightenoughtoflyin
thermals.Thebufferprovidessufficientpowerfor
thosetrickytimes –whentherearecloudyskies
aroundsunset,and thesun disappearsbehind a
mountain!
Adequatesunlightisfound outdoors–forindoor
demonstrationtheunitmayneedtobecharged under
alampforaminuteorso.Afterswitchingon,you
willhearthedescenttone,risinguntilitswitchesoff
afterbetween10 and 60 seconds(dependingonthe
sinkratethresholdyouhave selected).Thiswarm-up
periodisduetochargingofcertaininternal
components, so ifyouwanttodemonstratetheSolario
youshouldalwayswaitforaboutaminuteafterturn-
on.
USERINSTRUCTIONS
1) GivetheSolarioasmuchsunlightas
possible.Placeitinthesun assoonasyou
begintoprepareyourequipmentfortakeoff
inordertofullycharge thebuffer.The
instrumentdoesnotneedtobeswitchedon
tocharge thebuffer.Afully-discharged
Solariowill workwithin45 secondsofbeing
placedindirectsunlight–longerifthe
weatherisovercast.
2) TurnontheSolarioaboutoneminute
beforeyoutake-offinordertoensureithas
reachedfull sensitivitybeforeyouare
airborne.Itwillneedabout30-60 seconds
towarmup.
3) Ifthereisnoacoustictoneafterswitching
on,thereisinsufficientpowerinthebuffer.
Turntheunitoff andplaceitinthe
sunlight.
4) Theinstrumentisnotnormallysensitiveto
changesinlightconditionsduring
operation.If,inexceptionalcircumstances,
thebufferisdrainedduringflight,the
Solariowill giveaboutoneminutewarning
ofshutdownbygoinginto“Wild”acoustic
mode.Thiserraticaudioisthesignalto
switchoffandallowthebuffertorecharge.
5) Remembertoswitchoffafteruse!Thiswill
retaincharge inthebuffer,and reduce
chargingtimenexttimeyouswitchon
OPERATINGMODES
AlthoughtheSolarioisafairlybasicinstrument,it
providestwelve differentoperatingmodes,allowing
thepilottochoose anideal combinationofvolumeand
sink-tonetheshold.
Three switchescontroltheSolariofunctions:
1) TheOn/Offswitch.Thisprominentround
buttonismountedononeofthesmallest
facesoftheinstrument.Pushintoswitch
On,pushagaintoreleasethebutton,
switchingOff.Whenmountingthevario,
ensurethisbuttonisremotefromanyobject
whichmighttouchitinflight.
2) TheRotaryswitch.Thisswitchisrecessed
intoonecornerofthebackofthe
instrument.Thistinypotisadjustable
usingasmallscrewdriver.Twelve positions
allow youtoselectanyofthefollowing
combinationsofvolumeandsinktone
threshold(asalsoshownonthe
instrument): Sink
SwitchPositionVolumeThreshold.
0Low Immediate
1Low 1m/s
2Low 3m/s
3Low 3.5m/s
4Medium Immediate
5Medium 1m/s
6Medium 3m/s
7Medium 3.5m/s
8orC Loud Immediate
9orDLoud 1m/s
A orELoud 3m/s
B orFLoud 3.5m/s
Asanapproximation,1meterpersecond
equatestoabout200feetperminute,3m/s
to600fpm,and 3.5m/sto700fpm.
3) Dampingpot.Locatedadjacenttothe
On/Off switch,thispotisrecessedbehinda
tinyhole.Itcanbeadjustedwithafine
jewellersscrewdriver.Gentlyrotatethe
screwdriverineitherdirectioninorderto
achieve thesettingyouprefer.Withvery
lowdampingsettingsyouwill haveaudio
signalseachtimeyoumoveyourhead,
whichisn'talwaysdesirable.
Note: Thispotissetatthefactory,toalevelof
dampingwhichseemstosatisfymostpilots.Ifyou
wantyourSolariotobegenerallymoreorless
responsive thanthefactorysetting,youcanfine-tune
itusingthisswitch.However,itisnotintendedfor
frequentadjustment,and willnotnecessarilysurvive
repeatedheavy-handedattackswithalarge blunt
instrument.Treatitgently!
MOUNTING
TheSolariowasdesignedtobemountedonyour
crashhelmet,neartheears.However,thevolumeis
sufficienttopermitsatisfactoryoperationwhen
mountedfurtheraway–sayonyourharnessorflying
suit-ifyouprefer.Theroundadhesive-backedVelcro
patchprovidedisideal forhelmet-mounting,and
shouldnotdamage theshellofthehelmet.
Aback-up cordisprovidedonthecase-ifyoudon't
useityou WILL loseit!
TECHNICALDATA:(subjecttoalteration)
Dimensions:53x37 x19mm.
Weight:38grm.
PowerSource:EntirelySolar-powered
Operatinglimitations:Satisfactoryupto20,000feet
Run timewithfully-chargedbuffercondensor:approx 45 minutes.
Charge timefromzeropowerindirectsunlight: approx 45 seconds
TemperaturecompensatedFrequencyand interval modulatedacousticsignal

SURELYTHEYCAN'T ALLBEWRONG?
“TheSolarioisallyouneedtolearntothermalandis a
toolyouwill keepforever. You’ll neversellit, asit isthe
ultimateback-upvario”.IanBlackmore,VarioTest,
Sports intheSky,January1999
"Myfavouritelittlebirdthatsings tomeinthermals"
BruceGoldsmith CrossCountryAugust'99
"Ifyou haven'tgotavario, getonetomorrow. If
youhave, getonetomorrowanyway….simply
brilliant"JoeSchofield,Skywings review,August'99
"Lastyear Iwon theBritishOpenandBritishChampionship
usingthisvario, andthis yeartheAviorazPWC andthe
PWC overall SerialClass usingprimarilytheRenschler Solario"
BruceGoldsmith inanunsolicitedletter toSkywings, November '99