ETLB Squawk Forums — Archive

Has anybody installed a USB jack to power a cell phone so you can use a flight app?  Looking for ideas - I'd appreciate a photo of the install.

The BIGBIGproblem with one of those is the amount of electrical noise they make. I would buy a connector and a 5 Volt Regulator chip(Look for one with an Automotive Specification. Buy a 1.5 Amp one and fit a 1A fuse on the output. If you have any difficulty with the circuit, there are datasheets and I can sketch something up for you.

Truth be told, you will probably be too busy flying the aircraft to get much use out of an app that is only visible on a tiny phone screen. Eyes need to be out of the cockpit and looking for traffic. ADSB is especially useless in one of these small aircraft!

I think we should lobby the Gubmint to put ADSB-out on Buzzards for Free.....
And pay us to Catch and Release them.  

Quoted from tomshep The BIGBIGproblem with one of those is the amount of electrical noise they make. I would buy a connector and a 5 Volt Regulator chip(Look for one with an Automotive Specification. Buy a 1.5 Amp one and fit a 1A fuse on the output. If you have any difficulty with the circuit, there are datasheets and I can sketch something up for you.

The cheap ones at the "mom-n-pop" gas stores do put out RF trash.  The solution is a quality one.

I have a Palumma brand from Amazon that also displays battery voltage. It doesn't put out RF noise.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0773BYS6P/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It keeps my Samsung phone charged while I run Avare. Avare is free at the Google Play store.

When you install a 12 volt outlet, use a marine grade, and be sure to fuse it.

Thanks for the advice.  I'll ponder some more.

I was thinking of flying from New Richland to Oshkosh this Summer.  It'd be handy to have a sectional map on the cell phone using an app like Avare, replaces a kneeboard for landmarks and frequencies.  Not essential - I learned pilotage years ago - but handy, if it's not too much trouble.  Problem is, I doubt my Android phone will have enough power for an extended flight using GPS and I don't want to sit around at rest stops waiting for the cell phone to charge.  

Maybe I'll get a couple of those mini batteries?  $20 and size of a tube of lipstick.  

I think its relatively easy to make a good phone charger.  Honestly if you put a 12V outlet in and buy any 12v charger made by Anker, you'll probably be fine. I have several of them and they do not produce crazy amounts of noise like other ones I've tried, but also don't break the bank.

Alternatively, you can do what my plane will have, and use a DC/DC module.

https://www.pololu.com/product/2851

I good quality USB car charger will not put out lots of RF but most of the cheap ones do.
When I was looking for one I searched the reviews to see if someone explicitly stated that it did not cause RF interference and that no one else was complaining about it.
The one I purchased does not seem to be available anymore.

When I did my solo cross country in a QuickSilver last fall I used one of those small portable battery chargers with my tablet strapped to my leg. It lasted the whole 100NM flight. This is the one I used: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MWU1GGI/

UL Builder, thanks for the insight.  Sometimes I get so carried away planning the build that I forget the objective is to get in the air.  Your solution works for me.

Quoted from nathan.bissonette Thanks for the advice.  I'll ponder some more.

I was thinking of flying from New Richland to Oshkosh this Summer.  It'd be handy to have a sectional map on the cell phone using an app like Avare, replaces a kneeboard for landmarks and frequencies.  Not essential - I learned pilotage years ago - but handy, if it's not too much trouble.  Problem is, I doubt my Android phone will have enough power for an extended flight using GPS and I don't want to sit around at rest stops waiting for the cell phone to charge.  

Maybe I'll get a couple of those mini batteries?  $20 and size of a tube of lipstick.  

I’ve used those lithium batteries to cross USA. Charged things up when I slept in pilot lounges. Kept phone and iPad w WingX in good shape entire way.