NMEA 2000 to Wifi for iPad chartplotter finally

[mastreb]

This: http://www.blueheronmarine.com/Digital- ... apter-7973

Appears to finally exist. Works with iNavX on the iPad, which is what I use. Will be ordering when I get home.

Matt

[mastreb]

The other way to go is the proprietary Garmin Marine Network, where you get one of their new Wifi enabled chartplotters such as the Echo 50s, and it will Sync the excellent Garmin Blue Charts app with the chartplotters instruments. Its not transmitting raw NMEA data and will only work with garmins app, but if you have a newer garmin already, its very inexpensive way to get the exact Same exact effect.

[kadet]

Actually they have been around for quite some time, the seasmart since 2011.
http://www.comarsystems.com/nmea_2_wifi.html
Lowrance and Simrad GoFree http://www.lowrance.com/en-US/Products/ ... en-us.aspx
http://www.seasmart.net/marine-wireless ... -wifi.html

[BOAT]

I don't get it - I have iNavX on both my iphone and ipad - and I use it all the time - what's this little box for?

Is it so you can use the iNavX when your out of range of the internet? Is that what it's for? (Suppose it uses the Garmin chartplotter to tell the iNavX where you are, huh? ) Is that it?

[mastreb]

Actually they have been around for quite some time, the seasmart since 2011.
http://www.comarsystems.com/nmea_2_wifi.html
Lowrance and Simrad GoFree http://www.lowrance.com/en-US/Products/ ... en-us.aspx
http://www.seasmart.net/marine-wireless ... -wifi.html

Hi Kadet--

Actually, they haven't. The Comar is NMEA 0183 only, the Lowrance is proprietary to their displays, and the chetco doesn't repeat NMEA 2000, it serves up an HTML display with instrumentation on it. They've all been quite disappointing thus far. This is the first true NMEA 2000 to Wifi bridge I've seen thus far, and I've been watching the space like a dingo watches a human baby.

Matt

[mastreb]

I don't get it - I have iNavX on both my iphone and ipad - and I use it all the time - what's this little box for?

Is it so you can use the iNavX when your out of range of the internet? Is that what it's for? (Suppose it uses the Garmin chartplotter to tell the iNavX where you are, huh? ) Is that it?

BOAT, this transmits your instruments like wind and engine data to the iPad, and also syncs waypoints between your chartplotter and your iPad, so you can do trip planning on your pad off the boat, and upload waypoints into your chrtplotter when you come aboard.

In your case if you get the Garmin Echo 50s, it has a proprietary Wifi bridge built in, so you'd get their bluechart app and do all the same stuff with it, no $500 repeater necessary. It's pretty cool.

[BOAT]

Okay, that is very cool Matt, and I was going to pull the trigger on the ECHO during the holiday sales this weekend when some guy on a blog told me the ECHO is not NMEA2000 He said yourGPSMAP541 is NMEA 2000 but the ECHO is NMEA18 something. Is he wrong? And does that matter?

The ECHO does make a much nicer profile on the wheelhouse with the same size screen as the GPSMAP5 series, it runs cooler, brighter, and has a touch screen combo so I sort of like the thinner ECHO unit better, but if it's not NMEA2000 it may not do fuel flow AND other things at the same time? You think that would be okay?

I could contact Garmin and ask them if they have a cable or network box or something for the ECHO that will make it hook up to the ETEC60 AND a fuel sensor and other stuff and still be able to talk at the same time to the ipad. Maybe they already have all that figured out.

m

[Hammer24]

This is the first true NMEA 2000 to Wifi bridge I've seen thus far, and I've been watching the space like a dingo watches a human baby.

But the product description page says it translates the signal to NMEA 0183 before transmitting? So no real 2000 solution?

[kadet]

teach me to read more closely was only looking at the iNavX support not the NMEA 2000 as I too have been toying with OpenCPN and networking, mainly over Bluetooth and did not care whether it was NMEA 2000 or NMEA 0183 as the statements into the computer must be NMEA 0183 statements anyhow.

According to the specs of the SeaSmart it does output NMEA over TCP/IP to iNavx as well as the embedded web server, but if as you say this is not the case I defer too you as I have not used it, to many $$$ for my experimentation .

But for the cost of all these, I think the newer plotters within built networking are the way to go $400-$600 for just a NMEA-TCP/IP bridge is a bit rich.

[BOAT]

Okay Kadet - that makes what mastreb is saying very logical too and I think I get the picture:

The little chartplotter that can talk directly to the apple appliances via blue tooth would need to do it via nmea0183 anyways cuz that's all the regular computers can understand anyways.

I must say, the ability to plan routes on the ipad is WAY better and more important to me than having a fuel flow sensor, so if having one negates the other I will take the ipad connectivity.

I guess I will just go to Garmin direct and get the Echo 50s fully loaded with maps and transducer like Matt says.

[BOAT]

Okay, correction - I just got off the horn with GARMIN - they said the ECHO series in not NMEA2000 and that means to me it can't monitor my ETEC60 motor functions like tempo and oil.

That's sort of important to me.

I guess I'm on the hunt again!!

[Gazmn]

I did it with the Raymarine E7-D.

(Smiling Bride not included)

I gave up trying to work a miniplex with an old system. According to the literature I can add waypoints to chart plotter from iPad
http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=2981

P.S. It can monitor engine / gas on Seatalk network - provided it is built after '08. Sadly mine is an '06

[kadet]

Sorry matreb just read the NAVLINK manual and as hammer points out it is the same as other solution converting to serial (0183) not NMEA 2000.

The NAVLINK uses TCP or UDP protocol to transmit serial NMEA data and it is important that the program or application on the wireless device supports data reception via TCP or UDP in order to work correctly. Your choice of which protocol to use will probably be dictated by what protocols your navigation app can receive. .... The data that the NAVLINK outputs is standard NMEA0183 and some apps (such as our free iAIS app) will display the raw data, which is a good method of testing the system is working.

BOAT you need the Garmin GPSMAP 547xs it is NMEA 2000 with built in WIFI and Bluetooth. I have the older 556s and it hooks up nicely to the E-TEC for engine monitoring fuel flow etc..again TCP/IP output will be serial not 2000.

[BOAT]

Okay Kaptain Kadet - I sort of got pushed away from the ECHO by the GARMIN factory guy when i said NMEA2000 and after that I sort of forgot what to ask him.

This is really a lot of technical stuff that is not standardized just yet because things are changing so fast. The Ray Marine unit is really nice too, but just a bit too big for 'boat' in my opinion.

I guess at this point I will just get the GPSMAP 547xs with a transom transducer and the big g2 water charts. Then for all that other stuff I want for the motor and the fuel tank senders I will just wait until mastreb gets back from Muck-about and wait for his instructions.

Thanks for the help! I will shop around for a little but in the end I think I will just pull the trigger no later than tomorrow night. If I find a deal I will post it here. (Looks like I will just be paying the full factory price from the Garmin factory).

[kadet]

BOAT all you need is one of these and you have everything you need to hook up your GARMIN to the E-TEC, This gives engine diag, fuel flow etc..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lowrance-32082- ... a5&vxp=mtr

Just check your E-TEC is a model with a NMEA 2000 port, I think 2007 on.