Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Windows CE R/C Transmitter

Posted by michael on from the where's-the-autopilot? dept.

Si24601 writes "Futaba has released details of a new radio transmitter, the 14MZ, that incorporates a 640x240 colour touch screen, runs Window CE and uses a Compact Flash card. As someone in the midst of building a semi-autonomous model yacht, this screams to be used for telemetry feedback. Fly RC Magazine has a review of the 14MZ."

6 of 169 comments (clear)

  1. Windows-based? by geomon · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Why do I need a GUI on a device that requires that I dedicate my full attention to something *else*.

    If I am watching the screen, my aircraft is headed for the lake.

    Not everything electronic in the world needs a display.

    --
    "Rocky Rococo, at your cervix!"
  2. Summary of next 100 posts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    1. This thing runs WinCE?

    2. Why WinCE? Linux could do so much better.

    3. Anyone try this with a modded Linux XBox?

    4. Why Linux? BSD could do so much better.

    5. Why BSD? BSOD could do so much better.

    6. In Korea, only old people BSOD.

    7. In Soviet Russia, BSOD blue screens you!

    8. Imagine a Beowulf cluster of these!

    9. Profit!

  3. Re:SmartYacht by geomon · · Score: 4, Funny

    The SmartYacht detects the R/C Coast Guard helicopter and knows how to outrun the R/C Coast Guard cutter as it races the miniature illegal drugs to the 2" high drug lord standing on the shore.

    --
    "Rocky Rococo, at your cervix!"
  4. Cost by MrRee · · Score: 4, Informative

    TowerHobbies (www.towerhobbies.com) had this listed yesterday for a little over $2k. A little pricey for me. As a long time rc pilot, I love the features. Give it 5 years and every computer radio will have this kind of technology.

  5. Re:Crashing... by geomon · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I'll stick with my older Futaba radio. It does what I need, and has never shown me a blue screen of death.

    And your batteries will probably last 3X longer as well because you aren't driving a GUI with all the WinCE overhead.

    --
    "Rocky Rococo, at your cervix!"
  6. Sorry, no telemetry ... by dougmc · · Score: 5, Interesting
    this screams to be used for telemetry feedback
    Perhaps, but in the US the FCC isn't going to allow you to do that, unless Futaba has already done it for you. The FCC certifies the entire device, which doesn't really allow the end user to modify it at all, _unless it's used on the ham bands_ (which is an option.)

    In any event, the most useful R/C plane telemetry generally isn't visual -- it's audible. You're too busy looking up at your plane to watch a display on your radio (looking at your radio while flying is a recipe for losing your plane), but a variable pitch tone that's telling you if your glider is gaining or losing altitude can be very useful in determining if you're still in that thermal. Full scale glider pilots use the same system, but of course in that case it's not done via radio.

    Again, looking at your radio in flight is very bad, especially if several people are flying at once or your plane is way up there. MANY times somebody has looked down at their radio for some reason, and looked back up and never found their plane again. Or looked back up, found their plane, and kept flying it for a while longer but then realized that it wasn't obeying their controls anymore. (Eventually, they learned that they `found' the wrong plane up in the sky and that their plane had crashed shortly after and they didn't even notice, because they were `flying' something else.)