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PMDG Terrain radar with ORBX FTX Global

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Guys,

 

Our EGPWS terrain display reads compressed/processed elevation data files located in the PMDG/DEM folder, it does not read the simulator terrain directly. (there is actually no way to directly read terrain mesh in FSX - there was in FS9)

Digital Aviation managed to do it somehow in their Fokker 100. I don't think there was a terrain database included with that sim but it had EGPWS terrain and a ground mapping mode in the WXR.

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I just checked both the dbssim TAWS installer and the installation folder without a sign of a terrain DB. Those files/folders also seem to be too small to contain a worldwide DB.

 

Anyway, PMDG chose the most realistic way to implement it ...

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I just checked both the dbssim TAWS installer and the installation folder without a sign of a terrain DB. Those files/folders also seem to be too small to contain a worldwide DB.

 

Anyway, PMDG chose the most realistic way to implement it ...

i just checked my dem folder  and its  full of entries  well over  20  didn't  count  them all and each file  contains 56000kb  s unless iam looking  in the wrong  folder

 

pmdg  folder ( dem)


I7-800k,Corsair h1101 cooler ,Asus Strix Gaming Intel Z370 S11 motherboard, Corsair 32gb ramDD4,    2  ssd 500gb 970 drive, gtx 1080ti Card,  RM850 power supply

 

Peter kelberg

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Gents-

 

There are multiple ways to go about this- and I don't think it is appropriate to call any of them "better" or "more realistic."

 

Fact is- whether you pulse the BGL or create a custom database, you are reading and sorting data for presentation onto a display- and that is the correct idea.

 

In our case- we went with a database outside of FSX because we find this to allow us to get faster results with less overhead when running TAWS in conjunction with everything else we have going on inside the NGX and 777.

 

Other developers might get different results- but they do things differently than we do- so that is to be expected.

 

At the end of the day- it all works!


Robert S. Randazzo coolcap.gif

PLEASE NOTE THAT PMDG HAS DEPARTED AVSIM

You can find us at:  http://forum.pmdg.com

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So how does the terrain awareness work in the real NG?

Flame-proof coverall, hood, gloves and goggles on......

 

The Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) relies on a radar altimeter(s) to determine the aircraft height above terrain. As with all radars there is a 'blind spot' ahead of the aircraft as the radar altimeter points in a generally downwards direction towards the surface of the earth. The GPWS provides alerts based on radio altitude and combinations of barometric altitude, airspeed, glide slope deviation, and airplane configuration. The system alerts are for excessive descent rates, excessive terrain closure rates and altitude loss after take-off or in the event of a go-around.

 

The Terrain Awareness System (TAWS) holds a worldwide digital terrain database on-board the aircraft inside a computer and relies on the aircraft on-board Global Positioning System (GPS) technology for positioning and correlation. In other words the computed current GPS aircraft position is compared with the on-board database of the Earth's terrain.

 

This terrain information can be displayed on the ND to give pilots a visual orientation to high and low points in proximity to the aircraft and it can create a series of aural alerts which can warn for potentially hazardous flight conditions involving imminent impact with the ground. If there is a potential terrain conflict these aural alerts are provided based on estimated time to impact. These alerts are referred to as “look-ahead terrain alerts.” The terrain data as presented visually to the pilots is not designed to used as an independent navigation aid.

 

The combination of both radio altimeter based GPWS alerting and TAWS based terrain awareness is often referred to as Enhanced GPWS (EGPWS).

 

There is a full explanation of all of the systems, sub modes and warnings in the PMDG NGX FCOM v2, (Ch 15 Warning Systems 15.20.11) starting on page 1229.

 

So, by creating a terrain database that is totally separate from the FSX terrain data (or that created by an add-on) and which is effectively on-board our simulated and virtual aircraft (by virtue of being buried inside the PMDG sub folder and separate from FSX) PMDG have done a pretty neat job of simulating the effects (IMVVHO).

 

Flames licking all about my feet already...it really is worth looking into the manual, by attempting to answer the question and spending 20 minutes in research I have learned much more than I thought I already knew about the subject.

 

Now - where is that button - 'mark forum as read'.


Steve Bell

 

"Wise men talk because they have something to say.  Fools talk because they have to say something." - Plato (latterly attributed to Saul Bellow)

 

The most useful tool on the AVSIM Fora ... 'Mark forum as read'

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Steve-

 

Maybe we'll add one to the COMMS pages in the 777 EICAS....

 

Or maybe it should be in the abnormals checklists?

 

No...wait...  Supplementals...  No... abnormals...  definitely abnormals.

 

<click>


Robert S. Randazzo coolcap.gif

PLEASE NOTE THAT PMDG HAS DEPARTED AVSIM

You can find us at:  http://forum.pmdg.com

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Maybe we'll add one to the COMMS pages in the 777 EICAS

I was thinking along the lines of somewhere inside the integral and fully functional EFB or even on the fully functional WX Radar control panel that everybody is chattering about! :P


Steve Bell

 

"Wise men talk because they have something to say.  Fools talk because they have to say something." - Plato (latterly attributed to Saul Bellow)

 

The most useful tool on the AVSIM Fora ... 'Mark forum as read'

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Guys,

 

Our EGPWS terrain display reads compressed/processed elevation data files located in the PMDG/DEM folder, it does not read the simulator terrain directly. (there is actually no way to directly read terrain mesh in FSX - there was in FS9)

Is this the way It is done in real life? I'm just curious because Captain Rob's explanation suggest that real life EGPWS displays are also read from a stored database and not real time terrain scan

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Is this the way It is done in real life? I'm just curious because Captain Rob's explanation suggest that real life EGPWS displays are also read from a stored database and not real time terrain scan

 

 

The folder Ryan was referring to is the database. (PMDG scans the folder data, not the FSX terrain).

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The real airplane has a terrain database just like ours - it is not actually a radar that scans the terrain.


Ryan Maziarz
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