Portable RADAR

Electrical and electronic topics for small boats
MillieTheBoat
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Location: Dana Point, CA

Portable RADAR

Postby MillieTheBoat » Mon Jun 24, 2019 11:49 pm

Is there a portable mount or wireless RADAR for a small boat? A RADAR that you take out [of some storage container], unfold, setup, [use], and take down for storage.

Jefecinco
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Re: Portable RADAR

Postby Jefecinco » Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:12 am

I don't believe there is any useful portable radar as you describe.

There are several digital radars now available that—compared to their predecessors—are very lightweight and energy efficient.

Check the RADAR devices from Navico, Garmin, and Raymarine for a model that might satisfy your requirements.

If you have an MFD from a particular manufacturer, then a new RADAR from the same manufacturer may be available which will be a "plug-n-play" addition for you.
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jimp
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Re: Portable RADAR

Postby jimp » Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:27 am

A throwback for you to the 1970s - early-80s. Whistler Marine's portable radar. eBay?
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jimh
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Re: Portable RADAR

Postby jimh » Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:07 pm

There are many small RADAR systems that are appropriate for a small boat—that is a boat large enough to have a 12-Volt battery to operate the RADAR transmitter-receiver and someplace to mount the rotating RADAR antenna. A RADAR system also needs a Plan Position Indicator (PPI).

You can use a multifunction display (MFD) as the PPI, but if the RADAR PPI echoes are to be overlaid on an electronic chart display, a MAGNETIC HEADING SENSOR is usually needed.

As far as I know, RADARs are not digital. They emit radio waves and listen for returning reflections of the waves. The newest generation of low-cost recreational grade RADAR transmitters use frequency-swept pulses, and the receivers use correlating frequency-domain detectors which significantly improve sensitivity. That is why a new generation of RADAR systems can run with such low power drain. Modern digital processor chips are used to accomplish the sophisticated correlation function.

The marketing people love adding the word “Digital” to any electronic product, as if buyers will line up to buy them because it’s so high-tech.

If a permanent installation of one of these modern RADAR systems was not desired, the system could be stowed in a suitable water-right packing case, like a Pelican Case—which would probably cost more than the RADAR. Then power could be provided by a Lithium battery pack—again probably more expensive than the RADAR. With appropriate electrical connectors the system could be interconnected in a moment. Some sort of temporary mast or tripod could be used to hold the antenna.

What is the budget for this system?

I think you could get something working for the cost of the RADAR plus another $5,000.

MillieTheBoat
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Joined: Thu May 26, 2016 8:16 pm
Location: Dana Point, CA

Re: Portable RADAR

Postby MillieTheBoat » Tue Jun 25, 2019 11:44 pm

Thanks everyone for your replies and JimH for the RADAR 101. I didn't know how it works until you explained.

I have a 2003 Dauntless 160. I was thinking with all the latest technologies out there, RADAR should be cheaper and portable for smaller boat. The primary reason is to use the boat occasionally boating to Catalina Island of the coast of Southern CA for fishing. I think with AIS VHF, I can avoid having a RADAR on board or just pick the day where there is less fogs. Thanks!

jimh
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Re: Portable RADAR

Postby jimh » Wed Jun 26, 2019 4:27 pm

Re RADAR, it seems to me that if you are boating during daylight and fair weather, RADAR is really not necessary. If you are boating in reduced visibility due to fog, RADAR is very useful. I discovered that on a Summer day on Lake Superior. With the lake water very cold, fog is common there, and we awoke one morning to discover we we socked in at our remote anchorage. Fortunately, another boat in our cruising group had RADAR, and all followed him like little ducks through the thick fog.

Most of our boating is in Summer, and at our latitude we have daylight from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. That is 18-hours of boating time in good visibility, so we don't have RADAR. If I were an habitual boater on Lake Superior, I would probably get RADAR.

Re RADAR fundamentals, the use of a sweep frequency RADAR was a big secret in the Cold War era. Transmitting the signals was not particularly difficult, but getting the correlator gain by detecting the signals in both time and frequency domains required a lot of vacuum tubes and frequency bandpass filters, which were expensive and large in size. Now with modern digital signal processing circuits, one chip replaces hundreds of pounds of hardware.

fno
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Re: Portable RADAR

Postby fno » Wed Jun 26, 2019 6:14 pm

Millie, I hope you also have a chartplotter and or multi function display with current charts loaded. The AIS idea only works with vessels that are broadcasting an AIS signal. Using AIS will help you avoid some of the other vessels and will NOT help you avoid Catalina Island.

MillieTheBoat
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Re: Portable RADAR

Postby MillieTheBoat » Wed Jun 26, 2019 9:31 pm

Hi fno. You made me laugh. Thank you.

Yes, I have a small 2015 Raymarine Dragonfly Pro. I don't remember it is 4 or 5. I also have a portable handheld VHF with Standard-Horizon HX870. I just ordered a fixed one GX2200 to replace the old West Marine VHF radio on the boat. I only go when I can see the island in the morning but sometimes I heard fog could roll in.

I like being prepared than being sorry, and I thought I might need RADAR just in case. But looks like I won't need it.