June 2007 179
Focus on Competition
Technical Update
Steve Kaluf
Technical Director
[email protected]
THIS PAST month has been filled with
getting ready for our Electronic
Technology Committee (ETC) meeting on
April 16 immediately following the Weak
Signals (Toledo OH) trade show. As such,
I don’t have a lot to report to you in this
month’s column. I will have a lot next
month!
So, as a quick update I thought I’d
recap the spread spectrum radio systems
AMA has looked at to date. The Weak
Signals show is always an event at which
many new products are released, so it is
likely that this list will grow after the show.
We started out by looking at the first
offering from a new company called
Spektrum RC. This system was a threechannel
module/receiver for the surface
market.
A short time later Spektrum announced
its first offering for aircraft: a six-channel
system designed for park-size models.
Around the same time Nomadio released a
three-channel system for surface.
Next up was Spektrum again with a
full-range seven-channel system. In
February 2007 Futaba released a sixchannel
full-range complete system. With
Spektrum and Futaba both available, for
the first time we had two different
manufacturers with aircraft systems
available.
A short time ago Spektrum announced
that it would have modules and receivers
available to retrofit most popular
transmitters, taking them from 72 MHz to
2.4 GHz spread spectrum operation. Just a
week before the Weak Signals show,
Futaba announced that it too would have
modules, receivers, and a new 12-channel
transmitter/receiver available soon.
Among all this is another new company
called Xtreme Power Systems (XPS). It
announced modules and receivers to
retrofit almost any transmitter available to
2.4 GHz spread spectrum operation. XPS
intended to sell its new products at the
Weak Signals show for the first time.
AMA Headquarters has working
samples that we have been testing of
everything I have mentioned except the
new Futaba modules and 12-channel
transmitter (those items are too new). We
continue to test each system to ensure that
it works as advertised and, most important,
works alongside similar transmitters. Some
new systems that are based on technology
that is already out will not be tested; there
is no need to basically test the same item.
As I mentioned, next month will be full of
news from our ETC meeting and any new
products I noted at Toledo.
Til next time ... MA
National Record Updates
Outdoor Free Flight F1Q (202)
Op. Frank Pollard 28:57 02/11/07
April 2007
A M A V i s i o n S t a t e m e n t
We, the members of the Academy of Model Aeronautics, are the pathway to the future of modeling and are
committed to making modeling the foremost sport/hobby in the world.
This vision is accomplished through:
•Affiliation with its valued associates, the modeling industry and governments;
•A process of continuous improvement;
•A commitment to leadership, quality, education and scientific/technical development; and,
•A safe, secure, enjoyable modeling environment.
06sig6.QXD 4/23/07 8:49 AM Page 179
Edition: Model Aviation - 2007/06
Page Numbers: 179