Power excursions with PFC Throttle + Project Magenta MCP A/P

[airforce2]

Pete;

When I run the Project Magenta autothrottle in conjunction with the PFC throttle quad, I see spurious excursions of the throttles any time the PFC throttles are out of the full idle position.

Would it be possible for the PFC driver to detect the PM autothrottle state, and not affect the axis input if PM A/T is on?

Cheers

[Pete Dowson]

When I run the Project Magenta autothrottle in conjunction with the PFC throttle quad, I see spurious excursions of the throttles any time the PFC throttles are out of the full idle position.

Whay IS going on with your PFC equipment? I have a basic throttle quadrant system a Cirrus 2 and a Jetliner Console and they al behave impeccably!

Would it be possible for the PFC driver to detect the PM autothrottle state, and not affect the axis input if PM A/T is on?

It's the other way around, PM disconnects the throttles except in descent mode (I think). Check with Enrico.

Also, for use with FS (not PM), if the PFC A/T switch is used, the PFC driver disconnects the throttles and re-establishes values on return.

All this has been okay for two and a half years, it isn't as if it is different now for any reasonwhat have you done to your PFC/PM setup to achieve such behaviour???

Regards,

Pete

[airforce2]

Pete;

I see this so far only with PM running on top of the recently updated PMDG 737 panel. If I put PFC throttles to idle...or disable them completely in the PFC pulldown menu...everything works OK. If the throttles are connected and above idle, the throttles will momentarily and semi-regularly twitch towards the power setting set on the PFC levers.

It's probably the PMDG panel's throttle quad gauge doing this. I could probably fix it by patching out the throttle control calls in the PMDG gauge ...but thought a more elegant solution would be to have PFC driver disconnect the throttle axes any time it's aware of active A/T control (especially PM).

Cheers

[Pete Dowson]

I see this so far only with PM running on top of the recently updated PMDG 737 panel.

You use PM and the PMDG panel? I have PMDG 737NG but I don't use the panel, only the panel-less version by you or Steve. If you are using the panel don't you think their A/P coding will interfere?

If you were okay before, with the original PMDG 737, what could have changed, and how is the setting overriding PM's existing code to disconnect throttles? I'm not really understanding this.

If I put PFC throttles to idle...or disable them completely in the PFC pulldown menu...everything works OK. If the throttles are connected and above idle, the throttles will momentarily and semi-regularly twitch towards the power setting set on the PFC levers.

So something is unsetting the "disconnection" made by the PM code? If that happens, the PFC values will be re-applied even if they've not changed. If this re-application isn't permanent it is probably because the PM code is disconnecting it again, but evidently not quickly enough.

I haven't got the update for PMDG 737NG, I'm still trying to work outy how to get it (I've asked my contact in PMDG but nothnig has resulted yet), but I'm hard put to imagine what they've changed which could do this.

It's probably the PMDG panel's throttle quad gauge doing this. I could probably fix it by patching out the throttle control calls in the PMDG gauge

Why are you using PMDG's A/T and A/P with PM? don't you use PM's MCP?

...but thought a more elegant solution would be to have PFC driver disconnect the throttle axes any time it's aware of active A/T control (especially PM).

But it isn't PM from what you are saying!

I don't like making ANY changes without knowing why. Already PFC handles its own A/T controls correctly, and FSUIPC provides PM the means to deal with any throttle inputs. If the PMDG stuff is interacting badly with this it needs to be understood and possibly fixed rather than simply "worked around".

Regards,

Pete

[airforce2]

Pete;

I found the problem...the PMDG panel is indeed re-connecting the throttle axes on me. I fixed it by patching out the offending calls. Didn't see it the first time through due to a typo when setting up the control trace...was looking, in effect, for the wrong offsets. Duh.

Anyway, she's working much smoother now. It's possible that this was happening all along, but not noticed because I had left throttles all the way back from engagement of A/T at takeoff and beyond.

Thanks

[Pete Dowson]

I found the problem...the PMDG panel is indeed re-connecting the throttle axes on me. I fixed it by patching out the offending calls.

How odd. I wonder why they do that. Is this is one of their gauges? are you trying to use a mixture of their panel and PM? So far I only ever use one or the other, and only the FS panel for tests (panels don't look so good smeared over 3 screens! ).

Is this a patch others should know about?

Regards,

Pete