Pelagic Ram with Raymarine Electronics

[johnjuliano]

Is there any reason a Pelagic Ram wouldn’t work with a Raymarine Autopilot system?

I have an EV-1 Raymarine autopilot with a wheel drive on a 31-foot sailboat, 8000lb dry weight. I am planning to move to a Ram replacing the wheel drive (Or possibly leaving it as a backup).

The pelagic seems a much better unit and can’t find any reason why that ram wouldn’t work with the Raymarine electronics.

Does anyone know different?

(BTW, as part of the upgrade to the EV-1, I replaced the old ST4000+ wheel drive with the new one in the kit. Big, big mistake. The belt started skipping after a few hundred hours – Seattle- San Francisco - San Diego - Hilo. Then the motor failed. All replaced under warranty. I reinstalled the original unit which has metal gears. I’m taking this as an indication of what I can expect in the RAM.)

The Raymarine firmware and connectivity have been great and well beyond the features that Pelagic supplies.

Metal gear is on right, plastic gear is on the left.

[goboatingnow]

Once the Ram is within the EV1s current capability, there’s no issue. The AP doesn’t “ know “ anything about “how” the rudder is moved.

[olaf hart]

Contact scanner and ask them, they were very helpful when we wanted to do the opposite, use a Pelagic controller on a Raymarine linear drive.

[johnjuliano]

Originally Posted by olaf hart

Contact scanner and ask them, they were very helpful when we wanted to do the opposite, use a Pelagic controller on a Raymarine linear drive.

Who is scanner?

[Matt Johnson]

Are you talking about Pelagic's hydraulic below deck, or the drive meant for a tiller steered boat? If the tiller linear actuator, how would you disconnect it? Would it be mounted above deck? That model doesn't have a clutch and requires pulling it off a pin when not in use.

Matt

[johnjuliano]

Originally Posted by Matt Johnson

Are you talking about Pelagic's hydraulic below deck, or the drive meant for a tiller steered boat? If the tiller linear actuator, how would you disconnect it? Would it be mounted above deck? That model doesn't have a clutch and requires pulling it off a pin when not in use.

Matt

Below deck. I want to move from wheel drive to a ram moving the quadrant.

[goboatingnow]

Unlike the st4000 I don’t think the EV1 has a integrated clutch control. ( note the pelagic ram has a clutch )

While this could be rigged up separately it’s not ideal

The EV1 is rated 7A continuous for its motor drive circuit.

The Pelagic RAM has a stated peak current demand of 14A , this would be beyond the EV1s capability

[BCCLover]

Mike at Scanmar is very helpful in my experience.

[holtjp]

Pelagic markets its APs capability to operate with almost all control heads. I've used multiple control boxes with Pelagic rams connected to a tiller and never had an issue. I would recommend a call to Mike or Suzy at Scanmar to discuss your specific situation. The company cannot be beat when it comes to customer service and honest answers about their products. (Scanmar purchased Pelagic)

[johnjuliano]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

Unlike the st4000 I don’t think the EV1 has a integrated clutch control. ( note the pelagic ram has a clutch )

While this could be rigged up separately it’s not ideal

The EV1 is rated 7A continuous for its motor drive circuit.

The Pelagic RAM has a stated peak current demand of 14A , this would be beyond the EV1s capability

Thanks, I understand the issue now. Is the signal sent out simply an on/off, or is the power raised and lowered? Basically, could I put a relay in the circuit, or would the electronics need to be more complex than that?

[johnjuliano]

Originally Posted by holtjp

Pelagic markets its APs capability to operate with almost all control heads. I've used multiple control boxes with Pelagic rams connected to a tiller and never had an issue. I would recommend a call to Mike or Suzy at Scanmar to discuss your specific situation. The company cannot be beat when it comes to customer service and honest answers about their products. (Scanmar purchased Pelagic)

Thanks, this is quite helpful.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by johnjuliano

Thanks, I understand the issue now. Is the signal sent out simply an on/off, or is the power raised and lowered? Basically, could I put a relay in the circuit, or would the electronics need to be more complex than that?

Overlooking the power issues . The RAM is quite power hungry , yes you could simply put the clutch on a simple switch beside the autopilot control. Hence a two step affair , engaging the clutch then pressing auto and vice versa. Not disimilar to the manual clutch on the wheel pilot

It might be better looking at raymarines linear drive , or Jefa drive arm as both are lower current capacity. For a wheel pilot boat an hydraulic AP drive is some what overkill !

[W32PAMELA]

Originally Posted by johnjuliano

Who is scanner?

https://www.scanmarinternational.com/products

[Matt Johnson]

I also don't believe the EV1 has the power to drive a below deck ram/linear actuator. For the correct power relay to drive these systems, you can use a robotics H-bridge, but you're now into the territory where it may just be better to get the whole "Below Deck" package from Pelagic. But I'd go with the Raymaine linear drive first - it's quite, robust, doesn't numb steering, and sips power compared to hydraulic.

Matt

[CarinaPDX]

Some caution is required here. If, as seems to be the case, the ram draws more than the EV-1 can provide then it will fail at some point unless a higher power driver is installed between the two. Yes, an H-bridge is exactly what is needed, but it may need a modification. On some RayMarine controllers the driver output does not always go to zero between pulses, per Brian, creator of the Pelagic autopilot. There needs to be a small circuit that feeds the new driver with zero volts when the EV-1 outputs a low (but non-zero) voltage. I don't know that this is necessary for the EV-1, but it is for the SX-5. You might benefit by emailing Pelagic directly, or go through Scanmar, to determine if this is necessary. BTW the H-bridge circuits are readily available through the usual Chinese outlets. The zero input correction requires a comparator IC and a voltage reference. When all is said and done you are probably better off just buying the complete Pelagic package; my personal experience has been that more recent RM APs don't do a very good job of steering Carina straight, but I do trust Pelagic to get it right.

Greg