Show off your OpenCPN setups, please!

[Peregrine1983]

Hi all,

I'm curious if you might be interested in sharing photos / diagrams of your OpenCPN setups to help me wrap my brain around setting up my own. I'm a visual learner, so they say.

Forgive my ignorance here, but here's my current setup.

42' cruising ketch with an NMEA backbone with Furuno Fi70 instruments and displays for wind, depth, STW, temp on the network, but that's it.

Not yet on the network: A 2024 Beta 50 motor with their CW deluxe panel, an old Ray S2G AST E12091 autopilot, and I use ipads and iphones for nav with my backup being a 2016 Raymarine es78 chartplotter with radar, which is also not networked yet.

I'm hoping I can get all these things to talk to each other, so I can plot courses and have the autopilot steer them, see data from my instruments and engine, and generally just geek-out about my boat.

Thank you!

[sv_pelagia]

Just to be clear: OpenCPN does not work on Ipads or Iphones....

[mgrouch]

Originally Posted by sv_pelagia

Just to be clear: OpenCPN does not work on Ipads or Iphones....

Just to be clear: OpenCPN doesn't exist for iphone or ipad. It would have worked probably if Apple allowed its existence.

[Peregrine1983]

Thanks, I figured I would have to set it up with a raspberry pi or on my laptop. Was just explaining my current setup for clarity.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by sv_pelagia

Just to be clear: OpenCPN does not work on Ipads or Iphones....

No but iSailor does. Simply the very best electronic charts out there.

[Tupaia]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

No but iSailor does. Simply the very best electronic charts out there.

iSalor - Poor customer service, high complicated subscription you just have to look at the review ratings.

Back to OpenCPN.
I run a 12v mini PC with a low consumption Atom 3000 series CPU (very low TDP) it runs 24/7 when at sea and draws negligible amps.
Main monitor is a 24" LED TV (17watts) connected via HDMI1 only switched on when needed. Virtually instant start up. Also sports USB port and DVD (rarely used) and international TV tuner for entertainment at anchor.
Cockpit monitor is 7" Eyoyo daylight viewable camera monitor connected to HDMI2. Good for close quarters pilotage. Can be switched independently from the main monitor.
Wireless mouse and wireless keyboard with trackpad.
Raymarine instrumentation (no plotter) and AP is hardwired to PC via RM Seatalk converter. (4800 baud) this is combined with Garmin GPS (4800 baud).
Vesper AIS transponder is hardwired to PC (38400 baud). Lowrance digital radar is hardwired to PC directly via RJ45, There is a Quark wifi multiplexor that combines all except the radar and makes it available to Panasonic Toughpad running its own copy of OpenCPN that also has its own GPS if needed, together with various phones that can display instrument information only that are useable anywhere on the boat. I also have a very old Yeoman plotter that is useful for referencing mud maps (usually uncharted dive spots).

I can input WP's directly on the GPS, on the Yeoman or OpenCPN and upload them to the GPS and track with the AP.

There is a second RM system in the other hull handling second depth and rudder sensors. It can be used as a backup. I also have a second AIS wired but not used and backup GPS and PC.

[Peregrine1983]

Originally Posted by Tupaia

iSalor - Poor customer service, high complicated subscription you just have to look at the review ratings.

Back to OpenCPN.
I run a 12v mini PC with a low consumption Atom 3000 series CPU (very low TDP) it runs 24/7 when at sea and draws negligible amps.
Main monitor is a 24" LED TV (17watts) connected via HDMI1 only switched on when needed. Virtually instant start up. Also sports USB port and DVD (rarely used) and international TV tuner for entertainment at anchor.
Cockpit monitor is 7" Eyoyo daylight viewable camera monitor connected to HDMI2. Good for close quarters pilotage. Can be switched independently from the main monitor.
Wireless mouse and wireless keyboard with trackpad.
Raymarine instrumentation (no plotter) and AP is hardwired to PC via RM Seatalk converter. (4800 baud) this is combined with Garmin GPS (4800 baud).
Vesper AIS transponder is hardwired to PC (38400 baud). Lowrance digital radar is hardwired to PC directly via RJ45, There is a Quark wifi multiplexor that combines all except the radar and makes it available to Panasonic Toughpad running its own copy of OpenCPN that also has its own GPS if needed, together with various phones that can display instrument information only that are useable anywhere on the boat. I also have a very old Yeoman plotter that is useful for referencing mud maps (usually uncharted dive spots).

I can input WP's directly on the GPS, on the Yeoman or OpenCPN and upload them to the GPS and track with the AP.

There is a second RM system in the other hull handling second depth and rudder sensors. It can be used as a backup. I also have a second AIS wired but not used and backup GPS and PC.

Thanks so much, Tupaia. This is exactly the kind of breakdown I was hoping for.

[barnakiel]

Not sure why some people insist on using exotic hardware to run OpenCPN.


I use it on a plain laptop and on a plain Android tablet. It works +++ in each case.


I have not run into any connectivity issues this far. Cable and network (cable or wifi) work very well.


barnakiel

[PippaB]

Sorry, no pictures.

We run OpenCPN on a Pi 400. Chose the 400 because of the built-in keyboard (previous installs on Pi3 and Pi4). Modified the case slightly to hold a standard 2.5" SSD so that it runs from that rather than the SD card.

400 is plugged into a 24" standard monitor, powered by a DC-DC converter. Since O runs on the Pi the monitor does not have to be on (saves energy).

One NMEA0183 system at the nav station is wired into the 400 (AIS, VHF). The instruments are on a separate NMEA0183 that comes in/out over WiFi using a Yakbitz. The NMEA networks are bridged by O, so autopilot and instrument displays get all the information from the other network, and the O information itself (waypoint, route, etc.).

The boat is now 26 years old and never had a fully integrated system, so this was just the easiest way to get there.

For cockpit use we can peek through the door, remote in on an iPad, or use iSailor on the iPad (on that front I agree with both Ping - best chart app out there, and Tup - since the Wartsila acquisition a complete nightmare of subscriptions and pricing - with Transas it was all clean and simple).

[barcoMeCasa]

Not too much to show off, Rpi4 2Gb running openplotter, cv7 wind, AIS & GPS always on plus barometer & all battery/solar data logged. Halo+ radar. 19" monitor down below & usually tablet up top. Opencpn/Pypilot are the autopilot with spare aries just in case. Really want nor need anything more now

[verkerkbr]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

No but iSailor does. Simply the very best electronic charts out there.

OpenCPN does run on an Ipad and Iphone or any other computer system.

Switch on in the Raspi64 OS the vncserver.

Then you can use the RPI screen with a vnc reader on an Ipad or any other system.

Works very well. Can be used with wireless connection.

Bram

[Corsair63]

I based everything in OCPN and Shipmodul multiplexer.

only missing for the time being is the connection of Furuno RADAR to opencpn, you know Furuno is a bit close to interfacing.

I post my block layout of installation:

[Kijit]

Running OpenCPN on a Raspberry Pi 4 using the OpenPlotter image and a MacArthur hat to be able to take multiple data formats. Use FloatHub for remote monitoring, but eventually that might be combined in the Raspberry Pi set up. Use a 15" touch screen monitor and BT mouse and keyboard. I have a PC tablet that does some things the Pi doesn't do well (mostly ham radio stuff) and I remote into it from the Pi so everything is on one mouse and keyboard. When I figure out how to post an image, I'll do that!

[SoggyPaws]

We are still pretty old-school with old Raymarine instruments and Seatalk. But it all plugs and plays together pretty well. (see diagram).

Full description here: https://svsoggypaws.com/computers/index.htm#navigation

Have just replaced the Morningstar MPPT with 2x Victron MPPTs, but haven't had a chance to update the diagram.

[Kijit]

OK, here are the pics....