Animated SmartWinch - 72k

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Summary Of Features
Click on underlined text links for more detail
Standard Equipment
  • 300mm power supply flying leads
  • Hitec/JR servo lead
  • Double spool drum including M3 screw and washer. Default size 26mm (280), 32mm (380)
  • 2 x M3 s/s pan head winch mounting screws
  • SmartWinch User Guide (right click and select "save as")
  • 12 months warranty

The SmartWinch User Guide requires  

Description
280D Powered by a Mabuchi RC280 motor. Suitable for classes from the IOM , Marblehead, R10R etc.
 
280DL Higher torque and longer travel version of the 280D. Suitable for EC12 and similar size.
 
380D Powered by a Mabuchi RS380 motor. By its physical size and shear grunt this is primarily a big boat winch. Ideal for classes such as the A, AC etc. However it should be noted that it is possible (but very rare) to have the Acetal gears on the this model to fail under shock load stall situations. However I personally choose to use an 380D in my own A class yacht as the risk is very low and the saving in cost and weight I consider is worth it.
 
380HD As per 380D but featuring combination metal / Acetal gears and larger output bearing. Suited to high stress applications such as the largest classes like the J, the large multihulls and spinnaker halyard winch etc.
Resolution and Accuracy
The 280D and 380D are improved resolution versions of the previous SW280c and SW380c models. Resolution has been increased to 10 bit compared to the 8 bit resolution of the previous model. In real terms this improved resolution has little or no effect on the ability to position the winch. After all, the transmitter stick can not be positioned in 250 different positions (8 bit resolution) let alone 1000 positions (10 bit resolution). Where it does help is to give smoother operation when making small movements of travel. When moving the transmitter stick slowly and smoothly and the winch will run slower and smoother rather than jump from position to position as before. 

The tables shown on the Specs page includes both resolution and accuracy for each model. Resolution is the theoretical minimum distance (step) that a winch can travel in response to a changing signal from the receiver. Accuracy is how close the winch can actually stop at each step.

 
Drums
Three standard diameters, 42mm, 32mm, 26mm in standard and wide configurations are available to suit each model and various sheeting system configurations. There are also 3 sizes of Z shaped tapered spiral drums and 3 self tensioning drums
Microcontroller
What makes this winch smart is it's state of the art digital electronics controller. The controller is based on a Microcontroller Unit (MCU) which is a very small computer system in one chip. The MCU is controlled by a software program (ROM) which monitors all aspects of the winch's operation. Included in this program are some 'smart' fail-safe features that will protect the winch from problems that may occur with your yacht's electrics or sheeting system. To fit all the features into the controller, surface mount technology is used on a double sided printed circuit board.
Dynamic Pulse Width Modulation
Servo systems use Pulse Width Modulation to reduce power and speed as the desired position is approached. This gives finer and smoother control when small movements are required. It also reduces the problem of over shoot and hunting especially in fast servo systems. But the problem with standard P.W.M. is that as the servo or winch gets closer to its desired position the reduction in power due to P.W.M. may mean that it will not have enough power to get to the new position when under load. This is what's happening when a servo (or winch) is not moving but is buzzing. With sail winches this can cause batteries to be discharged prematurely or even damage the electronics in heavy conditions because the motor is trying without success to drive the winch to the desired position. However, unlike other winches and servos the SmartWinch will only stay in P.W.M. for a finite time.If it detects that it is not travelling as fast as it should be during P.W.M. it will gradually increase its power (up to 100% if necessary) until it has enough to overcome the load and find its desired position. If once 100% power is reached and the winch is still not able to reach its desired position then the winch's Stall Protection will be activated.
Stall Protection
When a conventional winch becomes stalled, (due to fouled sheets, extreme winds etc.) it will stay stalled until the problem is solved or the battery is flattened or the electronics are damaged. But the SmartWinch knows when it is stalled and will protect itself and your batteries by shutting the power off to the motor within about one second. The winch then signals that it is stalled by sounding a two-tone beep every two seconds until reset. To reset the winch simply move the transmitter stick in the opposite direction or turn the transmitter off and on again.
NiCad Battery Testing
The winch can automatically test NiCad packs of 5 or 6 cells as well as 4 dry cell packs and 6 Volt Gel cell batteries. If the battery testing option is selected during setup, each time the winch is turned on it will test for voltage below 1.1 volts per cell for 5 and 6 cell rechargeable packs .If the voltage is below this level a warning signal (5 rising tones) will sound before the winch starts. If during normal operation the voltage falls below 1 volts/cell (5 and 6 cell rechargeable packs) the winch will drive to half way out and stop. This allows the remaining battery power to be used solely by the receiver and rudder servo so that the yacht can to be brought to shore for a new battery pack. While the winch is disabled due to low battery, it will continue to monitor supply and should the battery recover enough to rise above the low battery shutdown level (plus 0.1 Volt hysteresis) it will hand control back to the user.
Static Braking
Whilst the winch is at rest, static braking makes it more difficult for sail pressure to move the winch with virtually no loss of battery power. But should the wind strength be high enough to run the winch back out against its static braking then Dynamic Pulse Width Modulation will take over and quickly bring the winch back.
Voltage Protection
For protection of the electronics from over or under voltage conditions the circuit will disable itself when the supply voltage goes above 9 Volts or below 3.8 Volts.
Overrun Protection
Once set up to suit the transmitter, the winch is programmed to ignore signals which are above maximum and below minimum pulse width of that transmitter. This means that should interference cause the receiver to send signals outside the normal range for that transmitter, the winch will just ignore those signals. It will not try to travel closer than close hauled or beyond square running positions.