Distance, Altitude & Speed (DAS) Meter

[erashby]

Distance, Altitude & Speed (DAS) Meter

Has anyone used this meter/ gauge? I did a search but did not find anything about it here on e-zone. I found it in an add in April 2005 FLY RC. (Disclaimer: I am in no way related to, acquainted with the company. I have no financial interest, except not to waste my own hard earned $40 on this thing.)

It looks like it is just a visual estimation gauge that mounts on your Tx antenna. I like the concept because it is
1) Inexpensive
2) Requires no mounting of expensive equipment in a plane
3) It adds no weight to the airplane
4) It can be used with any airplane (but it does require a different card/gauge.
5) There is nothing to damage in a crash, unless I crash into my Tx with the gauge on it.

My concerns are
1) Is it fairly simple to use while controlling your plane? It looks like you have to lift the Tx up above your head and site the plane while you are flying it straight.
2) Is it bulky, cumbersome and/or heavy?
3) Is it worth the hassle? (I have a Dwyer(sp?) wind meter that I seldom use since I now can estimate wind speed approximately.

So has anyone tried this DAS Meter? Here is the url. (http://www.eduflight.com/)

[Sparky Paul]

I can it giving distance, but not altitude, and maybe airspeed.
For altitude, you need to know the angle of the plane from the pilot at the very least.
For speed, you need to know the distance.. measure that quickly, then turn it 90 degrees to get.. nope, that won't work either.. airspeed involves a time measurement also.
And you have to fly the plane at the same time..
Use the butoon on the antenna tip, as mentioned a few times in "Modeling Science".. that gives distance, and if the plane is directly overhead, altitude.

[erashby]

I can it giving distance, but not altitude, and maybe airspeed.
For altitude, you need to know the angle of the plane from the pilot at the very least.
For speed, you need to know the distance.. measure that quickly, then turn it 90 degrees to get.. nope, that won't work either.. airspeed involves a time measurement also.
And you have to fly the plane at the same time..
Use the butoon on the antenna tip, as mentioned a few times in "Modeling Science".. that gives distance, and if the plane is directly overhead, altitude.

The website sayssomething about timing it as it flys across the meter to get the speed. The meter/gauge seems to have you fit the wingspan or fuselage length into part of the gauge. The Markings on the gauge are a slide in card that you order based on your wingspan and fuse length. So, it should be able to give you a good estimate of distance, but do you have to be straight overhead for altitude or does it have an agle "thing" like the old maritime sextons? I don't know. Here is a picture that I got from the website. I'm going to ask the guy who sells it for an explanation.

[Tom Harper]

Looks like an interesting gadget. You can do most of the altitude thing with your thumb. At 200 feet my thumb covers the wing. This thing is kind of a calibrated thumb. I do think it is better operated by your spotter than the pilot and it is a bit pricey.

But, it is a nice solid piece of gear and it lets you time speed without pacing off a trap and using a flagman. I will have to agonize for a while over the idea of parting with fifty bucks but I just might do it.

[biber]

Crashby, did you say april? Don't know if that tradition of april the first exists in the USA too, but here in germany nearly every magazine features at least one nonsense fiction artical for kidding in the aprils issue ;). That device seems not to be ment too seriously. :rolleyes:

biber

[ildiko]

Hi Everyone!

I am the owner of EduFlight Laboratories, the company that manufactures DAS Meter. I do not intend this post to be an advertisement but I would like to address some issues raised in previous posts.

Using our thumb or antenna to guesstimate the height of our aircraft was exactly what originally gave us the idea to develop DAS Meter. Your thumb might give you a ballpark figure but it is far from being accurate. And, as mentioned in earlier posts, thumb gauging only gives you an estimate for the distance, not the altitude, except when the plane is directly overhead.

Our instrument uses precisely calibrated lookup tables for any size aircraft to determine the distance accurately. It does have an inclinometer to measure the elevation angle when the plane is not directly overhead. It shows the actual distance AND altitude values for planes flying up to 63 degrees below the zenith. If you fly a glider for example, you might not find a thermal directly overhead, and it would be really hard to try to guess the altitude of your glider in such a case.

For speed measurements, you do need a stopwatch. You have to measure the time it takes for your aircraft to cross the instrument's measuring window. You can then look up the corresponding speed value on the table. It is definitely more convenient and less restrictive than using fixed poles to measure speed.

Advanced users can also measure vertical speed (recommended for gliders).

DAS Meter is a very elegant instrument, exactly because of its relative simplicity. You may like it (and most users do!) or dislike it but it is a serious instrument.

As for the price. We made a decision to manufacture DAS Meter entirely in the USA. The way outsourcing is going today, we thought this was the prudent thing to do. We are very proud that by making this product, we supported 6 different local (Tucson and Phoenix) businesses. Had we sent it to China, we could probably sell it for less than 20 bucks. DAS Meter is made of high quality shatterproof polycarbonate and other high-quality materials that are not cheap. With proper use, a DAS Meter will last many-many years.

I would be happy to address any further questions or comments about DAS Meter either here on the forum or by e-mail. Our company's e-mail address is: info@eduflight.com.

Ildiko Palyka