I was lucky to be able to purchase a copy of SA_WXR before it was pulled off the market.  It does a nice job of simulating the Collins WXR2100 weather radar in Microsoft's FS9 and it integrates seamlessly with Project Magenta, with some exceptions.

By following the SA_WXR installation instructions the radar images is displayed in the ND after clicking the WXR button on the EFIS panel.  In addition the EFIS range functions are coupled to the WXR ranges.  The WXR panel allows you to control the tilt angle, to set the mode (only WX and WX+T) and to turn on/off the Ground Clutter Suppression (GCS). The GAIN is INOP.  I am using the ON/OFF switch for the Overfly Protection (OFP) function.

Hardware panel

I could not find a panel on the market that shows all the Collins WXR2100 functionality.  The only panel that comes somewhat close is an Airbus WXR panel from Open Cockpits.  Since its size and color are the same as the Boeing panels, I had no problem selecting this.  The Boeing panel that is available from Open Cockpits and CockpitSonic does not have a GCS switch.  The software will be able to support both types of panels.

Interfacing

To read the WXR panel switches I am using a Phidgets 8/8/8 card.  Since I will use this card also for the future Fire Suppression Panel, I have to be careful with the inputs.  For this panel we'll need 2 analog inputs (MODE and TILT) and 2 digital inputs (GCS and OFP).  I am using a Phidgets LED64 for the backlighting as we'll need many more outputs for the Fire Suppression Panel.

Backlighting

The backlighting is doing by a string of 20 Christmas lights.  A set like that costs €2.00.  I have cut the string in two and connected each part of 10 lights directly to a LED64 output.  The software turns on the output depending on the state of the strobe lights, just like what CPFlight does with their console modules.

Connection diagram

The table below shows how the WXR panel is connected to the Phidgets boards.

Switch wiring
 

The diagram on the left shows the wiring for the MODE selector (4 positions).  For the TILT selector 11 positions are needed, thus 10 resistors.

Software

I have written a stand-alone VB.NET program that continuously monitors the three switches and sends commands to the SA_WXR program through FSUIPC commands.  It's is a little bit tricky because SA_WXR requires the completion of one command before it accepts the next one.  So the program queues up the commands until they are processed by SA_WXR.

For more information about the software see the panel_console software page.  If you have any questions or remarks please send me an e-mail at: pvrijald@planet.nl.