Throwing out all my
paper charts and replacing them with an iPad was a tremendous leap forward in
keeping a small cockpit neat and organized.
Unfortunately the
operating environment for which the iPad was designed is a little more benign
than what we see in a bubble canopy cockpit of a Lancair
two seater. Specifically the iPad's temperature limit could stand to
be a bit higher. While the iPad only consumes about 5W
internally, the solar radiation on the front face is up to 50W. The iPad
can therefore quite readily overheat and brown-out in direct sun
light. Typically, protecting the iPad from direct sunlight prior to
launch is sufficient to prevent over-heating. I have however experienced
two brown-outs.
An active cooling option
that makes direct sunlight a non-issue would be beneficial. I have been
testing a new iPad mount that incorporates a thermoelectric cooler (TEC).
TECs are neat little devices that with the application of current drive
heat from one side through the device to the other.
The iPad back panel is
aluminum which is a reasonably good thermal conductor. The TEC
cools only a small area near the processor. Heat is carried away
from the TEC using a heat sink and cooling fan. Thus far test
results have been encouraging. The iPad remains fully functional in
continuous direct sunlight despite a surface
temperature of 125 deg F.
more to come....
Chris Zavatson
N91CZ
360std
www.N91CZ.net