Research

P192-S Telemetry radio

APPLICATION NOTE

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio

Application Note

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Disclaimer
Pi Research makes no representation or warranties of any kind whatsoever with respect
to the contents hereof and specifically disclaims any implied warranties of merchantability
or fitness for any particular purpose. Pi Research shall not be liable for any errors
contained herein or for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the
furnishing, performance or use of the software, associated hardware, or this written
material.
Pi Research reserves the right to revise this publication from time to time, and to make
changes in the content hereof without obligation to notify any person of such revision or
changes.
A copy of the Pi Research Terms and Conditions of Sale is available on request, and
includes a declaration of the warranty and limitation of liability which apply to
all Pi Research products and services.
Health and Safety information
Under the terms of European and UK Health and Safety Legislation, Pi Research is
required to classify any hazardous materials in the products it supplies and to provide
relevant safety information to users.
Any hazardous materials in Pi products are clearly marked with appropriate symbols.
Product Safety Data Sheets relating to these materials are available on request.

Contents

Introduction .............................................................................................. 6
Licensing information ..................................................................... 6
Car radio installation ............................................................................... 7
Installing a P192-S radio in a car ................................................... 7
Car radio transmit antenna ............................................................. 8
P192-S as a pit receiver ......................................................................... 11
Power supply ................................................................................ 11
Pit data loom ................................................................................. 11
Diversity receiving function .......................................................... 12
Pit receiver antenna ..................................................................... 13
Connecting antennas ............................................................................ 14
Configuring the P192-S ......................................................................... 15
Radio configuration utility ............................................................. 15
P192-S status LEDs .............................................................................. 20
Serial Interface ....................................................................................... 21
Baud rate setting .......................................................................... 21
Forward error correction (FEC) .................................................... 21
Pi Sigma stream optimization ....................................................... 22
Minimisation of the Message Size ................................................ 23
Transmit buffer ....................................................................................... 24
CTS (Clear to send) ............................................................................... 25
Specifications ......................................................................................... 26
Connector information .......................................................................... 27
Connector details .......................................................................... 27
Data connector pin details ............................................................ 27

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Parts numbering .................................................................................... 28

Dimensions ............................................................................................. 29
Declaration of conformity ..................................................................... 30
Conditions Of Use ........................................................................ 31
FCC Authorisation ........................................................................ 31
Contact information ............................................................................... 32

Introduction

The Pi telemetry system provides reliable data transmission from a car to the pits as the
car travels around the track. A P192-S radio in the car transmits the telemetry data and a
P192-S radio in the pits receives the transmissions. The received telemetry data is passed
to a PC for processing and display.
The P192-S radio has no user controls and the setup is carried out by Pi Research. The
frequency and transmit power can be programmed via the Pi Programming software with
the programming lead connected in line with the radio and to a PCs comm port.

Licensing information
Before you use the telemetry system you must apply to the appropriate radio licensing
authority for the frequency and power setting that you intend to use.

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Car radio installation

Installing a P192-S
radio in a car
The P192-S radio needs a power supply between 12 to 30 volts DC. If you are connecting
the telemetry system to a Pi System, the radio loom connects battery power to the radio
system.
If you are building your own wiring loom for the telemetry system refer to the section
Connector information.

CAUTION: The anti-vibration mounts supplied MUST BE used to mount the radio.
The radio will not function correctly, may be damaged, and its warranty will be
void if the anti-vibrations mounts are not used.
When installing the P192-S radio in a car:

the anti-vibration mounts supplied MUST BE used to mount the radio. The
radio will not function correctly if the anti-vibration mounts are not used;
select a position where the radio will not be in constant contact with water,
fuel or oil;
make sure that the radio will not be affected by heat soak. Ensure that air
can flow over the radio to keep it below 55C; Insufficient airflow will
overheat the transmitter, and the radio will shut down until the temperature
drops sufficiently.
make sure that the radio is electrically isolated from the chassis and all
surrounding parts;
ensure connector casing is isolated from all loom connections and the loom
screen;
try not to place the radio near sources of electrical interference e.g. ignition
coils, plug leads, ECMs, alternators and other radio transmitters.

Data loom
When installing the data loom, you should avoid running it next to sources of interference,
i.e. ignition coils, plug leads, alternators, fuel pumps and ECMs. If the loom has to run near
any of these, then try to avoid parallel runs.

Car radio transmit

antenna

Ground planes
The transmit antenna needs a suitable ground plane to operate efficiently. The ground
plane is a conductive material placed at the base of the antenna and increases the
efficiency of the antenna by reducing the amount of power that is reflected back into the
radio module.
Generally, the construction and shape of a race car does not allow for a suitable ground
plane. To use your telemetry equipment effectively, you may have to make a suitable
ground plane.
Each antenna comes with an installation kit that includes a piece of self-adhesive copper
foil which you can use to make a ground plane.
When making a ground plane, you should consider the following points:

The antenna should be mounted in a vertical position in the centre of the

ground plane and at least 150mm (6 inches) away from any vertical piece
of the car or other antenna;
The ground plane should be circular and have a radius at least equal to the
length of the antenna;
The ground plane must not make electrical contact with any part of the
vehicle chassis that is likely to conduct, for example, carbon fibre.

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Fibre glass body panels

To fit the antenna to a fibre glass body panel:
1
2
3
4

Locate a suitable panel, that can be removed easily for access to the antenna
loom.
As fibre glass is electrically non-conducting, you can stick the copper foil
directly to the underside of the panel.
Tighten the TNC connector of the antenna, ensuring that it makes electrical
contact with the copper foil.
Ensure that the copper foil does not make contact with any part of the chassis
that is likely to conduct.

Antenna

TNC bulkhead
connector
Insulating washer

Body panel

Copper foil

Insulating layer

Locking washer

Insulating washer

Fixing nut
TNC terminated
feed cable

Antenna installation detail

Carbon fibre chassis panels

1
Locate a suitable panel that can be removed easily for access to the antenna
loom. An ideal panel is over the front suspension dampers.
2
Make a bracket from metal or carbon fibre that will hold the antenna vertical.
Fix the bracket to the chassis.
3
Stick an insulating layer of tank tape to the underside of the bracket. Make
sure that it is of a larger diameter than the copper foil for the ground plane.
4
Stick the copper foil to the underside of the insulating layer.
5
Tighten the TNC connector of the antenna, ensuring that it makes electrical
contact with the copper foil.
6
Ensure that the copper foil does not make contact with any part of the chassis
that is likely to conduct.
7
Drill a hole in the panel for the antenna to pass through.
Antenna feed loom
If you are going to use your own antenna feed loom, it should be a high quality coaxial
cable, with a stranded inner core. We recommend that you use RG58 50 ohm coaxial
cable.
For best results, use crimp TNC connectors for both the radio and antenna ends of the
feed cable.

WARNING: It is important that the TNC connectors of the feed loom do not vibrate
against any other conducting surfaces such as Lemo connectors or the chassis
floor, as this will result in radio frequency noise and a loss of signal.

10

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

P192-S as a pit receiver

The P192-S radio can be used in a car as a radio transmitter or in the pit as a radio
receiver. The pit car transmitter frequency and the pit receiver frequency must be the
same. Refer to the section Configuring the P192-S for information.

Power supply
Use the power supply provided to run the P192-S in the pit.

Pit data loom

The pit data loom connects the telemetry pit receiver to your PC. The computer connector
is a standard RS232 9-pin D-type connector and should be connected to a serial port of
your PC.
If your PC has more than one serial port, then refer to the documentation that came with
your PC to find out how the serial ports are labelled. You can only connect the telemetry
data loom to either serial port COM1 or COM2 of your PC.
You must use Pi Workshop software to set which ports of your computer are used for
telemetry, before you attempt to use the telemetry system.

11

Diversity receiving
function
Where line-of-sight does not exist between car and pit antennas, received signals
propagate as reflections. Reflected signal paths can destructively interfere with each other.
This effect is called Multi-Path Fading.
An Anti-Node is a point in space where Multi-Path Fading diminishes Signal Strength
Received signal - dB

Quality is checked every 1 or 12 bytes

signal threshold
level

Two fades are unlikely to occur at the same time

Time

Representation of multi-path fading

The Diversity Receiving Function of the of the P192-S means that when receiving, the
P192-S actively monitors the strongest signal from its two receiving antennas. It is unlikely
that an Anti-Node will occur simultaneously at both antennas, hence superior coverage
can be achieved when compared to a non-Diversity Receiving radio.

12

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Pit receiver antenna

To ensure that the two pit antennas are not affected simultaneously by the same Antinode, their closest points must not be closer than 0.75 metres (3/4 wavelength).
For the best circuit coverage, the pit antennas need to be as high as possible. The pit
antennas should be mounted at least 2 metres away from any other transmitting antenna.
The antennas should be connected to the P192-S pit unit by low loss coaxial cables,
Pi Research Part Number 03I-0566-variant (variant refers to the loom length, which can
be specified at the time of order).
If you mount two antennas on a single mast, you should mount them as far away from
each other as is possible.
Antenna feed looms
If you are going to use your own antenna feed loom, it should be of high quality coaxial
cable, with a stranded inner core. The type of cable is determined by the proposed length
of the feed loom.

For antenna feed looms of less than 10 metres (33 feet) in length use
URM43 coaxial cable.
For antenna feed looms greater than 10 metres (33 feet) in length use
URM67 coaxial cable.

For best results, use crimp TNC connectors for the radio and solder N type for the antenna
end of the feed cable. The connectors must be kept watertight, and we recommend that
you wrap them with self-amalgamating tape.

13

Connecting antennas

CAUTION: A P192-S should only be used as a transmitter when a length of

coaxial cable has been attached to the TNC connector NEAREST the AutoSport
connector. If this is not done, the P192-S may damage itself, and its warranty will
be void.
A P192-S only transmits a radio signal from the TNC connector that is NEAREST the
AutoSport connector. Both TNC connectors of a P192-S will receive radio signals.
P192-S as a transmitter
When a P192-S is used for transmission only, an antenna must be connected to the TNC
connector NEAREST the Autosport connector. See the figure Connecting antennas below.
P192-S as a receiver
If a P192-S is to be used for receiving, antennas should be connected to both TNC
connectors to take advantage of the P192-S diversity receiving capability. See the figure
below.
connect antennas to both connectors
when radio is installed in the pit
AutoSport
connector

do not connect anything

here when the radio is
installed in a car

connect antenna
here when radio is
installed in a car

Connecting antennas

14

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Configuring the P192-S

Radio configuration
utility
To enable the P192-S to be configured, a software utility application for the PC and a
programming loom are supplied.
The configuration utility application is supplied on a CD-ROM.
To install the configuration utility application:
1
Insert the CDROM into the CD drive of the PC. The installation programme
should start automatically.
2
Follow the on-screen instructions.
To configure the PI92-S:
1
Connect the programming loom as shown in the next figure.
telemetry
connector on
loom

programming loom

P192-S radio

to serial port
on PC

Connecting the programming loom

Click Start Programs Pi Research P192-S-Config. The P192-S

configuration start-up screen appears.

15

P192-S configuration start-up screen

After a short delay the Pi Research P192-S Telemetry Radio Configuration dialog replaces
the P192-S configuration start-up screen.

Pi Research P192-S Telemetry Radio Configuration dialog

You can change the COMM port which the configuration utility connects to.
3

16

Click Comms Port Setting and choose from the list.

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Power-up the radio and click Connect. The red bar on the Connect button
changes to green. The dialog also displays the message Reading Radio
settings.

Reading radio settings message

The current Radio Frequency and Transmission Power settings are then displayed in
the text boxes on the dialog.

Radio Frequency Setting

Note: Licensing of the P192-S is the responsibility of the radios operator.
Both the car and pit radios must be configured to communicate on the same frequency.
5

Enter the required frequency into the Radio Frequency text box.

The radio can be programmed within the range 458 > 460 MHz and the frequency must
be divisible by 25kHz (the radios channel spacing).

Radio power setting

Radio Power should be chosen according to longest straight-line distance that the car
travels from the Receive antennas. High power can overcome signal strength fading due
to distance, but not major obstacles, so there is limited coverage to be gained by
increasing power in situations where the transmission distance is comparatively short.
Typical power settings are 1 Watt for ovals and 2 Watts for conventional road courses and
street circuits.
6

Choose the required power setting from the list in the Transmission Power
text box.
7
Click Set Radio Power and Frequency. The new settings are sent to the
radio.
The Setting up Radio message appears on the dialog.

Setting up Radio message

17

This followed by the Saving settings for Radio message being displayed on the dialog
box.

Saving settings for Radio message

After the settings have been saved in the radio, the following message appears.

Run mode Warning message

This message tells you that the radio is now in Run mode. You will have to power cycle
the radio if you want to perform further configuration on that radio.
If you have set a frequency outside of the valid range, the following error message
appears.

Error message: Set valid frequency

If you have set a frequency that is not divisible by 25kHz an error message appears.

25kHz boundary error message

18

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Read Existing Radio Settings

Click Read Existing Radio Settings any time after connecting to the radio, to read the
existing settings.
Set Pi Defaults button
It is not recommended to use the Set Pi Defaults button, unless instructed to do so by
Pi Research Support. Use of this feature will disable any custom configuration that may
have been performed by Pi Research.
Cannot connect to radio error message
If you click Connect after setting Radio Power and Frequency, and you have NOT power
cycled the radio, you will get the following error message.

Cannot connect to radio error message

To allow you to Connect to the radio again, you must power cycle the radio.
Radio not detected error message
If you click Read Existing Radio Settings before you have connected to the radio you
will get the following error message.

Radio not detected error message

19

P192-S status LEDs

The P192-S has a number of LEDs which indicate the status of the unit. The table below
lists the LEDs and their meaning when the LEDs are on.
LED

Colour

Meaning

CD

Red
Orange
Green
Red
Red

Transmitting radio signal

Noise on frequency
Receiving radio signal
P192-S sending data via serial port
P192-S receiving data via serial port
Not used (hardware handshaking). See note below
Not used (hardware handshaking)

RD
TD
CTS
RTS

Note: The P192-S default settings do not have the full CTS line functionality enabled.
This functionality can be enabled upon request by Pi Research.
The figure below shows the location of the LEDs on the P192-S.

Location of P192-S LEDs

20

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Serial Interface

The P192-S supports bi-directional RS232.

Baud rate setting

P192-S is supplied with a serial interface speed of 19,200 baud. When configuring a
Pi Sigma MCU for telemetry baud rate, the rate must be set in three places before the
setup is sent:

Pi Workshop/Telemetry App/Where/
Pi Workshop/Sigma Configuration/Logger/Serial Setup/
Pi Server/Telemetry/Serial Port/

Refer to the Pi Workshop User Guide for information.

Forward error
correction (FEC)
The P192-S transmitter encodes transmitted data with parity bits which enable the
receiver to repair data packets that have been damaged during propagation of the radio
signal. FEC can significantly improve the coverage levels.
The additional parity information reduces the effective data bandwidth of the P192-S by
approximately 16%.
The P192-S radios are supplied by default with the FEC function enabled. Radios can
have their FEC function disabled, enabling full use of the 19,200 bandwidth, upon request
to Pi Research.

21

Pi Sigma stream
optimization
When configuring a continuous Pi Sigma telemetry stream, it is possible to optimise the
configuration of the stream to significantly enhance coverage levels. Where maximisation
of coverage is required, the following procedure is recommended.
1
2

22

Only send the minimum acceptable group of channels required.

Reduce each channels send rates to the minimum acceptable. It is worth
considering that the Pi Workshop Watch Cards are refreshed at 5Hz, hence
any highly transient channels sent purely to be watched in Pi Workshop need
not be sent at more than 5Hz. When a highly transient channel is logged via
telemetry, or its value history is watched in Pi Workshop (e.g. as a time/
distance plot), it may be appropriate to send the channel via telemetry at more
than 5Hz.
Assuming that the percentage of the stream used is now less than 84%, open
the Data Engine Advanced Properties and select Manual Message Size.
Reduce the manual message size incrementally until the stream usage
equals 84%; this allows 16% room for the FEC parity information that is added
by P192-S. It is not recommended that a message size smaller than 16 bytes
be selected. If a P192-S radio is being used with its FEC function disabled,
the stream usage should be made to equal 100%.

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Minimisation of the
Message Size
Minimisation of the Message Size is recommended to maximise coverage levels when
line-of-sight cannot be continuously achieved between the car and pit antennas. This is
because when reception drops out during the receipt of a message, the data from the
entire message is lost. By reducing the size of the messages, the amount of data lost
when reception dropouts occur is reduced.
The reason that the continuous stream usage should be maximised is because the
transmitting P192-S will cease to remain in its transmitting mode after a certain time
period has expired. If the continuous stream percentage is not maximised, pauses will
exist between packets sent by a Pi Sigma Elite MCU.
If these pauses are long enough, the P192-S will cease to remain in its transmitting mode
between packets. Every time the P192-S shifts back from non-transmitting to transmitting
mode, it sends a synchronisation packet. The time taken to transmit this packet introduces
a delay in the receipt of the stream data at the receiving P192-S.

23

Transmit buffer

Whenever a P192-S is in Data Transfer mode it monitors both the radio channel and the
serial interface. When a data terminal device (a Pi Sigma MCU or a laptop) starts data
transmission to its P192-S via its serial port, the P192-S switches into transmission mode.
At the beginning of each transmission a synchronisation signal is transmitted and this
signal is detected by a P192-S receiver, which then switches into receive mode.
Transmission ends when a pause is detected in the data sent by the terminal device.
When Forward Error Correction (FEC) is turned OFF, the P192-S internal transmit buffer
memory cannot overflow. When FEC is turned ON the serial interface speed (19,200
baud) exceeds the speed of the radio interface (approximately 16,500bps), consequently
data can fill the transmit buffer memory. The maximum size of the transmit buffer memory
is 1kB. If the terminal device transmits so much data that the 1kB buffer fills completely,
the buffer will be emptied before the transmission is restarted.
If a P192-S is in receive mode (because it has successfully received a synchronisation
signal from the other P192-S which is currently transmitting data), but its terminal device
transmits data to it, the data will go into the transmit buffer memory. When the radio
channel becomes available (when the other P192-S has finished its transmission) the
buffered data will then be transmitted.

24

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

CTS (Clear to send)

The CTS pin on the P192-S puts out a voltage to inform the data terminal device (Pi Sigma
MCU or a laptop). CTS is active when P192-S is ready to accept data for transmission.
CTS will shift into inactive state during data reception.
CTS shifts back into active state when reception ends. CTS also shifts into an inactive
state when the transmit buffer is in danger of overflowing.
P192-Ss default settings do not have the full CTS line functionality enabled. This
functionality can be enabled upon request by Pi Research.

25

Specifications

26

Description

Value

Operating voltage range

Power consumption
Frequency range
Default RF output power
Output data format
Serial interface rate
Max data rate
Antenna impedance
Operating Temperature range
Weight

12 to 30 volts DC
25VA
458460 MHz and 466468 MHz
1 watt (nominal)
RS-232
19200 baud
approximately 16,500bps
50 ohms
25 to +55C
659 grams

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Connector information

Connector details

Connector

Type

Mating connector

Antenna
Data

TNC
ASL006-05PA-HE

TNC
ASL606-05SA-HE

Note: Pi Research recommends using Deutsch MicroLite AutoSport connectors. If you

use non MicroLite connectors to connect to the P192-S they may not mate correctly.

Data connector pin

details

Pin

Function

Pin

Function

1
2
3

+12V supply
RS232 Data In
Programming mode

4
5

RS232 Data out

Ground

27

Parts numbering

The following table details the items supplied for one car.
P192-S kit part number 30A-049535 comprises:

28

Description

Part number

Qty

Car antenna
P192-S telemetry unit
IEC mains lead-black-UK.
IEC mains lead-black-US.
P192-S Product information
Antenna UHF omni-directional
P192-S switch mode PSU
Transit case
P192-S AV mounting
Antenna mounting kit
P192-S pit data loom
P192-S programming loom

01A-049085
01A-049609
12A-0093
12A-0103
29A-071433
31A-0007
31A-0107
35A-049543
13B-049548
30C-049087
60A-049611
60A-049612

1
2
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Dimensions

130.00 (5.11)
122.00 (4.80)
16.85
(0.66)

32.00
(1.25)

86.80 (3.41)
Rx only

142.95 (5.63)

168.00 (6.60)

Tx/Rx

4.00 ( 0.16)
three positions
58.40 (2.30)

63.60 (2.50)

Dimensions shown in millimetres and (inches)

29

Declaration of conformity

30

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note

Conditions Of Use
The P192S is a vehicular Radio Modem intended for use in motorsport applications i.e.
not on vehicles used on the public road network. For those vehicles that may be used on
the public road network e.g. Rally cars, it is the responsibility of the user to verify that the
type approval of the vehicle has not been compromised.

FCC Authorisation
This equipment has been granted FCC Equipment Authorisation as listed below.

Equipment class: Licensed Non-broadcast Station Transmitter

Notes:
FCC Rule Parts

P192-S
Frequncy
range (MHz)

Output
Watts

Frequency
Tolerance

Emission
Designator

90.210

400.0 470.0

10.0

1500.0 Hz

9K25F1D

90

400.0 470.0

10.0

1500.0 Hz

18K7F1D

31

Contact information

For more information about Pi products and details of worldwide authorised agents,
please contact:

Pi Research
Brookfield Motorsports Centre
Twentypence Road
Cottenham
CAMBRIDGE
UK
Customer Support Tel +44 (0) 1954 253600
CB4 8PS
Fax +44 (0) 1954 253601

Pi Research, Inc.
8250 Haverstick
Suite #275
Indianapolis
IN 46240
USA

Tel
Fax

+1 (317) 259-8900
+1 (317) 259-0137

Research
Part Number: 29A-071479-3E
April 2004
Pi and the Pi logo are trademarks of Pi Group Limited
Pi Research, 2004
www.piresearch.com

32

Pi P192-S Telemetry Radio Application Note