AUTOHELM 1000 User Manual

Furthermore, it will maintain the luffed heading
for as long as the need for increased weather helm
'persists. Contrary to popular opinio
n a
proportional steering autopilot will not maintain a
constant heading when the yacht's balance changes.
Thus sailing badly out of balance in varying wind
strengths will always give rise to excessive course
wander. This tendency is best overcome by reefi
ng
the mainsail slightly more than you would when hand
steering.
On longer passages when a constant compass course
may be steered for hours on end, variations in wind
strength and direction will almost certainly cause
changes in helm balance. For the sam
e reasons given
above, variations in standing helm will cause the
autopilot to steer slightly away from the set
course. In the case of the Autohelm 1000, if 5
degrees of additional weather helm is required as a
result of rising wind strength, for example,
the
course steered by the autopilot will
correspondingly change by approximately 20 degrees.
Thus when passage making, if a change in compass
heading is observed, the original course should
ideally be restored by re-
trimming sails to obtain
the original st
ate of balance. Alternatively,
providing weather helm has not become excessive,
the yacht may be trimmed back on to the original
heading by re-
adjusting the autopilot's compass
setting.
Vane sensitivity adjustment
Normally the wind vane is set almost vert
ically to
operate at near maximum sensitivity. High vane
sensitivity is essential to ensure optimum
penetration to windward when sailing close-
hauled
and usually does not result in excessive actuator
activity. The sensitivity of the vane may be
reduced by
tilting the entire unit backwards on its
clevis mounting. This has the effect of increasing
the 'dead band' of the vane sensor by allowing up
to a maximum of 15 degrees course variation to
occur before automatic correction is applied. When
it is not necess
ary to sail a very accurate course,
lowering the sensitivity of the vane in this manner
will reduce the number of corrections made and
hence reduce power consumption. In heavy weather or
turbulent wind conditions, the duty cycle of the
autopilot can usually be lowered by de-
sensitising
the wind vane. De-
sensitising the wind vane under
these conditions will not affect the accuracy of
the mean course steered.

AUTOHELM 1000 Specifications

General

Brand	AUTOHELM
Model	1000
Category	Autopilot System
Language	English