GETTING STARTED > GETTING SATELLITE SIGNALS

Signal

Receiver

strength bars

status field

Sky view

Power source indicator

GPS Page

The progress of satellite acquisition is shown in three stages:

No signal strength bars—the receiver is looking for the satellites indicated.

White signal strength bars—the receiver has found the satellite and is collecting data.

Green signal strength bars—the receiver has collected the necessary data from this satellite.

As soon as the GPSMAP 296 has collected the necessary data from the best satellites in view to calculate a fix, the status field indicates the status of the receiver. The unit then updates the location, date and time.

Receiver Status

The Receiver Status field shows one of the following conditions:

Searching the Sky—the receiver is looking for satellites.

AutoLocate—the receiver is looking for any satellite whose almanac has been collected, which can take up to 5 minutes.

Acquiring Satellites—the receiver is looking for and collecting data from satellites visible at its last known or initialized location, but has not acquired a fix.

2D GPS Location—At least three satellites have been acquired and a two-dimensional location fix has been calculated. “2D Differential” appears when you are receiving DGPS corrections in 2D mode and a “D” appears on the strength bar of satellites being corrected.

3D GPS Location—At least four satellites have been acquired and a three-dimensional fix has been calculated. “3D Differential” appears when you are receiving DGPS corrections in 3D mode and a “D” appears on the strength bar of satellites being corrected.

Lost Satellite Reception—the receiver is no longer tracking enough satellites for a 2D or 3D fix.

Receiver Not Usable—the receiver is unusable, possibly due to interference or abnormal satellite conditions. Turn the unit off and back on to reset.

Simulating GPS—the receiver is in Simulator Mode.

GPSMAP 296 Pilot’s Guide

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