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What is GPS? |
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Global Positioning System (GPS) is a worldwide radio navigation system that uses 24 satellites that orbit the earth. GPS receivers, like Road Angel, use these satellite signals to calculate it's position to a couple of metres .
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Is Road Angel a detector? |
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No. It uses GPS and checks its location against an onboard database of accident blackspots and fixed camera locations. When you are approaching either of these, Road Angel provides a warning.
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What is the Laser Alert module that plugs into the back of the Road Angel |
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This is a laser detector. Safety Camera vans use Laser Speed Measurement guns to read the speed of a vehicle. It is not an antenna and has no bearing on the GPS system of Road Angel. The Laser Alert module can detect the beam fired by the gun. For more information on laser detection click here.
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How much warning does Road Angel provide? |
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Road Angel has three proximity options for Fixed cameras; these are 250m, 500m or 1000m. There is an additional setting called SDS or Speed Distance Setting. If you activate this setting your proximity warning is doubled if your speed is over 50 MPH. You cannot increase the sensitivity of the laser detector.
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Is Road Angel legal? |
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Click here for the latest information.
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How do I update Road Angel? |
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You can update Road Angel via the internet using software that you will be prompted to download when you register your Road Angel with us. For more assistance updating Road Angel click here. If you do not have a PC with Windows 98 or above with internet access you can purchase a modem from us for £42.90 inc VAT and delivery. This will allow you to update your Road Angel via a telephone line. Click here to go directly to our online shop. Please note that we do not provide update software for Apple-Mac computers.
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There was no update software CD in my box |
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Due to software revisions we do not provide a CD in the box. You are prompted to download the software via the internet when you register your Road Angel. Click here to register.. If you have already registered with us you can download the software by clicking here. Alternatively complete the pre-paid registration card on the back of the manual and post it back to us. We will send a CD out by return of post.
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How often should I update my Road Angel to receive the new locations? |
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As a guide we recommend updating your Road Angel approximately every two weeks.
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My Road Angel does not display my speed, just three dashes on the screen. |
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Road Angel has an internal GPS receiver that needs to have a view of the sky in order to obtain the satellite signals required to calculate it’s position. Road Angel needs to be positioned on the dashboard of the vehicle in order to do this. For discreet mounting, a re-radiating antenna can be used. Click here for more information. Some vehicles, for example Renault, Citroen, Peugeot some BMWs and Mercedes have what is known as an Athermic, comfort or UV windscreen. This interferes with the satellite signal being received by Road Angel which results in either no speed being displayed, intermittent or erratic speeds. A re-radiating antenna will be required, click here for more information.
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My Road Angel takes a long time to display my speed, is intermittent or displays erratic speeds. |
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Road Angel has an internal GPS receiver that needs to have a view of the sky in order to obtain the satellite signals required to calculate it’s position. Road Angel needs to be positioned on the dashboard of the vehicle in order to do this. For discreet mounting, a re-radiating antenna can be used. Click here for more information. Some vehicles, for example Renault, Citroen, Peugeot some BMWs and Mercedes have what is known as an Athermic, comfort or UV windscreen. This interferes with the satellite signal being received by Road Angel which results in either no speed being displayed, intermittent or erratic speeds. A re-radiating antenna will be required, click here for more information.
The Road Angel has an internal battery that holds the Road Angel's almanac data. The almanac data tells the GPS receiver where each GPS satellite should be at any time throughout the day. Each satellite transmits almanac data showing the orbital information for that satellite and for every other satellite in the system. Basically the Road Angel 'learns' where the satellites should be and this helps the speed of the acquisition. If the battery runs down it will lose the almanac data and the acquisition time will be increased. |
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The speed display on Road Angel differs slightly to the speedometer in my car. |
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At a constant speed the Road Angel has a more accurate speedometer reading than that of the car. This is because the speedometer readout is governed by the rolling circumference of the tyre in contact with the road surface. Different tyre pressures, sizes and tread ware can all make a difference to the speedometer reading. For this reason every manufacturer has to calibrate the speedometer to ensure that at no point can the vehicle be traveling faster than is indicated. The Road Angel speed lags because it checks it's position once a second, there will always be a delay under acceleration and deceleration.
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I have driven past a fixed safety camera and did not receive a warning. |
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There are a number of reasons why this can occur.
- The camera has been logged and added to the central database since you last update was completed. For assistance updating Road Angel click here.
- The camera was on the opposite side of the road. Some Safety Camera Partnerships and Councils paint white lines on the opposite side of the road to the camera to give an impression that it can enforce in either direction, when in fact this is not the case.
- It was not a speed camera. There are lots of street furniture that can
be mistaken for a speed camera. For example; Red Light enforcement
cameras, Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems and traffic
flow measurement systems. For more information on the types of safety
cameras click here.
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I have driven past a Safety Camera van and did not receive an alert. |
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Click here for more information.
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I was flashed by a GATSO camera that was on the opposite side of the road. |
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A GATSO camera can only enforce the speed of vehicles traveling away from it. When there is no film in a GATSO, the trigger threshold for a flash is often lowered, and the camera may be set to also flash approaching vehicles. The photograph cannot be used to enforcement or prosecution.
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Can I use my Road Angel on mainland Europe? |
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The legality of GPS and detector systems varies from Country to Country. We do not recommend taking Road Angel onto mainland Europe as this can result in a fine and/or confiscation of the device. Road Angel sold in mainland Europe is modified to meet the legal requirements and has specific approval to allow it’s use.
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Can I use my Road Angel as a GPS receiver? |
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Classic Road Angel Serial – Serial number starts with 0000xxxx or 000xxxxx
Road Angel is NMEA compatible and uses Version 2.0 / 0183. This means that it can be used with some Route Mapping software for Satellite Navigation on a laptop PC or handheld PDA. The data output is fixed at 4800 bps. Using a laptop you can connect the Road Angel via a direct serial connection, you cannot output GPS data via USB, (serial adapter cables are available from our online shop)
The data output speed from Road Angel depends on the firmware version. To check which firmware version is loaded press the DELETE and STORE buttons at the same time. After VER is displayed a number will be shown indicating the firmware version. Versions 103 and 104 output data at 9600 bps (bits per second), versions 118 and above output at 4800 bps. It is possible to upgrade the firmware, please contact us for further details. The data NMEA data coming out of the Road Angel is less than 4800 bps so there is no need to make it communicate any faster. If you are having problems getting Autoroute to connect to the Road Angel it is probably a port configuration problem and you will need to speak to Microsoft.
Using a laptop you can connect the Road Angel via a direct serial connection, if you are using a PDA a specific cable will be required, contact www.holux-uk.com for details. We have successfully outputted the GPS data to the following mapping programs on a laptop: Route 66 2004™, Microsoft AutoRoute 2003™, 2005™, InfoMap Professional 7.0™ and InfoMap Navigator 4.1.0™ from Directions Ltd. Microsoft AutoRoute 2003™ only receives GPS data every five seconds, which is not good for navigation. To increase this to one second updates you will need to download a patch from http://gpssoft.homestead.com
NB: Please note that we can only provide support for Road Angel. Any difficulties you encounter with connecting devices or third party software will have to be referred to the original vendor.
Classic Road Angel USB – Serial number starts with 001xxxxx
Road Angel is NMEA compatible and uses Version 2.0 / 0183. This means that it can be used with some Route Mapping software for Satellite Navigation on a laptop PC or handheld PDA.
The data output is fixed at 4800 bps. Using a laptop you can connect the Road Angel via a direct serial connection, you cannot output GPS data via USB, (serial adapter cables are available from our online shop). If you are using a PDA a specific cable will be required, contact www.holux-uk.com for details. We have successfully outputted the GPS data to the following mapping programs on a laptop: Route 66 2004™, Microsoft AutoRoute 2003™, 2005™, InfoMap Professional 7.0™ and InfoMap Navigator 4.1.0™ from Directions Ltd. Microsoft AutoRoute 2003™ only receives GPS data every five seconds, which is not good for navigation. To increase this to one second updates you will need to download a patch from http://gpssoft.homestead.com
NB: Please note that we can only provide support for Road Angel. Any difficulties you encounter with connecting devices or third party software will have to be referred to the original vendor. |
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Can I hard wire Road Angel into my car? |
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The straight cable can be used by removing the cigar plug. It must have it's own 3 Amp fuse in line. We recommend hard-wiring it into a switched supply in the car, i.e. when the engine is not running there is no supply to Road Angel. If you are unsure how to do this then consult an automotive electrician.
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I am getting an Alert to fixed cameras that are not there. |
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It is possible that the cameras have been removed from the central database since your last update. For assistance updating Road Angel click here. Road Angel is directional, in that it only alerts you to cameras that can enforce the speed in the direction you are traveling. If there is a camera on a road nearby that enforces in a similar direction to the one you are traveling you may start to get an alert. In most cases the alert will drop out before it reaches the full 5 bar warning. The bigger distance setting you have Road Angel set too, the more likely you are to receive an alert to cameras on a different road.
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