Every year, computers, phones, toys and gadgets get smarter, more capable and more functional. Why are our radio control transmitters so funky?

Most are decked out in silvery plastic with lots of unnecessary ridges, textures and ornamentation, like 1950s cars.

Generally, their screens are small and not particularly legible. Most require using switches to type labels and adjust settings. And they have limited memory.

Their designers seem oblivious to the fact that flyers have access to computers with much larger and better screens, ample data storage and interface niceties such as mice and keyboards.

A few very expensive high-end transmitters implement some of the following ideas, but none of these suggestions should warrant a $2,000 price tag. They’re all based on cheap current technology.

So how about bringing mainstream transmitters into the 21st Century by implementing these 12 ideas?

1. Visual Editor. Why should we press a switch 26 times to enter the first letter of a label for our “Zero” plane? Why can’t we copy some or all the settings for our Mini Mag and paste them into a new setup for our Formosa? Why can’t we compare two model settings visually, with differences highlighted on screen? Why can’t we copy all our model settings from our old transmitter to our new transmitter? We could do all of these things if manufacturers would agree to a portable data format for transmitter settings (Idea #4) and support a computer interface on the transmitter (Idea #7). Of course, developers would have to step up and create the Visual Editor, but it’s not that great a challenge for this crowd of technically adept tinkerers. For instance, I believe that the Evo has an external editor, written by a flyer who doesn’t work for the company. Where’s everyone else?

2. Audible Timer. We don’t want to look at our transmitter while we’re flying: it’s a sure way to lose track of our plane. Digital voice synthesis is cheap — we can buy a talking timer for less than $15. Please give us an integrated audible timer. Press a button on the transmitter, hear our remaining time. It’s not hard to do.

3. Flight Recorder. Although Eagle Tree and others make flight recorders which we can put in a plane, I’d like to see a transmitter recorder which logs our actions during a flight — stick movements and switch settings. This would help us understand some of those crashes where we struggle to remember what we did at the last minute. This also requires a computer interface (Idea #7) and some software for playback. Not for everyone, but nice to have.

4. Portable Data Format. Transmitter functions are well defined. Trims, expo, dual rates, servo travel adjustment, flaps, mixes… These should be codified into a portable data format supported by all the major manufacturers. That would allow us to backup our settings on external storage and to move our settings from one transmitter to another. We could even share model settings developed by advanced flyers. It would also enable advances such as a Visual Editor (Idea #1). Do proprietary internal data formats provide a competitve edge for manufacturers? I don’t think so.

5. Sensible Design. I think the Evo transmitter looks good. It’s clean and modern and attractive. I haven’t seen any other transmitter that looks like the work of a good industrial design department. Most have lots of bling-like touches, cheap switches and poor layouts. As Gary Morgan’s Hang Flat shows, most don’t even balance on their straps.

6. Expandable Memory. Why should we ever run out of model memory? If cheap cameras can use flash memory cards, why can’t cheap transmitters use them? This would also provide an alternate computer interface for Portable Data (Idea #4) and the Visual Editor (Idea #1).

7. USB Connection. This is just too obvious, and it’s not an expensive feature to add. With a USB connection, we could use our own transmitter with flight simulators and we could directly benefit from the Portable Data Format (Idea #4) and the Visual Editor (Idea #1).

8. Upgradeable Display. This is not for everyone, but if we want a back-lit color display, why can’t we just get one for our transmitter? Perhaps this isn’t a plug & play replacement, but instead works through the USB connection and an external portable display.

9. Wireless Buddy Box. Buddy boxes are great. Cord management, not so great. Why not use a Bluetooth wireless connection to link two transmitters for training?

10. Interlock Switches. A couple of simple suggestions: interlock the throttle joystick with another switch so we can’t accidentally flip it on and make sure we can’t turn off the transmitter with a single impulsive gesture.

11. Upgradeable Firmware. On two occasions, I’ve turned on my Spektrum DX7 transmitter and seen an upside-down display. It’d be nice if we could fix bugs like this and add new features with user-installable firmware upgrades.

12. Little Things. A transmitter sleep setting that would power down if we haven’t moved the sticks in the last (user settable) minutes. Customized sound settings so (pending arrival of the integrated Talking Timer) we don’t mistake our neighbor’s end-of-flight beeps for our own.

Want More Ideas? The late Jef Raskin, one of the principal designers of the Macintosh, was an avid RC flyer and an interface expert. Several years ago, he proposed some interesting ideas for redesigning transmitters, including using a single joystick for 3D control, moving the display to the back and eliminating separate trim switches.

You’ll also find some interesting suggestions on the RC Groups Transmitter Wish List.

Tags: Airplanes, Flying, Radio Control.

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 1st, 2007 at 4:52 pm and is filed under Elsewhere. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.