Antenna Control Unit (ACU), 900 Series

The Antenna Control Unit is used as a first level user interface. The ACU houses the Trigger Generation circuitry and Antenna Control circuitry, including the BITE firmware and the Remote Maintenance/Monitoring firmware. The ACU is typically housed in the shelter or equipment room, near the beacon transponder. This piece of equipment is used to turn the antenna system on or off, to switch between TACAN and DME mode, to reset the processor (does not affected switching or radiated pattern), and to perform a lamp test.

From the front panel of the ACU, you can also view Maintenance Alerts or Shutdown Alarms, as well as diagnostics on which LRU is causing the fault mode. When a failure in a redundant element occurs, further diagnostic tools on the front panel will allow you to diagnose which of the redundant LRUs is alarming using a combination of a rotary switch and thumbwheel switch.

Recent upgrades include state-of-the-art Site Resiliency Enhancement which includes the Auto-Indexing feature designed to optimize the TACAN signal and resulting in fewer site restrictions.

The ACU is used with the 900E, 950E, and 950ET antennas.

Net Size and Weight: 19.00” L x 16.00” W x 10.50” H, ~15.5 lbs.

Gross Size and Weight: 25.00” L x 34.50” W x 18.00” H, ~36.0 lbs.