Informational Guidance and Troubleshooting of the Autotune Procedure

During the autopilot commissioning, the Sea Trial has a section called autotune. The boat is brought up to cruising or near planning speed, and the autopilot performs a series of zig-zags. If the autotune does not pass the first time, it will attempt to repeat several times. On repeated attempts, the speed of the vessel should be increased and decreased. Either order is acceptable. Four to five zig-zags is typically enough to get passing autotune numbers. Still, suppose the boat is having trouble making the zig-zags and has failed a few times. In that case, it will automatically go into the Alternate Autotune process. The user will follow the prompts on the GHC or chartplotter display to complete the alternate autotune. After completing the alternate autotune, adjusting the rudder and counter rudder gains may improve the autopilot's response. 

Performing the autotune procedure should be completed on a sizeable calm body of water. If rough sea conditions exist, the autotune could fail or pass but have marginal results. The Autotune procedure for the GHP Autopilot can be run at different speeds and still pass. For best results, it is recommended to perform the Autotune just below planing speed.

If the Autotune fails, adjust the RPMs up or down by measurements of 500 and then try again.

Autopilot Gain Settings