Computers and Network

The primary computer, named “FltSim”,  is a Dell Alienware Aurora R7 gaming computer with Windows 10 operating system. The main flight simulation software, Prepar3D, is installed on this computer. Also installed is the main module of the avionics & system simulation software, ProSim737 System.

This computer has an Intel i7 8700 4.6 GHz CPU with 6 cores. It has 16 GB of 2666 MHz RAM. The main flight simulation software, such as Prepar3D, is extremely CPU-intensive. Although the software is multi-threaded, the bulk of the processing and the limiting factor for external display frame rate occurs on a single CPU core. Therefore, it is more advantageous for the computer to have a faster clock rate as opposed to a large number of cores. To optimize the performance, a Corsair Hydro Series H55 AIO liquid CPU cooler was added. This allowed the CPU to remain near 4.6 GHz, otherwise it would throttle back due to thermal constraints. Additionally, the power supply was upgraded to a 750 watt Corsair unit.

A second critical component of the primary company is the hard drive used. During flight simulation, as the aircraft is moving from one scenery area to another, this requires loading scenery data from the hard drive. Bandwidth limitations from a traditional spinning hard drive, even at 7200 RPM, will cause occasional stutters in areas of complex scenery. The computer came with a 256 GB M.PCIe SSD hard drive by default. This is solely used for the operating system. A second 1 TB SSD hard drive was added. The main flight simulation software, as well as the optional scenery and airport data, are loaded on this drive.

A final critical component is the graphics card. This was upgraded to a GeForce RTX 2080 video card with 8 GB  of GDDR6 VRAM memory.

The primary computer is connected to three large external LCD displays. The GeForce RTX video card as 3 DisplayPorts and 1 HDMI port. The center LCD is connected via the video card HDMI output. The left and right LCDs are connected via a DisplayPort to HDMI conversion cable.

One of the USB 3.0 ports is used to connect to a powered 7-port USB 3.0 hub inside the flight simulator shell. This hub is used to connect to the captain control yoke, captain rudder pedals, first officer control yoke, first officer rudder pedals, nose-wheel steering tiller, and the flight deck MCP/EFIS unit. A second USB port is used to connect to a transceiver for a wireless keyboard and mouse.

The stereo audio output is connected to external speakers with a subwoofer that are placed outside the flight simulator shell. The sounds generated by Prepar3D are primarily external aircraft sounds, such as engines and wind noise.

The secondary computer, named “Avionics”, is a custom built computer with Windows 10 operating system. The secondary modules of the avionics & aircraft systems software, ProSim737, are installed on this computer. Most of these modules are responsible for providing video output to the various flight deck LCD screens:  primary flight displays, navigation displays, the upper & lower displays (engines and systems), and the two CDU displays. Additional modules are use for generation of cockpit audio sounds, flight deck hardware connectivity, and an Instructor Operating Station. The real-time actual weather engine, ActiveSky, is also installed on this computer.

This computer has an Intel i5 8400 4.0 GHz CPU with 6 cores. It has 16 GB of 2400 MHz DDR4 RAM. The power supply is a Corsair 650 watt unit.

A 500 GB 970 EVO NVMe M2 SSD hard drive is used for the operating system. A second 1 TB SSD hard drive is used for the ProSim737 modules and ActiveSky.

Due to the need to connect to seven physical LCD displays in the flight deck, the computer has two GeForce 1060 video cards installed for the video output.

One video card is connected to an LCD for the captain primary flight display & navigation display, standby flight instruments & the upper engine/system display, the captain CDU screen, and an external display monitor for the Instructor Operating Station. The second video card is connected to an LCD for the first officer primary flight display & navigation display, the lower engine/system display, and the first officer CDU screen.

One of the USB 3.0 ports is used to connect to a 16-port powered USB 3.0 hub inside the flight simulator shell. This hub is used to connect to the majority of the flight deck hardware components: main instrument panel, CDUs, overhead & aft overhead panels, and central pedestal. A second USB port is used to connect to a transceiver for a wireless keyboard and mouse.

The stereo audio output is connected to external speakers with a subwoofer that are placed inside the flight simulator shell, but hidden behind the interior plastic trim. The sounds generated by the ProSim737 Sound module are primarily internal flight deck sounds, such as alarms, fire bell, air-conditioning duct airflow, etc.

The is a substantial amount of network traffic that is passing between the primary computer, “FltSim”, and the secondary computer, “Avionics.” Therefore, the flight simulator system has a dedicated local router, a LinkSys EA6350. This isolates the network traffic to the two flight simulator computers.

Internet connectivity is provided by connecting the WAN port of the router to the home router that provides internet access for the home.  This is a LAN to WAN cascading network.

The router is connected by Ethernet cables to both computers. Some of the flight deck hardware components use Ethernet instead of USB for connectivity, such as the Flight Deck Solutions motorized throttle quadrant and COM, NAV, and transponder radio units. These are connected as well by Ethernet cables.

Static or fixed IP address as assigned to the “FltSim” and “Avionics” computer. This is required for the ProSim737 software. The DHCP address range of the router is examined to choose static IP address for each computer that is outside of the DHCP range. Static IP address are assigning using the “Change Adapter Settings” window that is found in the “Network and Internet” section in the Windows System utility.

The router is configured to enable Wi-Fi access. This allows an iPad to be used for the ProSim737 Instructor Operating Station application.

Also, Prepar3D has a setting that will enable broadcast of the aircraft’s simulated position, emulating a GPS. This output can be used for position input with an iPad or iPhone running ForeFlight, enabling the application to show the current position of the simulator aircraft on real aeronautical charts.