Updating your E-Avalanche airbag firmware...maybe it’s time.

Updating your E-Avalanche airbag firmware…maybe it’s time.

 

Thanks to a reader’s heads up, it might be time to update your E-avalanche airbag’s firmware.

 

Covered at The High Route and elsewhere, the established dynamic between avalanche transceivers and EMI (electromagnetic interference) is real and is something we all should be aware of. The potential list of EMI generators is long. And yes, they include the fancy GPS watch tracking your vert and electric avalanche airbags.

As mentioned in the comments by Slim (thank you), Alpride, the manufacturer of the E1 and E2 electric airbag systems, has updates available to help mitigate EMI when wearing E1/E2 airbag packs. We will note, and Alpride states this loud and clear on their site, “…the E2 software is already designed to minimize interferences. Beacons are not supposed to be interfering when the ‘standard distance’ of 50cm is respected.”

Ideally, there is the 20cm and 50cm rule. When your transceiver is in send mode, a distance of 20cm is recommended between the sending transceiver and an EMI-generating device, and 50cm is recommended when you switch the transceiver into search mode. Avalanches are not ideal, so the 20cm rule, in particular, is something to be mindful of, as the forces of moving and locking-up snow are considerable, and 20cm can become 5cm instantly.  

The E1 system update was released in 2022 and is accessible here. This update reduces the frequency at which the unit’s LED lights flash/blink when in Standby-mode and charge mode. The reduction in flash frequency, claims Alpride, helps reduce EMI in some situations. Below Alpride details the updates:

  • The E1 software update is drastically reducing the opportunity for a transceiver in “SEARCH” mode to associate the E1 proximity interferences (50-30 cm distance from beacon) with a ghost signal (additional buried subject).
  • Proximity interferences for a transceiver in “SEARCH” mode, in certain conditions, are still possible closer than 30-20 cm from beacon (as any electronic device), but the transceiver should not hold the proximity interference as a ghost signal, or only during few seconds, not as permanent additional buried subject (holding time depends on transceiver type).

   

The E2 gen system also has an update dated 2022. You can find the software update here.

Additionally, Black Diamond Equipment has firmware updates available for their JetForce Pro and, JetForce Tour, and PIEPS JetForce SC packs. The latter two packs use the E1 system. 

All this is a reminder that in our increasingly battery-powered world, software/firmware updates should be on our minds.

 

Postscript. First, thanks to Slim for bringing this to our attention. Second, despite thinking we are seasoned and well-practiced, we also need practice and reminders of updates for the gear out there.

I’ve been experimenting lately with a Ortovox Diract Voice transceiver. I’ll have more comments on the device at a later point, but learning to use a new transceiver was another reminder to practice rescue scenarios repeatedly. For example, the Diract Voice has its own “behaviors” that are different from the “behaviors” of my Barryvox S. For example, these two transceivers have very different initial signal acquisition ranges. In non-scientific tests where I was learning how to best use the Diract Voice, the Barryvox S locked the transmitting signal in repeatedly at a range of 50 meters and beyond, whereas the Diract Voice often locked in at 30 meters and shorter.

This is neither a first look nor a review of the Diract Voice. However, I thought the voice speaking from the device would be distracting. It turns out I like it.

But, if I use a transceiver with different signal acquisition characteristics, I am under no illusions: I need to practice more with this different transceiver. And I need to better understand if the tool is an asset for me and my partners. To come full circle (I hope), and relate back to the nature of the info presented up top, I need to practice more with the Diract Voice in noisy EMI situations to familiarize myself with the unit’s nuances.

Please update your electric avalanche airbag if necessary, update your transceiver if necessary, and practice with your safety tools. We’ll be doing the same.