Nautilus Lifeline in Bonaire

[midas6t6]

FWIW - the distress alert with GPS postion has a 12 mile range

 

[Mike]

Well, not only is 12 miles still a very short distance, I think if you research the Nautilus you'll find its 100% VHF marine band radio, if you download the manual from their website you see they list the DCS range as up to only 8 miles not 12, and voice up to 5 miles. Those are up to numbers and obviously that's going to be ideal conditions, fully charged unit. Even 8 miles is going to be a stretch, if you add any rain that's going to drop even more. If you add waves all it takes is a 3 foot swell to block your antenna. I wouldn't purchase this as a rescue device. The day they combine it with a PLB, now they've really got something, till then, this is nothing more than a personal walkie-talkie relying heavily on someone being not only in range of you but also monitoring channel 16. Remember the US Coast Guard pretty much operates in US waters only.

The Nautilus has a 1.85 peak wattage output, even a cheap $100 hand held VHF radio has 6 watts. To put it in perspective a boat mounted VHF radio will have 25 watts of output.

I'm not saying the Nautilus is useless, it's certainly better than nothing, but not really by much. It's going to be great at hailing your dive boat if they are within line of site and are monitoring their radio, but as a rescue device, I wouldn't rely on it for that.

Here is a review of an actual wet test under perfect conditions

With that antenna height in mind, we headed out of the harbor and swung west, cruising along the Santa Barbara coast. We dropped our test diver off not far from shore at the edge of a kelp bed. Using the optional stowage pouch with safety lanyard, we mounted the test unit at the base of our test diver’s shoulder strap so it would be within easy reach. We marked our test diver’s position with the boat’s GPS, then slowly motored away, leaving her in our wake.

The boat’s GPS marked our first stop one mile from the test diver. We called her, she called us, all transmissions came over loud and clear. At a distance of two miles we tried again—our test diver’s calls continued to come over our boat radio loud and clear. However, at a distance of three miles, while we could still hear our test diver’s calls, the transmissions were not as loud and they were starting to break up, making it difficult to understand what was being said.So we turned the boat around and closed the gap a bit. At a distance of 2.5 miles we tried again. We were able to hear a clear and unbroken communication from our test diver, although still not quite as loud as at, say, two miles. So we pointed our bow back out to sea and returned to the three-mile mark and repeated our routine. Once again, we received an audible but broken transmission.Based on the conditions of the day (clear skies, relatively flat and calm), the VHF radio we were using on the boat (a top-drawer model made by Raytheon), and the height of our boat’s antenna (nine feet above sea level), we found the outside range for acceptable communication using the VHF radio portion of our Nautilus Lifeline to be between 2.5 and three miles. This is about half the range claimed by the manufacturer; however, if the antenna they used for their tests was considerably taller than nine feet, this could account for the difference between what they claim and what we found.

Unfortunately, we were not able to actually test the “Lifeline” function. Pushing the red Distress Mode button during our SGR gear tests would have sent out an emergency alarm which would have resulted in the scrambling of Coast Guard and Search & Rescue resources throughout Southern California. Intentionally activating an emergency DSC signal for non-emergency purposes can result in civil and criminal penalties, including hefty fines, jail time and the repaying of the government for search costs. In other words, this is serious business. The Nautilus Lifeline has a stated range for its digital signal of up to 12 miles. Considering the circumstances, we will have to take the company’s word for that.​

 

[fugly]

knowing the limitations of the Lifeline is excellent, at least you know what to expect. As I see it, it increases one's odds of rescue. I'd prefer to have it than not especially if you’re an abandoned diver and you are lost at sea (especially at night). Just having a safety sausage at night isn't going to help increase your odds of rescue.

As for the Legality of it.... At least I can show up in court and pay what ever fines they toss at me. Then I can celebrate with my dive buddies that I lived to tell about it.

Fugly’s -2 cent

 

[ddmattos]

6 ft to 10 ft SMB coupled to a 3miles to 12 miles radio radius with MMSI (so they who you are) and GPS coordinates broadcasting for 24 to 48. I like those odds better. The only thing missing is direct satellite distress signal with GPS. I have both plus an extra strobe!!

Fugly.....you dive count needs a bump.

Suggestion to Mike from Nautilus.... How about adding a fourth button? ( direct satellite distress signal with GPS)

 

[fugly]

Fugly.....you dive count needs a bump.

Would have loved to bump the dive count. Wished my gear being serviced would have a shorter turn around time. I wanted to be on the GB this weekend.
:cool2:

 

[Bas Noij]

And I can personally attest to the claim of broken ankles at isolated sites after J broke her ankle heading back to the truck at Old Blue (the ground shifted as she was walking up a slope with full gear/tank, she fell but her boot had good traction and kept her foot in place = spiral ankle fracture). Fortunately some other divers came by soon enough and helped me get her into the truck, but before they arrived I sure was wishing I had some way to call for help. Cell phones work great on the island, but they're not very helpful if you can't leave them in the truck lest they be stolen.

My personal safety net is a cell phone in a good waterproof container. I live on Bonaire and work in the dive industry. My experience is that the containders that look like a 'capsule' that you screw together are really waterproof. I have never had a leak in 2500+ dives. On top of that I have a Samsung phone that is waterproof so even if some water leaked in the phone would survive. I'm sure this option is cheaper than the lifeline the OP describes and I am also sure on Bonaire it is more useful. Call either Stinapa HQ, your diveshop or 911 (all depending on the emergency and the time of day) and help should be there VERY soon.