Garmin Tr 1 Autopilot Manual

							
Installation of the Sensor Ball 
  Hold the mounting bracket in the desired 
position and drill through the holes into the 
mounting surface. (Be sure that the wire 
coming out of the ball can exit the ball 
straight down.) Tap if necessary.  Install and 
tighten the three mounting screws as shown 
infig.8-a
If you need to make a paper template for a 
drill pattern:  The mounting holes are equally 
spaced on a 1.224 inch radius circle. 
Fig. 8-a 
Fig. 8-b 
Place the ball, wires down, into the 
bracket and capture it by snapping the 
cage over the ball, sliding the tips of the 
cage between the ball and the legs of the 
bracket.  Do the two legs without the 
thumbscrew first. Rotate cage upwards to 
catch the bracket with the thumbscrew. 
Seefig. 8-b
Step one (Mounting the Sensor Ball)
Step two (Placing ball in bracket)
The Sensor (Compass) Ball needs to be mounted forward of the center of your boat.  Make sure 
you mount it away from magnetic disturbances (stereo speakers, wiper motors, anchors).   You 
will need to calibrate your compass on the water after installation of system and before you use 
the autopilot. 

11 
						

							
Step 3 (Adjusting Sensor Ball)
Readjust the ball if necessary and fix 
it in position by tightening the 
thumbscrew.  See Fig 9-A. Make
sure that the wires from the Sensor 
Ball are pointing straight down out 
the bottom; otherwise the sensor ball 
will not work properly.  See Fig. 9-B 
Fig. 9-A 
Fig. 9-B Fig. 10-a 
Note: It is important to match 
your ECU wiring configuration 
to the picture.  Just remember 
to always plug into matching 
numbers from the wire to the 
ECU.
Fig. 10-b 
Run the wire back to the E-H unit.  The wire connector from the Sensor Ball is labeled number
4.  It connects to the E-H unit at connector 4, as shown in fig.10-a or 10-b. (this will depend on 
your ECU wiring configuration).When you plug in the connectors, the wires go at about a 45q-
angle left of the numbers on the E-H unit  (fig. 10-a) or at a 90° angle for fig 10-b.  Feel the 
connectors start before pushing it down. 
12

12 
						

							
Installation of the Deckmount and Tach
If the material you wish to mount the Deckmount 
switch in is less than ¼” thick: Drill a hole 15/32 
Diameter perpendicular to the surface.  Unscrew 
the bezel from the switch and leave one washer on 
the neck.  Put the switch button, with washer, 
through the hole from below.  Screw the bezel on 
to the top and your done.   Refer to Fig.11 
If the surface you want to mount the Deckmount on 
is thicker than ¼ inch, Drill a 19/32 hole through 
the surface.  Unscrew the bezel from the top of the 
switch and remove the washers.  Slide the switch 
all the way through the hole from the backside of 
the panel.  Apply some silicone sealer/adhesive to 
the barrel of the switch.  Screw the bezel, with or 
without a washer back onto the switch and slide the 
switch back into the hole.  It may be necessary to 
tape or otherwise hold the switch in place until the 
sealer/adhesive sets.   Alternatively, you can make 
a custom sheet metal bezel/mounting bracket for 
the switch. 
Step One: (Deckmount)
Fig. 11 
Step Two (Tach)
     The Tach is the portion of the cable with a white antenna 
end.  The antenna end needs to be installed into your 
outboard motor. The wire connector from the deck 
mount/Tach switch is labeled number 1.  It connects to the 
E-H unit at connector number 1.  Route the Tach portion of 
the wire from the E-H unit back to the motor.   Remove the 
outboard cover.   Route the cable through the grommets on 
the front of your motor, then route the cable around the 
motor to the spark plug wires.   You will need to lay the 
white or antenna end of the cable along side of one of the 
spark plug wires in your motor.  Keep the antenna end at 
least 1” from either end of spark plug wire.   Do not
stick the end of the wire into the boot of the spark plug 
wire. Use tie-wraps to attach the antenna end of cable to the 
Spark plug wire. (Fig. 11-A)
(After installation of your Autopilot, you will need to verify 
your tach.  Please refer to page 31, paragraph 2 for more 
information). 
Note: Route the cable for the tach on the 
opposite side of the kicker motor that you route 
the throttle actuator wire.
Fig. 11-A 

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 Fig. 12 
Installation of the Handheld/Remote 
Connect the Remote cable to the ECU unit at 
connector number 3.  Strain Relieve the cable.
One place to do this is the bottom right hand side 
of the ECU unit. See Fig. 12.  This will help 
protect the Remote cable from being pulled out 
of the connector on the ECU unit and possibly 
damaging unit.  If you need to drill a hole in the 
boat for the cable be sure to put a grommet in the 
hole to protect cable from the sharp edges. 
Installation of the Cylinder Kit and Throttle Actuator 
 Refer to the manuals supplied with the throttle and steering cylinder kits, and install these parts 
before continuing with the procedures that follow.If you do not use the throttle actuator, it is 
recommended that you coat #2 pico connector with a grease to protect it from corrosion. 
Battery Connection Installation 
Connections
At this point, all electrical connections to the 
Electrohydraulic unit are complete.  Some 
ECU wiring configurations are slightly 
different see fig. 13-a and fig. 
13-b for your variation.   Verify these 
connections as follows: 
Deck mount #1   To  ECU connector #1 
Throttle #2          To  ECU connector #2 
Handheld #3       To  ECU connector #3 
Sensor Ball #4    To  ECU connector #4 
Now hook up the battery connections.  We recommend that you 
connect the battery cable directly to the battery.  Connect the 
ground side first.  Connect the black wire to negative (-) side of 
the battery.  Connect the orange wire to the positive (+) battery 
terminal.  
Note:  Do not be alarmed if connection sparks when connected to 
battery, you are charging a capacitor inside the unit. 
Do not cut out or eliminate the fuse portion on your battery 
cable, it is there to protect your system and may void your 
warranty if removed.
If you unplug the battery cable be sure to replace the tie wrap 
around connectors to prevent them from separating.
Fig.13-a 
Fig.13-b 

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15
Connect and Fill the Hydraulic System 
Before you start……… 
x  The fittings in the electro hydraulic unit (Pump unit) and the Cylinder are barbed hose fittings. 
It is important that you push the hose completely over the barbs.  Use some fluid to lube the inside 
of hose before pushing them on.  It will make the process slightly easier.
x  This process may be a little messy so keep a few rags handy.Safety glasses are also a good idea. 
x  If you haven’t already, loosen the steering tension adjustment on your motor to the minimum
setting. The motor should turn very easily.  (If necessary refer to your outboard motor’s 
owner’s manual).
x  As with all hydraulic systems, it is very important to keep any dirt or debris from entering 
the system.
Step One 
Remove the Left side of the kinked clear shipping tube from
the E-H unit.  Keep the kinked clear tube (with the tie wrap) 
on the Right barbed fitting (It will act as a plug).Fig.A
Step Two 
Run a continuous section of black rubber hose from the Left
E-H fitting, out the back of the boat to the cylinder and back 
into the boat to the pump.Do not cut the hose at this time.
See.Fig. B
                                                                        \
                              Fig. A 
             Fig. B 
15
Fig A 
						

							
16
Step Three
 Arrange the hose at the cylinder end so that none will kink and they 
are hanging free. Put a piece of tape on the right hose at the cylinder \
end to identify it.  You will need to know this when it’s time to 
connect the hose to the cylinder. See Fig.14.
Step Four 
Get into the boat close to the E-H unit.  Bring the Remote Handheld, 
fluid, and some rags.  Remove the screw that locks the E-H unit in 
place so that you can move the unit around.  Remove the tank plug  by 
unscrewing counterclockwise and remove.    Note the tank has two 
fluid level lines on it.  The upper line is the full line and the lower line 
is the low fluid line.  
 Step Five ( Purge Air)
Take the open end of the continuous loop of black hose, 
and insert it into the tank as shown in Fig. 15.  Be sure 
that the other end of black hose is secure on the left 
barbed fitting on the E-H unit.  Also make sure that 
the clear kinked hose is also secure on the right barbed 
fitting. (Use of tie wraps may be necessary)
Turn the pilot on by momentarily pressing and releasing 
the deckmount switch.  When the Stby LED quits 
blinking, press the top button on the remote (Auto/Stby) 
the Auto Led will be lit.  Holding the tube in the tank 
press the Left Straight Arrow.  Refer to fig. 15.   The 
fluid level will go down.  Let the button up and place 
system in STBY when the fluid is low and refill the 
tank. (Do not press the Straight Right Arrow Button, 
you will blow the clear tube off the right side and 
create a hydraulic fluid mess)
 You may need to fill the tank several times.  Keep the 
hose submerged in the tank fluid and keep pumping until bubbles stop 
appearing in the tank.
Turn the system to standby by momentarily pressing the top 
button (AUTO/STBY) on the handheld.  Turn the unit off by 
pushing in the deckmount button and hold until the lights are 
out (about to the count of 5).  Remove the hose from the tank, 
keeping your thumb over hose to prevent air from entering or 
losing fluid.  Insert the tank plug, fitting it securely into the top 
of tank.  Tilt the fitting end of the E-H unit back and remove 
the kinked shipping hose from the E-H.  Now push the rubber 
hose onto the right fitting pushing firmly until fully engaged 
over barbs.  Install the Two (2) Hose clamps over the hose and 
barbed fittings at the manifold and tighten. See Figure 15-a. 
You will need the clear shipping tube again in the next step 
so don’t throw it away yet.
Fig. 14
Fig. 15
Fig. 15-a 
						

							
Step Six (Fill Cylinder)
You will need the motor in the down position and 
the cylinder fittings pointing straight up. 
Disconnect the rod end of the cylinder from its 
mount.  Find the kinked piece of tubing that you 
removed in step one.  Remove the tie wrap and cut 
the tubing in half.  Push one half on each cylinder 
barbed fitting.  Open the fluid bottle.  Insert pieces 
of tubing into the fluid.  They need to go to the 
bottom of the bottle.  Now hold the tubing in the 
bottle with one hand and pull and push the rod in 
and out of the cylinder until you stop seeing air 
bubbles in the hose.  Refer to fig. 16 Fig. 16 
            Fig. 17 
Slide the rod into the cylinder as far as it will go.  Now remove the short clear hose from the cylinder and 
drain the fluid from the tubing into the bottle.  Be sure both cylinder fittings are full to the top.  Point the 
rod end of the cylinder toward the pin that engages it but leave it pushed into the cylinder. 
Step Seven (Correctly connect the hose)
 At the cylinder, kink the black hose (bend it 
over sharply and use a tie wrap to pinch hose 
shut). See Fig. 17.  Cut the hose as shown just 
above the tie wrap and keep a thumb over the 
right side to keep the fluid in the hose.   Keep 
the hose full to the brim and push the right 
hose (hose that has tape) onto the right cylinder 
fitting as shown in Fig.17-A 
Cut the tie wrap on the left hose and insert it on
the left fitting on the cylinder as shown in 
Fig.17-B.Reconnectthecylinderrodend.
            Fig. 17-A                                                   \
                Fig. 17-B 
17

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Step Eight (Check hose fit)
Check to see that the hose is free to move back and forth with motor.  T\
ie wrap as 
necessary to hold hose in place.  See Fig. 18
Step Nine (Hose Clamp)
Place hose clamps over hose and fittings at cylinder end. Fig. 18-a
Step Ten (Top off the system)
Manually turn the motor back and forth several times.  Air bubbles trapp\
ed in the 
tubing may cause the fluid level in the tank to surge when the tiller is moved fast.   
The more the tiller is cycled back and forth, the more air is purged fro\
m lines.  Top 
off the tank with fluid when the surge is reduced.   Replace the tank plug. Remount 
the pump unit following the instructions on page 10, making sure all scr\
ews are 
tight.
Verify Proper Installation
                                                                        \
                
Press the deck mount switch to turn the system on.  Put the unit in AUTO 
mode.  Press and hold the Straight Left Arrow button on the Remote. The 
kicker will steer to the port. Press and hold the Straight Right Arrow 
button on the Remote and the kicker will steer to starboard.  Turn the m\
otor 
several times in each direction to verify that hose connections are tigh\
t and 
that you have no binding of hoses or cables.
 Get in position to see the kicker carburetor and the throttle actuator \
you installed, then press and hold the Up Arrow 
button.  The actuator should open the carburetor throttle.  Press and hold the\
 Down Arrow button.  The actuator should 
run the carburetor to idle.  Pushing and releasing these buttons quickly moves the throttle by small amounts.  Holding 
them down changes the throttle by large amounts.  Move the throttle to m\
id-travel and then press the IDLE/RES button. 
The throttle should go to idle.  Press the button again and the throttle\
 should go back to the mid-travel position. 
 !!!! You will need to calibrate the Compass of your Autopilot, and will need to tune the 
Autopilot to your boat and motor configuration.  Please see page 33, adjusting your Autopilot 
for Heading Hold operations on your Boat.
Check to see that your GPS transmits NMEA 0183 messages $GPRMB (RMB),a\
nd $GPRMC (RMC) before you hook 
your GPS to the autopilot.  These are the messages the autopilot must re\
ceive in order to steer with the GPS. Your GPS 
NMEA output wires will usually be bundled with other conductors in the G\
PS cables.  Look in your GPS manual for 
instructions relating to NMEA output from the GPS to other devices.  The\
 GPS manual should identify two wires that 
are named something like NMEA out (+) and NMEA out (-).   Connect th\
e NMEA out (+) to the red (+) and the NMEA 
out (-) to the white (-) conductors in the stub cable with the blue \
tip at the Sensor ball.   You will need to strip some of 
the jacket from the blue tipped cable in order to get to the red and whi\
te conductors.  22 or 24 gage twisted pair wiring is 
recommended for connecting this circuit. (See page 23 for more informat\
ion on GPS.)  You will need to calibrate your 
compass and Set North in order for GPS functions to work. See pages 23 &\
 35
                                                                        \
                   
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GPS Connections 
						

							
This section of this document provides you with information that will let you take advantage of 
your TR-1 Gold autopilots capabilities.  We have made every effort to minimize the pain in 
getting you up to speed as a user of the TR-1, however, programmable devices such as your TR-
1, are often difficult to learn to use and to program.  We recommend that you do not take your 
fishing tackle with you on your first trip with your new autopilot.  Take a few hours on a nice 
day to get your system setup and familiarize yourself with its operation, then your first fishing 
trip with the unit will really have you smiling.
This manual is laid out in sections that are, as best we can make them, self contained.  We start 
with the features and functions available and fundamentals of how the system works, then how to 
operate the basic functions, and finally how to get into the fine adjustments. 
 Some of you will find that this manual is lacking in depth and clarity, and for this we apologize.                
Please do not hesitate to call us for interpretation and other help you may need.   
Introduction to Operation and Adjustments
System Functions And Features 
The TR-1 is, at its core, a heading hold autopilot.  It steers the kicker to maintain a constant 
magnetic heading.  The autopilot measures magnetic heading with a flux gate compass and 
receives rate of turn information from a vibrating beam rate sensor (gyroscope).  The autopilot 
computer forms a rudder rate command from a combination of the compass, gyro, and engine 
tachometer signals.  This rudder rate command is calculated and sent to the pump controller in 
the electrohydraulic unit electronics 20 times each second.  The pump control electronics 
servos the pumping speed and direction to match the rudder rate command from the autopilot.  
 The autopilot is designed to disconnect from the steering cylinder when it is off or in standby. 
It does this with a bypass valve that shunts fluid from the steering cylinder around the pump 
when the bypass valve is open.
 Beyond the basic heading hold function, the autopilot provides for several other modes of 
automatic and manually controlled steering functions.  These are listed below. 
1.  Rudder Command / Attitude Hold (RCAH).  RCAH is the primary means for changing the 
boats heading manually.   
2.  Remote steer.  Remote steering is used for electrically steering the kicker without feedback 
from the gyro or compass. 
3.  Step turns.  The autopilot will execute predetermined fixed angle turns in this mode. 
4.  Circles.  The autopilot will turn in circles of predetermined duration. 
5.  Zigzags.  The autopilot will steer a zigzag course with predetermined angle and duration. 

19 
						

							
6.  Man Overboard.  The autopilot will execute a turn to the reciprocal course and pass near the maneuver 
initiation point.  
7.  GPS steering. (Some GPS units may not support these features.)
7a. The autopilot will steer to a waypoint or series of waypoints. 
  7b. The autopilot will orbit a waypoint. 
  7c. The autopilot will steer a 3 leaf clover pattern over a waypoint. 
  7d. The autopilot will steer a spiral search pattern around a waypoint. 
  7e. The autopilot will steer to constant course over ground. 
8.  Reverse.  The autopilot will attempt to execute any of the above steering functions while the boat is 
backing.
     The TR-1 system includes an electric throttle mechanism for remote control of the kicker throttle 
valve.   The throttle butterfly valve is actuated by a lead screw and stepper motor.  The stepper advances 
or retracts the lead screw in 1/1000 inch steps as commanded by the remote control pushbuttons.  On 
system power down, the stepper is commanded to take the butterfly valve to its closed throttle position.  
The throttle system has an Idle/Resume feature that provides for single button push reduction of throttle to 
idle and subsequent button push resumption of the initial RPM. 
Operating The System 
Most of the operation of the autopilot is accomplished through the remote control and the deckmount 
switch.  To make things easy to talk about we will name the buttons as shown in the picture of the handheld/ 
remote below. 
Autopilot/Standby      Button 
Straight Right Arrow      Button 
Up Arrow Button 
 Down Arrow Button 
Bent Right Arrow Button 
              Straight Left Arrow 
              Button 
            GPS (Select Load) 
            Button 
            Bent Left Arrow             Button 
        Idle/Resume         Button 
Setup Button 
Almost all of the buttons in the systems have multiple functions, and many functions are accomplished by 
button push sequences or by pushing more than one button at a time.  The steering and throttle modes are not 
all available simultaneously.  The Idle/Resume , Bent Left Arrow, and Bent Right Arrow buttons are 
sometimes referred to as “special function” buttons in the following text. 

20