I'm thinking about some kind of hardware/software combination kind of like this company's products: https://www.hobbypcb.com/
I have two of their HF and VHF/UHF radios. All frequency control is done via usb and an arduino nano, which I'm sure can be adapted to a phone app. There are a lot of plans for simple SSB transceivers that could probably be combined with that.
I like SDRs too, but then you probably need at least a laptop to get enough computing power to do a good job.
I'm glad you're thinking about this too.
-Stephen, N8URE
Yes! This is right in line with what I was thinking. That VHF/UHF board looks like the perfect base design....except that specific product appears to be mainly for packet operations (full disclosure, I just skimmed the page, they do mention single channel voice, my guess is NBFM).
But yes something like that! But add in the open source/open hw angle (for kit enthusiasts) and SSB capabilities. The Arduino control feature sounds like the perfect opportunity for a Bluetooth interface to a phone for the Doppler control. I have visions of a cheap 'add-on' board with QLED or LCDs and rotary encoders as well for manual control if desired if doing our own version of this.
I'm even seeing key words that are resonating with me (hihi) like Qorvo PAs/LNAs (also the PGA-103 from miniciruits for LNA), exactly to the type of devices I would look at if starting from scratch. Plethora of devices on the market for this sort of thing.
Good stuff.
-Zach, KJ4QLP
On 05/08/20 13:39, Stephen DeVience via AMSAT-BB wrote:
I like SDRs too, but then you probably need at least a laptop to get enough computing power to do a good job.
This is a bit of a misconception. Single-board computers (SBCs) have now become ridiculously fast:
"The Raspberry Pi 2 Model B is approximately equivalent to an Athlon Thunderbird running at 1.1GHz; again, it has the much higher-quality graphics, which come from using the same GPU as previous models. The Raspberry Pi 3 Model B is around twice as fast as the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B, depending on the benchmarks chosen."
(from https://www.raspberrypi.org/documentation/faqs/#pi-performance)
The Pi 4 is super fast, but also needs a heatsink...
A display can be had here:
https://www.sparkfun.com/products/14776
Here's a demo of someone putting it all together:
https://gqrx.dk/blog/pi-sdr-raspberry-pi-3-7-touchscreen-rtl-sdr-gqrx
Here's where we need a volunteer to put this onto a SD card for easy use by those not familiar with Linux, etc.
My plate is full, but I'd be glad to test it out and give feedback.
--- Zach N0ZGO
(P.S.: ".. only thorough the sorrows of men .." -- some really heavy stuff right there.)
Zach,
Not sure what you think needs doing, there's already a pisdr image available setup for most common SDRs on the market and most of the common software tools see https://pisdr.luigifreitas.me
Think only improvements the image needs perhaps is the Fox decoder added but its pretty much ready to use.
Peter, 2M0SQL
On Fri, 8 May 2020 at 19:58, Zach Metzinger via AMSAT-BB [email protected] wrote:
On 05/08/20 13:39, Stephen DeVience via AMSAT-BB wrote:
I like SDRs too, but then you probably need at least a laptop to get enough computing power to do a good job.
This is a bit of a misconception. Single-board computers (SBCs) have now become ridiculously fast:
"The Raspberry Pi 2 Model B is approximately equivalent to an Athlon Thunderbird running at 1.1GHz; again, it has the much higher-quality graphics, which come from using the same GPU as previous models. The Raspberry Pi 3 Model B is around twice as fast as the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B, depending on the benchmarks chosen."
(from https://www.raspberrypi.org/documentation/faqs/#pi-performance)
The Pi 4 is super fast, but also needs a heatsink...
A display can be had here:
https://www.sparkfun.com/products/14776
Here's a demo of someone putting it all together:
https://gqrx.dk/blog/pi-sdr-raspberry-pi-3-7-touchscreen-rtl-sdr-gqrx
Here's where we need a volunteer to put this onto a SD card for easy use by those not familiar with Linux, etc.
My plate is full, but I'd be glad to test it out and give feedback.
--- Zach N0ZGO
(P.S.: ".. only thorough the sorrows of men .." -- some really heavy stuff right there.) _______________________________________________ Sent via [email protected]. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
On 05/08/20 14:11, Peter Goodhall (2M0SQL) wrote:
Not sure what you think needs doing, there's already a pisdr image available setup for most common SDRs on the market and most of the common software tools see https://pisdr.luigifreitas.me
Think only improvements the image needs perhaps is the Fox decoder added but its pretty much ready to use.
Peter,
I didn't know about this project, but that's great. After a quick perusal of the web pages, here are a few thoughts:
- This isn't a "out of the box" experience setup. The Usage section of Getting Started talks about SSH or VNC access to log. This begs the question: What if someone had a TFT daughterboard with touchscreen (or keyboard) and wanted to have it boot right into the SDR, ready to go?
- The FCDP+ is not supported, but probably could be. This is a dongle that many in our hobby might already possess.
Now, how would a prospective new AMSAT member know about this path? Probably not via this -bb, and the AMSAT website makes no mention of this path on any of these pages:
https://www.amsat.org/introduction-to-working-amateur-satellites/
https://www.amsat.org/station-and-operating-hints/
The main amsat.org page doesn't have anything like "Getting Started" or "How Do I Work An Amateur Satellite?", and that's where something like this could go.
I really like AMSAT-UK's website (https://amsat-uk.edu/) with the tab "Beginners" and all sorts of useful information under it about how to get started. However, they also do not mention the SDR path under either "How to work <mode> satellites" page.
I'll stop there, because now I'm armchair quarterbacking. Please, if anyone can volunteer to get something like this popularized, volunteer for AMSAT and do it! We need more active operators, regardless of the method that they utilize to get on the bird.
--- Zach N0ZGO
participants (4)
-
Leffke, Zachary -
Peter Goodhall (2M0SQL) -
Stephen DeVience -
Zach Metzinger