Hi Steve! I'm surprised and honored to have my geeky ramblings show up here! I've made more hardware / software progress and now I suppose I'm going to have to update the blog...
Some nice changes since I wrote much of that:
* There are now three (?) different FEC modes for APRS. I don't think the SNR (Signal to Noise Ratio) performance is nearly as good as with (say) WSPR, but still, HF APRS is now more attractive for my type of use. I have included 30-meter APRS in my software. Not the FEC yet, but I will get around to that.
* FT8 now has chat and flexible data capability. I don't think it can forward this data out of the FT8 network, but still, this is promising.
* WSPR telemetry is becoming more standardized, through the work of QRP Labs and others.
So now I have basic WSPR, APRS, JS8, and Morse beacon modes running on a controller/GPS/synth board, and a connected 1W Class-E "power" amplifier. The other modes and extensions are coming. All these modes will transmit on the 30-meter band. I have solar and battery breadboarded and it all fits into and on top of a short length of 2" PCV pipe. I need to work on the antenna, which will be a huge compromise, but that's part of the fun (and at least I have a great groundplane with the seawater.) In the next week or two I will put some of this on the wb6cxc.com blog.
Paul - Your project is a fascinating one and I look forward to updates. I think the "ecosystem" you're developing of the transmitter, protocols, and receivers is a great and useful project!
Steve - It started out with Steve Roberts and I talking about autonomous sailboats (and there are some great commercial and hobby ones out there!) I've wanted to make one since I was a kid (over 50 years ago). Steve and I figured that a buoy would be a fun way to start out. I love/live to solve problems, and I discovered a whole bunch of interesting ones as I began to look into the buoy project. This is one reason for my slow progress -- there are so many great rabbit holes to explore!
You have motivated me to keep moving forward, with more blog updates and possibly a new Ham Club presentation. Thanks!
Paul - As of Zero Retries 0063, there were 426 subscribers that will potentially read about your project (not every subscriber reads every issue). I hope that's additional motivation. Yeah, I TOTALLY get rabbit holes! I'm working in my shop this weekend to clean up a bunch of distractions for more reliable progress on my projects.
Hi Steve! I'm surprised and honored to have my geeky ramblings show up here! I've made more hardware / software progress and now I suppose I'm going to have to update the blog...
Some nice changes since I wrote much of that:
* There are now three (?) different FEC modes for APRS. I don't think the SNR (Signal to Noise Ratio) performance is nearly as good as with (say) WSPR, but still, HF APRS is now more attractive for my type of use. I have included 30-meter APRS in my software. Not the FEC yet, but I will get around to that.
* FT8 now has chat and flexible data capability. I don't think it can forward this data out of the FT8 network, but still, this is promising.
* WSPR telemetry is becoming more standardized, through the work of QRP Labs and others.
So now I have basic WSPR, APRS, JS8, and Morse beacon modes running on a controller/GPS/synth board, and a connected 1W Class-E "power" amplifier. The other modes and extensions are coming. All these modes will transmit on the 30-meter band. I have solar and battery breadboarded and it all fits into and on top of a short length of 2" PCV pipe. I need to work on the antenna, which will be a huge compromise, but that's part of the fun (and at least I have a great groundplane with the seawater.) In the next week or two I will put some of this on the wb6cxc.com blog.
Paul - Your project is a fascinating one and I look forward to updates. I think the "ecosystem" you're developing of the transmitter, protocols, and receivers is a great and useful project!
Steve - It started out with Steve Roberts and I talking about autonomous sailboats (and there are some great commercial and hobby ones out there!) I've wanted to make one since I was a kid (over 50 years ago). Steve and I figured that a buoy would be a fun way to start out. I love/live to solve problems, and I discovered a whole bunch of interesting ones as I began to look into the buoy project. This is one reason for my slow progress -- there are so many great rabbit holes to explore!
You have motivated me to keep moving forward, with more blog updates and possibly a new Ham Club presentation. Thanks!
Paul - As of Zero Retries 0063, there were 426 subscribers that will potentially read about your project (not every subscriber reads every issue). I hope that's additional motivation. Yeah, I TOTALLY get rabbit holes! I'm working in my shop this weekend to clean up a bunch of distractions for more reliable progress on my projects.