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Remote Control & Operating for Amateur Radio

Remote Control & Operating for Amateur Radio. Steve Maskrey – G6FDK & M3DVA (Deva / Chester!). Objective. To show how, with your existing mainly commercial radio equipment, it can be remotely controlled - thus adding another interesting dimension and further enjoyment of our hobby

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Remote Control & Operating for Amateur Radio

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  1. Remote Control & Operating for Amateur Radio Steve Maskrey – G6FDK & M3DVA (Deva / Chester!)

  2. Objective • To show how, with your existing mainly commercial radio equipment, it can be remotely controlled - thus adding another interesting dimension and further enjoyment of our hobby • To learn a little about Internet Protocol networking

  3. Introduction • Early radio remote control • Boot-mounted Pye Cambridge & Westminster • 2-wire controlled remote base stations • Broadcast Monitoring & Control Telemetry • Unmanned transmitters, microwave & satellite downlinks, RBRs • All equipment parameters, video & audio, CCTV & site access • Lights-out data centres • Full server & network systems remote control • Internet & Computing Ubiquity • Music, TV, social apps, smart-phones & tablets, energy M&C etc. The Internet is becoming everywhere • Amateur radio adoption of the Internet • EchoLink, remote repeater & node-to-node communication

  4. The Case for (Internet) Remote Control • Operating anywhere in your home • Avoiding the cold garden shack • Taking access to your favourite (but very heavy & expensive!) radio on holiday • Domestic planning restrictions • Making use of your quiet (QRN / QRM) caravan or holiday home (I wish!) radio location all year around • Making use of a ‘supervised’ ham friend’s radio & antenna system* • Thanks to the Internet we now have the opportunity to operate our station from almost anywhere we desire.

  5. So how does it work? • Requirements • ‘Host’ or Station • Radio transceiver with computer interface • Desktop or laptop PC with RS232 / V24 serial interface • Host software • Internet connection – assumes ADSL/2/2+, VDSL (BT Infinity) or cable • ‘Client’ Station • A PC or even a smart-phone or tablet • Mic & Headphones • Internet connection

  6. Ofcom Licence Conditions • 10 Unattended and remote control operation • 10(1) The Licensee may conduct Unattended Operation of Radio Equipment provided that any such operation is consistent with the terms of this Licence. • Must have a Full licence which can mean reciprocal, temporary reciprocal or club licenses • Foundation & Intermediate licensees can operate remotely controlled stations using 500mW amateur band radio links • I’m not sure about the validity of remote contacts made for contests etc.

  7. Internet Connectivity • Assumption that you have a broadband Internet connection at the ‘host’ station • We need a fixed public IP address for our Internet router • Most of us have a public IP address that changes periodically when our connection is reset by either the ISP or ourselves when we power off • Solution: www.dyndns.com – free to register & use • So your home Internet router address becomes: ‘yourname’.dyndns.org:[port] • Your router updates dyndns each time you have a new public IP address

  8. Router Setup • Remote Desktop port: 3389 • Ham Radio Deluxe port: 7805 • www.portforward.com for help with your router

  9. PC Requirements • Minimum 1Gb RAM, 10Gb HDD & RS232 / V24 serial port or possibly a quality USB serial com port adapter • Recommend Windows XP, 7 or 8 Pro • You must set a password for RDP to work

  10. Setup a password Fix your LAN IP; e.g. 192.168.1.120 Open up port 7805 for Ham Radio Deluxe remote control PC Setup

  11. Host Control Software • Ham Radio Deluxe – developed by Peter PH1PH and Simon HB9DRV in 2003 then sold to Rick W4PC, Randy KØCBH, and Mike WA9PIE in 2011 • www.hrdsoftwarellc.com • v6.0 recently released $99.95 • v5.24 build 38 free • Other software products available • CAT cables from here: www.xggcomms.com/

  12. And the Tx / Rx audio? • PC Sound card • Skype! • Free and reliable • Setup Skype host account to auto-answer from your contact list – which should be just you & possibly ham friends • PTT transmit keying

  13. Recap • Broadband Internet connectivity • Host PC / laptop with minimum Win XP/7/8 Pro, 1GHz, 1Gb RAM, serial port(s), password, fixed LAN IP & open Windows firewall port 7805 • Client PC / laptop • Ham Radio Deluxe v5.24, v6.x • Skype; set for auto answer client at host • Register & setup dynamic DNS • Router Port Forward ports HRD 7805 & RDP 3389 • Open port 7805 in Windows firewall

  14. Other Solutions • RemoteRig for remote control & audio www.remoterig.com/wp/ • Downside is you need to take the proprietary unit with you • TRX-Manager software solution similar in concept to Ham Radio Deluxe • Glentek www.glentekcorp.com

  15. Further Reading & Links • Remote Operating for Amateur Radio • Ham Radio, the Internet and Remote Station Control • Steve Ford, WB8IMY • Many remote project demos & ‘instructionals’ on YouTube as well as many example setups & photos

  16. My other technology interests • Computer networking for home & office • Home & office real-time energy monitoring, management reporting & control; LED lighting • IP CCTV for home and office security • Raspberry Pi & Arduino computing • Multi-media including Internet radio

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