iq_tool: A Command Line Tool for Resampling, Filtering, Shifting and Correcting IQ Data Streams

Thank you to Eric Inloes for submitting to the blog his new tool called "iq_tool". This is a tool designed to "provide an easy, fast, and lightweight command-line utility for converting I/Q data from files or SDRs to a specific sample rate and format, and then either piping it to other programs or writing it to a file". Or in other words have a "neutral ffmpeg like converter tool but for IQ data".

Many SDR software tools are written for specific SDR hardware, such as RTL-SDRs, and may only accept a specific sample rate, type, or bit depth, meaning other SDRs cannot use these tools. The goal of iq_tool is to easily allow the IQ data stream from any SDR to be converted into a compatible format. 

Eric gives some examples. For example, if you wanted to use rtl_433 with an Airspy you could run the command:

iq_tool --input airspy  --airspy-gain-mode linearity --airspy-gain-value 15 --output stdout  --sdr-rf-freq 433.92e6 --output-sample-rate 250e3 --output-sample-format cu8 --output-agc | rtl_433 -r -

Similarly, for an SDRplay, you could run:

iq_tool --input sdrplay   --sdrplay-lna-state 15 --sdrplay-antenna b --sdrplay-if-gain -50 --output stdout  --sdr-rf-freq 433.92e6 --output-sample-rate 250e3 --output-sample-format cu8 --output-agc | rtl_433 -r -

We note that Eric released this tool with the caveat that it is experimental and was written with heavy AI assistance.