Category: News

June 10, 2013

Portable RTL-SDR Running on Raspberry Pi

Over on Reddit user olgierd has posted a video on this thread showing his work on developing a portable software defined radio based on an RTL-SDR R820T, the rtl_fm software and a Raspberry Pi with LCD screen. The software is based on rtl_fm which has the capability to demodulate FM/AM/SSB signals. His video shows him tuning to various signals using a tuning knob.

Note that his setup is capable of playing the audio, but it is not shown in the video as he only had earbuds connected. In the future he hopes to make it more portable by adding a li-ion battery.

Watch this video on YouTube

June 2, 2013

SDR Touch Updated to Version 1.5

Version 1.5 of the popular Android based RTL-SDR software, SDRTouch has been released.

This new version adds presets, which is useful if you intend to use SDR Touch as an in car Android based radio.

The DMCA claims made on the software earlier also seem to have been resolved, meaning that SDR Touch can be obtained from the Google Play market once again.

May 31, 2013

Update: RTL-SDR Running ADS-B on a Quadrocopter now with Augmented Reality Display

Previously we showed a post on how John Wiseman was able to get ADS-B decoding with dump1090 running on his AR.Drone with an RTL-SDR stick so that he could track the locations of other aircraft. He has now gone further and implemented an Augmented Reality style ADS-B aircraft radar display on his AR.Drone. Check out the video he posted showing it in action below.

AR.Drone with air traffic (ADS-B) overlaid on camera feed

Watch this video on YouTube

May 24, 2013

EAS Decoder for RTL-SDR

The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is a system used in the USA and is described by http://transition.fcc.gov/pshs/services/eas/ as follows.

The EAS is a national public warning system that requires broadcasters, cable television systems, wireless cable systems, satellite digital audio radio service (SDARS) providers, and direct broadcast satellite (DBS) providers to provide the communications capability to the President to address the American public during a national emergency. The system also may be used by state and local authorities to deliver important emergency information, such as AMBER alerts and weather information targeted to specific areas.

Reddit user rtlsdr_is_fun is working on software to automatically detect an EAS broadcast from a NOAA Weather Radio stream using an rtl-sdr (or any SDR, or even an internet stream) and then immediately play it and record it. This will allow the EAS alert to be heard up to 2 minutes faster than email/sms alerts, without the need to constantly listen to the NOAA WX Radio.

He stresses that his software is still in the very early alpha stages, but you can read about his project on his Reddit post here, which also contains a download link.

May 23, 2013

RTL1090 Series 2 Beta Released

A new beta version of the RTL1090 ADS-B decoding software for the rtl-sdr has been released. Currently, it seems only the GUI has been improved, but the author plans on soon adding the following improvements

Start with Windows and Resume from hibernate/standby
DO260 A/B and signal strength processing for HTTP server
Improve Mode-S and Mode A/C decoder
Complete autoupdate
Log file selection from config dialog
MLAT counter accuracy
Renovate SISEX design

See the Yahoo Groups release post here for the full build change notes, and download the beta from their website here.

News Source – Radio Antics

May 23, 2013

New Software Defined Radio “Matchstiq” by Epiq Solutions Announced

A new high-end small form factor software defined radio (SDR) transceiver called the Matchstiq has been announced by engineering firm Epiq Solutions. Pricing starts at a costly $4500 USD, as it seems to be aimed more at the professional market. It’s key features are

Single RF transceiver covering 300 MHz to 3.8 GHz
Supports RF channel bandwidths up to 28 MHz
Integrated CPU/FPGA for signal processing applications
Integrated GPS receiver with 1PPS
Run time loadable/executable software applications
Full suite of specialty applications available
SDK available for custom application development uSD provides up to 32 GB of onboard data and application storage
USB interface to host for system access
Size: 2.2” x 4.6” x 0.9” Power: <3 W (typical)
Optional external battery pack

It also has the ability to wirelessly interface with and Android host

With this and the BladeRF and HackRF, 2013 is looking like a good year for SDR.

May 22, 2013

E4000 Gain Mod now Available on Windows

One of the advantages of using Linrad on Linux used to be the ability to use a modified rtlsdr.dll file with improved sensitivity gain settings for the E4000 tuner. This mod added the following settings.

AGC mode.
Compromise. This is the gain settings available in the rtl-sdr library as of October 2012.
Linearity mode. For use without filters in environments with strong signals. Low front end gain and high gain after filters.
Sensitivity mode. For use in rural locations or when filters and preamplifiers are placed between the antenna and the dongle. High front end gain and low gain after the filters.

Here is a Reddit thread discussing the improvements, and showing how to apply them to Linrad.

Now Reddit user rtlsdr_is_fun has ported this mod to Windows, and has written an SDRSharp plugin that enables the modified E4000 gain modes via rtl_tcp. This means you will need to run rtl_tcp first, and then connect to it using the RTLSDR / TCP option in SDRSharp. This mod also enables direct sampling for rtl_tcp.

There is a thread discussing the mod here, and you can download the mod from rtlsdr_is_fun’s webpage.

May 20, 2013

HackRF SDR Giveaway

HackRF is an upcoming open source DARPA funded ~$300 software defined radio that has both transmit and receive capabilities. It has a 100 MHz to 6 GHz range, 20 Msps sample rate, 8-bit resolution, and 500 beta units are about to be given away for free by greatscottgadgets. A good introduction to the HackRF can be found here, and on this wiki here.