My Portable Ham Radio Setup
By: Karl-Heinz Krauchik
I am a big fan of outdoor radios, Raspberry Pi computers, and the recent ICOM 705. I have always wanted the perfect go-box to be able to send and receive quickly anywhere. “Grab and go” is my motto. Especially in digital modes, which I really enjoy.
My QRP portable antenna,the AlexLoop for HF and the LogPeriodic antenna for VHF/UHF, I use with aCullmann ALPHA 2500 tripod.
Soon I had the idea of mounting my radio and Raspberry PI4 on top. The solution is self-bent, 1.5mm thick aluminum plates, fixed with screws to the handle of the tripod, and tightened with cable ties on the side.
At first, I used the iPad Pro as a keyboard and display as usual. The iPad is the WLAN hotspot that the Raspberry Pi automatically dials into. So I can easily control the Raspberry Pi via the VNC client on the iPad.
But somehow it didn’t feel right. The second computer was “just” a substitute for keyboard and mouse? So I went back to where I started years ago and installed an additional monitor.
This is a fairly robust, but simple 12V, 10.1 inch HDMI monitor with a resolution of 1280×800 pixels. The monitor actually has a touch feature, but the driver currently doesn’t work properly with the PI4. But that doesn’t really matter because I always carry a foldable Bluetooth keyboard with a touchpad and a small Bluetooth mouse. It is not advisable to use a monitor smaller than 10 inches, otherwise some programs may not display all functions on the screen. A larger monitor requires more space. A higher resolution needs good glasses, and I’m not getting any younger, so this monitor is just right for me.
For power, I use a 12V portable power bank with a solar panel. Currently, I am considering getting another portable power source to add to it. The power for the Raspberry Pi is achieved with a buck converter, which I set to 5.1V in the black box on the left side of the Raspberry Pi.
For all my go-boxes, I use aluminum plates as the carrier material and support. This is very stable, and the advantage is that all devices connected to it are grounded and can dissipate heat to the sheet for cooling. I also specifically use the Raspberry Pi in the ALU housing. All of this is combined with the most important connection cables (HDMI, USB, etc.) with ferrite cables, making the setup very safe from high-frequency radiation and related interference. Whenever possible, I add another cable to the ground line. This way, you can also achieve higher transmission power without any problems.
The antennas, power supplies, cables, etc. can be well packed in a backpack, and the tripod carries well, keeping the equipment secure. For long trips, it is easy and quick to unscrew the IC-705 and monitor and pack them separately. As weather protection, I will still make a protective cover.
The tripod is already very stable. If you want to further increase stability, just hang a weight, like your backpack, on the bottom hook of the tripod. This is sufficient even in a light breeze.
And, in the shed at home, the tripod and equipment, placed on the table, make a nice image. The Raspberry Pi and IC-705 fit perfectly together. I have already described how this works in other articles on my homepage. Additionally, how to install the most important amateur radio programs on the Raspberry PI.
After testing my Go-Box for a while (in my cabin and outdoors)…
I realized thatit would be a shame to use the powerful Raspberry PI 4 for just one task or mode of operation. So the idea was obvious to add more hardware to the tripod.
The basic idea is to be QRV in FT-8 on shortwave while enabling APRS operation. For this,I installed a YAESU FT-70DE and connected it to the Mobilinkd tn3 to the Raspi. Using Xastir, parallel APRS operation is now possible, and I can also be QRV on VHF/UHF with C4FM or FM while doing FT8. There is an old SDRplay RSP1 in the patch box that I mounted behind the monitor. SoI carry a wideband receiver from 10kHz to 2GHz. This allows for more experiments and modes of operation such as weather satellite reception, virtual radar ADS-B reception, QOS-100 reception with converters, etc.
To be able to use a wireless microphone with my IC-705, I bought aSurecom BT Microphone 2AI02-H3-B. Its quality is not as good as the original microphone, but it is perfectly adequate. The PTT works via Bluetooth without any issues. This avoids the risk of accidentally toppling the microphone cable on the stand. I now only use a wireless keyboard with a USB dongle and prefer to connect all other devices directly with USB cables. My experience is that Bluetooth connections with the Raspi do not always work well. The power is supplied by a lightweight LiFePO battery with 12V 15A. In QRP mode, this is sufficient for a whole day of radio operation. As a backup, I also have a power bank with a solar panel. The 5.1V power for the Raspberry is made with a buck converter in the black box next to the Raspberry.
Thus, my complete QRP portable setup 2021 is installed on the tripod. The antennas, cables, batteries, accessories, etc., some food, drinks, and a blanket can comfortably fit into a normal-sized backpack. To stabilize the tripod, the backpack simply hangs underneath. The equipment is securely mounted on the tripod, making it easy to carry. However, it can also be quickly and easily removed and transported, for example, packed in the backpack.
Weather protection is still on my to-do list.
By the way, because I use an ALU case for the Raspberry, installing all the ALU sheets with unified grounding and putting ferrite cores on all connection cables, I have never encountered heat or high-frequency radiation problems.
Have fun, stay healthy, 73 Karl-Heinz
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After receiving an invitation from the editor of Hunan Science and Technology Publishing House, I quickly received the new book sent by him: Mark Labey’s Biography of Scientists Series:“Guglielmo Marconi: The Man Who Connected the World”. During the May Day holiday, I read at home, piecing together the complete life puzzle of my childhood idol, the father of radio, Marconi: a person who was obsessed with studying radio his entire life, the first person to put the radio spectrum into practical commercial use, the person who successfully developed the first global communication system, and the person who was so passionate about radio that he neglected other aspects of life, expanding mobile, personal, and long-distance communication to the ends of the earth. Gifted, but only passionate about science, even without formal education or a formal diploma, he was able to outshine Curie and other greats at the age of 27, receiving a nomination for the first Nobel Prize in Physics and winning it eight years later. At the turn of the 20th century, his name was virtually synonymous with radio, we need to understand him in that era.
The Marconi I encountered before was fragmented, mostly cases of his successful transatlantic wireless communication experiments with his assistants in 1897 and later commercial applications, which were technically strong but not very readable. Searching the internet, there is limited content about Marconi, and a few articles are not enough to understand the life of this radio genius. This book presents a panoramic view of the complex personality of Marconi under the halo of fame, heroicand despicable legendary life, as the author of the book said, Marconi’s greatest invention is himself.
“Guglielmo Marconi: The Man Who Connected the World”, [Canada] Mark Labey / Author, Cai Liqin, Yin Qian / Translators, Hunan Science and Technology Publishing House, December 2021 edition
This book, “Guglielmo Marconi: The Man Who Connected the World”, reviews his legendary life while adding unpublished files and field investigation materials from four countries and multiple languages. The author wants to tell us that Marconi’s life and achievements do not only belong to Italy; his imagination and inventions transcend time, and today’s world and we still live in his creations.
