Unitrunker Kenwood CAT support?

[binome]

I'm trying to set up Unitrunker to talk to HDSDR, so I can eventually trunk-track provoice through to DSD, using a cheap RTL-2832 dongle. HDSDR recently added a kenwood CAT support, but i'd rather not have to make a little program to hook a serial port, translate AOR serial (RFxxxxxx)to kenwood serial (FA00000000000) and dump it back into HDSDR. Is there any way to create a custom radio protocol in Unitrunker or have this format added in?

 

[SCPD]

I'd have to write some code to support it.

However, I do not see any information describing how to send a ""Tune" or "Go To Channel" command to HDSDR.

 

[binome]

---------------------------
About 'CAT to HDSDR'
---------------------------
HDSDR can get controlled over a serial/CAT interface.
HDSDR understands a small subset of Kenwood's CAT protocol:

FA00000000000; // set tune frequency [Hz]
MD1; ... MD5; // change mode [ 1=LSB, 2=USB, 3=CW, 4=FM, 5=AM ]
TX; and RX; // switch RX/TX - only if the active ExtIO supports TX

For controlling HDSDR from another software with CAT support
(f.e. WSJT, Fldigi, MultiPSK, MixW amonst others),
you can use serial port emulator like 'com0com' or 'VSPE'.

For RX/TX switching you can also use 'high level' on CTS or DCD pin.
---------------------------
OK
---------------------------

 

[SCPD]

Does it support a similar mechanism over an IP socket?

 

[binome]

Nope on the socket support. There is a couple of DDE clients supported
HRD, Orbitron, WXtrack, SatPC32, and WISP.

DDE is a bit more of a pain in the *** to implement though but would be slicker than sticking com ports together with com0com or similar software

 

[ki4gyw]

I think the best solution would be come up with a small app with frequency support that uses the rtl and converts it to FM, that can be controlled from unitrunker.

 

[mk262]

If unitrunker could control hdsdr, that would be beyond fantastic, seriously. You'd basically have a $20 digital trunking scanner at that point.

 

[jcims]

I've been playing a bit with using the RTL as a digital trunking scanner.

The thing to keep in mind is that UniTrunker is going to need the audio from the control channel while dsd is going to want the audio from the voice channel. The only windows app that I know of currently that can demodulate more than one channel simultaneously is SpectraVue. GnuRadio does as well, but that's another story.

If you have another radio feeding UniTrunker, then you should be good to go.

To steer HDSDR with UniTrunker, you just need to implement a DDE server that it understands. Ham Radio Deluxe has one, and the author built some demo projects here:

HRD DDE Interface

Basically if you just emulate that approach, and essentially 'serve' the current voice channel frequency, HDSDR will receive that frequency via DDE and tune to it. Of course the issue is that if that tuner is also listening to the control channel, you're going to lose that. UniTrunker *would* still be getting the audio, however, and if you instruct the user to squelch HDSDR correctly, you might be able to look for no volumen and return HDSDR to the control channel.

 

[binome]

Managed to get my dongle in last night. Hacked together something in python to translate the AR - ONE command to the HDSDR CAT interface, then used VAC to pipe audio into DSD. Using my old discriminator tapped Pro-95 as the control channel audio. Works awesome, even with the included antenna on the SDR dongle Worlds cheapest computer controlled trunk tracking pro voice decoding scanner.



In case someone else wants to try it, get com0com, make 2 pairs of com ports(com34/com35,com36/com37) and hook com 34 to Unitrunker and com 37 to HDSDR

import serial
ser = serial.Serial('COM35', 9600, timeout=1)
ser.open
ser2 = serial.Serial('COM36', 9600, timeout=1)
ser2.open
print "ports opened"
while 1:
	freqency = ser.readline()
	print "read" + freqency
	freqency = "FA0" + freqency[2:12] +";"
	if len(freqency) > 13:
		ser2.write(freqency)
		ser2.write(freqency)
		ser2.write(freqency)
	print freqency

 

[SCPD]

Worlds cheapest computer controlled trunk tracking pro voice decoding scanner.

Does that include the price of the laptop?

 

[binome]

Considering the price on ebay for a provoice capable radio, probably.

HARRIS M/A-Com 800 Mhz. EDACS M7100 Mobiles W/ Provoice | eBay

 

[en11gma]

Managed to get my dongle in last night. Hacked together something in python to translate the AR - ONE command to the HDSDR CAT interface, then used VAC to pipe audio into DSD. Using my old discriminator tapped Pro-95 as the control channel audio. Works awesome, even with the included antenna on the SDR dongle Worlds cheapest computer controlled trunk tracking pro voice decoding scanner.



In case someone else wants to try it, get com0com, make 2 pairs of com ports(com34/com35,com36/com37) and hook com 34 to Unitrunker and com 37 to HDSDR

import serial
ser = serial.Serial('COM35', 9600, timeout=1)
ser.open
ser2 = serial.Serial('COM36', 9600, timeout=1)
ser2.open
print "ports opened"
while 1:
	freqency = ser.readline()
	print "read" + freqency
	freqency = "FA0" + freqency[2:12] +";"
	if len(freqency) > 13:
		ser2.write(freqency)
		ser2.write(freqency)
		ser2.write(freqency)
	print freqency

first i just want to say thanks for the info you have provided

here is my system
laptop with intel hd audio (onboard)
windows 7 premium 64bit

i have two ezcap 666 devices
i have latest unitrunker, hdsdr and got everything installed you said
python 2.7 and pyserial 2.6 and saved your script

here is where i am having problems

i first start VAC then start hdsdr then start unitrunker.
when i goto add the recievers could you please be exact in what i need to add (for each dongle) and all the settings
when i run your script it is running and i have hdsdr set to com37 like you said and it is activated but your dos windows only shows info when i change the "park" and hit apply or run in unitrunker
thats the only time i see any info besides the FA0 or whatever it is

anyhow do i need to be running TWO hdsdr`s?
do i need TWO sound cards?

please help i know im close

 

[binome]

My setup uses a dedicated dicriminator tapped radio to feed Unitrunker the control channel audio.


I'm pretty sure you can't run two HDSDR's with two RTL2832 SDRs, as there is no way to select an active dongle.


You might be able to do it with two PC's, or with a virtual machine with USB pass through support piping the dongle into a VM running HDSDR tuned to the control channel, then using VAC to pipe the audio into Unitrunker, and using com port passthrough to get tuning back to the python script. I'm not sure if the hypervisor will feed data to the VM quickly enough, but it is a shot for a single PC, two dongle solution

 

[en11gma]

My setup uses a dedicated dicriminator tapped radio to feed Unitrunker the control channel audio.


I'm pretty sure you can't run two HDSDR's with two RTL2832 SDRs, as there is no way to select an active dongle.


You might be able to do it with two PC's, or with a virtual machine with USB pass through support piping the dongle into a VM running HDSDR tuned to the control channel, then using VAC to pipe the audio into Unitrunker, and using com port passthrough to get tuning back to the python script. I'm not sure if the hypervisor will feed data to the VM quickly enough, but it is a shot for a single PC, two dongle solution

i have TWO windows 7 Pc`s

if it could be done this way i would prob prefer it over using a VM if possible
do you think you could give me some more specific instructions?

im finding it hard to believe no one has made a howto guide on doing real trunking with two rtlsdr as they are so very very cheap

anyhow it sounds like you know what you are talking about so if we can get it done i could make a guide with all the credits going to you and me just being someone who used your info to make the guide

 

[TEKurtz]

I Know this thread is a couple months old. But I just thought that using BorIP to connect to the RTL which supports multiple connections over IP, perhaps with two instances of HDSDR or of SDRSharp one could stay put on the Control Channel while the other instance could follow the voice freq. I'm not familiar enough with SDR yet, but I did just picked up an RTL dongle. So maybe someone else can shed some light on the matter?

 

[SCPD]

If you don't mind purchasing a second RTL, this may work for you.

http://forums.radioreference.com/1821398-post19.html

Note: It's actually about SDR# not HDSDR.

 

[jcims]

Here's a little plugin I did a while back to work with UniTrunker's debug API. The instructions aren't great, but they will get you into the vicinity. It works best with two dongles, but you can get *something* with one.

https://public-xrp.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/sdrsharptrunk.htm

I'm working on a new iteration that works with the latest releases of SDRSharp's plugin interface. Should have it done in a week or two.

Edit: Oops, just read the whole thread that Unitrunker linked to above, mentions the same thing.

 

[TEKurtz]

I don't think those suggestions implement BorIp. Correct me if I'm wrong please, but I think BorIp supports multiple connections on the same tuner. I've only tried one connection myself from a remote machine to the host machine with the dongle and running BorIp.

 

[SCPD]

BorIP - SpenchWiki

Server limitations:
Only serves one client at a time. If an existing connection exists, other connections are disconnected (see Protocol for automatic BUSY response in this case).
Only connects to one device at a time.
Only sends baseband data to one UDP destination (no multiple destinations/broadcast/multicast... yet).

 

[TEKurtz]

Thanks...I wonder where I read that it was possible