botenredwolf
Member
Yeah, I know there's tons of tools out there for it, Unitrunker's my favorite, as it's a phenomenal piece of software. However, it doesn't run on Linux, even with WINE I haven't been able to get it going yet, so it dawned on me as I come towards the end of my final semester in an Electronics Technology/Engineering degree program, that I could see if home-brew SDR trunking that can run on a small embedded system (like the Atlas SoC board, Raspberry Pi, etc.) would count. Well, the instructor got excited about that. The first non-IoT project presented in a while.
However, I slacked a bit and presented the idea a little late, so I'm hoping I can seek some help from people with inside knowledge of some of these systems. Got about a month, so this isn't a "do my work for me" thread, but I can skip the hardware side of things and focus on software, so that makes things easier.
So, the run-down:
Needs to fit on a small embedded system. Most of the ones used have ARM CPUs, run on Linux. My embedded system also happens to have a 26k LE FPGA on the SoC, but doubt I'll have time to implement anything on that side.
I've got the now-famous "RTL-SDR" receiver(s) to be controlled by the software that is the focus of this project. Due to the technical knowledge required to put this system together, even a tool like GNURadio and the GRC front end don't necessarily make it "too easy" for his requirements.
I've been playing around a little with GRC and have learned enough about how it operates as a front-end, but not necessarily what I'd need to know to acquire a data stream, parse/process it into something usable, and then feed that out in such a way to train another tuner onto a frequency, acquire a data stream, and feed it into a decoder (whether dsd, dsd+, etc.) if it's a digital voice channel. That's where I could use the help.
The radio networks I have available near me to use include the following:
The one I monitor the most using both a Uniden BC898T for being lazy and Unitrunker/RTL-SDR for when I really wanna know what's going on, the City's common SmartNet system. All city-funded services use this system; PD, FD, EMS, Metro Transit, Public Works, Parks, Streets Division, etc.
Madison Area Public Safety Trunking System, Madison, Wisconsin - Scanner Frequencies
This one is what I'm gravitating to by habit, but it seems documentation on the SmartNet systems is nearly non-existent.
Another one in the area that's brand new, and of most interest to me, but I know nothing about how it operates since I'm used to the Motorola network and this one is P25 Phase II. It's our county's new common system for county-wide and outlying town dispatches for sheriff, outlier PD and FD, etc.
DaneCom Trunking System, Madison, Wisconsin - Scanner Frequencies
I believe this one may be more productive since it's a newer system and likely more relevant, as well as being busy enough to get regular traffic on. I do have signal strength issues, but there is another P25 network nearby I could use as well, although much quieter, and of the Phase I variety.
Wisconsin Interoperable System for Communications (WISCOM) Trunking System, Statewide, Wisconsin - Scanner Frequencies
I know this first post is a bit of a mess, but my thoughts will likely narrow down a bit once the discussion starts moving...
Anyone have any thoughts, ideas, productive places to start looking, or other random tips or ideas? Thanks in advance.
However, I slacked a bit and presented the idea a little late, so I'm hoping I can seek some help from people with inside knowledge of some of these systems. Got about a month, so this isn't a "do my work for me" thread, but I can skip the hardware side of things and focus on software, so that makes things easier.
So, the run-down:
Needs to fit on a small embedded system. Most of the ones used have ARM CPUs, run on Linux. My embedded system also happens to have a 26k LE FPGA on the SoC, but doubt I'll have time to implement anything on that side.
I've got the now-famous "RTL-SDR" receiver(s) to be controlled by the software that is the focus of this project. Due to the technical knowledge required to put this system together, even a tool like GNURadio and the GRC front end don't necessarily make it "too easy" for his requirements.
I've been playing around a little with GRC and have learned enough about how it operates as a front-end, but not necessarily what I'd need to know to acquire a data stream, parse/process it into something usable, and then feed that out in such a way to train another tuner onto a frequency, acquire a data stream, and feed it into a decoder (whether dsd, dsd+, etc.) if it's a digital voice channel. That's where I could use the help.
The radio networks I have available near me to use include the following:
The one I monitor the most using both a Uniden BC898T for being lazy and Unitrunker/RTL-SDR for when I really wanna know what's going on, the City's common SmartNet system. All city-funded services use this system; PD, FD, EMS, Metro Transit, Public Works, Parks, Streets Division, etc.
Madison Area Public Safety Trunking System, Madison, Wisconsin - Scanner Frequencies
This one is what I'm gravitating to by habit, but it seems documentation on the SmartNet systems is nearly non-existent.
Another one in the area that's brand new, and of most interest to me, but I know nothing about how it operates since I'm used to the Motorola network and this one is P25 Phase II. It's our county's new common system for county-wide and outlying town dispatches for sheriff, outlier PD and FD, etc.
DaneCom Trunking System, Madison, Wisconsin - Scanner Frequencies
I believe this one may be more productive since it's a newer system and likely more relevant, as well as being busy enough to get regular traffic on. I do have signal strength issues, but there is another P25 network nearby I could use as well, although much quieter, and of the Phase I variety.
Wisconsin Interoperable System for Communications (WISCOM) Trunking System, Statewide, Wisconsin - Scanner Frequencies
I know this first post is a bit of a mess, but my thoughts will likely narrow down a bit once the discussion starts moving...
Anyone have any thoughts, ideas, productive places to start looking, or other random tips or ideas? Thanks in advance.