Hello Kristoff, Actually I'm fairly comfortable with manufacture and sales of the hardware, have done it several times. Looks like the skills also exist with others in the group, and there are several exciting SDR based radios starting to appear from user gorups and small business.
So it looks like a great time for us all - we have the open software and hardware components coming together at the same time. Right now lets focus in getting the software modules we need to build for PC-based 1st pass HF & VHF systems. No matter who does the manufacturing, the existence of "cool" hardware products will be a powerful force driving the adoption of open DV. At Hamvention I saw many people (myself included!) buying Ham hardware on this basis. The FunCube dongle has sold 6,000 units in 12 months, and there is a solid business around the DV-Dongle (AMBE chip on a USB key). Having said that - I have enough to do right now on the software side !!! Kristoff (and other Europeans on the list) - will you being attending the large German Hamfest in 6 weeks? I am hoping we will have a HF FDMDV GUI application by then. Would be good to have some Codec 2 promotion there. Cheers, David On Mon, 2012-05-21 at 21:35 +0200, Kristoff Bonne wrote: > Hi David, > > > I personaly like to stay away from the "let's build some special box > ourself" idea. > > We have seen in some other projects what happens when hams start > making their own board: which they then have to get into manufactor, > buy cases to add to them, set up websites, handle shipping, etc. > That's not something hams are very good at. Manufactoring companies > can do that much better and -if the design is open hardware- even add > their own changes to make manufactoring better. > > There are now a couple of boards out there that provide quite some > processing-power, are hardware extendable and are open source hardware > and open source software. > I think of -say- the beaglebone (http://beagleboard.org/bone) or the > chipkit (http://www.chipkit.cc/). > The beaglebone is based on an ARM. The chipkit on a PIC32/MIPS. > > Perhaps there are even other boards out there. Why not a Raspi with an > extension board? > > > > > The big advantage of these boards is that they already exist and are > already available in sufficiant large quantities. > > I think it probably makes more sence to only make a "shield" (or > whatever they are called for these devices) to handle interfacing to > the radio or microphone; but limit ourselfs to that. > > > If the shield is licened with a open source hardware licence that do > allow commercial companies to make them; you have best of both world: > on one side, individual hams who want to make it themselfs can do so. > On the other hand, manufactoring companies who are interested in > selling big quantities can also do so and -even- change the design to > better suit their production enviroment. > > We hams should focus on what we do best: develop and experiment. > > > Also, find somebody to make an open source 3D design of a case to be > put on thingiverse (http://www.thingiverse.com/) > Centralised manufactoring by some company who then has to ship it out > via parcel-services that blow million tons of CO2 into the air every > year is so 20th century! :-) > Just grap an open source 3D design from the net and ask anybody who > has a 3D printer to make one for you. (almost any hackerspace has > these things thesedays!!!) > > > So, instead of looking for "what processor to use". I would prefer to > look for "what ready to use and already available board can be used > for this?" > > > > 73 > Kristoff - ON1ARF > > > On 21-05-12 14:17, David Rowe wrote: > > > Hi James, > > > > The need for just such a box has been discussed at the Hamvention, and > > we also dreamed up the microphone form factor. It would need a patch > > cable or jumper system to interface with the various mic/spkr and PTT > > standards. > > > > Inside we would need some sort of 32 bit processor, but perhaps not a > > full Linux machine. > > > > It would make (open source) Digital Voice available on any legacy HF SSB > > or VHF FM radio without a PC, and be completely open and hackable. > > > > Major work between where are today and that is a fixed point port of > > Codec 2. I've got some thoughts on how I can delegate that work more > > effectively, e.g. automated unit tests that will show pass/fail on any > > modified code. > > > > Cheers, > > > > David > > > > On Mon, 2012-05-21 at 08:07 -0400, James Hall wrote: > > > You know, if we use stuff meant for cellphones like > > > very miniaturized ARM processors then it should be possible to make a > > > codec2 mic for HT/mobile radios. Such a mic for an HT would need it's > > > own battery but for many mobile radios could run off of provided > > > power. I'm also, slowly, trying to figure out the Remote Control > > > protocol for older Kenwood TM-xx1 radios so something could be > > > produced that could be more tightly integrated into those radios. > > > Kinda like the newer Kenwood D710 APRS head that can be used to > > > upgrade one of their newer radios (What is it, DM71a?) > > > > > > > > > James > > > N9XLC > > > > > > On Sun, May 20, 2012 at 11:52 PM, Bruce Perens <[email protected]> > > > wrote: > > > On 05/20/2012 08:04 PM, Matthew Pitts wrote: > > > > Bruce, > > > > > > > > > > > Being able to use an existing transceiver to use a new mode > > > is something a lot of hams are willing to do; in fact, I've > > > seen numerous comments on various lists that indicate it's a > > > lot more common than we think. > > > > > > Well, sure. But putting an SSB operator on PSK, WSPR, or > > > Codec2 brings > > > previously-unavailable functionality to the radio. If you want > > > to do > > > that with VHF/UHF hams, give them a way to convert their FM > > > HTs to > > > Codec2 (like our HF modem, over an FM audio channel). That is > > > adding > > > real functionality, even if it's not running our system as > > > well as we > > > potentially can. > > > > > > Thanks > > > > > > Bruce > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > > Live Security Virtual Conference > > > Exclusive live event will cover all the ways today's security > > > and > > > threat landscape has changed and how IT managers can respond. > > > Discussions > > > will include endpoint security, mobile security and the latest > > > in malware > > > threats. > > > http://www.accelacomm.com/jaw/sfrnl04242012/114/50122263/ > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Freetel-codec2 mailing list > > > [email protected] > > > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freetel-codec2 > > > > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > > Live Security Virtual Conference > > > Exclusive live event will cover all the ways today's security and > > > threat landscape has changed and how IT managers can respond. Discussions > > > will include endpoint security, mobile security and the latest in malware > > > threats. http://www.accelacomm.com/jaw/sfrnl04242012/114/50122263/ > > > _______________________________________________ Freetel-codec2 mailing > > > list [email protected] > > > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freetel-codec2 > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > Live Security Virtual Conference > > Exclusive live event will cover all the ways today's security and > > threat landscape has changed and how IT managers can respond. Discussions > > will include endpoint security, mobile security and the latest in malware > > threats. http://www.accelacomm.com/jaw/sfrnl04242012/114/50122263/ > > _______________________________________________ > > Freetel-codec2 mailing list > > [email protected] > > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freetel-codec2 > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > Live Security Virtual Conference > Exclusive live event will cover all the ways today's security and > threat landscape has changed and how IT managers can respond. Discussions > will include endpoint security, mobile security and the latest in malware > threats. http://www.accelacomm.com/jaw/sfrnl04242012/114/50122263/ > _______________________________________________ Freetel-codec2 mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freetel-codec2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Live Security Virtual Conference Exclusive live event will cover all the ways today's security and threat landscape has changed and how IT managers can respond. Discussions will include endpoint security, mobile security and the latest in malware threats. http://www.accelacomm.com/jaw/sfrnl04242012/114/50122263/ _______________________________________________ Freetel-codec2 mailing list [email protected] https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freetel-codec2
