Portable Rotor
Julie proposed making a portable rotor for sat work. It could be used for a field day, tabling, events, and other times when we’re not in the shack. A stationary version could be made for in the penthouse.
See also Ground station
Rotor Build[edit | edit source]
Early Parts List (Structural)[edit | edit source]
- Hardwood 1"x3"x8'$9
- Steel corner brace $9
- Aluminum Round Rod 1" (Axels) $20
- 1" Hex Nuts $9
- 1" ID Thrust Bearings $9
- Small Sprocket $8
- Large Sprocket $26*2
- 1" ID normal Bearing $11
- Drive Chain $15
- Electronics Box $12
Total: $154
Early parts list (Electrical)[edit | edit source]
- Pi Zero 2w $15
- Hall Effect Sensor $2
- Limit Switches $6
- Drive motor $12
- Motor drivers: TBD
Price total: ~$35
Code[edit | edit source]
The primary coding language is C. HTML will be used for a remote controlled interface. The code will have to be run on an ubuntu/debian based system as it requires access to some specific internal libraries. Currently being coded on VSC (sorry) on a debian 12 build, will be adaptable to Raspberry Pi Zero using Raspberry Pi Os.
Progress[edit | edit source]
- C library sgp4sdp4 implemented.
- Takes in user information and TLE and reads out many values including azimuth and elevation.
- Same library used in gpredict.
- Web interface still in progress, currently able to serve multiple webpages and take input.
- No progress on motor control yet.
Hardware[edit | edit source]
ARDC-Funded Portable setup[edit | edit source]
Removing G5500 rotor from tower, making a tripod for it, finding a large dish and horn feed to mount to it, purchasing a Icom IC-905, and using this as a portable / semi-permanent rig for satcom and microwave work. This is high-cost but easy implementation. Usable bands 2m, 70cm, 1296mhz, 2.4ghz, 5.6ghz, 10ghz.