Hi,

Interesting project. I am interested to use it with an 8510C.

Please post updates.

Thanks,
Razvan

On 06/05/2024 05:14, bagojfalvibagoj via groups.io wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I made some good progress with the ECal controller replacement. It's
> effectively an 85097A but with opensource software using scikit-rf.
> If you're into python you can check out the code on github:
> OwlvilleWol/VnaCalWizard (github.com)
> <>
>
> I plan to post my hardware implementation too, but I have to work on the
> docs and I'm not overly happy with it anyway.
>
> image.png (1136×852) (ibb.co) <>
> image.png (639×852) (ibb.co) <>
>
> I wanted to be smart and use an Ftdi usb device instead of an arduino to
> avoid having to maintain two sets of code, but I regret it now as the
> solution is not as elegant as I hoped for and the port direction changes
> of the Ftdi chip make EEPROM readouts very slow.
> The program is written so that that has to be done only once though,
> then, if present, standards data are loaded from touchstone files on
> disc. (This could be a way to re-characterize the ECal devices without
> having to write data back to them.)
>
> I can cal my 8720C with it, although the top-level functions are still
> missing. I'll be finishing that and add a few features such as multiple
> ECal units covering the frequency range and pre-characterized adapter
> (gender changer) removal.
> My python is not very good so it's rough around the edges, but I tried
> to separate functional blocks for easy additions/modification/reuse.
> E.g. the ECal class has a separate hardware abstraction layer so the
> Ftdi based interface could be easily replaced with something else, while
> keeping everything above intact.
>
> Let me know if you're interested in replicating and
> testing/using/improving this.
>
>