On Jul 27, 2023, at 12:46, Hans Summers <hans.summers@...> wrote:

?

Hi all

Since tomorrow is my 52nd birthday and I don't know if I might get interrupted by kids etc., and after that is the weekend, I wanted to release the firmware as far as I have got so far this week - see to download 1_00_006. Summary:

1. New GPS viewer screen in terminal, some data also available on the LCD?
2. New hardware diagnostics screen in terminal, replaces TX Test screen?
3. Boot up USB (and diagnostics screen) before buck converters are in OK state
4. Bug fix: CW message memories now work
5. Bug fix: Some settings such as USB/LSB did not work until power cycled

Details:

1. New GPS viewer screen in terminal, some data also available on the LCD

This one is lots of fun! Now under the "Hardware tests" menu when you log into the terminal, you'll find a "GPS Viewer". You can plug in a GPS receiver to the QMX, in the same way that you plug it into a QCX-mini. You need a GPS receiver with a 3.5mm jack plug connected. The tip is 1pps and the ring connection is 9600-baud serial data. This is also the default output of either the QLG1, QLG2SE or QLG2 QRP Labs modules, including the current QLG2 which is an option when you order QMX.?

The QLG1 receives only GPS satellites; QLG2/GLG2SE modules receive 2 satellite networks, which by default are GPS (American) and Beidou (Chinese); it is also capable if commanded, of changing to Glonass (Russian) or Galileo (European).?

Now you'll see a screen like the attached example "gps viewer.png" with three panels: top left, some parsed information from the GPS data; bottom left: a list of all the satellites being tracked. Five columns of numbers are: Satellite ID, Elevation angle, Azimuth angle, SNR and the satellite constellation. You see a?+ at the top right if you can use the up arrow to scroll up, and a?+ at the bottom right if you can use the down arrow to scroll down. The example shown here is a QLG2 with its standard active outdoor patch antenna and this is why you see very high SNRs, lots of satellites and both GPS and Beidou. The right-hand panel shows a sky map with all the satellites plotted on it.?

The colour encoding indicates SNR of the satellites used in the fix calculation; Green for 30+ dB, yellow for 20+ dB and blue for < 20dB. White means it is being tracked but isn't used in the GPS module's fix calculation for whatever reason best known only to itself. Additionally on the map you'll see a series of blue dots at 0, 90, 180 and 270-degree axis which are also labelled in blue, and two concentric circles for the horizon and 45-degree elevations, 90-degrees being the center point.?

+?indicates a GPS satellite

x indicates a BDS (Beidou) satellite

o would be for GLONASS satellites

* would be for Galileo satellites

The satellite ID is written to the right of the satellite point for all satellites to the west, and on the left for satellites to the east.?

There's a "PPS" text written in the top right corner of the screen which inverts when the PPS signal is active (high).

The attached example qlg1.png is the GPS viewer when using my QLG1 which is indoors in the lab sitting on top of a stack of test equipment, and under our metal framed roof, you can see the number of satellites and SNR is much lower.?

You can also press R to toggle a "raw" mode which opens a 4th panel, showing ten rows of scrolling raw NMEA data; the map plot panel then resizes into a smaller map in the top right corner. There's an eample "gps viewer enable raw.png" attached.?

The maps are necessarily an approximation of positions because this is an 80 x 24 terminal, not a graphic display.?

Finally there's also a "GPS Viewer" available in a new "Hardrware tests" sub-menu on the LCD/buttons/rotary encoders of the QMX itself, and this contains three screens which you can scroll through by turning the right encoder. They show a general information summary screen much like the "GPS Info" screen on the Ultimate3S if you're familiar with that; a Latitude/Longitude screen, and a screen showing Grid subsquare and Altitude. In the LCD version of the GPS viewer there's a "heartbeat" icon which pulsates in time with the 1pps, when on the general information screen.?

Writing this GPS viewer was a good useful exercise for me because it demonstrates the new improved framework I developed for 1_00_004, which is a unified data-driven menu system and applications between both the terminal interface and LCD/buttons/rotary encoder on the device; so I wrote the GPS viewer such that it can be operated both in the terminal and on the 16x02 LCD of the QMX, the GPS viewer application just presents itself with a different rendering depending on whether the larger 80 x 24 character terminal login is used or the small 1602 LCD screen.?

?

2. New hardware diagnostics screen in terminal, replaces TX Test screen

See attached example "diagnostics.png", this is also in the Hardware tests menu on the terminal login (not 1602 LCD yet). This screen replaces the "Transmitter test" screen we had previously, and includes its functionality.?

On this hardware diagnostics screen you can currently see 7 sections, each titled in inverted text, as explained below; the text colour is green if everything is OK, or inverted red, if there is a problem.?

• "Supply" shows the measured supply voltage. The "OK" range is 6 to 12.5V.?
• "3V3 SMPS": the current operating parameters of the 3.3V buck converter, including the operating frequency - which actually applies to all three buck converters, which are on the same frequency. "Status" is either "SMPS" or "Linear" depending on whether the buck converter or the Linear regulator (78M33) is being used. After the initial 0.25 seconds start-up procedure, it should always be SMPS if everything is OK. You can also see the live measured voltage, the current duty cycle and the maximum duty cycle which the system will allow to be set, for the current measured supply voltage.?
• "5V SMPS": the same information for the 5V buck converter; the status is OK if it is running normally (after the first 0.25 seconds), or "Error" if there is a problem; again you can see the measured voltage, and the current duty cycle and maximum allowed duty cycle (expected performance envelope).
• "BIAS SMPS": similar information for the PIN diode TX forward bias current buck converter; this is only ON when you key the transmitter. In this case the measured (and calculated) current is indicated, and the current duty cycle; the maximum allowed duty cycle is in this case currently always 50% regardless of supply voltage.?
• "Controls": You can test all the controls of the QMX here; the four buttons (including the two on the shafts of the rotary encoders), and the clockwise/anticlockwise operation of the rotary encoders (indicated as >>> and <<< respectively). When you open the hardware diagnostics testing screen the six rows are all red; then as you press each button, and rotate the encoders in both directions, you can get the red to disappear.?
• "Inputs": these are the paddle dit and dah inputs (ignoring the Keyer menu "Keyer swap" setting); again they are red until you tap the dit and dah of the paddle.?
• "Transmitter" has the same functionality as the former "Transmitter test" screen (which is also in the QDX transceiver). Just as before, you use P to press PTT, T to Transmit, and +/- to move the band up/down respectively; now it also shows the configured PIN fwd bias current for the band. When you press P or T, you should see the "BIAS SMPS" section of the screen spring into life and the current measurement should be within a couple of mA of the configured PIN fwd bias setting. Additionally you can now see a "Voltage" which is the measured PA diode voltage, after the RF envelope shaping (amplitude modulation). So on transmit, this should be a little less than the supply voltage measurement.?

As developments such as the power and SWR meter are made, I will also add them to this hardware diagnostics screen. We will be using this hardware diagnostics screen in the lab here as part of our testing of all assembled QMX, so we will make sure all items on the screen test GREEN before it's a "Pass".

3. Boot up USB (and diagnostics screen) before buck converters are in OK state

An important feature of 1_00_006 is that now I start the USB communications subsystem BEFORE waiting for the initialization of the buck converters to complete. The order of some other initializations is also changed. The reason why this could be a helpful feature is that now, if you connect the terminal emulator via USB, and your QMX has not fully booted up correctly, meaning it has not switched over the 3.3V regulator to buck converter power, or it has not managed to boot up the 5V buck converter correctly - you will now automatically see the Diagnostics screen when you log in on a terminal emulator, and this may give useful information about WHAT is wrong.?

4. Bug fix: CW message memories now work

The CW message memories are now working! The same way as in QCX-mini...?

5. Bug fix: Some settings such as USB/LSB did not work until power cycled

The USB/LSB settings didn't take effect when changed in the menu, until the power was cycled; some other settings were also in this same category, and this is now fixed.?

Next steps for me will be:

1. Resolve any bugs or urgent requests you guys come up with
2. Fix the CW/FSK/WSPR beacon functionality
3. Fix the problem with CW keying whenever active display features like clock, S-meter, battery are active (anyone remember, we had problems with this on QCX too!
4. Fix the CAT commands to make the same as QCX and QDX all work properly
5. Then I will write the operating manual

73 Hans G0UPL

<hardware tests.png>

<gps viewer enable raw.png>

<qlg1.png>

<gps viewer.png>

<diagnostics.png>