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Saturday, June 27, 2015

A simple UHF beacon for fox hunt or lost rc model using arduino and 433MHZ rf module

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A simple 433mhz rf module and arduino pro mini as a morse code beacon
In this project a simple 433mhz rf module is used as a uhf beacon for testing purposes. This can be useful in fox hunting (locating hidden transmitter) or for finding lost RC models. An arduino pro mini is used for generating the morse code message, but any avr micro controller can be used.

A simple rf module (with three pins, VCC.GND and ATAD(DATA) is used. It generate an rf signal at 433.9mhz when the ATAD pin is high (so the same pin is connected to pin 13 of the arduino board). A simple firmware will control the pin 13 and hence can send a stored message at frequent intervals.

Wiring is very simple. Connect gnd pin to ground or negative, vcc to 5volt (or higher up to 12v, for better range), and the atad pin to pin 13 of the arduino.

This can be made even simple with an attiny85. Adding a solar charger is another option. If more power is needed, an extra amplifier (uhf ) with a low pass filter can be added. For the antenna i used a piece of wire (17.3cm) but alternatives like a slim jim can be used for better range.

Here is the source code (change the text string to match your need). This will send a morse code message of the text stored. 


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// A simple uhf beacon using 433 mhz rf module
// credits to the author of the morse code generator
// more details on http://blog.riyas.org

struct t_mtab { char c, pat; } ;

struct t_mtab morsetab[] = {
 {'+', 42},   
 {'-', 97},
 {'=', 49},
 {'.', 106},
 {',', 115},
 {'?', 76},
 {'/', 41},
 {'A', 6},
 {'B', 17},
 {'C', 21},
 {'D', 9},
 {'E', 2},
 {'F', 20},
 {'G', 11},
 {'H', 16},
 {'I', 4},
 {'J', 30},
 {'K', 13},
 {'L', 18},
 {'M', 7},
 {'N', 5},
 {'O', 15},
 {'P', 22},
 {'Q', 27},
 {'R', 10},
 {'S', 8},
 {'T', 3},
 {'U', 12},
 {'V', 24},
 {'W', 14},
 {'X', 25},
 {'Y', 29},
 {'Z', 19},
 {'1', 62},
 {'2', 60},
 {'3', 56},
 {'4', 48},
 {'5', 32},
 {'6', 33},
 {'7', 35},
 {'8', 39},
 {'9', 47},
 {'0', 63}
} ;

#define N_MORSE  (sizeof(morsetab)/sizeof(morsetab[0]))
#define SPEED  (13) 
#define txpin    (13)
#define DOTLEN  (1200/SPEED)
#define DASHLEN  (3*(1200/SPEED))


void
dash()
{
  digitalWrite(txpin, HIGH);
  delay(DASHLEN);
  digitalWrite(txpin, LOW);
  delay(DOTLEN);
}

void
dit()
{
  digitalWrite(txpin, HIGH);
  delay(DOTLEN);
  digitalWrite(txpin, LOW);
  delay(DOTLEN);
}


void
send(char c)
{
  int i ;
  if (c == ' ') {
    delay(7*DOTLEN) ;
    return ;
  }
  for (i=0; i<N_MORSE; i++) {
    if (morsetab[i].c == c) {
      unsigned char p = morsetab[i].pat ;

      while (p != 1) {
          if (p & 1)
            dash() ;
          else
            dit() ;
          p = p / 2 ;
      }
      delay(2*DOTLEN) ;
 }
  Serial.print("?") ;
}
}


void
sendmsg(char *str)
{
  while (*str)
    send(*str++) ;
}


void setup() {                
  pinMode(txpin, OUTPUT);     
}

// the loop 
void loop() {
 sendmsg("VVV VVV VVV TESTING TESTING ") ; 
 delay(1500) ;  //delay can be increased to save battery
}

16 comments:

  1. hi, can get the result of these project?

    ReplyDelete
  2. hi,can i get the result of these project?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hello, I get this error when I compile in Arduino:

    C:\Users\USER\Documents\Arduino\UHF_Beacon_433mhz\UHF_Beacon_433mhz.ino: In function 'void loop()':

    C:\Users\USER\Documents\Arduino\UHF_Beacon_433mhz\UHF_Beacon_433mhz.ino:123:40: warning: deprecated conversion from string constant to 'char*' [-Wwrite-strings]

    sendmsg("VVV VVV VVV TESTING TESTING ") ;

    ^

    Please con you solve this problem, thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. use an older version of Arduino IDE
      (one from June 2015 probably)

      Delete
    2. Use the 2015 version of Arduino IDE.
      (this post is from early June 2015)

      Delete
  4. I got the same issue when compiling as Victor... any ideas please??

    ReplyDelete
  5. Is it possible with an attiny13 to ? (Changes in sourcecode?)

    ReplyDelete
  6. The "ATAD" pin is actually the "DATA" pin but, china's QC being what it is, well............

    ReplyDelete
  7. any idea how to fix this so it compiles in arduino ver 1-8-2

    pinMode(txpin, OUTPUT);

    ^

    exit status 1
    two or more data types in declaration of 'setup'

    ReplyDelete
  8. Sample Morse Code
    https://gist.github.com/baojie/4460468

    ReplyDelete
  9. I got this to work, but not sure what I am supposed to hear on my radio end. I get the transmission, but its not a distinguishable dot-dash where it can be decoded. It is just keying up the radio. Any one else successful?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Set the radio in cw on lsb/ssb mode to get a tone. A cheap alternativ to a commercial rx with sideband/cw support is to use an rtl sdr. Best regards

      Delete
  10. anyone else get this to work? I got the code loaded and all, seems to be working on the transmit side, not sure what I am supposed to be hearing on my radio. it seems to just key up the radio, with no distinguishable dot-dash.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Worked great, thx. It's possible to recieve it from almost a mile away with an rtl-sdr and a good directional antenna.

    ReplyDelete
  12. The fact that it simply amazes me for you, because it will take me a lot of time and effort to create such a lighthouse, because it is something little known to me.

    ReplyDelete