dalbert02

I started a little post on the history of FPV over at RCG. May you guys that don't frequent that site check it out and offer any corrections or additions or point out any errors. I won't be offended. Thank you. -dave http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1585073

I'd like to send my GPS coordinates from my airplane. I currently use APRS via the audio channel and a TinyTrak but I would like an alternative to get the GPS sentences into my computer/ground station. Thanks, -dave

Anyone ever hear of friendcom? http://www.friendcom.com/En/pro02.htm I could only find one distributor in the US, perhaps in Europe they are more available? https://www.argentdata.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=107 Do you think they may be worth a gamble as a cheaper alternative to Maxstream Xtend? -Dave

Any opinions on gray PVC used here and white PVC and effects on velocity factor? -dave

Finally, sorry for the low quality graphic. I changed to grayscale and made it as large as I could to fit within the 250k file limitation on this board. -dave

Finally, T3 is a narrow band sweep of the modified antenna. If anyone is interested, I can post the original data files and you can download the free Anritsu software so you can play with the position of the markers, plot Smith charts, or create a return loss plot. -dave

T2 is a narrow band sweep of the original.

Attached are the SWR plots of before and after. T1 was a wideband sweep of the original antenna.

Sorry for the long delay. Sometimes there is not much activity here so I forget to check often enough. Regardless, here are some pics of IBCrazy's helix antenna. Both before and after compressing the coils. I used a sharpie to trace the original wire path and to use as a guide while compressing the coil. -dave

One more I am curious about, what are your thoughts on this (if you do not mind)? http://www.trivec.com/landbased_av2055.html Obviously this would be a recieve only antenna and need to be built for your frequency. I like the idea of portability, circular polarization, and light weight. I'd love to build one for 2.5Ghz if I could find some plans on it. Thanks, -dave

Thank you very much for the idea of using an attenuator. I just won a bid on a really expensive Pasternack stepped attenuator on eBay (won for only $60!) but I don't think it is rated up to 2.5Ghz. The fixed attenuators are not that expensive so I will look at those. I know Meca and MiniCircuits mentioned make descent ones. Are there any other recommended brands or brands to stay away from? Thanks, -dave

Nigel, That link is awesome! Thanks! Thomas, Your link is not working. I tried searching the site but did not come up with anything. Perhaps I am over thinking this. I want a wide margin of error (+6db) for an upcoming mission. I need to fly several kilometers over ocean and can not have a video failure. Given: Rx sensitivity -80db for an acceptable picture Rx antenna +10dbi Tx +27 dbm Tx antenna 0db gain Cable loss 3db (1.5 on each side) 2510Mhz 10km Then I'll have 120db of path loss and an RSSI of -86.4dbm. http://www.distributed-wireless.com/calculators/pathloss_RSSI.html So, theoretically, I need 6.4db more just to break even and 12.4db to be within my margin of error. And if for some reason I need to go 20km? Pathloss goes to 126.4db and RSSI will be -92.4dbm, so add another 6db to the 12.4db wanted above = 18.4db. And this needs to be added to the 10db antenna I currenly have and that equals a 28.4db Rx antenna. Right? Maybe I am way off, please share your experiences, they are appreciated. -dave

Thank you very much for your insight. Now on to my next question. Assuming I go with a dish antenna, I would like to calculate the expected gain for a dish of d diameter. From Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parabolic_antenna) I learned that the Gain G of a dish can be expressed as G = ((4 π A) / λ2) eA or G = ((π2d2) / λ2) eA Where G = Gain A = Area λ = wavelength d = diameter eA = is a "dimensionless parameter called the aperture efficiency. The aperture efficiency of typical parabolic antennas is 0.55 to 0.60." So for an example, if I look at a dish from Hyperlink (http://www.l-com.com/item.aspx?id=21730) that claims a gain of 30dbi, I get confused. Perhaps you can point out the error in my very limited math skills. G = 30dbi d = 150cm λ = 12.2449cm 30 = ((π2*1502)/12.2449 2)eA 30 = 1481 * eA eA = 0.02 very far from the .55 to .60 I expected. So where did I go wrong? I would like a 30dbi gain dish but I am unwilling to spend $429. I might be able to make one using another large dish as a mold. Does anyone know the gain of a DirecTV dish? Thank you for the continued enlightenment and education. -dave PS Happy New Year!

Here is a link straight to the tutorials. Complex to Real Tutorials -dave

If I had: a dish that claims 24db of gain a yagi that claims 24db of gain a patch that claims 24db of gain and they are all tuned to the same frequency, would you expect equal range out of each? Is one type of antenna any better than the other for any reason? Thank you, -dave