My Hardware Blog

Introducing the second option for the Universal Radio Controller V2.2, is the K1EL WinKeyer V3.1 personality board. See this in action on this video: https://fb.watch/owPpiV8SZH/ The WinKeyer 3.1 personality board provides a convenient way to connect your PC to an amateur radio transceiver and send Morse both under computer control and by iambic paddle. WinKeyer…

The first option board created to use the expansion port in the URC is a KISS modem and APRS digipeater based upon the VP-Digi Blue Pill module. This module connects to an attached transceiver and the URC seral port to provide true modem capabilities for packet radio. There’s a video of the URC & modem…

V2.2 of the Universal Radio Controller brings some minor tweaks to the V2 design, but importantly opens a road map for future product add-ons. The Version 2 main board in the URC has reached the maximum for the number of ports that could be fitted in the chosen 88mm x 100mm case design, so without…

The Universal Radio Controller is fairly unique in that it can do TX/TX/PTT and programming for a Baofeng (and other two-pin radios) without needing to unplug any wires. The Baofeng radios traditionally lacked any type of Computer Aided Transceiver (CAT) capability, but the Universal Controller can drive the programming capability of the radio at the…

The second version of the Universal Radio Controllers evolves several features of its predecessor and has additional Computer Aided Transceiver (CAT) capabilities. Other than the new CAT feature, the notable changes from the V1 edition are: Jumper Configuration Several functions in the controller are manipulated by internal jumpers. The unit is easily accessible to change…

This week’s HRWB podcast had a great mention for the Universal Radio Controller and in particular its unique OHIS capabilities, USB connected sound card and transceiver PTT controls. George KJ6VU described the URC as “pretty universally useful” You can listen to the entire podcast at https://www.hamradioworkbench.com/podcast – well worth subscribing to. Many thanks to Mark “SmittyHalibut” N6MTS”…

At the heart of the Universal Radio Controller is the STM32F302 cpu running the AIOC open-source firmware. Along with the 32-bit ARM Cortex M4 core are a host of interfaces to manage the radio functions needed such as: The Sound Card, serial port, PTT and CM108 functions are primarily provided by the CPU. The firmware…

I’m a big fan (and Patreon) of the KM6LYW Radio DigiPi Project digipi.org DigiPi contains a comprehensive suite of digital utilities and applications for ham radio. Several of the utilities use the DireWolf AX.25 packet modem/TNC and APRS encoder/decoder. To help users of DigiPi and the URC (and AIOC) I’ve worked though the configuration elements…

This section covers the configuration of the remaining utilities on the DigiPi. I welcome any contributions for pieces I have missed here. When process of configuring these utilities is complete, save the settings with the Save Configs option in the main menu. Configure WSJTX Select the WSJTX FT8 (turn on) in the menu. Choose the…

I’m pretty confident these cables will work with any of the Baofengs/Quansheng etc. that use the dual-jack microphone connector as they would all be wired the same way to use a standard external Mic. Regarding the cables, you need:a 3.5mm stereo (TRS) to 3.5mm stereo (TRS) jack plug wire – these are often off the shelf wires used for…

The Open Headset Interconnect Standard (OHIS) is actively being developed by Mark N6MTS. Information is available at https://ohis.org/ There are so many different standards for microphone, headphone, and PTT that it is improbable that one could take their preferred headset and connect it to any radio without an adapter. In a multi-user environment, such as…

The version (V1) of this multi-port ‘universal’ radio controller is a simple device that sits between your computer and transceiver and provides the following functions: 1) USB-C sound card to convert the receive/transmit audio from the transceiver to USB 2) Full PTT control to allow automatic receive & transmit using either serial port settings (DTR…

The V0.9 of the Universal Radio Controller was an initial proof-of-concept implementation of the AIOC processor into a new chassis and presenting the connections with additional filtering to standard Jack plugs for connection to most transceivers. The V0.9 unit provided: 1) USB-C sound card to convert the receive/transmit audio from the transceiver to USB 2)…

AIOC All In One Cable For Ham Radio transceivers including Baofeng, Quansheng and many other makes of portable HT transceivers ‘Handy Talkies’. I have been building and selling the AIOC for quite a while, you’ll find the kit on my eBay store. This adapter incorporates thee functions: It is an amazing addition to your portable…