Kenwood TH-D7A-G User Guide

INSTRUCTION MANUAL

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ENHANCED FEATURES

144/440 MHz FM DUAL BANDER

TH-D7A(G)

KENWOOD CORPORATION

 B62-1359-00 (K) 09 08 07 06 05 04 03 02 01 00

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1 AUTOMATIC PACKET/ POSITION REPORTING

SYSTEM

OPERA TION FLOW ..................................................2

CONNECTING WITH A GPS RECEIVER ..................3

SETTING UTC OFFSET............................................3

SELECTING DATA BAND.......................................... 3

SELECTING PACKET TRANSFER RATE ................. 3

RECEIVING APRS DA T A........................................... 4

ACCESSING RECEIVED APRS DATA ...................... 5

PROGRAMMING A CALL SIGN................................. 7

SELECTING YOUR STATION ICON.......................... 8

PROGRAMMING POSITION DATA ...........................9

SELECTING A POSITION COMMENT .................... 10

STORING STATUS TEXT........................................ 11

PROGRAMMING A GROUP CODE ......................... 12

PROGRAMMING A PACKET PATH .........................13

SELECTING PACKET TRANSMIT METHOD .......... 15

SELECTING PACKET TRANSMIT INTERVAL......... 16

SELECTING PACKET TRANSMIT DELA Y .............. 16

SELECTING STATUS TEXT TRANSMIT RATE ....... 16

RESTRICTING RECEPTION OF APRS DATA......... 16

PROGRAMMING POSITION AMBIGUITY............... 17

SELECTING A DISPLA Y AREA ...............................17

CHAPTER 2 APRS® MESSAGE

OPERA TION FLOW ................................................18

RECEIVING A MESSAGE ....................................... 19

ACCESSING RECEIVED APRS MESSAGES .........20

ENTERING A MESSAGE......................................... 21

TRANSMITTING A MESSAGE ................................22

AUTO ANSWER REPL Y.......................................... 22

PROGRAMMING A GROUP CODE ......................... 23

CHAPTER 3 MENU REVISIONS CHAPTER 4 SUMMARY OF ENHANCEMENT

BAND A & B ............................................................. 26

KEYPAD DIRECT ENTRY ....................................... 26

TRANSMITTING A 1750 Hz TONE ..........................26

KEY BEEP ON/OFF................................................. 26

ADJUSTING VOLUME BALANCE ........................... 27

SELECTING DATA BAND........................................ 27

DX P ACKETCLUSTERS MONITOR ........................ 27

DCD SENSE ...........................................................28

This instruction manual describes only the functions improved or newly designed for the TH-D7A(G) model. For the functions not described in this manual, see the other instruction manual (original).

AUTOMATIC PACKET/ POSITION REPORTING SYSTEM

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The Automatic Packet/ Position Reporting System (APRS) is a software program and registered trademark of Bob Bruninga, WB4APR. He has made packet communications much more exciting than before. This program allows you to track mobile stations on a map which you recall on a computer screen. Imagine seeing one mobile station moving on the map which can be scaled from .5 to 2000 miles. You also may be tracked on the computer screen of another station. Stations to be tracked must transmit beacons at certain intervals. To track other stations, you usually need a computer running the APRS, a transceiver, and a TNC. To have them track you, you also need a GPS receiver. It receives signals from the satellites to inform you of your current geographical position. GPS stands for Global Positioning System. The APRS interprets the National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA) data strings coming from the GPS receiver. For further information, consult Internet Web pages relating to the APRS. You may use one of the Internet search engines to find correct URLs.

This transceiver includes a TNC and a program for dealing with data formats supported by the APRS. That is, you need no other equipment to transmit, receive, or display APRS packets. You do not need even a GPS receiver if you manually enter position data to transmit. For hams who want to fully enjoy APRS operations, this transceiver has connection ports with a personal computer and a GPS receiver; this manual, however, does not describe APRS operations which require a personal computer.

Using this transceiver, you can transmit a station icon, position data, position comment, and status text. With a GPS receiver, you can also transmit moving speed, moving direction, and altitude data. From any type of station you will receive information listed below:

Depending on the types of stations, you will also receive the following information:

OPERATION FLOW

The following flow chart includes only the steps to give APRS a quick try.

q Access Menu 2–M to select band A or B as the

data band {page 3}. The default is band A.

u Access Menu 2–4 to program position data

{page 9}.

i Access Menu 2–6 to select from 15 position

comments {page 10}.

w Press [TNC] to enter APRS mode.

•“ ” should appear.

e On the data band select the same frequency as

other stations in your group.

• You may tune to the frequency of an appropriate digipeater (144.390 MHz in the U.S.A.) {page 13}.

Now you are ready to receive APRS data from other stations. Refer to “RECEIVING APRS DATA” {page 4}. To transmit your APRS data, proceed to step r.

r Access Menu 2–1 to program your call sign

(9 digits max.) {page 7}.

t If you have connected a GPS receiver, access

Menu 2–2 and select “NMEA” or “NMEA96” {page 3}. The default is “NOT USED”.

y Access Menu 2–8 to select your station icon

{page 8}.

o If you want, access Menu 2–9 to enter status

text using up to 20 alphanumeric characters {page 11}.

!0 Access Menu 2–C to select the operation method

for transmitting APRS data {page 15}.

!1 Press [BCON]. If you selected “PTT” in step !0,

then press and release the PTT switch. See page 15.

When using a personal computer, press [TNC] repeatedly in step q until “PACKET” appears. All further operations should be performed on your computer. For the cable connection with a personal computer, see page 53 on the other instruction manual (original).

Menu Set-up allows you to change various default settings for APRS operations. See the appropriate sections in this chapter.

Note:

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To distinguish your various stations or nodes, you can have up to 15 Secondary Station IDentifiers (SSIDs); ex. WD6BQD-1 to WD6BQD-

15. You always have to put a dash between your call sign and SSID number.

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If you have blanked the data band by pressing [DUAL], you cannot select APRS mode in step q.

CONNECTING WITH A GPS RECEIVER

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The GPS jack on this transceiver accepts a 2.5 mm (1/10") 3-conductor plug. If necessary, use the supplied cable to modify the cable end of your GPS receiver .

Note: Turn OFF the transceiver power before making the connections.

To GPS jack

GPS receiver

In order to use the connected GPS receiver, access Menu 2–2 (GPS UNIT) to select “NMEA” or “NMEA96”. The default is “NOT USED”. Select “NMEA96” when using a 9600 bps GPS receiver.

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SELECTING DATA BAND

On this transceiver you can select data band for APRS mode independent of the selection (in Menu 1–4–1) for Packet mode. Access Menu 2–M (DATA BAND) and select band A or B as the data band for receiving or transmitting APRS data. The default is band A. “ ” indicates the current data band.

Note: In Menu 2–M, the selection switches among A, B, A:TX B:RX, and A:RX B:TX. Select A:TX B:RX or A:RX B:TX if APRS networks which use two separate frequencies become available in the future. “ ” appears for

the data transmit band and “ ” appears for the data receive band.

SELECTING PACKET TRANSFER RATE

SETTING UTC OFFSET

This transceiver allows you to correct the UTC offset; UTC stands for Universal Time Coordinated. Access Menu 2–O (TIME ZONE) and select the appropriate UTC offset in the range from +12:00 to –12:00 in steps of 30 minutes.

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The default APRS packet transfer rate set on the built-in TNC is 1200 bps which is the standard among the current APRS networks. If APRS networks which use 9600 bps transfer rate become available in the future, access Menu 2–N (PACKET SPEED) and select “9600 bps”. “96” will appear.

RECEIVING APRS DATA

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Each time new APRS data is received, the frequency display is interrupted to show information as below:

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Position comment (or status text)

• The received APRS data may include information on an object such as a hurricane or tornado. In this case, the name of the object appears instead of a call sign.

• The transceiver restores the frequency display after approximately 10 seconds pass or when you press any key.

Note:

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When you receive APRS data including an “Emergency” comment, a different format of display from the above will appear and a different beep will sound.

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When you receive APRS data that you transmitted, the frequency display is not interrupted. “MY POSITION” will appear at the bottom of the display. This could happen when one or more digipeaters {page 13} are used.

If a received packet does not include new (or proper) APRS data, the frequency display is not interrupted. An indicator such as “dP” appears depending on the types of data. See the table.

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The transceiver automatically transmits the appropriate information in approximately 2 minutes after receiving a request.

Note: The APRS programs for PCs have entry fields for a position comment and status text. The data entered to these two fields are transmitted as separate packets. This transceiver, however, includes both of a position comment and status text in one packet to transmit.

This transceiver beeps each time it receives any type of APRS packet. You may access Menu 2–F (BEEP) to change this setting. The default is “ALL”. The selection in this menu is shared with APRS Message {page 19}.

ACCESSING RECEIVED APRS DATA

This transceiver is capable of receiving and storing APRS data from up to 40 stations in memory. You can select the desired station and access the desired information, by switching the display.

1 Press [LIST].

• The display for selecting a station appears.

• The numbers beside the call signs indicate the order in which data is received. The data received last is assigned 1.

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2 Press [UP]/ [DWN] to select the desired station.

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3 Press [OK].

• The display for accessing the desired information appears.

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4 Press [OK] repeatedly until you can access the

desired information.

• The next page shows how displays will be switched.

• You may press [ESC] to restore the previous display.

5 Press [LIST] twice to restore the frequency display. You may want to delete all information of the desired

station. Press [A/B] instead of [OK] in step 3 or 4. “DELETE?” appears. Press [OK] to delete the information.

To delete the information of all stations, press [A/B] (1 s) in step 2. “DELETE ALL?” appears. Press [OK]. Then “SURE?” appears. Press [OK] again to delete the information.

The types of information accessible in step 4 differ depending on the types of stations. For details, see the next page.

Note:

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When data from the 41st station is received, the oldest data in memory is replaced by that data.

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Each time new APRS data is received from the same station, the old data from that station (in memory) is replaced by new data.

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When APRS data is received with a GPS receiver connected, included position data is sent to the receiver, using the NMEA-0183 $GPWPL format (or Magellan format). This data is registered in the Waypoint List of the receiver. Access Menu 2–3 (WAYPOINT) and select the number of characters to be input. You can select 6 to 9 digits for NMEA, 6 digits for Magellan, DGPS, or OFF (default) . With NMEA 6 digits selected, the right 6 characters of the call sign is used as a name (ex. for KJ6HC-3, J6HC-3). Select DGPS to input differential position data to a DGPS-compatible receiver if it is connected.

q Situation w Position comment

(TH-D7/ TM-D700/ Mic Encoder only) or call sign

(object only)

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Fixed station Mobile station Weather station

q Transmit power w Height of antenna

(elevation) ’ : Feet M: Meter

e Antenna gain r Antenna directivity

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Fixed station

q Transmit range

Using compressed APRS data format

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(mile or km)

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q Altitude

’ : Feet M: Meter

w Moving direction e Moving speed

m: Mile/hour k: km/hour

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q Wind direction w Wind speed

m: Mile/hour k: km/hour

e Temperature

F: ° F c: °C

Amount of rainfall in the past hour (" or mm)

e r

q status text

q Grid square locator w Distance from

the station (mile or km)

q Latitude/ longitude

data N: North S: South W: West E: East

This transceiver is capable of displaying the following 19 icons as station IDs. When icon data other than these is received, the display will show an icon code such as /$ or \$.

Some icons may appear with overlay characters as below if the received icon data includes them.

The following icons show the directions of stations relative to your position. For example, “ ” indicates the other station is located at the northeast relative to your position.

0.0 to 9999 miles (or km) are shown for distances from other stations. “xxxxmi” (or “xxxxkm”) is shown for distances over 9999 miles (or km). If you do not change

the position data in Menu 2–4 from the default, “----mi” (or “----km”) is shown.

On the TH-D7A(G), the default units for distance and temperature are mile and °F. If necessary, access Menu 2–H (mile/km) and/or Menu 2–I (TEMPERATURE) to change the setting(s).

Note: Some stations transmit APRS data through TNCs connected to GPS receivers. If you receive data from those stations, “GOOD” (satellites tracked) or “LAST” (satellites not tracked) will be shown as the situation, with GLL, GGA, or RMC which designates $GPGLL, $GPGGA, or $GPRMC format.

PROGRAMMING A CALL SIGN

Program your call sign using a maximum of 9 alphanumeric characters; you may include SSID characters. Unless you program a call sign, you cannot transmit APRS data.

1 Press [MENU] to enter Menu mode. 2 Press [2], [1] to select “2–1 (MY CALLSIGN)”.

• The display for entering characters appears; the first digit blinks. The default is “NOCALL”.

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3 Press [UP]/ [DWN] to select a character, then press

[OK].

• You can enter 0 to 9, A to Z, and –.

• The cursor moves to the next digit.

4 Repeat step 3 to enter up to 9 digits.

• Pressing [OK] after selecting the 9th digit completes the programming.

• To complete programming after entering less than 9 digits, press [OK] twice.

• Each press of [ESC] causes the cursor to move backward.

• Pressing [A/B] deletes the digit at which the cursor is blinking.

5 Press [MENU] to exit Menu mode. You can also use the keypad to enter alphanumeric

characters in step 3. For example, each press of [TNC] switches entry as A, B, C, then 2. Press [ENT] to enter –.

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