The Exemplar of Open Research and Development
Thank you to our supporters from around the world who will soon be receiving these open source innovative HF digital QRP kits.
Here’s the geographical distribution of the Solstice Special Batch 2 kits.
Find out more about this project at https://www.openresearch.institute/rfbitbanger-project/
Want a fun ham radio HF QRP open source digital radio kit? Link below.
Thank you to everyone reading this that has supported ORI and how we publish our work on YouTube.
I know YouTube is not for everyone, but it is an effective way to communicate what we do, what challenges we face, and it lets people know there’s a community out there 1) doing things that they might find wonderful and 2) is worth hearing more about.
We have 400 subscribers, which is a bit of a milestone. This is a lot for a very technical all-volunteer organization that devotes its time supporting and promoting project work, while staying firmly in the background.
Our proudest moments are when projects succeed and are recognized on their own merits, under their own name, and under their own branding. Ribbit, RFBitBanger, Haifuraiya, a variety of published Open Source FPGA work, FPGA training, Opulent Voice, Versatuner, Dumbbell, actively participating in IEEE, FCC TAC membership, Remote Labs, our many regulatory successes, and our active and successful mentoring in professional and academic settings – these are all clear indications that we’re on the right track and doing a great job.
Not explicitly mentioned are the many places we’ve helped projects succeed behind the scenes, around the world.
We are committed to an altruistic approach that delivers clear value to project work. This approach has been abused only once, by one organization.
Being accountable, open, and successful is the cost of doing our type of business. This is a price happily paid.
Thank you for being part of it!
https://www.youtube.com/c/OpenResearchInstituteInc
Open Research Institute presents two talks and an organizational showcase at the 9-10 September QSO Today Academy this upcoming weekend. https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/
This online event features a broad array of amateur radio talks. The speakers are engaging and inspiring. Q&A, connection, and conversation are a priority at QSO Today.
See Dr. Daniel Marks speak about the RFBitBanger project and the SCAMP mode at 1300 US Pacific Time on 9 September. Details of the talk can be found at https://wze95h.qsotodayhamexpo.com/sessionInfo/_the_rfbitbanger_an_off_the_grid_emergency and the repository for this ORI project is https://github.com/profdc9/RFBitBanger
See Michelle Thompson speak about A Shortened HF Antenna at 0900 US Pacific Time on 9 September. Details of this talk can be found at https://wze95h.qsotodayhamexpo.com/sessionInfo/22 and the ORI repository for this project is https://github.com/OpenResearchInstitute/dumbbell
Please visit Open Research Institute’s exhibit at QSO Today Academy from the main portal.
Thank you to everyone that supports work at ORI.
Thank you to everyone helping spread the word about the HF QRP digital RFBitBanger kit DEFCON31 Show Special. We sold out the 99 kits with 13 hours to spare.
Here’s the geographical distribution of this version of the RFBitBanger kit. 
Main boards are in process at the manufacturer with final inspection expected today, 31 August 2023.
The bandpass filter boards, which have been upgraded from “three bands included and one spare” to “nine bands included and three spares” at no additional cost, are in process and expected to be complete no earlier than 4 September 2023.
Kitting is well underway with the machining of the heat sinks completed.
This DEFCON31 version of the board is black in color to distinguish it from potential future versions. Here is a rendering of the top side of the board.
The RFBitBanger team is discussing future builds on the #rfbitbanger channel on our Slack account right now.
The next opportunity for a show special is for QSO Today Academy, 9-10 September 2023, where Dr. Daniel Marks is speaking about the RFBitBanger and SCAMP mode. Find out more about this event here: https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/
This project would not be successful with your support, feedback, and advice. Thank you all for making this project, one of many at ORI, a big success. There’s been a lot of interest in this project and some very nice coverage from Hackaday and QRZ blogs, with more articles expected in the future.
Getting the word out about what we do is up to people like you. Do you know of any open source digital radio projects that need a friendly and supportive home? We can help with ethical, professional, and competent research and development support.
https://www.openresearch.institute/your-project-is-welcome/
Three Days Remaining for the RFBitBanger HF Radio Kit DEFCON Show Special
Be a part of the future with a prototype kit build of the RFBitBanger, a low-power high-frequency digital radio by Dr. Daniel Marks KW4TI. Presented by Open Research Institute, this kit is designed to produce 4 watts of power and opens up a new digital protocol called SCAMP. Your donation in exchange for this kit directly enables the development of an innovative Class E amplifier based radio design. It has a display, button menu navigation, and keyboard connection for keyboard modes and keyboard-enabled navigation. This radio can be taken portable or used in a case. If you have a 3d printer, then Dr. Marks has a design ready for you to print.
SCAMP is a new protocol that allows keyboard-to-keyboard contacts with a digital protocol that has excellent connection performance. See Dr. Marks presentation about RFBitBanger at QSO Today Academy in September 2023 to learn more about SCAMP and the RFBitBanger project. Information about that event is here: https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/
All surface mount parts on the main board are pre-installed at the factory. All the through-hole parts you need to complete the radio are provided for you to solder yourself. If you don’t know how to wind toroids or solder surface mount capacitors, this is an excellent kit to learn on. There are just six toroids on the main board, and two on each band pass filter board. You can build just one band pass filter board and operate on a single band, or you can build an assortment. We provide 12 filter boards, enough toroids to build any 9 filters, and a supply of capacitors that will let you build those 9 filters for 9 different HF ham bands. These capacitors are size 1206, which is the largest common size for SMT capacitors and the easiest to solder manually. All you’ll need is a pair of tweezers and your regular soldering iron and solder. We provide detailed instructions on winding the toroids and soldering the capacitors. You get spare filter boards to experiment with.
Support is provided through a dedicated Open Research Institute Slack channel.
Instructions on how to join the ORI community are here:
https://openresearch.institute/getting-started
Delivery is no earlier than late August 2023. Will be posted here and on the ORI website at https://www.openresearch.institute/rfbitbanger-project/
If you missed this sale, check out the upcoming show special at QSO Today Academy.
Want to Learn More About RFBitBanger?
Project lead Dr. Daniel Marks will give a presentation about the RFBitBanger at QSO Today Academy 9 September 2023 1300 PDT, 0800 UTC.
Daniel Marks, KW4TI, is a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, having graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001. His fields of speciality include optical engineering, computed imaging, and signal processing. He has made dozens of open hardware projects including many for amateur radio.
https://wze95h.qsotodayhamexpo.com/sessionInfo/_the_rfbitbanger_an_off_the_grid_emergency
The recent shortage of semiconductors, parts important for electronics, shows us that supply chains can be fragile. What does this mean? It means if we have a big problem for a long time, our advanced radios might be tough to keep working, which could be a problem in an emergency.
To solve this, a new kind of radio called the RFBitBanger has been created. It’s a type of low power, long-distance radio that is easy to build from basic parts using simple tools. It uses a new digital language, called SCAMP, made specifically for this radio.
All the signal work is done by an Arduino processor. What’s cool is that the radio has a small screen and buttons or you can even attach a keyboard. It’s a full text communications system all by itself. SCAMP is pretty special too. Even though it only needs a simple 8-bit microcontroller, it can do lots of things that digital modes like FT8 can do using small bandwidth and something called forward error correction.
The RFBitBanger radio has other helpful features. It can support CW (which is Morse code), RTTY (another way of sending text), and SSB phone (voice communication).
We hope that the RFBitBanger can serve as an easy-to-build and easy-to-maintain emergency radio. It can also be a great educational kit. And, it can be a lifesaver when there’s a big shortage of parts.
Media for RFBitBanger
Thank you to Hackaday and QRZ forums for covering the RFBitBanger project. Here are the links to the articles.
Be a part of the future with a prototype kit build of the RFBitBanger, a low-power high-frequency digital radio by Dr. Daniel Marks KW4TI. Presented by Open Research Institute, this kit is designed to produce 4 watts of power and opens up a new digital protocol called SCAMP. Your donation in exchange for this kit directly enables the development of an innovative Class E amplifier based radio design. It has a display, button menu navigation, and keyboard connection for keyboard modes and keyboard-enabled navigation. This radio can be taken portable or used in a case. If you have a 3d printer, then Dr. Marks has a design ready for you to print.
Receive a kit for your donation here: https://us.commitchange.com/ca/san-diego/open-research-institute/campaigns/defcon31-rfbitbanger-show-specpeial
SCAMP is a new protocol that allows keyboard-to-keyboard contacts with a digital protocol that has excellent connection performance. See Dr. Marks presentation about RFBitBanger at QSO Today Academy in September 2023 to learn more about SCAMP and the RFBitBanger project. Information about that event is here: https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/
Surface mount parts are pre-installed. You will need to have through-hole parts installation skills to complete the kit. If you don’t know how to wind toroids, this is an excellent kit to learn on. 80, 40, and 20 meter band pass filters are included. More will be available soon.
Support is provided through a dedicated Open Research Institute Slack channel.
Instructions on how to join are here:
Delivery is no earlier than late August 2023. Updates will be shared here in the news section as well as on the RFBitBanger page at https://www.openresearch.institute/rfbitbanger-project/
March 2023 Inner Circle
Welcome to our newsletter for March 2023!
Inner Circle is a non-technical update on everything that is happening at ORI. Sign up at this link http://eepurl.com/h_hYzL
Contents:
FPGA Workshop Cruise with ORI?
ORI’s Birthday 6 March – Celebrate With Pins!
RFBitBanger Prototypes
Announcing the ORI App Stores
QSO Today Ham Expo Spotlight
Jay Francis in QEX
Pierre W4CKX Declares Candidacy for ORI Board of Directors
FPGA Workshop Cruise with ORI?
Want to learn more about open source FPGA development from experts in the field? Want to get away? How about something that can give you both? We are looking at organizing an FPGA Workshop Adventure Cruise. Be part of the planning and write fpga@openresearch.institute
ORI’s Birthday – Celebrate With Pins!
We celebrate our 4th birthday on 6 March 2023. Thank you to everyone that has helped ORI grow and succeed in so many different ways. To commemorate our anniversary, we have a limited edition acrylic logo pin. They will be available for a small donation at all upcoming in-person events. Where will be be? We’ll be at DEFCON 31 and IEEE IWRC in Little Rock, AR, USA 13-14 September 2023. Want to include us at your event before then? Let us know at hello@openresearch.institute
RFBitBanger Prototypes
Interested in high frequency amateur (HF) bands? Want to learn about Class E amplification? Excited about open HF digital protocols that aren’t just signal reports? Well, we have a kit for you. Here’s a walk-through by Paul KB5MU of all RFBitBanger modes. This project is lead by Dr. Daniel Marks, is enthusiastically supported by ORI, and will be demonstrated at DEFCON in August 2023. We are doing all we can to have kits available for sale by DEFCON, or sooner.
Announcing the ORI App Stores
Open Research Institute can be found in the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. That’s right – we are in both app stores delivering open source mobile apps. Thank you to everyone that has helped make this possible. The Ribbit app will be available on both platforms as our initial release. Do you know of an open source application that needs a home? Get in touch at hello@openresearch.institute and let’s talk. We want to share our platform and support applications that help open source and amateur radio.
QSO Today Ham Expo Spotlight
We hope to see you again at QSO Today Ham Expo, 25-26 March 2023. If you haven’t gotten a ticket yet, please visit https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/
This is a wonderful event that showcases the best parts of amateur radio. The theme for this Ham Expo is “New License – Now What?” Recordings will be available on the Ham Expo platform for a month, and then will be available on YouTube for anyone to view. ORI will volunteer at the March 2023 QSO Ham Expo session and will have technical presentations, a booth, and poster sessions at the Autumn 2023 QSO Today Ham Expo.
Jay Francis in QEX
Please see page 20 of the March/April 2023 issue of QEX magazine for an article co-authored by Jay Francis, our AmbaSat Re-Spin team lead. Excellent job, Jay!
Pierre W4CKX has declared his candidacy for ORI Board of Directors
We welcome Pierre’s interest in being a member of the board. Pierre is the Ribbit project lead. He brings broad industry knowledge, experience in Agile project management, a commitment to ethical leadership, and innovative energy. Learn about all our directors at https://www.openresearch.institute/board-of-directors/
Are you interested in supporting work at ORI? Consider being part of the board. We’d like to expand from 5 to 7 members in order to better serve our projects and community.
We’ve got lots going on with Opulent Voice, Haifuraiya, AmbaSat Respin, and regulatory work. We support IEEE in many ways, one of which is logistics support with technical presentations such as “Advances in AI for Web Integrity, Ethics, and Well Being” by Srijan Kumar PhD. Video recording of his talk can be found here.
Thank you from everyone at ORI for your continued support and interest!
Whatever will be do for our April 1st newsletter?
Want to be a part of the fun? Get in touch at ori@openresearch.institute
