APRS
®
APRS DATA COMMUNICATION
• This function uses the APRS format for data
communications including your station position, messages,
etc.
• When data is received from another station directly, via
digipeaters and/or IGate stations, the direction of the
received station (from your station's perspective), their
distance, and their grid square locator is displayed. Any
comments sent by the other stations are also displayed.
• APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System) is a worldwide
system introduced by Bob Bruninga, WB4APR.
Official APRS Website: http://www.aprs.org
APRS Network
Digipeater
• Digipeater (Digital Repeater) relays digital packet data.
When a Digipeater receives a packet, it saves it to memory.
When the reception ends, the packet data is re-transmitted
on the same frequency. Using Digipeaters, it is possible to
exchange APRS packets long distances.
IGate
• IGate (Internet Gateway) is a very useful and important
feature for APRS as well as Digipeater. IGate stations
bridge APRS packets between RF and the Internet.
By going through the IGate stations, you can enjoy the
communication with the further distant stations which are
not covered only by Digipeaters.
Digipeater stations and IGate stations are operated by the
volunteer people in each region.
BASIC SETTINGS
This part covers only the minimum necessary settings for
basic operation as an APRS handheld portable station. Refer
to the User Manual (detailed instruction manual) on the
Website for more advanced settings.
My Callsign
Program your Callsign using a maximum of 9 alphanumeric
characters including SSID (Secondary Station IDentifiers)
such as -7, -9, or -14. Unless you program a Callsign, you
cannot transmit APRS packets.
1 Access Menu No. 500.
The display for entering a Callsign appears.
You can enter 0 to 9, A to Z, and –.
2 Press [ENT] to set the Callsign.
Note:
¡ For SSID characters, refer to the guideline on the Website (http://
aprs.org/aprs11/SSIDs.txt) by Bob Bruninga, WB4APR.
¡ When all settings are blank, "NOCALL" is automatically set. In
this case, the Position packet or Message packet cannot be
transmitted.
Selecting your Station Icon
1 Access Menu No. 501.
2 Select an icon which will be displayed on the monitors of
other stations as your ID. You may select an icon depending
on your current location. It is important that the icon
conveys the operational status of the station as well as the
SSID.
Icon Examples
ICON
Person
Bicycle
Motorcycle
Car
Bus
Railroad Engine
Home
Bicycle icon selected
3 Press [A/B] to set your station icon.
Press [MENU] to return to the previous screen.
Note:
¡ Set an icon that represents your operational status. (For example,
setting an Aircraft icon or Balloon icon to a fixed station will cause
confusion when a station receives a beacon.)
Setting the Data Band Frequency
Set the data band frequency to the APRS network frequency.
The default setting of the data band is band A.
You can change the data band to band B by Menu No. 506.
Note:
¡ The APRS network frequency will depend on what region of the
world you are operating as follows:
North America: 144.390 MHz, Europe: 144.800 MHz
Australia: 145.175 MHz, New Zealand: 144.575 MHz
Argentina: 144.930 MHz, Brazil: 145.570 MHz
Japan: 144.640 MHz (9600 bps)/ 144.660 MHz (1200 bps)
Meaning
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