[TenTec] What's next in radio design (a thought question)

[Paul Plasters]

I think there are several ideas already being used that may find new uses
in communications.  Look at how packet works.  It is concievable to me that
relay stations could be put up all over the country.  Or Satelites can be
installed in space.  The above would most likely be used for VHF, UHF etc. 
	As far as a new HF mode making older modes outdated, I still hear AM
stations on that equipment must be 30 to 40 years old, and still being
used.  How about RTTY and CW?  Yet they are still being used.  I think that
there are people who MUST have the latest of what ever, but many of us are
content using our older mode gear.  
	What I am saying, is don't hold back on development for fear of outdating
older technology.  Both will be put to good use!
	I personally believe I will live to see Geostationairy satelites placed
into service by Hams, as soon as they get their act together and realize
they are all trying to accomplish the same thing.
73 K9PEP  ICQ 9441594


At 07:41 PM 11/27/98 -0800, you wrote:
>
>One wonderful thing about the holidays is that it gives one time to
>think.  In my case, I think I'll spend a little time thinking about the
>future of radio design.
>
>If we look at the past 20 years of design, we have seen the advent of all
>solid state radios, improved miniaturization, improved sensitivity via
>lower-noise components and monolothic circuits, and the advent of DSP.  I
>was wondering to myself, "what's next."  Thought it might be fun to
>crystal-ball a bit on near-term technology.
>
>1)  DSP will continue to take leaps in performance, much as the personal
>computer market has.  This will, however, meet a limit (say in 3 years or
>so), as the algorithms to extract signal from noise run out of signal to
>extract.  Look for another S-unit of sensitivity.
>
>2) New-mode digital communications, much akin to the digital cellular
>waveforms, will make inroads into ham radio.  I look for pulse-coded
>waveforms to extract another 2 S-units from our radios.  The sad part of
>this will be the almost instantaneous obsolescence of way too much radio
>gear.  Imagine a 100W digital radio having the punch of a 1500W station
>of today.  All we need is to digitize the speech, add pulse compression,
>send, receive, decompress, and D-to-A the info.  Come to think of it,
>maybe I'll try this out as a project sometime.  ; )
>
>3) New-process semiconductor chips (GaAs, SiGe, InP, etc.) will offer
>ultra-low-noise receive amplification at higher frequencies.  This will
>allow for more up-converting radios, more bands in the same radio, and
>possibly another S-unit.  We may also see more integration of RF and
>digital circuitry into the same chip.  Maybe a second S-unit from this.
>
>4) Direct over-sampling of RF will allow for elimination of mixing and
>filtering stages.  Fast 1-bit D/A converters already run in the multi-MHz
>range.  Bump that into the 500MHz range and run the data into a digital
>FIR filter and voila, no filters and no down conversion.  May have to
>work the dynamic range issues, though.  Sensitivity bump - 2-3 S-units.
>
>Tally for radio of the near future:
>DSP
>Digital
>GaAs Amps
>Direct Sampling
>5-7 S-units over current best (1500 W today = 0.1 to 1.5W tomorrow)
>
>Anyone care to leave their imaginary deposit?  Just reply with your
>thoughts.
>
>Eric K0AVW
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