Vertex Standard VX-1700 Series Reference Book

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION VX-1700 CAT OPERATION REFERENCE BOOK

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION COM GPS RS-232C “Cross” Cable OVERVIEW The CAT (Computer Aided Transceiver) System in the VX-1700 provides control of frequency, memory, and other settings using an external personal com- puter. This allows multiple control keystrokes to be fully automated as a single mouse click or keystroke operation on the computer keyboard. To use computer control of your VX-1700 transceiver, a D-SUB 9-pin cross cable (“null modem”) will be required for connection of the VX-1700 transceiver to your computer’s serial (“COM”) port. Be sure that the serial cable has the proper gender and number of pins (some COM ports used a 9-pin rather than a 25-pin configuration). If the computer uses a custom connector, you may have to construct the serial cable; in this case, refer to the technical documentation supplied with your computer for correct connections. The illustration below shows an example of CAT sys- tem connections. Vertex Standard Co., Ltd. does not produce CAT System software, owing to the wide variety or per- sonal computers and operating systems in use world- wide. However, the information presented in this chapter explains the serial data structure and opcodes used by the CAT system. This information, along with the brief programming examples supplied later, is intended to assist the developer in writing programs. NOTE ˆ The CAT system protocol is available from Lot 028 or later products. ˆ When the SELCALL or ALE function is activat- ing, you cannot use the CAT system protocol. ˆ When using the CAT system protocol, it is neces- sary for you to change the DIP switch setting of the VX -1700. Page 1

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION VX-1700 MODIFICATION 1. Turn off the VX-1700 by pressing and holding the [POWER] switch of the VX-1700 for one second, then turn off the External DC Power Supply. 2. Disconnect the DC Cable from the DC INPUT Jack on the VX-1700 rear panel, and then dis- connect all cables from the VX-1700. 3. Referring to Figure 1, remove the four screws from the side of the transceiver (two screws for each side), along with four screws affixing the bottom case; remove the bottom case. 4. Referring to Figure 2, slide the S4002 and S4003 switches to the “A” position. 5. Replace the bottom case with its eight screws. 6. Connect the all cables to the transceiver. IMPORTANT NOTE ˆ Please be careful to avoid short-circuit to any metal object. ˆ Be careful to prevent injury from any sharp cor- ners. ˆ Please practice standard grounding techniques and do not touch semiconductor components un- necessarily to avoid breakage or damage by static electricity etc. NOTE Do not forget to return the S4002 and S4003 switches into the “B” side when using the GPS. Figure 1 Figure 1 GPS-INTERFACE Unit or ALE Unit MAIN Unit Cooling Fan Page 2

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION CAT DATA PROTOCOL Serial data is passed at RS-232 levels via the SI (Se- rial Input) and SO (Serial Output) pins of the GPS jack (pins 2 and 3, respectively) on the rear panel of the transceiver. The serial data format is 4800 bits/ second; each byte sent consists of one start bit, 8 data bits, no parity, and two stop bits (4800, N, 8, 2). CAT DATA (ONE BYTE, SENT LEFT-TO-RIGHT) All commands sent to the transceiver must consist of blocks or five bytes each, with up to 200 ms be- tween each byte. The last byte sent in each block is the instruction opcode, while the first four bytes or each block are arguments: either parameters for that instruction, or dummy values (to pad the block out to five bytes). 5-BYTE COMMAND BLOCK (SENT LEFT-TO-RIGHT) There are 15 instruction opcodes for the VX-1700. Notice that several instructions require no specific parameters, but every command block sent to the transceiver must consist of five bytes. The CAT control program in the computer must con- struct the five-byte block by selecting the appropri- ate instruction opcode, organizing the parameters, if any, and providing unused (dummy) argument bytes for padding (dummy bytes may have any value). The resulting five bytes are then sent, opcode last, to the SI (Serial Input) pin of the GPS jack on the rear panel of the transceiver. Example: Tune to 14.250.0MHz: ˆ First, determine the opcode for the desired in- struction (see the CAT command table). These opcodes should be stored in the program so they can be looked up when the user requests the cor- responding command. In this case, the instruc- tion is “Set Receive & Transmit Frequency” so the opcode is “0Ah” (small “h” letters following each byte value indicate hexadecimal (base 16) Values). ˆ Build the four argument byte values from the de- sired frequency by breaking it into 2-digit blocks (reversed BCD “packed decimal” format). Note that a leading zero is always required in the “hun- dreds-of-MHz” place (and another in the “tens- of-MHz” place, if below 10 MHz). ˆ The resulting 5-byte block should look like this (again, in hexadecimal format): ˆ Send these five bytes to the transceiver (Sent Left- to-Right: 00 50 42 01 0Ah). START BIT 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 STOP BIT STOP BIT BYTE 1 ARGUMENT BYTE 2 ARGUMENT BYTE 3 ARGUMENT BYTE 4 ARGUMENT BYTE 5 COMMAND OPCODE BYTE 1 00 BYTE 2 50 BYTE 3 42 BYTE 5 0Ah OPCODE DATA/ARGUMENT BYTES BYTE 4 01 BYTE 1 00 0 100’s Hz 0 10’s Hz BYTE 2 50 5 10’s kHz 0 1’s kHz BYTE 3 42 4 1’s MHz 2 100’s kHz BYTE 4 01 0 100’s MHz 1 10’s MHz Page 3  Connected with ’, ”, •, and –.  GPS Data Input. ‘ N/C (Lot. 1~25) GPS Data Output (Lot. 26 & 27 : When the firmware is updated. GPS Data Output (Lot. 28~) ’ Connected with , ”, •, and –. “ GPS Data. ” Connected with , ’, •, and –. • Connected with , ’, ”, and –. – Connected with , ’, ”, and •. — N/C (Lot. 1~25) GND (Lot. 26~) GPS Jack (As Viewed From Rear Panel)

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION CAT COMMANDS COMMAND Memory Recall Memory Write Memory Hide Recalls Last-used VFO Set Receive & Transmit Frequency Set Transmit (only) Frequency MODE PTT VFO RX´TX Step Operation Frequency TX Power Set (Low) TX Power Set (Mid) TX Power Set (Hi) Status Update Read Meter Read Flags OPCODE (HEX) 02 03 05 0A 8A 0C 0F 85 8E 18 28 48 10 F7 FA 1 CH CH – F1 F1 M T – D – – – U – – 2 – P2 – F2 F2 – – – – – – – – – – 3 – – – F3 F3 – – – – – – – – – – 4 – – – F4 F4 – – – – – – – – – – PARAMETER BYTES PARAMETER DESCRIPTION CH = 01h to C8h 01h: Memory Channel “1”, C8h: Memory Channel “200” P2 = 00: Write the current VFO data to the Memory Channel P2 = 01: Hide the Memory Channel CH = 01h to C8h F1 ~ F4: Frequency Digits (BCD format) Example: 01 23 45 67 = 12.3456 MHz F4 F3 F2 F1 F1 ~ F4: Frequency Digits (BCD format) Example: 01 23 45 67 = 12.3456 MHz F4 F3 F2 F1 M = 00: J3E (LSB), 01: J3E (USB), 02: A1A (CW-W), 03: A1A (CW-N), 04: AM (A3E), 08: J2B (LSB-W), 09: J2B (USB-W), 0D: H3E (2182 MHz MODE), 0E: J2B (LSB-N), 0F: J2B (USB-N) T = 00: Transmitter “off”, 01: Transmitter “on” Copy the current VFO receiving frequency to the transmit frequency D = 00: 1 Step Up, 01: 1 Step Down U = 00: Not used, 01: Memory Number, U = 02: Operating Data, 03: VFO Data See Next page for details See Next page for details See Next page for details Legend: Send all commands in REVERSE order form that shown! Commands that duplicate a front panel button are named with all caps. Parameter variables are named to reflect their format: eg., “CH” indicates a memory number, from “01h” to “C8h” (1 to 200 decimal). “–” indicates a padding byte. Value is unimportant, but it must be present to pad the block out to exactly five bytes. Page 4

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION DATA RETURNED FROM VX-1700 The VX-1700 returns the “00h” command when the VX-1700 accepts a command, and returns the “F0h” com- mand when the VX-1700 does not accept a command via the SO (Serial Output) pin of the GPS jack on the rear panel of the transceiver. Furthermore, the following three commands report the various operational and internally-stored settings of VX- 1700. STATUS UPDATE COMMAND (10h) Returns the portion of the RAM table according to the receiving parameter (U). U = 01 (Memory Number: 1-byte) Reterns the defining current operating memory channel number (01h ~ C8h). U = 02 (Operating Data: 19-byte) Reterns the defining current operating conditions in the current VFO or memory. This 19-byte data consists of 1-byte current indi- cating memory channel number, followed by two 9-byte transmitter and receiver data (described at the right) for either the VFO or Memory cur- rently in use. 19-BYTE DATA FORMAT 1-BYTE MEMORY DATA ASSIGNMENT U = 03 (VFO Data: 9-byte x 2) Reterns the defining current VFO’s transmitter and receiver data. 18-BYTE DATA FORMAT 9-BYTE VFO (TX & RX) DATA ASSIGNMENT BAND Data (Byte “0”): The 0.03 ~ 30 MHz transceiver op- erating range is di- vided into 10 bands, represented in hexa- decimal format in the table at the right. Frequency Data (Byte “1” - “4”): The 4-byte fre- quency data is comprised of eight fields, from MSB to LSB. For example, a binary vale of 0000 0000 0001 0101 1011 1110 0110 1000 is 15BE68 (HEX) = 14.250.00 MHz as follows: MODE Data (Byte “6”): The mode data is represented in hexadecimal format in the table at the right. 1-BYTE MEMORY DATA 9-BYTE TX DATA (VFO OR MR) 9-BYTE RX DATA (VFO OR MR) 9-BYTE VFO TX DATA 9-BYTE VFO RX DATA BYTE 1 OPERATING FREQUENCY 9-BYTE Field 1 MSB 0 0 0 0 0 Field 2 0 0 0 0 0 BYTE 2 Field 3 0 0 0 1 1 Field 4 0 1 0 1 5 BYTE 3 Field 5 1 0 1 1 B Field 6 1 1 1 0 E BYTE 4 Field 7 0 1 1 0 6 Field 8 LSB 1 0 0 0 8 0015BE68 (HEX) = 1,425,000 = 14.250.00 MHZ HEX CODE 00 01 02 03 04 05 MODE J3E (LSB) J3E (USB) A1A-W A1A-N A3E J2B HEX CODE 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 BAND 0.03 - 1.8 MHz 1.8 - 2.5 MHz 2.5 - 4.0 MHz 4.0 - 7.5 MHz 7.5 - 10.5 MHz 10.5 - 14.5 MHz 14.5 - 18.5 MHz 18.5 - 21.5 MHz 21.5 - 25.5 MHz 21.5 - 30.0 MHz BYTE 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9-BYTE DATA ASSIGNMENT Band Data (BPF Selection) Frequency Data Not Used Mode Data Not Used Not Used BYTE 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 9-BYTE DATA ASSIGNMENT Not Used Not Used Not Used Not Used Not Used Semi Duplex Memory Channel Alpha Numeric Channel Erased Memory Channel Page 5

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION READ METER COMMAND (F7h) Returns the meter deflection (00h ~ FFh) repeated in four bytes, followed by one extra “padding” byte (F7h), as follows. During reception, the signal strength deflection is returned. During transmission, the power output level deflection is returned. DATA RETURNED FROM VX-1700 METER BYTE (00h - FFh) METER BYTE (00h - FFh) METER BYTE (00h - FFh) METER BYTE (00h - FFh) PADDING BYTE (F7h) FLAG BYTE 1 FLAG BYTE 2 FLAG BYTE 3 PADDING BYTE (06h) PADDING BYTE (04h) DESCRIPTION LOCK is activated. (“LOCK” icon will be illuminated.) Not Used Not Used Not Used Not Used Memory Mode (“MEM” icon will be illuminated.) Not Used VFO Mode (“VFO” icon will be illuminated.) BIT 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DESCRIPTION PTT line closed by CAT command. Scanning, Priority, or Dual Watch is “paused”. Scanning, Priority, or Dual Watch is “enabled”. J2B filter: “Narrow” selected. A1A filter: “Narrow” selected. J2B operation selected “USB”. Not Used Not Used BIT 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DESCRIPTION Not Used TX output selected “10 W”. Not Used Not Used Not Used Antenna Tuner working. (“TUNER” icon will be illuminated.) Not Used Transmission in progress. (PTT closed.) BIT 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 READ FLAGS COMMAND (FAh) Returns only the first three bytes (the Status Flags) from the RAM table, plus two extra “padding” bytes (06h and 04h). The three bytes are treated as 12 one-bit flag fields: a function is enabled (on) if a bit is “1”, and disabled (off) if a bit is “0”. Most of the functions represented by these flags correspond to the radio display. First Flag Byte Second Flag Byte Third Flag Byte Page 6

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION CODING EXAMPLES Although Vertex Standard Co., Ltd. cannot offer to provide complete CAT control programs (owing to the wide variety of incompatible computers used by our customers). We present here with a few examples of critical CAT I/O functions, in BASIC. Note that not all forms or BASIC may support some of the commands, in which case alternate algorithms may need to developed in order to duplicate the functions of those shown. SENDING A COMMAND After “opening” the computer’s serial port for 4800 baud, 8 data bits, two stop bits, and no parity as I/O device #2, any CAT command may be sent. The in- struction opcode is sent last, with the first (MSB) parameter sent just before it, and the LSB param- eter (or dummies) sent first. The parameters are sent in reverse order from that in which they appear in the “CAT Commands” table. Note also that, in the following examples, we are sending zeroes as dummy bytes, although this is not necessary. If you decide to send commands through a five-byte array, the values or the dummy parameters need not be cleared. The following command could, for example, be used to set the frequency of the display to 14.250.0 MHz: PRINT #2, CHR$(&H00);CHR$(&H50);CHR$(&H42);CHR$(&H01); CHR$(&HA); Notice here that the BCD values can be sent just by preceding the decimal digits with “&H” in this ex- ample. However, in an actual program, you may pre- fer to convert the decimal frequency variable in the program to an ASCII string, and the convert the string to characters through a lookup table. If you send a parameter that is out of range for the intended func- tion, or not among the specified legal values for that function, the VX-1700 should do nothing. Therefore, you may wish to alternate your sending of commands or command groups with a Read Flags or an Update command, allowing the transceiver to let the com- puter know if everything sent so far has been ac- cepted and acted upon as expected. Bear in mind that some commands specify “binary” (as opposed to BCD-formatted) parameters. You can send binary parameters without going through the character/hex string conversion process. For ex- ample, the CH parameter in the Command table is binary. You could have the VX-1700 recall Memory Channel “1-29” as follows: PRINT #2, CHR$(0);CHR$(0);CHR$(0);CHR$(29);CHR$(2); READING RETURNED DATA The reading process is easily done through a loop, storing incoming data into an array, which can then be processed after all expected bytes have been read into the array. To read the meter: FOR I = 1 TO 5 MDATA(I)=ASC(INPUT$(1,#2)) NEXT I Recall from above that the meter data consists of four identical bytes, followed by a “padding” byte, so we really only need to see one byte to get all of the information this command offers. Nevertheless, we must read all five bytes (or 1, 18, 19, in the case of the Update data). After reading all of the data, We can select the bytes of interest to us from the array (MDATA, in the above example). Page 7

CAT (COMPUTER AIDED TRANSCEIVER) OPERATION Copyright 2008 VERTEX STANDARD CO., LTD. All rights reserved No portion of this manual may be reproduced without the permission of VERTEX STANDARD CO., LTD.