{"id":311,"date":"2013-02-19T16:40:57","date_gmt":"2013-02-19T20:40:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/?p=311"},"modified":"2013-03-02T21:49:57","modified_gmt":"2013-03-03T01:49:57","slug":"setting-up-a-raspberry-pi-to-work-with-a-dv-access-point-dongle-dvap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/2013\/02\/setting-up-a-raspberry-pi-to-work-with-a-dv-access-point-dongle-dvap\/","title":{"rendered":"Setting up a Raspberry Pi to work with a DV Access Point Dongle (DVAP)"},"content":{"rendered":"

A while back, my friend NS4U\u00a0mentioned that he was going to buy a Raspberry Pi.\u00a0 My first thought was that he was talking about dessert.\u00a0 As it turns out, he was referring to a miniature, inexpensive Linux based\u00a0computer.\u00a0 After our talk, I decided to investigate this a little more, with an eye towards setting this little machine up to run my DV Access Point Dongle (\u201cDVAP\u201d) on either VHF or UHF.\u00a0 At first, I did not find any \u201croad maps\u201d to help me set this up.\u00a0 After quite a bit of looking, I stumbled across a file in the pcrepeatercontroller Yahoo! Group that provided an excellent white paper guide to getting this system working.\u00a0 But, before I go into that, just exactly what is a Raspberry Pi and what other components are needed to turn it into a mobile or portable hotspot with a DVAP?<\/p>\n

As I mentioned above, a Raspberry Pi (\u201cRPI\u201d) is a small computer using an ARM processer.\u00a0 It has 512 MB of RAM, two USB ports, an HDMI\u00a0port, a component video port, audio out port, Ethernet port and a slot for an SD card.\u00a0 A picture of this wonderful little device is below.\u00a0 You can learn more about it at the Raspberry Pi Foundation web site http:\/\/www.raspberrypi.org<\/a> .<\/p>\n

\"rpi\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The SD card is the key to this setup, as it will hold the operating system and all software necessary to get the DVAP\u00a0and Pi up and running together.\u00a0 While many articles I have read suggest that a 4 GB SD card is the minimum for a RPI to get up and running, I have found that with the setup I am using for the DVAP, an 8 GB card is necessary.<\/p>\n

Where does one get an RPI?\u00a0 Fortunately, there are many sources, from the Raspberry Pi Foundation directly, to Amazon to MCM\u00a0Electronics to others.\u00a0 You can expect to pay a minimum of $25.00 to $35.00 for the RPI, but all you get is the basic board with no frills.\u00a0 Make sure you don\u2019t buy the old revision A.\u00a0 The newer revision B is the board shown above and is a must for making this system work with the DVAP.\u00a0 It has 512 MB of RAM, 2 USB 2.0 ports and other enhancements.<\/p>\n

When you are ready to buy the RPI to use with your DVAP, what else do you need?\u00a0 That really depends on how you are going to use the system.\u00a0 I built mine with an eye towards mobile and portable use, but you could build one just to use at home.\u00a0 Here\u2019s the list of the RPI\/DVAP system components I purchased and why:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. RPI Board (Basic component of the system)<\/li>\n
  2. Clear RPI case (The RPI does not come in a case, so I purchased a clear case for around $10.00 to protect the components)<\/li>\n
  3. Power Supply (You have to provide power to the RPI, and this is not supplied with the board.\u00a0 If you have an old phone charger that outputs 5 volts and at least 1 amp you are good to go.\u00a0 I prefer a little more amperage, so I opted to use a Belkin iPad charger that is rated at 5 volts and 2.1 amps.\u00a0 This is enough to power the RPI, DVAP\u00a0and WIFI dongle I use.\u00a0 You may want to find a 3 amp supply if you are going to be powering more devices.\u00a0 You will need a micro USB plug to supply the RPI with power.)<\/li>\n
  4. SD Card (This will hold the OS and all other software.\u00a0 I purchased a 16 GB Sandisk\u00a0card at Office Depot and it works just fine.\u00a0 There are some cards that are not compatible.\u00a0 Check this web site for compatibility http:\/\/elinux.org\/RPi_SD_cards<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  5. WIFI\u00a0Dongle (This is optional if you are going to use the RPI and DVAP at home with the Ethernet connection built into the board; however, for portable or mobile use this is a must-have.\u00a0 There are many of these little devices available for as little as $10.00 on Amazon.\u00a0 I have successfully used several of these devices and the RPI has instantly recognized them with no problem.\u00a0 Here\u2019s a link to one that I have used http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Edimax-EW-7811Un-Wireless-Adapter-Wizard\/dp\/B005CLMJLU\/ref=pd_cp_pc_1<\/a> )<\/li>\n
  6. USB Mouse and Keyboard. (This is pretty obvious.\u00a0 You will need this at a minimum to complete the initial setup of your RPI. Once it is setup, you will no longer need to use these.)<\/li>\n
  7. Powered USB Hub.\u00a0 (If you connect the WIFI\u00a0dongle, keyboard, mouse and DVAP, you will need the extra USB ports and the extra power provided by this device.)<\/li>\n
  8. Monitor.\u00a0 (Again, this will only be needed during setup.\u00a0 I use a monitor with a HDMI input, but you can use a component cable or an adapter to fit your monitor).<\/li>\n
  9. DVAP. (Ok, this is obvious, too.\u00a0 You need either the UHF or VHF DVAP\u00a0device.\u00a0 I have used and tested both with the RPI with excellent results. \u00a0The DVAP will be the most expensive part of this project, aside from whatever D-Star radio you use with it.)<\/li>\n
  10. Portable Power. (If you want a truly portable setup, you can buy any number of battery powered\u00a0devices to run your system.\u00a0 You can also build one.\u00a0 I opted to purchase a Powergen\u00a0PGMPP12000 for $59.99 from Amazon (http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/B0085OB0IE\/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1<\/a>\u00a0).\u00a0 It is rated 5 volts at 12,000 mAh and powers the whole system with no problem.\u00a0 It also comes with two cables and micro USB adapters.)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Here are some photos of my completed system (shown with Icom\u00a0ID-51A HT):<\/p>\n

    \"pi1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    \"pi4\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    Ok, now that you have assembled all of your components, how do you make it work?\u00a0 That\u2019s where the white paper guide comes into play.\u00a0 Here\u2019s a link to the PDF file created by Mark, WD9JEN.\u00a0 Raspberry PI DVAP 12-24-2012 small<\/a>.\u00a0 Without Mark\u2019s well written guide and examples, this would have been a much more time consuming and difficult job.\u00a0 KUDOS to Mark for authoring this paper.\u00a0 While I could restate everything Mark has written, that would be a waste of bits and bytes, so at this point, just download the PDF and follow his instructions.\u00a0 The bottom line here is that you will do the following:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Go to http:\/\/westerndstar.co.uk<\/a>, navigate to the Downloads screen, and get the DVAP file, \u201cDVAP+ircDDB+VNC\u201d.\u00a0 This file is a 1 GB RAR compressed filed, so it will take a while to download.<\/li>\n
    2. You will decompress the file to a folder, resulting in a file that is around 4 GB.<\/li>\n
    3. You will use an image writer to burn the image of this file to your SD card.\u00a0 You cannot simply copy or \u201cdrag and drop\u201d the file to the SD card.\u00a0 You must burn the image.<\/li>\n
    4. You will insert the SD card into the RPI with all devices attached and apply power to boot up the RPI.<\/li>\n
    5. You will configure the settings in the software packages (DVAP\u00a0Node and IrcDDB).<\/li>\n
    6. After all settings are configured, you will do a soft reboot of the RPI (Do not do a hard reboot by pulling the power cord) and all of your settings will be saved.<\/li>\n
    7. After reboot, you will be able to access the DVAP\u00a0with your radio and get on the air.\u00a0 Please note that you do not need to have the monitor, keyboard or mouse connected at this point.\u00a0 If everything was set up correctly, the system will boot and after about 45 seconds or so your DVAP\u00a0will be ready for commands from your radio.\u00a0 If you see the blue light slowly blinking on your DVAP you are properly connected.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      As I set up my RPI and DVAP, I ran into a few glitches that I will share here.\u00a0 Some of these resulted in trial and error solutions, while others were resolved by email assistance from Mark, WD9JEN, David, K9RUF, \u00a0and Terry, W5TMP.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Carefully look at each field in the DVAP\u00a0Node and IrcDDB packages and make sure you complete every field as indicated in the paper.\u00a0 Even one setting that is not correct will result in operation problems.<\/li>\n
      2. When you enter the frequency for your DVAP, you MUST enter the correct amount of digits without a decimal.\u00a0 You will enter exactly 9 digits, nor more and no less.\u00a0 So, if your DVAP is on 146.500, you would enter 146500000.\u00a0 If you don\u2019t, you will receive an \u201cout of range\u201d error message.<\/li>\n
      3. If you are using a UHF DVAP, make sure you select \u201cB\u201d mode in the setup screen.\u00a0 If you are using a VHF DVAP, make sure you slect the \u201cC\u201d mode in the setup screen.<\/li>\n
      4. DO NOT change any settings in either software package unless indicated in Mark\u2019s guide.<\/li>\n
      5. As mentioned above, do a soft reboot after changing any settings.\u00a0 If you simply pull the power, all settings will be lost and it will be back at the default.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        That\u2019s about it!\u00a0 After the above is successfully completed, you will be on the air with your RPI and DVAP and will be able to use any D-Star radio to communicate.<\/p>\n

        But what about mobile or portable operation?<\/p>\n

        As I mentioned above, I have used my setup in mobile and portable environments.\u00a0 While traveling down the road, I use the Personal Hotspot feature of my iPhone to connect the RPI via the WIFI dongle.\u00a0 It has worked flawlessly so far.\u00a0 In the car, you can use a phone charger that plugs into the lighter socket, as long as it delivers the appropriate voltage and amperage for your set up.\u00a0 You can also use an inverter or similar device if you vehicle is so equipped.<\/p>\n

        \"hotspot\"<\/a><\/p>\n

        \"pi2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

        For portable use, I take advantage of the large capacity of the Powergen\u00a0battery pack listed above.\u00a0 This makes the RPI and DVAP a truly portable system that you can take anywhere you have access to the Internet.<\/p>\n

        \"pi3\"<\/a><\/p>\n

        The final item I would like to mention here is the WIFI\u00a0setup using the SD card image referenced above.\u00a0 I had a little difficulty getting this setup and working.\u00a0 It turned out that I had an error in the configuration file for the WIFI\u00a0adapter.\u00a0 There is a GUI WIFI\u00a0program included with the build that may work for you.\u00a0 To set up the WIFI, just load this program and instruct it to scan for available WIFI\u00a0networks.\u00a0 If it finds yours, double click\u00a0on it and enter your password.\u00a0 That should work.\u00a0 If not, you may have to edit the wpa-supplicant.conf file found at the path: \/etc\/wpa-supplicant\/wpa-supplicant.conf.\u00a0 You can use the Nano editor to do this, but just make sure you load the editor using the sudo command so you have rights to edit the file.<\/p>\n

        UPDATE:<\/p>\n

        After working on this post, I noticed that Robin, AA4RC, the father of the DAVP\u00a0had posted in the DVAPDongle\u00a0group that he now has DVAPTool\u00a0software available for the RPI.\u00a0 As of the time of this post I have not loaded and used this software, but I wanted everyone to be aware of it.\u00a0 I hope to see some comments to this post about how this software works with the RPI and DVAP.\u00a0 Here\u2019s Robin\u2019s post:<\/p>\n

        From:<\/b> DVAPDongle@yahoogroups.com<\/a>\u00a0[mailto:DVAPDongle@yahoogroups.com<\/a>] On Behalf Of <\/b>aa4rc
        \nSent:<\/b> Monday, February 18, 2013 2:45 PM
        \nTo:<\/b>         DVAPDongle@yahoogroups.com<\/a>
        \nSubject:<\/b>\u00a0[DVAPDongle] DVAPTool version 1.04 for Raspberry Pi released<\/p>\n

        DVAPTool\u00a0for the Raspberry Pi is now available for the Raspian Wheezy distribution 2013-02-09-wheezy-raspian.img.
        \nFollow the steps below to install\/run:
        \n1) make sure you are running Raspian Wheezy 2013-02-09 and are connected to the internet with your Pi.
        \n2) open an LXTerminal\u00a0window and run: “sudo\u00a0apt-get install qt4-dev-tools”. Answer “Y” when prompted.
        \n3) in terminal window run: “curl -O         http:\/\/opendstar.org\/tools\/DVAPTool-1.04-rpi.tgz<\/a>”
        \n4) in terminal window run “sudo\u00a0tar xzPf DVAPTool-1.04-rpi.tgz”
        \n5) in terminal window run DVAPTool\u00a0with “.\/DVAPTool” from your home directory.
        \nNote that this is a full GUI version. I’m working on a text only daemon.
        \nThere are no current plans to compile DVAPTool\u00a0for any distribution other than Raspian. It may or may not work on others.<\/p>\n

        73,
        \nRobin
        \nAA4RC<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

        That\u2019s it!\u00a0 I hope everyone enjoys using the RPI and DVAP for a great D-Star experience.<\/p>\n

        UPDATE \u2013 DVAPTool Auto Start – 3\/2\/2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Thanks to John, WB4QDX\u00a0for emailing me instructions for setting up the AA4RC\u00a0DVAPTool\u00a0software to auto start in the \u201copen\u201d mode (i.e., with the blue light blinking and the DVAP awaiting radio commands).\u00a0 Please note that before you do this you should first follow the steps in Robin\u2019s email that is quoted in the main post above to load the DVAPTool software and all associated software.<\/p>\n

        Here\u2019s what you need to do to set up a headless (no keyboard, mouse or monitor) DVAP system using DVAPTool and either the UHF or VHF DVAP devices:<\/p>\n

        1.\u00a0\u00a0 Using the text editor of your choice (Leafpad, Nano, etc.) , edit \/etc\/rc.local<\/strong> <\/span>by adding the following lines:<\/p>\n

        # Start X Server so DVAPTool can start<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

        su pi \u2013c startx<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

        2.\u00a0 Again, using the text editor of your choice, create a text file in \/home\/pi \u00a0with the name .xinitrc<\/strong> <\/span>with the following lines:<\/p>\n

        #!\/bin\/sh<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

        #.xinitrc<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

        # Start DVAPTool<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

        exec\u00a0 \/home\/pi\/DVAPTool \u00a0\u2013open<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

        Again, this file must be placed in the \/home\/pi directory and it must be made executable.\u00a0 To make it executable, type the following command from a command line in the terminal:<\/p>\n

        chmod\u00a0755 .xinitrc<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

        After you complete the above, reboot the RPI and you should see the system boot into the DVAPTool software in open mode ready for a command from the radio.<\/p>\n

        I have tested this on both the UHF and VHF DVAPs\u00a0with DVAPTool\u00a0 and it works great.\u00a0 With the DVAP Node and DVAPTool packages, you now have two choices to set up a headless portable or mobile RPI\/DVAP system.\u00a0 I have created separate SD cards for each system to allow me to switch back and forth, if needed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        A while back, my friend NS4U\u00a0mentioned that he was going to buy a Raspberry Pi.\u00a0 My first thought was that he was talking about dessert.\u00a0 As it turns out, he was referring to a miniature, inexpensive Linux based\u00a0computer.\u00a0 After our talk, I decided to investigate this a little more, with an eye towards setting this … Continue reading Setting up a Raspberry Pi to work with a DV Access Point Dongle (DVAP)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"powered_cache_disable_cache":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-311","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pDldz-51","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/311","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=311"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/311\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":444,"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/311\/revisions\/444"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=311"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=311"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ab4bj.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=311"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}