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u/bcpratt2000

r/hamdevs r/amateurradio
Image 1 — Update on the HT-15; A fully open-source, modular HT.
Image 2 — Update on the HT-15; A fully open-source, modular HT.
Image 3 — Update on the HT-15; A fully open-source, modular HT.
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Update on the HT-15; A fully open-source, modular HT.

Good morning y’all, It’s been a while since the last update. 

For those of you who don’t know what I am talking about, here is the original post about the radio from 9 months ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/HamRadio/comments/1nll4z9/we_are_working_on_a_new_off_the_shelf_digital/

TLDR from the above post; We are developing commercially available HT that is fully open source and open hardware. USBC, SD card, Epaper display, etc.

We have been very busy the past 9 months. At the time of the original post, all we had were schematics, mockups, renderings. Since then, we have gotten real mainboards built, wrote firmware from the ground up, got functioning RF FM, and “finalized” the majority of the enclosure design!

We are on track to fulfilling our promises as laid out in the original post:

  • Fully open source, hardware and software
  • Swappable radio module, allowing easy hardware upgradability (2M/70CM at launch, 3.5W)
  • USBC charge and data, SD card, Kenwood style audio connector, removable battery (now is integrated but is still easy to change)
  • Low-power E-ink display targeting 72+ hour standby time
  • FM and M17 support at launch, with plans to support many other digital modes in the future such as DMR, P25 (AMBE+2 codec patent should expire in the next couple years)
  • Ability for community to write and easily install “apps” that allow custom features or arbitrary digital mode development
  • Usable “off the shelf”. We will be selling the radio as a complete unit (not just a devboard)
  • Target price between $200 and $300, Selling all individual parts on our website for repairability

The next steps for us are:

  • Finish our FM/M17 support (still routing audio, CTCSS, etc. integrating M17 after).
  • Finish a basic UI; We have the libraries that we have largely written from the ground up to optimize the EPaper to our use case, it is just now a matter of using them.
  • Rev2 of mainboard hardware. There have been a handful of small issues with routing, IC reset pins, power optimisations; Along with some usability improvements/innovations (like a hardware keyboard lockout instead of a janky software implementation as an afterthought, I can’t wait to use this)

After these milestones are completed, we will be running a closed beta with a handful of members in the Discord server, contributors, etc.

Long term tasks that still need to be accomplished before our full launch:

  • Ongoing software support development and beyond launch (obviously)
  • Production validation manufacturing run (likely a Rev3 of the mainboard)
  • RF Rev2, we have some heat concerns on the RF module that we will be able to alleviate.
  • RF filter tuning and optimisation to ensure we get consistent, clean output power 
  • FCC certification (Part 15, everything else should fall under Part 97)
  • Finalizing enclosure design (and open sourcing our manufactured plastics)
  • Deciding on injection molding vs 3d printing + molded rubber parts for a final product (community input is appreciated, is a high quality 3d print good enough?)
  • Finding good (ideally American) vendors for battery, knobs, display “glass”, antennas, plastic parts, etc.

We do at some point in this process want to release a “dev kit” before the full radio release. No ETA yet, we want it to be the same or very similar hardware rev to what will be shipping in the finished product. This dev kit will give you all of the non-printable parts required to build an HT-15.

HW and Software repos are public: 
github.com/Arkos-Engineering/HT-15_firmware (RP2350, written in C99-ish)
github.com/Arkos-Engineering/HT-15_hardware (KiCad, schematics + PCBs + BOMs).

If you would like to support development:

  • Tell people about what we are doing
  • If you know of a good vendor for anything listed above, reach out!
  • Support us financially at the Buy Me a Coffee link on our website.

As a nights and weekends project for us, your support is crucial. If you would like to help us order new tooling, prototypes, etc. you can donate to our buy me a coffee This will also get you access to our Discord. A monthly membership is not required, a one time donation is enough (message me afterwards on BMAC and I’ll add you). This membership requirement might change in the future but for now we want to keep this community to those who have a stake in the project.

If you want to follow along when I remember to post on our social media, it is linked from our website: arkosengineering.com
We have:

  • Instagram
  • X
  • Youtube
  • Github (star us)
  • Blog page of our website

I will be treating this post as an AMA, so feel free to AMA!

73,
Ben K7YVQ

u/bcpratt2000 — 4 days ago