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3 EASY ANTENNAS FOR BEGINNERS

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  • 3 EASY ANTENNAS FOR BEGINNERS

    3 EASY ANTTENNAS FOR BEGINNERS

    The main disadvantages of stock antenna supplied with DVB-T USB Dongle are:

    (1) It has a very short lead. Due to this, in most cases the antenna cannot be placed at an optimum location.
    (2) The stock antenna is not optimized for 1090 Mhz.


    SOLUTION FOR PROBLEM (1):
    The short cable length can be overcome by connecting a MCX to F pigtail to the DVB-T USB Dongle, and connecting to the pigtail, the required length of commonly available RG6 cable with a DIY antenna at other end of RG6 cable.


    Tip:
    (1) For RG6 coax lengths in excess of 5m/15ft, coax attenuation will be high, and an amplifier may become necessary.
    (2) Even with short lengths of Coax, use of amplifier increases plane count & range.


    SOLUTION FOR PROBLEM (2):

    The non optimized antenna can be replaced by a DIY antenna which has a ¼ wavelength vertical whip connected to core of coax cable, and a ground plane connected to shield of coax. The ground plane can be formed by a disc, a number of horizontal radials, a number of slanting radials, or a food/drink can.

    Below are 3 different easy antennas for beginners, Spider, Platenna & Cantenna. These all have a ¼ wavelength vertical whip connected to core of Coax cable, but use different methods of providing ground plane connected to shield of coax
    Last edited by abcd567; 2015-12-02, 04:10.

  • #2
    EASY ANTENNA # 1 : SPIDER

    Parts Required:

    1. SO-239 Connector
    SO239 standard.jpg

    2. PL-259 UHF to F adapter (to connect RG6 coax to SO-239 Connector)
    PL259 - F to UHF adapter 2.JPG

    3. Copper wire pieces 10 cm long - 5 pieces for 4 Leg Spider, 9 pieces for 8 Leg Spider.

    4. Small Nuts & bolts 4 pieces for fixing wires at 4 corners of SO239 adapter

    Schematic & Dimensions
    Spider Antenna SO239.PNG


    Finished Antenna 4 Legs (Does not require soldering)
    Built by jepolch
    http://forum.planefinder.net/threads...nna.23/page-31

    jepolch 4 legged spider.jpg


    Finished Antenna 8 Legs (Requires Soldering - Performs better than 4 Legs)
    Built by autok
    http://www.atouk.com/wordpress/?page_id=237

    atouk 8 legged spider.jpg
    Last edited by abcd567; 2015-03-10, 05:55.

    Comment


    • #3
      EASY ANTENNA #2 : CANTENNA

      Please see below photos, showing construction details.


      Completed Cantenna

      Designed & Built by Author of this post (abcd567)



      The whip at top is ¼ wavelength i.e. 69mm (see dimension drawing below)
      The whip is core wire of coax cable.
      It can be bare copper wire OR copper wire + core insulation.
      Shield (braid+foil) MUST be removed from the whip.




      Coverage
      The range rings are 50 nm apart, the maximum distance achieved is 250 nm from the receiver.



      HOW TO MAKE

      Image 1 of 6 : Construction Details 1



      Image 2 of 6 : Construction Details 2



      Image 3 of 6 : Construction Details 3


      Image 4 of 6 : Fully Assembled



      Image 5 of 6 : Details of whip, if insulated whip is used.
      The whip can also be un insulated bare copper wire like core wire of coax





      Image 6 of 6: Sketch of Pepsi Can Dimensions



      Cantennas using other types of cans:


      Built by giacomo1989 http://forum.planefinder.net/threads...e-25#post-1530


      Built by jepolch http://forum.planefinder.net/threads...e-74#post-2607


      .
      Last edited by abcd567; 2015-08-28, 13:47.

      Comment


      • #4
        EASY ANTENNA # 3 : QUICK SPIDER
        No Soldering Required, No SO239 Connector Required


        Maximum Range Curve By VRS (VirtualRadarServer.co.uk)

        Hardware Used for Range Curve Plotting:
        Quick Spider >>
        12 ft / 4 m RG6 Coax >>
        Generic DVB-T (Black, RTL2832U+R820T) >>
        Orange Pi PC





        Trial Run - Indoor Near Large Window





        HOW TO MAKE

        Please see these posts also for previous Versions:

        (1) May 2015

        (2) September 2016




        STEP 1 - Stuff Required





        STEP 2 - Cut Coax Into Required Pieces





        STEP 3 - Remove braid & Insulation





        STEP 4 - Bend Wires





        STEP 5 - Assemble Radials





        STEP 6 - Bend Down Radials 45 Degrees


        .


        ENHANCEMENT FOR OUTDOOR USE
        1) Apply a rapid setting (5 minutes) sealant like 2-part epoxy, or silicone, or hot melt glue, or similar at the point where radials enter the outer jacket of coax.
        2) After installation. wrap the F-connector in tape to prevent moisture ingress. You may also use outdoor type F connector which are water resistant


        Last edited by abcd567; 2017-05-03, 16:25.

        Comment


        • #5
          EASY ANTENNA #4 :
          SIX LEG GROUNDPLANE/SPIDER ANTENNA

          USES ONLY F-TYPE CONNECTOR (With Nut & Washer)



          NO SOLDERING REQUIRED
          NO SO-239, BNC or N CONNECTOR REQUIRED.



          FINISHED LENGTHS
          WHIP: From top of F-connector to top of whip = 69 mm

          RADIALS: From Point of bending down to tip of radial = 69 mm

          RADIALS BENDING DOWN: About 45 degrees below horizontal

          WIRE DIA: Flexible. In this demo core wire of RG6 coax cable is used which has a dia of 1 mm (18 AWG), but wires with bigger dia can as well be used.


          STEP-1



          STEP-2



          STEP-3



          ON TRIAL RUN



          DIRECTLY BUILT ON AN AMPLIFIER, INSTEAD OF F-CONNECTOR

          Last edited by abcd567; 2015-06-17, 15:40.

          Comment


          • #6
            Hi,
            Do you think these antennae are better than the FR24 provided regular antenna?
            I host a F-xxxx device and hence curious to know if these DIY antennae can help extending the coverage area?

            cheers
            VOTV/TRV

            Comment


            • #7
              Do you think these antennae are better than the FR24 provided regular antenna?
              Basically, no. I regularly get 320+ NM with the stock FR24 equipment.

              That being said, I like this thread. I have an Airspy SDR and going to mess around with these antenna designs.
              F-KDAG1

              Comment


              • #8
                SIMULATION OF 2 DIY ANTENNAS

                Simulation 1 of 2: SPIDER (8 Legged )
                Gain = 1.7 dBi
                SWR (75 ohms) = 1.3






                .

                Simulation 2 of 2: CANTENNA
                Gain = 1.9 dBi
                SWR (75 ohms) = 1.5


                Comment


                • #9
                  which software are you using to capture the polar diagram? I'd like to run some tests but have no other quantitative way to make measurements.
                  Thank you

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by lockon View Post
                    which software are you using to capture the polar diagram? I'd like to run some tests but have no other quantitative way to make measurements.
                    Thank you
                    That looks like the one built in to Virtual Radar Server, SBSPlotter is another one will run stand alone and create .out plots that you can load into basestation etc.

                    Jerry

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by lockon View Post
                      which software are you using to capture the polar diagram? I'd like to run some tests but have no other quantitative way to make measurements.
                      Thank you
                      Virtual Radar Server on my Windows Desktop.

                      A stand-alone .NET application that displays output from an SBS-1 ADS-B receiver on a Google Maps web page.


                      I can connect it to any of my receivers (DVB-T RTL USB Dongles) inserted into any computer on my home network (Desktop, Laptop & Raspberry Pi).

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by abcd567 View Post
                        Virtual Radar Server on my Windows Desktop.

                        A stand-alone .NET application that displays output from an SBS-1 ADS-B receiver on a Google Maps web page.


                        I can connect it to any of my receivers (DVB-T RTL USB Dongles) inserted into any computer on my home network (Desktop, Laptop & Raspberry Pi).
                        I am using FR24 supplied equipment, this supplies data from the receiver directly to the router, is it possible to use Virtual Radar with this?
                        If life is a stage, most of us are unrehearsed...!

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Yes

                          In VRS enter IP of FR24 box,port 30034 for raw or 30003 for basestation.
                          here is example for raw. Replace X.XX in IP with your box IP
                          Screenshot_1.jpg
                          For official support use Contact Form

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Amper View Post
                            Yes

                            In VRS enter IP of FR24 box,port 30034 for raw or 30003 for basestation.
                            here is example for raw. Replace X.XX in IP with your box IP
                            [ATTACH=CONFIG]6508[/ATTACH]
                            Hi Amper I had just got it configured using the IP of the FR24 Receiver and using port 80.. I selected port 80 initially as the feed is not directly into the PC, seems to be working OK, the plots appear to match what I am seeing on the FR24 Feed data and it is actually giving me better feedback on how the Antenna is working as now I can see the distances, locations, etc. overlaid on Google Map...

                            I will make a note of the configs you suggested and have a play around with it to see what gives me the best output on the screen.

                            Many thanks.
                            If life is a stage, most of us are unrehearsed...!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Hi, abcd567, could you inform us about the specs of the amplifier that you've mentioned? Is that an standard digital TV amplifier?


                              Enviado do meu iPhone usando Tapatalk

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