U3S

Live tracking
Launch photos
Transmitter

This is the 12'th test flight of the new U4B tracker. For details see below.


Live tracking


This is a new tracking program, being tested:


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Launch photos


Glyph

Like earlier flights, U4B-12 has a balloon glyph which is transmitted during times between the WSPR transmissions, this is a very nice screenshot by KL7L, also showing the slow-Hell "QRP" which is transmitted several minutes after the balloon glyph. Note that the slow-Hellshreiber uses the exact same font (pixel layout) as used in the original mechanical Hellshreiber machines developed in Germany by Rudolf Hell in the late 1920's. I wonder what he would have thought of all this, nearly a century later! 

Here's a selection recorded by G0UPL;


Transmitter

This is the 12'th test flight of the new U4B tracker. U4B-12 was assembled by Dave VE3KCL. This YouTube video explains the features of the U4B tracker. 

BASIC

This is the BASIC listing of U4B-12:

5 LET C = 33
6 PRINT BT
7 IF BT < 2850              * check for 2.85v or more
8 SLEEP 10 1
9 GOTO 6
10 ENDIF
15 PRINT TK
18 IF TK > 266           * if over -7c go high power mode will use 55 ma.
19 LET I = 1
21 GOTO 26
22 ENDIF
24 LET I = 0                   * go low power mode  will use 37 ma.
26 LET FR = 26999800
27 OUT 9 0                                                       * turn off led
29 GPS 304 "$PSIMNAV,W,3*3A" 
30 OUT 9 CL                                                      * turn on led if gps locked
31 PRINT FR
32 SLEEP 10 1
33 OUT 9 0                                                        * turn off led before transmission
41 CW 0 14096950 12 0 " VE3OCL"
42 CW 0 14096920 5 0 "*019630  90290580*"              * graphic 12
43 CW 0 14096920 5 0 "*01IFLCNAP8Q7R6R5S0S0S5R6R7Q8PANCLFI*"          * balloon glyph 20m
44 TELE
47 HELL 0 14096920 16 8 "QRP"                 *slow hell tx to compare qrss penetration
48 CW 0 10140020 5 0 "*019630  90290580*"
49 CW 0 10140020 5 0 "*01IFLCNAP8Q7R6R5S0S0S5R6R7Q8PANCLFI*"          * balloon glyph 30m
50 GOTO 15

A0 shorted to ground to evoke usb mode
first tx on minute 1 
first wspr on minute 2 channel 3
VE3OCL 14097025  compile 374 bytes
Lowering threshold voltages as using only 6 solar cells to see if it starts earlier than 20 degrees above horz
Modify low power mode to be sensitive to low temperature 

Photos

The same U4B board is used as in previous flights. The image below shows the weight and lift balance.