Kantronics KAM Operation Manual
All-mode radio modem/tnc
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- Page 1 KPC-4 KPC-2400 KPC-2 KPC-1 Operations Manual Version 3.0 – Aug. 13, 1990 RF Data Communications Specialists 1202 E. 23rd Street, Lawrence, Kansas 66046 Order number (913) 842-7745 Service number (913) 842-4476 9 am - noon, 2 pm - 5 pm Central Time, Monday-Friday...
- Page 2 Street, Lawrence, KS 66046. Printed in the U. S. A. © Copyright 1989 by Kantronics Inc., 1202 E. 23rd Street, Lawrence, KS 66046 All rights reserved. Contents of this publication or the firmware described herein may not be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the copyright owner.
- Page 3 Using a KA-NODE ................23 Local Acknowledgments, Higher Throughput ........24 Automatic Disconnect ................ 24 Using the XCONNECT Command (KAM KPC-4 only) ....... 25 Determining Which Port You Have Connected To ......... 25 KA-NODE Commands for Remote Use ..........26...
- Page 4 Kantronics Host Mode Operation ............28 Communication Format Host computer to TNC ............28 HF Modes ............... 29 TNC to Host Computer ............29 HF Mode operation ................30 WEFAX Mode General .................... 31 Background: HF WEFAX Transmission and Resolution ......31 Finding WEFAX Broadcasts ..............
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Page 5: Preface
TNC to your computer and radios. First, we start with the modes common to all Kantronics TNCs, including Packet, the Personal Mail- box, KA-NODE, WEFAX and KISS Mode. From here, we move into the modes that are only avail- able on the Kantronics All Mode (KAM) communicator. -
Page 6: Intro/Getting Started
Intro / Getting Started Now that you have your new Kantronics unit connected to your radio and computer, let's take a moment to see what it is and how to make it understand what you want to do. A Terminal Node Controller (TNC) is very similar to a telephone modem because it receives digital signals from the computer (Terminal) and converts them to tones suitable for transmission to distant location. -
Page 7: Asynchronous Commands
INTRO again, the changes will not be remembered unless you have used the PERM command, or using a Battery Backup or SmartWatch. All commands are listed alphabetically in the Commands Manual and many are discussed by mode in this Operations Manual. The Command Manual also has an introduction that goes into more de- tail on the structure of commands. -
Page 8: Dual-Port Set-Up Commands
VHF port and the KPC-4 will address Port 1. If you wish, this may be changed so that the other port will be addressed when the unit is turned on. For the KAM, you could type PORT HF prompt, and for the... - Page 9 INTRO (KAM only). When set to NONE as default, the will be in the Packet Mode. This com- PMODE mand allows you to have your come on in the mode you select. Optional parameters are: ASCII, AMTOR, CW, FEC, RTTY, NAVTEX and NONE (Packet). Starting the in the Kiss or Host Mode is accomplished with the INTFACE command (INTFACE will override PMODE).
- Page 10 STA – This LED will illuminate when you have unacknowledged VHF packets. Also, if the CON light is OFF, the STA light is used to indicate PBBS status – ON steady indicates someone is connected to the PBBS and blinking indicates mail in the Kantronics TNC for you. POWER INDICATOR POWER - The single LED on the right end of the front panel illuminates when power is applied.
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Page 11: Kpc-4
FRONT PANELS Ten Segment LED Bargraph The bargraph provides a visual indication of the received HF signal. The end segments, labeled MARK and SPACE, blink alternately on a properly tuned RTTY/ASCII/AMTOR or Packet signal. In CW Mode the left end (MARK) of the bargraph illuminates when no signal is present and the right end (SPACE) lights when a signal is detected. -
Page 12: Kpc-2
Also, if the CON light is OFF, the STA light is used to indicate PBBS status – ON steady indicates someone is connected to the PBBS and blinking indicates mail in the Kantronics TNC for you. -
Page 13: Kpc-2400
Also, if the CON light is OFF, the STA light is used to indicate PBBS status – ON steady indicates someone is connected to the PBBS and blinking indicates mail in the Kantronics TNC for you. KPC-1 The front panel has three LEDs which provide information as follows: POWER –... -
Page 14: Packet Mode
Mode. This is the mode you will be in when you turn on the TNC (unless you have changed the PMODE parameter in the KAM). Once you have left Commend Mode for any reason, there is a parameter called COMMAND that determines what special character you will use to return to Com- mand Mode. -
Page 15: Monitoring And Calling Cq
PACKET Monitoring and Calling CQ If you turn the MONITOR command ON, you will begin to see other people's packets on your screen. You will notice two callsigns at the beginning of each packet separated by a >. The first callsign is the station the packet is from. -
Page 16: Digipeating
PACKET When you have finished your conversation you need to end the connection. To do this, you go into the Command Mode and type a for Disconnect. Remember to press the return or enter key after any command to the TNC. Once your station has received the acknowledgment for the the discon- nect packet the TNC will send this message to your screen: *** DISCONNECTED Either station can issue the disconnect command, no matter which station originated the connect. -
Page 17: Gateway
PACKET Gateway In the KPC-4 a Gateway is also available. This is similar to digipeating except that the re- transmission of the packets takes place on the other radio port of the TNC from where it was re- ceived. In other words, if you are on VHF and send a packet via a Gateway callsign of a your packet would be retransmitted on HF, on whatever frequency the radio connected to the set for. -
Page 18: Timing
PACKET people use the Unproto Mode and are aware that a collision may occur once in a while. You can usually tell by the conversation if something was missed; if you don't get an answer to a question it's probably not that he is ignoring you, but either the question or the answer got collided with. With MONITOR ON, the BUDLIST and BUDCALLS commands can help in setting up your monitor- ing to see only those you want to see. -
Page 19: Frack
PACKET Frack Frame acknowledgment time. If the TNC expects an acknowledgment of a packet it has sent, it will wait FRACK seconds for the acknowledgment. If the acknowledgment is not received it will either send a poll or retransmit the packet, depending on the setting of AX25L2V2. When digis are used, extra time is allowed for each transmission using the following equation: FRACK ×... -
Page 20: Flow Control
PACKET packet of information. This is the major difference between version 1 and version 2. The connect attempts would then continue for the number of retries set in the TNC and if no response was re- ceived from station B after all of the above, station A would disconnect and dump the packet UN- PROTO. -
Page 21: Hardware Flow Control
PACKET Hardware Flow Control Hardware flow control monitors the voltages on the RTS and CTS pins of the RS-232 cable. There- fore these two wired must be in the cable between your TNC and computer. The TNC holds CTS high as long as it can receive data. Once its buffer gets full, it pulls this line low. The computer program monitors this line and when it is pulled low, knows to stop sending data. -
Page 22: Getting Out Of Transparent
PACKET Getting Out of Transparent Getting into Transparent Mode is easy, just type a in Command Mode. But since Transparent Mode allows the sending of all characters you can not get out of Transparent Mode by just typing a Ctrl-C (COMANND character) as in Convers Mode. -
Page 23: General
PBBS General Your TNC contains the Kantronics Personal Mailbox system which will allow you to leave messages for others which may be retrieved later. The personal mailbox is compatible with the large com- munity bulletin board systems (RLI, MBL, etc.) and will allow them to forward mail for you directly into your TNC. - Page 24 PBBS Using the PBBS is therefore the same, whether you are using your own PBBS or another persons PBBS. At this point, you are ready to send a message to another user, or issue any other mailbox command. Let's assume I want to send a message to KA5ZTX. I would now use the send command: S KA5ZTK and the TNC responds with: SUBJECT:...
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Page 25: Reverse Forwarding Messages From Your Mailbox
Reverse forwarding messages from your mailbox The Kantronics TNC mailbox will allow you to enter messages which will be forwarded by full-ser- vice BBSs (RLI, MBL, etc.). These messages have a special format and can only be entered in your OWN personal mailbox. -
Page 26: Ka-Node General
(see KNTIMER) then the KA-NODE will disconnect both sides of the node. Configuring Your KA-NODE In order to set your Kantronics TNC for use as a KA-NODE, several conditions must be met. First, you must allocate the number of circuits you wish to allow through the KA-NODE (see NUMNO- DES). -
Page 27: Using A Ka-Node
KA-NODE Using a KA-NODE To use the KA-NODE as a means of connecting to some other node or end-user, you must first connect to the KA-NODE. At the prompt on your TNC, issue a connect request to the callsign cmd: of the KA-NODE, let's say LAW. -
Page 28: Local Acknowledgments, Higher Throughput
KA-NODE ample, if you connected to LAW with W0XI, LAW connected (via your request) to KC with WX0XI- 15. This is automatic. At this point, you could connect to another KA-NODE, some other network node using AX.25 as an uplink or downlink protocol, or to an end-user. Let's assume that you de- sire to connect to N0APJ. -
Page 29: Determining Which Port You Have Connected To
Kantronics unique GATEWAY command, but with local acknowledgment of packets. For example, suppose you just connected to node LAWKAN and wish to cross-connect to WD0EMR whose station is tuned to the frequency of the other port of the node. -
Page 30: Ka-Node Commands For Remote Use
Jheard [Short | Long] This command will cause the KA-NODE to transmit its TNC MHEARD log. The returned list (without the short or long option) will look like this: (KAM) (KPC-4) LAWKAN/H* 01/09/88 08:25:15 LAWKAN/1* 01/09/88 08:25:15... - Page 31 KA-NODE The long (JHEARD L) version of this command will also show the destination field and digipeaters used. This list would look like: (KAM) LAWKAN/H* >W0XI 01/09/88 08:25:15 VIA KSKU, TOP*, KSKU N66046/V >BEACON 01/10/88 00:03:10 WK5M-3/H* >WD0EMR 01/10/88 00:03:19...
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Page 32: Kantronics Host Mode Operation
Kantronics Host Mode Operation To operate in the Host Mode with a Kantronics TNC you must first set the INTFACE command to HOST. After this is set, it will necessary to perform a soft reset to enter the Host Mode. This may... -
Page 33: Kam Hf Modes
This will be a '1' if the TNC is in single port operation or a '1' or '2' if in dual port operation. When using the KAM, the VHF port is indicated by a port byte of '1' and the HF port is '2'. Single port units use port byte '1'. -
Page 34: Hf Mode Operation
HF Mode operation When using a non-packet mode on the HF port of the KAM, received HF data will be sent to the host with status byte 'D', ort byte '2' and stream byte '0'. Each received character is sent from the to the host in a separate block. -
Page 35: Wefax Mode General
Facsimile reception (WEFAX) is available with your TNC since the weather facsimile broadcast are using an 800 Hz FSK shift which is compatible with the Kantronics 1200 baud modem. In order to receive WEFAX, you must have a program for your computer which will receive 8 bit data from the TNC and format it properly for display on your computer screen or your printer. -
Page 36: Tuning Wefax Signals On Hf
WEFAX program to determine how to use it. All of the programs available from Kantronics will require, that you set MAXUSERS as listed above and each of them will issue the proper WEFAX command to start the reception of the image. The programs will work best at higher ABAUD rates and we suggest 9600 for the PC and Macintosh based programs, and 1200 for the Commodore 64. -
Page 37: The Wefax Command
Ctrl-C to the TNC. If you are using the Kantronics MAXFAX or PACFILE program with a PC compatible, you should set the ABUD to 9600 in the TNC and PERM it at that value. Suggestions for Writing a WEFAX Terminal Program Preferences will vary for each WEFAX terminal program writer or user, but the following functions seem appropriate, at a minimum, for enjoyable operation. - Page 38 WEFAX Some considerations for the RS-232 port. When the TNC is set in WEFAX Mode, it will send pixel by pixel bytes to your computer continually until you send it a Ctrl-C or turn it off! When in WEFAX Mode, the TNC will do nothing else; it is simply too busy handling all that data. The bytes sent to your computer on the RS-232 receive data line include one start bit, eight pixel bits and one stop bit.
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Page 39: Kiss Mode
KISS KISS Mode The KISS Mode allows the TNC to act as a modem and packet assembler/disassembler (PAD). The heart of the work to be done concerning what happens to data, must reside in your computer in order to use this mode of operation. The KISS code, as designed by Phil Karn, is implemented to support higher level protocols for sharing computer resources in a network fashion. - Page 40 KISS Let's look at data from the TNC to the computer. First, all information flowing in this direction is da- ta. No special messages are sent from the TNC to the computer in KISS Mode. The only data flow- ing in this direction is that received through the radio link. Every "frame" of data sent from the TNC will begin and end with a special FEND character.
- Page 41 KISS One final sequence of value (particularly for PC compatible users) is the "Leave KISS Mode" se- quence: C0 FF C0 If for some reason, you have INTFACE KISS and PERMed, when you turn the unit off and then on again, you will be in KISS Mode.
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Page 42: Rtty And Ascii Modes (Kam Only Rtty Theory
RTTY / ASCII RTTY and ASCII Modes only RTTY Theory RTTY is a 5 level (5 bit) BAUDOT code, which limits the number of possible characters to 32. This obviously does not provide enough combinations for all 26 letters of the alphabet and the numer- als and punctuation. -
Page 43: Rtty And Ascii Operation
RTTY / ASCII RTTY and ASCII Operation RTTY and ASCII operation with the is accomplished through the HF radio port. Several com- mands and special directives are used to control the operation of the in RTTY or ASCII opera- tion. The following commands (from the prompt) will set the defaults for RTTY and ASCII cmd: operation:... - Page 44 RTTY / ASCII Now that you've entered the desired mode (let's assume RTTY), we'll walk through a sample of RTTY operation. The same procedures will apply to ASCII operation. First, let's see how we can call CQ in RTTY. Since we entered the RTTY Mode without any other parameters, we are operating at 45 baud (default and most commonly used) with a 170 Hz shift (again default and most common).
- Page 45 RTTY / ASCII AUTOLF ON causes the to insert a line feed after every carriage return which is received from the distance station. If received RTTY or ASCII signal appear double-spaced on your screen, you want to turn this command OFF. The AUTOSTRT command is useful if you wish to leave your station in the automatic mode, in which you can receive messages from other stations, even when you are not present.
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Page 46: Miscellaneous Information
This can be useful for determining when your trans- mit buffer is empty and therefore you may return to receive mode. With split screen programs, the echoed data will show up in the receive window as it is echoed from the KAM. Miscellaneous Information Typically, in RTTY and ASCII operation, speed of transmission is specified in BAUD rather than words-per-minute. -
Page 47: Summary Of Rtty/Ascii Directives
RTTY / ASCII Once you have entered either the RTTY or ASCII Mode, the shift may be changed by using the Ctrl-C S directive. This will sequentially step through the available shifts – 170, 425, 850 and MO- DEM. Initially, the will enter the RTTY or ASCII Mode using the shift set in the SHIFT com- mand. -
Page 48: Amtor Mode (Kam Only Amtor Theory
"CCIR Recommendation 491-1" which describes a TOR station identity. The KAM allows you to enter this 7 character SELCAL in two ways. First, you may enter the actual 7 characters you wish to use. Currently, there is no defined standard for selecting your 7 charac- ters. -
Page 49: Amtor Operation
AMTOR character set. These will be displayed on your screen as the MISSCHAR which is defined in your KAM. The second method to enter AMTOR operation is to use the FEC command, which places you in the Mode B receive. -
Page 50: Tuning Amtor
WRU (Who aRe yoU) function. This function causes the other station to send a pre-defined string indicating information about his station. In the KAM, this information is entered with the WTEXT command. To initiate the WRU function, use the... -
Page 51: Summary Of Amtor Directives
AMTOR Summary of AMTOR Directives Ctrl-C E Return to receive mode when transmit buffer is empty Ctrl-C I Invert received MARK/SPACE signals Ctrl-C R Return to receive mode immediately Ctrl-C S Select next MARK/SPACE shift Ctrl-C T Enter transmit mode – seize ISS status Ctrl-C X Exit AMTOR Mode back to Command Mode (Packet) Ctrl-W... - Page 52 NAVTEX / AMTEX NAVTEX / AMTEX Mode only NAVTEX / AMTEX Theory NAVTEX transmissions are, in reality, Mode B AMTOR (FEC). What makes NAVTEX unique how- ever, is the actual message format. NAVTEX stations always transmit on 518 kHz LSB and are typi- cally located on the coast lines.
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Page 53: Navtex/Amtex Operation
NAVTEX / AMTEX Once a message has been received from a particular station with less than a specified amount of errors, it will not been printed again, as the receiving system keeps track of the message numbers it has received. If it then sees the same message class and number from the same transmitting station, it will not output the message to the terminal. - Page 54 You should tune SLOWLY and watch the bargraph tuning indicator on the KAM. When the station is properly tuned, the bargraph should deflect fully to the right. Tuning will depend on several factors, including receiver stability, internal filtering in your receiver, the...
- Page 55 Once you have selected your desired transmit speed, either by the above Ctrl-C directive, the command, or by locking to a received station with the Ctrl-C L command, you can enter the transmit mode by using the Ctrl-C T directive. At this point, the transmitter turns on and charac- ters you type from the keyboard are sent over the air at the specified speed.
- Page 56 HF transceiver, and connect the external speaker jack of your transceiver to the KAM. Next, set your transceiver so that when you press the key, it will generate a sidetone signal, allowing you to hear what you are sending. You will want to be sure you are not actually transmitting at this time.
- Page 57 CW to you by storing a file on the disk and then connecting the KAM green wire (CW KEY) to your key input of your HF transceiver. Again, set the transceiver so that it will generate sidetone, but will not transmit. Place the...
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