Radarcape:Faq

Q: Will you provide solutions of all the application ideas?

A: This is far outside my capabilities and it is left to some skilled people in the community. However, I will provide some basic services like 1) or some code libraries that will make Mode-S decoding easier. I most probably will also enforce the idea of peer-to-peer multilateration.

Q: How does the Radarcape perform compared to the Mode-S Beast?

A: The Radarcape got all the improvements implemented that I've learned with the Mode-S Beast, so it's performance generally is a little bit better than the Mode-S Beast, however there are influences that can let the other one look better in some cases. The main focus on the development is versatiltiy in the use cases and not performance.

Q: Will the final user still need to solder difficulty components?

A: The Radarcape will only be available as ready made unit, so no end user completion tasks are necessary.

Q: What if I am not familiar with Linux at all?

A: It much looks as if it as easy as handling of a USB stick, not more, so copying software to it and handling it from there should be easy. Updates easily can be done with a SCP tool, as described in this wiki, as another way the Radarcape while it is connected to the internet can download SW automatically. Otherwise it might be possible to supply ready preinstalled SD cards that only need to be plugged into the Beaglebone's slot.

Q: Why did you select the Beaglebone and not the Raspberry Board?

A: The Beaglebone is a device that is made for expandability while the R-Pi is a nice gadget but unfortunately does not provide some major features like a power connector or enougth signals on the extension port. Finally it cannot easily become integrated into a case, since the connectors extend to all 4 sides and are not aligned. All these are items which solution would easily eat up the cheaper price.

Q: Will the Radarcape work with the Beaglebone-Black?

A: The Beaglebone-Black unfortunately has pins assigned to eMMC and HDMI which are used to interface to the Radarcape. Due to this, the Radarcape in its current hardware design cannot work with BBB.

Q: Can I operate the Radarcape without GPS?

A: Yes. As long as you don't want to use the absolute GPS timestamp, the Radarcape can operate without GPS.

Q: Can the Radarcape, equal to the Mode-S Beast, decode 2 independant antenna signals?

A: Basically yes, but at the moment there is no firmware support for this provided.

Q: Do I need special tools in order to operate the Radarcape?

A: No. Unlike the Mode-S Beast, which required a FPGA programming adapter in its first version, the Radarcape can be managed with software only. All you may need are some basic software tools like WinSCP or Putty.

Q: Will the Radarcape provide an USB serial interface like the Mode-S Beast?

A: Yes. This is planned.

Q: Is it possilbe to power the Radarcape from USB only?

A: No. Power consuption of the whole device is about twice as much as USB can supply, so in any way of operation, an external 5V supply is required.