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NTMS
Microwave
Society

An Arduino Controlled
1 Hz to 60 MHz Signal Generator

Greg McIntire, AA5C

[email protected]

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Objectives NTMS
Microwave
Society

• Build a standalone 60 MHz signal generator

based on the DDS-60 board.
• Originally controlled the DDS-60 via a PC
parallel printer port
– Not a standalone solution
– Readily available software was written for XP and
wouldn’t run in compatibility mode on the newer
operating systems

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DDS-60 NTMS
Microwave
Society

• Originally designed for the QRP community

• http://midnightdesignsolutions.com/dds60/index.
html
• Based on the Analog Devices AD9851 DDS chip
• Current price is $45 plus shipping

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DDS-60 Schematic NTMS

Microwave
Society

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DDS-60 Back Side NTMS

Microwave
Society

AD8008 Output Amp 30 MHz Reference Crystal

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DDS-60 Top Side NTMS

Microwave
Society

Filter

AD9851

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Analog Devices AD9851 DDS NTMS

Microwave
Society

• 180 MHz Clock Rate with Selectable 6

Reference Clock
• Multiplier
• On-Chip High Performance 10-Bit
DAC and High Speed
• Comparator with Hysteresis
• SFDR >43 dB @ 70 MHz AOUT
• 32-Bit Frequency Tuning Word
• Simplifi ed Control Interface: Parallel
or Serial
• Asynchronous Loading Format
• 5-Bit Phase Modulation and Offset
Capability
• Comparator Jitter <80 ps p-p @ 20
MHz
• 2.7 V to 5.25 V Single-Supply
Operation
• Low Power: 555 mW @ 180 MHz
• Power-Down Function, 4 mW @ 2.7 V
• Ultrasmall 28-Lead SSOP Packaging

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Caution NTMS
Microwave
Society

• Older DDS-60 documentation noted using

supply voltages up to 16 VDC.
– AD8008 op amp is supplied directly from the +Vin line
– AD8008 op amp maximum supply voltage is 12 VDC
– They blow with 13.8 VDC
– Recommend using a 9 VDC supply.

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Arduino Uno Board Texas

NTMS
Microwave
Society

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Atmel ATMega328P NTMS

Microwave
Society

• High Performance, Low Power Atmel® AVR® 8-Bit

Microcontroller Family
• Advanced RISC Architecture
– 131 Powerful Instructions – Most Single Clock Cycle
Execution
– 32 x 8 General Purpose Working Registers
– Fully Static Operation
– Up to 20 MIPS Throughput at 20MHz
– On-chip 2-cycle Multiplier

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ATMega328P Memory NTMS

Microwave
Society

• 32KBytes of In-System Self-Programmable Flash

program memory
• 1KBytes EEPROM
• 2KBytes Internal SRAM
• Write/Erase Cycles: 10,000 Flash/100,000 EEPROM
• Data retention: 20 years at 85C/100 years at 25 C
• Optional Boot Code Section with Independent Lock Bits
– In-System Programming by On-chip Boot Program
– True Read-While-Write Operation
• Programming Lock for Software Security

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ATMega328P Peripheral Features NTMS

Microwave
Society

– Two 8-bit Timer/Counters with Separate Prescaler and Compare

Mode
– One 16-bit Timer/Counter with Separate Prescaler, Compare
Mode, and Capture Mode
– Real Time Counter with Separate Oscillator
– Six PWM Channels
– 8-channel 10-bit ADC in TQFP and QFN/MLF package
– Temperature Measurement
– 6-channel 10-bit ADC in PDIP Package
– Temperature Measurement
– Programmable Serial USART
– Master/Slave SPI Serial Interface
– Byte-oriented 2-wire Serial Interface (Philips I2C compatible)
– Programmable Watchdog Timer with Separate On-chip
Oscillator
– On-chip Analog Comparator
– Interrupt and Wake-up on Pin Change
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Software Development for the Texas

NTMS

Arduino Microwave
Society

• Open source Integrated Development

Environment (IDE)
– https://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/Software
• Many subroutines for hardware available
– LCD Display, Keypad, ……
• Long list of examples included with IDE
• Lots of open source code
• E.g., Arduino Uno makes a nice beacon keyer

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Challenges and Solutions NTMS

Microwave
Society

• Setting 60,000,000 frequency settings

– Keypad
– Mechanical Encoder
• 100 KHz, 10 KHz, 1 KHz, 100 Hz, 10 Hz, and 1 Hz step sizes
selected with a push button switch
• Calibration
• Mode control
– Push button switch

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KT1F Software NTMS

Microwave
Society

• Ross Keatinge, KT1F wrote software for controlling the DDS-60 with
an Arduino RBBB (really bare bones board).
• Code compiles and loads on the Arduino Uno and available
at http://www.theladderline.com/node/10
• Latest Version on web is version 1.4
• 34 pages when printed out!
• Modes
– Normal
– TX
– Memory
– QRSS
– Calibrate
– Silent

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Arduino Controls and Connections Texas

NTMS

to the DDS-60 and LCD Microwave

Society

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Software Modifications NTMS

Microwave
Society

• LCD Display
• Frequency range
• Pull-ups on button ports

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Front Side NTMS

Microwave
Society

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Interior NTMS
Microwave
Society

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Future Plans NTMS

Microwave
Society

• Signal Generator
– Signal level to meter
– Automatic Level Control (ALC)
• Broadband transmitter/RX LO
– TX code not working right

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