MOAS II




	The MOAS II switches antenna relays and similar devices. It is controlled by a computer through a USB interface. This switch will control up to 64 independent relays. Each group of eight outputs can be built for high or low side switching (source or sink). The difference between a source and sink output is invisible to software. It connects to the amplifier keying lines of the transceivers and optionally to the inhibit inputs so it can avoid hot-switching and it can select select different antennas for transmit and receive. With the provided software it can handle complex antenna systems with multiple stacks, electrically rotatable antennas such as 4-squares, shared antennas for transmit and receive, triplexers, single-band and shared amplifiers, and complex inhibit rules. And it allows hams to build stations with antenna configurations that could not be reasonably controlled by a manual system. This is prototype 2. The production boards are similar but slightly larger to provide space to move the mounting holes a bit further from the terminal blocks. I have given two presentations at Yankee Clipper Contest Club meetings. This was the original presentation. This was the status update. These presentations to not describe some of the current capabilities of the MOAS II but they can be a useful introduction. Project Status Production units are in use in many ham stations. The board is being redesigned. The new board will be the same size as the old one and will fit in the same case. Some parts are being replaced with surface mount and the boards will be shipped with these installed. Stand by for updates. The parts shortages have been resolved and all parts are now available. We are changing the way parts are handled with the new boards since most will already be soldered to the board. The firmware has all planned features implemented. There are no known bugs. We may add features in the future if requested. Several people have developed software which communicates with the MOAS II hardware. Software Software is available. The server is configured by editing a text file. See the Downloads section. The software is under active development. Significant features have been added and the MOAS is now more capable than it was when it was first released. The software can be run without a MOAS switch. Feel free to download it and try it. If you have any comments or questions please contact me. MOAS II Server This runs on a Windows 7 or later PC. It can drive one or more MOAS II boards. MOAS II Rotator This connects to the MOAS server and controls physical rotators. If it does not support a rotator you need please contact me. MOAS II Client This runs on a Windows 7 or later PC. It offers several ways to display and select antennas and rotators. It interfaces with DXLog.net, N1MM Logger Plus, Win-Test, WriteLog, and OmniRig. It can display and change antennas and rotators. It is highly configurable and can be scripted. MOAS II Emulator This runs on the same PC as the server. It emulates the MOAS II hardware. Windows OASP Client This runs on a PC anywhere on the network. It. It has buttons which can be pressed to select antennas. Windows OASP Knob Client This client runs on a PC. It requires a Phidgets 1052 knob. Android Client The Android client supports tablets and phones running Android 2.1. It does not run on the latest versions of Android. It can change antennas for two stations (SO2R). There are quite a few preferences which can be set including number of buttons, color, size, and number of rotators. Configuration files The server requires a configuration file which describes the antennas, the relays, and the button layouts. There are six configurations supplied: A simple 2x6 switch A small SO2R station with a tribander, a vertical, and a couple wires A big SO2R station with stacked yagis, 4-squares, and beverages A 20 meter station with two radios, eight yagis, and a 4-square A station with a stack of tribanders A station with a stack of tribanders and a triplexer A station with two radios which share an amplifier Script files The MOAS client can be scripted. Two example scripts are provided: A script which matches the small station configuration file and will select available antennas. A script which matches the big SO2R station and will select transmit antennas depending on frequency and also will also select the beverages. MOAS II Manual This documents the server and clients and provides detailed information on the contents of the configuration files. MOAS II Client Manual This documents the Windows client. This client can be customized in many ways and can be scripted which allows antenna selection from the keyboard using hotkeys. I worked on a tool to make configurations easier to write. This has turned out to be very difficult and is not being actively developed. If someone would like a challenging software project I would be happy to provide you with the requirements and describe the problems! Downloads Current versions MOAS II Installer V1.1.2 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration and script files. This version does not support Windows XP. MOAS II Manual V1.1.2 This is the manual (which is also included in the 1.1.2 installer). MOAS II Client Manual V1.0.10 This is the MOAS client manual (which is also included in the 1.1.2 installer). Construction Manual This is the first version of the construction manual. Parts List This is the parts list ad ordering information. The parts list is also available as a spreadsheet. Android Client V1.0 This is the Android client. To install it, browse here from your Android tablet or phone and click on the above link. You may need to change the preferences on your device to allow it to install. Firmware V1.1 This is the most current firmware. It implements the commands in the programming manual V1.1. I can provide the source code for the firmware if you need it. It is in Atmel AVR assembler language. Bootloader This is the bootloader which runs when the microprocessor is started. It must be installed using a programmer. If you have obtained a kit of parts this has already been done and you don’t need this file. Bootloader source This is the source code for the bootloader. It may be useful for installing the bootloader or for writing a program which updates the firmware. Microprocessor Image V1.1 This is a complete image for an Atmel ATMega328P microprocessor. It contains the bootloader and the MOAS firmware. This is only intended for microprocessors that do not have the bootloader installed. It must be uploaded using an appropriate hardware programmer. If you are upgrading a MOAS II do not use this, use Firmware V1.1 instead. MOAS II Schematic V4.0.8 PDF file with the current schematic MOAS II Test Results Prototype testing and results. These tests were with the version 0.1 firmware which was not quite feature-complete. The version 1.0 firmware is a few microseconds slower in a couple places but not in any that matter. MOAS II Programming manual V1.1 This is documentation for anyone who wants to write a program that communicates with the MOAS II switch. It is possible to build one of these using the schematic. The easiest way is probably to start with Arduino or clone hardware because it eliminates any surface-mount soldering. The bootloader used in the MOAS II is not the Arduino bootloader so it will be necessary to use a programmer to load the initial code in the microprocessor. I can program an ATMega328P microprocessor for you if you have no other way to get one. Old Versions MOAS II Installer V1.1.0 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0.20 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration files. It is the last of the V1.0 installers and is the most recent installer that might work with Windows XP. MOAS II Installer V1.0.17 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0.12 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0.11 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration files. Version 1.0.11 is not recommended because it has external dependencies on Microsoft VC libraries. MOAS II Installer V1.0.10 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0.6 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manuals, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0 Beta 5 This is a Windows installer. It will install the server, rotator, Windows clients, utility, emulator, manual, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0 Beta 4 This is the fourth Beta version of the Windows Installer. It will install the server, Windows clients, utility, emulator, rotator, manual, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0 Beta 3 This is the third Beta version of the Windows Installer. It will install the server, Windows clients, utility, emulator, rotator, manual, and sample configuration files. MOAS II Installer V1.0 Beta 2 This is a the second Beta version of the Windows installer. It will install the server, Windows clients, utilty, emulator, manual, and sample configuration files. This version does not include the MOAS Rotator program. MOAS II Installer V1.0 Beta 1 This is a the first Beta version of the Windows installer. It will install the server, Windows clients, utilty, emulator, manual, and sample configuration files. This version does not include the MOAS client. MOAS II Client Manual V1.0.6 This is the MOAS client manual (which is also included in the 1.0.11 installer). MOAS II Client Manual V1.0.5 This is the MOAS client manual (which is also included in the 1.0.10 installer). MOAS II Client Manual V1.0.4 This is the MOAS client manual (which is also included in the 1.0.6 installer). MOAS II Client Manual V1.0 Beta 3 This is the MOAS client manual (which is also included in the Beta 5 installer). MOAS II Client Manual V1.0 Beta 2 This is the Beta 2 MOAS Client manual (which is also included in the Beta 3 installer). MOAS II Client Manual V1.0 Beta 1 This is the Beta 1 MOAS Client manual (which is also included in the Beta 2 installer). MOAS II Manual V1.1.0 This is the V1.1.0 manual (which is included in the V1.1.0 installer). MOAS II Manual V1.0.20 This is the V1.0.20 manual (which is included in the V1.0.20 installer). MOAS II Manual V1.0.17 This is the V1.0.17 manual (which is included in the V1.0.17 installer). MOAS II Manual V1.0.11 This is the V1.0.11 manual (which is included in the V1.0.11 installer). MOAS II Manual V1.0.10 This is the V1.0.10 manual (which is included in the V1.0.10 installer) MOAS II Manual V1.0.6 This is the V1.0.6 manual (which is included in the V1.0.6 installer) MOAS II Manual V1.0 Beta 5 This is the Beta 5 manual (which is also included in the Beta 5 installer) MOAS II Manual V1.0 Beta 4 This is the Beta 4 manual (which is also included in the Beta 4 installer) MOAS II Manual V1.0 Beta 3 This is the Beta 3 manual (which is also included in the Beta 3 installer) MOAS II Manual V1.0 Beta 2 This is the Beta 2 manual (which is also included in the Beta 2 installer) Firmware V1.0 This is the version 1.0 firmware. Firmware V0.6 This is the version 0.6 firmware. The Dayton 2013 Technology Preview files are available as a zip file. Click here to download it. There is a Readme file in the zip file which contains more information. This is an old version of the Switch Utility. The latest version is included in the installer. These are the original (January 19, 2014) Construction Tips. They have been superseded by the construction manual. MOAS II Programming manual V1.0 MOAS II Programming manual V0.6 MOAS II Programming manual V0.3 MOAS II Programming manual V0.2 These are older versions of the documentation.