USB Radio Interface

Revised 8-3-2016

In modern amateur radio operations it is often desirable to interface a personal computer to a radio transceiver. On the computer side, the USB port is generally the most convenient and widely used interface medium. Things are not quite as settled on the radio side, as the major radio manufacturers have defined their own control methods and interface standards.

Nevertheless, the various radio interface standards do have much in common, enough so that USB radio interfaces can be designed to be compatible with virtually all popular radio transceivers.

USB radio interfaces are available for purchase from a number of manufacturers with various features, form factors, and sizes. My own needs were for a compact and reliable USB radio interface for use in portable or mobile operations. A commercial unit with minimal capability was purchased and tried, but it was plagued with RFI-susceptibility problems.

After performing market research and not finding anything meeting my exact desires, a decision was made to design and build my own interface. The USB Radio Interface described here is the result of that effort. This interface has the following features:

Here is the USB Radio Interface bare printed circuit board.

Here is a bottom view of the printed circuit board after components have been installed.

Here is the assembled printed circuit board installed in its enclosure.

Here is the assembled USB Radio Interface.

Downloads

The files linked below can be downloaded for additional information.

USB_Radio_Interface_Manual.pdf The project's history, interface circuit descriptions, additional photographs, schematic diagram, and bill of materials are included in this project manual. The file size is approximately 2 MB

usb_radio_interface.sch ExpressPCB schematic file.

usb_radio_interface.pcb ExpressPCB board layout file, needed to order boards from ExpressPCB.

Assembly.doc Surface mount component placement diagrams to aid in assembly. The file size is approximately 3.4 MB

DISCLAIMER: Although the information presented is believed to be accurate, the user assumes all risk associated with using it.

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