[aprssig] DTMF Text Messaging Gateway PIC

[Brian Webster]

Bob,
	Could this program also be an element of your messaging idea?

Letters: TextGateway Software
Steve Ford highlighted an interesting piece of software in his column in QST
a few months back. It's called TextGateway, and in a nutshell it plugs into
your computer soundcard and constantly monitors a frequency listening for
DTMF tones. If it detects a pre-set string of DTMF tones, it will
automatically send a "canned" e-mail message to any group of addresses that
you have specified in advance.

For example, an ARES official could set this up on a 2 meter radio that was
monitoring the county repeater. The computer running the software would need
to be connected to an "always on" broadband Internet connection. For days or
weeks, the program would detect nothing. But then one afternoon, while an
ARES op is at work, he is informed of a train derailment. The op learns that
police are evacuating a three square mile area, and opening shelters. He
needs to activate his ARES volunteers, but is nowhere near his computer.

He keys up the repeater and makes a quick voice announcement of the
situation, and requests the emergency net to go into session. He then
informs the net that he'll be sending a short DTMF tone sequence. He keys in
a short sequence 4,1,8,9,1,1. The TextGateway software detects this sequence
and sends the following "canned" e-mail to all his volunteers' e-mail
addresses and several of their SMS/Text message e-mail addresses:

"ARES NET ACTIVATION. MONITOR 146.98 FOR DETAILS DE W4TCA"

All over the region, cell phones receive this e-mail and amateurs respond.
Other hams working at their computers receive the message, and activate.
Quickly the ARES officer is able to deploy hams to Red Cross shelters, and
the EMA.

This software could be a useful tool as we move towards an automated
activation system. Check it out and play with it to see what you think. --
Les Rayburn, N1LF, ARES Alabama SEC; NCS-SHARES NCS-047




Thank You,
Brian N2KGC


-----Original Message-----
From: aprssig-bounces at tapr.org [mailto:aprssig-bounces at tapr.org]On
Behalf Of Robert Bruninga
Sent: Thursday, February 19, 2009 11:33 AM
To: bruninga at usna.edu; 'TAPR APRS Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [aprssig] DTMF Text Messaging Gateway PIC


It works!

The APRS=>DTMF Pic Processor Gateway works!
Please see: www.aprs.org/aprs-dtmf-gate.html

Oh it is so great to be able to program again!  In just 3 hours
from the discovery that the Basic Stamp PIC has built-in DTMF
routines, I was sending APRS data for display on my TH-78.  As
you can see from the web page, I have defined ways to display
just about ALL local APRS data on these tiny DTMF display
windows on these radios.

Now to find out who in the club has these radios.

The BASIC code is very alpha, but it works!
I'll release it when it is to beta level.

Bob, WB4APR

> -----Original Message-----
> Sent: Wednesday, February 18, 2009 1:35 PM
> Subject: [aprssig] DTMF Text Messaging Gateway PIC
>
> Wow!
>
> Today I noticed that the Basic Stamp PIC
> processor already contains a DTMF encoder!
>
> Gosh, All I have to do is connect its serial
> port to a TNC and its audio to a TX, and I
> have an instant, stand-alone APRS==> to
> Text Paging gateway!
>
> Anyone else have Basic Stamp PIC's and wanna play?
>
> Bob, WB4APR
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2009 10:39 AM
>>
>> DTMF Messaging works!
>>
>> Took me a while, but I can now finally
>> send DTMF messages manually from any radio
>> and have them display on the FT11/41/51,
>> TH78 series radios.  I have updated my docs:
>>
>> www.aprs.org/FT51-TH78.html
>>
>> It needed the PAGE codes first to serve as
>> a header to tell the radio who the message
>> is coming from and who it is addressed to.
>> So the format is really:
>>
>> TTT*FFF
>> #MMMMMM...#
>>
>> Where TTT is the TO-ID, FFF is the FROM
>> station ID and MMMM... Is the message.
>> Each station's own TO-ID whould be his own
>> suffix.  For example, WB4APR is APR which
>> becomes "277".  Then for APRS, we have
>> defined 6 GROUP codes 994 through 999 for
>> FIXED, MOBILE, WEATHER, STATUS, DIGI's,
>> and MESSAGES.  This way, the recepient can
>> select or opt-out of any of these data groups.
>>
>> So setting up one of these radios to receive
>> messages requires:
>> 1) Putting in your own ID ###
>> 2) Putting in the six GROUP codes above
>> 3) Entering PAGE mode.
>>
>> THen from any other radio, you can send
>> messages manually to that radio.  To send
>> your callsign, just put 996*FFF (where
>> FFF is your ID) into the DTMF memory of
>> any DTMF radio and put any intended messages
>> #MMMMMMMMMM# into additional memories.  For
>> example
>> "CALLME" is #2C2A5C5C6A3B#
>> "WB4APR" is #9A2B42A7A7B#
>>
>> For troop number "995" with a score of "95"
>> would be "995 95" or #9951C95#
>>
>> It works!  Find out who in your club has
>> these radios and put one at Net Control for
>> your next operation.  Figure out ways to
>> use this.
>>
>> Bob, Wb4APR


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