[aprssig] RE : APRS Symbols for embedded ham objects

Tue Apr 20 22:49:10 EDT 2021

Even if the rest of the protocol is never adopted, I like the symbol 
scheme - I borrowed the general format from MIL-STD-2525. It's 
hierarchical and provides more semantic information. The top level 
categories should be added to very rarely so most new identifiers will 
fall into existing categories and you can still tell, for example, that 
a newly-created solar powered Prius symbol is a ground vehicle and more 
specifically a car so your client can still display a car, despite not 
having a more specific symbol.

Scott
N1VG

On 4/13/2021 12:20 PM, Gregg Wonderly wrote:
> There are more and more opportunities to look at OpenTrac as a place 
> to solve the limitations of APRS fixed field and symbol use.  We 
> really need to move in that direction.
>
> MQTT is something designed to standardize report-on-change for IIOT as 
> opposed to the old polling of OPC, Modbus and the like.
>
> OpenTrac was focused on opening the door to RF data and observation 
> like MIB technologies do for TCP/IP network devices.
>
> It’s very attractive and because it’s binary values, it can be less 
> bandwidth for number intensive data.
>
> Gregg
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>> On Apr 13, 2021, at 11:59 AM, Andrew Pavlin via aprssig 
>> <aprssig at lists.tapr.org> wrote:
>>
>> 
>> Just in my opinion, it sounds like you're overloading the icons too 
>> much. One station can't have two different symbols at the same time. 
>> To quote from your telemetry example, if the station has green 
>> battery voltage but the power amp is overheating to red, what _one_ 
>> symbol will be reported for that combination? You can't flip-flop 
>> back and forth rapidly, because you'll clog the RF channel with 
>> excessive packets, plus the RF channel isn't reliable, so there is no 
>> guarantee that every single packet (with every state change of the 
>> symbol) will get through to a receiving station.
>>
>> And where on the map display are you going to simultaneously display 
>> _all_ of your multiple weather station parameters for a single 
>> weather station? That sounds like you would need a custom tabular 
>> display with one row per station and one column per parameter, which 
>> then could be color-coded per ranges; I have a similar table in my 
>> YAAC application for monitoring the quality status of weather station 
>> parameters. But the station icon is for the state/type of the station 
>> as a whole, not just one parameter of it. Yes, for the flood gauge 
>> symbol codes, they are color-coded for the flood level, but that's 
>> really the only parameter a flood gauge station reports (it's not a 
>> weather station or Echolink gateway or anything else at the same time).
>>
>> Regarding gateways and repeaters, we already have such symbol codes, 
>> with various overlay codes for different modes (i.e., Da for D-star 
>> gateway, Ya for Yaesu System Fusion gateway). For commonly useful 
>> other modes, Bob could assign other overlay codes (per the APRS 1.2 
>> symbol code document http://aprs.org/symbols/symbols-new.txt 
>> <http://aprs.org/symbols/symbols-new.txt> ), as the LORA gateway 
>> symbol code was recently added.
>>
>> Just my $.02 (or whatever currency you choose).
>>
>> Andrew, KA2DDO
>> author of YAAC ("Yet Another APRS Client")
>>
>> On Tuesday, April 13, 2021, 10:29:35 AM EDT, Pierre F5OPV 
>> <f5opv at hotmail.fr> wrote:
>>
>>
>> Hi everybody,
>>
>> Hi Bob,
>>
>> As Embedded Ham Objects (mcu driven devices)
>>
>> I’m thinking about :
>>
>>   * Analytic Wx stations with multiple parameters (T,P,H, Wind,
>>     Photovoltaic, Rain, UV, CO²…), each parameter individualized by
>>     an dynamic changing icon with comment analysis  (cf joined
>>     picture of local display on aprs.fi),
>>   * Gateways RF/IP (APRS, LoRa, RTTY, …) : colours and/or letters
>>     could individualise each modulation type,
>>   * Hotspots/Repeaters RF/IP (DMR, DStar, YSF, Analog, …) : colours
>>     and/or letters could individualise each traffic/equipment type,
>>   * Telemetry devices (remote display of technical data or state of
>>     distant and autonomous repeaters : voltage, RFpwr, SWR, PA
>>     températures, mains Failure, … ) where coloured and alphabetical
>>     label icons could represent each reported parameter and state
>>     (ex : Battery voltage : Green Circle (5 symbol) with alternate
>>     table ‘V’ overlay  : Voltage > 12v5 ;  Yellow Circle (4 symbol)
>>     with alternate table ‘V’ overlay  : 12v < Voltage < 12v5 ;
>>      Orange Circle (3 symbol) with alternate table ‘V’ overlay  :
>>     Voltage < 12v ;  Red  Circle (2 symbol) with alternate table ‘S’
>>     overlay  : SWR > 2 ; RF PA overheating : Red Circle ‘2’ with ‘P’
>>     overlay …
>>   * Beacons and range and direction propagation reporters (data <
>>     15’) : Green Circle ‘5’ + ‘L’ overlay : Tropo ducting > 100 miles
>>     (direction in comment or by changing overlay letter ) ;  Red
>>     Circle ‘2’ + ‘L’ overlay : Tropo ducting < 50 miles …
>>   * ….
>>
>> It seems to me, if I’m not wrong, that *symbols ‘1 to 9’ in the 
>> alternate table are unused.*
>>
>> So by *applying only the alphabetic overlay of alternate table over 
>> the ‘1-9’ icons of the primary table* (coloured circles joined 
>> picture) *would increase possibilities of displaying numerous new 
>> objects* on the aprs maps and would render, by this  way of multiple 
>> colours, the displays of *this amazing modern APRS tactical network*, 
>> more ‘cute’ .
>>
>> 73 de F5OPV
>>
>> *De : *Robert Bruninga <mailto:bruninga at usna.edu>
>> *Envoyé le :*dimanche 11 avril 2021 19:38
>> *À : *Pierre F5OPV <mailto:f5opv at hotmail.fr>
>> *Cc : *TAPR APRS Mailing List <mailto:aprssig at lists.tapr.org>
>> *Objet :*Re: [aprssig] APRS Symbols for embedded ham objects
>>
>> Can you begin to make a list of the objects you havr in mind?
>>
>> Bob
>>
>> On Sat, Apr 10, 2021 at 5:11 PM Pierre F5OPV <f5opv at hotmail.fr 
>> <mailto:f5opv at hotmail.fr>> wrote:
>>
>>     Hi Bob,
>>
>>     Hi everybody,
>>
>>     would it be possible to add  new symbols, relative to APRS of
>>     Things, mcu-driven devices for beaconing, telemetry, remote
>>     controlers, reporters... objects?
>>     The aprs equivalent of IoT but specifically dedicated to mcu ham
>>     devices.
>>
>>     I’m thinking about icons based on coloured only symbols, similar
>>     to the '1 to 9' ones located in the primary table, but using the
>>     alternate symbols table,  thus allowing the use of alphabetic A-Z
>>     overlay over the 9 different coloured primary icons and greatly
>>     increasing possibilities and richness of Ham of Things icons set.
>>
>>     73 de F5OPV Pierre
>>
>>     Télécharger Outlook pour Android <https://aka.ms/AAb9ysg>
>>
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