HANDSHAKER NET ECHOLINK SERIAL
HANDSHAKER NET ECHOLINK SOFTWARE

The need for interoperability on HF led to adaption of Automatic Link Establishment ALE open networks by hams. Amateur radio operators may use it to call each other for voice or data communications.ĪLE adaptations to amateur radio for interoperabilityĪmateur radio operators commonly provide local, regional, national, and international emergency / disaster relief communications. The amateur radio Automatic Link Establishment system uses an open net protocol to enable all amateur radio operators and amateur radio nets worldwide to participate in ALE and share the same ALE channels interoperably. After the event, hams developed more permanent ALE emergency/disaster relief networks, including internet connectivity, with a focus on interoperation between organizations. In August 2005, ham radio operators supporting communications for emergency Red Cross shelters used ALE for Disaster Relief operations during the Hurricane Katrina disaster. In 2001, the first organized and coordinated global ALE nets for International Amateur Radio began.

HANDSHAKER NET ECHOLINK SOFTWARE

In 2000, the first widely available software ALE controller for the Personal Computer, PCALE, became available, and hams started to set up stations based on it. The ALE built-in text messaging facility can be used to transfer short text messages as an 'orderwire' to allow operators to coordinate external equipment such as phone patches or non-embedded digital links, or for short tactical messages.Īmateur Radio operators began sporadic ALE operation on a limited basis in the early to mid 1990s, with commercial ALE radios and ALE controllers.

HANDSHAKER NET ECHOLINK SERIAL

Alternatively, digital data can be exchanged via a built-in or external modem (such as a STANAG 5066 or MIL-STD-188-110B serial tone modem)depending on needs and availability. The operator then un-mutes the radio and answers the call then can talk in a regular conversation or negotiates a data link using voice or the ALE built-in short text message format. It also indicates the callsign or other identifying information of the linked station, similar to Caller ID. Upon successful linking, the receiving station generally emits an audible alarm and shows a visual alert to the operator, thus indicating the incoming call. If the callee fails to respond or the handshaking fails, the originating ALE node usually selects another frequency either at random or by making a guess of varying sophistication. The two stations' ALE controllers automatically handshake to confirm that a link of sufficient quality has been established, then notify the operators that the link is up. When the distant scanning station detects ALE activity, it stops scanning and stays on that channel until it can confirm whether or not the call it for it. After confirming the channel is indeed idle, it then sends a brief selective calling signal identifying the intended recipient. The ALE controller selects the best available idle channel for that destination address.

On many ALE radios this is similar to dialing a phone number. To reach a specific station, the caller enters the ALE Address. It decodes calls and soundings sent by other stations and uses the Bit error rate to store a quality score for that frequency and sender-address. When not actively in contact with another station, the HF SSB transceiver constantly scans through a list of HF frequencies called channels, listening for any ALE signals transmitted by other radio stations. It is programmed with a unique ALE Address, similar to a phone number (or on newer generations, a username). The purpose is to provide a reliable rapid method of calling and connecting during constantly changing HF ionospheric propagation, reception interference, and shared spectrum use of busy or congested HF channels.Ī standalone ALE radio combines an HF SSB radio transceiver with an internal microprocessor and MFSK modem.

ALE is a feature in an HF communications radio transceiver system, that enables the radio station to make contact, or initiate a circuit, between itself and another HF radio station or network of stations. About ALE - Quoted from - Automatic Link EstablishmentĪutomatic Link Establishment, commonly known as ALE, is the worldwide de facto standard for digitally initiating and sustaining HF radio communications.

Handshaker net echolink