When engineers talk about the tuning range of a software-defined radio chip, they’re often referring to an extremely specific part of the electromagnetic spectrum. RFID tag readers usually only work on specific HF, UHF, or microwave frequencies. Devices that receive regular FM broadcasts are only designed to work with around 88.1-107.9 MHz. A group of specialists in Illinois are bucking that trend, however, by introducing the AD9371 SDR board.
This new piece of miniaturized equipment is designed to work in the widest number of scenarios possible. That’s why the Sidekiq™ RF Transceiver that powers each AD9371 SDR unit can tune frequencies from 70MHz all the way to 6GHz. That includes everything from the aeronautical bands up to the latest cellular spectrum assignments.
Since the AD9371 SDR circuit board does everything in software, it can be reconfigured to work with any of these frequencies merely by tweaking a few settings in a configuration program. Once this is done, operators would be free to replace the existing antenna structure with whatever sort of device they saw fit.
Those who select a broad-range antenna won’t have any problems with bandwidth, especially if they only plan on using the device to receive transmissions. That being said, engineers who want to transmit would probably be working with such small power levels that standing waves shouldn’t be all that much of a concern. That makes it an attractive option for use in wireless sensors.
Check out Web online for more information about SDR tuning ranges.
