[Elecraft] The next generation KAT500

[Dr. William J. Schmidt]

There are tuners that already do this.  The old RF-601 military tuner uses phase and magnitude data to resolve the transform between the transmitter and the antenna.  While it was before LCD displays, its easily adaptable.  In fact every tuner I've ever built (save novice days) has used this principle.  Its much easier to understand what the tuner is doing if you think in transform (Smith-chart) space.  Starting with the transform solution means also means you don't need to use the "hunt"/ "branch and bound" types of binary searches to find the tuners transform solution.  It’s a DUH if you think about it.  


Dr. William J. Schmidt - K9HZ J68HZ 8P6HK ZF2HZ PJ4/K9HZ VP5/K9HZ PJ2/K9HZ 

email:  bill at wjschmidt.com


-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net <elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net> On Behalf Of Al Lorona
Sent: Thursday, July 1, 2021 12:09 PM
To: Elecraft Reflector <elecraft at mailman.qth.net>
Subject: [Elecraft] The next generation KAT500

The recent thread on small and inexpensive vector network analyzers made me wonder if and when someone will make either a manual or automatic antenna tuner with something like one of those VNAs used as a front panel display. With the VNA in Smith Chart format, how cool would it be to tune the tuner and watch the antenna impedance move toward the center of the Smith Chart? The calibration coefficients of the VNA could be set at the factory and stored in EEPROM since they wouldn't change much over the life of the tuner other than some temperature and aging effects (but even the cal vs. temperature could be pre-measured at the factory).

To my knowledge all commercially available tuners simply display the measured SWR as a single number; providing a Smith Chart (or rectangular graph if you wish) swept over frequency would be a quantum leap in the information presented to the user.

Maybe if and when Elecraft decides to design the next generation of the KAT500, or maybe this has already been done and I don't know it?

Al  W6LX/4

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