[time-nuts] KS-24361 REF-0 standalone

[Adrian Godwin]

Thanks for doing these write-ups.

I've bought several units from the US supplier with the intention of
getting shipping down to a sensible level, and have a lash-up based on your
article which has had all the first few running. They won't lock to
anything far off 1pps so need a properly working receiver or source
(perhaps another ref-0) to test. An attempt to generate a 1pps signal from
the micro as a quick test was a failure - too much variation or error for
the loop to track.

I'd also like to use the spare space inside the box - I'm planning to mount
a beaglebone black there as a self-contained NTP server and reference
source.The BBB can run gpsd to accept a wide range of receivers and supply
the packets to the ref-0 with or without actual data. Perhaps your pcb
design could allow for a suitable header as an alternative to the inboard
micro.

I'm don't yet know what receiver to choose : I'm currently using it with a
Symmetricon 58534A  and also have some Oncore modules which will, of
course, fit neatly in the box.

I'm also interested in what could to be done to the 10MHz output. Bob has
mentioned that it's not ideal but I'm not sure how to evaluate it or clean
it up. Maybe that's a different project that would appeal to someone else
here.


On Mon, Aug 31, 2015 at 3:53 AM, Daniel Watson <watsondaniel3 at gmail.com>
wrote:

> All,
>
> I hope some more of you have had luck getting your REF-0s running
> standalone.
>
> My earlier write-ups were focused on the bare minimum connections and code
> needed to make a REF-0 work. Of course, external connections are not ideal
> for long-term operations. The real end-state here is to have a nice board
> with a modern GPS that will install cleanly inside the REF-0. I have
> completed another write-up showing my work toward that goal. I show how you
> can access all of the necessary pins on the REF-0 directly on the board,
> without using the external Interface connector. I also show a simple
> prototype of my custom REF-0 GPS board.
>
> Here's the write-up:
>
>
> http://syncchannel.blogspot.com/2015/08/prototyping-gps-board-for-ks-24361-ref-0.html
>
>
> If you just want to solder something together, you can easily house your
> microcontroller and GPS on some protoboard as I did. This is the protoboard
> I used, it fits almost perfectly where a real Oncore GPS would go. I just
> had to widen the mounting holes with a drill.
>
>
> http://www.amazon.com/10Pcs-Double-Sided-Protoboard-Prototyping/dp/B00NQ387TY
>
>
> Beyond the prototype though, I personally want a nice PCB with a Ublox on
> it for my REF-0s. I plan to work on that as I have time. Though now that my
> summer break is over, time is a bit harder to find. :)
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Dan W.
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