P-3000 Digital RF power/ VSWR Indicator
Contents
1. UNPACKING AND SETUP INITIAL SETUP Unpack the P 3000 The box should contain Q One Display Head Q One Directional Coupler U One BNC to 3 5mm Connector Y Cable U One RCA to RCA Cable U One 12VDC Power Cable or Optional Power Pack Q One Warranty Card O This Manual If anything is missing give us a call and we ll take care of you Please take a few moments now to send in your Warranty Card The P 3000 consists of two major components the Display Unit and the Directional Coupler The Directional Coupler is installed in series with the output of your transmitter and antenna One BNC to 3 5mm Y cable is provided for connection between the Display Head and the Directional Coupler You may use longer cables if you wish consult the Special Applications section later in this manual P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 1 Most users want to see how the unit works as quickly as possible after receiving it If you want to do this read on If you would prefer to install the P 3000 permanently now move ahead to the Installation section of this manual If you are currently using a wattmeter in your setup you have everything you need for a test If you are not using a wattmeter then you will need a suitable jumper to connect the Directional Coupler to your station Connect the Directional Coupler as follows Using RG 8 or RG 58 cables RF SOURCE goes to your transmitter directly ANTENNA goes to your antenna or tuner U2. cause a 50 ohm impedance to be presented to the finals of your transmitter thereby changing the characteristic impedance present at the antenna jack on the transmitter This will affect the accuracy of the P 3000 just as it would any other measuring device If you are having other problems refer to the Trouble Shooting section of this manual Otherwise you are now ready for a permanent installation P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 3 INSTALLATION DISPLAY HEAD AND COUPLER LOCATION The Display Head is designed to be either table top or wall mounted The cables exit from the left side of the unit Once the position is chosen mount the Display Head Choose a suitable location for the Directional Coupler and mount it as well You can either screw the Directional Coupler down or leave it free hanging If you are using the factory cable be sure the Display Head and Coupler are close enough to each other to route the BNC cable If you want to use longer cables this is fine consult the Special Applications section of this manual for more information CABLE INSTALLATION Install the two BNC connectors to the Display Head The connector with the red band goes to the FOR input the top BNC connector The REV input goes to the lower BNC connector Route the cable in a neat manner to the location of the Directional Coupler RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 4 If you plan to use the amplifier relay inhibit feature unplug t
3. normal 10 Reassemble the P 3000 You should not need to adjust the internal reference for the analog to digital converter Test point TP1 near the microprocessor should measure 5 00 volts If it does not you can adjust potentiometer R8 The most accurate V S W R readings are made with at least 25 watts of forward power You will sometimes notice a small change in V S W R as you change power levels This is normal Cables connectors traps and other items can respond differently under high power conditions Variations of 0 2 in V S W R are not uncommon If your variation is higher you might have a problem with one or more of the items mentioned above If you are having problems give us a call RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 20 REMOTE COUPLER MOUNTING There is no reason that you cannot mount the Directional Coupler remotely However you will need longer cables terminated with BNC connectors and two BNC couplers In addition the Directional Coupler is not designed for outdoor use so you will have to put it in another enclosure You can expect changes in accuracy with extremely low temperature We have tested to 10 degrees C and the changes are minimal at that temperature We have tested the Directional Coupler with 500 feet of cable and it performs well Be aware though you will be reading power at the other end of a feedline Maybe you don t really want to know what s out there SPECIAL DIRECTIONAL COUPLER CONNE
4. CTORS If you like to use N type connectors contact the factory N connectors are available P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 21 IN CASE OF TROUBLE The P 3000 is well designed and should give you many years of trouble free service Most of the problems you will encounter usually occur during installation and startup If the items below aren t sufficient to help you solve your problem please give us a call Unit will not come on Check power connections Is the unit on The power switch is on the lower right side of the enclosure High V S W R displayed no forward power displayed Check that the BNC cables are not reversed Also be sure that the RF SOURCE input to the Directional Coupler goes to your transmitter or amplifier V S W R doesn t change when adjusting a tuner Be sure that you have installed the Directional Coupler AHEAD OF the tuner If your rig has an internal tuner you should turn it off to make your measurements RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 22 Display won t go above 1 50kW Remove jumper JB Bargraph percentages wrong on 120 2 000 scales Jumper JA has been removed Put it back in Power display grossly inaccurate Someone might have recalibrated the unit Perform the calibration procedure in this manual If you are experiencing other problems give us a call We ll help you out as quickly as possible P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 23 SPECIFICATIO
5. NS Frequency range 1 8 to 30MHz see Accuracy Line impedance 50 ohms nominal lt 1 1 V S W R insertion Line connections SO 239 female N connectors optional Range 15 to 2950 watts 1 0 to 19 V S W R Accuracy 10 resolution Capture time Less than 100 milliseconds Bargraph response Greater than 10Hz Bargraph ranges 120 1 200 2 000 200 1 200 3 000 jumper Power required 12VDC 75mA idle 150mA normal use 250mA lamp test Display modes Forward power Forward volts Reflected power All readings peak True power forward reflected Resolution 256 steps over 2 95kW Regulatory Exceeds FCC Class B tested Dimensions Display 6 5 x5 25 x2 25 16 5x13 3x5 7cm Shipping weight 6 lbs 2 7Kg nominal Specifications subject to change without notice RF Applications Inc User s Manual Coupler 4 5 x3 75 x2 25 11 4x9 5x5 7cm Page 24 LIMITED WARRANTY Your P 3000 is warranted by RF Applications Inc to be free of defects for two years from the date of purchase THIS WARRANTY IS IN LIEU OF ALL OTHER WARRANTIES INCLUDING IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS In no event will RF Applications Inc be liable for consequential damages If you must return the unit to the factory you must obtain authorization from the factory Be sure to provide a copy of your original purchase receipt to validate your warranty We will repair the P 3000 during the warranty period at no charge We will not honor
6. User s Manual P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator RF Applications Inc 7345 Production Drive Mentor OH 44060 440 974 1961 Manufactured in the U S A Part Number 96A05801 Revision C February 2000 INTRODUCTION Thank you very much for purchasing the RF Applications Inc P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator The P 3000 represents a breakthrough in flexibility for measurement of the performance of your HF station CMOS microprocessor control insures fast capture time and low power dissipation With the ability to monitor your V S W R at all times you will know that your antenna system is performing within its design specifications IMPORTANT The P 3000 is designed to operate from a 12 to 16 volt DC power source Do not connect it to AC especially line voltage As with all electronic equipment keep the P 3000 out of direct sunlight and keep it dry IF YOU HAVE PROBLEMS We want you to be satisfied with your purchase If you have any type of problem please check the Trouble Shooting section of this manual If your problem persists call our Customer Service Department at 440 974 1961 Please have the P 3000 and this manual at hand when you call P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page i DISCLOSURE REQUIRED BY THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION NOTE This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device pursuant to part 15 of the FCC rules These limits a
7. all it after your tuner you will be quite frustrated by your inability to change the V S W R readings on the P 3000 With this in mind run a suitable jumper cable from your transmitter s antenna jack to the RF SOURCE connector on the Directional Coupler The standard Directional Coupler comes with SO 239 connectors You can order optional N connectors if you prefer If you are using an amplifier you want to install the Directional Coupler after your amplifier Connect the cable that goes to your antenna system to the ANTENNA jack on the Directional Coupler Plug the 3 5mm connector from the Display Head into the Directional Coupler You may ground the Directional Coupler to your station grounding system if you desire There is a further discussion on this in the Technical Discussion section of this manual Recheck all your cables and fasten them down appropriately Turn on the power to the Display Head the switch is on the right side of the enclosure You should see a lamp test then the P 3000 will go to its idle state You are now ready to use the P 3000 Have fun RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 6 TECHNICAL DISCUSSION RF POWER AND V S W R MEASUREMENT The purpose of this section of the manual is certainly not to go into great detail on the theory of the measurement of RF power and voltage standing wave ratio V S W R There are many more publications on the subject dating back 50 or more years But we do want to d
8. ange the ranges to 200 1 200 and 3 000 watts However we haven t provided a means to easily mark this change on the front panel You could use a stick on label if you want but remember the bargraph is really used as a relative display so the absolute values don t really matter that much See the Special Applications section of this manual if you want to make this change P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 17 SPECIAL APPLICATIONS AND CALIBRATION CONFIGURATION JUMPERS As mentioned earlier in this manual there are two configuration jumpers in the P 3000 One controls the maximum forward power display and the other selects a different set of ranges for the autoranging bargraph To access the jumpers disconnect the Display Head and remove the four screws holding the back cover on Separate the back cover from the unit The jumpers are located at the lower right hand corner of the microprocessor If you would like your P 3000 to display forward power to 3kW actually 2 95kW you need to remove the jumper labeled JB JB is the lower jumper You can just hang the jumper on one of the pins to keep from losing it If you would like to use the 200 1 200 3 000 watt bargraph ranges you need to remove jumper JA This is the upper jumper You can just hang the jumper on one of the pins to keep from losing it RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 18 ACCURACY AND CALIBRATION The P 3000 uses an eight bit analog to digital conve
9. cator Page 27 RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 28 P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator RF Applications Inc User s Manual
10. ction separately to present you with a great deal of information about your station In normal operation you don t need to make any adjustments at all There is no need to calibrate for V S W R readings and the ranging is taken care of by the onboard computer THE POWER DISPLAY The power display gives you a peak reading in watts or kilowatts of your transmitted signal There are three digits along with a decimal point Powers from 0 to 999 watts are displayed directly When the power exceeds 1 000 watts the kW LED is illuminated and the display will indicate power in kilowatts For example 1 200 watts will be displayed as 1 20 and the kW light will be illuminated The power display is updated approximately RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 12 once per second although internal readings are taken much more quickly than that There is a Mode Switch that you can use to observe other aspects of your transmitted signal Four LEDs on the right side of the display tell you which mode you are in To change modes simply press the Mode Switch You can select Forward Power which is the power on default Reflected Power True Power and Forward Volts The Reflected Power display simply indicates the measured Reflected Power on your transmission line The True Power display indicates the Forward Power minus the Reflected Power This display mode is used to see what the effective power being delivered to your antenna system is The Forward V
11. d The P 3000 updates the bargraph much more quickly than the numeric displays The resulting display is pleasing and quite useful In order to reduce the number of LEDs required for a meaningful display the P 3000 incorporates an autoranging feature There are three ranges which are 120 watts 1 200 watts and 2 000 watts To display the power in these ranges there are ten LEDs labeled 10 through 100 To interpret the display simply apply the percentage of the highest LED to the range that has been selected For example if the 10 through 50 LEDs are on and the 1 200 watt range light is on your power is about 600 watts In normal use however you can use the digital display to find out what your actual power is The bargraph is very handy for a relative indication of what your station is doing and you can see what you are sending RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 16 The bargraph is particularly useful for tuning up amplifiers Simply adjust your amplifier for the most percentage LEDs on the highest range The P 3000 picks the range by analyzing the most recent peak power You will sometimes notice that it will autorange down at the end of a transmission particularly on SSB transmissions This is normal and the range will be updated on your next transmission As shipped the ranges are 120 1 200 and 2 000 watts In some installations a different set of ranges is needed There 1s an internal jumper you can remove to ch
12. he RCA cable from your amplifier and plug it into the top RCA connector of the Display Head Using the RCA cable provided reconnect your amplifier RELAY input to the bottom RCA connector on the Display Head Connect the 12VDC cable to the Display Head If you purchased the optional power pack go ahead and plug it in now If you are using the power cable connect the black lead to ground and the white striped lead to plus The Display Head is protected against polarity reversal try to get the polarity right anyway If you would like to have remote control of the display mode a 1 8 jack is provided on the Display Head for this purpose Simply run a cable to a normally open push button and plug it into the jack This feature is normally used by those who have mounted the Display Head on the wall DIRECTIONAL COUPLER WIRING Since the purpose of the P 3000 is to provide an indication of the match of your antenna system to your transmitter it is critical that the Directional Coupler be installed as the first element after the antenna jack on your transmitter or P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 5 S gt _ _ _ gt __ EE gt EE gt E E _ _E E E _ _ E _ E E E gt gt gt E EEE E E E E E E E E E E E E E E E L gt gt gt gt _ ___ _ _ _ E E_E_ _ _E_ E_E _ _ _ _ _ _E _ E L _ _ LLh EaSanSS amplifier if you are using one If you inst
13. iscuss the most important issues pertaining to this matter For the purpose of this discussion RF power refers to the peak voltage measured on the line multiplied by itself and divided by 50 voltage squared divided by the impedance of the load which is watts V S W R is calculated by finding the sum of the forward and reflected voltages on the line and dividing by the difference of the forward and reflected voltages on the line Forward Voltage Reflected Voltage V S W R Forward Voltage Reflected Voltage You can see that if there is no reflected voltage you will be dividing the forward voltage by the forward voltage which is 1 0 A V S W R of 1 0 is ideal and actually P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 7 lr _ _ __t oe yAfob iII _k iW i 5 J5SG 6 io5 o er gt KIi ee unobtainable because there is always a small amount of reflected voltage on the line A V S W R of 2 0 indicates a power loss of about 10 at 3 0 the loss is about 25 and it gets worse from there By loss we mean that for example a transmitter looking into a 3 0 to 1 V S W R will only be able to deliver 75 of its output power to the load the antenna To summarize the transmitter must see an exact impedance match 50 ohms in this case to deliver full power to the load Again to achieve maximum power transfer from the transmitter to the antenna an impedance match between the antenna system and the t
14. ll find that most commercially available instruments do not introduce significant losses or V S W R However you can find wide variations in accuracy among several watt V S W R meters Therefore you have to be cautious in comparing readings between various meters RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 10 In addition your station grounding might affect your power and V S W R measurements When you connect all of your equipment together you introduce new paths for RF energy to flow in addition to your coax shields As an interesting point however many users find that the absolute value of the displays on their meters doesn t really matter that much For power the idea is to maximize it For V S W R the idea is to come as close to 1 0 as possible below a certain minimum of course Most measurement systems for high frequency HF power and V S W R measurement consist of two major components The first is the sensing system Directional Coupler the other is the display system There are commercially available systems that integrate both of these components into one package a conventional watt V S W R meter and some that separate the two such as the P 3000 P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 11 USING THE P 3000 GENERAL OPERATION There are three major functional units that make up the P 3000 These are O The power display O The V S W R display O The autoranging bargraph display Each of these units fun
15. olts display mode gives you an indication of the forward peak voltage being delivered to your transmission line At 100 watts you will see a display of about 70 volts In order to provide a pleasing display regardless of CW or SSB operation we have carefully selected the update interval for the Forward Power display mode This can be a problem however when you are trying to set an antenna tuner For this reason the display update interval is much faster about three times faster when you are displaying Reflected or True Power P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 13 IMPORTANT If you are displaying Reflected or True Power during normal station operation you might find that the display indicates a number of intermediate powers especially on SSB You can solve this problem by returning to the Forward display mode In any case the display will occasionally indicate a small wattage at the end of a transmission even when Forward Power is displayed This occurs when the sampling interval coincides with the end of your transmission This is normal The maximum Forward Power that will be displayed is 1 50 kW If you would like to display powers higher than this for testing purposes there is an internal jumper you can remove See the Special Applications section of this manual The data capture time is fast One dit or whistle will provide enough signal for you to get a reading This is a nice feature that helps to reduce QRM t
16. oo RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 14 THE V S W R DISPLAY The V S W R display gives you continuous readout of your V S W R The display indicates V S W R from 1 0 to 9 9 then from 10 to 19 The internal arithmetic of the P 3000 is carried out to tenths and rounding is applied It is possible for you to read a V S W R of 1 0 a theoretically impossible number If you see a display of 1 0 it means that your V S W R is below 1 05 or that you have not connected the reflected power cable from the Directional Coupler When your V S W R is at or below 1 5 a green LED is illuminated When it is at 3 0 or above a red LED is illuminated Neither LED is illuminated when the V S W R is between these values In addition the amplifier relay is opened when the V S W R is at or above 3 0 It will not close again until RF is removed from the P 3000 for three seconds or the V S W R is brought below 3 0 As noted above you can set the display on reflected power to speed up the V S W R update for sweeping antennas P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 15 THE AUTORANGING BARGRAPH The P 3000 incorporates a unique bargraph display This display answers one of the major complaints about digital wattmeters Many users are used to and feel most comfortable with analog meters because they can see what they are sending Digital displays remove this feature who wants to see a bunch of meaningless numbers bouncing aroun
17. ransmitter is required Normally the desired impedance is 50 ohms Antennas need to be designed and built to match this impedance In any antenna system the object is to get the most power delivered to the actual antenna Feedlines antenna switches connectors and yes wattmeters all contribute to losses between an RF source and an antenna You can conclude from all this that the best place to make a power or V S W R measurement is actually at the antenna and this is indeed the best place In most installations however power and V S W R measurements are made in the shack near the transmitter This is generally not a problem as long as the user realizes that the readings that are being taken represent those of the entire antenna system RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 8 not just the antenna And in some cases the readings can be misleading For example you might have a perfectly resonant 50 ohm antenna running on 10 meters You connect it with 150 feet of RG 58 cable Your station mounted wattmeter shows that you are delivering 100 watts from your transmitter into this antenna system Here s the problem the RG 58 cable exhibits a loss of 2 0 dB per one hundred feet at 30 MHz This means that if you mounted your wattmeter at the antenna you would read only 50 watts Your V S W R measurements can be affected because losses in the feedline reduce the level of the reflected voltages as well Therefore you can be lulled into a
18. re designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation The equipment generates uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions might cause harmful interference to radio communications However there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna Increase the separation between the equipment and the receiver Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected Consult the dealer or an experienced radio TV technician for help Copyright and Trademark Disclosure RF Applications and P 3000 are trademarks of RF Applications Inc The firmware in the P 3000 is copyrighted 1993 1995 by RF Applications Inc All rights reserved RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Unpacking and Setup Page Installation Page 4 Technical Discussion Page 7 Using the P 3000 Page 12 Special Applications Calibration Page 18 In Case of Trouble Page 22 Specifications Page 24 Limited Warranty Page 25 P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page iii
19. rter This results in a display that cannot indicate every single power value from zero to 3 000 there are only 256 codes available from the analog to digital converter You will notice that this display will indicate power in steps for example 100 104 109 113 watts etc The general specifications for the P 3000 call for accuracy that is plus or minus ten percent plus or minus the analog to digital converter resolution which is one power step increment We calibrate the P 3000 at 14 100MHz and then verify its operation on 1 8 and 283MHz If your application calls for better accuracy on a certain band you can easily recalibrate the unit to suit your needs In this case you can enjoy plus or minus five percent or better plus or minus the resolution accuracy You will be adjusting the potentiometers located at the top right of the PC board Do not adjust potentiometer R8 located near the microprocessor Be careful not to blast the board with static electricity P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 19 The calibration procedure is as follows 1 OpentheP 3000 2 Select the forward power display 3 Apply a known power to the Directional Coupler 4 Set potentiometer R9 to display the correct power 5 Reverse the BNC cables 6 Select reverse power to be displayed mode switch 7 Apply a known power to the Directional Coupler 8 Set potentiometer R10 to display the correct power 9 Reverse the BNC cables back to
20. sense of security about your V S W R when in fact it is higher at your antenna than you see on your meter Wattmeters like the P 3000 allow you to mount the Directional Coupler at the antenna or at least near it with some restrictions By doing this you can see what is happening near the antenna However additional installation costs are incurred because you must bring the sensing cables back to the shack P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 9 In most installations it is still most practical to install the measurement equipment in the shack The best solution to the above problem is to use high quality feedlines connectors etc to make your installation By high quality we mean components that are rated for the power frequencies and distances you will be using Then use a 50 ohm dummy load to test each feedline system after you have installed it You can verify that your feedlines have the predicted losses and low V S W R readings With this knowledge in mind you can now use the information your shack mounted power and V S W R meter gives you As mentioned above each element in the connection system between the transmitter and the antenna introduces some amount of loss and increased V S W R The goal of any design is to minimize the losses and V S W R while maximizing instrument accuracy over the specified frequency range As in any engineering exercise tradeoffs must be made between performance and cost You wi
21. sing the Y cable REF unmarked BNC goes to bottom connector on Display Head FOR RED marked BNC goes to top connector on Display Head 3 5mm plug goes to Coupler Don t worry about the RCA cable at this time Connect 12VDC to the power cable provided The black wire goes to ground and the wire with the white stripe goes to plus RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 2 ra tmr_ee 9 YcTY _ eaUT E gt _ _ _ E _7_EEEEE 7 E EL lL_ S _ _ _ E E_ _ _ _ E _ _ _ Z_ E E E E E E E SSSS S _ Lkh_ _ _ _ _ _ _E E M E E The P 3000 is protected against polarity reversals but be careful just the same Insure that the 12VDC is on then turn on the P 3000 the power switch is on the right side of the Display Head You should observe all the lamps on the Display Head come on then the display will show that the 120W range is selected forward power is to be displayed and the V S W R display goes to after the firmware version number is displayed You are now ready for a test Simply use your normal procedure to transmit The P 3000 will give you an instant indication of your current status If you reversed the REF and FOR cables you ll probably see a V S W R of 19 and zero forward watts No problem just reverse the cables If your transmitter has an internal tuner you might want to turn it off The internal tuner will
22. the warranty if in our opinion the product has been damaged due to misuse or subjected to adverse environmental conditions We might elect not to honor the warranty on units modified by you After the warranty has expired you may return the unit to the factory for repair after receiving authorization to do so We will repair the unit at a flat fee of US 60 00 plus shipping Please enclose a check money order or credit card information to cover repair costs and shipping P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indicator Page 25 gt gt SE gt E _ _ _ Ell UL Sll gt gt gt _ _ _ _ EE E E E E E E EE SSEEl UUlU H H i _ __ _ _ _K_ _E_K_ _ _ KEK H H __ L LLlL_ _ t Any information you can provide regarding the problem you are having would be very helpful Please be sure to give us a daytime telephone number in case our service technicians have any questions for you Please call for shipping instructions if you are returning the P 3000 to us Ship the unit make sure it is insured to RF Applications Inc 7345 Production Drive Mentor OH 44060 ATTN Repair Some states might allow you additional rights under this warranty Thank you very much for purchasing this product Please give us your feedback RF Applications Inc February 2000 RF Applications Inc User s Manual Page 26 P 3000 Digital RF Power V S W R Indi
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