Thursday, June 25, 2009

Whats in the Suitcase ?

The AeroComm AC4790 SDK comes in a suitcase package with two transceiver modules inside along with associated power adapters, USB cables and installation CD.

The transceiver consists of a base-board along with the AC4790 module installed on top. It also has an "omni-directional dipole" antenna installed on board. The kit comes along with a SDK Quick Start Guide, which explains the setup process sufficiently.

That's where the theory ends and actual work begins. Although there is a lot of literature on the web which discuss about the usefulness of the modules, there is nothing which gives a step-by-step instructions on how to make the damn thing work. If you are someone who has cursed and given up trying, then you are not the only one. I spent almost a good one week trying to figure out how to make this damn kit work. My intentions were the most humble of any adventurer. I just wanted to make a simple data transfer from one module to another. That's when I realised that its not so simple as it appears in the SDK Quick Start Guide.

After having not given up and found initial success, I felt the need to write what I had so far accomplished. Nothing much, just perform a simple "Loop Back" test. I hope that someone who has tried searching the net, finds this information useful in their quest to utilize this radio transceiver.