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M0IAX

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ICMultiMeter by F4HWN - a bluetooth display for IC705

Posted: 02 May 2022 04:54 AM PDT https://m0iax.com/2022/05/02/icmultimeter-by-f4whn-a-bluetooth-display-for-ic705/



We are starting to see some great software being developed for the IC705
the latest of which is ICMultiMeter, this software can be installed on an M5Stack giving you a handy portable external display that connects over bluetooth to your IC705.



M5Stack?




Yeah, I hadnt heard if it before I discovered this software. In basic terms
its an ESP32 Microcontroller in an enclosure that includes a touch screen display, USB C port, small speaker, microphone, Micro SDCard slot and a battery. The ESP32 chip includes wifi and bluetooth to allow connectivity
to other devices.












I bought the Core 2 version from PIMORONI for GBP42.



ICMultiMeter Software




ICMultimeter software for the M5Stack is written by Armel F4HWN (https://twitter.com/f4hwn) and is available as a download from GitHub.




To install it on your M5Stack you need to download Visual Studio Code, add
the PlatformIO IDE Plugin, open the project files, compile and upload to
your M5Stack using the supplied USB A to C cable provided with the M5Stack. NOTE that I first tried using my MacBook Air to do this, but found there is
a problem with the USB driver and PlatformIO IDE could not find the M5Stack
USB port, I switched to a windows machine and it worked first time.




You can find links to more detailed installation instructions on the ICMultiMeter GitHub page




Once installed all that remains is to pair a new data device with your
IC705, search and select ICMultiMeter and you are ready to go.







IC705 Meters at a glance








As you can see from the above picture once connected you can see the meters
and their current values on the screen which means you can have the
waterfall on the IC705 and see everything else here, or check your
frequency if you cant see the IC705 screen when portable, so you could
carry your backpack and easily operate on the move.



Almost Real Time Display




The display updates in almost real time, by that I mean there is a slight
delay in update when you change frequency or key up to transmit but when it does the screen accurately shows the same values as the Radio does.











Great Software, in active devleopment




This is another great example of a solution to a problem I never had but I
love it, and the M5Stack running ICMultiMeter is now a part of my portable IC705 setup, weighing in at 54g (1.9oz) it will fit in the bag and I wont
feel the weight.




New features were added since I started playing with it this week so its in active development so I look forward to new features.




Great software, if you like it and find it useful please support the
Developer, theres a link on the GitHub page to buy a beer for him, I think
work like this housed be encouraged




73




Mark




M0IAX

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