The Bridge - Issue 2, 2019 - 20

Feature

GREAT IMPEDANCE MATCH FOR KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER:
Amateur Radio as Part of Electrical and Computer Engineering Education

In considering the use of the technician examination
as a University teaching tool, it is useful to review the
contents of this examination [4]. (Example questions
can be found at: http://www.ncvec.org/).
The subject areas of the FCC technician examination
are as follows:
* Subelement T1 - FCC Rules, descriptions
and definitions for the amateur radio service,
operator and station license responsibilities.
* Subelement T2 - Operating procedure.
* Subelement T3 - Radio wave characteristics.
* Subelement T4 - Amateur radio practices
and station set up.
* Subelement T5 - Electrical and Electronic
principles.
* Subelement T6 - Electrical components,
semiconductors and Circuit diagrams.
* Subelement T7 - Station equipment,
troubleshooting, basic repair, and testing.
* Subelement T8 - Modulation modes, Amateur
satellite operation, digital communication.
* Subelement T9 - Antennas and feed lines.
* Subelement T0 - Electrical safety: AC and DC
power circuits; Antenna installation; RF hazards.

Output
Buffer
Amplifier

Using the online study aid -- HamStudy.org -- it
generally takes a student about five hours to be
proficient enough to pass the 35-question technician
exam. HamStudy.org takes students through the
entire set of 423 questions, provides the correct
answer and a short explanation justifying the answer.
The five hours of study only provides enough time
to identify correct answers; more time is needed to
understand deeper principles. Motivated students are
encouraged to pursue broader study. The General
Class and Extra Class FCC license examinations
require deeper knowledge and provide wider access
to the amateur radio spectrum allocations, notably
the High Frequency (HF) bands.

Using Amateur Radio Projects in the
ECE Laboratory Curriculum
Amateur radio organizations such as the American
Radio Relay League (ARRL) and the Radio Society of
Great Britain (RSGB) provide a wealth of publications
that are intended for both introductory and
advanced audiences with an emphasis on practical
implementation of projects. Many of the publications
include step-by-step instructions on how to build
and test electronic systems designs with modest

"Ham Radio" Magazine 1 GHz Oscillator Design
Negative Resistance
Reflection Amplifier
Short Circuit
Transmission Line

Open Circuit
Transmission Line

Adjustable l/4 Resonator
Fig. 3: This is an adjustable 1 GHz oscillator that was adapted from the article "Designing a Station for the Microwave Amateur Radio Bands; Part II" by
Glen Elmore, (N6GN), from Ham Radio Magazine, June 1988.

THE BRIDGE

https://www.hamstudy.org/ http://www.arrl.org/qst http://www.arrl.org/qex http://www.ncvec.org/ https://www.hamstudy.org/ http://www.arrl.org/qex https://hkn.ieee.org/ https://hkn.ieee.org/

The Bridge - Issue 2, 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Bridge - Issue 2, 2019