{"id":14187,"date":"2012-10-24T16:30:09","date_gmt":"2012-10-24T21:30:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/techcitement.com\/?p=14187"},"modified":"2012-10-24T15:47:22","modified_gmt":"2012-10-24T20:47:22","slug":"hackrf-one-radio-to-rule-them-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/techcitement.com\/hardware\/hackrf-one-radio-to-rule-them-all\/","title":{"rendered":"HackRF: One Radio To Rule Them All"},"content":{"rendered":"
Many years ago, I was challenged by a coworker to come up with a way to open a garage door with a cellular phone. My proposed solution involved a computer, an internet connection and an X10 home automation device. A simple phone app could send a signal to the computer’s IP that would tell the automatic opener to operate via the X10. While this solution would work, he asked why I couldn’t just “hack” the phone to work like his battery operated garage door opener did. After all, both devices are wireless, right? I explained that radio chips are designed to operate on specific frequencies. As it is, the GSM radio on his phone, which operates at either 850 or 1900 MHz, requires a different radio chip than his Bluetooth and WiFi, which operate on a vastly different 2.4 GHz frequency. Because garage door openers usually operate on a range of 312 to 340 MHz, it simply wasn’t possible to communicate directly with his existing hardware because everything operates on clearly defined ranges. Until now.<\/p>\n
Engineer and gadget tinkerer\u00a0Michael Ossman<\/a>\u00a0has come up with a project to change that limited communication. This project, something he calls HackRF<\/a>, is a software defined radio (SDR) that can switch frequencies on the fly from as low as 100 MHz all the way up to 6 GHz. This range includes some FM stations, cordless phones, cellular phones, WiFi, GPS, and yes, even garage door openers.<\/p>\n The HackRF device isn’t the first SDR product, but it appears to be the first affordable one on a consumer level that offer this kind of range and features. Ossman’s device is expected to look similar to a USB dongle and cost around $300, making it perfect for hobbyists and tinkerers that want a single device to potentially tap into anything around them.<\/p>\n