All About Radio Direction Finding (RDF)

Homing In refers to the process of tracking down the source of a radio or other electromagnetic signal using radio direction finding (RDF) equipment.

Homing In is also the title of my regular column on RDF that ran for 15 years in 73 Amateur Radio Today magazine and is now in CQ VHF magazine. At this Homing In site, you will find more about these columns, plus RDF articles that I have written for other publications, including Monitoring Times, CQ VHF and QST magazines. There is also information about my comprehensive book on the subject.

Radio direction finding is used to find sources of interference to any form of wireless electronic communications, including broadcast and two-way radio, television, and telephones. It is also used to track missing or stolen cars and other property. Search and rescue workers use it to find persons in distress. Emergency Locator Transmitters in downed aircraft are tracked with RDF techniques.

Most of the information at this site pertains to RDF equipment and techniques for Amateur Radio (ham) operators. Hams use RDF to track jamming stations and stolen equipment, but more often, they use it just for fun. Hidden transmitter hunting has been done by hams for about fifty years and it is a growing activity. T-hunting refers specifically to hunts involving hams driving in RDF-equipped vehicles. A mobile T-hunt is best described as hide-and-seek for all ages with radio gear. When you set out on a T-hunt, you never know where you'll end up, and you have no idea what you're going to find. No form of ham radio contesting is more fun! Mobile T-hunting is done in cities and towns all over the USA, and elsewhere in the world. Depending on the frequency band and the nature of the hunt, the hunters use loop, yagi, quad, doppler and time-difference-of-arrival RDF antenna systems mounted on their vehicles. Click here for for general information about mobile T-hunting or click here for beginner-level T-hunts in southern California.

Mobile T-hunting is called foxhunting in some parts of the USA, but everywhere else in the world, the terms "foxhunting" and ARDF refer to another kind of RDF contest, done completely on foot in large woods and parks. It's a map-and-compass sport similar to orienteering, with about a half-dozen "fox" transmitters to find in a period of two hours or so. Someday this sport, which is also called foxtailing, fox-teering and radio-orienteering, may become an Olympic event. Meanwhile, it's a fun-filled activity for your hamfests and Scout Jamborees. Try it, and you may find yourself at the next annual national USA ARDF Championships. You might even become a member of ARDF Team USA, which has competed in five foxhunting World Championships. Click here for for general information about radio-orienteering or click here for beginner-level ARDF events in southern California.
Find your resources below:-
 
Template by: WilayahV17