7
Operation of the i-Box, Powered by Icom
Think of the switch in the control box as having an extra set of contacts that close when
the switch is rocked up or down. Each time you rock the switch the motor is turned on
and the transceiver will transmit a carrier with reduced power. After the switch is
released, the transceiver will continue to transmit for a few seconds giving you extra time
to observe the built-in SWR meter. When rocking the switch, tune for an SWR of less
than 2:1 and release the switch. The antenna is tuned. It is just that simple.
For Icom transceivers with a built-in antenna tuner, there is a slightly different process.
Press and hold the tuner button on the face of the transceiver for about 1 second. When
you hear a tone from the speaker, then rock the switch to tune the antenna. As you rock
the switch, the transmit indicator on the transceiver will light indicating that the
transceiver is transmitting in the tune mode at 10 watts. For practice, do this process a
few times.
The light on the control box will illuminate when the antenna’s coil is fully extended or fully
retracted.
The light may also blink when the antenna’s motor is started. This is normal and
expected. The lens on the light assembly may be red or green. It does not matter.
The i-Box will not function properly with the IC-7000. Please see the next section for
information on the i-Box 7000 that is specifically manufactured for the 7000.
Installing the i-Box.-7000
The control box
should be mounted
in a convenient
location since it will
be used to tune the
antenna.
We have provided
the plug for the
wires to the motor. You can simply use butt connectors to make the connection to the wires
that go to the antenna’s motor.
Turn off your Icom
™
transceiver. Plug the 13 pin din connector into matching din jack on
the rear of the IC-7000. When the transceiver is powered-up, the i-Box 7000 will get the
voltage for the motor from the IC-7000 and cause it to transmit when the switch it rocked.