ELECRAFT KAT100 Manual Download

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Elecraft

KAT100

Automatic Antenna Tuner

Revision D, February 13, 2015

KAT100-1 shown above. See page 3 for photo of full-height version (KAT100-2).

Summary of Contents for KAT100

Page 1: ...Elecraft KAT100 Automatic Antenna Tuner Revision D February 13 2015 KAT100 1 shown above See page 3 for photo of full height version KAT100 2 ...

Page 2: ...arts Inventory 4 RF Board Assembly 8 Front Panel Board Assembly 18 Final Assembly 19 Alignment and Test 27 Using the KAT100 31 Troubleshooting 34 Specifications 36 Circuit Details 37 Schematic APPENDIX A Parts Placement Drawing APPENDIX B ...

Page 3: ...nual is housed in a low profile cabinet intended to be placed beneath the K2 Two anti slip brackets are provided so the K2 will remain in position even if the KAT100 1 is tilted up Also see Tilt Stand Options at right The KAT100 2 shown in the photo at right is intended for side by side arrangement with the K2 It includes front and rear panels that match our K2 sized EC2 enclosure kit The EC2 is s...

Page 4: ...ptional feet tilt stand E100147 The items below are in a small bag labeled Misc KAT100 1 p n E850132 HDWR 28 Screw 4 40 x 3 16 Panhead Phillips black includes several spares E700015 HDWR 8 2 D Fastener E100078 MISC 4 Rubber foot self adhesive E700024 MISC 2 Anti slide bracket E100150 Items supplied only with the KAT100 2 for use with an EC2 enclosure Picture Ref Designator s QTY Description Part M...

Page 5: ...c E530109 C4 1 Capacitor 82 pF 2000V ceramic E530110 C5 C6A C6B C7A 7D 7 Capacitor 150 pF 2000V ceramic 151 E530111 C8 1 Capacitor 1200 pF 1600V polypropylene film 122 E530112 C32 1 Capacitor 100 pF 200V 101 E530034 C33 36 C47 5 Capacitor 001 µF 50 V 102 E530001 C37 C38 C39 C45 C46 C50 C51 7 Capacitor 01 µF 50 V 103 E530009 C44 C49 C101 C102 C56 5 Capacitor 047 µF 50V 473 E530025 C9 30 C40 C41 C43...

Page 6: ... ohms 1W 5 red blk brn E500074 R115 1 Resistor 220 ohms 1 4W 5 red red brn E500002 R116 1 Resistor 470 ohms 1 4W 5 yel vio brn E500003 R11 1 Resistor 680 ohm 1 2 W 5 blue gray brn E500085 K2 CTRL R12 1 Resistor 820 ohm 1 4 W 5 gray red brn E500001 R1 R8 R9 3 Resistor 3 3K 1 4W 5 org org red E500017 R12 R16 R17 R18 4 Resistor 10K 1 4W 5 brn blk org E500015 R3 R4 2 Potentiometer 100K trimmer 104 E52...

Page 7: ...m mating plug for J1 DC barrel jack E620032 MISC 1 Connector 9 pin DB9M male solder cup terminals for control cable E620049 MISC 3 ft Cable 4 conductor shielded E760009 MISC 1 DB9 backshell and hardware for control cable E620050 MISC 1 40 pin socket for U1 E620017 MISC 1 ft Hookup wire 20 black insulation E760006 MISC 1 ft Hookup wire 20 red insulation E760007 MISC 4 ft 26 enamel wire for T1 and R...

Page 8: ...f the board with 3 16 4 8 mm pan head screws black and 4 split lock washers Figure 1b Make sure the 2 D fasteners line up with the edges of the PC board and do not hang over If they hang over or do not match their component outlines they are installed backwards i The leads on small capacitors are fragile Do not pull on the leads or bend them excessively Sort all capacitors into groups by physical ...

Page 9: ...voltage capacitors listed below Note Save a few of the clipped leads from these capacitors for use as ground jumpers in later steps __ C1 12 12 __ C2 22 22 __ C3 39 39 __ C4 82 82 __ C5 150 151 __ C6B 150 151 __ C6A 150 151 __ C7D 150 151 __ C7C 150 151 __ C7B 150 151 __ C7A 150 151 __ C8 1200 pF 122 Install the electrolytic capacitor C42 10 µF near the back right corner of the board The lead must...

Page 10: ... short jumper location identified by a ground symbol Use a discarded high voltage capacitor lead to make a 3 4 19 mm U shaped wire for this jumper Mount the jumper on the top side of the board with the top of the U shape approx 1 4 6 mm above the board Solder it from the bottom side Install a similar jumper in the back right corner near relay K1 Install diodes D1 and D2 1N5711 near connector J3 at...

Page 11: ...owing steps you ll be installing connectors at the back edge of the PC board These connectors must be installed correctly in order for the rear panel to fit onto the board Figure 13 page 20 shows how the rear panel connectors will appear once installed Install the DC input jack J1 at the back edge The 3 leads on the jack must be lined up with the slot shaped holes in the component outline If the h...

Page 12: ...1 Notch Pin 1 Dimple Figure 5 Install U5 LM358 8 pins which is located in the back right corner A portion of the part number is printed on the board under the IC 358 Do not solder yet Bend two opposite corner pins on the bottom side to hold the IC in place Solder all 8 pins about 1 to 2 seconds per pin i U2 3 and 4 TPIC6B595 are especially sensitive to electrostatic discharge Touch a grounded surf...

Page 13: ...7 9 5mm 50 the larger size is 0 50 12 7mm Both ferrite cores are dark gray in color and can only be differentiated based on their size Three types of enamel wire are supplied with the kit 20 red 26 red and 26 green 20 wire is much larger in diameter than 26 Be sure to use only the type called for in the instructions do not substitute other wire types Cut wires to the specified lengths to avoid run...

Page 14: ...core see Figure 6 Tin L1 s leads with fresh solder If the solder on the leads looks dull or is not adhering very well remove any residual enamel and re tin the lead Install L1 flat on the board as shown by its component outline near relays K1 and K2 Do not solder yet Secure L1 to the PC board using a cable tie Two holes are provided for this purpose one inside the core and one outside The cable ti...

Page 15: ...f the completed RF board we suggest mounting all four of these cores with the dark side down Install L2 L8 using cable ties as you did for L1 Match each toroid to its reference designator carefully Exchanging any of them will make tune up erratic and may prevent the ATU from finding a match Note Once in position some of the toroids may be very close to each other and may even be touching This will...

Page 16: ... the red and green wires together over their entire length The wires should cross over each other about every 1 2 1 cm Wind 12 turns of the twisted wires onto the large ferrite core FT50 43 The turns should cover about 80 90 of the core as shown in Figure 9 a white core was used to highlight the winding Separate T1 s leads as shown in Figure 10 The numbers on the leads correspond to numbered pads ...

Page 17: ...odes __ Transistors __ ICs Resistance Checks Make the resistance measurements listed below touching the DMM s and leads to the indicated points The schematic may be helpful in troubleshooting any incorrect readings i The symbol means greater than Your DMM may indicate infinite resistance all digits flashing for readings in the table that include this symbol Other readings should be 10 KAT100 Test ...

Page 18: ...ur KAT100 s front panel Sort the rectangular LEDs into groups according to color Install a green LED at D101 at the left end of the Front Panel board but do not solder yet As indicated on the board the long lead anode goes to the right Hold the LED flat against the board not tilted Bend the leads outward on the bottom side to hold it in place Then trim both leads Solder one lead of the LED keeping...

Page 19: ...ure the assembly and keep the Front Panel board in a vertical position Locate the two small L brackets Identify the shorter side of the L which will be attached to the RF board Place an L bracket at one of the indicated locations at the front edge the RF board Align it with the component outline If it s not flush with the front edge the short and long sides may be reversed Secure the L bracket loo...

Page 20: ...ctor s flange should be on the outside of the panel The center pin s solder cup should be facing up to facilitate soldering in a later step Secure J6 with four 4 40 x 5 16 8 mm pan head screws 4 split lock washers and 4 40 nuts A solder lug takes the place of one lock washer at the indicated corner closest to the top edge of the rear panel Do not overtighten the hardware Position J5 and J4 on the ...

Page 21: ...full into place The connectors mounted on the RF board should press up against the inside of the panel Secure the rear panel to the bottom of the RF board at the 2 D fasteners using two 4 40 x 3 16 4 7 mm screws black Note If the holes on the bottom portion of the rear panel do not line up with the holes in the 2 D fasteners you may not have the rear panel pressed all the way onto the RF board Sec...

Page 22: ...st be oriented as shown in the detail drawing Figure 16 Figure 15 Attach the side panels to 2 D fasteners already installed on the RF board Use one 4 40 x 3 16 4 7 mm screw black per fastener Secure the side panels to top surfaces of the front and rear panels Use one 4 40 x 3 16 4 7 mm screw black per fastener Holes offset away from panel Figure 16 Unwrap the bottom cover piece which can be distin...

Page 23: ...the way onto the RF board Look carefully at the locations of the screws holding the feet in place If the screws are near any component pins on the bottom of the RF board clip the component pins This may require temporary loosening of the rear panel hardware Secure J3 9 pin D connector to the rear panel using two male female standoffs see Figure 13 Do not overtighten the standoffs as they can easil...

Page 24: ...f applicable 9 If your I O controller firmware is revision is 1 05 or earlier remove U1 on the RF board and install the replacement IOC here 10 Turn on the K2 You may see INFO 201 for about 11 seconds if you have installed a new IOC 11 If you saw INFO 201 you will need to re enter all of your menu and filter parameters saved in step 1 12 Test your sidetone using the ST L menu entry If the sidetone...

Page 25: ...Orient the cable as in Figure 17 with the PC end female to the right If you have not built an RS232 control cable you should have an unused DB9M male connector that was supplied with the KIO2 or KPA100 kit Locate this connector for use in the next step You should now have two DB9M male connectors one that was supplied with the KAT100 and one from the KIO2 or KPA100 The latter may already be part o...

Page 26: ...ish to add a 1 amp fuse of any type in line with the KAT100 s DC input K2 Control Board R12 If your K2 is s n 2999 or lower you ll need to install a resistor in series with the VRFDET line on the K2 Control board as described below This will protect the K2 s microcontroller from accidental damage if you have a short in the KAT100 control cable K2s s n 3000 up already have this resistor designated ...

Page 27: ...turn on at 10 W and below The HIGH power LED should turn on above 10 W Menu and Relay Test Tap M ENU then use B AND B AND or the VFO knob to locate the ATU menu entry Hold EDI T to modify the parameter If the ATU parameter appears as two dashes refer to Troubleshooting Using the VFO knob scroll through the ATU menu parameters You may hear relays turning on and off as you select various entries You...

Page 28: ...e POWER control for 20 watts Otherwise set the POWER control for 5 or 10 watts Use 10 watts if your dummy load can handle this level at least for short transmissions Set the KAT100 s FWD and REFL power potentiometers R3 and R4 to about the middle of their range SWR Bridge Null Adjustment Make sure the KAT100 is set up exactly as described on page 27 Preparing the KAT100 for Alignment The signal mu...

Page 29: ... should be connected to a the KAT100 s ground jumper Touch the DMM s lead to pin 5 of U5 see Figure 19 Enter tune mode by holding TUNE Adjust R4 REFL until the DMM reads close to the target voltage from the table Hold TUNE again when finished Note In high power mode the power shown on the LCD should stabilize near the desired level 20 watts after a few seconds On a basic K2 power may drift upwards...

Page 30: ... 7 mm black screws Anti Slide Brackets KAT100 1 only The KAT100 1 is designed to be placed beneath the K2 If the two are then tilted using the optional ETS15 tilt stand or a slanted operating surface the K2 tends to slide off during operation To keep the K2 in place you can install the two supplied anti slide brackets The K2 s rear feet slip over the short standoffs on the brackets Identify rear c...

Page 31: ... the K2 s GRPH menu entry to select DOT mode for the LED bargraphs on both the K2 and the KAT100 or install KAT100 jumper W1 to force DOT mode for just the KAT100 regardless of the GRPH menu setting GND E1 A good ground should be connected to the KAT100 This is especially important with high power K2 100 See Antenna Considerations RF IN J4 J4 must be connected to the appropriate antenna jack on th...

Page 32: ...t power output and SWR The tune mode power limit will be overridden and the ATU s L and C settings will not change The ATU menu entry can display current values of L and C network type and other data See ATU Menu Settings at right Sometimes a slightly lower SWR can be found by repeating TUNE Bypassing the Matching Network CAL mode You can bypass the matching network by setting the ATU menu entry t...

Page 33: ...low operation on additional bands Random Length Antennas A wire antenna end fed or fed with balanced line is an excellent choice for use with an ATU Nearly any piece of wire over about 30 feet long and end fed can be tuned up on 80 10 meters preferably working against a good ground or at least two radials A longer wire or additional inductance in series will be needed to cover 160 meters For porta...

Page 34: ...one You may have the wrong sidetone source selected Select the ST L menu entry and EDI T its parameter then tap D I SPLAY Transmit or TUNE problems Erratic tuning in AUTO mode This is much more likely to occur at high power and could be due to high RF voltages on the K2 chassis mic key power supply leads or KAT100 control cable First try reducing power to 10 watts or less This will force auto tune...

Page 35: ...wn the ATU menu parameters after the TUNE attempt including SWR L C NET Exxx Txxx and the ATU firmware revision Send this data to Elecraft for analysis Also try ATU INIT which will reset all the ATU L and C settings to 0 on the next power up You could have a single defective relay or component on the L C board See Testing Relays Inductors and Capacitors below ATU error message E001 E199 Please rep...

Page 36: ...na side Antenna outputs 2 Unbalanced SWR Range Matched Up to 10 1 typ varies with band smaller range on lowest bands Tuning time 1 to 5 seconds typical for initial tune up 1 2 sec to recall stored settings SWR Display 1 0 1 to 9 9 1 on K2 LCD 1 1 to 5 1 on 10 front panel LEDs Enclosure Size 1 3 H x 7 8 W x 8 3 D 3 3 x 19 8 x 21 0 cm Weight Approx 3 pounds 1 4 kg Supply voltage 10 to 15 VDC Current...

Page 37: ...ovide a closed loop power control signal back to the K2 via the VRFDET line an additional high current buffer U6 is turned on VRFEN 5V This is only required if there is no KPA100 connected i e if a basic K2 is connected to the KAT100 via a KIO2 module The KAT100 can be powered from either J1 external or P3 internal providing flexibility for builders who wish to add accessory modules into the top c...

Page 38: ... SRCK SOUT 0 1 RCK SIN GND VCC Q 4 Q 5 Q 6 Q 7 Q 2 Q 3 Q 1 Q 0 GND GND RCK SIN GND VCC Q 7 Q 6 Q 0 Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Q 4 Q 5 GND GND C48 1 2 1 3 G 6 7 4 5 1 8 1 0 1 1 1 9 U3 1 2 1 3 G 6 7 1 5 1 4 1 8 1 0 1 1 1 9 U2 9 8 3 1 4 2 1 5 1 6 1 7 9 8 3 1 7 2 1 6 4 5 6B595 SRCLR SRCK SOUT RCK SIN GND VCC Q 0 Q 4 Q 5 Q 6 Q 7 Q 2 Q 3 Q 1 GND GND 1 2 1 3 G 1 7 6 5 7 1 8 1 0 1 1 1 9 U4 9 8 3 4 2 1 4 1 5 1 6 5V K17 2...

Page 39: ... Q2 2N7000 12V 5V Sheet 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 J 3 Control RFC1 C47 VRFDET AUXBUS 15µH 001 C46 01 BACK VIEW 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 P 4 Aux Control C45 01 KAT100 RF Board 2 of 2 5V R5 1 2 0 AUXBUS 12V 12CTRL K17 3 1 4 K18 3 1 4 C 0 1 C41 Aux RF In J 2 P 6 1 2 Aux RF Out J3 ANT1 ANT2 GND GND E1 GND Ant Switch 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 P 5 W 4 W 3 5V S W CT CD Front Panel W 5 W 6 C3...

Page 40: ... 1 9 U102 1 2 1 3 G 1 6 6 5 1 5 1 8 1 0 1 1 1 9 U101 9 8 3 6 2 7 1 5 1 4 9 8 3 1 4 2 7 4 1 7 LED D101 D102 D103 D104 D105 D106 D107 D108 D109 D110 D111 D112 D113 D114 DATA CLOCK Ant 1 Ant 2 1 0 1 2 1 3 1 5 1 7 2 0 2 5 3 0 4 0 5 0 LP HP R103 1 2 0 R104 1 2 0 R105 1 2 0 R106 1 2 0 R107 1 2 0 R108 1 2 0 R109 1 2 0 R110 1 2 0 R111 1 2 0 R112 1 2 0 R101 1 2 0 R102 1 2 0 R113 1 2 0 R114 1 2 0 NIGHT 1 0 ...

Page 41: ...J5 J6 LONG AUX RF K14 K12 K13 K15 K16 K10 K11 GND GND GND C32 C31 R12 R11 R16 C44 C35 C36 C6A C6B C7A C7B C7C C7D C24 C23 C22 C21 C20 C19 C26 C25 C13 C15 C16 C11 C10 C12 C14 C17 C18 C42 C45 C53 C28 C30 C54 C27 C29 K17 C52 C37 RP1 R13 C41 C43 C48 C55 R18 R17 C58 C49 FWD C57 K18 C46 C59 C60 C40 R8 R9 C9 J2 P6 P3 J1 L5 L8 K6 K1 K2 K3 K4 K5 K7 K8 L3 L4 L1 L7 L6 J3 P4 R1 D2 D1 T1 L2 K9 D4 R4 R3 Q1 U8 C...

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