Caltech/JPL 2005 Rose Parade Float ATV
Caltech and JPL had a 50-foot high float in the 2005 Rose Parade. Several weeks before the
parade, the JPL Amateur Radio Club was asked to put a camera in the head of the float which
would then be used to crate a live internet streaming video. ( http://www.floatcam.caltech.edu) .
The basic system was a23cm transmitter on the float with a circularly polarized (CP)
omnidirectional antenna on the float's head (we had to get a special dispensation not to cover
it with plant product s). We sent the signal to a hand-held antenna on the roof of 2 North Lake,
an 11-story building at Lake and Colorado. The helical has a fairly narrow beam width, so we
aimed it down at Colorado, and as the floats passed by underneath us, we rotated it (using the
"armstrong" rotator). CP was used to reduce the effects of multipath in the "canyon" formed
by the buildings along the street. In our tent on the roof, we had a 23cm receiver, which was
fed to a 20Watt 70cm transmitter (actually a transceiver) with an IDer putting the call sign in
every 10 minutes or so. The 70cm signal was routed to a small Yagi and beamed to a 70cm
receiver located at the Millikan Library on campus at Cal Tech, where it was fed back to JPL
via some sort of link and then streamed using JPL's realserver. Jim Lux, W6RMK
See more pictures:
http://www.luxfamily.com/events/rose2005/roseatv.htm
Sirius to Launch Video Service in 2006
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. said on Wednesday it plans to sell a video
service beginning in the second half of 2006 and will use software from Microsoft Corp for the service.
Sirius, which provides satellite radio services for a monthly fee, said it is planning two to three video
channels with programming aimed at children. It said car makers are interested in installing the service
given the interest in entertainment for passengers in the back seats of cars. On Tuesday, Ford Motor
Company said it will begin offering Sirius radio as a factory-installed option in up to 1 million vehicles
over two years beginning this summer. Sirius and Microsoft also expect to work together on video for
computers and home entertainment devices, Microsoft said.
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