D-STAR is an exciting new form of Amateur Radio that compliments other parts of the hobby including VHF, HF operation, Contesting and Satellite communications etc. Utilizing digital communication and the Internet, D-STAR allows you to communicate worldwide with other operators who are connected to D-STAR repeaters.

D-STAR, a standard published in 2001, is the result of years of research funded by the Japanese government and administered by the JARL to investigate digital technologies for amateur radio. D-STAR is an open protocol - published by JARL, it is available to be implemented by anyone. Whilst Icom is the only company to date that manufactures D-STAR compatible radios, any equipment or software that supports the D-STAR protocol will work with a D-STAR system. In a D-STAR system, the air link portion of the protocol applies to signals travelling directly between radios or between radios via a repeater.

D-STAR radios can talk directly to each other without any intermediate equipment or through a repeater using D-STAR voice or data transceivers. The gateway portion of the protocol applies to the digital interface between D-STAR repeaters. D-STAR also specifies how a voice signal is converted to and from the stream of digital data. The D-STAR codec is known as AMBE® (Advanced Multiband Excitation) and the voice signal is transmitted in the D-STAR system at 3600 bits/second (3.6 kbps).

History of D-Star

D-STAR (Digital Smart Technologies for Amateur Radio) is a digital voice and data protocol specification developed for use in amateur radio. D-Star compatible radios are available on VHF and UHF amateur radio bands. In addition to the over-the-air protocol, D-Star also provides specifications for network connectivity, enabling D-Star radios to be connected to the Internet or other networks.

• 1999 Funded by the Japanese government and administrated by the JARL, investigation was put into finding a new way of bringing digital technology to amateur radio.
• 2001 D-Star is published as the result of the research
• 2002 Icom enters the construction of the new digital technology by offering the hardware necessary to create this technology
• 2004 The conclusion of all this work is the digital technology for amateur radio called D-Star.
• 2007 D-Star is available in Canada, U.S. and the UK.

D-Star Features

D-Star is constantly developing and lends itself to continual improvement both in the ability to display information from over the Internet and in the control of the radios connected to the system. We have only scratched the surface with what has currently been provided. D-Star is capable of carrying both digital voice and data. Already there has been developed a number of utilities, a mail client that uses the data messaging for the mail messages, a statistical program for showing current users, GPS positioning and many more.

D-Star transmissions consist of 3 digital streams. The digital voice, control data and data messaging. The occupied bandwidth of the digital signal is smaller than that needed in analogue transmissions and therefore more digital channels can be provided in a given bandwidth. To enable the repeaters to communicate with each other over the internet the repeater is connected to a PC running a LINUX operating system and Gateway software. This software connects to other gateways and keeps the user lists up to date and connects the digital streams between repeaters. All of the information is distributed within a network that is managed by a "Trust Server".

D-Star Tools

The open D-STAR protocol provides a rich, exciting set of tools so that Amateur Radio enthusiasts can experiment and build. D-STAR is built to support 21st century tools - the Web, networking, Ethernet, TCP/IP - so free your imagination!

D-PRS
The low-speed data ports of D-STAR handheld radios are compatible with the GPS NMEA data interface. With GPS data integrated into the D-STAR digital data stream, your location data is forwarded to the D-PRS server where gateway software connects you to the APRS reporting system. The interface is built-in to D-STAR radios and no separate TNC and transceiver required!

Information and Services
Imagine arriving in town as a visitor or on business. Connect a laptop or PDA to your D-STAR handheld, key in a few simple characters, and request a "what's happening" report from a local D-STAR kiosk server. In seconds, you're viewing text listing meetings, clubs, electronics stores, and events. Need a weather check? A few more characters and the screen fills with the current report.

IRLP and EchoLink
It's only natural that D-STAR's digital voice capabilities will be linked up with the most popular repeater sharing applications, EchoLink® and IRLP. Since your voice is already digitised within the D-STAR system, third party bridges and converters to and from other digital voice systems provide an obvious and expected future addition.

For more information, please visit ICOM Canada's site.

Durham Region Area D-Star

The Toronto FM Communications Society (TFMCS) had enabled their D-Star transmitter on the Uxbridge site in June of 2008.

The D-Star is operating on their 443.225 Mhz channel.

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