Amateur radio, programming, electronics and other musings

Trimble Thunderbolt Kit/PCB v1.1

Overview

Trimble MonitorThunderbolt Monitor is a stand-alone microprocessor-controlled LCD specifically for Trimble’s Thunderbolt disciplined clock, providing a comprehensive indication of the Thunderbolt’s status, modes, and alarm conditions.

The data packets appearing on the Thunderbolt’s serial port are in Trimble Standard Interface Protocol (TSIP), not NMEA sentences, so this display will not work with NMEA GPS units, such as Trimble’s Jupiter or any other NMEA based GPS.

Ideal for amateur radio applications, Thunderbolt Display shows Time Of Day (UTC) to assist with logging contacts, and also calculates Maidenhead Grid Locator Square from the current latitude and longitude.  You could also use it as a NTP source during your field day activities.

NEW: Version 1.1 has been amended to allow the LEDs and buttons to be connected via headers which is much more suitable for people building these into enclosures. The picture here is of version 1.0 without this enhancement.

You will need to purchase a Netduino Plus 2 and a Trimble Thunderbolt to make use of this kit.

Kits are not currently available but PCBs have been made available for those who wish to source their own components.

  • PCB (£5.60 + UK shipping):
  • PCB (£5.60 + International shipping):

Features

  • 4 line x 20 character backlit LCD
  • 5 information pages
  • Alarm outputs (LEDs)
  • NTP Server
  • 3 Programmable buttons to send commands
  • Open source hardware and software
  • Shield for use with Netduino or Arduino
  • Required 7.5 – 12V input (or USB powered)

Display Pages

  • Page 1: Status
  • Page 2: Mode/Survey
  • Page 3: Location
  • Page 4: Alarms
  • Page 5: Network configuration
  • Splash: Shown during boot time
  • Error: Shown when no data is being received.

Sample Screen

This is an example of a screen from my Thunderbolt Monitor.
TrimbeMonitorLCD

Software

You can find all source code at https://github.com/m1dst/Trimble-Thunderbolt-Monitor or the pre-compiled releases at https://github.com/m1dst/Trimble-Thunderbolt-Monitor/releases/

Instructions

You can download the latest manual here.

Inspiration

For inspiration on how you can use your new Thunderbolt Monitor, see what others have done with it in the builders gallery.

Cost

Kits are not currently available but PCBs have been made available for those who wish to source their own components.

  • PCB (£5.60 + UK shipping):
  • PCB (£5.60 + International shipping):