sdrangel/plugins/samplesource/bladerfinput/readme.md

<h1>BladeRF input plugin</h1>

<h2>Introduction</h2>

This input sample source plugin gets its samples from a [BladeRF device](https://www.nuand.com/). 

<h2>Build</h2>

The plugin will be built only if the [BladeRF host library](https://github.com/Nuand/bladeRF) is installed in your system. If you build it from source and install it in a custom location say: `/opt/install/libbladeRF` you will have to add `-DLIBBLADERF_INCLUDE_DIR=/opt/install/libbladeRF/include -DLIBBLADERF_LIBRARIES=/opt/install/libbladeRF/lib/libbladeRF.so` to the cmake command line.

The BladeRF Host library is also provided by many Linux distributions and is built in the SDRangel binary releases.

<h2>Interface</h2>

![BladeRF input plugin GUI](../../../doc/img/BladeRFInput_plugin.png)

<h3>1: Common stream parameters</h3>

![SDR Daemon FEC stream GUI](../../../doc/img/SDRdaemonFEC_plugin_01.png)

<h4>1.1: Frequency</h4>

This is the center frequency of reception in kHz.

<h4>1.2: Start/Stop</h4>

Device start / stop button. 

  - Blue triangle icon: device is ready and can be started
  - Green square icon: device is running and can be stopped
  - Magenta (or pink) square icon: an error occured. In the case the device was accidentally disconnected you may click on the icon, plug back in and start again.
  
<h4>1.3: Record</h4>

Record baseband I/Q stream toggle button

<h4>1.4: Stream sample rate</h4>

Baseband I/Q sample rate in kS/s. This is the device sample rate (4) divided by the decimation factor (6). 

<h3>2: Auto correction options</h3>

These buttons control the local DSP auto correction options:

  - **DC**: auto remove DC component
  - **IQ**: auto make I/Q balance
  
<h3>3: XB-200 add-on control</h3>

This controls the optional XB-200 add-on when it is fitted to the BladeRF main board. These controls have no effect if the XB-200 board is absent. Options are:

  - **None**: XB-200 is ignored
  - **Bypass**: XB-200 is passed through
  - **Auto 1dB**: The 50, 144 and 220 MHz filters are switched on automatically according to the frequency of reception when it is within the -1 dB passband of the filters 
  - **Auto 3dB**: The 50, 144 and 220 MHz filters are switched on automatically according to the frequency of reception when it is within the -3 dB passband of the filters
  - **Custom**: The signal is routed through a custom filter
  - **50M**: The signal is routed through the 50 MHz filter 
  - **144M**: The signal is routed through the 144 MHz filter 
  - **222M**: The signal is routed through the 222 MHz filter 

<h3>4: Device sample rate</h3>

This is the BladeRF device ADC sample rate in S/s.

Use the wheels to adjust the sample rate. Left click on a digit sets the cursor position at this digit. Right click on a digit sets all digits on the right to zero. This effectively floors value at the digit position. 

<h3>5: Decimation factor</h3>

The I/Q stream from the BladeRF ADC is doensampled by a power of two before being sent to the passband. Possible values are increasing powers of two: 1 (no decimation), 2, 4, 8, 16, 32.

<h3>6: Baseband center frequency position relative the the BladeRF Rx center frequency</h3>

Possible values are:

  - **Cen**: the decimation operation takes place around the BladeRF Rx center frequency
  - **Inf**: the decimation operation takes place around the center of the lower half of the BladeRF Rx passband. 
  - **Sup**: the decimation operation takes place around the center of the upper half of the BladeRF Rx passband. 

<h3>7: Rx filter bandwidth</h3>

This is the Rx filter bandwidth in kHz in the LMS6002D device. Possible values are: 1500, 1750, 2500, 2750, 3000, 3840, 5000, 5500, 6000, 7000, 8750, 10000, 12000, 14000, 20000, 28000 kHz.

<h3>8: LNA gain</h2>

This is the LNA gain in dB. LNA is inside the LMS6002D chip and is placed before the RF mixer. Possible values are:

  - **0dB**: no gain
  - **3dB**
  - **6dB**
  
<h3>9: Variable gain amplifier #1 gain</h3>

The VGA1 gain can be adjusted from 5 dB to 30 dB in 1 dB steps. The VGA1 is inside the LMS6002D chip and is placed between the RF mixer and the baseband filter.

<h3>10: Variable gain amplifier #2 gain</h3>

The VGA2 gain can be adjusted from 0 dB to 30 dB in 3 dB steps. The VGA2 is inside the LMS6002D chip and is placed between the baseband filter and the ADC.