Remote Heaven

Freezing toes! My "ham station" is tucked into a corner of the room that gets incredibly cold during the winter. Whenever I brought this up to my XYL, she had a simple suggestion: "Why don't you just put on thicker socks?" But no self-respecting ham would settle for such an easy fix. I wanted to be freed from that icy corner and operate in comfort from my favorite spot—the recliner in the living room. This is the story of my journey to make that a reality.

My base station is an Icom IC-7610, which features built-in networking. When paired with the stellar wfview software, it allows for nearly complete remote operation. However, I am primarily a CW operator. While wfview supports remote CW, it is limited to keyboard entry. For me, the true joy of CW lies in the tactile experience of using physical paddles.

Solutions for this exist, ranging from pricey dedicated hardware to free software like Remote CWKeyer, which uses inexpensive USB-to-serial adapters to send CW over a network. Unfortunately, the latter was Windows-only, and I didn’t have a spare Windows box to dedicate to the task.

What I did have was a spare Raspberry Pi, a few FTDI serial adapters, and a cheap Chinese electronic keyer I’d bought for rigs lacking a built-in keyer. Since the IC-7610 exposes COM ports via USB and can be configured for Morse keying by asserting the DTR or CTS pins, I had the building blocks for a solution.

During my research, I discovered that the RigPi Hub and RigPi Station Server (RSS) combination seemed to offer exactly what I needed. The RigPi Hub installs on a Windows client and translates keyer clicks from a COM port into UDP packets. These packets are sent to the RSS, which "replays" them on a connected serial port. Easy peasy! I asked an AI search tool if I could send keyer data from my Windows machine and replay it as USB keying data on the IC-7610's built-in port via the RSS. The AI gave me a resounding "yes" and even provided the necessary configuration.
I burned the RigPi image and configured everything as instructed. On my Windows box, I set up the RigPi Hub and connected it to my FTDI adapter and paddles. The hub tested perfectly, showing it was receiving my clicks correctly. But when I put it all together? Silence.

Time to troubleshoot. After verifying it wasn't a networking issue or dropped UDP packets, I started digging into the RSS code. I eventually discovered that the keyer port in RigPi is always initialized as a Winkeyer device—which is incompatible with the IC-7610’s internal USB keying. Furthermore, the "RigPi Keyer" setting was designed specifically for RigPi’s proprietary hardware, not a DIY Raspberry Pi setup. I finally confirmed this in a buried piece of documentation. So much for trusting AI results!

RigPi Hub setup on windows. Notice the RigPI IP and the RigPI CW Port. Keyer connected on COM22

I had a choice: fork the RSS code and modify it, or build something myself. Since the RSS code was a bit inscrutable, I opted for the simpler route. I wrote a Python script to listen on a UDP port and assert the DTR pins upon packet arrival. By analyzing the packets sent by the RigPi Hub, I realized they were sent in a simple format and repeated to account for UDP packet loss. Once I could parse the data and ignore duplicates, I mapped the output to the DTR pins of the IC-7610. (Note: The IC-7610 exposes two COM ports, USB A and B; you must ensure CW keying is enabled for the specific port you're using). Once it was working reliably, I created a systemctl service to ensure the script would launch automatically at boot.

For my first QSO, I stayed near the rig just in case. My caution was justified: a few wires worked loose from the adapter, resulting in a "stuck" key. Once that was repaired, it was time for a real test. I heard a CQ on 30m and answered at 22 wpm, carefully avoiding the physical buttons on the radio to maintain the remote simulation. The QSO went flawlessly.

My Laptop screen ready for remote action. wfview on bottom left for rig control. I use the RigPi Hub (top left) Key button to initiate tuning.

Emboldened, I moved my laptop a few feet away and tried sending a CQ. This time, something was wrong—the cadence was off. Another troubleshooting session revealed that my laptop was entering a "power save" mode on battery, even though the charge was full. Once I plugged in the power adapter, the timing returned to normal. Happiness restored!

Finally, I moved the laptop and paddles to the living room, put my feet up in the recliner, and balanced the keyer on my lap. I heard a friend calling CQ and responded with a wonderful QSO at 28 wpm. A happier ham I could not be!

I realize that relying on COM ports and UDP makes this solution vulnerable to OS lag and network hiccups. However, unless you’re a serious contester, this setup is more than adequate for casual rag-chewing. It’s a perfect solution for operating remotely within the house, with the reassurance that I can always walk to the shack if something goes wrong. That said, I’m curious to see how it holds up when I’m truly remote, connecting back home via VPN.

Morse from the recliner by the fireplace. I used an external electronic keyer for me to be able to use a paddle because the RigPi Hub only supports a straight key

To Summarize: The final setup

1. Morse key connected to FTDI USB Serial adapter [CTS and ground pins]

2. RigPi Hub pointed at the COM port for the ahove when plugged in. 

3. RigPi Hub connected to my Raspberry pi host and at the port that my python script listens to.

4. The Python script on the PI interprets the UDP packets from RigPi Hub

5. The Python script tickles the DTR pins of the serial port of the ICOM radio

6. CW Tones emitted.

Note: If you do not have a Radio with built in serial port, you can use another FTDI adapter connected to the Raspberry Pi and have its DTR activated. You can then connect a simple audio cable to the radio's straight key input for triggering the radio.