News

Hello everyone!
We would like to share with you what has been happening with Expert Electronics in recent years.

Our company is constantly growing and developing, since 2021 our staff has more than doubled. We have expanded the team of programmers by adding young institute graduates. Their first success after a year of internship was the RadioSync and RadioMacros utilities, which we published this autumn. Now, under the guidance of a senior programmer, they continue to gain experience and get into our programming technologies (yeah, yeah, they exist). Also, we have significantly expanded our staff of hardware designers, circuit designers and other specialists. You will be able to see the result of their work next year.

In 2017, our company started independent development of PiPlacer4 SMT pick and place machine and in 2021, we've launched its serial production (so far selling only in Russia). In 2023, we actively develop and improve in this business direction, aiming at a bigger machine next year. Mastering new business activities has helped us not only to stay alive in the current realities, but also to significantly increase the growth rate. Several PiPlacer4 machines are now used for our own needs when assembling printed circuit boards. Working in this area has allowed us to significantly expand our production capacity, rethink and raise competences in the design of complex block structures, including the development of new approaches in programming. Now we are able to transfer our positive experience in firmware design into ham radio.

Also in the second half of 2023, we started expanding our milling and metal processing capabilities to fully localize transceiver production in Russia. This is particularly relevant today, when demand for domestic equipment is growing and logistics from abroad are becoming less and less reliable (which we encountered in November this year). Now we have at our disposal several high-class milling centers (CNC machines) for metalworking, laser, lathe machines, etc. These production facilities allow us to speed up the development process, shortening the path from 3D model to serial product. The new unit/housing/heatsink is transferred to the workshop for production after development without delays and waits. The designer of the assembly can then immediately install it in the device and test the idea.

It is worth saying that working in several directions at once influences the company's activity in general and long-term planning in particular. So, the implementation of the new firmware into ExpertSDR3 will be carried out during April 2024, respectively the release of ExpertSDR3 with new firmware is postponed to May 2024. Further development of the Server and Client SW for ERS has been moved to Summer of 2024. New ExpertSDR3 with bug fixes will be released in 29th of December, we are working on it at the moment.

It should be noted that duplex is only one of many features that the new firmware will bring. For example, we’ve already implemented the DHCP net protocol, it greatly simplifies transceiver operation in the network. On top of this we’ve added service functions which automatically informs user about hardware malfunctions of certain important chips.
Among other innovations will be:
- extended reception range up to 800 MHz (for SS2DX/PRO/MB1);
- ALC;
- fundamentally new firmware structure, eliminating the existing defects in the operation of the program and transceiver.

Before release in May, we will again check the bug reports published on GitHub. This version of the program will be the final version 1.0 with new firmware and no bugs.

Thanks to everyone who read to the end, thanks for being with us!
Expert Electronics Team wishes you all Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
73!