QuadRF offers a modular 4×4 MIMO beamforming tile that brings software-defined radio into the spatial domain with an open antenna architecture. 2 dB noise figure, and low‑latency beam steering at 60 Hz, enabling applications such as high‑gain directional links, FPV video, and low‑Earth‑orbit satellite communications.
Funding
Funding not disclosed
Founders
Product
Problem
Building high-performance phased‑array antenna systems typically requires custom RF hardware, complex integration, and expertise in both RF engineering and software‑defined radio, creating a barrier for hobbyists, researchers, and small organizations that want to experiment with beamforming and spatial SDR.
Solution
QuadRF provides a modular 4×4 MIMO beamforming tile that brings software‑defined radio into the spatial domain with an open antenna architecture. Operating in the 4.9–6.0 GHz C‑band, each tile delivers 1 W per antenna, ~1.2 dB noise figure, and full‑duplex operation. The tile’s FPGA (Lattice ECP5) performs low‑latency beam steering at 60 Hz and streams 8‑bit I/Q data over the Raspberry Pi 5’s high‑speed MIPI connectors, enabling real‑time control and integration with standard SDR frameworks such as GNU Radio, SoapySDR, and ZeroMQ. The system is fully open‑source, allowing users to program custom beamforming algorithms, synchronize multiple tiles for larger arrays, and experiment with applications ranging from high‑gain directional links to low‑Earth‑orbit satellite communications.
Target Audience
Primary users are amateur radio operators, university labs, and hobbyist engineers who need an accessible platform for phased‑array research, high‑gain point‑to‑point links, FPV video, and experimental low‑Earth‑orbit satellite communications.
Features
- 4×4 MIMO tile with independent 1 W Tx per antenna and ~1.2 dB Rx noise figure
- Full‑duplex C‑band operation (4.9–6.0 GHz) with RHCP transmit and selectable LHCP/RHCP receive polarization
- Lattice ECP5 FPGA provides 16.7 ms latency and 60 Hz beam‑steering rate
- High‑precision timing (≈1.4 ps jitter) via MEMS TCXO for coherent array operation
- Direct I/Q streaming over Raspberry Pi 5 camera/display MIPI interfaces (>5 Gbps) for low‑cost, high‑bandwidth data transfer
- Open‑source software stack compatible with GNU Radio, SoapySDR, and ZeroMQ, supporting custom DSP and beamforming code
- Scalable architecture: multiple tiles can be combined (e.g., 18‑tile or 60‑tile arrays) to achieve up to ~39 dBi gain and >63 dBW EIRP
- Power supplied from 12 V DC (≈25 W per tile) with support for higher‑power arrays up to ~1.5 kW