Bob Bruninga, WB4APR (SK)

[DaveInDenver]

APRS Developer Bob Bruninga, WB4APR, SK

The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is the national association for amateur radio, connecting hams around the U.S. with news, information and resources.

www.arrl.org

The ham behind APRS passed away yesterday. He was an major influence due to APRS of course but in many aspects of ham radio and broadly. He will be missed.

 

[AimCOTaco]

Thanks for posting this Dave. I've always admired the way the ham community honors the SK's, hobbyists honoring their fellow hobbyists is a big thing in ham, reminds me of our club is some ways.
I recognized the name but had to click to see why, cool to imagine how many people the APRS project alone has impacted.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Bob's concepts are foundational in a lot of things position reporting in the Navy and military, APRS, cell phones, SPOTs, etc. I never met WB4APR but I think his humble nature doesn't do justice to his influence.

BTW, in case someone's wondering SK means "silent key." It's the long time term used when a radio operator passes, key being shorthand for telegraph key, e.g. the lever or paddle you use to send Morse Code. It's literal in that it means to key up, or activate, your transmitter.

 

[rover67]

Thanks for posting, sad to see him pass. HIs name in my world is synonymous with APRS. It is crazy to see what he influenced along the way.