Documentation
Onboarding
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Hardware & Components
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Radio & RF Design
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Firmware & Software
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Morse & Communication
Audio Recording Guide Band Plan Etiquette Decibel Table Mayday vs Pan Pan Morse Abbreviations and Prosigns Morse Audio Cheat Sheet Morse Code Engine Morse Code Learning Apps Morse Decoder Tools Morse Code Background Morse Keying Practice Morse Listening Workflow Morse Letter Table Morse Numbers and Punctuation Morse Practice Morse Timing Reference Payload Examples Phonetics Q Codes Radio Communication Basics Radio Etiquette Basics Reading CW by Ear Receiver Compatibility Rescue Communication Basics SDR Beacon Build SDR Decoding Morse SDR Listening Guide SDR Software Setup Signal Reporting Conventions Simplex Communication Spectrum Analyzers Two-Way Build
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Field Operations & Rescue
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Docs Firmware & Software What's New in v5.5

What's New in v5.5

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Everything that changed in Aegis-Beacon v5.5: serial protocol, commands, bridge, Report Position page and the offline-first dashboard.

What’s New in v5.5

v5.5 is the connectivity release. The hardware is unchanged from v5.4; the firmware, tooling and website gained a full serial story. If you are upgrading, start with Upgrading to v5.5.

Serial protocol

The firmware now speaks a machine-readable protocol on USB serial, printed plain (never ANSI-colored) so any tool can parse it:

CODE
AEGIS:HELLO:ver=5.5;mode=BEACON;freq=433.500;wpm=12;vol=64
AEGIS:POS:lat=45.123456;lng=11.123456;alt=412;sats=8;freq=433.500;mode=BEACON;payload=SOS PSN N4553 E01130
AEGIS:STATE:mode=SEARCH;freq=433.500;wpm=12;vol=64;heap=184320;boot=1;tx=0;hits=0;gpsFix=1;sats=8

See Serial Command Protocol.

Serial commands

Type commands in any serial monitor and the device obeys, persisting changes to NVS:

CommandEffect
FREQ 433.500Set the desired frequency (410-525 MHz)
WPM 14Set Morse speed
MODE BEACONSwitch mode and reboot
POSPrint the fix now
STATUSPrint the state line

See Frequency Setting over Serial and Serial Command Protocol.

Cross-platform bridge with a live TUI

bridge/aegis-serial-bridge.py is one Python file for Windows, macOS and Linux. It auto-detects the port, reads AEGIS: lines, and forwards positions to the website. When run in a terminal it renders a live dashboard (device status, latest position, page state, scrolling log) and forwards commands you type straight to the device over serial. See Serial Bridge Guide and Bridge TUI.

Report Position page

The website’s /report-position page fills itself in from the link the bridge opens, or streams updates live into an open page. It embeds a keyless Leaflet map that draws a track of every fix as you move. No accounts, no API keys. See Report Position Page.

Offline-first dashboard

The WiFi captive-portal dashboard no longer loads web fonts. It uses fonts installed on the device by default, because configuration happens without connectivity. See Why the Dashboard Uses System Fonts.

Documentation and site

  • DATASHEET.md became the single merged reference: electrical specs, GPIO map, technology stack, the global SAR frequency database, the full serial protocol and deep dives into deep sleep, GPS and both operating cycles.
  • Every page ships complete SEO (canonical, Open Graph, Twitter cards, JSON-LD) for clean previews in WhatsApp, Discord and search engines.
  • New legal pages: Terms of Service, Privacy Policy and a dedicated Disclaimer.
  • A new Building Effectively wiki section (six pages) covers staging, quality gates, bench fixtures, rework, time planning and build logging.
  • The wiki gained the USB and connectivity documentation (30+ new pages).
  • See the Changelog for the full history.