High-frequency direction finding, usually known by its abbreviation HF/DF or nickname huff-duff, is a type of radio direction finder (RDF) introduced in World War II. High frequency (HF) refers to a radio band that can effectively communicate over long distances; for example, between U-boats and their land-based headquarters. HF/DF was primarily used to catch enemy radios while they transmitted, although it was also used to locate friendly aircraft as a navigation aid. The basic technique remains in use as one of the fundamental disciplines of signals intelligence, although typically incorporated into a larger suite of radio systems and radars instead of being a stand-alone system. In earlier RDF systems, the operator mechanically rotated a loop antenna or solenoid and listened for peaks or nulls in the signal to determine the bearing to the transmitter. This took considerable time, on the order of a minute or more. Radio operators could avoid being located by keeping their messages short. In HF/DF systems, a set of antennas received the signal in slightly different locations or angles, and then used the resulting slight differences in the signal to display the bearing on an oscilloscope display. This process was essentially instantaneous, allowing it to catch even the shortest signals, such as from the U-boat fleet. The system was initially developed by Robert Watson-Watt starting in 1926, as a system for locating lightning. Its role in intelligence was not developed until the late 1930s. In the early war period, HF/DF units were in very high demand, and there was considerable inter-service rivalry involved in their distribution. An early use was by the RAF Fighter Command as part of the Dowding system of interception control, while ground-based units were also widely used to collect information for the Admiralty to locate U-boats. Between 1942 and 1944, smaller units became widely available and were common fixtures on Royal Navy ships. It is estimated HF/DF contributed to 24% of all U-boats sunk during the war. The basic concept is also known by several alternate names, including Cathode-Ray Direction Finding (CRDF), Twin Path DF, and for its inventor, Watson-Watt DF or Adcock/Watson-Watt when the antenna is considered.
History
Before HF/DF Radio direction finding was a widely used technique even before World War I, used for both naval and aerial navigation. The basic concept used a loop antenna, in its most basic form simply a circular loop of wire with a circumference decided by the frequency range of the signals to be detected. When the loop is aligned at right angles to the signal, the signal in the two halves of the loop cancels out, producing a sudden drop in output known as a "null". Early DF systems used a loop antenna that could be mechanically rotated. The operator would tune in a known radio station and then rotate the antenna until the signal disappeared. This meant that the antenna was now at right angles to the broadcaster, although it could be on either side of the antenna. By taking several such measurements, or using some other form of navigational information to eliminate one of the ambiguous directions, the bearing to the broadcaster could be determined. In 1907, an improvement was introduced by Ettore Bellini and Alessandro Tosi that greatly simplified the DF system in some setups. The single loop antenna was replaced by two antennas, arranged at right angles. The output of each was sent to its own looped wire, or as they are referred to in this system, a "field coil". Two such coils, one for each antenna, are arranged close together at right angles. The signals from the two antennas generated a magnetic field in the space between the coils, which was picked up by a rotating solenoid, the "search coil". The maximum signal was generated when the search coil was aligned with the magnetic field from the field coils, which was at the angle of the signal in relation to the antennas. This eliminated any need for the antennas to move. The Bellini–Tosi direction finder (B-T) was widely used on ships, although rotating loops remained in use on aircraft as they were normally smaller. All of these devices took time to operate. Normally the radio operator would first use conventional radio tuners to find the signal in question, either using the DF antenna(s) or on a separate non-directional antenna. Once tuned, the operator rotated the antennas or goniometer looking for peaks or nulls in the signal. Although the rough location could be found by spinning the control rapidly, for more accurate measurements the operator had to "hunt" with increasingly small movements. With periodic signals like Morse code, or signals on the fringe of reception, this was a difficult process. Fix times on the order of one minute were commonly quoted. Some work on automating the B-T system was carried out just prior to the opening of World War II, especially by French engineers Maurice Deloraine and Henri Busignies, working in the French division of the American Corporation. Their system motorized the search coil as well as a circular display card, which rotated in sync. A lamp on the display card was tied to the output of the goniometer, and flashed whenever it was in the right direction. When spinning quickly, about 120 RPM, the flashes merged into a single (wandering) dot that indicated the direction. The team destroyed all of their work in the French office and left France in 1940, just before Germany invaded, and continued the development in the US.
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