https://urgentcomm.com/wp-content/themes/ucm_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Multimedia
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Galleries
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • Commentary
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • All Things IWCE
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Events
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • IWCE
    • Conference
    • Special Events
    • Exhibitor Listings
    • Premier Partners
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Register for IWCE
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookies Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • Mission Critical Technologies
    • Microwave/RF
    • T&D World
    • TU-Auto
  • In the field
    • Back
    • In the field
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Internet of Things
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Call Center/Command
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Network Tech
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Operations
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Regulations
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • Organizations
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
Urgent Communications
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Galleries
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • All Things IWCE
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Events
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
    • UC eZines
    • Sponsored content
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • Conference
    • WHY ATTEND
    • Exhibitor Listings
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Registration Opens April 2019-Join Our Mailing List
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookies Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • TU-Auto
  • newsletter
  • In the field
    • Back
    • Internet of Things
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Cybersecurity
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
acc.com

Call Center/Command


How to select the proper mobile antenna

How to select the proper mobile antenna

There are many different types of mobile antennas. Some antennas offer more gain than others.
  • Written by Urgent Communications Administrator
  • 28th June 2012

Do your users complain about coverage problems? Do your dispatchers frequently complain of partial traffic or missed calls? There are numerous reasons why this can occur, but a problem often observed in the field is a poor subscriber unit mobile antenna or antenna installation. No matter how good the transmitter or receiver, the performance of the radio will always be limited without a properly functioning antenna.

Antennas selection, placement and tuning are critical to radio performance. Remove any one of these three parameters and performance is compromised. While this is true for a fixed radio site, it is also crucial for a mobile radio antenna. Many mobile-radio problems are often mistaken for system or fixed-site problems. It is usually assumed that the antenna is the easiest part of the mobile-radio installation. As radio professionals, we go through great lengths to select the proper radio equipment, the proper mounting location for the operator and we verify that the transmitter and receiver meet manufacturer specifications. The mobile antenna installation requires the same care.

First, you must select the proper antenna for the task. There are many different types of mobile antennas. Some antennas offer more gain than others.

For example, a 5/8 wave antenna at VHF has more gain than a 1/4 wave antenna. Review the service area you are covering for your end users. Does the antenna really need 3 dB of gain at VHF with 100 watts of output power? If your system has satellite receivers and voters or was designed for walkie-talkie coverage, you probably do not need gain antennas for most systems.

Do your users frequently operate very close to the radio site? Do they operate on the fringe areas? Where does your license allow you to operate your mobile radios? Remember that the VHF band is not structured in a band plan the way other frequency bands are. As a result, your high-powered mobile, in conjunction with a high-gain mobile antenna, may cause unnecessary interference to users in another area or contour.

Is a quarter-wave antenna sufficient? Always consider service area, terrain, frequency band and mobile transmitter power in your selection of the proper antenna.

Next: Determining proper antenna placement.

Ira Wiesenfeld, P.E., has been involved with commercial radio systems since 1966, and has experience with land-mobile-radio, paging and military communications systems. He holds an FCC general radiotelephone operator’s license and is the author of Wiring for Wireless Sites, as well as many articles in various magazines. Wiesenfeld can be reached at [email protected].

Christopher Dalton has designed, staged and implemented virtually every kind of LMR system in his two-decade-long career, including conventional, trunked, simulcast, Project 25, single-site and multisite. He holds an FCC general radiotelephone operator’s license. Dalton can be reached at [email protected].

Related Stories

  • How to determine the ideal location for mobile antennas
Tags: Call Center/Command content

Related


  • Newscan: Single sign-in for government services expands to states, localities
    Newscan: Single sign-in for government services expands to states, localities
    Web Roundup Items from other news organizations Single sign-in for government services expands to states, localities Iowa taps into FirstNet for 911 backup Top Homeland Security senators want details on agencies hit in SolarWinds, Microsoft intrusions European institutions targeted in cyberattack last week FCC signals potential different outcome for net-neutrality remand 911: Past, present, more […]
  • ‘Life-saving technology’: AST SpaceMobile CEO outlines capabilities of direct-to-smartphone LEO satellite service
    [Editor’s note: This article has been updated to include clarifications about deployment timelines requested from AST SpaceMobile.] First responders and emergency callers subscribing to U.S. carriers and other major service providers will have affordable access to broadband communications beyond the coverage footprint of 4G and 5G terrestrial networks via their normal smart devices in the […]
  • Handcuffs over AI: Solving security challenges with law enforcement
    For the last 20 years, spending to solve cybersecurity goals has exploded to more than $100 billion annually. Security vendors tout advances in detection and protection that will provide the relief that has evaded the craft since its formation. The most recently heralded messiahs are machine learning (ML), security orchestration automation and response (SOAR), and artificial […]
  • Fujitsu: Cyber cretins are casing out private 5G
    Japan’s Fujitsu is inking a partnership with the US-Japanese cybersecurity giant Trend Micro and it’s all around cybersecurity and private 5G. Fujitsu and Trend Micro’s cooperation will kick off with a simulated smart factory environment, and an operational Fujitsu one. It sports a whirring menagerie of high-definition monitoring cameras and automatic guided vehicles. This simulated smart factory […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

To leave a comment login with your Urgent Comms account:

Log in with your Urgent Comms account

Or alternatively provide your name, email address below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • IoT Cybersecurity Act places security onus on device makers
  • UC-Berkeley survey shines light on cybersecurity concerns surrounding smart-city technologies
  • Intel on the outside: Chips giant, Google, Microsoft the latest to quit MWC
  • U.S. tech dominance rides on securing intellectual property

Commentary


Unlocking the power of ESInets: Different NG911 provisioning approaches exist; level of control is key differentiator

7th April 2021

Ransomware? Let’s call it what it really is: extortionware

21st February 2021

Redefining communications for today’s mobile workforces

18th February 2021
view all

Events


UC Ezines


IWCE 2019 Wrap Up

13th May 2019
view all

Twitter


UrgentComm

Satellites poised to join 5G network topology dlvr.it/Rxcw0s

14th April 2021
UrgentComm

Global dwell time drops as ransomware attacks accelerate dlvr.it/Rxcvzm

14th April 2021
UrgentComm

IoT enterprise deployments continue apace, despite COVID-19 dlvr.it/Rxcq8X

14th April 2021
UrgentComm

In this comprehensive report, @Omdia's @krehbehn delivers a landscape and forecast for LTE and #5G technology servi… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

13th April 2021
UrgentComm

New T-Band rules impact LMR licensing activity dlvr.it/RxbhVh

13th April 2021
UrgentComm

Nokia, Lenovo shake hands on patent deal dlvr.it/RxVjvh

12th April 2021
UrgentComm

Newscan: Single sign-in for government services expands to states, localities dlvr.it/RxLQNR

9th April 2021
UrgentComm

‘Life-saving technology’: AST SpaceMobile CEO outlines capabilities of direct-to-smartphone LEO satellite service dlvr.it/RxKqvp

9th April 2021

Newsletter

Sign up for UrgentComm’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about Communications and Technology.

Expert Commentary

Learn from experts about the latest technology in automation, machine-learning, big data and cybersecurity.

Business Media

Find the latest videos and media from the market leaders.

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital and print audiences? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • American City & County
  • IWCE
  • Light Reading
  • IOT World Today
  • Mission Critical Technologies
  • Microwave/RF
  • T&D World
  • TU-Auto

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Events
  • Careers

FOLLOW Urgent Comms ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2021 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X