6.25 khz Trunking Makes Migration Easy!

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1 ia November 2008 ianews, your connection to Icom America s Land Mobile Division! Keep up with the latest products, news and technical information in this newsletters. IN THIS ISSUE: 6.25 khz Trunking Makes Migration Easy UC FR5000 Trunking Network Controller Board Release Whitten s Takes a Roll of the Dice With Icom and Wins Big IDAS Word Search 2008 Icom America Inc. The Icom logo is a registered trademark of Icom Inc. All other trademarks remain the property of their respective owners. All information and specifications subject to change without notice or obligation khz Trunking Makes Migration Easy! Trunking has long been the bedrock of land mobile radio. The de facto trunking standard, LTR, has allowed efficient channel management by sharing a small number of channels with a large number of users since the late 1970s. The Icom Digital Advanced System (IDAS) catapults land mobile radio into the digital age, combining the channel allocation efficiency of trunking with the spectrum efficiency of 6.25 khz channel spacing. IDAS Trunking is now an integral function in the F3161D/F4161D, F5061D/ F6061D & FR5000/FR6000 series land mobile radios. Current analog radios require 25 khz, most commonly, or 12.5kHz channels to deliver voice over RF, said Mark Behrends, Icom Land Mobile National Sales Manager. With IDAS, the voice is digitized and compressed using AMBE+2 vocoder so a single voice can be delivered in 6.25kHz channels, which allows more channels across a given frequency range khz gives you more flexibility and capacity in licensing as you are freed from several of the constraints inherent with 25 khz and 12.5 khz licensing schemes. Icom released Phase 1 of IDAS Trunking, which is a platform for future IDAS features. Phase one includes IDAS trunking capabilities, trunking controller programming over the Internet, limited remote repeater management over the Internet and auto home channel backup. Icom hopes to release more features soon. These features may include operation monitoring, dispatch control and FR5000 programming all performed over the Internet. IDAS versatility makes it a viable solution for many users and operators. It can be used in smaller sites that have only a few radios and several channels in conventional mode or larger sites that currently use analog trunking. IDAS is ideal for single site campuses, such as colleges, hospitals, factories, resorts and casinos, Behrends said. The trunking feature allows dealers to pursue larger facilities that may have hundreds of radios with numerous talk groups, perhaps one talk group per department. The IDAS niche is quite large. Continued on page 2

2 Continued from page khz Trunking Makes Migration Easy! While new customer sites that have no radio systems will be target market segments, IDAS is designed with backward compatibility with dual-mode analog/ digital radios and scanning to appeal those customers with existing analog trunked or conventional radio systems. IDAS radios can operate in both analog and digital mode, sometimes called mixed mode or dual mode operation, Behrends said. You can have a graceful transition from analog to digital by replacing subscriber radios over time rather than all at once in a forklift upgrade. Existing IDAS FR5000/FR6000 conventional repeaters can be upgraded to trunking with the UC-FR5000 Trunking/Network Controller board. This capability makes it so a university, for example, can install the FR5000 today, put its security department on digital tomorrow, and move the maintenance department over later. Similar to LTR, IDAS Trunking is a single site transmission-based. The resemblance ends there, however. IDAS trunking features 30 channels per site, a third more than LTR ; 2,000 units or groups per home channel, a giant increase over LTR with only 250, which adds up to a maximum of 60,000 ID s per system, compared to 5,000 addresses in an LTR system. IDAS allows the user to program the trunking controller using Internet Protocol connection. With an IP connection, an operator can reach the controller from anywhere there is an Internet connection available. Using the IDAS FR5000/6000 at site with IP connectivity will now allow you to configure IDAS trunking remotely with more features like ROIP, radio reprogramming, and possible firmware upgrading on the way, Behrends said. IDAS, launched by Icom last February as a bridge between analog systems and digital narrowband systems, uses the non-proprietary NXDN common air interface. The NXDN standard was jointly developed by Icom and Kenwood Corp. ianews / November 2008 / Page 3

3 UCFR5000 Trunking/Network Controller Release We are pleased to announce the UC-FR5000 Trunking/Network Controller board for the FR5000/ FR6000 repeaters. This multi-function plug-in device will be your platform for future IDAS features via IP/Local firmware upgrades. This initial release has two main functions: IDAS 6.25 khz Digital Trunking Limited remote repeater management by IP - IDAS Trunking controller programming - Remote FR5000/FR6000 firmware updates (only available after serial numbers noted at right) Model Serial # FR FR FR Future upgrades to this initial release are being considered and may entail upgrades charges: Remote operation monitor (IP) Dispatch control capability (IP) FR5000 remote programming (IP) Extended PC/IP remote commands Multisite network capability Manual and auto roaming Board Installed Quick and easy, plug- n-play installation UCFR5000 Specifications: PC card for FR5000 series (96x142mm) OS Lineo/Linux kernel 2.6 Main memory 32MBx2 Flash ROM 32MB Power supply requirement: 11-16VDC (1A) Ethernet port x1 (100Base/10Base: RJ-45) Repeater bus x2 (RS485: RJ-45) Other ACC port x1 (RS232C) CF card slot x1 (internal) Icom America Inc th Ave NE Bellevue, WA Phone: (425) Fax: (425) Customer Service: (425) Icom America Systems Phone: (425) Fax: (425) ias@icomamerica.com ianews / November 2008 / Page 3

4 Whitten s Takes a Roll of the Dice with Icom and Wins Big P25 TRADE IN Trade in any working land mobile radio from any manufacturer for a new Icom P25 radio. How about $100 trade-in savings towards a new Icom radio? Limit one old radio trade in for every new Icom. No limit on number of new Icoms! When you trade in your radio, Icom will give you a $100 allowance towards the purchase of a new Icom radio. Our complete P25 product line, which includes analog (P25 compatible), Intrinsically Safe, FIPS portables and mobiles, and P25 Trunking portables and mobiles, are available under this program. The details: 1. Available from participating authorized Icom America U.S. dealers only. Participating dealers must meet and follow program requirements. Contact your Icom America representative for details. 2. Trade in of any working land mobile radio, any brand or model, qualifies for this limited time offer. 3. Offer ends March 31, 2009 Icom dealer Whitten s 2-Way Service Inc. edged out competitors to secure a contract with Hollywood Slots Hotel & Raceway in Bangor, Maine, for a six-channel LTR trunked system. The system includes six FR4000 repeaters, more than 100 F43TR subscriber units, and several 621TR mobile and base radios. Two dealers submitted bids for the project, says Jeremy Priest, sales manager for Whitten s of Brewer, Maine. The proposed Icom system exceeded the customer s specifications yet cost significantly less than the competing bid. We knew we would be up against Kenwood, and we had good luck and experience with the FR series repeaters in the past, Priest says. Whitten s took the chance and scored a major win. Hollywood Slots previous system consisted of a three-channel conventional system from Kenwood. But a recent expansion of the gambling floor, hotel, and entertainment facilities required a system with greater talkgroup capacity and more functionality. In July, Hollywood Slots moved to a new $132 million complex that includes a 26,000-square-foot gaming space with 1,000 slot machines. The new facility also includes a seven-story, 152-room hotel, two restaurants, and a 1,500- space parking garage. The new Icom system provides ample capacity for the casino s 18 different talk groups that include housekeeping, security, maintenance, food and beverage, and entertainment. Because security is a top priority, the casino also set aside several dedicated security channels for emergencies. The trunked system offers the capability to communicate more effectively and efficiently than the previous system, explains Tim Fedish of Sigma Marketing, a manufacturer representative for Icom. The system also allows for future growth and expansion. Icom America Systems (IAS) designed and built the system, then shipped it directly to Whitten s 2-Way ready for installation. It was completely crated, racked, and ready for install the next day, Priest says. Priest reports the system is functioning well and end-user feedback is very positive. The customer is very, very pleased with it, he says. They were not only impressed with the coverage throughout the property, but the ease of use with this very functional system. We are very proud to be of service to Penn National and Hollywood Slots at Bangor. ianews / November 2008 / Page 4

5 IDAS Word Search Find the 20 words listed below. Words appear straight across, backwards, up, down, and diagonally. Check for answers at bottom of the page. D B R N D T N L R T R B R B L L L R T D L F L T P L R N N B D D R N T N T R N T T D R N R N D F R N R R P R T B L D T L L L N N H L ianews TR N N R D L ND B L D FR N H NN L R P T R P RT BL D T L NN N F R R B R B R R T N D NT RF R T T L H L RT IDAS WORD SEARCH KEY D B R N D T N L R T R B R B L L L R T D L F L T P L R N N B D D R N T N T R N T T D R N R N D F R N R R P R T B L D T L L L N N H L ndr L nd b l rd r h ianews / November 2008 / Page 5