Team Microwave Antenna and Feed Experiments 2008

Transcription

1 + Team Microwave Antenna and Feed Experiments 2008 A record of experiments and studies undertaken in order to produce antenna and feed recommendations for a microwave band Amateur Radio station. Validation of theoretical predictions concerning gain and comparison of candidate designs were the goals of this work.

2 + Collected Antennas Surplus Satellite Television Antennas were collected, photographed, and tested in order to evaluate their performance as part of a microwave-band amateur radio station. 1. What types of antennas were used? Are there any labels or serial numbers on the antennas? 2. What type of tripod or other stand or mounting hardware worked best for experimentation? 3. What were the gain results from the tests?

3 + Dish Antenna Basics This will be some text describing the antenna technical basics that we know as well as the differences between the ideal and the real antennas.

4 + Regulatory Summary DSS offset feed dish antennas are freely available. Discarded by the thousands every year as subscribers change video delivery services, they are the dishes that the Microwave Engineering Project selected as a starting point for antenna and feed investigations. They are cheap, plentiful, and are a size that makes them easily portable. However, if these DSS-type dishes are used for amateur radio, they are not protected from CC&Rs, deed restrictions, or covenants like they are when they are used for satellite TV.

5 + Regulatory Summary Congress directed the FCC in the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to write a rule to prohibit restrictions that impair a viewer's ability to receive video programming services through devices designed for over-the-air reception of television broadcast signals, multichannel multipoint distribution service, or direct broadcast satellite services. This rule has been in effect since October, In 2000, the FCC extended the rule to cover fixed wireless end user devices. The FCC rules clearly say amateur radio is not included in these rules. Read the regulations here:

6 + Regulatory Summary It is possible no one would notice if one of the small dishes was being used for ham radio. However the legal process, should the deed restrictions that prohibit antennas be applied by a neighborhood association or property committee, could not call out these FCC rules on broadcast antennas as a defense. A more serious issue may be that the installation owner might be held to be in knowing violation of the FCC rules. A question that follows from this discussion is what would be the consequences for the manufacturers of the equipment, if the deed restrictions were enforced?

7 + Collected Feeds Feeds of various types were collected or created, photographed, and tested in order to evaluate their performance as part of the microwave-band ground station.

8 + Antenna Profiles A portfolio of antenna and feed results from Team Microwave

9 + Antenna Profile #1 (this is the template for antenna profiles)

10 + Antenna Profile 001 Grayg Ralphsnyder

11 + Antenna Profile 002 Grayg Ralphsnyder

12 + Antenna Profile 008 Grayg Ralphsnyder

13 + Antenna Profile 100 Michelle Thompson

14 + Antenna Profile 101 Michelle Thompson

15 + Antenna Profile 102 Michelle Thompson

16 + Antenna Profile 103 Michelle Thompson

17 + Antenna Profile 104 Michelle Thompson

18 + Antenna Profile 105 Michelle Thompson

19 + Next Step What has Team Microwave accomplished with this study? What is the next step? What are the repercussions of the findings?