That's a Lot of Signal |
Literally. This new
quick-deploy radio station is specifically for
parking-lot-sized applications. |
Emergency, health
and school officials have requested a highly portable,
short-range radio system for some time now. Schools
have envisioned one that can be used to
communicate
with parents arriving at reunification sites after
school tragedies; for emergency managers, a way to
talk to people who show up at evacuation meeting sites;
for health officials, a means of informing motorists who
line up at points of medicine distribution (PODs) or
treatment centers. |
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The result: the
InfOspot Portable. Developed at the request of
Hennepin County (MN) Department of Emergency Management,
the high flexibility system includes a quick-erect
antenna stand and easy-to operate electronics in a
portable shock case. Range is up to ½ mile, any
frequency may be selected and an FCC license is not
required per FCC Part 15.219. Broadcast messages can be sourced from a flash
drive, external source, cellular gateway or live via a
sound board. The system is priced at ¼ of the licensed
Information Stations that have been available for this
application to date.
Email Information
Station Specialists for more information.
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Innovative Funding Options
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Equipment and
services provider
Information Station Specialists has introduced a
lease-to-own financing plan for agencies who wish to
obtain radio and related systems but don’t have grant
opportunities or available budget. The short 6-year
agreement averages between $7 and $19 a day for
Information Station Specialists' most commonly purchased
information radio systems
For agencies that would be required to issue requests
for quotes, the “H-GAC Buy” buying cooperative may be an
attractive option. If an agency is (or becomes) an H-GAC
Buy member, they can purchase products against an
existing contract, circumventing the need for a
competitive procurement process.
Contact the company to
find out more. |
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John
Whitehouse installs the Information Station antenna on a
tower at Mount Mitchell State Park. |
Mount Mitchell Adds
Radio to Maximize Visitor Safety |
North Carolina's First
State Park Notches Another "First" |
ASHEVILLE, NC: The
installation of an Information Radio Station at Mount
Mitchell State Park in North Carolina has been completed
just before the snow flies. Located on the peak of the
highest mountain east of the Mississippi River, the
station will be tasked with keeping visitors safe and
informed as they snake up the steep access road from the
Blue Ridge Parkway to the Observation Deck – 6684 feet
above sea level. |
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Stunning
View from atop
Mount Mitchell's Information Radio Tower
Foreground:
antenna & visitor center
Background: Black Mountain skyline |
Alan Orovitz,
Friends of Mount Mitchell State Park member and
technical advisor, spearheaded the project, providing
guidance for the station’s antenna location and its
innovative audio management system. Costs were mitigated
through the purchase of key preowned/certified RF
components from provider Information Station
Specialists. |
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Posing
with the station’s support tower prior to installation
(left to right) Tim Clark, Rick Harkins, Joe Lappin,
Duke Rose and Alan Orovitz – all with Friends of Mount
Mitchell State Park |
A triangular steel
tower was erected to support the antenna, instead of the
conventional wood or aluminum pole, due to the high
winds that can be present atop Mount Mitchell. After the tower
was erected and the antenna tuned, Orovitz reported to
The Source that a robust signal can be received at
the Park entrance, located on Highway 128 and the Blue
Ridge Parkway, 2 miles away down the
mountain.
Full coverage of the park’s entrance road is important,
so visitors can be apprised of adverse or changing
conditions as they ascend to the summit. In a climb of
that magnitude, road conditions can go from dry to icy
before drivers know it. Another goal of the broadcast is
to orient visitors, directing them to continue past the
park office, restaurant and campground all the way to
the summit’s observation deck, where the best views can
be taken in. According park staff, the scenery along the
route is so stunning, that some visitors pull up short,
take their pictures and turn around, not realizing that
the best views are at the top of the mountain – just
ahead. |
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Opinion
All-digital AM is coming –
but not to worry. |
How will
digital broadcasting on AM affect Information (TIS/HAR)
Radio Stations?
WASHINGTON, DC: Just before Thanksgiving, the FCC
opened up a
"Notice of Proposed Rulemaking" seeking comment on
the advisability of allowing full-power broadcast radio
stations the option to migrate from analog to
all-digital. The National Association of Broadcasters
(NAB) has signaled that it will support the effort,
which all but guarantees that it will roll forward in
some form or another. But how could this change impact
10-watt (TIS/HAR) Information Radio Stations?
Answer: Most 10 watt Information
Radio Stations will see no adverse effects. Why?
AM Receivers The main reason is because the
change to "all-digital" affects only specific
broadcasters. It does not affect the ability of existing
(and future) AM radio receivers to receive analog AM
radio signals. Yes, even future "HD" (digital) radio
receivers will not be "all digital." They will still
continue to pick up analog AM signals in addition to
digital ones.
10 Watt Information Stations will not
be required to make any changes of any kind. They will
remain 100% analog. That means they will continue to be
receivable on all AM receivers.
AM Broadcasters Commercial AM
broadcasters will not be compelled to make the change to
all-digital. It will be totally optional. So, in real-world
terms, the broadcasters with the deepest pockets
and in the most competitive markets will be firt to make the
cut-over. That means you can expect to see it happen
initially at the big city AM stations. Due to the
5-figure cost for a broadcaster to make the upgrade, it
remains to be seen if the conversion will penetrate to
marginally profitable radio stations in smaller cities
and rural areas.
Increased noise? The new
digital format (which is named “MA3”) that will be employed by
broadcasters could affect a few Information Stations.
But like the
proverbial slot machine, the cherries would have to line
up just right for it to be an issue. The broadcast station would have to be 1)
in the immediate area, 2) on the first adjacent
frequency, and 3) would have to add
digital side-bands – which not all broadcasters will do.
Digital sidebands will double the digital station's
bandwidth and could cause noise to Information Stations
on next-door frequencies, if they are really close by.
Digital downside? It’s the
opinion of the American Association of Information Radio
Operators (AAIRO) that the real risk of an All-Digital
AM conversion is not to Information Stations but to the broadcasters who choose to make
the change. Certainly they will reap the quality and
bandwidth benefits for a not-so-small investment.
Someday they will be able to play music again and may
have multiple program streams. But listeners who have
digital AM radios won’t notice much of a difference if
their favorite station goes digital, especially if the format is
news-talk – like most AM’s are today. Voice quality on
analog AM is already pretty good. And because only
18% of cars on the road have digital-capable receivers,
if a broadcast station made the cut-over today, it would instantly
evaporate 82% of its audience , chasing the majority
of the listeners to FM, satellite radio – and,
ironically – to AM competitors
that choose to remain analog.
Emergency Consideration As
pointed out by Paul Riismandel in his recent Radio
Survivor blog entitled, “Can We Save AM Radio by
Killing it?”, one of the worst results would be if
during an emergency, local listeners would fire up their
battery-operated analog radios only to find that their
local radio broadcaster has gone-all digital. Instead of
updated news and emergency information, they would
receive an amorphous mass of digital hiss.
That could be an unintended – but very real –
consequence of the all-digital AM conversion, which
would serve to underline why localized Information Radio
Stations (TIS) could be the real lifesavers when their
communities count on them most. |
|
Information Radio Stations is a generic term
synonymous with Travelers Information Stations (TIS), Highway
Advisory Radio Stations (HAR) / Highway Information Systems &
Low Power Radio Stations (LPR). Operation of the stations is
governed by FCC Part 90.242 Rules. A FCC license is required.
Information Radio Stations may be fixed or portable.
Subcomponents may include transmitter, antenna and ground
system, digital voice player, wattmeter, cabinet with
conventional or Corbin locks, lightning arrestors for RF, power
and telephone lines, coaxial cable. Most stations employ black
maximized antennas to discourage ice accumulation and security
measures to prevent unauthorized program access. Options include
synchronization, battery backup, solar power, remote programming
by local, network or telco, multi-station audio distribution via
RF or LAN / WAN or wireless network. |