COLORADO
BLM
Radio Communications
Basic Course 1
Course Objectives
• Radio Theory
• Terrain Effects
• Antenna Design
• Narrowband
2
Course Objectives
• Infrastructure
• Common Phrases
• Procedures for Repair
• Emergencies
• Familiarization
3
BE SAFE!
4
Prepare For Your Trip
• Follow Office Specific Check In/Out
Procedures.
• Visually inspect and check your equipment
for proper operation before leaving for the
field.
• Do a radio check.
5
Know Your Options
• Know what sites cover your intended
work/travel.
• What is their operational status?
• Alternative forms of communications.
6
Radio Theory
• Radio waves are generated by a rapidly
oscillating electric current.
• Frequency is the amount of cycles a radio
wave makes referenced to one second of
time.
• Wave length is the distance the wave
travels to complete one cycle.
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Example: One Wave Traveling at One
Cycle Per Second
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Radio and Light Waves
• Radio Waves are Electromagnetic Energy.
• Light Waves are Electromagnetic Energy.
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Similar Properties
• Radio waves travel in
much the same way
as light.
• Imagine a light bulb
on top of your
handheld or vehicle.
• The energy is similarly
sent in all directions.
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More Similarities
• Reflected
• Absorbed
• Diffracted
• Dispersed
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Handhelds and Mobiles Perform
Differently
• Handhelds Transmit with less power
utilizing a small battery source.
• Mobiles utilize a gain antenna which
effectively doubles the transmit power and
receive sensitivity.
• Handheld antennas tend to be more
obstructed.
12
Batteries are Critical
• Proper care of batteries is essential.
• Batteries are a users responsibility.
• Typically last for 8 hours before charging.
• Radio will not transmit effectively.
13
Antenna Comparison
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Things to Remember
• Height is more advantageous than power.
• Know the location of the site you are trying
to transmit to and what objects or terrain
are in the path.
• A small shift in position can make a big
difference in signal quality.
15
Height Matters
16
How Far Can You Communicate
• Typically BLM handhelds can
communicate within a few miles of each
other.
• Typically a BLM vehicle radio to a BLM
mountaintop radio can communicate about
40 miles apart.
• Typically BLM mountaintop radios can
communicate about 100 miles apart.
17
Narrowband
• Narrowband radios are mandated for
BLM use.
• Radios programmed incorrectly will
sound distorted.
18
Base Station
• A means for dispatch to communicate to
users over a large area in the field.
• Radio is installed for optimum
performance.
• Users may not hear both sides of
conversation.
19
Base Station
• Radio is connected to dispatch center and
remotely controlled.
• Radio can be used to access repeaters.
• Radio does not have a squelch tail.
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Base Station
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Repeater
• They extend the coverage area.
• Received signals are repeated.
• Radio is installed for optimum
performance.
• Users hear both sides of conversation.
22
Repeater
• Operates on two frequencies.
• Squelch tail is present.
• Radio has no physical connection to
dispatch.
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Repeater
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Repair
• Open a ticket in Remedy
• Document your radio problem symptoms
and what you have done to determine
problem.
• System outage contact Dispatch Office
25
User Responsibility
• Never change your antenna
• Insure you have an antenna
• Battery
• Keeping radio clean
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Is Anyone Out There
• Your radio must be transmitting on the
same frequency the radio you are trying to
reach is receiving.
• Your radio must be transmitting the same
sub audible tone the radio you are trying to
reach is listening for.
• We don’t typically use receive sub audible
tones on our portables and mobiles.
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RADIO
• R-elax
• A-djust Volume, Channel
• D-etermine - What your going to say. Is it your time to talk?
• I-nitiate Contact
• O-ver
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Proper Use
• Hold the radio about an inch away
• Push the PTT button and wait one second
before talking.
• Talk directly into the microphone
• Identify who your calling and then yourself
• Wait for their response then proceed.
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Use Concise Common Terms
• Affirmative
• Negative
• Disregard
• Clear or Out
• Standby
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Emergency
• Try to contact any Interagency Dispatch
Center.
• Try to contact any person listening to
radio.
• Use National Law Enforcement
Emergency Channel, (NLEEC) to contact
a law enforcement dispatcher.
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Banks, Zones, Channels
• Banks contain zones or groups
• Zones and Groups contain individual
channels
33
We will now go over the
radios by specific
manufacturer for the
types your group is using
(BK, EF Johnson,
Thales, etc).
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COLORADO
BLM
This concludes the Radio Communications
Basic Course
For Questions, Comments, Ideas or Errors please contact
your local Telecommunications Specialist.
Spring 2008
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