background image

RF320-Series Ritron VHF/UHF Radios 

8.1.1.4  Hand-Held RF Channel Scanner 

A scanner can be used to detect the RF emissions of the radio and display the 
frequency, thus verifying the operating frequency. An example of an 
inexpensive scanner is listed below. 

Uniden 

BC 72-XLT 
www.uniden.com/scanners/100-channel-scanner/invt/bc72xltg/ 

8.2  Troubleshooting 

A dual color LED on the RF320-series radios provides a visual indication of 
the radio’s operational status. TABLE 8-1 describes the meaning of the LED 
status indications. 

TABLE 8-1.  LED Status Indications 

LED Radio 

Status 

Bright Red 

Transmitter is active. 

Bright Green 

Carrier present on channel. 

Bright Blinking Red 

The PLL is unlocked, PA is over heated, or TX 
regulator voltage is not present while attempting to 
transmit. 

Dull Blinking Red 

The PLL is unlocked or TX regulator remains on in 
receive mode. 

 

If a fault in the radio is indicted by the LED, or a degradation of performance is 
evident or suspected, the radio troubleshooting guide of TABLE 8-2 in 
conjunction with the radio functional checks should be followed to ascertain 
the proper corrective action. The probable cause and corrective action listed in 
TABLE 8-2 is predicated on the following assumptions: 

 

The programmable parameters of the radio have not been altered from 
the as-shipped settings. 

 

The radio modem is properly configured and the communication link 
between the modem and the datalogger or the datalogger support 
software is fully functional. 

 

The remote site that the radio is attempting to communicate with is 
fully functional. 

18 

Summary of Contents for RF320 Series

Page 1: ...RF320 Series Ritron VHF UHF Radios 10 12 C o p y r i g h t 2 0 1 2 C a m p b e l l S c i e n t i f i c I n c ...

Page 2: ......

Page 3: ...removing reinstalling and shipping defective products to Campbell Campbell will return such products by surface carrier prepaid within the continental United States of America To all other locations Campbell will return such products best way CIP Port of Entry INCOTERM 2010 prepaid This warranty shall not apply to any products which have been subjected to modification misuse neglect improper servi...

Page 4: ...ng container Campbell Scientific s shipping address is CAMPBELL SCIENTIFIC INC RMA _____ 815 West 1800 North Logan Utah 84321 1784 For all returns the customer must fill out a Statement of Product Cleanliness and Decontamination form and comply with the requirements specified in it The form is available from our web site at www campbellsci com repair A completed form must be either emailed to repa...

Page 5: ...abel 4 3 Initial Inspection 4 4 Overview 5 5 Specifications 6 6 Installation 8 6 1 Mounting 8 6 2 Interconnect 9 6 2 1 System Power Supply 10 6 2 2 Antenna 11 6 2 2 1 Antenna Bandwidth 11 6 2 2 2 Antenna Gain 11 6 3 Installation Best Practices 12 7 Operation 13 7 1 Link Design 14 7 1 1 Link Budget 15 7 1 2 Line of Sight 15 8 Troubleshooting Maintenance 16 8 1 Maintenance 16 8 1 1 Basic Test Equipm...

Page 6: ...4 Operating Frequency Check RF Scanner 21 8 4 Repair 21 Appendix A Glossary A 1 Figures 4 1 RF320 Series Radio 5 6 1 RF320 series radio interconnect diagram 9 6 2 Radio to modem interface cable wiring diagram 10 Tables 2 1 Rated Power and Recommended Lateral Distance 3 3 1 RF320 Series Model Numbers to Ritron Model Number 4 7 1 RF320 Series Programmed Settings 14 8 1 LED Status Indications 18 8 2 ...

Page 7: ...requires the radio operator to obtain a station license for the radio before using it to transmit but does not require an operating license or permit The station licensee is responsible for ensuring that transmitter power frequency and deviation are within the limits specified by the station license The station licensee is also responsible for proper operation and maintenance of the radio equipmen...

Page 8: ...ion Regulations The FCC rules require manufacturers to comply with the FCC RF energy exposure limits for mobile two way radios before they can be marketed in the U S When two way radios are used as a consequence of employment the FCC requires users to be fully aware of and able to control their exposure to meet occupational requirements Exposure awareness can be facilitated by the use of a label d...

Page 9: ...ended minimum lateral distance for bystanders in an uncontrolled environment from transmitting antennas i e monopoles over a ground plane or dipoles at several different ranges of rated radio power for mobile radios installed on a vehicle NOTE TABLE 2 1 Rated Power and Recommended Lateral Distance Antenna Model Rated Power of Mobile Two Way Radio Recommended Minimum Lateral Distance from Transmitt...

Page 10: ...ontain wording Contains FCC ID AIERIT17 445 Or in the case of DTX 145 Contains FCC ID AIERIT17 145 3 Initial Inspection Upon receipt of the RF320 series radio inspect the packaging and contents for damage File damage claims with the shipping company Immediately check package contents against the shipping documentation Contact Campbell Scientific about any discrepancies Model numbers are found on e...

Page 11: ...and a LED view port A female BNC bulkhead connector provides for connection to an antenna while the transceiver module s electrical interface is accessed via a female DB 15 connector The dual colored LED provides a visual indicator of the transceiver s operational status red for transmit green for receive and blinking red for an error condition A mounting bracket attached to the enclosure is suita...

Page 12: ...17 145 AIERIT17 445 Industry Canada ID 1084A RIT17145 1084A RIT17445 FCC Rule Parts 90 Industry Canada Rule Parts RSS 119 Frequency Range 136 to 174 MHz RF321 400 5 to 416 5 MHz RF322 411 to 429 MHz RF323 450 to 470 MHz RF Channels 8 Independent Tx Rx Frequencies Synthesizer Step 2 5 kHz 6 25 kHz Channel Spacing 12 5 kHz 6 ...

Page 13: ...ty 2 5 PPM 30 to 60ºC 1 5 PPM 30 to 60ºC Tone Code Signaling CTCSS Quite Call and DCS Input Voltage 9 to 17 Vdc 25 mA at 12 5 Vdc Current Drain Rx Standby Transmit 2 0 W 12 5 Vdc 0 9A 5 0 W 12 5 Vdc 1 2 A 2 0 W 12 5 Vdc 0 9 A 5 0 W 12 5 Vdc 1 2 A Dimensions Weight 14 5 x 7 6 x 3 5 cm 5 7 x 3 x 1 375 in 0 2 kg 7 3 oz Antenna Connector BNC female RECEIVER 12 5 kHz Narrow Band Sensitivity 12 dB SINAD...

Page 14: ...d Noise 40 dB Audio Distortion 5 Spurious and Harmonics 20 dBm max 25 dBm max AUX IN Frequency Response 8 Hz to 2500 Hz 1 3 dB AUX IN Level Range 0 1 to 5 V peak to peak Microphone Freq Response Pre emphasized 6 dB octave from 300 to 2500 Hz Microphone Level 25 mV rms for nominal 1 5 kHz deviation 6 Installation The RF320 radio is delivered pre configured for operation No user configuration or adj...

Page 15: ...s the electrical interconnect between the DB 15 connector on the RF320 radio and the 10 pin transceiver interface connector on the RF500M or RF310M radio modem Operational power is supplied to the radio via the red V and black V leads exiting the backshell of the DB 15M The middle 10 pin connector is for connection of Campbell Scientific s push to talk switch CSI 13855 which is used to activate th...

Page 16: ...at the supply voltage be maintained between 12 5 to 14 0 Vdc Due to the amperage needed for proper operation of the RF320 during transmission a datalogger s SW12V should not be used to power the radio Using a datalogger s 12V to power the radio is not recommended NOTE The radio is protected against accidental reversal of the input voltage by an internal resettable fuse If a reversal of input power...

Page 17: ... cable The ratio of maximum to minimum voltage in the standing waveform is the VSWR On some data sheets this is denoted as simply SWR In a perfectly matched system the VSWR is 1 1 In practice a VSWR from 2 1 to 1 5 1 is achievable In the latter case 96 of the radio s output power is being radiated with only 4 being lost to the mismatch The de facto industry standard impedance for RF communications...

Page 18: ...e network topology and link distance In a point to point topology a high gain directional antenna affords greater link distances A point to multipoint topology usually requires an omnidirectional antenna at the base and repeater sites with possible use of a directional antenna at the remote sites 6 3 Installation Best Practices General o System Pretest The importance of ensuring that all system co...

Page 19: ...lure to match the polarization of the antennas will lead to significant signal loss o Elevation In general the greater the antenna elevation above the local terrain the better the RF signal propagation The trade off is increased cable loss and higher installation cost o Placement Locate the antenna in an area that provides an unobstructed line of sight to remote sites If using a directional antenn...

Page 20: ...could adversely affect the operation of the radio telemetry network It is recommended that Campbell Scientific be consulted before any changes are made TABLE 7 1 RF320 Series Programmed Settings Parameter Setting Tx Time Out Time 60 seconds Auxiliary Out Always On Unchecked Quick Sleep On Unchecked Channel Rx Tx Frequencies All channels set to the same customer specified frequency for both receive...

Page 21: ...that the result of this calculation is only an approximation and assumes a perfectly matched antenna system and an unobstructed line of sight It should only be relied upon for planning purposes It should also be noted that propagation losses and system losses are directly dependent on the operating frequency A web search for link budget should yield a number of on line calculators for determining ...

Page 22: ...n is identified increasing the antenna elevation at one or both ends of the link may provide the needed clearance There are a number of software packages that can be utilized for a path survey but bear in mind that man made obstructions may not be identified These tools should be used for planning purposes only 8 Troubleshooting Maintenance 8 1 Maintenance The RF320 series radios require no mainte...

Page 23: ...the forward and reflected power measurements One of the most economical and widely used RF wattmeters is the Bird Thruline Model 43 Bird Technologies Model 43 with the 5C or 5E plug in element www bird technologies com Products Wattmeters 20 20Line 20Sections PortableWattmeters 43_General Purpose Wattmeter aspx www bird technologies com Products Plug In 20Elements 7 8 inch Plug In Elements Table 1...

Page 24: ...nlocked PA is over heated or TX regulator voltage is not present while attempting to transmit Dull Blinking Red The PLL is unlocked or TX regulator remains on in receive mode If a fault in the radio is indicted by the LED or a degradation of performance is evident or suspected the radio troubleshooting guide of TABLE 8 2 in conjunction with the radio functional checks should be followed to ascerta...

Page 25: ...form input voltage load regulation check Defective system power source Locate and repair power source fault Input voltage drops below 9 Vdc with transmitter activated Defective radio to modem interface cable Verify continuity of the interface cable per the wiring diagram repair or replace as necessary Radio s current drain is excessive Internal fault with transceiver module Cycle power to the radi...

Page 26: ...gram FIGURE 6 1 Configure the DMM to measure DC Volts and connect it between the red and black leads of the radio to modem interface cable at the point where the leads connect to the radio s power source Depress the push to talk switch and verify that the measured voltage does not drop below 9 Vdc with the transmitter activated 8 3 2 Radio Current Drain Disconnect the DB 15M connector of the radio...

Page 27: ...can a band of frequencies covering the radio s operating frequency While operating the scanner within close proximity to the radio and or its connected antenna depress the push to talk switch to activate the radio s transmitter The scanner should lock onto and display the radio s operating frequency Verify that the displayed frequency is correct 8 4 Repair The RF320 series radios are designed to g...

Page 28: ...RF320 Series Ritron VHF UHF Radios 22 ...

Page 29: ...in which one conductor surrounds the other separated by an insulator or dielectric Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System CTCSS A system whereby one of 38 selectable tone codes in the range of 67 to 250 Hz is transmitted in the modulated carrier wave for the purpose of selectively squelching the received signal See also Tone Squelch and DCS dBd A unit of measure for expressing antenna gain relative ...

Page 30: ...ficiently higher than the receiver sensitivity See also Link Budget Federal Communications Commission FCC A board of commissioners appointed by the President having the power to regulate wire and radio telecommunications in the United States Frequency The number of cycles of alternating current in one second measured in Hertz Hz Frequency Modulation FM An analog modulation technique whereby the fr...

Page 31: ...larger desired signal Causes errors in digital transmission systems Narrowband Channel That part of the RF spectrum occupied by the radio s emissions having a maximum band width of 12 5 kHz centered about the channel frequency Noise Floor The sum of all measurable noise in the receiver attributable to thermal noise cosmic noise atmospheric noise and unwanted signals As a practical point the Noise ...

Page 32: ...le communications Remote The end of link station interfaced with a co located datalogger which is the source of the data to be communicated Repeater A station used to increase the line of sight coverage area or transmission quality for an RF telemetry system One or more repeater stations can be intermediately located between the base station and one or more remote stations for the purpose of relay...

Page 33: ...Ratio VSWR It is common for SWR to be expressed in terms of voltage and is then referred to as VSWR pronounced viswar Both SWR and VSWR are a measure of how efficiently radio frequency power is transmitted from a power source through a transmission line into a load Perfect 1 0 1 Good 2 0 1 See also SWR Wattmeter A term commonly used to refer to an instrument that can measure the amount of power em...

Page 34: ...Appendix A Glossary A 6 ...

Page 35: ......

Page 36: ...entific Canada Corp CSC 11564 149th Street NW Edmonton Alberta T5M 1W7 CANADA www campbellsci ca dataloggers campbellsci ca Campbell Scientific Centro Caribe S A CSCC 300 N Cementerio Edificio Breller Santo Domingo Heredia 40305 COSTA RICA www campbellsci cc info campbellsci cc Campbell Scientific Ltd CSL Campbell Park 80 Hathern Road Shepshed Loughborough LE12 9GX UNITED KINGDOM www campbellsci c...

Reviews: