Aerial Siting
ALWAYS do a site survey to find an area of strong signal before installation.
Installing a DualCom with a weak signal is bad installation practice. The DualCom
is likely to suffer signal failure causing wasted site vists, wasted time & money.
The aerial should be mounted vertically at the point of strongest signal. This
is usually the highest point in the building (often the loft area).
Large metal structures can affect radio signals. Avoid installing the aerial
directly under metal roofs or within metal skinned buildings because this will
reduce the signal strength and may inhibit operation completely. If this
is unavoidable, the strongest signal will be found away from the metal roof or
close to large external windows or skylights.
Avoid installing the aerial close (2 metres) to cable runs, ducting, structural
metalwork, metal pipes, water tanks and electronic equipment, e.g. photocopi-
ers, fax machines etc. These can have similar effects to metal roofs.
Reliable operation is unlikely with a low signal strength. If the display shows
that the signal strength is low, you should improve the signal strength. This
may be achieved by repositioning the aerial. The GPRS aerial lead should not
be cut, therefore repositioning the aerial may require that the DualCom is also
repositioned. The CS2056 Aerial Extention is available to aid repositioning.
DualCom recommends that a minimum of 2 base stations are available with
40% or greater signal strength on one and at lease 30% on the other.
The CS2366 Radio Test Set is ideal for surveying a site. This handheld unit can
check the availability, signal strength and interference status of all surrounding
Base Stations. In addition, it will identify the best location for a DualCom GPRS
aerial within the building, help to avoid sources of interference and can confirm
the availability of a GPRS service at the proposed site. See page 32.
Where a Nokia ‘Net Mon’ phone is available and a Vodafone SIM Card is fitted,
it may be used in the same manner as the CS2366 Radio Test Set.
Where a CS2366 Radio Test Set is unavailable, a DualCom GPRS, aerial and
fully charged battery may be used to locate the point of strongest signal. En-
sure that the DualCom is fully operational then walk around the site carrying the
equipment and observing the signal strength display on the DualCom.
This ‘DualCom, aerial & battery’ method can not provide information on the
availability, signal strength and interference status of all radio Base Stations in
the surrounding area. Use of the CS2366 Radio Test Set is recommended.
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