Digital Radio Will Make Your Job Easier, Trust Me!

     There isn’t a day that goes by that I’m not looking for a communication puzzle to solve. I’ve got decades of technical expertise and I’ve got no problem telling you like it is. And for many, many years I would have told you to stick with analog radio, all the way. It’s always been the simple choice for reliable communication. But there’s a new technology in town, and it’s paving a path that’s here to stay.

     Whenever new products and technologies make an entrance in the market, I’m sure to do extensive investigating.  With technology moving as fast as it does these days, I’m not about to hop on a fad that’s about to be replaced next month. But the thing about digital radio is, that even though it seems like the smart phone equivalent of a radio (which it is) it’s got a reputation for solving communication problems that speaks for itself. Sure there are several new flashy  features, such as texting or it’s capablity to hold dozens of newly developed applications like both GPS tracking and work ticket entry/update, which is enough to grab my attention. But the important consensus I’ve come to with digital radio, is that it solves just about all the common issues you hear from radio users. 

Communication Equipment Keeps Production Team Running

     Our rental department has the pleasure of assisting customers from a wide variety of businesses and events.  On a daily basis our customers are on the go, in the field, on the auditorioum floor, moving across campus or throughout the city. Whether they're keeping a concert atmosphere secure or making sure attendees have a flawless special day, it's essential to keep everyone connected to their teams, everywhere they go. Chicago Communications has been renting two way radios and other communication equipment for many years, to events ranging from concerts to commencements, conventions and coroporate meetings to sporting events and competitions. Coming up this weekend ChiComm's rental representative will be renting portables to a video production team, Dobson Entertainment, in order for them to get exclusive coverage at the Tour of Elk Grove. 

     Dobson Entertainment, Inc. has been one of the Midwest's most established video production companies for over 23 years, providing services with state of the art equipment, breakthrough concepts, and a unique creative team. They work with private and public companies, in addition to working at sites both locally and internationally (the City of Chicago, Comcast Sports Net - NBC, and Yamaha Motor Corporation, are a couple examples of their diversified clientele). They can be hired to film and produce multi-camera coverage for events and promotional material, in addition to feeding live video over to multiple areas, jumbotrons and/or LCD TV screens while also being able to broadcast the signal remotely.

 The Experience Behind ChiComm

      I recently asked Rich what  he thought was ChiComm’s greatest strength. He answered, “It has to be the combination of younger and older generations benefiting from each other. A lot of the old guys have RF and component expertise while the new guys are experienced with networking and computers, so we all learn from each other. The younger guys come in very eager to learn from us and when the team gets to hear the old way of doing something vs. hearing a newer different perspective, everyone’s helping each other find the best solution.” Rich hits his 29 years of working with Chicago Comm this November. By this measure that qualifies him as one of the “older guys” around the shop. He started back when cellular had just launched commercially.

The Importance of Housekeeping and the Happy Radio

As brought up in one of our Tech Talks, preventative maintenance is crucial in keeping your two way radios optimized to their full potential.

• Most important is keeping the units clean and free of physical defects.

When I say clean I really mean CLEAN. A simple wipe down with a damp cloth over a portable can prevent dust and dirt from collecting inside internal microphones and speakers. Keeping these free of debris can ensure you won't have TX (transmit) or RX (receive) issues. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen a portable come in and the complaint was "POOR TRANSMIT AUDIO" and we've come to find out the microphone was compacted with dirt, grime or debris blocking it. The same goes for mobile radios. Internal speakers jammed with debris causing "POOR RECEIVE AUDIO."

We're Proud to Support the RMHC!

Recently I was lucky enough to receive a tour of the new Ronald McDonald House, now the world's largest, which opens officially on June 26 in downtown Chicago. The 14-story, 86-room facility at 211 E Grand includes “nurturing communal areas to provide a home away from home” for families of the patients seeking vital care at The Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago.

Critical Communications Lessons Learned From NATO

 The recent events of the NATO summit in Chicago has a number of very important lessons that can be applied to our own communications plans for our businesses.

#1 - Effective communication requires immediate access in critical situations.  Messages cannot be delayed by network congestion or distances when situations are rapidly changing.

As protestors got more and more aggressive in demonstrating during the NATO summit, the Chicago Police relied on two-way radio communications to obtain orders directly from Police Supt. Garry McCarthy.  Despite the radio communications amongst officers, miscommunications did occur, and without direct access to clarify, a potentially dangerous situation did not escalate any further than absolutely necessary.  The Police maintained their professionalism, and the demonstration was allowed to resume in an appropriate manner.

You’re Standing on the Tracks and the Digital Train is Coming Through...

     The digital train is rolling.  It is picking up speed and before long it will be virtually unstoppable in the world of two-way radio technology.  Some might even say that it is already unstoppable!

     Criminals today are getting more and more sophisticated and the tools to combat them need to keep pace.  Rioting mobs are using social media and smartphones to coordinate their activities, international drug cartels use encrypted digital radios to report the activities of Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and Border Patrol Agents; even the “common” thief can get a smartphone app to monitor some police radio traffic, as evidence by this recent situation in San Diego.  The bottom line is that the enemy is striving to become more sophisticated than the law enforcement personnel trying to stop them.

      In schools, a strong communication system is vital to maintaining a safe environment. Whether reassuring seamless alarm alerts or connecting with the needs of students, instant communications are essential. The community in a school or university includes personnel - grounds and maintenance, administration, faculty and students. Here are some examples of situations where two way radios can come in more than handy.

Scenario #1:

Campus security at a University receives a call in the middle of the night that someone in a mask is lurking around one of the academic buildings. They send out a broadcast with their two way radios, and the nearest guard checks out the area.

Result: Because there's a quick response, the intruder is scared away before causing any damage.

Tom's Tech Talk (#8): "Sync" Your two-way Radios & Accessories

     As most people believe that hooking up a radio is a couple of wires, consider this. Typical radio antenna connections are 50 ohms of impedance. Antenna cable comes in many varieties. For instance your Cable TV Cable is 75 ohms impedance. Twin lead for an outdoor antenna is 300 ohms. Standard 2 Way Radio cable is 50 ohms. In layman’s terms, ohms equates to the resistance of a part or device. When mixing different varieties of cables, you actually get a mismatch. This mismatch usually results in degraded performance or even failure.

    For two way radio, the typical impedance is 50 ohms. This means that the radio should match the antenna cable and the antenna cable should match the antenna. When done properly you obtain maximum transfer of power to the antenna. When done improperly the mismatch can actually cause reflected power back into the radio either shortening the life of the amplifier or causing degraded performance in the operation of the radio.

How long will a radio last during the day?

Battery capacity and the duty cycle of the radio will determine talk time. Typically a radio AT MINIMUM should last 8 hours. Over the years as batteries age, their ability to meet the customers requirements diminish and the batteries need charging during the shift or workday. New technology such as Motorola’s Impress battery systems enhances battery life as the charging systems are intelligent and adjust the charge rate for the type of use. Battery technology changes over the years have led to increased battery life as well.

What is digital?

Digital is a process to modulate the radio channel or frequency using data instead of traditional analog voice. By converting ones voice into a data stream and sending it over a radio channel we can improve the ability of the signal to be decoded and reproduce the audio at the other end to be heard. All cellular systems today use digital technology. Two way radios have both analog and digital. Digital affords some additional benefits such as a two for one channel usage. Thus one frequency or channel will allow you two simultaneous transmissions. This may allow for reduced costs in radio equipment.