Emergency Communications

[Caute_cautim]

Well, that was an eventful weekend, go rough, set up a communications stations in a bare field, erect aerials, and put life skills into practice and then communicate without a normal source of power on generators and solar power with batteries.  Under canvas, in the rain and wind and communicate worldwide using low RF power on dual frequencies.  Good team sport and collaboration all weekend in the wind and rain, in shifts over the weekend with little sleep - like a real emergency situation.   How many people, in this day and age, have practiced these skills and put them into practice and proven they can survive, when all else fails? 

Even had to put up lights, to reduce the likelihood of unwanted visitors wanting to sneak a view of activities and pinch equipment, so even had to put up light sensors to switch on the lights on night to detract them.  

Regards

Caute_cautim

[Early_Adopter]

Dipole Antennas?

[ed_williams]

I have a caravan. I do this every weekend over Summer. What fun 😉

[rslade]

Sounds like a gas.  I'm not on the radio team, but I am a volunteer with emergency services, and we have regular exercises of various types.  (These days I mostly try to get a spot as a "victim"  🙂

[Caute_cautim]

Yes, in an emergency quickest means of slinging up an antenna or aerial, between two points, chose the centre frequency of coverage, for resonance - do the calculation - cut to length, attach to portable masts or trees with insulators, attach some coaxial cable and away you go. 

Regards

Caute_cautim

[Caute_cautim]

It is fun, some in fact climb mountains and put out a signal, just for fun as well.  But, we are all a little crazy from time to time.

Regards

Caute_cautim

[Caute_cautim]

Yes, it is good to volunteer for the community.  Technically P25 digital radio has no redundancy, if a node fails, and the encryption fails, if the signal is too far away from a node - drops out.  So back to basics, Marconi and Samuel Morse.  

Regards

Caute_cautim

[vt100]

Perhaps something like this could be employed for emergency communication:

https://www.rs-online.com/designspark/rf-lora-the-50km-radio-module

It wouldn't handle the voice, but would work for the text and limited data.

In my youth and on the other side of the Iron Curtain this was my workplace during compulsory military service (https://www.cryptomuseum.com/radio/ussr/r142/index.htm😞

[Caute_cautim]

Very nice, looks like the inside of a communications truck.   One of my colleagues from the UK, had a Russian Communications truck, with Left Hand Drive and 4WD, but the New Zealand authorities stated it would cost too much, to convert it for our roads.   It had a large foldable Log Periodic antenna and a 2 Kilowatt transmitter.  Everything inside was written in the Russian language.

Regards

Caute_cautim

[vt100]

I do not really recall the power rating on these units, but the track itself was GAZ 66 and it was quite handy in a  muddy and mountainous terrain.