Download The Fundamentals of Ham Radio and Emergency Communications

Running Head: THE FUNDIMENTALS OF HAM RADIO
The Fundamentals of Ham Radio and Emergency Communications
Jason Rosenberger
01/23/14
Engineering Design and Development
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Abstract
This paper will demonstrate the importance of Ham Radio and the development of the
emergency communication network that it creates. Ham Radio is a community service
organization that makes it a priority to help people with anything they can. The members of the
organization are always friendly and enjoy helping people. The radios are composed of several
components but the technology has overall remained unchanged since it was developed.
Different frequencies are used for emergency communications to decrease the amount of traffic
and allow radio transmissions to go through. There are currently over 700,000 Ham Radio
operators in the U.S. All radio operators need a license to talk on these frequencies legally, you
can get three different types of licenses, Technician, General, and Extra. Each license allows for
a higher level of availability, but also requires a greater understanding of the rules and
regulations.
Keywords: High Frequencies (HF),Very High Frequencies (VHF), Ultra High
Frequencies (UHF), Radio, Emergency Communication.
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Table of Content
Abstract …………………………………………………………………………………...………2
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..4
The History of Ham Radio……………………………………………………………………...…4
The Components…………………………………………………………………………………..5
How it Work…..…...……………………………………………………………………...6
Uses for Ham Radio……………………………………………………………………………….6
Types of Classes and Their Advantages……………………...…………………………...7
Radio Communication Etiquette…………………………………………………………………..7
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………...8
Appendix………………………………………………………………………………………….9
References………………………………………………………………………………………..10
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Introduction
Ham Radio or Amateur Radio operators use radios to communicate and have helped with
emergency communication their whole existence. They are known for their kindness and
eagerness to help others. One of the organizations they help support is the Red Cross. Ham Radio
operators are many people who want to give back to society but like to do it from the sidelines.
Ham Radio is a great way to do that. Let’s face it, how many of you knew anything about Ham
Radio before today? This paper will remedy that lack of knowledge and will tell you the history
and the basics behind Ham Radio.
The History of Ham Radio
Amateur Radio was first used in 1894 but was first used publicly in 1901 by a man
named Marconi to send a signal across the Atlantic Ocean. At this time, there were no
regulations as this was a new technology and radio operators had no restrictions (Rabey, 2013).
This caused a problem as more people started to use radio technologies especially in the cities
where several radio operators could live within a few blocks from each other. the radios created
lots of radio frequency (RF) interference, and the receivers would pick up anything. To fix the
problems, congress passed The Radio Act of 1912, which required operators to get a license to
use the 200-meter wavelength. (For more information, See Appendix) The restriction to the 200meter wavelength was enacted to decrease the number of amateurs on the air. The restriction did
not have the desired affect; by 1917, there were over 6,000 amateur radio operators in the US
alone. As the technology began to flourish, so did the desire for greater distance. Until then,
greater distance had been achieved by increasing power, but that solution only works for so long
and creates a lot of interference. Due to the ingenuity of a man from Connecticut named Hiram
THE FUNDIMENTALS OF HAM RADIO
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Maxim, the American Radio Relay League was started (Maxwell, 2000). This started the use of
repeaters like the ones we use today. Amateur Radio operators first began to serve our nation in
1917 when a group of over 4,000 Ham operators joined the service as professional
communicators. This is the start of a never ending service from the Ham operators. At the same
time, the U.S. Navy was placed in control of radio traffic for the U.S. and they closed all Ham
Radio communications in the U.S. Amateur radio was banned from the U.S. for two years, but
the Navy eventually reopened it in November of 1919 (Maxwell, 2000). With Amateur radio
back up and running new technologies and innovations in the area of radio communication
skyrocketed. One of the biggest innovations was the vacuum tube (See Appendix). Amateur
radio continued to grow and the technology continues to improve to this day getting stronger and
farther signals all the time. Currently, there are over 700,000 Ham Radio operators in the U.S. (;
ARRL, 2012).
The Technology Development and Components
The Radios Ham operators have been using has changed quite a bit over the years, but the
basic purpose and design have remained the same. Radios have always been used to
communicate. The development of communication by radio wave took several key people.
Among those people are Henirich Hertz, the German physicist who proved electronic waves
could be sent and received wirelessly, and Ernest Alexanderson, a Swedish inventor responsible
for the alternator, which allows the transition of speech. Reginald Fessenden found a way to
transmit both sound and radio carrier waves, and Guglielmo Marconi was the first to use a radio
publicly and introduce many Europeans to wireless communications. The components of a radio
are: an Antenna, circuit board, resistors, capacitors transformers, coils, integrated circuits,
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transistors, and a speaker (Sibberson, 2014). Each of these components have a specific function.
The antenna converts electromagnetic waves into electrical current and vice versa. It is made up
of aluminum tubing and copper wire. The circuit board is a structure that provides support for
mounting electronics. It is used to convert the electrical current from the antenna into a usable
signal that the speaker can produce. The resistors keep the electronics safe from alternating or
direct current depending on the type of resistor and the radio the resistor is in. They are used to
do a wide range of things including keeping the air clear of radio traffic. If one amateur is talking
on a specific frequency the resistors in the radio will keep other operators from also talking on
that frequency. They can also be used for power reduction or gain depending on the desired
range of the transmission. A capacitor stores an electrical charge and can be used to smooth the
current in a circuit to protect the wiring and other components. Transformers change the
electrical current from one voltage to another. The integrated circuit is a circuit board that does
only one function, in this case runs the display on the radio. Lastly, the speaker and microphones
are what allows the voice to be received and transmitted. Radio technology works on the same
principles as any form of wireless communications. The radio signals are transmitted as a
combination of electrical and magnetic waves. (See Figure A1) We talk about radio waves by
their frequency or wavelengths. The frequency is how many times per second the signal changes
direction or osculates.
Uses for Ham Radio
There are several uses for Ham Radio. The major ones are regular communications and
emergency communications. Ham Radio operators have been helping in emergencies for almost
their entire existence. Ham operators involvement in emergency communications started just
before World War I and hasn’t stopped since. One example of this is the relief effort after
THE FUNDIMENTALS OF HAM RADIO
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hurricane Katrina. More then 2,000 Ham Radio operators went to help the emergency crews after
the hurricane. With all the telephones down, it was impossible to communicate through regular
means. Luckily Ham operators were there to serve and were able to create a organized network
of communication between key personnel in an orderly fashion. There are three classes of Ham
Radio operator licenses: Technician, General and Extra. With a Technician class, you can access
all VHS and UHS frequencies, and you can use some HF frequencies. With a General class, you
can use all that a technician can as well as use almost all the HF frequencies. With an Extra class,
you can do everything a General can, but you can also access any amateur radio frequencies
(ARRL, 2012).
Radio Communication Etiquette
Radio communication would be crazy without the rules and regulations set by the Radio
Act and several others. Without rules the air traffic would be overwhelming and almost
impossible to truly communicate over. There are several rules to keep the traffic manageable and
efficient. Some of these are: periodic identification, periodic pauses to make sure there is not any
emergency traffic, identifying yourself at the end of a conversation, and you must stop
communication and allow that station to transmit emergency traffic if you here break break.
When authorized, a frequency can be closed to public use and made an official communication
system. This is used when there is an emergency or an event that requires there be no
communications holding up the frequency. When an official communication system is in effect,
all non-emergency traffic is asked to refrain from using that frequency. This is helpful because it
allows for a more controllable environment when dealing with a certain situation or event
(Demeuleneere, 2011).
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Conclusion
Ham Radio operators have been an important part of America since the early 1900s. Ham
Radio operators have been involved with emergency communications since World War 1 and
continue to work to help people. With little changes to the equipment, operators still use
antennas, radios, and speakers.
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THE FUNDIMENTALS OF HAM RADIO
Appendix
Figure A1: Wavelength and Frequency Chart
(Downey, 2004)
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Figure A2: Table of Amateur Radio Operators
(ARRL, 2012)
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THE FUNDIMENTALS OF HAM RADIO
References
Lyons, E. (2004) United States early radio history. Amateur radio age of discovery.
(n.d.).
www.arrl.com.
Retrieved
January
19,
2014,
from
http://www.arrl.org/files/file/About%20ARR
Winter, D. (2004), a short history of radio. (n.d.). http://transition.fcc.gov. Retrieved January 20,
2014, from http://transition.fcc.gov/omd/history/radio/d
Sibberson, E. how products are made. (n.d.). How Radio is Made. Retrieved January 22, 2014,
from http://www.madehow.com/Volume-7/Radio.html#b
Linux Tech Understanding Antenna Specifications and - Wireless Solutions | DigiKey. (n.d.).
Understanding Antenna Specifications and - Wireless Solutions | DigiKey. Retrieved
January 23, 2014, from
http://www.digikey.com/us/en/techzone/wireless/resources/articles/understandingantenna-specifications.html
Peer reviewer: Caleb Shong
Number of words: 1297
Number of words in abstract: 106
Grade: 92