[InHam] FCC Allows Robotic Device in Amateur Band

[ka9qjg]

FYI

Lots of Talk on this on the Newsgroups and AIR And Radio News line My
thoughts if the Goverment tells us We are the Primary user of anything YES
Until they need it . 

PS I cannot wait to Call CQ CQ CQ Right on top of that Little Police $
10.000 Robot 

Hey I have already talked to Robots on the Ham Bands OK I"am sorry that was
not nice 

73 De Don KA9QJG 

FCC Allows Robotic Device in Amateur Band

In January 2008, a company called ReconRobotics filed a request with the FCC
for a waiver of Part 90 of the Commission's Rules with respect to the Recon
Scout -- a remote-controlled, maneuverable surveillance robot designed for
use in areas that may be too hazardous for human entry. A waiver is required
to permit licensing of the Recon Scout because the device operates in the
430-448 MHz band, which is allocated to the Federal Government Radiolocation
service on a primary basis, as well as the Amateur Radio Service and certain
non-federal radiolocation systems on a secondary basis. More than two years
later, the FCC granted the waiver request in the form of an Order (WP Docket
No 08-63), subject to certain conditions.

According to ReconRobotics, the Recon Scout device can be thrown, dropped or
launched into hazardous areas and can provide an operator located a safe
distance away with video and audio, along with infrared, biological,
chemical, heat, radiation or other data. It would be marketed for use by
state and local law enforcement and firefighting agencies, as well as by
security personnel in critical infrastructure industries.

The FCC noted in the Order that they had received more than 70 comments
"generally consist[ing] of public safety and law enforcement entities
supporting the waiver request, and amateur radio operators opposing it." In
their initial waiver request, ReconRobotics asserted that even though the
device operates in an area allocated to other services, including Amateur
Radio, the Recon Scout operates with only 1 W peak power and it is "unlikely
to cause interference to these services."

ARRL's Arguments Against the Waiver

In its comments filed in May 2008 (as told in a May 29, 2008 article on the
ARRL Web site), the ARRL called on the FCC to deny ReconRobotics waiver
request, "either permanently or even temporarily," calling on the Commission
to require ReconRobotics to "initiate a rulemaking proceeding if it feels
that the Part 90 or Part 15 rules governing analog devices are not
sufficiently accommodating and should be changed, and could be changed
consistent with interference avoidance. Repeatedly granting waivers for
analog devices which do not meet the fundamental interference avoidance
requirements of the existing rules is bad spectrum management and ill-serves
the Amateur Service."

The ARRL pointed out in its May 2008 comments that there are differing
amateur operations throughout the 420-450 MHz band. One of the channels
ReconRobotics is requesting use of -- 442-448 MHz -- is used by amateur
repeaters (with band plans varying by locality) and also for Amateur
television repeater inputs. "These repeater inputs, both for voice and
video, are at high locations where line-of-sight to [ReconRobotics] devices
should be expected anywhere in the United States. Repeaters in this band are
routinely used for emergency communications via Amateur Radio for numerous
served agencies including FEMA, and so at times when the Petioner's device
may be expected to be used, the repeaters may be expected to be in operation
in the same areas." As such, the ARRL maintained that interference -- both
from and to -- the Recon Scout device may be expected on a regular basis
from Amateur Radio operations.

"Because [the Recon Scout] operates on a channelized basis, each of the
three channels being six megahertz wide, the necessary bandwidth of the
device is apparently close to 6 MHz," the ARRL argued. "[ReconRobotics] asks
that it be granted an unspecified series of permanent waivers to allow the
marketing and sale to, and use of this device by law enforcement and fire
department personnel for public safety applications. The Amateur Service,
which has a heavily occupied, secondary allocation in the 420-450 MHz
band...would be potentially substantially impacted by grant of these
waivers."

The ARRL noted that ReconRobotics asked for "unspecified permanent waivers
of Part 90 rules" in order to market and sell its product, but, as the ARRL
pointed out, more than the Part 90 rules would have to be waived: "Because
the three channels (430-436 MHz, 436-442 MHz and 442-448 MHz) on which the
device is proposed to operate.are all within that segment [430-450 MHz],
what is being requested is not only a waiver of Part 90 service rules, but
also a waiver of Section 2.106 of the Commission's Rules, the Table of
Allocations. The only allocations in the 430-450 MHz band are for Government
Radiolocation (limited to military radars) and on a secondary basis, the
Amateur Service. Per Section 90.273 of the Commission's rules, frequencies
above 429.99375 MHz and below 450 MHz are unavailable to stations in the
land mobile service anywhere in the United States."

The ARRL's comments also stated that ReconRobotics "fails to establish that
the 420-450 MHz band is the only viable choice and that no other band would
be suitable; an obligation of the Petitioner in order to entitle it to a
waiver. In requesting the waiver, ARRL asserts that ReconRobotics only
claimed, but did not show, prove or demonstrate, that other bands were not
suitable for its purposes. In other cases before the FCC as recent as 2006,
the Commission denied such waivers, saying, "We do not believe that the
public interest requires grant of a waiver merely to accommodate a
manufacturer's choice of a specific frequency when others are available."
The ARRL contended that "nothing in the four corners of [ReconRobotics']
request indicates anything that would verify the factual conclusions
offered. The waiver request boils down to 'trust us, we have checked into
this.'"

The ARRL claimed that a permanent waiver of the Commission's Rules
permitting nationwide marketing and use on a licensed basis of land mobile
short-range transmitters, benefiting as it does only one manufacturer to the
exclusion of all others, "is an inferior method of conducting spectrum
allocations and spectrum management" and that ReconRobotics "should be
required to refile its proposal as a petition to modify the Table of
Allocations for this purpose. Its petition should be vetted in the normal
course, and would be properly evaluated based on a complete technical
compatibility showing, which is not included in the present Waiver Request."

Upon learning that the FCC had granted the waiver, ARRL Chief Executive
Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ said that "While we are completely sympathetic to
the desires of law enforcement and firefighting agencies and certain
security personnel to have a tool like the Recon Scout at their disposal,
the fact remains that 430-448 MHz is a poor choice of frequency range for
such a device in the United States. In its Order, the Commission does not
say otherwise; it simply concludes that by imposing an array of conditions
and limitations on the use of the device by eligible Part 90 licensees, the
potential for harmful interference to Federal and licensed non-Federal users
of this band can be, in the Commission's view, adequately minimized. The
Order falls short of requiring that the manufacturer adequately explain
these conditions and limitations to its potential customers and does not
explain how the Commission will enforce its requirements. We share the
concerns expressed by NTIA on behalf of the Federal users of the band with
regard to development of mass-marketed consumer devices that the Commission
has no ability to control. Everyone's interests would have been better
served had the manufacturer spent the last two years on engineering,
redesigning its product for a more suitable frequency range, rather than on
advocacy to legalize the domestic use of a product that was designed for
military use abroad."

In a February 2010 letter to Julius Knapp, Chief of the FCC's Office of
Engineering and Technology from Karl Nebbia, Associate Administrator of the
National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) Office
of Spectrum Manager, Nebbia told the FCC that the NTIA has concerns that
"[i]f mass-marketed low power consumer devices are permitted to operate in
the 420-450 MHz band, this could adversely impact the performance of
critical radar systems." The NTIA listed several conditions that is said
"are necessary to preclude the development of mass-marketed consumer devices
that, over time, could impact the use of the 420-450 MHz band by federal
systems."

The Waiver Is Granted

The FCC noted that Section 1.925 of the Commission's Rules provides that
they may grant a waiver if "it is shown that (a) the underlying purpose of
the rule(s) would not be served or would be frustrated by application to the
instant case, and grant of the requested waiver would be in the public
interest; or (b) in light of unique or unusual circumstances, application of
the rule(s) would be inequitable, unduly burdensome, or contrary to the
public interest, or the applicant has no reasonable alternative." The
Commission concluded that "ReconRobotics has met the first prong of the
waiver standard and that the grant of the request is warranted, subject to
certain conditions."

The FCC explained that "one purpose of allocating different spectrum bands
to different services is to prevent harmful interference" and that
ReconRobotics asserts that operation of the Recon Scout is unlikely to cause
interference to the other services using the 430-448 MHz band, "because the
device operates with lower power (1 W peak power, 0.25 W average power) than
radiolocation systems. With respect to amateur operations, ReconRobotics
asserts that amateur satellite downlinks should not experience interference
because earth station antennas are angled too high to detect a low-power
device near ground level; and that terrestrial amateur operations are
unlikely to experience interference due to the Recon Scout's low power and
brief, itinerant operation, and amateur transmitters' much higher power.
Moreover, ReconRobotics acknowledges that the Recon Scout would operate on a
secondary basis to amateur services in the band, obligating its users to
avoid causing interference."

The ARRL, as well as some Amateur Radio operators who submitted comments on
the waiver request, stated that because amateur satellite orbits are not
geosynchronous, amateur earth station antennas often point toward the
horizon to receive low-level signals. The FCC, however, agreed with
ReconRobotics, "that interference to amateur satellite communications is
unlikely. The Recon Scout will be used infrequently and will be limited in
number, significantly reducing the possibility of interference. In addition,
it is unlikely that Recon Scout would have a significant effect on the
ability of even an amateur earth station operating near the horizon to
receive a low-level satellite signal, given the variety of natural and
man-made interference sources such as terrain, trees, buildings, and other
obstacles and ground level interferers having a greater effect on reception.
We conclude, therefore, that grant of a waiver to permit equipment
authorization and customer licensing of the Recon Scout on 436-442 MHz
clearly is appropriate, because the device is unlikely to cause interference
to amateur satellite communications in the 435-438 MHz segment."

According to the Commission, the remainder of the 436-442 MHz segment is
used by amateurs for wideband amateur television (ATV) operations. The FCC
cited the 2002 edition of The ARRL Handbook for Radio Amateurs (pages
12.44-12.51), noting "that amateur stations transmitting a video signal to a
repeater station typically use much higher power than the Recon Scout and
may use high gain, directional antennas. We believe, therefore, that the
signal of the amateur station can reasonably be expected to be much stronger
than the signal of the Recon Scout at the repeater's receiving antenna, and
that the stronger signal of the amateur station will capture the repeater,
thereby minimizing any interference from a Recon Scout. Accordingly, we find
no basis in the record before us to believe that operation of the Recon
Scout on 436-442 MHz will create interference to ATV operations."

The FCC stated that they are "not as clear" if the Recon Scout can operate
in the 430-436 MHz and 442-448 MHz segments "without causing harmful
interference." Some Amateur Radio operators, in their comments, stated that
1 W is more than enough to activate a repeater, which could cause
interference to an entire system of linked repeaters. In addition, the
432-433 MHz segment is used for long-range weak signal communications
utilizing very sensitive receivers. "We note, however, that deployment of
the Recon Scout on multiple channels is expected to be rare. Therefore, we
believe that interference to these amateur operations can largely be avoided
by requiring deployment first in the 436-442 MHz segment, then in the
442-448 MHz segment and in the 430-436 MHz segment only if the other two
channels already are in use."

FCC Imposes Special Conditions

The FCC noted that ReconRobotics will need to follow the following special
conditions:

Eligibility is limited to state and local police and firefighters eligible
for licensing under Section 90.20(a)(1) of the Commission's Rules, and
security personnel in critical infrastructure industries. Any offer for sale
or lease of the Recon Scout will state these eligibility limits. 
The Recon Scout may be used only during actual emergencies involving threats
to safety of life and for necessary training related to such operations.
Security personnel in critical infrastructure industries may operate the
Recon Scout only in areas that are environmentally hazardous for entry by
human personnel, and for necessary training related to such operations. 
Training operations are not permitted within 30 kilometers of certain US
military installations. 
The first unit sold to a responding organization will operate on 436-442
MHz, with the 442-448 MHz version being sold only to entities that already
own the 436-442 MHz version and the 430-436 MHz version being sold only to
entities that already own the other two versions. 
The number of units to be sold is limited to 2000 during the first year
following equipment approval and 8000 during the second year. Future sales
of the Recon Scout will be reconsidered at the end of this period.
ReconRobotics may request authorization to sell additional units in
subsequent years. 
The Recon Scout will operate on a secondary basis (cannot cause interference
and is not protected from interference) to all federal users and licensed
non-federal users. 
The operation of the Recon Scout may be impacted in the vicinity of certain
radar and ionospheric research sites. Recon Scout transmitters shall be
labeled as required in Part 2 of the Commission's Rules, and shall bear the
following statement in a conspicuous location on the device: "This device
may not interfere with Federal stations operating in the 420-450 MHz band
and must accept any interference received." In addition, the following
statement shall be placed in the instruction manual: "Although this
transmitter has been approved by the Federal Communications Commission,
there is no guarantee that it will not receive interference." 
The FCC also noted that operation of the Recon Scout by eligible entities
will require a separate Commission authorization: "Applications must
reference this Order. Applicants must specify the proposed area of
operation, and the requested frequency segment. Part 90 frequency
coordination is not required. No operation is permitted prior to license
grant, and no applications will be granted until ReconRobotics obtains
equipment authorization. Licensees must maintain a log of all Recon Scout
use. The log will include date of operation, start/stop times, location of
operation, frequency segment of operation, reason for use and point of
contact. Licensees must provide this log to the Federal Communications
Commission or to the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration upon request of either agency."

In conclusion, the FCC pointed out that some commenters were concerned that
use of the Recon Scout will not be limited to emergencies and that it is
meaningless to authorize the device on a secondary basis "because even if
amateurs can identify the source of interference, public safety entities
will not discontinue use of the device in the middle of an operation. We do
not believe that this speculation is grounds to deny the waiver request, but
we caution prospective users that operation of the Recon Scout in an
unauthorized manner will subject licensees to Commission enforcement action
and license revocation. Widespread improper use could lead us to stop
granting or renewing Recon Scout authorizations."

The ARRL Executive Committee will consider what additional steps can be
taken with regard to the grant of this waiver.