Tetra Pilot in the US

2013-03-21T13:43:00.000-05:00

New TETRA Website

I am happy to announce a new website for our TETRA communications, where we will showcase available products, along with results from our demonstrations.

Please look at http://www.tetracom.us and let us know what you think. If there are topics of interest that you would like to see on it, please let us know via comments below.

Thanks,
Christian

2013-03-21T13:40:00.004-05:00

Blog Re-Launch!

Hello Everyone,

Wow. A lot has happened since we last updated the blog! Some of the bloggers had new children, a pleasant but time-intensive situation that removes creativity time to blog. We have also been off learning more about TETRA, have gone to Europe in 2012 for training, and we have seen the FCC rule in favor of TETRA as a viable communications technology for US companies to evaluate.

In the next coming days, we will explore major happenings with TETRA. I'll enjoy writing them, and I hope you enjoy reading about our experiences.

Christian

Quick Update - TETRA Events

2011-09-08T12:24:00.003-05:00

Hello Everyone,
Summertime was full of vacations and TETRA activity, and we are excited to bring everyone up to date on TETRA happenings here in Green Bay – so check back soon.

Quick Update:

1) I am currently attending a TETRA Association sponsored event in Fort Worth, TX. Shortly, I will be presenting information on our TETRA Pilot here in Green Bay. I will be covering both technical and business reasons on why TETRA is so exciting to work with. I look forward to meeting and chatting with other people interested in TETRA.

2) Upon returning to Green Bay, I hope to next week integrate data
communications onto the TETRA network. We know that TETRA can support
data communications, such as SCADA on the network, but we want to prove
it to ourselves that the process works.

Take care, and have a good rest of the week!
Christian

Webinar Complete, TETRA Demonstration Forum Next

2011-06-10T09:41:00.001-05:00

Hello,
First, I'd like to thank those who attended our Webinar on Tuesday.
Thanks to those who asked some good questions, and I hope that you found
the presentation informative and relevant to your communications needs.

We will be having our TETRA Demonstration Forum in a couple weeks, and hope that many
will come and see TETRA first hand. PLEASE REGISTER HERE...Seating Is Limited.

We will be expanding on the material presented during the Webinar with more detailed information
about the equipment and performance options. We will also explore business concerns, such as what the system can do for a user, and things to consider before purchase.

But the big treat surrounding the Demo Days are the ability to put a radio in your hand, and use it. Make some calls. Setup a Gateway or repeater, and see how it works. We will even take a trip to the tower, if you would like to see how the system was installed at the tower site. Having a hands-on session really demonstrates the power of this system.Take care, and have a good one!

Christian

Yesterday's TETRA USA Webinar

2011-06-07T16:08:00.003-05:00

Thank you to each of you who attended the first of our June TETRA Events. We were pleased with the level of excitement TETRA is gaining throughout the United States and look forward to continuing to see growth. If you would like to receive a copy of slides discussed at during the webinar, contact us at tetra@nielsoncom.com or 800-783-2293.

If you have not yet RSVP's for our June TETRA Demonstration Forum approaching June 21st and June 22nd, please do so. You may register here!

We plan to continue with our TETRA Webinars, as well as other events, and will keep you posted. However, we also hold private demonstrations and webinars if that should fit your schedule better. If you would like to set up a time for a private event, please email tetra@nielsoncom.com or call 800-783-2293.

Thank you again and we hope to see you in two weeks at the TETRA Demonstration Forum.

Best Regards!

Getting ready for Webinar

2011-06-02T14:33:00.000-05:00

Hello,

As mentioned elsewhere in this blog, we are preparing for a Webinar on
June 7th. We continue to use the TETRA system here in Green Bay, and
are excited to share this technology with you, so that you may examine
your technological needs, and evaluate how TETRA may provide solutions.

The Webinar on June 7th will cover a variety of topics, including:
-- An introduction to TETRA standards and terms
-- An introduction of two leading TETRA manufacturers and their hardware
-- A sampling of hardware used in our Pilot, and what it can do
-- An explanation of Digital vs. Analog and how TETRA works
-- What the FCC Waiver means to TETRA users in the United States
-- High-Level overview of different types of communication that TETRA
supports
-- An overview of the Pilot installed and operational here in NE Wisconsin

We will have a question and answer period at the end of the
presentation, and will also gladly answer questions after the event
emailed to tetra@nielsoncom.com

Take care, and hope to converse with you during the webinar next week.

Christian
IT Network Engineer

TETRA Events in June -

2011-06-01T13:08:00.003-05:00

TETRA Events in June -

Whether you have received our email invitation, our US Postal Mail invitation, or just are browsing through, I want to welcome each of you to our TETRA Pilot in the US blog page.

For those of you who do not know us, Nielson Communications is a family owned business which specializes in the ever evolving wireless voice and data communication technology industry. If you are looking to read more on our history feel free take a glimpse at the panel on the right.

We have been working with key players in utility, commercial, industrial, healthcare, transportation and public safety sectors for over 37 years. We help them to determine and create the most efficient voice and data solutions to help them meet their specific goals; whether their priority is reach, volume, budget, enhanced feature requirements or each of the mentioned.

We pride ourselves on maintaining strong relationships with a broad scope of communication equipment and systems providers in order to meet the even broader needs of our clients. (Please feel free to browse our website)
Our goal of this blog is to share with you the exciting opportunities with TETRA, now that this enhanced technology is available in the US.

Join us next Wednesday, June 7th for our live TETRA Webinar - hope to see you there! Register Here

Want to reach out to use - please email tetra@nielsoncom.com or give us a call! 800-783-2293

TETRA and Narrowbanding

2011-05-19T14:38:00.000-05:00

Hello,

At the UTC show, we discovered that several companies that still had 25
kHz UHF licenses were about to "narrowband" them to 12.5 kHz to satisfy
FCC requirements. There is more to the story than just turning in those
valuable licenses!

TETRA uses a 25 kHz channel, and digitally divides that channel into 4
separate conversations, each 6.25 kHz wide. Thus, a TETRA signal on
your 25 kHz channel qualifies as a narrowbanded emission, and it is
fully legal and compliant with the FCC Narrowband requirement.

With TETRA, your channel will allow 4 separate conversations, depending
on the configuration of the system. Each base station has to have 1 time slot/conversion for administration and texting functions.

The goal of the FCC is to replace older FM-Wideband 25 kHz conversations
with more efficient 12.5 kHz emissions, meaning that the space 1
conversation used to consume will now allow 2 conversations. With
TETRA, you can double that efficiency, with 4 possible conversations
ongoing at the same time. That's quite a deal, when you consider the
cost of filters, repeaters, and antenna space.

So, if you have 25 kHz licenses, and would like to find out more about
TETRA, please give us a call or an email: 920-494-1828 or
tetra@nielsoncom.com
Thanks,
Christian

Find out about TETRA in June!

2011-05-18T08:26:00.005-05:00

Hello,

We would like to invite people to attend two coming TETRA events in June. Please email tetra@nielsoncom.com with your inquiries for these events.

EVENT 1: Webinar June 7th
On Tuesday, June 7th, we are hosting a TETRA Webinar to introduce the
radio systems to interested parties who would like to find out more
about TETRA, what it does, and what it can do for you. This webinar will highlight the equipment used in our Green Bay Pilot, and provide an overview of the TETRA environment.

EVENT 2: Demonstration Days - June 21st and June 22nd at Nielson Communications in Green Bay, WI. Watch for more to come on the Demonstration Days event
On Tuesday, June 21, and Wednesday, June 22, we are hosting a TETRA
Demonstration in Green Bay, WI. We are opening the doors for a walk-in,
hands-on TETRA experience to find out more about the system. We will
expand upon the concepts introduced at the Webinar, and answer any
questions you may have concerning the system.

Come see us, and feel the power of TETRA!
If you are interested in attending any of these events, please contact us:
Phone: 800-783-2293 / 920-494-1828
Email: tetra@nielsoncom.com

Hope to see you there!
Christian

UTC Show

2011-05-17T16:20:00.000-05:00

Hello,
We had a wonderful time at UTC! Thank you to all of the folks who
stopped into see us at Booth 853 for discussion. We found out there is quite an interest for TETRA concerning utilities, and it felt wonderful to talk with excited representatives from various companies.
Thank you for stopping in to see us.

The show went well, and we were able to demonstrate TETRA with a live
connection to our pilot system in Wisconsin. Visitors in California
were able to hear traffic in Wisconsin, and able to talk with our
employees as they drove about their daily tasks.

We demonstrated telephone functions using a VoIP telephone installed at the booth. We
also found that a base station transmitting 600 mW (milliwatts) was able
to talk to a portable radio through several feet of steel and concrete
-- the base station was in a basement, and we were walking around
outside testing the signal ranges.

I wonder if a full watt would have reached the hotels where people were staying. We also demonstrated AVL
and Dispatcher technologies.

Take care, and catch you soon!
Christian

TETRA Waiver Granted

2011-04-29T13:28:00.000-05:00

Hello,

Very exciting news came forth from the FCC concerning TETRA -- the
waiver is granted, and we can now present the technology that 114 other
countries use to interested people in the United States. No longer a
"science project", we now have the ability to form a business
relationship, and work with perspective customers to try out the
equipment, and see if it solves their problem.

Frequencies authorized include the 450 - 470 MHz band, and 817-824 and
862 - 869 MHz bands. Because TETRA audio is all digital from the moment
a Microphone catches it, it should be possible to talk in on 450 MHz,
and also reach people on 800 MHz. I want to try it, as there are places
where 800 Mhz would be useful, such as building penetration. More to learn!

In the early days of the pilot, we did show some interested parties the
radio system, but we had to disclaim that the system is not available
for sale. It's hard to show a superior technology, and generate
interest, but not being able to deliver the interest to the customer.
The customer can also now try the product, and know that it is not a
waste of time, as there is a means now to obtain the system and upgrade
what is presently in use.

Time to get ready for the UTC show coming up in a little over a week.

Christian

Preparing for the UTC Show

2011-04-29T13:27:00.000-05:00

Hello,

After a very enjoyable Media Day presentation to communications users in
Green Bay, we are busily preparing for the UTC show in May being held in
Long Beach, California. I am preparing items for the booth, and working
with Suzzan, our creative media genius, to prepare the charts and make
sure all of the pamphlets are in order, ready to go. We are going to
bring some hardware to the show, and hope that interested folks stop in
and see several types of radios, and identifying how TETRA can solve
their communications problems.

In the last week or so, we also modified the home network to accept
incoming group calls. This is an exciting feature of TETRA -- allowing
a person on a land or cell phone to call into a radio system, and talk
to a group of people at the same time. Thus, if I was a supervisor, and
needed to dispatch someone from home to take care of a problem, I could
pick up my telephone, and call the radio system, and interact with a
group of employees. That's very useful!

Looking ahead, I am building a System Manual of our setup, to bring
together all of the related commands and programming of the TETRA system
that we have running here in Green Bay. I'd like it to be a one-stop
reference for anyone who would like to know the details of the system.

Christian

Stop By Our US TETRA Booth - United Telecommunication Conference

2011-04-18T16:22:00.000-05:00

Nielson Communications will be attending the UTC Telecom 2011 in Long Beach, California May 10-13th.

Information Quoted From UTC Website
www.utc.org/utc/about-utc

The Utilities Telecom Council (UTC) is a global trade association dedicated to creating a favorable business, regulatory, and technological environment for companies that own, manage, or provide critical telecommunications systems in support of their core business. Founded in 1948 to advocate for the allocation of additional radio spectrum for power utilities, UTC has evolved into a dynamic organization that represents electric, gas, and water utilities; natural gas pipelines; critical infrastructure companies; and other industry stakeholders.

From its headquarters in downtown Washington, DC, UTC provides information, products and services that help members:

Manage their telecommunications and information technology more effectively and efficiently;
Voice their concerns to legislators and regulators;
Identify and capitalize on opportunities linked to deregulation worldwide; and
Network with other telecom and IT professionals.

UTC is also an authorized certified frequency coordinator for the Private Land Mobile Radio Services below 512 MHz and 800-900 MHz frequencies. UTC is also the sole frequency coordinator authorized to coordinate channels previously allocated exclusively to the Power Radio Service. In addition, UTC maintains the national Power Line Carrier (PLC) database for the coordination of PLC use with licensed government radio services in the 10-490 kHz band.

Serving the industry for over 60 years has given us a unique position as a market leader for utility telecommunication advocacy and education.

We will keep you posted as the date draws closer.

Nielson Communications, Inc.

IP connectivity

2011-04-15T13:25:00.000-05:00

It was good to hear that we talked from Green Bay, WI to Bad Muender, Germany portable to portable like the sites were right next to each other.

Rick Nielson, P.E.
President

Nielson Communications

Bay Electronics, Inc.

23 East Oak Street
Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
920-743-0190 Office
920-743-2914 Fax
rnielson@itol.com
www.bayelectronicsinc.com

US TETRA Pilot Seminar - Media Day Slideshow

2011-04-12T16:04:00.012-05:00

Media Day - April 5 and 6

2011-04-11T14:35:00.000-05:00

It was an extreme pleasure to welcome members from the TETRA
Association, along with partners Rohde & Schwarz and Sepura, to Green
Bay, for two days of incredible TETRA discussion with guests new to the
technology.

We began our presentation around 11am, and after some
introductions and high-level material, broke for lunch, and returned to
the meeting room for afternoon demonstrations of the technology. I
never had Texas-Toast grilled cheese before; that is quite a treat.

I am professionally elated that all of the technical subsystems, such as
the VPN, Dispatcher, and AVL solutions, functioned properly out of the
box, and we were able to demonstrate TETRA features without interruption.

On Wednesday, we invited everyone to our Green Bay facility, where we
went into technical detail about the TETRA system. We explained how
TETRA worked internally on Rohde & Schwarz hardware, and how we
configured the Sepura terminals. We also gave hardware to our guests to
turn the radios on, and get a feel for them.

This week, we are preparing our presentation for the UTC conference in
Long Beach, California. If you are coming to UTC, please stop in and
see us!

Christian

TETRA Pilot

2011-04-11T14:33:00.000-05:00

Full duplex phone conversations are great, they act just like cell phones. IP connectivity gives many options for interconnection to the public switched telephone network

Rick Nielson, P.E.
President

Nielson Communications

Bay Electronics, Inc.

23 East Oak Street
Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
920-743-0190 Office
920-743-2914 Fax
rnielson@itol.com
www.bayelectronicsinc.com

Tetra helps Work From Home

2011-03-24T12:30:00.000-05:00

Hello,
Winter struck back at us here in Green Bay, and I was snowed in on
Wednesday. But, I had Tetra with me, and returned several support phone
calls to test the radio - telephone interface.

I was able to call other staff that was working at home, and troubleshoot their computer
questions. People I called said that I sounded just fine, and they
could not tell that I was on a non-telephone. I am going to coin this
process as "Tetraphone" and am glad that I could use the system in this
fashion.

Tetra work continues on with verifying the range of the system within the Green
Bay metro area. We are also preparing presentations on the system, and
preparing for our first major outside vendor to try the system out.

We had a positive experience at IWCE, and are looking forward to the Media
Day coming up in April.
Christian

TETRA Pilot

2011-03-24T12:29:00.000-05:00

I was surprised by the quality of the voice on the system. It even seems to have better quality than our analog system.

Rick Nielson, P.E.
President

Nielson Communications

Bay Electronics, Inc.

23 East Oak Street
Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235
920-743-0190 Office
920-743-2914 Fax
rnielson@itol.com
www.bayelectronicsinc.com

Event Invitation

2011-03-15T15:06:00.002-05:00

INVITATION TO: USA TETRA Pilot Seminar-Media Day

The Latest Voice & Data Technology to Potentially Enter the USA!

Two Day Event: April 5th & 6th, 2011
Explore the TETRA Communication Link - View Event

The Seminar - Media Day will include demonstrations on the extensive features and functionality of TETRA technology, and will also showcase vendor interoperability and the power of TETRA-enabled applications. The TETRA demonstration will be open and accessible to potential PMR (Professional Mobile Radio) users in the US.

Registration is Required for this Event
Once seating capacity has been met, registration will close.

View Event Details and Register Here

Next Tetra Related Goals

2011-03-15T10:39:00.000-05:00

Hello All,
During the second week of March, we have set some goals for our Tetra Pilot.

1) Successful demonstration of Tetra Dispatcher console at IWCE. We
took the special laptop to the show, and would like to demonstrate for
show exhibitors what the system can do from the show.

2) Incorporation of the Tetra telephony into the Office telephony.
There are two Asterisk boxes involved, and I would like to setup a trunk
so that a Tetra terminal can call an office extension. We have
dedicated phones working now, but how about a complete integration with
an existing office phone network?

3) Incorporation of the tetra telephony and an outside telephone line,
full time. I tested this a couple weeks ago using the fax line, but I
had to give the fax line back. I would like to install a full-time
connection to the outside telephone network, and examine calls working
in both directions. I don't think outbound calls will be a problem. It
should be "dial the number, and go." Inbound calls could be a
concern... the Asterisk box will need help routing the call to the
proper radio terminal. It is my gut guess that I will need to setup an
IVR (computerized dial 1 for this, dial 2 for that, dial 3 for someone
else) and route the call from there.

Lots of good stuff ahead!
Christian

First Week of March

2011-03-10T08:59:00.000-06:00

Hello All,
Tetra system evaluation continued this week, building on the successes
of Feb 23.

Because full-duplex calls utilize more system resources, they are ideal
for detecting system range from the base station. We drove out to
fringe areas, and made some phone calls to voice mail to record
ourselves, listening for any drop outs or system failures. We didn't
detect anything out of the ordinary.

We also installed external antennas at our main office to work with the
Tetra radios. We are inside a completely metal building about 8 miles
from the tower, and that was causing some signal loss. This too is
expected, as the analog system suffers from the same RF rules and
constraints... an analog radio has the same challenges getting into the
repeater as the Tetra does.

On March 3, I built a VPN circuit so that the Dispatch laptop could now
be used outside of the local network, allowing for a demonstration
anywhere internet connectivity is available. We tested the setup with a
full duplex telephone call, and walking around the office listening to
it via a wireless network.

Finally, we welcomed Alexander from Rohde and Schwarz to Green Bay. He
is a Product Manager for Accessnet-IP, the large-scale Tetra system, and
he visited our installation of the pilot system.
Until Later,
Christian

Very Successful Day - Feb 23

2011-02-25T10:39:00.000-06:00

Today was a very good day for our Tetra pilot in Green Bay.

1) We resolved the telephone interface problem with the Tetra system.
Put simply, the testing phones I was using had extension numbers 800 and
801, and the Asterisk interface was told to send calls beginning with an
82xx or 83xx to the Tetra computer. I fixed the problem by changing the
extension numbers to 400 and 401, and the problem vaporized. We now
have bi-directional calling internally available. I will be working on
a full-time POTS connection in the near future, but for now, people on
the radio can call the people in the office, and the office can call
people on the radio. The audio levels were clean with outstanding
clarity! Tomorrow, we will work on a video demonstration of our success.

2) We setup and activated the Dispatcher station on the Tetra network.
Working with a software vendor, we obtained trial copies of a Dispatcher
solution that works over an IP network to interface with Tetra. Using a
headphone and microphone solution, we can now make "calls" onto the
radio network, and interact with radios in the field. We performed full
duplex (like a normal telephone) and half-duplex (like walkie talkie)
calls with the system, along with sending SDS (text) messages through
the interface. The Dispatcher logs those messages.

Take care, and I'll write more soon.
Christian

IWCE

2011-02-22T12:20:00.000-06:00

For those of you attending IWCE this year we will be presenting on the TETRA Pilot at the TETRA 101 Symposium Monday March 7^th from 1 -5 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. For more IWCE information please visit http://iwceexpo.com

We will also be held up at the TETRA Association booth 3103. If you would like more information or would like to schedule a time to stop by to meet please email me at snielson@nielsoncom.com

Thanks,

Steve

Very good week!

2011-02-21T14:36:00.001-06:00

Hello Everyone,
Last week, we had some wonderful things happen with our Tetra pilot.

1) We performed the analysis of Tetra vs. Analog performance at extreme ranges from the towers, and found several instances that when the Tetra digital first began to break down, that the Analog at that range was very scratchy and unstable to almost unusable! This is rather incredible, as the Tetra systems were transmitting about 10 Watts, and the analog was in the 25Watt range. One would think that more power is always better, but we have found cases where we have similar performance without the power penalty and exposure. As this is rather unbelievable, we are going to make a video of our observations to share with you all.

2) We took some portable radios and removed them from the Tetra base stations. We put them into DMO mode (direct without a repeater or base station) and performed conversations. This coming week, we want to work with a mobile in Gateway and Repeater modes, and see how well the signals replicate through the radio. Because this is all digital, the replicated signal should be much closer to the original source. Let's try it!

3) We assembled our real-world driving data, and compared it to a
propagation study, and found that the two data sets are quite similar. The real-world tests were better than the calculations, but then again, it is winter time here in Wisconsin, and the leaves are off of the trees. Signals will be dampened once the leaves return.
Take care, and I'll write more soon.

Christian