RF Shorts – Nov. 29, 2012

By Doug Lung
published

Incentive Auction Simplified

I've discussed parts of the FCC Incentive Auction Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in previous articles but it is difficult to cover all the proposed rules, some of which are contradictory, in the 205 page NPRM in one or two articles. Dan Kirkpatrick, Rob Schill, Don Evans and Harry Cole have put together an excellent 6 part summary of the NPRM on the Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth CommLawBlog that includes more details and graphics to help illustrate some of the proposals.

Part 6 has graphs showing the various band plan options proposed and how they would fit in the UHF TV band. Scroll down on the page to see the earlier postings.

In discussions with other broadcasters I've been surprised how much wrong information is being circulated about the NPRM, with some items that are only proposals being touted as if they were a fait accompli. The CommLawBlog series should help in clearing up this confusion.


Simple 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi Antenna

Need an easy to construct antenna to improve 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi range? See Danilo Larizza's solution at Direttiva biquad per i 2,4Ghz or the Google English translation Directive biquad for the 2.4 Ghz. The antenna appears much simpler than designs using Pringle cans or beer cans fashioned into reflectors. The bi-quad in the plastic container shown in Larizza's posting should also hold up better in the weather.

Doug Lung
Doug Lung

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack.
A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.