I am installing an Auxiliary Repeater on my existing RadioRA2 system. Is there a preferred orientation for the antenna on the Main and Auxiliary units to maximize signal strength between the two? I can't find any guidance in the documentation.
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I am installing an Auxiliary Repeater on my existing RadioRA2 system. Is there a preferred orientation for the antenna on the Main and Auxiliary units to maximize signal strength between the two? I can't find any guidance in the documentation.
I would think the radiation pattern can be roughly approximated as a toroid with a hole that is basically 0 in diameter and the antenna itself is in the direction of the hole. This is probably a gross simplification to the actual designers...
I am assuming the antenna is a basic monopole design...
If you are correct that would suggest that both antennas (Main and Auxiliary) should be in a vertical position no matter how the units are mounted.
If the repeaters are directly above each other, one might disagree... But a sound idea if you are trying to achieve maximum horizontal range. You may want to point the antenna towards a region with no RF devices, or orient the repeater antennas parallel for max range.
All antennas perpendicular to the deck. I'm a ham guy and I could go into a long report that will bore you. Unless you mount one in the attic and your trying to rf into switches directly below, point it directly to the deck. Helicopter antennas are mounted underneath...since they are in the air and communicate with the towers below. Also never mount to rf antennas within in their wave length. The repeaters are in the 433 bandwidth which is UHF.
So one wavelength would be about 2.3 feet separation. Probably good idea to separate repeaters 3 wavelengths away minimum.
if I was doing a very skinny 4 story house I would be tempted to point parallel to deck.
I would think that comments thus far is about as best of a generalization we can make. Rf scattering,Multi-path fading and construction materials greatly affect indoor applications and thus it is hard to generalize?
This may not be a bad venue for long reports. Won't bore me :)
You’re correct in suggesting that the mounting and position of antenna completely depends upon the design and radiation pattern of the antennas, if they are operating at different frequencies, they won’t interfere with each other but for similar frequency you want both antennae to work in coherence with each other. The easiest way to go about this is to measure the signal strength with different orientations in your case since it’s not easy to be simulated. Please let us know what you found out.
its called polarization,,, if you have the antenna in a wrong direction of the device, it will miss the device and not communicate with it. Failed device... Unless you are mounting the repeater in the attic and the devices are below the unit, you always want the antenna perpindicular to the deck. Example: helicopter antennas are mounted below the fuselage to communicate with the tower, not above to space.Quote:
Originally Posted by sevgi