The first step in planning a SmarTrunk Xpress system is to contact Nabishi, to assist with system integration.  The following are typical steps to planning a system.

Frequencies

Acquire licenses for the use of VHF or UHF frequency pairs which should be available in blocks of 3 or more pairs. Some helpful information about optimizing a trunking system with regards to frequency selection is as follows:

1. Typical UHF/VHF frequencies are usually issued in pairs, one transmit and one receive. They are generally separated by 4-7 MHz. This separation provides economical use of duplexers or combining systems. One frequency pair will be required for each SmarTrunk Xpress channel in your system.

2. The transmitter frequencies should be separated by at lest 300 kHz from channel to channel for optimum economical combining. Other frequency separations can be accommodated at higher combining cost.

3. For optimum system receiver performance, the receive frequencies should be separated from each other by at least 25kHz. The main consideration for the receiver frequencies is the total bandwidth that will be occupied by all the receive frequencies.  An ideal frequency separation would be 25 to 50KHz between receive frequencies (specifications based on Vertex Radio equipment performance, other radio equipment may require greater seperation).

4. Before finalizing your frequency plan, be sure to review the mobile and portable radio equipment you intend to use in the system. Review the specifications to determine if the frequencies you have selected are within the operating range of the radios.

Antenna Site

The location of the antenna is a crucial factor in determining the coverage area and the signal quality of your SmarTrunk Xpress system.  The coverage area of the system defines where service can be offered.  The quality of the radio signal will impact customer satisfaction.  Antenna sites are often located on mountain tops and high buildings. The distance a radio signal will travel is directly related to the line of sight distance between the mobile and portable radios and the antenna site.

Before you select the antenna site, perform a site coverage survey to determine the coverage area of the site (Please ask Nabishi).  Many sites you may be considering will have existing conventional repeater systems in operation.  It is common practice to ask the site operator for permission to use an existing system for your site survey.

How the System will be used

1. Mobile or fixed telephone service.

2. Fleet dispatch and conventional dispatch applications.

3. A combination of telephone and dispatch applications.

4. Wide are coverage or local "campus/on-site" system.

Base Station

The base station equipment is the most expensive part of establishing a SmarTrunk Xpress system as well as the most important. Our experience indicates that system operators who spend more money on the base station infrastructure will end up saving money in the long term. Less expensive equipment generally means lower performance and lower customer satisfaction.  Nabishi strongly recommend the Vertex VXR7000 base station for reliability and performance)

We believe that a system operator should maximize the quality and construction of the base infrastructure system to avoid customer dissatisfaction. If the base station equipment fails, subscribers will not be able to communicate until it is repaired.

Equipment

A typical SmarTrunk Xpress system requires the following equipment:

1. Repeater - a full duplex transceiver that is installed at the base station.

2. SmarTrunk Xpress ST858 Trunking Controller - the heart of a SmarTrunk Xpress system, the controller performs all signalling and trunking functions, including subscriber validation and call record accounting.

3. Power Supply - needed to provide 12 VDC power from 110 to 220 VAC systems. Can be part of each repeater or a separate single power supply to power all repeaters.

4. Transmitter Combiner (optional) - to combine all transmit antennas into one antenna.

5. Receiver Multicoupler (optional) - to couple all receive antennae into one receive antenna.

6. Duplexer (optional) - may be used to combine the transmit and receive antennas on one antenna.

7. Antenna - needed to provide transmit propagation and to receive incoming signals.

8. Antenna Feed Line - the cable that runs from the transmitter and receiver to the antenna.

9. Rack Panel - this is an open rack panel or an enclosed cabinet for mounting the repeaters, controllers, combiners, multicouplers, and power supply.

10. Installation Kit - cable connectors, grounding, lightening protection, jumper cables, etc.

11. PABX (optional) - may be used to distribute telephone traffic in systems with more RF channels than telephone lines.

Download information: System Overview, Option 1, Option 2, Option 3, 4 channel example, 8 channel example

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