CR300 Bi-Directional Repeater Installation & User Manual www.signalreach.com Document Title: Installation & User Manual Product release:CR300 Document version:CR300 User Manual v1.8.doc Date: May 2004 Copyright1 Printing2Legal statements3 1Copyright 2000- 2004 SignalReach Inc., All Rights Reserved 2Printed in Canada 3Information is subject to change without notice. Arrista Technologies Inc. reserves the right to make changes in design or components as progress in engineering and manufacturing may warrant. ii Installation & User Manual Table of Contents Introduction ________________________________________________________________________2 Functional Description _______________________________________________________________3 Installation Procedure ________________________________________________________________4 Fault Reporting _____________________________________________________________________7 Operation __________________________________________________________________________7 Product Maintenance_________________________________________________________________7 Troubleshooting _____________________________________________________________________8 Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 1 Installation & User Manual Introduction In-building repeaters provide enhanced coverage of cellular telephone signals for areas that are confined or enclosed such as tunnels, underground parking garages, and within buildings. Many buildings are constructed of materials like metal, brick and concrete that attenuate cellular telephone signals. Symptoms such as dropped calls, broken audio and static indicate the need for an in-
building repeater. The SignalReachTM CR300 Small Office Home Office (SOHO) Cellular Repeater extends cellular services into buildings, parking garages, tunnels and other poor coverage areas. The CR300 is designed for use with iDEN cellular handsets and offers a cost-
effective solution for small business and residential applications. The SignalReachTM CR300 is a stationary device that automatically reradiates signals from cellular base stations without channel translation, for the purpose of improving coverage of existing service by increasing the signal strength in dead spots. The repeater is a network-compatible device that amplifies cellular signals in both the uplink and downlink directions. The repeater is simple to install, and contains circuitry to ensure proper operating power levels, and as well, includes an automatic feedback and detection circuitry that detects poor isolation between the subscriber and donor antennas. In this condition the repeater will adjust its gain to compensate for the abnormality, and warn the user through a visual indicator LED. The CR300 will enhance the cellular telephone users experience while complying with cellular network specifications. Linear operation is guaranteed under all conditions. The CR300 allows up to two indoor antennas to be used without the need of external components. Its auxiliary indoor antenna port allows a second indoor zone to be easily covered. This product is designed for installations where cellular coverage is available outside the building, and indoor coverage is inadequate. Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 2 Installation & User Manual CR300 Features:
Functional Description Easy Installation No calibration required Automatic feedback detection and warning circuitry Auxiliary in-building antenna port provides enhanced coverage Up to 20000 ft2 of free space coverage with only one interior antenna Network-compatible operation Auto levelling circuitry ensures linear operation IC, FCC approved External fault output signal The repeater works on the principle of receiving the handset signal through a subscriber (indoor) antenna, amplifying or boosting its signal level, and then passing it on to the donor (outdoor) antenna located outside the building. Signals from the cellular tower
(downlink) are also amplified and passed to the subscriber antenna. The SignalReachTM CR300 in-building repeater is a Class B Broadband device, and processes the iDEN/SMR 806-825/851-870 MHz band. Input and output duplexers and band pass filters in the downlink and uplink path provide the repeaters filtering and isolation. The maximum gain in each of the downlink and uplink path is 60dB. Both the downlink and uplink paths incorporate automatic gain control, to ensure that downlink and uplink power amplifiers operate free of distortion. The CR300 has primary and secondary subscriber ports, allowing the repeater to expand the in-
building coverage area without degrading repeater performance. Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 3 Installation & User Manual Installation Procedure Warning; Equipment Installation
Proper Grounding
Follow the local building codes for installation of antennas on buildings.
Ensure that the exterior mounted donor antenna is properly mounted and grounded for lightning protection.
RF exposure Guidelines
During in order transmitter operation, to meet RF Maximum Permissible Exposure Safety Guidelines, a minimum distance of 50 cm (20 in.) shall be maintained between the outdoor (uplink) antenna and personnel.
During in order transmitter operation, to meet RF Maximum Permissible Exposure Safety Guidelines, a minimum distance of 20 cm (8 in.) shall be maintained between the indoor antenna and personnel.
The maximum cellular outdoor (uplink) antenna gain authorized shall be limited to 18 dBi or less in order to meet RF exposure (MPE) limit as per FCC guidelines.
The maximum cellular indoor (downlink) antenna gain authorized shall be limited to 9 dBi or less in order to meet RF exposure (MPE) limit as per FCC guidelines.
When servicing or installing outdoor transmitting elements
(i.e. antennas), all transmitting signal sources should be turned off in order to meet RF exposure (MPE) limit as per FCC guidelines. The repeater unit should be installed in a sheltered area, as it is not sealed to prevent water (rain) ingress. The repeater unit should not be installed in an area where the ambient temperature is expected to exceed +60C. The SignalReachTM CR300 is not supplied with cabling or antennas. The indoor and outdoor antenna types and locations must be chosen carefully to avoid re-generative feedback. Re-generative feedback occurs when the subscriber antenna picks up the donor antenna transmit signal. A general rule of thumb is to locate the antennas where the isolation is at least 10 dB greater than the operating repeater gain. The SignalReachTM repeater has a maximum gain of Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 4 Installation & User Manual 60dB, as a result, the isolation required between the subscriber and the donor antenna is in a range of 70dB. The line of sight separation between the subscriber (indoor) and donor (outdoor) antennas represented by a free space loss of 70dB within a building is 17 meters (55 feet). The separation distance can be reduced if the donor antenna is mounted on the building exterior (i.e. on a roof), or using a directional donor antenna (narrow beam width). For example, if a metal roof separates the indoor and outdoor antennas, the physical separation may be substantially reduced. The following table indicates separation distances for different installation configurations:
Line of Sight in-
building Exterior Donor Antenna, with 20dB Attenuation1 Exterior mounted Directional Antenna2 4 (13) 8 (26) 17 (55) Separation Distance meters (ft) 1 The attenuation is indicative of the construction material that a signal has to penetrate through 2 As in 1, but using a directional antenna with a typical front to back ratio of 20dB It is not recommended that the donor (outdoor) and subscriber
(indoor) antennas be installed within sight of each other. Do not install the unit where a skylight or other low loss RF path exists between the donor or subscriber antenna. Arrista recommends that the donor
(outdoor) antenna be installed on the roof or on an outside wall of a building. A cell phone can be used to determine if an adequate signal is present at the chosen location. Run a length of 50-ohm cable between chosen location and the repeater unit. Cable Length Recommended Cable
< 50 ft 50 100 ft
> 150 ft Andrew CNT-100, CNT-200 Times Microwave LMR-240, or equiv. Andrew CNT-400 Times Microwave LMR-400, or equiv. Andrew CNT-600 or equivalent Select a suitable location for the subscriber (indoor) antenna, and connect it to the Ant 1 port of the repeater. If only one subscriber (indoor) antenna is to be used, flip the switch to the left to disable the second subscriber port. Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 5 Installation & User Manual If a second subscriber (indoor) antenna is to be used, select a location that is at least 16 meters (55ft) away from both the first subscriber
(indoor) antenna and the donor (outdoor) antenna. Once the antenna is connected, adjust the sliding switch to enable the secondary subscriber port (Ant 2). Figure 1. CR300 Connections Verify all cables are connected properly and connect the provided AC to DC adapter to the unit. The power LED will illuminate, and the status LED should briefly flash and then extinguish. The normal operating condition is a green power LED with an extinguished status LED. If the status LED is amber and flashing, either an isolation problem exists or too much signal is being received at the outdoor antenna. To solve this problem, try relocating the antenna or rotate the antenna
(for directional antennas) until the amber LED extinguishes. If the status LED is green and flashing, either an isolation problem exists (try relocating the antenna) or a handset is operating too close to the indoor antenna. If it was caused by a handset operating too close, the status LED should extinguish when the handset is moved further away from the antenna. Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 6 Installation & User Manual Fault Reporting Operation Product Maintenance The unit has an open collector output than can relay any fault condition to an external device. This uses the third pin in the power connector. This pin is rated at 12V, 200mA and is at ground potential when a fault condition exists. Figure 2 Power Connector Pinout The in-building repeater operates automatically and does not require user intervention. There are no user controls, except for a sliding switch to allow a user to connect additional subscriber antenna on the repeaters secondary port to increase coverage area. The front panel has two LEDs. A green Power LED indicates that the repeater is operating. The Status LED indicates several conditions; consult the troubleshooting section for details. The CR300 does not require maintenance, as long as it is properly installed following the guidelines stated in this manual. It is recommended that all RF connectors be periodically checked for corrosion, strain relief. Also periodically check the integrity of power connections Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 7 Installation & User Manual Troubleshooting The repeater unit contains no user serviceable parts and should not require maintenance. Two LEDs on the unit will indicate its current operating state. Indication Power LED is off, status LED is off Power LED is on, status LED is off Power LED is on, status LED is amber and flashing Action Check the power supply connection. None. Cause The repeater does not have power applied to it The repeater is operating normally The repeater has reduced its downlink gain to maintain network compatibility. The signal received at the outdoor antenna may be too strong, or there is feedback between the indoor and outdoor antenna. The repeater has reduced its uplink gain to maintain network compatibility. This is usually caused by a handset being used too close to the interior antenna. Power LED is on, status LED is green and flashing Power LED is off, status LED is red and flashing The repeater is off-line due to a high temperature fault. The repeater will restart automatically when the unit cools down Power LED is flashing, status LED is red The repeater has detected an internal fault and is off-
line. Try relocating the outdoor antenna, or rotating it (if a directional antenna was used). A RF pad may need to be installed at the outdoor antenna to reduce gain. None. The repeater will automatically return to full gain when conditions permit. If the condition persists when no handset is nearby, relocate the indoor and/or outdoor antennas to get more isolation. Determine the cause of the overheating (e.g., hot environment, inadequate airflow). Possibly re-
locate the amplifier to a cooler location. Interrupt power to the unit to see if it returns to normal operation, otherwise service is required. Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 8 Installation & User Manual RF Specifications Frequency Range Typical Output Power 1 Typical Gain Maximum Allowable Antenna Gain Poor Isolation Detection &
Warning Indicator Uplink 806-825 MHz
+ 23dBm 60 dB 18 dBi Downlink 851-870 MHz
+15dBm 60 dB 9 dBi If re-generative feedback between indoor and outdoor antennas is detected, condition will be indicated with an amber LED indicator Maximum Possible Exposure
(MPE) Human exposure to non-ionizing radiation meets or exceeds the permissible FCC mandated MPE specification 1 The RF output power specification is for a multi-carrier environment of up to 3 simultaneous TDMA carriers or 1 CDMA Carrier General Specifications Power Requirements Remote Alarm Output Operating Temperature Range Dimensions Net Weight RF Connectors Subscriber Antenna Donor Antenna Included Accessories 12V DC, 0.5 Amp typical, 1.0 Amp max third pin An open collector output, the power connector. Contact rating: 12V, 200mA. Pin is at ground potential on fault condition.
-40 to +60C (-40 to 128F), indoor use only in 161mm L x 152mm W x 33mm H (6.38 L x 5.98 W x 1.30 H) without RF connectors 1.5 kg (3.2 lbs) TNC Female Customer Supplied Customer Supplied 120V AC adapter, the adapter complies to UL and CSA safety standards Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 9 Installation & User Manual Copyright 2004 Arrista Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. 1