Heading Higher on the Radio Band
Trucking operators, toll-collecting businesses and others are keeping watch as the Federal Communications Commission develops a policy for the 5.9-GHz band of the radio spectrum. Shifting to that frequency would require those who rely on transponders and other information- transmitting devices to buy new communication equipment.
Today, everything from garage door openers to wireless monitors to data acquisition equipment transmits on the catch-all 915 MHz frequency — and that includes the transponders that trucking and commuters are rapidly adopting. “Everyone and everything’s in this band,” said Paul Najarian, senior telecommunications engineer for ITS America in Washington, D.C.
But 915 MHz is “limited in terms of bandwidth and power,” he said. As a result, a single electronic tag, like a transponder, can’t handle multiple applications, such as parking management, toll collection and in-vehicle signaling.
Many experts favor moving to the much broader “5.9 G” band, as it’s commonly known. Not only would its greater capacity allow for far more applications, they say, but the higher frequency would put the United States in sync with Europe and Asia, where the frequency is being used.
Mr. Najarian thinks the long-term benefits of 5.9 G are tremendous for trucking. Vehicle communications equipment would be able to transmit a lot more information about cargo, driver logs and maintenance needs. Signal range also is a consideration.
“There’s a transmission power issue, unique to trucking folks, that can be overcome with 5.9,” he said. “Right now, the (915 MHz) equipment needs to be a lot closer to trucks and toll plazas, but there could be more allowable distance with 5.9.”
The push for the higher frequency got started in May 1997. That’s when ITS Amercia petitioned the FCC to create a special band for intelligent transportation systems that would be much more flexible and accommodating than the lower frequency, said Rick Weiland, a consultant in Chicago specializing in intelligent transportation systems.
The FCC is exploring the matter and circulating proposals for a policy, said Tom Derenge, a staffer with the agency’s Office of Engineering and Technology.
A ruling on the band is expected this year, he said, and the FCC will give trucking an opportunity to register its concerns, one being an assurance that equipment operating at 915 MHz will still be useable. Ultimately, however, the decision is up to the user.
“It’s up to the market to decide if 5.9 will replace the 900s,” he said. “Theoretically, people will start developing new products because this allows greater spectrum.”
The switch from to 5.9 GHz will not come cheap — the trucking, toll and equipment industries will end up footing most of the bill. Also, for trucking, the change will mean a short-term loss in equipment investments.
“The market is very much entrenched,” Mr. Najarian said. “The truckers use (915 MHz) tags for their daily logs and their weigh-in-motion and toll collection.”
The market already has sold an estimated 4 million electronic tags for 915 MHz, and their use “is growing . . . quite rapidly,” both in trucking and with commuters, said Paul Manuel, vice president of marketing and sales for Toronto-based Mark IV, a leading maker of dedicated short-range communication equipment. He said performance and cost will give companies second thoughts about embracing the higher frequency.
For the full story, see the Jan. 25 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.
