Ma/COM OpenSky

[Jimmy252]

Are there any thoughts of inventing an OpenSky police scanner? If so, when will it be coming out?

 

[scanjunkie]

This has been discussed many times over...no, and there will most likely never, ever be an opensky capable scanner. Sorry....some searches through the forum will give you some better info. Have fun...

 

[DaveNF2G]

Actually, it's not as impossible as we had been led to believe previously.

As per a note on my home page, New York's contract with M/A-Comm requires the company to allow other manufacturers to purchase licensing to make Open Sky radios. There's no reason Uniden and/or GRE could not get legal authority to start designing and building scanners now.

 

[Jimmy252]

Actually, it's not as impossible as we had been led to believe previously.

As per a note on my home page, New York's contract with M/A-Comm requires the company to allow other manufacturers to purchase licensing to make Open Sky radios. There's no reason Uniden and/or GRE could not get legal authority to start designing and building scanners now.

Thats cool, i was thinking it was impossible, but i guess we just have to let time go by.

 

[N_Jay]

Actually, it's not as impossible as we had been led to believe previously.

As per a note on my home page, New York's contract with M/A-Comm requires the company to allow other manufacturers to purchase licensing to make Open Sky radios. There's no reason Uniden and/or GRE could not get legal authority to start designing and building scanners now.

Lets see if a second source shows up.

They may also limit what can be built.

Motorola still does not have the second source for iDEN that Nextel wanted, and the iDEN market is WAY bigger then the OpenSky market.

EDIT:

I don't think anyone (in the know) has implied it was impossible, just VERY VERY VERY improbable.

 

[n4voxgill]

there must not be any difference between a scanner and a radio that is designed to transmit as licensed by macom

 

[N_Jay]

there must not be any difference between a scanner and a radio that is designed to transmit as licensed by macom

Other than the fact that a scanner will not register, so you are only going to hear the traffic that is already broadcast from the site you are listening to.

I would predict that most scanner listeners would not be happy with the performance they would get from a scanner in a "cellular" architecture system.

I would not want to be the product manager explaining all the returns to management. :evil:

 

[SCPD]

I would predict that most scanner listeners would not be happy with the performance they would get from a scanner in a "cellular" architecture system.

When the radios are operating on a wireless carrier's AMPS/CDPD network, then yes I think someone hoping to listen in is going to be very disappointed.

The OpenSky networks built out and maintained by public service use fewer "cells" that cover larger geographical areas. Those cells might be comparable in size to ordinary EDACS sites and Motorola SmartZone coverage areas.

 

[WCRadioGuy]

Actually, it's not as impossible as we had been led to believe previously.

As per a note on my home page, New York's contract with M/A-Comm requires the company to allow other manufacturers to purchase licensing to make Open Sky radios. There's no reason Uniden and/or GRE could not get legal authority to start designing and building scanners now.

Though M/A-Com may be required to release information to other companies to make radios related to the sale of a system, contracts and legals can still refrain companies from building scanners.

 

[N_Jay]

When the radios are operating on a wireless carrier's AMPS/CDPD network, then yes I think someone hoping to listen in is going to be very disappointed.

The OpenSky networks built out and maintained by public service use fewer "cells" that cover larger geographical areas. Those cells might be comparable in size to ordinary EDACS sites and Motorola SmartZone coverage areas.

I would expect the cells to be significantly smaller.
1) for the added capacity the system needs
2) for coverage and penetration, as the OpenSky protocol does not have the error correcting levels of P25 (which is designed to match analog)

 

[DaveNF2G]

I'm with rfmobile - government entities so far have a pretty strong record of underbuilding radio systems. The sites will not be sufficient in quantity for full coverage, so the cells will be bigger.

I'd say that if M/A-Comm screws up in New York, then Open Sky will become obsolete almost overnight as they go out of business.

That's probably the best reason for the scanner companies to hold off sinking R&D money into OpenSky for scanners.

 

[ctrabs74]

I'd say that if M/A-Comm screws up in New York, then Open Sky will become obsolete almost overnight as they go out of business.

Never mind New York State, just look at how far behind they are in Pennsylvania. I'm almost rooting for OpenSky to fail miserably (but, of course, the pols will ignore all the complaints - public safety be damned - and say the system is a success).

Of course, as dysfunctional as New York State government is, OpenSky is almost doomed to failure up there...

 

[brey1234]

Ma/com And System In Lebanon Co

From almost the moment it was proposed more than 41⁄2 years ago, the Lebanon County Emergency Management Agency’s $10.5 million communication upgrade has caused headaches for county administrators and area emergency responders.
Last night, county firefighters got a chance to air their grievances to county officials at a Lebanon County Firemen’s Association monthly meeting at the Union Water Works firehall in North Annville Township.
Representing the county were EMA Director Dan Kauffman, administrator Jamie Wolgemuth and Commissioners Jo Ellen Litz and Larry Stohler. Also on hand were two representatives from MA-COM Wireless Systems, the company contracted to build the new system.

http://www.ldnews.com/news/ci_4510391

 

[ar5crash]

I don't believe m/a com will fail in ny. It is better than most systems in use in ny now. There will be alot scanner folks mad. Even aproved radios on the system will be tightly restricted. a channel scanned outside the working cell/cells, consumes capasity on the system. I'm just curious to hear the audio. every freq time shares 4 talk paths. our county will expand the states system for our capacity needs. there are alot of + and -. for instance portabe coverage is a no. but there is 97% mobile coverage state wide. with a vtac (repeater) in EVERY trunk that will give 97% portable coverage. but at 6k a-pop.
p.s. penn lost intrest and funding with it new govenors intrest.

 

[N_Jay]

I don't believe m/a com will fail in ny. It is better than most systems in use in ny now. There will be alot scanner folks mad. Even aproved radios on the system will be tightly restricted. a channel scanned outside the working cell/cells, consumes capasity on the system. I'm just curious to hear the audio. every freq time shares 4 talk paths. our county will expand the states system for our capacity needs. there are alot of + and -. for instance portabe coverage is a no. but there is 97% mobile coverage state wide. with a vtac (repeater) in EVERY trunk that will give 97% portable coverage. but at 6k a-pop.
p.s. penn lost intrest and funding with it new govenors intrest.

Does the $6k figure include teh VTAC?

 

[n4voxgill]

or stated differently, does the six K include both the portable and vtac, and is a mobile radio also required?

 

[N_Jay]

or stated differently, does the six K include both the portable and vtac, and is a mobile radio also required?

The VTAC is a second mobile unit and a duplexer assembly that is attached to the main mobile.

The portable would be separate.

I think that M/A-COM may also have some software that allows VTAC operation from a single mobile unit with some limitations.

 

[w4rez]

Actually, it's not as impossible as we had been led to believe previously.

As per a note on my home page, New York's contract with M/A-Comm requires the company to allow other manufacturers to purchase licensing to make Open Sky radios. There's no reason Uniden and/or GRE could not get legal authority to start designing and building scanners now.

Well, I don't think anybody has said that there's been legal language that says that M/A-Comm has to license OpenSky to scanner manufacturers. Also, they could make the licensing fees so high that GRE and Uniden will simply say "Thanks, but no thanks."

We can dream, though.

 

[mfn002]

Slightly off-topic...What would happen to OpenSky if the government decides to mandate P25?

 

[N_Jay]

Slightly off-topic...What would happen to OpenSky if the government decides to mandate P25?

The government won't simply because the government CAN'T.

Well at least not with A LOT of additional funding, and probably some legislation.