Several years (2014) ago I wrote an article for The American Surveyor called 'Sailing with the Pirate Surveyors' [ Link]. I think the take-away statement was something like 'no one ever gets caught, but if you do you will really-really-really wish you did not.'
I just noticed that congress passed the new Pirate Act, raising the fine from $100,000 per day to $1,000,000 per day. It is on the President's desk and the assumption is it will be signed. My acquaintance Mr. David Oxenford does a good job covering the 'almost law' in this [ Blog Post ].
Let me say that I don't care if anyone has an FCC License or not. I suspect that in reality less than 2% of survey equipment users have a valid license. To my knowledge, no one has EVER been caught. I probably incur liability when I ship systems to unlicensed users (I wrote about this in my Blog a few years ago [ Link ]). But a million dollar per day fine is attention getting in my book.
You can argue that the FCC is only going after Pirate FM Stations (and they have nailed quite a few of them over the past year) and that Pirate Surveyors are in a different boat. But I don't think there is any technical difference between these two classes of pirates.
Sooner or later, someone is going to get turned in and the FCC will make an example of them. Let us pray that it is not one of us.
You can get a license that lasts for 10-years for $550. Please consider doing so.
Thanks Mark. Your Pirate article came out about the time I first got into GNSS and convinced me.?ÿ I wrote up the steps I took to obtain a license and attaching them here in case they may be helpful to someone.?ÿ I caution folks not to rely too heavily on this.?ÿ Just my experience and what worked for me, I'm not anywhere near an expert on this.
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I will add, the most common comments I receive are that FCC licensing doesn't apply to the 1 watt UHF for surveying purposes.?ÿ My information is, that is not true, you need a license.
Many of the communication radio problems happen when the illegal operators are stepping on the broadcasts of others, especially corporate company men that are in compliance and very serious about their chosen frequencies of use.
Several years ago I was so close to ordering a 25 watt fm transmitter to use during fishing tournaments so the entrants could keep up with the hourly results without checking in at the weigh-in station and spend their time fishing instead of running back and forth. Changed my mind after looking up the FCC regulations and found out that without a license it was only possible to transmit a signal for about 100 yards and they get very serious about the power of FM transmitters.
In many areas, certain groups and companies have chosen the channels they use and stay on them all the time and some operators will scan all incoming signals and pick one for that day's use. Those stationary users get quite peeved when outsiders use their so-called channels to communicate on and will write you up if they can identify you.
When they became available in handheld models, we started out being licensed CB radio operators because of their range and had to take care in not stepping on others' use when we would go into new areas to work. Those CB operators were very territorial and I have even spoken with other CB operators to find out who is using what channel. They were awkward to use in the field with their 4ft extendable antenna. I've seen some modern models that look very desireable with a floppy antenna.?ÿ
Then there were the few that had linked on to some super-powered linear amp that would allow them to cut into television signals and take over the local airwaves stepping on everyone's programming.
The dual-band CB Ham radios HF transceivers with a range of 6?ñ miles in combo with Radio Walkie Talkie Radios are probably the wave of the future for two way radio communication. I believe they need to be programmed by connecting with a computer.
Now I use Waterproof Uniden GMR36892CK radios that also have FRS band that I can use without a license. Very durable and long battery life it is a shame that they are now discontinued. By rotating the use of 4 radios and having two never used new ones on the shelf, they will probably be the last radios I will ever use. Still have about 6 operating basic FRS radios for the grandchildren to use.
I stay on channel 5 as I rarely hear anyone on there except me locally. The longer-range GMRS stations are there if I ever want to get licensed.
When we get beyond the range of the FRS channels we usually dial each other up with our cell phones until we get back in range for the radios.
Radio Shack had handhelds that were 1watt and 5watt models and they would reach out there and I had two of each and they are long gone.
The RTK users with UHF band can freely use up to 900 Mhz and everyone with their 1 watt to 35watt radios are the people that really need to get in compliance with their licenses.
0.02
The first major project I took on after going out on my own, in 1998, was mapping the storm system at PDX. This was back in the day of the TrimTalk II which was simply a Motorola Radius radio with a digitized board attached. One nice feature was that you could listen for chatter on the frequency before you started transmitting. One downside was that unlike modern systems they did not stop transmitting when voice traffic was detected and it did not broadcast your call letters. Anyway, back to the story. One day I was taking down the base, located on a median between a taxi way and tarmac when I heard this frantic voice over the base radio. It was a technician from the regional Motorola dealer. Apparently I had been triggering one of their repeaters for several days and he had been trying to pinpoint my location. At that point he was just outside of the fence. He was greatful to find me. He said my radio had been stomping on their clients with a loud bed on a 1 Hertz cycle. Luckily I was on one of my licensed frequencies. It all worked out in the end, but it could have been bad.
They do track down stations that are causing interference, usually the result of a complaint.?ÿ An anecdote:
I was at my marina which is less than 1 mile from an international airport and major Navy installations when two ununiformed guys showed up on the docks bedecked with directional antennas and "data collectors" of some sort.?ÿ Turns out a recently arrived Mexican sportfisher had a stuck mic problem on a marine VHF frequency *and* an illegal 1kw signal booster which would cycle on and off as it overheated.?ÿ The broke into the boat (had a backpack with what one would characterize as burglary tools) and confiscated it.?ÿ I asked if the owner was in trouble and they assured me he'd be fined (actually an Apparent Liability for a Forfeiture), but would probably skedaddle to Mexico and get off scot-free, since they could not impound the boat.?ÿ They were happy though because if the boat ever tried to enter the US again Customs would flag them and impound the boat 'till the fine was paid.?ÿ And they did enjoy Rambo-ing?ÿ his boat getting into it; they were not surgical when doing so.
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The FCC does not screw around.
A coworker of mine went out with a base receiver that had been shipped up from somewhere way south. Didn't check the frequencies to ensure they were correct for our region, started up the base with the frequency that was already set in it. He took about 20-30 minutes before he got to the first check-in point. By that point, the base was no longer broadcasting. Turned out that frequency was a local emergency-broadcast for EMS. They pinpointed our base location immediately, sent a rep out and pulled the plug on our base then waited for the crew to show up. From what I heard the crew chief just about had a heart attack.
It would have been a six-figure fine if someone high up hadn't said the right things to the FCC.
Duane,
I've always heard the no license required comment being applied to spread spectrum radios without specific mention of the wattage. With my very limited understanding, SS and wattage are different items. It may be that many people where equating spread spectrum with lower wattage since that seemed typical of the spread spectrum radios being sold.
Doing a quick internet search, I found some older articles in some of the surveying magazines that indicated the same spread spectrum doesn't need to be licensed comment (without reference to an authoritative source for that statement). But, I couldn't find anything that addressed the 1 watt or lower idea. If you know the right place to look for that info, I would love to read it.
Jon
I think you are correct for some of the misconception due to spread spectrum. But I also had a client who knew an "expert in fcc regulations" that claimed one watt was exempt (and some other clients that I believe were depending on the same certain exemption). They eventually pointed me to what they were reading and I disagree with their interpretation. There is an exemption for 1 watt that is not FHSS, but it doesn't apply IMHO to surveyors using uhf 1 watt. I can't remember the section of the rules. I could look it up if you're really interested. Okay, I looked up my email response on this, not sure if it will copy and paste correctly:
"However, it is a common misconception that under 3 watts doesn’t require a license. Folks are misreading the LPRS rules and they don’t apply in the frequency band of GNSS radios, nor do they apply to surveyors (they’re for handicapped and some law enforcement). And FRS is for handheld radio with antenna, not for a base/rover GMRS data radio setup. It’s confusing but these regulations allowing up to 2 watts or 3 watts do not apply to what we do with radios broadcasting corrections from the base. In addition, the FCC updated FRS rules allowing more channels and more power in 2017, which some predict means they will start enforcing more now that they think they’ve cleared up the confusion (obviously they haven’t, but that’s beside the point)."
https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/personal-radio-services-prs-keeping-touch
https://www.hfunderground.com/wiki/index.php/LPRS
"Your FCC whiz is correct that the license doesn’t get us any exclusive frequency, and in fact unlicensed truckers talking when driving by will interfere occasionally with our corrections. But, we have to accept all interference under the license, even that of unlicensed users of FRS frequencies that interfere."
That?ÿ $100k per day fine wasn't bothering me so much, but $1m per day starts to add up. Pretty soon you are talking about real money.
Fine me a million dollars for a radio? lol
GTFOH
Thanks Duane.
After Marks's post, I starting reading through information in the Part 15 devices that some (all?) of the receivers are labeled with - as that was the quick and dirty answer of why a license wasn't required from several people I know. From what I could determine, it looks like even the spread spectrum radios should be licensed. Unless there is something else in the many pages of the rules I am overlooking.
There are articles in some of the trade magazines making the claim spread spectrum are not required to be licensed. I have seen that in message board posts and even have heard it from a pretty sharp colleague who I would trust to be in the know on things like this. However, none of these sources cited where this information was coming from.
I don't remember which part of the regulations, but some frequencies are internationally set aside license free for industrial, science, medicine (ISM). You can only use spread spectrum technology and power is limited. I don't think you can use repeaters either, so you're limited on distance with these.
I found that section on ISM Duane. In reading the beginning of it, I was just on the verge of thinking - "Okay, that is where everyone is getting the opinion that SS doesn't need to be licensed." Then, just as you stated, the power is limited and part of the limitation was a distance of around 200 feet (I don't have it pulled up on screen, so that is from memory). Much shorter than would be useful for surveying applications.
@duane-frymire Thank you Duane, I decided I am going to be FCC compliant, dot my "i"s so to say. This was very helpful. I will create an update to your post if I find anything has changed since 2015.?ÿ
Regards,?ÿ
Tom Kelly?ÿ
D&D Surveying and Planning LLC
Steamboat Springs CO
