There’s been some discussion in the Forums lately about broadcasting on alternate bands. Member tregonsee has graciously provided a general discussion of all of the pertinent FCC regulations in his “Digest of Part 15.” Please click below to read more, and be sure to visit the Forums and discuss your impressions!
There’s been some discussion in the Forums lately about broadcasting on alternate bands. Member tregonsee has graciously provided a general discussion of all of the pertinent FCC regulations in his “Digest of Part 15.” Please click below to read more, and be sure to visit the Forums and discuss your impressions!
Digest of Part 15, FCC Regulations (in effect as of June 2004) Applying to Low-Power Over-the-Air Transmitters
NOTE: This is an unofficial document. While major efforts have been made to insure that it accurately reflects Part 15, no warranty of accuracy is made. This is also a digest of Part 15 and thus not complete, and only reflects two out of six subparts.
01. Part 15 applies to:
a. Intentional radiators (low-power transmitters intended to transmit a modulated radio signal “through the air”), AND
b. Unintentional radiators (devices designed to generate radio frequency energy but not transmit it through the air, including radio receivers and “digital devices” such as computers and peripherals), AND
c. Incidental radiators (devices not designed to generate radio signals but that do so as a by-product of their operation, such as motors and light dimmers and switches).
02. Interference and Use of Part 15 Devices
a. Part 15 devices must not cause harmful interference (that disrupts licensed radio services), even if the devices conform to the Part 15 technical standards.
b. Users of Part 15 devices must accept any interference caused by licensed radio services.
c. Any user of any Part 15 device must stop operating the device if notified by the FCC that the device is causing harmful interference, and may not use the device until the interference problem is corrected.
d. Users of Part 15 devices are not protected against each other’s interference.
e. Users of Part 15 devices do not have and can not obtain any right to use any device, frequency, or emission type.
03. Except for authorized law enforcement operations, Part 15 devices may not be used to listen to or record private conversations without the consent of all parties concerned.
04. Part 15 devices must be constructed per good design and manufacturing practices to not emit any signal that is not in accordance with FCC Regulations.
a. Part 15 devices must suppress extraneous signals as much as practicable. In general:
(1) No extraneous signal can be stronger than the desired or intended signal.
(2) Extraneous signals must usually be at least 20 dB below the level of the desired signal.
(3) All signals less than 20 dB below the level of the desired signal must be contained within an authorized band, or a bandwidth within that band.
b. No user-accessible controls can allow the device to operate in violation of the FCC Regulations.
c. No radiator should emit any stronger signal than what is needed for reliable operation.
d. A commercially-made Part 15 transmitter that comes with an antenna permanently fixed to the transmitter enclosure may not be used with another antenna except a substantially identical replacement.
e. NOTE: If antenna length is limited, Part 15 does not mention how it is measured (except 49.82-49.90 MHz, only single-element antenna under alternate standards). This is a special concern for the 160-190 kHz and 510-1705 kHz bands, where a “capacity hat” or “top hat” is often used at the top of the antenna. However, in several inquiries, the FCC has not objected to measuring antenna length from the base of the antenna to the end of one of the “hat” radials (the longest if all are not equal). The rim of the “hat” is not considered, nor are loading coils.
05. This notice must be affixed to the enclosure of a Part 15 device that is home-built or is not allowed to carry a different notice or identifier:
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