Proposal:Radio Frequency
| Key:rf | |
|---|---|
| Proposal status: | Abandoned (inactive) |
| Proposed by: | r00tcz |
| Tagging: | rf:*=* |
| Applies to: |  ,  ,  , 
|
| Definition: | Tagging of radio signal related features |
| Statistics: |
|
| Rendered as: | hidden in normal map |
| Draft started: | 2016-08-16 |
Proposal
| WARNING: Still incomplete, draft editing in progress! |
Objects that radiate or receive radio signals should be tagged using proposed scheme. This scheme is universal and as shown on the examples below, it can be used to describe most of the signals from real world.
- A quick warning: Following tagging proposal is full of technical terms and lingo. Even when approved, it's not expected to be used widely by general public, but more for a specialized use by HAMs or radio monitoring enthusiasts. Still many keys are optional and entire scheme allows entering of incomplete or simplified information.
- However when results are presented correctly, it can be very useful for general public, for example you will be able to list all radio stations in the area or what TV signals you may get while on the vacation.
Rationale
We already have:
- Key:communication:amateur_radio and it's subkeys
- It describes some HAM radio related infrastructure, but by definition, it can't be used for anything else. Not even for very similar activities like PMR or CB, because they doesn't require HAM license.
- Many different tags used with tower:type=communication
- No common tagging scheme, often same keys and values with different meaning chosen by different mappers
- Or even Proposed_features/Communications_Transponder proposal
- Not only "transponder" is used in completely wrong way (repeaters or BTS are not transponders), the note:
"This will have the side effect of placing multiple nodes at the same position." is really ugly and we certainly don't want that. If anything, use relations instead.
- Not only "transponder" is used in completely wrong way (repeaters or BTS are not transponders), the note:
- There is also Proposed_features/Telecommunications_tower proposal
- Looks pretty good for GSM, this proposal takes some good ideas from it and extends them to other signals
Main idea is to create tagging scheme that will work with many different services using radio frequency spectrum. From long wave radio to satellite signal uplink stations, from kilometer wave length to a few millimeters. And also avoid any ugly hacks, like above mentioned multiple overlapping nodes for multiple services on same tower.
Tagging
rf:key=value
- These are basic parameters of the signal, can be common and shared by multiple antennas.
- rf:category=* is used for common signal category (TV broadcast, radio broadcast, cellphone network, HAM, ...).
- rf:modulation=* indicates actual transmission standard (DVB-T, FM, GSM, ...) or signal modulation.
- All parameters that are modulation/standard specific have it's own sub-keys, for example for GSM GSM:LAC=*
- All numeric values use basic Si units (Hz,W,Bd) when no unit is given
ant:key=value
- There may be multiple antennas used for one frequency. Their values can be specified delimited by ";" (semicolon) separators.
- Example: ant:power=100;200 defines two antennas, one with 100W and other with 200W power. Note that this only makes sense if there are also other differences between antennas (such as ant:azimuth=100;220 different antenna directions)
- Properties that are common to all antennas doesn't need to be specified multiple times (for above example ant:type=sector is equal to ant:type=sector;sector
- Signal specific keys like GSM:CID=* can be transformed into antenna specific form ant:GSM:LAC=* to specify different values for every antenna using ";" separator
- It's also possible to tag antennas as nodes using man_made=antenna and then add them to the relation.
Tagging style #1: No relation, single node with rf and antenna tags
- Suitable for sites where only one type of signal is transmitted (like GSM only BTS, radio transmitter for one station)
- In this case object is tagged using existing tags (like man_made=tower, man_made=monitoring_station, ...)
- rf=* tags are directly added to the node. As it's not possible to have multiple keys, only single signal can be defined this way.
- Multiple antennas used for same signal can be defined using ";" separator
Tagging style #2: Single node, multiple signal relations
- Used when there is need to tag multiple signals to single node or object (can be different signals, frequencies, ...)
- In this case new relation is created for each signal and node or object is added to the relation. Signal parameters including antenna definition are parameters of the relation.
- Relation should have type=rf and name=* should be short summary of signal
Tagging style #3: Relation with multiple antenna nodes
- Use when you want to map multiple antennas as separate nodes and they are used for same signal with common parameters.
- Map all antennas using man_made=antenna and add them to relation with role=antenna.
- Relation will have common signal parameters while each antenna node will have parameters specific to it.
Common signal characteristics
| Key | Description |
|---|---|
| rf:category=* |
General signal category: |
| rf:frequency=* Center frequency of signal rf:band=* |
Value is in Hz if no unit is specified. |
| rf:modulation=* Signal coding and modulation |
Specific signal examples, use standardized names when possible: |
| rf:bandwidth=* |
Amount of spectrum occupied by signal. Specified as number with suffix (or in Hz without suffix). Some modulations define channel parameters by width (like DVB-T or LTE). For other signals are fully described by modulation parameters and that defines standardized signal width. In that case there is no need to specify it. |
| rf:duplex=* |
Frequency offset of receiving frequency. It's very common that one frequency is used for transmitting and other for receiving. If modulation parameters are same for both, there is no need to use two relations and define them separately. rf:frequency=* should always define transmitting frequency, rf:duplex=* is then relative offset of receiving frequency. Value is in Hz when no units are given. |
| rf:callsign=* |
Callsign identification, usually bound to specific frequency and one transmitter location. Can be assigned callsign by local authority (used in HAM radio, radio station, shore stations) or made up callsign that such station uses (when applicable). |
| rf:owner=* |
Owner of the transmitter/receiver hardware (often company that does the servicing and owns transmitter sites) |
| rf:provider=* |
Entity that provides the transmitted content (often Radio/TV channel name) |
| rf:content=* |
This is short description of content (what is being transmitted) or simple keyword, like encrypted |
| rf:access=* |
public - Signal is transmitted for public use (common for radio, TV, HAM radio)
|
Signal specific keys
- Format is modulation:*=* where modulation is modulation=* value
| Key | Description |
|---|---|
| fm:stereo=yes/no For stereo/mono broadcasting RDS:name=* |
FM broadcasting and RDS specific station identification |
| WIFI:SSID=* WIFI accesspoint name WIFI:BSSID=* |
Used in WIFI (802.11) networks |
| GSM:MCC=* Mobile Country Code GSM:MNC=* |
Used in GSM mobile phone networks |
| LTE:MCC=* Mobile Country Code LTE:MNC=* |
Used in LTE mobile phone networks |
| CDMA:MCC=* Mobile Country Code CDMA:MNC=* |
Used in CDMA mobile phone networks |
| UMTS:MCC=* Mobile Country Code |
Used in UMTS mobile phone networks |
| TETRA:MCC=* Mobile Country Code |
Used in TETRA radio networks |
| DGPS:id=* |
DGPS station number |
| DMR:CC=* |
DMR Colour code |
| AIS:MMSI=* MMSI identification code AIS:type=* |
AIS related tags. |
Antenna keys
- Format is ant:*=*
- If multiple values (";" separated) are used, all keys with multiple values must have same number of values
- If some keys have multiple values and some only single value, the single value is same for all antennas
- When tagging antennas as separate nodes using man_made=antenna in common relation, apply these tags to the antenna nodes
| Key | Description |
|---|---|
| ant=* |
Key that defines antenna function |
| ant:type=* |
Antenna type: |
| ant:pol=* |
Antenna polarization: |
| ant:azimuth=* |
Direction in degrees where antenna is pointed. |
| ant:elevation=* |
Elevation in degrees where antenna is pointed. Negative value means below horizon (downwards), positive values are upwards. |
| ant:beamwidth=* |
Width in degrees that indicates with of antenna main lobe radiation pattern. |
| ant:target=* |
Where antenna is pointed to. Often it's impossible to precisely measure above antenna parameters, so it's easier to specify target area. |
| ant:power=* |
Transmitting power for specific antenna. For receive antennas, if specified, must be zero. |
| ant:agl=* |
Position (height) of antenna above ground level. This indicates vertical placement of antenna on the tower or mast. |
| ant:alt=* |
Absolute altitude of antenna. Sometimes ground altitude is unknown, but center of antenna have been measured precisely and it's known. |
Examples
| Example | Tagging | Note |
|---|---|---|
|
FM Radio station broadcast antennas on top of a chimney |
No relation is needed for a single transmitter: |
|
|
DGPS station with MF transmitter |
man_made=monitoring_station |
|
|
Big tower on some hill with HAM radio repeater and APRS gateway |
Need relations to get multiple signals associated with single tower, so: |
|
|
Cellphone tower with mast, this one is for GSM 1800 and LTE 800 and both have three sectors antennas |
Again, we will need two relations for this one.
man_made=mast will be member of following relations:
rf:category=cellphone
rf:category=cellphone |
|
|
Terrestrial TV broadcasting tower |
man_made=tower |
|
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Farm GPS RTK base station for precise agriculture |
man_made=monitoring_station |
|
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University campus WIFI access points (on building roof) |
Relation with common parameters: man_made=antenna man_made=antenna man_made=antenna |
|
|
Emergency services TETRA network BTS |
Multiple frequencies, so we need relations:
rf:category=emergency
rf:category=emergency |
|
|
Secondary surveillance radar for air traffic control |
man_made=antenna |
|
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Big dish used to send TV programming to satellite |
man_made=antenna |
|
Applies to
- Most commonly these tags will be used with nodes representing tall objects with antennas:
- There are also some specific tags for objects that may be transmitting or receiving signals, like:
- In other cases man_made=antenna can be used
Rendering
- For default map (mapnik) no changes. As listed above, it will either be specific object icon or generic symbol for man_made=antenna
- rf:category=* value can be used for set of icons for basic categories (radio,TV,GSM,...)
- If commonly used, special type of map can be made that will draw these features in a better way, similar to OpenSeaMap
- Antenna directions and sectors could be drawn similar to how different color angles are drawn for sea navigation beacons.
Features/Pages affected
None directly. Proposed tagging scheme doesn't affect any current tags and can be used together with all existing schemes with no conflicts.
External Discussions
none so far
Comments
Please comment on the discussion page.