Rising RF Noise Levels - IARU submits paper to CISPR

Rising RF Noise Levels - IARU submits paper to CISPR

The IARU have submitted a paper to the International Special Committee on Radio Interference (CISPR) on the problem of increasing RF noise from digital devices

IARU EMC specialists Tore Worren LA9QL and Martin Sach G8KDF have submitted a paper to CISPR concerning the increasing impact of multiple digital devices on the noise levels in the radio spectrum.

The paper was considered at the CISPR Steering Committee in late May, and adopted for circulation to CISPR National Committee for comment as a Committee Draft, with a view to it becoming a CISPR Report.
IARU hopes that the result of this will be amendments to the way in which standards are developed, to recognise the need to properly consider the cumulative impact of multiple devices.

Source IARU Region 1 https://iaru-r1.org/

http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2020/june/rising-rf-noise-levels-iaru-submits-paper-to-cispr.htm

 

Provide a link to the paper, please.

 

Doesn't matter what kinds of standards anyone sets, if the actual market and neighborhoods are flooded with cheap Chinese junk that doesn't comply with them.

 

Now, if we can just get the FCC to sit up and pay attention...

For more than a year now I have been trying to improve the RFI situation at my station. I have had SOME success in tracking down and eliminating SOME of the sources, but it has been a learning process to say the least. And, I am in no way inferring that I am an expert. But, I have come to a few conclusions on the subject based on my observations. Disclaimer: I realize that my observations are not scientific research.

First, the average person does not have a clue about RFI (or RF in general). Generally, RF energy can not be seen, smelled, felt, tasted, or heard (without special equipment), therefore, the average person will not complain about RFI (or RF). People will complain to governmental agencies (code enforcement for example) about smoke, dust, or a really bad smell in the neighborhood. But, not RFI.

Second, the average Amateur Radio Operator can not (or will not) afford the [proper] equipment necessary to locate RFI sources.

Third, Amateur Radio Clubs (at least the ones I have had contact with) seem to have no interest in helping their members with RFI problems. Very few, if any, have the resources (equipment, people, knowledge) to locate and identify RFI sources.

Fourth, the FCC is not proactive about RFI. They do not look for RFI sources and there is no mechanism to ensure that imported devices actually comply with existing rules and regulations. There is an approval process, but no follow up to ensure that what is being imported actually matches what was approved.

Fifth: There are many radiators of radio noise (RF) out there. Many more than most people and most Amateur Radio Operators might realize.

Sixth: The term 'Radio Frequency Interference' is a bit ambiguous in itself. There are a lot of unwanted or unnecessary RF signals in the environment. Which ones are interference? And, which ones can (or could) be reported? For example: In searching for the source of the RFI (interference) to my station I have found at least six business entities that are emitting RF signals, which can be heard well beyond their property lines. These RF signals do not seem to be interfering with my station, but they are extraneous RF signals that can be heard somewhere in the radio spectrum and therefore must be causing interference somewhere in the radio spectrum. Is this RFI? Can it be (should it be) reported as RFI?

Dan WQ4G

 

All Good Points

 

Good points! I do disagree with this one though:

An RSP1A can be had for $100 and most folks already have at least one compatible laptop or smartphone laying around for mobile operation. That and some homemade loops are all the equipment necessary. In fact this setup is vastly more useful than some of the dedicated RFI finding equipment of years past that cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Honestly it has never been easier for a ham on a budget to identify and locate RFI. There still is of course as you say a knowledge barrier. And as you allude to would seem a place clubs could help. RFI is like an advanced fox hunt and I suspect clubs could make a minor event out of tracking it down for members.

 

Here in southern California, the Orange County Transit District (OCTA) buses have some kind of RFI that is so strong that if I am within 100 feet of one of these buses, my two meter Yaesu mobile's front end is overwhelmed with an S9-level "buzz". It may be some kind of tracking device, but the bottom line is that we are being overrun with LEDs, digital adaptive cruise controls, roadside and in-car speed and proximity sensors, automated cameras, tracking systems, electric and hybrid vehicles, and a host of other electronic hash that is creating an ever-increasing noise floor that covers the entire amateur radio spectrum. I'm surprised any of us can hear anything. Trying to regulate and eliminate these RFI sources is beating back the ocean with a hammer. Pretty soon, 100 watts will be considered QRP, because that's what it will take to be heard at all.

 

i for one cannot see an end to the massive worldwide influx of electronic garbage from the likes of China along with the atrocious poor quality Wallwart power supplies that accompany this junk....i think what you
are seeing is only the tip of the iceberg and as such will unfortunatly only get worse as most countries are fighting to maintain their economy by selling this junk to whoever will buy.

 

The first step in addressing the problem is to get recognition of the authorities. Second is to set tighter standards.... One step at a time.

-It is not reasonable to expect spectrum users, e.g. amateurs to perform enforcement duties.

 

It is highly unlikely that amateur radio will get some recognition of its own with respect to RFI or EMI.

Only when other, more significant or paying, spectrum users
are threatened by interference will the Authorities act.

What is going on in Europe is trying to join forces with safety related spectrum users, especially considering the vastly increased spectrum pollution coming from small- and medium-scale solar energy.

Alone, radio amateurs are considered just as nuisances.

Hopefully, there will be court decisions about the status of spectrum users compared to "green energy", as the legal aspects are not very clear at the moment.

73/
Karl-Arne
SM0AOM

 

Fifth...that reminds me I need to stop at the liquor store. Thanks!

 

Bonnie and all who are interested, I sent a request to our IARU Secretary and he immediately replied, see below. I will post any further info ASAP.

"Hi John,
Thanks for mentioning this. I don't see any reason it can't be made available but I am not as familiar with CISPR processes as our European colleagues so I am running it past them. It may take a couple of days to get answers over the weekend.
73,
Dave K1ZZ"

 

I've seen this same thing in Houston. I'm full time mobile because of HOA rules at my QTH (condo). 95% of my QSO's are during commutes to and from work. My VHF radio breaks squelch every time i'm near a bus and it pegs the meter till I'm away from it. This also happens when I pass or am passed by a vehicle with certain LED lighting.

Also, there is a section of I10 that the RFI is so strong it blocks out satellite radio reception. If i'm on a QSO I have to ask the other station to wait for a second while I pass through the area because the buzz is overpowering. There is a medical diagnostics center in the area right next to the highway and I'm sure that it's an MRI machine or the like that is generating all of that RFI. Some days the noise levels are so bad I just have to turn the radio off.
people have told me that bonding will fix a lot of that but even when I did, I still get the high noise levels. The only way I can get a quiet place to "play radio" is if I drive an hour out of town to a park and then it quiets down.

 

#1 - CISPR is a special committee of the IEC. It is international, not limited to Europe. The US is a member of the IEC, as are many other countries around the world.

#2 - The document from the IARU will be circulated within CISPR as a DC (Document for Comment), not a CD. There is a difference. But, the idea is correct, the National Committees will see it and have a chance to comment on it.

#3 - CISPR (and other IEC) standards mean nothing until adopted into national regulations. We (CISPR) can write all the standards we want and until they are adopted into national regulations they mean nothing. But, they are a start.

#4 - If you want the FCC to change their rules (Part 15 in this case) you need to contact the FCC directly with a Request for Rulemaking. It probably won't go anywhere without support from the ARRL, but you can start there. The person at the ARRL to contact is Ed Hare, W1RFI@ARRLNET. I'll give you one guess where that vanity call came from. Ed is the lab manager at ARRL and is also the Vice President for Standards at the IEEE EMC Society, so EMI is his thing.

Why did I say "we" in item 3 above? Because I am the Chair of CISPR Subcommittee I. Subcommittee I deals with standards for emissions and immunity for ITE (Information Technology Equipment, a fancy term for computers and their peripherals), broadcast receivers and multimedia equipment. Also, I am a past President of the IEEE EMC Society, as well as a past Chair of ITI TC5 (ITI is the Information Technology Industry Council, formerly known as CBEMA) and TC5 is their EMC committee, as well as a member of the US National Committee to the IEC Technical Advisory Groups to CISPR SC I and IEC SC77B. I am a consultant in EMC and have, in the past, been employed by Intel, Tandem Computers, Martin Marietta Denver Aerospace and the US Navy. 44 years in EMC. I am also an ARRL Technical Advisor, specializing in EMC. I participated in the CISPR S meeting as Chair of CISPR SC I in May referenced in the original message in this thread.

If you have any questions, or any specific input that you feel would be useful to CISPR SC I MT7 (the maintenance team that is responsible for CISPR 32, the emissions standard for the equipment in question), please feel free to contact me at Ghery@PettitEMCConsulting.com. Please keep in mind that setting limits in CISPR standards is subject to the process maintained by CISPR SC H. MT7 is presently using that processes to justify a change in limits from 1 GHz to 3 GHz in CISPR 32, so the Convenor (head man) of MT7 is very much aware of the process.

COVID-19 is having a serious impact on this work at this time. MT7 and MT8 of CISPR SC I were supposed to meet the end of June / beginning of July in Turin, Italy. Obviously, that meeting was cancelled and has not been rescheduled. CISPR and its subcommittees, along with a number of maintenance teams, were scheduled to meet in Kista, Sweden in November. That has also been cancelled, so the next meeting will be in Dubai in October of 2021. The CISPR SC I MT7 and MT8 meetings in the interim period have not yet been scheduled, so this would be an excellent time to get your inputs in. The US CISPR I TAG is chaired by a gentleman who works for Garmin and I will be happy to forward any specific recommendations you may have to him.

I hope this information will prove useful. The issue of emissions from multiple devices is becoming a serious issue within CISPR. The limits in the past have been written for a single device and have proven over the decades to be very effective. The emissions from multiple devices in close proximity to each other is an area of increasing interest. You ought to see the hate and discontent that multiple photovoltaic device inverters cause. Again, if you have specific examples and measured levels experienced, please let me know. I will be happy to pass them on to the appropriate people within CISPR.

73

Ghery S. Pettit, N6TPT
Chair, CISPR SC I
Pettit EMC Consulting LLC

 

I have spent a lot of time tracking down and eliminating sources of noise. The worst are my new Chamberlain garage door openers. They have cheap switching supplies and use the wires going to the sensors at the bottom of the doors, and the wires going to the switch by the people door as antennas. 9 feet of twisted pair wound through a Mixture 31 toroid, and bypass caps helped but the noise still ruins 160m. Chamberlain claims they are FCC legal and refuses to do anything.