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USING RADIO REPEATERS Application Note 12
With GroWeather Stations
INTRODUCTION
The GroWeather station with the GroWeatherLink Software version 1.1 allows the linking of several
separate weather stations to one PC through a “point-to-multipoint” radio network. The basic operation of
this network assumes that the radio at each remote site can communicate directly with the base radio.
There are situations where some (or all) of the remote sites can not communicate directly with the base radio.
For example, weather stations may be located in the next valley, or the farthest stations are out of range. In
these cases, a “repeater” radio can be used to extend the effective coverage of the base radio. The “repeater”
radio is placed between the base radio and the remote radio and can be heard by both radios. Messages sent
by the base radio that can not reach the remote are heard and rebroadcast by the repeater. The repeater will
also rebroadcast messages from the remote back to the base radio.
GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR RADIO NETWORKS WITH REPEATERS
The radio used as a repeater can either be a standalone radio (i.e. a dedicated repeater), or have a weather
station attached, in addition to acting as a repeater for other radios. It is important to remember that both the
remote radio and the repeater radio must have power at the same time for communication to take place with
the base radio. We recommend running the repeater radio with AC power, or other continuous power source
so that the radio can be left on 24 hours a day. At the very least, it must be on whenever any of the remote
radios in its area of coverage are scheduled for operation.
The repeater radio must have line-of-sight and be within range of both the base radio and the intended remote
radios. The effectively limits the antenna of the repeater to the omni-directional antenna.
Make sure that you get a manual for the radio you are using. Using repeaters in a radio network increases the
complexity of the operation. The more you understand how your radios work and what their limitations are,
the greater chance you have to make the project work.
USING REPEATERS WITH YDI RADIOS
• First, design your radio network. The YDI radio will allow you to use up to 7 repeaters between the base
radio and the remote, but each one degrades performance of the system. The manufacturer recommends
using no more than 2 repeater radios in a given path. We have only tested using 1 repeater. Each remote
and repeater radio should be given a unique ID. Davis’ radio configuration program has 32 different
radio identification slots available for remote and repeater radios. Repeater radios are configured in the
same way as remote radios.
Note: If you are planning to use only 1 weather station, but require a repeater to talk to it, you must configure
the radios as “point-to-multipoint” radios, not as “point-to-point” radios with the configuration program.
• Second, install your radios and weather stations.
• Third, test the installation of the remote radios and their connection to the repeater radio. Take the base
radio and a laptop computer with the GroWeatherLink software installed to the site to the repeater radio.
Use the laptop computer to connect to each of the remote stations to verify that the signal from the
remote reaches the repeater radio.
• Fourth, test the installation of the repeater radio. Install the repeater radio at the repeater site, and attach a
weather station, even if the radio will be used as a stand-alone repeater. Install the base radio and use the
GroWeatherLink software to connect to the station attached to the repeater radio. If your network uses
more than one repeater, repeat steps three and four for each repeater radio.
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