Ian Lockyer, Marketing Manger of Icom UK Ltd explains, 'Current analogue radios require 12.5kHz channels to deliver voice over RF. With IDAS, the voice is digitized and compressed using AMBE+2™ vocoder so a single voice can be delivered in 6.25kHz channels, which allows twice the amount of channels across a given frequency range. This gives users more flexibility and capacity when applying for a license.'
The first phase for IDAS Trunking includes trunking controller programming over the Internet, limited remote repeater management over the Internet and auto home channel back-up. More features are on the way and may include operation monitoring, dispatch control and IC-FR5100 repeater programming all performed over the Internet.
Ian Lockyer said, 'IDAS’s versatility makes it a viable solution for many users and operators. It can be used on smaller sites that have only a few radios and several channels to larger sites that currently use analogue trunking. It is therefore, ideal for single site campuses, such as colleges, hospitals, factories, theme parks.'
' IDAS is designed with backward compatibility and will operate in both analogue and digital mode. You can have a graceful transition from analogue to digital by replacing radios over time rather than all at once, an important consideration in this economic downturn. Existing IDAS IC-FR5100/FR6100 conventional repeaters can be upgraded to trunking with the UC-FR5000 Trunking/Network Controller board.'
He added, 'A university, for example, can install the IC-FR5000 today, put its security department on digital tomorrow, and move the maintenance department over at a later date.'
IDAS Trunking is single site transmission-
Ian Lockyer commented, 'Using the IDAS IC-FR5100/6100 at site with IP connectivity will now allow you to configure IDAS trunking remotely with more features like ROIP, radio reprogramming, and possible firmware upgrading on the way.'
