Do Your Own

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Do Your Own Needs Analysis Dennis Egan W1UE
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Thanks

• A big thanks to Dean Straw N6BV for his work in
  this area over the past 25 years.
• There are frequent changes to the procedure I'm
  about to describe, as software changes.
• Current instructions for downloading and using
  terrain files, MicroDem, and HFTA are available,
  latest revision dated Feb 22, 2013

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Required Software

• MicroDem
• HFTA
• MakeVOA
• VOACap

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Preliminary Steps

1. Get the Latitude/Longitude of your tower location
   in decimal degrees (example 42.353269N,
   -71.508921W)
2. Tower Height decide on your tower height(s)
3. Antenna of elements
4. Target area
5. Any parameter can be changed as we proceed, but
   you need an idea of your direction

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Today's Choices

• Use the Lat/Long of W1UE location
• 42.353269N, 71.508921W
• Tower heights 35 feet, 70 feet
• Antenna 4 element 20M beam
• Target Area Japan

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Step-by-Step Procedure

• 1. Get your Terrain File

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Step-by-Step Procedure

• 1. Get your Terrain File
• 2. Get the file into MicroDem

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Step by Step Procedure

1. Get your Terrain File
2. Get the file into MicroDem
3. Plot your radials

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Step by Step Procedure

1. Get your Terrain File
2. Get the file into MicroDem
3. Plot your radials
4. Look at your PRO Files

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Step by Step Procedure

1. Get your Terrain File
2. Get the file into MicroDem
3. Plot your radials
4. Look at your PRO Files
5. Get your data into HFTA

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Step by Step Procedure

1. Get your Terrain File
2. Get the file into MicroDem
3. Plot your radials
4. Look at your PRO Files
5. Get your data into HFTA
6. Produce your terrain/antenna files

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Step by Step Procedure

1. Get your Terrain File
2. Get the file into MicroDem
3. Plot your radials
4. Look at your PRO Files
5. Get your data into HFTA
6. Produce your terrain/antenna files
7. Use MakeVOA to convert your terrain/antenna file
   to a VOACAP antenna file

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Step by Step Procedure

• 4. Look at your PRO Files
• 5. Get your data into HFTA
• 6. Produce your terrain/antenna files
• 7. Use MakeVOA to convert your terrain/antenna
  file to a VOACAP antenna file
• 8. Start up VOAAREA and set your parameters

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Step by Step Procedure

• 4. Look at your PRO Files
• 5. Get your data into HFTA
• 6. Produce your terrain/antenna files
• 7. Use MakeVOA to convert your terrain/antenna
  file to a VOACAP antenna file
• 8. Start up VOAAREA and set your parameters
• 9. Now Run the Projections for the first antenna

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Step by Step Procedure

• 4. Look at your PRO Files
• 5. Get your data into HFTA
• 6. Produce your terrain/antenna files
• 7. Use MakeVOA to convert your terrain/antenna
  file to a VOACAP antenna file
• 8. Start up VOAAREA and set your parameters
• 9. Now Run the Projections for the first antenna
• 10. Now run the projections for the second
  antenna, changing ONLY the antenna

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NEW TOPICVHF/UHF Coverage Analysis

• Software needed MicroDem, and the same USGS file
  you used for the HF Needs Analysis

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Procedure Overview

• 1. Open MicroDem and load your terrain file

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Procedure Overview

• 1. Open MicroDem and load your terrain file
• 2. In MicroDem, setup the screen for a Horizon
  Blocking, and input the first antenna height in
  meters (35 ft 10.7 m)

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Procedure Overview

• Open MicroDem and load your terrain file
• In MicroDem, setup the screen for a Horizon
  Blocking, and input the first antenna height in
  m (35 ft 10.7 m)
• Using MicroDem Area calculation, you must
  manually trace the outline of the polygon you
  have on the map.

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Procedure Overview

• Open MicroDem and load your terrain file
• In MicroDem, setup the screen for a Horizon
  Blocking and input the first antenna height in m
  (35 ft 10.7 m)
• Using MicroDem Area calculation, you must
  manually trace the outline of the polygon you
  have on the map.
• Repeat the procedure, using the other tower
  height (70 ft 21.4 m)

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Do the Math

• Coverage from 35 ft tower 59.9 sq mi
• Coverage from 70 ft tower 158.1 sq mi
• Increase in coverage
• (158.1 59.9) / 59.9 163.9 increase
• Over perfectly flat ground or the ocean, a circle
  with a 15.5 mile radius would encompass an area
  of 754 sq miles, so even a 70 ft tower can see
  only 21 of the possible area

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Credits URL

• Email W1UE_at_arrl.net
• Thanks to Pete Smith N4ZR for his work with this
  over the years.
• Many thanks to Dean Straw N6BV for everything
  he's done in this area for the past 20 years
• Thanks also to Jim Nitzberg, WX3B, for putting
  together one of the first Needs Analysis papers
• A more complete version of this PPT available at
  www.antennazoning.com, Amateur Radio,
  Presentations Articles