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Section 5
External Antenna Guidelines
OMEGA Installation, Operation, and Maintenance Manual 49
Electrical Interference
Never locate an antenna near high voltage power lines. In addition,
take into account any other sources of possible electrical
interference such as AC power lines, radio-frequency generators,
and other antennas.
Distance from the Antenna to OMEGA
Determine this distance by checking the signal strength. Start your
check with the antenna located as close to the OMEGA unit as
possible, using the shortest possible cable length. If you do not get
a high-quality connection, try other locations. For example, you
might get best results by attaching the antenna to the outside of a
building, farther from the OMEGA unit, but with less obstructions
between it and the cell site.
Height Above Ground Level of the Antenna
Always elevate the antenna as high as possible, so it has the
clearest possible path to the cell site.
Cable for Connecting the Antenna to OMEGA
Lay the connecting cable as straight as possible without kinks,
bends, or twists. If you need to keep the cable coiled, use as large a
radius for the coil as possible.
Keep in mind that although the maximum distance between the
OMEGA unit and the external antenna is 50 feet, the distance
between the OMEGA unit and the meter/telephone equipment it
serves can be over 1,000 feet. The OMEGA unit does not have to
be near the meter/telephone equipment to work. This factor gives
you more flexibility in selecting the best antenna location.
When the installation location is within the range of the cell site, a
unity gain or 3dB gain antenna is usually sufficient to produce a
good quality cellular connection. If the antenna installation is on
the fringe of the cell site’s range or outside that range, consider
using a high gain directional antenna to achieve an acceptable
connection.
If you cannot find an antenna location that results in a good quality
connection, you might have to relocate the entire installation.
Before doing so, however, try to access a different cell site through
the use of a high-gain directional antenna. Even though the new