Operating Manual Part 15

3-10 5300 ES Series Mobile Radio Operating Manual October 2008
General Operation
3.7.4 Systems, Channels, and Zones
A zone and channel are selected to place and receive calls. The following describes the
relationship between systems, channels, and zones.
3.7.4.1 Systems
A system is a collection of channels or talk groups belonging to the same repeater site. It
defines all the parameters and protocol (system) information required to access a site.
When a system is added, you specify the type belonging to the same repeater site or
“multi-site” network - i.e., Conventional, SmartNet, SmartZone or P25 Trunking. Up to 16
systems of any type can be programmed.
The maximum number of channels assignable to a system is limited to 864, depending on
the option enabled. Channels may also be limited by available memory space as described
in the following information.
3.7.4.2 Channels
A channel selects a radio (RF) channel or talk group as follows:
Conventional Analog Mode - A channel selects a specific radio channel, Call Guard
(CTCSS/DCS) squelch coding, and other parameters unique to that channel.
Conventional Project 25 Mode - A channel selects a specific radio channel, NAC
squelch coding, talk group ID, and other parameters unique to that channel.
SMARTNET/SmartZone and Trunked Project 25 Modes - A channel selects a
specific talk group, announcement group, emergency group, and other parameters
unique to that talk group.
A maximum of up to approximately 864 channels (depending on the option enabled) can
be programmed with the preceding modes. These channels can belong to a single system
or multiple systems. The maximum number is also limited by the available memory. For
example, since more memory is required to program a SMARTNET system than a
conventional system, the total number of channels decreases as the number of
SMARTNET channels increases. The programming software displays a bar graph which
shows the amount of available memory space that is used by the current data.
3.7.4.3 Zones
A zone is a collection of up to 16 channels of any type. For example, a zone could include
12 conventional channels and four SMARTNET channels. One use of zones may be to
program the channels used for operation in a different geographical areas. The maximum
number of zones is 32 or 54 depending on the option enabled.