Ground Station in Car - Antenna Advice Needed

[blusnapper]

It's freezing in the UK and I have been thinking of putting a ground station in my 4x4 vehicle. Anyone out there who can give me some advice on antennas and antenna positioning on vehicles. I have a Spektrum DX8 receiver. Is it possible to remove the antenna and reposition on top of vehicle?

 

[SMP]

As bad as an idea as this is (and it really is!)... I'm also toying with the idea of a car based groundstation for straight up and down AP due to the 50C/122F + Humidity summer months in the Middle East.

Could be as simple as SMA Coax extensions.

 

[helloman1976]

It's freezing in the UK and I have been thinking of putting a ground station in my 4x4 vehicle. Anyone out there who can give me some advice on antennas and antenna positioning on vehicles. I have a Spektrum DX8 receiver. Is it possible to remove the antenna and reposition on top of vehicle?

The lower the frequency that you transmit the less power you'll need and the better the penetration through objects. If you use 1.3Ghz or 900mhz you can probably get away with it, anything higher than that and you'll need much more power to transmit through your vehicle. If you move the antenna to the outside of the vehicle make sure it's as high as it'll go. I'd use an antenna tracker and put it on top of my truck somehow making sure that I can calibrate it for North each and every time before I use it. Setting up your video should be easy compared to your radio in which I'd use UHF (433mhz) which will have no issues going through your vehicle. I'd also upgrade my UHF to a long range antenna if I'm going to transmit from inside my vehicle. There are a few YouTube videos where people have car ground stations and those may give you some better ideas. Hope that helps...

 

[blusnapper]

Thanks for the info guys. As Helloman says the video should be easy but the radio will present some problems due to the fact that the 433Mhz frequency is illegal in the UK. It looks like I will have to rely on a SMA extension as suggested by SMP to get my 2.4 radio antenna outside the vehicle.

 

[helloman1976]

Thanks for the info guys. As Helloman says the video should be easy but the radio will present some problems due to the fact that the 433Mhz frequency is illegal in the UK. It looks like I will have to rely on a SMA extension as suggested by SMP to get my 2.4 radio antenna outside the vehicle.

UHF is illegal in the UK? Dude, I can only speak for myself but that would not stop me. Probably 90%++ percent of the people here fly illegal, I know I do. I transmit on the 900mhz band at 1.5W and BLAST my signal free and proud. If you want to stay legal, sigh...yack...cough, then go with a 2.4Ghz radio and you'll have to pull it apart and make an extension. I'd put an SMA connector on it myself and then run the wire outside the car. 2.4Ghz at 300mW isn't great at transmitting through metal so be careful and there will be massive Fresnel areas in your car so whereas you may be fine for a half mile through glass you'll lose radio contact through metal. Go with UHF, blast it with a super antenna that's what I'd do. There may be a relay you can get for 2.4Ghz, namely Wi-Fi where you can replicate the signal and then boost that signal outside of the car. In other words you'd transmit from you radio to the booster to your craft. Good luck and let us know what you do my man.