PRO-91 150-Channel Handheld Trunking Scanner
(200-0521) Trunk Tracking Faxback Doc. # 48461
Your scanner is designed to track transmissions on Motorola Type I, Type
ll, and hybrid analog trunking systems, which are extensively used in 800
MHz communications. Remember these important points when tracking
transmissions:
Your scanner monitors Type II systems by default. However you can
change this if the system in your area is different (see "Types of
Trunking Systems" below and "Scanning Type I and Hybrid Trunked Systems"
below for more information).
Your scanner cannot track transmissions on non-Motorola trunking
systems.
Your scanner cannot track an 800 MHz trunked system and scan
conventional frequencies at the same time.
The frequencies for many of the 800 MHz public safety systems are
listed in the separate "National Public Safety Trunked System Frequency
Guide" included with your PRO-91.
TYPES OF TRUNKING SYSTEMS
Your trunk tracking scanner can monitor two basic types of systems --
Type I and Type II. Instead of selecting a specific frequency to transmit
on, a trunked system chooses one of several frequencies in a 2-way radio
user's talk group when that user presses PTT (push to talk). Thus,
trunking systems allocate a few frequencies among many different users,
but the way Type I and Type II systems do this is slightly different. One
important distinction between these systems is the amount of data
transmitted by each radio when its push to talk (PTT) button is pressed.
In a Type I system, the radio's ID and its current affiliation (the trunk
system it belongs to) are both transmitted. In a Type II system, only the
radio's ID is transmitted.
Why the difference? In Type I systems, each radio in the trunk group
individually transmits its own affiliation, while the trunk system
maintains a database that determines each radio's affiliation(s) in Type
II systems.
Another difference between the systems is that Type I systems are arranged
in a fleet-subfleet hierarchy. For example, it is possible for a city
using a Type I system to designate 4 fleets, each with 8 subfleets.
The fleets might be the police department, the fire department, utilities,
and city administration. The police might decide to further divide its
fleet into subfleets such as dispatch, tactical operations, detectives,
north, south, east and west side patrols, and supervisors. All the
available police radios would then be assigned to one of the police
subfleets, letting the police centralize their communications and control
the type of users on a single system. Determining the exact
fleet-subfleet hierarchy for a particular area is referred to as fleet map
programming.
The disadvantage of a Type I system is that the brief burst of data sent
when a user transmits must contain the radio's ID and its fleet and
subfleet. This is three times the amount of data a Type II system radio
sends. Since the data capacity of Type I systems is limited and the
amount of data increases with each user, Type I systems usually
accommodate fewer users than Type II systems. Nevertheless, Type I
systems are still in use.
There are also hybrid systems which are a combination of both Type I and
Type II. Your scanner defaults to monitor Type II systems, but you can
change to Type I or a hybrid of Type I and Type II systems by selecting a
preprogrammed fleet map or creating a custom fleet map for your area (see
"Scanning Type I and Hybrid Trunked Systems" below).
You do not need to determine the fleet-subfleet hierarchy for Type II
Systems unless you are tracking hybrid systems that contain both Type I
and Type II systems.
SETTING THE SCANNER TO THE TRUNK TRACKING MODE
Press TRUNK to switch between conventional scanning and trunk tracking.
SETTING SQUELCH FOR THE TRUNK TRACKING MODE
Your scanner's squelch setting is automatically adjusted during trunk
tracking, which means it is not necessary to manually adjust squelch while
tracking trunked transmissions. However, the squelch setting can affect
how fast your scanner acquires the data channel, and, in some instances,
can prevent your scanner from acquiring the data channel at all.
We recommend you set SQUELCH to the position with the arrow pointing
directly away from the word SQUELCH before selecting a trunked bank.
Note: You can change this setting, if necessary, to provide better
performance in your area.
STORING TRUNKED FREQUENCIES
Before you set up your scanner to track a trunked system, consider the
following:
Valid trunked system frequencies range from 851.0000-868.9875 in 12.5
kHz steps.
You can use any of your scanner's banks as either a trunk tracking bank
or conventional scanning bank, but you cannot mix the two.
The scanner only scans one trunked system at a time. Although you can
store frequencies for more than one trunked system in one of your
scanner's banks, the scanner only scans the frequencies associated with
the first data channel it finds.
Before scanning a trunked system's transmissions, you must store the
trunked system's frequencies in one of the banks in your scanner by
following these steps.
1. Press PROG then TRUNK. TRUNK appears and one or more bank numbers
flash.
2. Select the bank you want to store the trunked system's frequencies in
by pressing a number key. The scanner automatically selects the first
channel in the bank when you select the bank.
3. Use the number keys to enter one of the trunked system's frequencies,
then press E. TRUNK, BANK and the bank number, the channel number,
and the frequency appear.
Note: If you entered an invalid frequency, the scanner beeps, the
channel number flashes and Error appears. If this happens,
press ( o ) to clear the frequency, then repeat this step.
4. Press Either PROG or [/\] to select the next channel in the bank.
5. Repeat Steps 3 and 4 until all frequencies have been entered in that
bank.
6. Press SRC to begin searching for the trunk's data channel (the channel
that controls the trunk). SEARCH flashes as the scanner searches for
the data channel.
While the scanner looks through the frequencies, you see them on the
display. When the scanner finds the data channel, it begins trunk
tracking.
SCANNING A TRUNKED BANK
You can scan one trunked bank at a time. Once you have stored frequencies
or a trunked system in one or more of the 5 available banks and you are
scanning conventional (non-trunked) frequencies, follow these steps to
begin trunk scanning.
1. Press TRUNK. The numbers for all banks flash, along with BANK and
TRUNK.
2. Use the number keys to enter the number for the trunked bank you want
to scan, then press SRC. The scanner searches for a data channel.
When the scanner finds it, it begins TRUNK tracking.
If you entered all of the trunk's frequencies, you should be able to
follow conversations between broadcasters even when they change
frequencies. IDs, which represent different service groups, appear.
3. To return to conventional scanning, press TRUNK again.
HINT: While scanning, you will not know exactly who the IDs are assigned
to until you listen awhile or until you locate ID lists in
frequency guides or on internet sites such as www.trunkscanner.com.
Within a few minutes you can usually figure out if what you are
listening to is a police, fire, or emergency medical 2-way radio
user. Other IDs might take some time, but determining who each ID
represents is half the fun of trunk tracking!
Monitoring an Active ID
When the scanner stops on a transmission, you can hold the scanner on that
transmission.
1. Press HOLD. HOLD appears and the scanner stays on the current ID.
2. If you want to listen to a different ID, use the number keys to enter
the ID you want to hold.
3. Press HOLD again. HOLD and the channel number flash and the scanner
monitors that ID.
4. When you want to stop the hold and resume searching for a data channel
so you can continue trunk tracking, press SRC.
Note: You can also follow these steps to hold on an ID while scanning a
scan list. See "Scan Lists" below.
Temporarily storing an ID into the Monitor ID Memory
1. When your scanner stops on an ID you want to store, press MON/CLEAR.
The scanner stores the ID into the monitor ID memory.
2. Press SRC to resume searching.
Note: To program the ID stored in the monitor ID memory into the ID scan
list, see "Scan Lists" below.
Locking Out IDs
As with conventional scanning, it is possible to lock out unwanted
traffic. This is particularly important in trunked systems because
signals you cannot listen to (such as water meters, door alarms, traffic
signals, and encrypted signals) are assigned IDs just like other users.
You can have up to 100 IDs locked out at one time.
Note: If you lock out an ID while searching, it is also locked out of the
scan list(s). See "Scan Lists" below.
To lock out an ID, press L-OUT when the ID appears.
The ID is locked out, and the next active ID appears.
Unlocking a Single ID
1. Hold down L-OUT until you hear two short beeps.
2. Repeatedly press [\/] or [/\] to select the ID you want to unlock.
3. Press L-OUT.
The ID is unlocked, and the next locked ID or -- --- (if there are no
other locked IDs) appears.
4. Press SRC to continue the scanner's previous function.
Unlocking All IDs
Hold down L-OUT until you hear two short beeps. Then press E to unlock
all the IDs at once. The scanner beeps twice.
Note: When you unlock all the IDs, the scan list appears. Press SCAN to
scan the IDs stored in your scan lists or press SRC to continue the
scanner's previous function. For more information about scan
lists, see "Scan Lists" below.
Using Trunk Tracking Scan Delay
Many trunked systems have a period of 2 or more seconds between a query
and a reply. You can program a 5-second delay to hold on an ID for 5
seconds to wait for a reply. The scanner continues to monitor the
frequency for 5 seconds after the transmission stops before resuming
scanning.
Press DELAY to turn trunk tracking scan delay on or off. DLY appears when
trunk tracking scan delay is set.
Note: If you consistently miss responses even with trunk tracking scan
delay set, you might need to change the default system type or the
fleet map you are using. See "Scanning Type I and Hybrid Trunked
Systems" below.
Monitoring IDs
You can use your scanner's display to monitor the frequencies in a trunked
system for activity. You cannot hear conversations in this mode, but this
is an excellent way to determine which talk groups are the most active.
To set the scanner to monitor IDs, hold down MON/CLEAR until SEARCH and
the channel number flash, and all active talk group IDs appear in quick
succession. To stop monitoring IDs, press SRC again.
Note: When you monitor IDs, locked-out IDs also appear.
CHANNEL ACTIVITY BARS
Your scanner has 20 channel activity indicators (bars) which show the
activity taking place on a trunked system. You can see how many
frequencies are being used and generally monitor how much communication
traffic is occurring.
Each frequency you store in a trunking bank has a corresponding activity
bar. However, since there are only 20 bars, but you can store up to 30
frequencies, some bars might indicate more than one frequency if the
trunked system you are scanning has more than 20 channels.
The bar that remains on steadily even when there are no current
transmissions represents the frequency being used as the data channel.
The bar that flashes when an ID appears represents the frequency being
used by the radio to transmit what you are currently hearing.
If a bar turns on but you do not hear a conversation, the channel is
probably being used for a telephone interconnect call or a private call,
or the bar might be a locked-out ID. Your scanner does not monitor
these types of calls.
If the scanner is holding on an ID which is not active, the other
activity bars turn on and off as other groups use the system.
SCAN LISTS
When you program trunked frequencies into a bank (see "Storing Trunked
Frequencies" above), your scanner sets up 5 scan lists into which you can
store your favorite IDs. Each list can contain up to 10 IDs, so you can
store a total of 50 IDs for each trunk tracking bank (250 IDs if you use
all banks as trunking banks!). Scan lists help you organize trunking
system users into categories. For example, you might use List 1 for
police IDs, List 2 for fire department IDs, List 3 for emergency medical
service IDs, and so on. Once IDs are stored in lists, you can scan them
like you scan conventional channels. You can program IDs into scan lists
manually, during a search or automatically.
Manually Storing IDs into Scan Lists
1. Select the trunking bank you want (see "Scanning a Trunked Bank"
above).
2. After the scanner begins trunk tracking, press MAN. A number showing
the current scan list appears steadily at the top of the display, and
bars which show activity in other banks appear.
3. Press MAN then repeatedly press [/\] or [\/] to select the ID scan
list location (shown at the top of the display) where you want to
store an ID. Then, press PROG to select the ID you want to store.
4. Enter the Type II ID you want to store, then press E.
Or, to enter a Type I ID:
A. Use the number keys to enter the block number and fleet number,
then press ( o ).
B. Enter the subfleet number, then press E.
Note: To clear a mistake while entering an ID, press 0 then E, then
start over at Step 1.
5. Repeatedly press PROG or [/\] to select the next scan list location
you want to program. Then repeat Step 4 to enter another ID.
Moving IDs to Scan Lists
1. Press MAN. MAN appears.
2. Select the ID scan list location where you want to store the IDs.
Then press PROG. PGM appears.
3. Press MON/CLEAR. A monitor ID appears.
4. Press E. The scanner stores the IDs into the selected ID scan lists.
Deleting a Stored ID
1. Press PROG. PGM appears.
2. Repeatedly press [/\] or [\/] to select the scan list location (shown
at the top of the display) you want to delete.
3. Press 0 then E.
SCANNING THE SCAN LISTS
Press SCAN to begin scanning the lists you have stored.
Note: If you have not stored any IDs, SCAN scrolls on the display, but
your scanner does not stop on an active conversation.
To remove a scan list from active scanning, use the number keys to enter
the scan list's number. The scan list number turns off, and the IDs in
that list are not scanned.
Note: One scan list must always be active. You cannot remove all of the
scan lists.
To restore a scan list to active scanning, use the number keys to enter
its number again.
Press SRC to return to the scanner's previous function.
SCANNING TYPE 1 AND HYBRID TRUNKED SYSTEMS
Your PRO-91 is set to scan Type II user IDs by default. When you scan
trunked frequencies, each Type II user ID you see appears as an even
number without a dash (such as 2160). Your PRO-91 can also scan Type I
trunked systems. Each Type I ID appears as a three- or four-digit number,
followed by a hyphen, followed by a one-or two-digit number (such as
200-14). If you notice a mix of odd- and even-user IDs, (such as 6477,
2160, 6481, 6144, and 1167), then you are probably monitoring either a
Type I or hybrid (a combination of Type I and Type II user IDs) system
(see "Types of Trunking Systems" above).
You might also notice that you are missing responses when you hold on an
active ID. Unlike Type II Systems, Type I and hybrid systems require a
fleet map that sets specific fleet-subfleet parameters. It is easy to
select a fleet map to scan; what is not always easy is selecting or
programming a map that is being used in your particular area.
When a Type I system is designed, the address information for all its user
IDs is divided into 8 equal-size blocks, numbered 0-7, and each block is
assigned a size code. When you set up your scanner to track a Type I
system, you must choose a size code for each block. When you have chosen
a size code for all 8 blocks, you will have duplicated the fleet map for
the system you are tracking. If you have chosen correctly, you will be
able to track transmissions in that system.
Each size code defines the number of fleets, subfleets, and IDs each block
has. For example, you can see in the following table that a size code of
S-4 has one fleet, which is divided into 16 separate subfleets, and it has
a total of 512 individual ID's.
Size Fleets Subfleets IDs Blocks Used
S-O Reserved block for Type II IDs
S-1 128 4 16 1
S-2 16 8 64 1
S-3 8 8 128 1
S-4 1 16 512 1
S-5 64 4 32 1
S-6 32 8 32 1
S-7 32 4 64 1
S-8 16 4 128 1
S-9 8 4 256 1
S-10 4 8 256 1
S-11 2 16 256 1
S-12 1 16 1024 2
S-13 1 16 2048 4
S-14 1 16 4096 8
Each ID in the block is unique. The left-most digit is the block number
in the ID. The next two digits identify which fleet is active, and the
last digit(s) (after the hyphen) identifies the subfleet.
The size codes selected by a Type I system designer depend on the specific
needs of the system's users. Some organizations might want many subfleets
with only a few radios each, while another organization might want only a
few subfleets, with many radios each. To scan Type I systems, you must
select or program a fleet map with the same size code assignments as the
trunked system. If you do this accurately, you will track all the fleet
and subfleet combinations used by the system. In other words, you will
hear complete communications while monitoring a trunked system.
Note: Preset fleet maps might be available at www.trunkscanner.com.
If you do not already know the size codes used, you will have to guess
them. But since you do not have to figure out all the blocks at once,
this is not as hard as it seems. Select a size code for a block, then
press SRC. Now listen to the communications. If you decide you are
receiving most of the replies to the conversations with IDs assigned to
the block you just programmed, then you have probably selected the right
size code and can work on the next block of the map.
There are 16 preset fleet maps to choose from, and it is best to start
with these when setting up a Type I or hybrid trunk tracking bank. If
none of the following preset fleet maps allow you to follow complete
conversations, then you probably need to program your own fleet map (see
"Programming a Fleet Map" below).
E1 P1 E1 P2 E1 P3
Size Size Size
Block Code Block Code Block Code
0 S11 0 S4 0 S4
1 S11 1 S4 1 S4
2 S11 2 S4 2 S4
3 S11 3 S4 3 S4
4 S11 4 S4 4 S4
5 S11 5 S4 5 S4
6 S11 6 S4 6 S12
7 S11 7 S4 7 (S12)
E1 P4 E1 P5 E1 P6
Size Size Size
Block Code Block Code Block Code
0 S12 0 S4 0 S3
1 (S12) 1 S4 1 S10
2 S4 2 S12 2 S4
3 S4 3 (S12) 3 S4
4 S4 4 S4 4 S12
5 S4 5 S4 5 (S12)
6 S4 6 S4 6 S12
7 S4 7 S4 7 (S12)
E1 P7 E1 P8 E1 P9
Size Size Size
Block Code Block Code Block Code
0 S10 0 S1 0 S4
1 S10 1 S1 1 S4
2 S11 2 S2 2 S0
3 S4 3 S2 3 S0
4 S4 4 S3 4 S0
5 S4 5 S3 5 S0
6 S4 6 S4 6 S0
7 S4 7 S4 7 S0
E1 P10 E1 P11 E1 P12
Size Size Size
Block Code Block Code Block Code
0 S0 0 S4 0 S0
1 S0 1 S0 1 S0
2 S0 2 S0 2 S0
3 S0 3 S0 3 S0
4 S0 4 S0 4 S0
5 S0 5 S0 5 S0
6 S4 6 S0 6 S0
7 S4 7 S0 7 S4
E1 P13 E1 P14
Size Size
Block Code Block Code
0 S3 0 S4
1 S3 1 S3
2 S11 2 S10
3 S4 3 S4
4 S4 4 S4
5 S0 5 S4
6 S0 6 S12
7 S0 7 S12
E1 P15 E1 P16
Size Size
Block Code Block Code
0 S4 0 S3
1 S4 1 S10
2 S4 2 S10
3 S11 3 S11
4 S11 4 S0
5 S0 5 S0
6 S12 6 S12
7 S12 7 S12
Selecting a Preset Fleet Map
1. Set the scanner for conventional scanning, press PROG, then press
TRUNK.
2. Select the bank where you want to store the preset fleet map by
pressing a number key.
3. Press DATA.
4. Repeatedly press [/\] or [\/] to select E1. Then, when E1 flashes,
press E.
Press DATA again.
5. Repeatedly press [/\] or [\/] to select the name of the map you want
(such as E1 P7). The preprogrammed fleet map appears.
6. Press E then SRC. The scanner than searches for transmissions using
the preset map you chose.
Note: When the scanner searches for transmissions, you see Type I fleet
and subfleet IDs such as 100-12, 100-9, 000-12, or 400-8.
How do you know if the preset map you selected is correct? Listen to see
if you are following complete conversations. If not, try another preset
map.
Programming a Fleet Map
1. Set the scanner for conventional scanning, press PROG, then press
TRUNK.
2. Select the bank where you want to program the fleet map by pressing a
number key.
3. Press DATA.
4. Repeatedly press [/\] or [\/] to select E1, then press DATA. A
programmed fleet map appears.
5. Repeatedly press [/\] or [\/] until USr appears. Then press E.
6. Press DATA.
7. Repeatedly press [/\] or [\/] to select the size code for the first
block, then press E. The next available block appears.
8. Repeat Step 7 until you have selected a size code for each block you
want to work with.
9. Press SRC. The scanner exits the trunking programming mode, tunes the
data channel, then begins to search using the map you programmed.
Note: If you select size code S-12, S-13, or S-14, these restrictions
apply:
S-12 can only be assigned to Blocks 0, 2, 4, or 6.
S-13 can only be assigned to Blocks 0 and 4.
S-14 can only be assigned to Block 0.
Since these size codes require multiple blocks, you will be prompted for
the next available block when programming a fleet map. For example, if
you assign Block 0 as an S-12, the scanner prompts you for b2, the next
block available, instead of b1. And if you assign Block 0 as an S-14, you
would not see another prompt because it uses all available blocks.
Programming a Hybrid System
A hybrid system is simply a Type I system with some of its blocks
designated as Type II blocks. To program a hybrid system, follow the
steps listed in "Programming a Fleet Map" above. However, if you want a
block to be Type II, select size code S-0 in Step 7.
(BR/eb 6/23/98)
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