Shortwave relay station

A shortwave relay station typically consists of a transmitter building (or transmitter hall) and one or more HRS type antennas. Some relay stations (that operate at 100 kW or less) that only serve a local region (within 1500 km) may use Log Periodic Horizontal arrays and not HR Type antennas.

Variations in design

One and only one broadcasting technology couples all of the components of a traditional shortwave relay station into one unit: the ALLISS module. For persons totally unfamiliar with the concepts of how shortwave relay stations operate this design may be the most understandable.

The ALLISS module is a fully rotatable antenna system for high power (typically 500 kW only) shortwave radio broadcasting -- it essentially is a self contained shortwave relay station.

Most of the world's shortwave relay stations don't use this technology, due to its cost (15m EUR per ALLISS module: Transmitter + Antenna + Automation equipment).

Planning and design

A traditional shortwave relay station, depending on how many transmitters and antennas that it will have -- may take up to 2 years to plan. After planning is completed it may take up to 5 years to construct the relay station.

The historically long design and planning cycle for shortwave relay stations ended in the 1990s. Many advanced software planning tools not (related to the relay station design proper) became available. Choosing a site for a relay station is about 100 times faster using Google Earth for example. With the modern graphical version of Ioncap, propagation studies can completed in less than a week for any chosen site.

In some cases, existing relay stations can have their designs more or less duplicated, thus speeding up development time. However, there is one general exception to this: the ALLISS Module. From initial planning to deployment of ALLISS Modules may take a mere 1.5 years to 9 months depending on the number of modules deployed at one time in a particular sector of a country.

Graphic examples

FAQ

How relay stations operate

These are considered general operating parameters
* 20 hours per day, but geopolitical reasons may dictate some stations run 24 hours per day (a 168 hour week)
* Generally 360 days per year, depending on the number of redundant transmitters and antennas
* Relay Stations generally consume from 250 kilowatts (kW) to 10 megawatts (mW)
* A single 100kw SW transmitter consumes 225 kW RMS as a general rule
* A single 300kw SW transmitter consumes 625 kW RMS as a general rule
* Modulator efficiency: Class-B modulators have about a 65% efficiency level, but digital (PDM or PSM or hybrid variants) modulators have about a 85% efficiency level as a general rule (for Amplitude Modulation)
* Broadcast times and frequencies are under ITU regulation

How relay stations are designed

General requirements of shortwave relay stations
* Road access (fairly universal)
* HVAC mains access building or transformer in the transmitter building itself
* Staff quarters (if the relay station is not fully automated)
* Incoming audio processing centre, but since the mid 1980s this has evolved into one to five rack units
* Transmitter hall (50 kW, 100 kW, 250 kW, 300 kW, 500 kW shortwave transmitter)
* Switch matrix (but these are not typically used by ALLISS modules)
* Baluns (but their use is not always required nor universal)
* antenna tuners (sometimes called ATUs or roller coasters because of their appearance)
* Feeder lines (coax cable and open feeder lines are the most common feeders in use)
* HRS-type antennas, or occasionally log-periodic (horizontal)
* In parts of the developing world log-periodic (horizontal) antennas are used to provide less directional gain to a target area.

Where the broadcast programs go

* generally to target areas that are more than 300 km from the transmitter site
* most shortwave relay station target areas are 1500 km to 3500 km from the transmitter site

Historical innovations

In the IEEE Book series "The History of International Broadcasting" (Volume I) it is pointed out that the German propaganda ministry had mobile shortwave relay stations during WWII. These mobile relay stations consisted of a generator truck, transmitter truck and an antenna truck.
* It is assumed that these mobile relay stations were in use from about 1940 onwards.
* It is assumed that the antennas used where Rhombic, but could have been Log Periodic.
* It is assumed that the transmitter power was 50kw, and that these transmitters required a full size truck.
* It is assumed that the relay stations were moved every two or three days, to prevent HFDF.
* It is assumed that no stations were ever destroyed via aircraft, but that many would have been captured during 1945 by both the US, British and Russian forces.

Technical notes
* In order for the relay network to get its audio feeds, the PTT constructed concrete bunker telephonic termination points throughout the German state.
* Only RIZ (Radio Industry Zagreb) produces mobile shortwave transmitters in the current post-Cold War era. RIZ's designs are clearly not inspired by the German wartime innovation, as they are based around standard shipping containers.
* RIZ's portable designs are meant to be portable temporary replacement transmitters, not truly mobile shortwave relay stations.
* The only kinds of antennas that are both mobile and directive and also suitable for this kind of relay station design are the Rhombic and Log Periodic antenna types.

Actual configurations: Nauen