Spectrum Analyzer

In the "Spectrum Analyzer" menu, you can perform a deep analysis of the radio emissions in the environment where the unit is placed. The unit scans the radio spectrum on all available frequencies. In order to obtain the information as accurate as possible, the scanning process may take a while.

CAUTION

When running spectrum scan on a unit accessible via the RF interface, connection will be lost during scan time (the radio-link will be disconnected). Use "Last Snapshot" button to see scan results.

The following parameters are available in order to operate the Spectrum Analyzer:

Interface	rf6.0 radio interface is the only option available, but it is showed for the backward compatibility with the dual radio legacy products.
Start Frequency	Set the first frequency for scanning (in MHz).
Stop Frequency	Set the last frequency for scanning (in MHz).
Band	Set the bandwidth (in MHz).
Step	Set the scanning frequency step (in MHz). It is recommended to set 1 MHz “step” value to get more precise scanning results.
Channel Mask	Select which antenna to be used for scanning the radio environment: “Auto” parameter is set by default. In this case scanning is perfomed by both antennas. "1" - scanning is perfomed by antenna "1". "2" - scanning is perfomed by antenna "2". Parameter "3" means scanning is perfomed by both antennas.
Scan Duration	Set the time period for the scanning process (in seconds). After the end of this time period, scanning is stopped and the radio interface will be back to its normal mode operation.
Enable Grid	Mark/unmark the corresponding checkbox to display/hide the grid lines and highlight the special frequency channel on the scan output. The highlighted frequency channel can be used to mark the channel which the device is currently working on or which it plans to use.
Grid Width	Set the bandwidth value for the highlighted frequency channel (in MHz).
Grid Frequency	Set the central operating frequency for the highlighted frequency channel.
RSSI mode	Select the gradient-color type for the “Max RSSI” values to be displayed on the Spectrum Analyzer output screen. The options are: Normal (by default) Gradient Max Hold – holds the maximum signal values at a given point Peak Hold – holds the peak signal values at a given point
Scan mode	"Local mode" – scanning is performed only on the local device. "Combined mode" – Scanning is performed simultaneously on all devices in the sector. The "Last Snapshot" button will display the blended result.

Start/stop Spectrum Analyzer by clicking the «Start Sensor Test»/«Stop Sensor Test» buttons.

By clicking the «Last Snapshot» button, you get the final scanning results. The most common usage of this feature is when you perform a spectrum scan at the remote unit on the other side of the radio link. When running a spectrum scan at such a unit (accessible via the RF interface), connection to this unit will be lost for a scan time. "Last Snapshot" option allows viewing scan results when the connection gets up again.

When you run spectrum scan on a local unit and the link is interrupted, the remote unit will not disappear from the spectrum picture. So you should silence the remote unit in order to have a real picture without it, otherwise you will always see noise signal on the operating frequency generated by the remote unit.

You can get detailed information about the scanned radio signals on a specific frequency. Just point a cursor on the needed frequency and you will see a hint with exact Signal level (dBm), Frequency (MHz), Noise Floor (dBm), indicators of RSSI (dBm), High RSSI (dBm), Max RSSI (dBm) and their values in dB. High RSSI allows you to estimate the signal sources number, if the value is significantly different from the average RSSI, then there are several sources of interference.