Merit 1 and 2
I will be comparing three different types of radio's giving there advantages and disadvantages.
- Bowman
- Clansman
- Airwave
The Airwave radio is used in the police force. It was first introduced in 2002 and by 2005 a few people within the police force were using this type of radio. By 2009 everyone was. The old radio used by the police was replaced by the airwave because it would not work underground because the frequency it also would not work in areas where there was lead roofs. This put officers at risk. This is why the Clansman is said to be better then the airwave because it has more signal and more frequency channels. However the Airwave is better then the Bowman simply because it is lightweight and easier to carry around,the airwave just clips onto the officers jacket.
Advantages of the airwave:
- . It has an emergency button on the terminal that an officer can press in case of danger,
- . It has improved speech clarity compared to the previous radio used in the police force,
- . It is much easier for everybody to keep in contact with people.
Disadvantages of the airwave
- . The battery cover falls of easily ,
- . The signals my be harmful to users,
- . Excessive radiation can bring about cancer.
The Bowman is used in the British armed forces. It is slightly newer then the Airwave as it was introduced in march 2004. It was used effectively by all the armed forces by 2008. This means that compared to the Airwave it was developed much faster and any problems it may have had was fixed allot quicker then any problems with the Airwave.
This type of radio will probably be used until 2026 giving plenty of time for new and improved radio's to be tested and used. The bowman overtook the clansman radios through its security, data capabilities, reliability and resilience against electronic warfare (EW) attack. although just because a radio was introduced after doesn't always make it better, for example the airwave was made before the bowman but because of there different contributors the airwave is still better then the bowman.
Advantages of the Bowman radio:
- . It is digitally encrypt,
- . It has cross boarder Internet access,
- . It can unite all the armed forces.
Disadvantages of the Bowman radio:
- . It is very heavy for soldiers to carry,
- . Lack of capacity can make sending messages slow,
- . Very expensive to make (£2.4 billion.)
The clansman otherwise known as the PRC320 is a lightweight HF/SSB radio station designed to be part of the British army's clansman range of radio equipment. the clansman was introduced in the 1980's. the clansman is better then the airwave because of it many frequency channels and because it has more signal so it can be used in areas where there is lead in roof and underground. The clansman is used by a long range system, it operates in the 2 to 30 MHz band with 100Hz channel spacing with the choice of 280,000 frequencies.
After looking at these three radios i have come to the conclusion that for the police force the clansman would be better to use then the airwave because of its capabilities to work underground and in areas where there is lead in the roof so it would be safer for the officers. it would mean that they could cover more areas to prevent crime and stop any injury. unfortunately because of the clansman size and the size of the antenna it can not be suitable for the police. the antenna would just get in the way.
Advantages
- It has a great communication range
- Plenty of channels
- Can be used in all weather conditions
- Lightweight
- Can be used in ground or sky wave
- Single SideBand (SSB) operation
- NarrowBand Frequency Modulation (NBFM)
- A 2.5m antenna, could be seen by the enemy.
- It proved to be insecure with the exception of formation level
- It has limited data capacity
- It is hard to repair as the parts needed are no longer being made
- It doesn't meet todays needs in Iraq and Afganistan.
