We Have Listed 7 Different Communication Systems You Can Use At Your Event

There are many instances where people get confused when talking about types of headsets and the associated equipment. In this article, we are going to help you get a clear understanding of the different types of headsets and the associated equipment. With that said, it is important to note that the names that have been given below, are the actual names that need to be used. Without any further ado, lets get started;

In Ear Monitors

Also known as in-ear (or canal) headphones, these devices sit inside the user's ear canal, and they deliver great sound quality; they ensure a controlled and precise sound. They also fill the ear's entrance, thus are very effective at sealing out any unwanted external noise. These devices include a transmitter which is controlled by an audio engineer which then transmits to the belt-pack on the user. The in ear monitors allow freedom of movement and are commonly used by modern pop a rtists. They're very small and allow them to comfortably hear the rest of the band, and also themselves (this is what's known as monitoring or foldback). Apart from artists, these devices are commonly used by audio engineers to hear the mix of the vocals and the stage instrumentation for recording studio mixing and/or live performance.

2 Way Radio Headsets

Two way radio headset is a communication device which can transmit and also receive signals. A two way radio headset allows the user to communicate with other people with similar 2 way radio headsets (and are operating on the same channel or radio frequency). Two way radio headsets are readily available in mobile and also hand held portable configurations. The handheld 2 way radio headsets are also known as walkie talkie headsets or handie talkies. One thing to note about two way radio headsets, is that the user can either transmit or receive signals and not both at the same time.

2 Way Radio Covert Pieces

These are quite similar to the Two way radios, however, they are much more discreet. 2 way radio covert earpieces are usually used by security personnel as they prefer staying discreet. This type of walkie talkie headset is also ideal for the Door supervisors and security staff.

Wired Show Comms

Unlike Two way radios, these type of communication systems allow for both talking and listening even at the same time. These devices have a closed cup design, meaning they fully cover the ear which helps reduce the ambient noise. Wired show comms come in single muff and double muff versions. They get attached to the belt pack controller which is then physically wired to the system. Because of the cabling that's involved in wired show comms, there's less mobility thus are best suited for managers and the static technicians. These specialist communication dev ices are also commonly used for calling shows.



Wireless Show Comms

These are very similar to the wired Show Comms, only difference is that their belt packs are wireless. The device and the belt pack are compatible which means that the users can freely and comfortably move around, thus are ideal for stage managers, front of house managers, among others. Just like the wired show comms, these devices also allow both talking and listening at the same. With that said, you should know that the wireless show comms are relatively more expensive than the wired show comms. Some of the other applications for these devices include, but not limited to; security personnel, broadcast, marines, theater, and colleges. They can also serve as convenient walkie talkie headset for events.

Radio Performer Headset

This is the device that's used by presenters and performers. This device allows for the user's voice to get fed into the sound system where the audience can get to hear them. This device is usually used in conjunction with the radio belt pack system. Most of the devices used today are generally very thin and skin colored which helps reduce visibility when the performer is on stage.

Presenter Talkback

These are the small ear pieces which you see the lead presenters on TV talk shows wearing. This device allows the producer (of that particular TV talkshow or program), to communicate to the lead presenter and update them on the show's progress. This may be done using a system known as in ear monitoring. Alternatively, wi reless show comms systems can also be used.

Software Defined Radio (SDR) Market Forecast By End-use Industry 2014-2020

We are seeing a monumental movement in the radio communication industry, as this very technical article shows the transition from hardware to software within the radio communication industry is just around the corner. With 3G and 4G providing Data and Voice Comms covering large distances, RF communication will find it hard to compete, the simple answer seems to be Tetra, but is that long term? There will always be a need for point to point communications, but larger comms infrastructures could possibly be managed in a different way.

With the evolution of digital electronics the radio market and communication technologies have evolved a lot. Though the concept of software defined radio (SDR) is not new, in the recent years, this market has undergone many changes in terms of technology and uses. SDR is a type of radio communication system where communication is carried out by the use of software on embedded system or personal computer instead of implementing hardware such as filters, amplifiers, mixers, detectors, demodulators and modulators, among others. SDR are capable of transmitting and receiving a wide spectrum of frequency. When the data from a source is converted into digital format, the remaining activities involved in radio communications are carried out with the help of software driven automated functions.

SDR optimizes the tactical information system as embedded software used in SDR helps in the dynamic selection of the communication channel. The number of digital service users is increasing resulting into the improved adoption rate of software defined radio. Public safety, military and commercial use are the three major end-use applications of SDR systems. The demand for SDRs in expected to increase in coming years owing to efficiency and cost effectiveness offered by them. The industry has undergone t ransformation from analog to digital. Thus, the advance capabilities of digital radio are expected to drive the growth of SDR market. Multiple regulations govern the SDR market and this affects the market growth and trends. For instance, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) legally created a newer class for equipment of SDRs that had streamlined equipment authorization procedure.

Military modernization programs being carried out by several countries such as South Korea, India, Germany, Japan and the U.S and the interoperability provided by SDR are major driving forces for SDR market. The issues faced in the integration of the various sub systems pose a challenge to the SDR market. Further, the development of software platforms, technologies and tools, which allow flexible specification, design and implementation of radio systems, is another significant challenge. Players in software defined radio market have potential opportunity in technical advancements of SDR techn ology such as resolving the problem of frequency congestion, wide frequency range (spectrum) and improved broadcasting services in future.



Software defined radio market is segmented on the basis of type, end-user application and geography. On the basis of type of SDR, the market is segmented into ideal software defined radio, baseband software defined radio (BBSDR) and high frequency software defined radio (HFSDR). On the basis of end-user industry, SDR market is segmented into defense industry, telecom industry, manufacturing plants, public safety vendors and personal use. U.S. Canada, Japan, France, Brazil, South Korea, India, Germany and Italy have emerged as the leading countries for software defined radio market.

Some of the key vendors in software defined radio market are BAE Systems PLC, Elbit Systems Ltd., IndraSistemas, L3 Communications Corporation, Raytheon Co ., Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co KG, Thales Group, Viasat Incorporated, SAAB AB, Rockwell Collins, Northrop Grumman Corp., ITT Corporation, Harris Corporation and Datasoft Corporation, among others.

This research report presents a comprehensive assessment of the market and contains thoughtful insights, facts, historical data and statistically-supported and industry-validated market data and projections with a suitable set of assumptions and methodology. It provides analysis and information by categories such as market segments, regions, product type and distribution channels.

Airbus to display resilient PMR communications infrastructures and solutions at ShieldAfrica 2017

ShieldAfrica was started in 2013 and is a security conference for institutional and private operators to meet with companies to promote products and ideas, this years (2017) main theme is Safe Cities, component of Smart Cities, driving investment and economic development to the concept of connected and safer cities. Airbus are turning up to this years exhibition and they are showing off their PMR infrastructures, the source of the article is here, but you can read the whole lot below

To support the economic development of African societies and governments in a challenging security context, Airbus Defence and Space will show its latest radiocommunications technologies at the exhibition “ShieldAfrica” in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, in la te January 2017.

Police, firefighters, and rescue services in Africa are increasingly in demand of more advanced and secured mobile communication tools. “ShieldAfrica” serves as a platform to discuss security applications which require sophisticated Professional Mobile Radio (PMR) technology on the continent.

Secure communications infrastructures

“Government organisations, such as police and emergency first responder services, need secure communications infrastructures for the whole of their national territory and also for critical sites, such as airports, ports and stadiums,” says Philippe Devos, Head of Strategic Campaigns and Government Affairs of Secure Land Communications at Airbus. “We can offer the needed communication means in Africa based on our profound experience as a world-leading PMR provider.”

African security and defence sectors

“Shieldafrica” is a key event f or the African security and defence sectors and hosts the major players in this field, for instance African governments, the global security and defence industry and representatives of diplomacy. Besides showing newest achievements in mission critical communications, Airbus will also showcase the following solutions:

• Tetra digital radio systemsassociated with modern command and control applications and handheld radios can support effectively shared network deployment models. With these systems at hand, dispatching positions of vehicles or persons can be managed easily by geolocalising Tetra subscribers or groups.



• The Tactilon Agnetapp brings Tetra push-to-talk to an LTE smartphone. It allows users of commercial LTE networks to communicate securely within mission-critical Tetra networks.



• The Tactilon Dabat, a smartphone and full Tetra radio in one device, enables users, suc h as police or firefighters, to operate securely with multimedia functions.

Providing interoperability



For more than 25 years, Airbus has equipped various governments around the world with resilient PMR communications infrastructures and solutions. The company has a proven track record of nationwide deployments providing interoperability to all security users organisations.

Offering workers hearing protection options

Much Like Protecting your sight or looking after your health, your hearing should also be protected, this article tackles hearing protection within the workplace and what type of earplugs are best, Enjoy.

OSHA regulations dictate we offer a “variety” of hearing protectors to noise-exposed workers. What is best practice for providing a variety while keeping inventory to a minimum?

Per CFR 1910.95(i)(3), “Employees shall be given the opportunity to select their hearing protectors from a variety of suitable hearing protectors provided by the employer.” But does “variety of suitable hearing protectors” mean two or 10, earplugs or earmuffs, different colors or different sizes?

The wrong approach is to choose a variety based on factors that have no effect on protecting hearing, including the published noise reduction rating. Some safet y managers offer several different large foam earplugs that are yellow, green and orange â€" mistakenly assuming they meet the “variety” requirement and not realizing that a significant portion of their workforce will never achieve an adequate fit with a large foam earplug. In those cases, their supposed “variety” actually limits the number of workers adequately protected.

This bad assumption is often codified into company safety policies that require a minimum NRR: “Approved hearing protectors must have an NRR of at least 32 decibels,” or similar criteria. By definition, that typically means a large foam earplug. Despite the higher NRR based on 10 laboratory test subjects, workers with smaller ear canals will never achieve an adequate fit with those large foam earplugs to stop noise-induced hearing loss.

What are the factors that affect good fit of an earplug?

• Size: Like a cork in a bottle, an earplug that is to o large or too small will never achieve an acoustic seal to protect hearing. Offering a variety of sizes significantly improves the percentage of employees obtaining a good fit.



• Shape: Ear canal openings may appear round, oval or slit. A foam earplug often fills an oval or slit opening better than pre-molded earplugs.



• Ease of insertion: Some workers have difficulty rolling or inserting foam earplugs due to lack of mobility. For these workers, an earplug with a stem may be easier to insert.

Based on thousands of fit tests administered to workers in the field, the following four earplug styles provide a selection that would adequately protect nearly every worker:

• Large foam earplug



• Smaller foam earplug



• Large reusable earplug



• Smaller reusable earplug

The good news is that offering a variety does not necessarily increase cost. Buying 1,000 earplugs of one style or 250 earplugs of four different styles is fairly equivalent in cost. But the bigger variety significantly increases the probability that more workers will be adequately protected.

Many worksites adjust their inventory based on results of their fit-testing of hearing protectors. By reviewing which earplugs repeatedly provide the best fit, these companies identify the gaps or duplications in their offering and can adjust accordingly. Sometimes, this means adding a smaller-size earplug, but many times companies find they can remove some less-effective earplugs from their inventory. It’s not necessary to carry a dozen different earplug styles.

Finally, any offering of hearing prote ction needs a hands-on training component. How can a workers determine whether their ear canal is large or small, round or oval? It’s impossible to view your own ear canal opening in a mirror. A quick glance by a safety trainer can be of tremendous benefit in helping workers select the right earplug the first time.

MIT's new method of radio transmission could one day make wireless VR a reality

VR is the Buzz word for this year, every technology company clambering to get their headset out on to the market. Much of the market needs to catch-up though, the power of home computing needs to improve and removing the inevitable extra cabling and wires that come with current headsets. Luckily this article is about the future technology of VR headsets, see what we can expect as this technology grows.

If you want to use one of today's major VR headsets, whether the Oculus Rift, the HTC Vive, or the PS VR, you have to accept the fact that there will be an illusion-shattering cable that tethers you to the small supercomputer that's powering your virtual world.

But researchers from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) may have a solution in MoVr, a wireless virtual reality system. Instead of using Wi-Fi or Bluetooth to transmit data, the research team’s MoVR system uses high-frequency millimeter wave radio to stream data from a computer to a headset wirelessly at dramatically faster speeds than traditional technology.

There have been a variety of approaches to solving this problem already. Smartphone-based headsets such as Google's Daydream View and Samsung's Gear VR allow for untethered VR by simply offloading the computational work directly to a phone inside the headset. Or the entire idea of VR backpacks, which allow for a more mobile VR experience by building a computer that's more easily carried. But there are still a lot of limitations to either of these solutions.

THE MOVR PROTOTYPE SIDESTEPS TETHERED VR ISSUES

Latency is the whole reason a wireless solution hasn't worked so far. VR is especially latency-sensitive, along with the huge bandwidth requirements that VR needs to display the level of high-resolution video required for virtual reality to work. But the MIT team claims that the millimeter wave signals can transmit fast enough to make a wireless VR headset feasible.



The issue with using millimeter wave technology is that the signal needs a direct line of sight, and fares poorly when it encounters any obstacles. MoVR gets around this by working as a programmable mirror that can direct the direction of the signal to the headset even while it’s moving to always make sure the signal is transmitting directly to the headset's receivers.

For now, the MoVR is simply a prototype, with the team hoping to further sh rink down the system to allow for multiple wireless headsets in one room without encountering signal interference. But even as a proof-of-concept, it's an interesting perspective on how virtual reality could one day work.

Three Styles Of Security Earpieces With Mics

If you are looking for a security earpiece with a mic, then you will need to know the varieties available out there. While some types are more expensive than others, what ultimately matters is the quality and durability of what you get at the end. Below is a look at what you get out there:



One wire kit

With this one, there is only a single wire, which emerges from the radio, runs through the PTT and then ends where the earpiece starts. This makes for a simple yet effective look. As for the length of the cable, the one wire kit has a piece that runs between 28 and 34 inches. This means that you have at your disposal a length sufficient to cover the distance between your ears and the waist without any kind of stretching or straining. Of course, the reach of every security earpiece will be determined by the height of the person wearing it . The one wire kit is great for an average height and will work for anyone 6 feet and below.

Most one wire kits come in the original D and G shapes. There are some fancier designs out there as well if that’s what you are looking for.

Two wire kits

As the name suggests, there are two wires involved in this scenario. One runs to the Push to Talk (PTT) button. The other runs up to the earpiece, making for a good looking dual connection. For the purposes of discretion, you are allowed to wear this cable partially disguised within your clothing. One wire will emerge from the radio, rising up your back to the ear in a way that keeps you comfortable. The other cable runs from the radio, up the length of your hands and terminates at the cuffs if you are wearing a lo ng-sleeved shirt or sweater. In terms of length, the two-wire kit is essentially the same as its one wire counterpart, with a reach of 30 to 34 inches. This accounts strictly for the length of each individual wire, and allows the unit to comfortably cover the areas between your waist and the ears. Two wire kits commonly come in the form of an acoustic tube that many who know a little about surveillance will be able to understand.

3 Wire kits

Here, you have three wires coming off the radio. The first wire will terminate where the earpiece is built. The second will end where the Push to Talk button is located. The last will end at a connection with the mic. As with the two wire kits, this one is worn under ordinary clothing, with a cable for the mic, earpiece and PTT button. There is really no standard length for all the three wires and there is no guarantee that all of them will be equal in length, but there is a sense of flexibility in the way you get to use the piec e. Always try on sample pieces before making a purchase at a store. Over the internet purchases are trickier but then the measurements will be highlighted long before you order.

Understanding the functionality of PTT technology

Push to Talk is a cutting-edge technology that allows for direct communication between parties at agreed-upon frequencies and distances. The greatest thing about PTT is that it switches communications from duplex to half duplex. This means people do not talk over each other but get to alternate between speaking and listening. PTT is able to loop in two or more speakers at an instance of communication, allowing for conference-like types of engagements between participants. This streamlines communication. Most enterprises prefer this approach to communication because there are no limitations in terms of allotted minutes. A s such, there is absolutely no need to stay within the confines of a data plan, which would be both expensive, inconvenient and rigid.

There is no such thing as a right security earpiece. What works for you may not work for all other parties across the board. While your budget matters a lot, you are looking for something that works optimally and stands the test of time. The three types mentioned above are alright if you are looking for something that works all the time. Remember, prices will vary across brands and models.

NFL investigating Giants for using two-way radio during game against Cowboys

Apparently using a two way radio during an American football game is frowned upon over in the good old US of A, This article is about a game between the Giants and the Cowboys. During a Game the coaching staff and Quarterback are not allowed to communicate if there is 15 seconds or less on the clock, this rule might have been broken with the use of a walkie talkie.

The NFL is investigating the Giants’ potentially rule-breaking use of a two-way radio during the team’s recent 10-7 win over the Dallas Cowboys.

The use of a two-way radio by a coach during a game is strictly against league rules, according to ESPN.



In the fourth quarter of the game, Giants head coach Ben McAdoo was spotted using a walkie-talkie to communicate play calls with Eli Manning after his headset malfunctioned.

The Cowboys issued a formal complaint to the league over the radio use, but the NFL’s investigation was already underway by the time Dallas contacted them.

The NFL has a rule against coaches using two-way handheld radios because the league cannot control when both parties are communicating.

A coach using a walkie-talkie makes it harder for the NFL to monitor a league rule that states communication from the sideline to the quarterback must end when 15 seconds are left on the play clock.

With headsets, the NFL has the power to shut off communication at will with a “cutoff switch operator,” ESPN reported.

The Giants had no comment when reached Thursday night.

McAdoo used the walkie talkie in question, however, for about four or five plays on the Giants’ fourth-quarter drive that ended in an Eli Manning interception on a pass intended for Victor Cruz.

McAdoo’s normal equipment malfunctioned and as the Giants worked to fix it, the coach was handed the walkie talkie temporarily because its signal was reaching Manning’s helmet.

As the Giants worked to correct McAdoo’s equipment, Odell Beckham Jr. could be seen running to the sideline to bring plays back to the huddle and Manning was heading over to the sideline, as well.

There is no evidence in reviewing the game film that demonstrates McAdoo was on the walkie talkie for longer than the allowed 15 seconds of communication with his quarterback.

There is also, of course, no evidence that the Giants gained any advantage even if he was. The drive ended in a turnover and the Giants’ offense stunk most of the night.