what direction do satellite antenna need to point?

How to Marshal a Satellite Dish Antenna

November 24, 2011

Since all satellites for TVRO and DTH (Directly To Home) are in geostationary orbit, they are positioned on an imaginary arc (now chosen the Clarke Belt in honor of Arthur C. Clarke) about 22,500 miles higher up the equator. This means a satellite dish ever points upwards and in the management of the i.e. generally southwards.

From the tabular array below will provide you the suggested dish size corresponding to the Effective Isotropically Radiated Power (EIRP) and value tin can be determined from the Satellite'south human foot print.

For example, you are interested to receive the program "Pinoy Extreme Philippines". This Free-to-Air (FTA) program can be institute at ABS ane satellite in the horizontal polarity. You can go to this website, www.lyngsat.com to know more about the said costless-to-air plan. Considering that your headend is in Luzon, based on the satellite'due south foot print the EIRP is effectually 36 dBW.

Effigy ii. ABS ane Satellite'due south A(Standard) Beam | 31-38 dBW

From Table i, with an EIRP of 36 dBW, y'all need a 3.5 m (approx.12 ft.) diameter dish antenna in order to receive a top course reception. Have the values from the SMATV cavalcade considering you are going to re-broadcast the signal. If information technology is for home use, y'all can take the values from the DTH size cavalcade.

Terminology: Elevation and Azimuth

The up and down angle is called "Elevation".

Figure 3a

The e and west rotation angle is called "Azimuth".

Effigy 3b

Start Dishes: A give-and-take of Alert

An offset dish may announced to betoken downwards!

Figure 4

Offset dishes may appear to be pointed low towards the horizon, when in fact they are aiming at much high superlative as shown in the in a higher place diagram.

How to determine the look angles of a Satellite?
There are many means of getting the wait angles of a Satellite. One method is by mathematical computation wherein you need the Satellite'south orbital location and also your headend's latitude and longitude. Sometimes these parameters are non readily available and it takes you quite sometime in determining the Satellite'due south look angles. I propose that y'all utilize this method which does not involve ciphering but rather requires you to browse the Net.

You can go to this website, www.dishpointer.com and it will bring you to the Satellite Finder/Dish Pointing figurer with Google maps. Just input your location i.east. San Fernando, Pampanga and select from the list of Satellites available that yous are interested in, and then click get. Effigy 5 shows the graphical result of the Dish Pointer.

Figure five

Getting Started
If you've never aligned a dish before, it can be very frustrating, particularly if you don't have a signal meter of some sort. Yous may well stop-up thinking the receiver is faulty. Digital channels are either "on" or "off" and do not fade in or out gradually like counterpart signals, farther calculation to the difficulty. Waving a dish about in the deluded promise that you lot will somehow find the right location without either setting the elevation angle or knowing the azimuth angle is a complete and utter waste of time. Nevertheless, if you follow the steps outlined beneath you will succeed… somewhen!

i. Attach the F-connectors – Make sure that the cablevision and F-connectors are properly fitted. The inner cadre of the coax cable and the outer braid must never come up in contact with each other.

two. Set the acme angle – Considering panning your Satellite dish to ABS 1, the said satellite is located 75.0 degrees east and as well this is where Pinoy Extreme is transmitted from. For Pampanga, the dish elevation for ABS 1 is approximately 35.iii degrees (from the dish pointer). Using your angle meter (shown in Figure 7), set the superlative angle of the Satellite dish.

Most kickoff dishes accept an top calibration on the mounting subclass which allows you to arrange the dish to the correct elevation as shown in Figure half-dozen.

Set this to approximately 35.3 degrees then tighten the nut.

For satellite other than ABS one, a listing of the different satellites tin be plant at www.lyngsat.com.

3. Melody your receiver – If y'all don't have a signal meter, you volition have to apply your receiver'due south on-screen meter. Firstly, brand certain you are tuned to an active aqueduct or transponder and that all the parameters are correct – Frequency: 3829 Mhz, Symbol Rate: 11111 Msps, Polarization: Horizontal (FEC Auto or 3/4). For MPEG 4 programs, you should exist aware if the receiver supports or compatible with the video format otherwise the bespeak quality will not be shown.

You may accept to enter the Set-upwards/installation menu in club to have a abiding display of the meter.

Effigy 8. On-screen meter

Notation that the Signal Quality level is the important guide, not Bespeak Strength level!

4. Aim the dish – A compass can be used to become a rough idea of where to aim the dish but think to proceed the compass away from the metal dish. The Dishpointer tool in Effigy v above is specially helpful.

Figure 9. Magnetic compass

Alternatively, you can use a calculated sunpass time for the satellite i.e. the time at which the sunday'south azimuth is the same as the satellite. A detailed explanation on how to locate a satellite using the position of the sun is provided.

v. Rotate the dish – Slowly move the dish east or west incrementally until you lot detect some activity on the receiver meter settings. If you rotate the dish as well quickly, you volition run past the satellite every bit in that location is a usually a minor lag before the receiver quality meter reacts. When you practise come across activeness on the meter, rotate the dish nigh that betoken until the level is at a maximum. Lock the dish into identify.

half dozen. Optimize the elevation – With the dish pointing in the correct direction, readjust the elevation every bit per 2 until the quality is at a maximum.

vii. Set the skew angle – Equally you face the dish, rotate or twist the LNB clockwise for an easterly satellite or anti-clockwise for a westerly satellite until the quality is again maximized. This can make a very significant improvement to the betoken quality and should not be overlooked!

8. QED – Finished! If some channels are missing, and then do a aqueduct search to update the receiver's database.

dillbehen1982.blogspot.com

Source: https://pcta.org.ph/how-to-align-a-satellite-dish-antenna/