Quiero saber acerca de...

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 7 / Tuesday, January 12, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES

site, i.e., HAAT is not defined for distances less than three kilometers. The majority of Sennheisers suggested separation distances are at distances of less than three kilometers, which is shorter than the distance 316
kilometers over which HAAT is defined. Moreover, because higher HAAT operations are expected to be coupled with higher power operations to reach greater distances, the rules require use of a directional antenna which will both direct energy towards the horizon rather than downward and minimize the energy outside the main beam. This, in effect, will minimize white space signal strength at nearby wireless microphones. Thus, the Commission does not believe there would be any benefit to wireless microphones by increasing the separation distance requirements. In fact, the directional antenna requirement may actually provide a better operating environment for wireless microphones in such situations.
Definition of Less Congested Area 39. In the NPRM, the Commission sought comment on whether any changes are necessary to the definition of less congested area given that many of the proposals were limited to those areas. Less congested locations are typically rural or semi-rural areas and are defined as those where at least half of the TV channels within a devices particular TV sub-band of operation i.e., the low VHF channels 26, the high VHF channels 713, or the UHF
channels 1436 band are unused for broadcast and other protected services and are available for white space device use. The Commission sought comment on whether the current definition is still appropriate, and if not, what the appropriate metric for defining less congested area would be. In addition, because the number of vacant channels at a location can vary based on the EIRP
and HAAT of a white space device, the Commission sought comment on whether it should define vacant channels depending on particular antenna height and power level.
40. The Commission will continue to define less congested areas as those where at least half of the TV channels in the bands that will continue to be allocated and assigned only for broadcast service are unused for broadcast and other protected services and available for white space device use. Areas where the spectrum is less congested generally correspond to rural and unserved areas that will benefit from improved broadband coverage, and the current definition provides a simple
VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:05 Jan 11, 2021

Jkt 253001

way for the white space database to identify these areas where the Commission permits higher power and antenna heights to improve broadband coverage. In addition, in areas where the spectrum is less congested, there is less likelihood that white space devices operating at higher power and antenna heights will cause interference to protected services in the TV band. The Commission agrees with wireless microphone operators that the current definition should be retained because spectrum is a scarce resource and it is therefore appropriate to base the definition on how much spectrum is available at a given location rather than population density.
41. Shure states that to the extent there are concerns about accounting for the number of vacant channels with variations in white space device EIRP
and HAAT, the Commission can address this by defining vacant channels at a particular antenna height and power level. While no party suggested a specific white space device EIRP and HAAT that should be used in determining TV channel availability, the Commission notes that it stated in the 2015 White Spaces Order that vacant channels would be defined as those available for fixed white space devices operating with an EIRP of 40 milliwatts and an HAAT of 3 meters, although it did not codify this decision. Since no party suggested specific criteria for determining channel availability in response to the NPRM, the Commission retains and codifies its 2015 decision by specifying the power and antenna heights used to determine TV channel availability in the definition of less congested area in 15.703.
42. In addition, the Commission clarifies the definition of less congested area by codifying its decision in the 2015 White Spaces Order that less congested areas are calculated by the white space database in the three TV bands separately: The low VHF band channels 26, the high VHF band channels 713 and the UHF
band channels 1436. The Commission declines to significantly modify the definition of less congested areas as suggested by some parties. For the reasons described above, the Commission finds that the current definition, with certain modifications, is the appropriate metric for determining which areas are less congested. The Commission also declines Dynamic Spectrum Alliances request to modify the definition of less congested area to consider all TV bands together low VHF, high VHF and UHF in determining vacant channel availability and whether an area qualifies as less
PO 00000

Frm 00043

Fmt 4700

Sfmt 4700

2285

congested. The higher frequency UHF
TV band 470608 MHz is more heavily used by TV stations, white space devices, and wireless microphones than the lower frequency VHF TV bands 54
72 MHz, 7688 MHz and 174216 MHz due to factors such as the shorter radio wavelengths and smaller required antennas. Moreover, because the TV
bands are not contiguous, determining less congested areas based on considering all TV bands together may not produce a result that is representative of the actual spectrum congestion in the specific band where a white space device will operate. Thus, the Commission believes it is appropriate to continue determining less congested areas on a band-byband approach, rather than by considering all TV bands together.
Higher Power Mobile Operation Within Geo-Fenced Areas 43. The white space rules permit two general classes of devices: Fixed and personal/portable, with personal/
portable devices further subdivided into two types: Mode I and Mode II. Fixed and Mode II personal/portable devices must incorporate a geo-location capability to determine their coordinates and access a database to determine the available channels at those specific coordinates. The current rules permit fixed white space devices to operate with up to 4 watts EIRP
generally, and up to 10 watts in less congested areas, which the Commission is increasing to 16 watts as discussed above. Personal/portable devices may operate with a maximum EIRP of 100 milliwatts. A Mode II
personal/portable device must re-check its coordinates every 60 seconds and contact the database for an updated list of available channels if it changes location by more than 100 meters.
Additionally, Mode II personal/portable devices may load channel availability information for multiple locations from the white space database and use that information to define a geographic area within which it can operate on a mobile basis on the same available channels at all locations within that geographic area; the device must contact the database again, however, if it moves beyond the boundary of the area where the channel availability information is valid. No device manufacturers or database systems have yet implemented this provision.
44. In the NPRM, the Commission proposed to allow white space devices to operate on TV channels 235 on mobile platforms within geo-fenced areas at higher power levels than the rules currently permit for personal/

E:FRFM12JAR1.SGM

12JAR1