Radio Communications

What is RADIO COMMUNICATIONS testing?

For marine radio and navigational equipment to be sold worldwide, it is a legal requirement to ensure that such devices are compliant with radio frequency (RF) test standards. Not only do these complex requirements vary from region to region, they also apply to both manufacturers and the persons responsible for placing such a device on the market.

RF testing ensures that radio and telecommunications equipment does not interfere with other users of the spectrum. Tests should therefore prove that a device supports the efficient use of shared or adjacent channels. This means that a transmitter on radio equipment must only generate radio wave emissions that do not produce harmful interference. Likewise, a receiver must be shown to have a performance level that allows it to operate as intended without the risk of harmful interference. Further tests are also usually required to verify that a wireless device meets local regulations relating to EMC, electrical safety and RF physical tests & exposure limits.

Why is RADIO COMMUNICATIONS testing Important?

RF compliance is a mandatory requirement in most international markets, including the European Union, USA, Canada, Australia and Japan. This means that for wireless devices to be legally sold they must comply with the regulations of a manufacturer’s intended markets. This also applies to wireless devices that are integrated into a final product. Compliance failures can result in costly market recalls or product reworks, and also cause significant time to market delays.

Why choose TÜV SÜD for RADIO COMMUNICATIONS testing?

As an experienced RF testing and certification body, TÜV SÜD can support you in achieving compliance with international radio frequency standards. The experts within our DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025 accredited, global laboratory network use advanced test equipment to support you from pre-compliance investigation and de-bugging sessions right through to full compliance and conformance testing. By helping you to improve product performance and identify any RF-related design flaws during the product development cycle, the prospects of a successful formal test are greatly increased.

As our experts are always up to date with any regulatory changes, they can efficiently support you with meeting the relevant test and certification requirements. This will minimise any time to market delays, helping you to access global markets more easily and strengthen your competitive position in the market.

TÜV SÜD’s Services

TÜV SÜD offers the complete range of marine equipment RF test and certification services, including compliance with the Marine Equipment Directive (MED), Radio Equipment Directive (RED), FCC and ISED Canada. Our fully equipped test laboratories cover every aspect of required tests under one roof, helping you to achieve market access more quickly for a wide range of marine telecommunications equipment including:

• VHF/UHF radios
• MF/HF radios
• Digital selective calling (DSC)
• Satellite Communications
• Navtex

Typical physical layer tests as part of our comprehensive radio frequency test capabilities include, but are not limited to:

Transmitter tests

• Output power
• Adjacent channel leakage power ratio
• Power spectral density
• Spectrum emission mask
• Occupied channel bandwidth
• Frequency stability / error
• Radiated band edge
• Duty cycle
• Modulation bandwidth
• Transmitter unwanted emissions in the out-of-band or spurious domain

Receiver tests

• Sensitivity
• Adjacent channel / frequency band selectivity
• Receiver spurious emissions
• Receiver intermodulation
• Blocking