433 mhz license free

Ok -- promise, just one more question.

Any CHEAP certification labs? Like -- real cheap?

THANKS

Yes and No.

You as a manufacture must contract with a testing house to verify the device for FCC requirements.

So, if you understand all the FCC requirements and have a certified shop/lab, then yes you can do it your self.

I am sure you can develop a testing system that looks like an FCC lab did the testing. You may even get the FCC reviewer to pass you.

but get caught !!!!! ( shakes head slowly )

People do it all the time.

Good Luck, let us know how it works for you.

hamilton

ain't no way -- ANYTHING that emits RF (any frequency) needs to get FCC certification if it's a consumer product. Seems crazy if your just looking for

on/off and THAT'S it (much like a garage door opener etc).

manufacturer? But I need CHEAP.

Do you absolutely have to have rf? Maybe you could make your link some other way, IR or ultrasonic if you have line of sight between endpoints, and low data rates.

-bill

you know what? funny thing is, this part --

simply mounted in a plastic bud box with a battery and an antenna is all I need really. a switch that connects the battery to the module for on/off.

seems to me a certification lab would ok me for a case of beer.

and laugh at me for bringing it in.

Keep in mind that there are similar products already on the market. For example,

Not to discourage you from working on a DIY solution as a learning experience but realize it's going to be tough to compete commercially with a garage-built unit.

There used to be modules out there, a bit more expensive, that have controlled physical structure or attach by a cable, that are already compliant. I do not know who sells them these days.

Consider that the test gear is 20-30K$ new and you'll see why its a expensive service.

Steve

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lab etc).

mhz?

for

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rt

Aha - I realize now where you are misunderstanding. Different equipment gets authorized by different parts (or rule sets). Aircraft radios, for instance, are authorized by the rules set out in part 87. Part 15 is the rule set for things like garage door openers (stuff to be sold for unlicensed operation). So equipment authorized under part 87 does not need to comply with part 15.

I hope I was able to clear that up for you.

You've been given a lot of good advice. Bottom line is...wishing don't make it so.

The intent of the regulations is to make sure that stuff doesn't interfere with other stuff. And since it's one-size-fits-all, from any particular angle, it looks like overkill.

You can buy a certified module. But that does not relieve you of the responsibility to VERIFY that the finished product is in compliance.

Here's an example. Go to Best buy and buy a computer. Go to Staples and buy a monitor. Order some cables from ebay. Get the keyboard from Dell The mouse from HP. ALL these items will be certified. If you plug them together in your house, you're good to go...until someone complains that his TV has lines on it. The FCC truck shows up and traces the problem to your house. It's now your problem to fix it. Might be as simple as tightening the screws on your cables. OR removing that 200' usb cable you made out of phone wire and ran up to the weather station on the roof. Fines are steep, but you'd likely never incur any, unless you pissed off the inspector over a long period of time.

If you made a weather station product from all that stuff and sold it, You'd need to certify the system as a unit. If I bought one and it caused my neighbor's TV a problem, YOU'd be responsible to fix it. If you had valid test data, you'd just have to recall defective units and fix 'em. If you didn't have test data, you'd be in deeper water. If you never had any intention of testing, you'd be screwed.

As for test labs, google or the phone book should turn up some. Underwriters Labs used to do EMC testing along with the safety testing. If you have a friend in the business, you might be able to wrangle some test time to work out the kinks. But real paperwork is likely to cost you.

If you can, get a tour of a lab while they're testing something. I haven't done it in 20 years, but at that time, they strapped it down to a rotating table, adjusted the cables to maximize radiation and spun it around for maximum radiation relative to the antennas. And it'll be tested in an actual use scenario. An mp3 player will have headphones with the wires arranged for maximum radiation.

More than once, I had to modify a purchased assembly to make the system pass.

And we haven't even touched on the safety standards.

Product concept is the easy part. Product implementation is a little harder. Bringing that product to market is a bitch! You wanna get all that discovered BEFORE you invest anything.

If you want some light reading, check into the Winegard fiasco.

Are we having fun yet?

c).

BTW,

I looked at my Genie transmitter module and got the FCC ID : B8Q

and went here:

I entered the info and got the Authorization certificate here:

And you can see genie operates on 315MHz and 390 MHz.

That's a common interweb experience. Ask a vague question and ignore everything until you get the answer you want.

-- from everything you all say, ain't no way -- ANYTHING that emits RF (any frequency) needs to get FCC certification if it's a consumer product. Seems crazy if your just looking for 50 feet of distance and it's simple data -- RF would interfere more with analog stuff anyway right? Does analog still exist? (kidding).

on/off and THAT'S it (much like a garage door opener etc).

manufacturer?

You keep saying "garage door opener". If that's what you want, there a zillion devices with handheld remotes with push buttons. You have to look hard today to find any consumer device that doesn't come with a remote. You should be able to find an OEM certified remote vendor and put a receiver in your gizmo. Still has to be certified, but you don't have to manage the intentional radiator (transmitter) issues.

If that's NOT what you want, quit saying "much like a garage door opener." It just confuses people trying to help you.

But I need CHEAP. CHEAP is a futile wish. Cheap is an adjective that conveys nothing but your state of mind. Replace it with the budgeted number.

Or ask a question, then discard every valid answer, with some lame excuse "...an auditor from the FDA or another agency finds out, oh boy. Even if I store it under another name the action of changing something in there must be justified in writing and documented if working on a sensitive project."

I'm going to report Joerg to the FDA for changing the symbol >:-} ...Jim Thompson

Long ago I worked at the local electronics parts place. I had sales desk duty one day.

A lady called, the local two way radio guy tried to push his way into her house by force. Carrying a portable spec an. He had scared her so badly she was shaking. He had found a in-line TV booster/preamp oscillating in the attic. She told him to get off the property. He came back with a faxed FCC letter telling her she had just earned a

We wanted nothing to do with this, but she was scared to death. Her call was a bit logical. First page in the phone book under "TV Antenna" was AAA ******* Electronics. Husband out of town, etc. I told her to co-operate, but she wanted NO one in her house.

Being a good Ham, I brokered a deal between the president of his company, Her, and the FCC. The president of the company would stop by, buy a preamp from us, go apologize, explain why, and install it at her house. He'd call the FCC and ask to drop the fine. I told him his guy crossed the line with the aggression and failure to explain. He reluctantly agreed. She'd let them in and drop the trespassing/ forceful entry complaint. That worked.

Where the field guy got the macho balls to do all this, was the thing was oscillating on the receive end of a FBI repeater.

I'm betting some strings were pulled or a fake fax was made. I'll never know, I stayed behind my desk.

Normally the FCC has to witness the device in error. They then send out a notice of apparent liability. If you don't respond with an acceptable correction or recall, the letter demanding the fine appears, with instructions how to wire the money to a bank in Pittsburgh.

Still want to send out unapproved devices? google "FCC NAL" or "FCC Notice of Apparent Liability"

Quite a few are on line, with the fines listed.

That is why you want to follow the rules on a commercial product. The

Steve

etc).

See:

?-)

exactly -- 1 in 99,999 chance.

my last thinking was just to get a $10 wireless doorbell, that's already been certified, take it out of the plastic case and use it for my on/off.

at least if I get a call from the FCC I could say it WAS FCC approved. (the missing plastic case wouldn't influence it, if everything is stable).

c'mon FCC -- lighten up on these rules -- after all, look at the ton of hobbyist stuff they don't care about.

and by the way, I'm a general class ham too and have an FCC general radiotelephone.

funny -- you guys are right -- I was looking for the answer I wanted, I'm screwed, I know it.