WHAT IS THE FUNCTION OF MF/HF DSC

Digital selective calling or DSC is a

standard for transmitting pre-defined
digital messages via the medium-
frequency (MF), high-frequency (HF)
and very-high-frequency (VHF)
maritime radio systems. It is a core
part of the Global Maritime Distress
Safety System (GMDSS).
WHAT ISTHE BASIS of MF/HF RADIO

The basis of MF/HF radio. MF/HF RT

radio is often known as SSB radio. It
is a transmitting-receiving system
often referred to as a Transceiver
(Tx/Rx), which allows the operator to
either transmit or receive information
by voice. MF/HF radios use SSB
modulation for voice communication.
One of the greater
disadvantages of an 
MF/HF RT radio is that it is not
able to "address" a particular
radio. A voice broadcasted
over MF/HF RT radio can be
heard by all other MF/HFradios
within range.
 VHF RADIO WITH DIGITAL SELECTIVE
CALLING (DSC)

The VHF radio (very high frequency) is the

most common emergency marine
communications device, and with good
reason: It’s simple to operate,
communications go both ways, and, with a
properly installed DSC-equipped VHF
(digital selective calling), when a boater hits
the panic button, the U.S. Coast Guard will
automatically know who the boater is, get
the exact GPS position (if attached to a GPS
unit), and know the boater is in distress.
Every VHF marine radio
manufactured for the last several
years has digital selective calling.
DSC allows the radio to transfer
information digitally, not just by
voice, and to instantly send a digital
distress alert to the Coast Guard.
Part of that alert is a nine-digit
Maritime Mobile Service Identity
(MMSI) number that identifies the
boat. 
The MMSI number is like a phone
number for the boat, and all DSC
capable equipment, including
Automatic Information System (AIS)
units associated with the specific
vessel should use the same MMSI
number, since the MMSI serves to
identify the vessel, not the
equipment.
The DSC radio retransmits any
emergency signals received, so as
long as another boat with a VHF-
DSC radio receives the
transmission, the effective range of
a distress call can be many times
greater than an individual boat’s
VHF range. 
Finally, a VHF-DSC radio must be
properly interfaced with the boat’s
GPS to give position data—
something the Coast Guard
estimates eight out of 10 boaters fail
to do—and it must be registered
with a Maritime Mobile Service
Identity (MMSI) number.
Definition of Frequency
Have you ever wondered why the sky
is blue? Or, more to the point, why
anything has a color in the first
place? Your father's voice might
have been deep, and your mother's
voice not so deep. Whether it's
colors, or the notes on a piano, these
things are all explained by
frequency.
Usually frequency is measured in
the hertz unit, named in honor of the
19th-century German physicist
Heinrich Rudolf Hertz. The hertz
measurement, abbreviated Hz, is the
number of waves that pass by per
second.
Frequency is a property of a wave.
We are surrounded by waves every
day. Light is an electromagnetic
wave, and the sound of the fan in
your computer is a sound wave.
A wave is a vibration that carries
energy with it. The frequency of a
wave is the number of waves that
pass by each second, and is
measured in Hertz (Hz). For example,
a sound wave might have a
frequency of 450 Hz.
The unit of frequency is the hertz (Hz).
One hertz is one cycle per second. The
following units of frequency are used in
the radio communication:

1 kHz (Kilo Hertz) = 1 000 Hz

1 MHz (Mega Hertz) = 1 000 kHz = 1 000 000 Hz
1 GHz (Giga Hertz) = 1 000 MHz = 1 000 000 000 Hz
 THE FOLLOWING TABLE CAN BE USED AS A
ROUGH GUIDE TO SELECT A PROPER
FREQUENCY BAND
COMMUNICATION
RANGE / MILES S/DAY S/NIGHT W/DAY W/NIGHT
300 – 600 6MHz 4MHz 4MHz 2MHz
800 – 1600 12MHz 8MHz 8MHz 6MHz
2000 – 3000 16MHz 8MHz 12MHz 8MHz
4000 – 5000 22-25MHz 12MHz 16MHz 8MHz
Frequency in Light
Light is an electromagnetic wave; it
is a vibration in electric and
magnetic fields. Because of this, it
can travel through the vacuum of
space, and thank goodness for
that! If that wasn't the case, we
would get no heat from the sun,
and life on Earth would be
impossible.
There are more wavelengths
than we see with human eyes. A
full continuous spectrum would
include radio waves,
microwaves, infrared,
ultraviolet, x-rays, and gamma
rays. The diagram on your
screen shows the full
electromagnetic spectrum and
everything it contains.
Frequency tells you the color of
light. High frequency light waves are
at the blue end of the spectrum, and
low frequency light waves are at the
red end of the spectrum. Our eyes
detect the frequency of the light,
and our brains interpret it as color.
Some philosophers have thought
that perhaps color itself only exists
in our brains; unfortunately, we have
no way of knowing for sure.
Frequency in Sound
Sound waves are wave vibrations in
the air. When you slap your hand on
the desk, it causes the desk to
vibrate, which causes the air to
vibrate. The air particles hit each
other until they reach your ear,
making your ear drum vibrate. Your
ear drum then sends a signal to
your brain. It's your brain that
interprets these vibrations.
Example: If an alternating current is said
to have a frequency of 5 Hz (see diagram
below), that indicates its waveform
repeats 5 times in 1 second.
Frequency is typically used to describe
electrical equipment operation. Below are
some common frequency ranges:
Power line frequency (normally 50 Hz or 60 Hz).
Variable-frequency drives, which normally use
a 1-20 kilohertz (kHz) carrier frequency.
Audio frequency range: 15 Hz to 20 kHz (the
range of human hearing).
Radio frequency: 30-300 kHz.
Low frequency: 300 kHz to 3 megahertz (MHz).
Medium frequency: 3-30 MHz.
High frequency: 30-300 MHz.
Light is measured by its
wavelength (in nanometers)
or frequency (in Hertz). One
wavelength. equals the distance
between two successive
wave crests or troughs.
Frequency (Hertz) equals the
number of waves that passes a
given point per second.
 Period – a period or Cycle, is the time it
takes for a wave to move from zero to 360º.
Radio Frequency Spectrum
The radio frequency spectrum is divided into
frequency bands. The major bands used in the
Maritime communications are
 DISTRESS FREQUENCIES
Digital Selective Radiotelephony Radiotelex
Calling (DSC)

VHF Channel 70 Channel 16

MF 2187.5 kHz 2182.0 kHz 2174.5 kHz
HF 4 4207.5 kHz 4125.0 kHz 4177.5 kHz
HF 6 6312.0 kHz 6215.0 kHz 6268.0 kHz
HF 8 8414.5 kHz 8291.0 kHz 8376.5 kHz
HF 12 12577.0 kHz 12290.0 kHz 12520.0 kHz
HF 16 16804.5 kHz 16420.0 kHz 16695.0 kHz
TERRESTRIAL COMMUNICATIONS
Principles and Basic Features of the
Maritime Mobile Service
Radio Waves
Parameters of Alternating Current
An alternating current is one which is
constantly changing in magnitude and
direction of flow with the maximum, fall
back to zero and rise once again to its
maximum in the reverse direction and
back to zero over a given time
constitutes a cycle, or period.
Electromagnetic Field
The alternating currents and
voltages of high frequencies (more
than 15 kHz) are used in the radio
communication. Such currents and
voltages produced in the aerial of a
radio transmitter create radio
waves. These radio waves radiate
from the aerial
Radio waves are electromagnetic
waves which propagate through
space with the velocity of light, 300 x
10⁶ meters per second. The distance
from one wave top to another one is
known as the wavelength. The
relationship between the velocity of
light (c), frequency (f) and
wavelength (λ) is:
f = c/ λ
where:
f is measured in Hz;
c = 300 x 106 m/s;
λ is measured in meters.
One can see that the longer
wavelength corresponds to lower
frequency and shorter wavelength
to higher frequency
 WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN VHF AND HF
Frequencies immediately below HF are
denoted medium frequency (MF), while
the next band of higher frequencies is
known as the very high frequency (VHF)
band. The HF band is a major part of the
shortwave band of frequencies, so
communication at these frequencies is
often called shortwave radio.