Technology

The Commonwealth of Kentucky owns and maintains approximately 135 microwave radio tower sites across the Commonwealth.  The microwave towers are strategically located throughout the Commonwealth and offer exceptional microwave point to point transmit/receive capabilities that are robust, efficient and reliable.  The microwave infrastructure is used to interconnect RF towers together giving the user the capability to link and seamlessly communicate statewide.

A typical backbone site has a 6GHz radio, 2GHz spur radio, video radio, and Granger mux.

The protection system handles single failures as well as double failures that do not occur on a common leg (two of the three RF paths at sites 1 (Frankfort) and site 17 (Sumerset) can fail without causing a complete system outage). A catastrophic failure of an entire repeater site will affect communications at that site, and any spurs which feed it.
 
Frankfort is the loop control terminal where all loop system pilot detectors, pilot oscillators, and master loop switches are located. The loop protection equipment is designed for fail-safe operation so that an open fuse, or failure of a loop control device, will not cause closed loop regeneration.

Each loop pilot oscillator, pilot detector, master loop switch, and repeater loop switch is alarmed. The alarms are reported back to the emergency operations center to monitor the loop status, assist in fault location, and minimize the possibility of a "silent failure" which might otherwise go unnoticed.

Loop pilot detectors at site 1 are arranged so that automatic switching does not occur unless two incoming pilots are absent. This prevents the failure of a loop pilot oscillator from causing closed loop regeneration.
 
Each loop pilot oscillator and detector has its own alarm relay for connection to the alarm reporting system. Master and repeater loop switches are also alarmed. AU loop switches are relays, arranged with coils energized in the pass position. At repeater sites, a power failure or open fuse will break the baseband path and initiate automatic loop switching.
 
At site 1, an open fuse on normally pass switch A or B will initiate switching and generate an alarm. Switches C and D are normally de-energized and blocked, so a fuse failure will not initiate switching.

In addition, approximately 96 of the 135 tower sites are also used for voice Radio Frequency (RF) broadcast transmit/receive traffic for public safety agencies such as the Kentucky State Police, Department of Military Affairs, Kentucky Emergency Management, Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, and Department of Natural Resources.