REC Systems: May 2017 Updates

REC is starting our 2017 major updates to our systems.  There are several major objectives to these updates:

  • Implement the new FCC Contours API that give the REC systems better access to the information that the FCC uses when evaluating applications.
  • Make more changes to myLPFM to accommodate LPFM stations while the service is in "lifecycle" mode (no foreseen fling window) and to implement measures that reduce information theft.
  • Address the elevation "over the limit" issue in myLPFM.
  • Complete the translation denpahoso.com, the Japanese version of fccdata.org.
  • Address system load issues across the entire system universe.

Please note that REC does "live environment" development which means at times, you may see a system act strangely during this period.  If we predict that a tool will not be operating correctly, especially during weekday business hours.  Our goal is to limit development on business hour critical systems (fcc.today, FCCdata.org, etc.) to outside of business hours (EDT).  

This log will be updated as changes are made.

May 21

myLPFM & TowerFind: Revising the tower database.  The database will no longer pull from the ULS land mobile records.  ASR data will pull from the FCC once per week on Sundays.  The only records will be towers with ASRs as well as non-ASR towers from American Tower and SBA.  We now have May, 2017 vintage tower data from American and SBA.  American and SBA will continue to be manual updates.  This will impact the display of towers in myLPFM and on REC's TowerFind application.

May 17

FCCdata & denpahoso: Updated external links to FCC history cards.

May 14

denpahoso: Added translations to map captions. On FCC broadcast facilities where there are more than one active engineering record, it will show the application reference number in the map caption.  This function has been added to denpahoso and will eventually get added to FCCdata.  UK/Ireland facility support has been translated.  Other than some minor aestetic changes, this completes the work for denpahoso.   Denpahoso launched.

May 13

denpahoso: Translated remaining FCC broadcast functionality except LMS application indicators. Google maps on denpahoso.com will now display in Japanese as the primary language.

May 11

FCC.today: Restoral of FCC Media Bureau news items on the page.

denpahoso: Translated FCC FM and analog TV application indicators. 

May 10

denpahoso: FCC broadcast records remainder of left side of facility screen including DTV channel elections, LPFM time sharing, call sign history and translator cross reference.

May 9

denpahoso: Translated FCC TV (CDBS & LMS) and AM.  Added new functionality to display dates in Japanese format <year>年<month>月<date>日 ... 2017年05月09日.  The new date format will be used as we translate functionality.

May 8

denpahoso: Translated FCC FM.  Starting work on FCC TV. 

May 7

myLPFM: All URL shortcodes that were issued prior to 5/7/2017 have been deleted.  This will clear over 200K dormant records from the database.  URL shortcodes will be going on a program where if they are not used in the past 90 days, they will be deleted.  These shortcodes are intended to allow users to copy and paste a shorter URL of a myLPFM result when corresponding with REC or others.  Channel reports (analysis) must be accessed by doing a search and getting a shortcode assigned. Direct channel reports/analysis based on direct entry of coordinates will no longer be permitted (again, this is to address rogue bots..  it also allows us to build functionality centered around the shortcode..)  ["Shortcode" is the up to 6 character designator that identifies a particular location and parameters. You see that in big writing on the screen and you can access a specific result by using http://lpfm.ws/? followed by the shortcode.]

myLPFM: Service area screen now shows the size of the protected service contour in square miles and the population based on data from the FCC contour API.

myLPFM: Access to myLPFM has been restricted to the United States (including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands), Canada and Japan.  This is to address a large amount of bot and spider activity which bogs down the entire system.  This site really should have no interest to users outside of FCC juristiction.  If your IP address is appearing as a Foreign Request and you represent an LPFM station or prospective licensee, please contact REC and provide your IP address and other info.  We plan to continue to provide FCCdata and denpahoso worldwide.

myLPFM: Population study updated to use numbers from the FCC contour API based on actual 60 dBu protected contour.  If antenna height has not been selected yet, it will default the population study to a 10 meter (30 foot) antenna height.  Tribal lands population removed as this only worked in a small section of the country and its inclusion was based on REC comments in the 2012 rulemakings.  Demographic data has been retained and is based on census blocks within a 4 mile radius of the evaluation site. regardless of the station's site pattern.

FCCdata & denpahoso: LPFM Channel Report links removed as myLPFM no longer provides channel reports (see April 30 note). 

denpahoso: Started working on the FCC broadcast module. Translated the facility header and the AM History Grid View.   [denpahoso.com is REC's Japanese language presentation of fccdata.org which is currently under construction.]

May 6

MyLPFM: The service area screen (the map of the 60 dBu service contour) has been converted to retrieve data from the FCC's web service.  In the FCC's service that makes contours, it returns HAATs for radials under 30 meters as 30 meters.  We have added "<30" in those fields.  We may come back later and also run the HAAT service in order to get a more accurate HAAT in those fields.   We have also added functionality in the Mexican border "strip" zone to indicate the radials that are within 125 km of the border (for which the Mexican agreement applies).  Along radials within 125 km of the border, if the distance to the 60 dBu contour is greater than 8.7 kilometers, the value will appear in red and will advise to contact REC for assistance.  

FCC API interface: Due to a huge bug in the FCC's elevation service, we are defaulting all elevation calls to use GLOBE30 data instead of NED 1/3.  

May 4

Database: Substantially improved the resolution of geographic locations along the Mexican border from El Paso to the Pacific.  This allows us to better measure distances to the border and provide better services to stations and applicants in the Mexico Strip Zone.  The border in Texas is already substantially detailed with data points.

May 2

FCCdata: Added application ID display to FCC AM records. This is needed for an REC internal process.

April 30

MyLPFM: Implemented the FCC's elevation service.  This tool will drive elevation from several accepted elevation models including the National Elevation Datasets at 1/3 arc second (ned_13, default), 1 arc second (ned_1), 2 arc second (ned_2, which is used for Alaska), GLOBE data (globe30) and US Geological Survey (usgs) data.  If you wish to override the default elevation model, add the parameter &elev_model= to your URL after bringing the search up.  For example, the use the GLOBE elevation model, add &elev_model=globe30 to the fully qualified URL (which includes the &shc parameter).   If you wish to still use the Google elevation, use the parameter &elev_model=google.  Whichever elevation model used will be saved with the short code.

MyLPFM: Removed a restriction that disallowed LP-100 service at HAATs above 450 meters.  At those heights, the FCC will grant one watt ERP.  (§73.811(a)).

MyLPFM: [Site Details] button renamed [Antenna Height].  This functionality has been simplified to no longer require the structure type.  Now, it only asks for radiation center height (which drives your HAAT, assgined ERP, service contour maps, etc.) and your overall antenna height (which drives the TOWAIR runway functionaity and AM facility compliance).   The older functionality was related to radio frequency radiation functionality that was depreciated several years ago and therefore is no longer necessary.  It is possible that if you have a location saved using a short URL, you may need to re-enter your radiation center and overall height.  Once you re-enter it, it will be saved for that short URL. 

MyLPFM: Channel Report, Interference & Second Adjacent Waiver has been replaced by a single [Channel Analysis] button.  Channel Anaysis gives a summary decision for each channel adjacency with symbols and color coding to determine availability.  The analysis will still show the call letters of short spaced and interference stations as well as those stations needing a third-adjacent channel announcement.  The second adjacent channel overlap zone is now measured based on a scale from 1 to 6, 6 being the largest (and therefore the most difficult).  Difficulty is based on the inward field strength.  We have also cleaned out some code left over from the 2013 window (related to dismissable translators, etc.).  

Screenshot of myLPFM with 4-30-17 modifications