SOCIETY OF MOTION PICTURE AND TELEVISION ENGINEERS

Detroit Section Meeting Notice

January 2021

Date: Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Time: 7:00 PM

Topic: Adventures in Channel Combining

Speakers: Jim Stenberg, Principal Engineer, RF Broadcast, American Tower Corporation

Location: Online via GoToMeeting – See below to obtain link to join

This presentation will familiarize the audience with some of the important features and issues related to multichannel combined RF system design and installation. We will examine the different types and characteristics of broadband antennas, transmission lines and channel combining systems used for TV and the tradeoffs necessary to successfully design and implement a system. Design examples from the recent TV spectrum auction/repack will be used for the discussion. It is intended to be a show and tell presentation with audience participation and questions desired.

Jim Stenberg is currently a principal engineer, RF broadcast, with the US Tower division of American Tower Corporation headquartered in Woburn, MA. He is responsible for RF engineering at the company’s numerous multitenant broadcast sites and supports broadcast sales efforts with new and existing customers on the company’s 40,000 plus towers in the US. Prior to joining ATC in 2013 Jim was the owner/operator of JS Engineering, an RF engineering and field service company which began operation in 2005. Before starting his own company Jim worked for several RF equipment manufacturers including Dielectric, Passive Power and MicroCommunications. Involved primarily in the research and design of antennas, transmission lines, and filters for TV and FM stations, he holds eight US patents for various RF products. Jim lives in Portland, Maine and holds a BSEE from the University of Lowell, MA. In 2020, he was awarded the 2020 NAB TV engineering achievement award for his 30 plus years of service in the industry.

The meeting will be held online. See below for connection details. If you are not a member of SMPTE or have an additional e-mail address, please join our groups.io group to receive meeting notices and other information from the Detroit Section.

Guests and non-members welcome – No admission charge

Please post on your company bulletin board or share with your colleagues electronically

Detroit Section Elections Coming Soon

The Detroit Section is led by a board of six Managers who, along with the Chair and Secretary-Treasurer, guide the affairs of the Section. The principal responsibility of the board is to plan and conduct our monthly meeting programs. As is customary, this spring we will elect a Chair, Secretary-Treasurer and three Managers.

• Managers serve a two-year term starting July 1. Their primary duty is to arrange one meeting program each year. This task is considerably easier now that we are meeting online, since there's no meeting location or Managers' dinner to organize.
• The Secretary-Treasurer serves for one year, handles the finances and submits a quarterly report to headquarters (again, with very little in-person activity there's not as much to handle), and also writes a short meeting report after each meeting (which are published in the Journal).
• The Section Chair serves for one year, coordinates everyone's efforts to make sure the meeting schedule is filled, and presides at Section meetings.

The time commitment is minimal, and the professional benefits are great. Nominations are open for these positions. If you are interested in helping the Detroit Section serve its members with interesting programming, or would like more information, and are a voting member of SMPTE (Professional or Life membership), please email Frank Maynard <fjmaynard@...> or use the Contact form on the Section website. Thank you!