Prepare Your Products for Successful Wireless Device Testing: Part 2 of 3

This is the 2nd part of Element's 3-part series, “Prepare Your Products for Successful Wireless Device Testing”. In this section, we address an additional wireless application, the multi-radio scenario.

Read "Prepare your products for successful wireless device testing: Part 1" here.

Scenario 2: The Modern-Day Multi-Radio Product

A frequent wireless testing scenario conducted at Element involves multiple radio devices in a single product.  A product containing more than one radio device will require additional testing.  We know that efficiency in your product qualification and certification is of upmost importance and that is why planning ahead to determine the correct testing and certification scenario is vital.  

When separately approved modules are combined into one product, new testing and new application are often necessary.

Radios that already have an FCC ID number

This is a great opportunity to engage your testing agent involved in the certification process . Element frequently assists customers who need to look up a radio’s FCC ID number. Our Engaged Experts can help you review and understand what the radio’s grant notes mean for the expected costs and timelines of your projects.  

FCC ID Grant Notes can address these questions

• Usage conditions 
• How will the product be used? 
• How close will the radio be from the user’s head or torso?
• Does the current ID number cover that usage?
• What kind of additional testing will be needed?

While many of our customers are already conducting exhaustive searches to find the proper radio with the feature set for their product needs, sometimes, product engineers will discover that the testing and certification that’s been conducted is not adequate for the radio as its being used in the product.  When this happens a decision must be made between continuing to work with the product and searching for a new module. 

Even in the case that the Grant notes request additional testing needed, it is not typically efficient to find a different radio module at this stage in the product development. By working closely with Element’s Engaged Experts you can ensure the testing strategy selected will provide the greatest value.

The options available to you

If your product is an approved module that requires modification to the grant, there are three options:

Change of ID followed by a Class II Permissive Change

Change of ID is an FCC authorization process where an existing grant is copied from the radio manufacturer (original grant holder) to a new a new FCC ID for a new grant holder (system manufacturer).

Download of public exhibits from manufacturer’s application

All public-domain exhibits from the FCC website may be downloaded to support the new application. To complete the new application for certification, it will be necessary to contact the original module manufacturer (grant holder) to get any confidential exhibits such as schematics, frequency block diagrams and operational description supplied directly to the TCB (under a non-disclosure agreement).

Agent authorization

Agent authorization includes obtaining a signed document from the module manufacturer (grant holder) in order to make a Class II Permissive change to the application.

Engage with the wireless testing experts at Element

When choosing between starting over and continuing on with the same product, starting from scratch is often not the best choice. By choosing one of the above options, product developers can often save a significant amount of money. Element can help guide you as well as provide coaching and sample letters for agent authorization and additional resources.

Engage with an Expert at Element today for more information about wireless testing.