RF Interference: Your Car Might Be the Source
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RF interference can come from the equipment you bring along to find it. In an excerpt from Elektor’s webinar A Practical Introduction to Interference Hunting, Paul Denisowski, Product Management Engineer at Rohde & Schwarz, explains how a car, its electronics, or even the phone in your pocket can complicate a field hunt. The discussion then moves into 4G and 5G receiver immunity, with a reminder of the unmistakable GSM buzz that once turned PC speakers into accidental incoming-call indicators.
RF Interference Can Start in Your Own Car
Denisowski’s first warning is simple: if you are driving around looking for an interferer and the signal level barely changes, the source may be the vehicle itself. Fuel pumps and other automotive electronics can radiate unwanted energy, and some vehicle systems continue operating for several minutes after the ignition is switched off.
The same caution applies to the equipment carried by the person doing the hunt. A phone transmitting over cellular or Wi-Fi can appear as another signal or overload a sensitive receiver. For anyone learning the practical side of RF measurements, Elektor’s introduction to real-time spectrum analysis provides useful background on why short-lived signals can be difficult to capture.
Receiver Immunity and 5G Signals
The conversation then turns to reports of digital television equipment misbehaving around cellular phones. Denisowski points to an older LTE example: some cable set-top boxes were designed before LTE became widespread and had not been tested for immunity against the bursty signal characteristics involved. The cellular transmitter could be operating within specification while the receiver lacked sufficient filtering or immunity.
The same principle can apply when investigating apparent 5G problems. A strong nearby signal is not automatically proof that the transmitter is faulty. The behavior of the affected receiver, its filtering, and its susceptibility to high peak-to-average signals all matter. Rohde & Schwarz covers the broader field techniques, including locating unwanted transmitters and dealing with complex mobile-network environments, in its interference hunting resources.
Watch the Full Interference Hunting Webinar
The full RF interference webinar goes well beyond the examples in this clip. Denisowski covers portable analyzers, directional antennas, heat maps, bearings, triangulation, sweeping, reflections, multipath, and the practical problem of gaining access to the place where the source is actually located. You can watch the complete webinar here.
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