Have you ever wondered how you are getting text messages, calls, and even using mobile data? Where do these things come from? You might not notice at first glance but acquiring a phone signal is actually a complicated process. The process starts with a cell tower. If you want to have a better understanding of how signals are acquired, it is important to know where it starts – the Cell Tower.
A cell tower is made up of electronic communications equipment and an antenna that supports the electronic transfer of information into the network. It appears elevated and the topmost portion has an antenna, receivers, and transmitters. It is also called a cell site or cellular tower.
The main function of a cell tower is to receive and transmit the radio-frequency signals from the cell site to other phones and devices. It also regulates proper elevation into different antennas. There are times in which cell sites are camouflaged as flagpoles and trees to accommodate the aesthetic concerns of the community. Cell towers are usually stationed near a road and a telecommunications network also needs to be easily accessible together with electrical power. Different mobile service providers usually configure neighboring cell towers just to utilize a variety of frequencies. This will help avoid confusion with other handsets.
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How Far Can a Cell Tower Be for a Cellphone to Pick Up the Signal?
There are a variety of factors that influence the maximum distance as to how far a cellphone tower gives the signal to cell phones. The cellphone network cell’s size, the connecting technology, the network’s design capacity, the connecting technology, and the landscape feature all play a major role in this. There are times when a cell tower is placed in a low power so it won’t interfere with other cell sites nearby.
Most of the time, cell phones can pick up a signal from a cell tower that is 45 miles away. These are the maximum distances that a cell phone signal could reach. The distance could go as low as 22 miles, depending on the technology that your cell phone network has.
There are also sources of interference with cell phone signals. The frequency range of these signals traveling on a straight line also encounters limited penetration capabilities. Interference could weaken the signal and because of this, cell phones may not be reachable even when the cell tower is quite close. The most common sources of interference include trees, hills, and manmade structures like tunnels, walls, and buildings.
How do cell towers find your phone?
Usually, cell towers are placed in an area that can cover a wide range of users. The usually working range of a cell tower depends on several factors. This includes the following;
- Rated power of the transmitter
- Geographical or regulatory factors
- Frequency of signal
- Weather conditions
- Height of the antenna above its surroundings
- Absorption of the radio energy against the nearby buildings
- Height of the antenna
- The needed uplink and downlink data
Most of the time, you will see a cell phone tower in geographical locations where there is a huge population that uses cell phones. This will help to avoid saturation on the available capacity, resulting in unhappy consumers and busy signals. Normally, cell phones are designed to know the nearest cell phone tower. You can see this as the signal strength in your mobile phones. This represents the strength of connectivity of the location of the user and the nearest cell tower that provides a signal in the area.
There is a receiving antenna in the cell tower. This automatically picks up a radio signal which is then transmitted to the cellphones of different users. Once it finds the caller, it then transmits the radio signal back to the cellphone user to establish communication and vice versa.
Do Cell Towers Need Power?
Yes, cell towers need power. They run on electricity. That is why, when the power goes out, some cellular services shut down. However, nowadays, cell towers are equipped with generator backup, battery backup, or both that are running for 24 to 48 hours even without batteries getting recharged or refilling the generator. As long as the generator is readily accessible as well as the supply of fuel, there will be no problem in running the cell tower even without electricity.