WT4 Millimeter Waveguide System: Reliability and Maintenance of the WT4 Transmission Medium

The maintenance plans for the WT4 transmission medium are unique when compared to other operational waveguide maintenance systems and conventional coaxial cable maintenance systems. Very high reliability and very low-cost on-going maintenance are achieved without high first-cost access points (manholes) and monitoring devices between the widely spaced repeater stations. Elimination of the access points and monitoring devices was made possible by developing techniques and methods to: (t) Locate electrical faults in the waveguide with accuracy of a few meters when testing from repeater stations up to 20 miles from the fault. (ii) Localize leaks in the waveguide sheath when testing from repeater station up to 20 miles from the leak. 2035 {iii) Minimize water ingress into the waveguide in the event of a waveguide rupture. (iu) Restore damaged waveguide to service very quickly. The developments are part of a totally integrated maintenance plan which takes maximum advantage of the very rugged steel sheath to provide the reliability required for the high-capacity WT4 system. This paper discusses the WT4 transmission medium reliability and the steps that were taken to control medium outage. II. RELIABILITY OF THE WT4 TRANSMISSION SYSTEM 2.1 General