Motorola Minitor 3 Manual

							 
1 
a
 
USER’S GUIDE
 
SELECTIVE CALL
ALERT MONITOR
RECEIVER
 
Minitor TIC Book  Page 1  Friday, January 9, 1998  8:10 AM 
						

							 
2 INTRODUCTION 
Congratulations on your purchase of the
Motorola MINITOR III Alert Monitor. Motor-
ola’s advanced technology offers unique fea-
tures and benefits that set the industry
standards for performance, reliability, and styl-
ing. The compact alert monitor is offered in a
variety of models including:
• One-Frequency Standard.
• One-Frequency Standard with VIBRA-
Page™.
• Two-Frequency with Scan.
• Two-Frequency with Scan and VIBRA-
Page.
Other options are available to provide a wide
selection of features and special applications. 
INSPECTION 
Verify the model number and customer spe-
cific information located on the label on the
back of the alert monitor.
Inspect the equipment thoroughly. If any part
of the equipment has been damaged in tran-
sit, report the extent of the damage to the
transportation company immediately.  
BATTERY TYPES 
The alert monitor is powered by two recharge-
able Nickel-Cadmium or two alkaline ‘AAA’
size batteries. 
BATTERY INSTALLATION 
NOTE  
For optimum performance, the
nickel-cadmium batteries must be
fully charged before operating your
alert monitor. 
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3 
Install your batteries as follows:
1.  
Slide the battery door latch towards the top
of the alert monitor to unlock the battery
door.  
2.  
Push up on battery door, then swing open.  
3.  
Observing the correct polarities, insert the
batteries into the battery compartment.  
4.  
Close the battery door, push down into
place, then slide the door latch to the
locked position.
Slide latch to
unlock battery
door
Push up on
battery door
then swing
open 1.
2.
Battery/Programmer
Contacts
Battery
polarities
+ -
Install
batteries 3.
are shown
on battery
door
 
aa
 
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4 
CAUTION  
If the batteries are improperly
installed, the alert monitor will not
function and the batteries will not
charge. 
STANDARD FEATURES AND 
CONTROLS (All Models) 
ON/OFF Switch/Volume Control  
The ON/OFF SWITCH/VOLUME CONTROL
is a combined single control located on the
top of the alert monitor as shown above. Turn-
ing the control knob a few degrees in a clock-
wise direction applies power to the receiver,
and an audio beep is sounded to indicate that
the alert monitor is turned on. As the control is
rotated in a clockwise direction, the volume
level of any received message and alert tone
is increased. Rotating the control in the oppo-
site (counterclockwise) direction reduces the
audio level, and turns the alert monitor off.
ABCD
Red
LED Amber
LED On/Off Switch/
Volume ControlFunction
Switch
Visual Alert Indicators
Reset
Button External Accessory
Jack (Plugged)
 
Minitor TIC Book  Page 4  Friday, January 9, 1998  8:10 AM 
						

							 
5 
Audible/Visual Alert Indicators  
When your alert monitor is initially turned on,
both the red and amber LEDs on the control
panel light and an alert tone is sounded until
the decoder circuit power-up is complete.
Thereafter, whenever a properly encoded
message is received, the red LED flashes and
an audio alert is sounded. If the battery volt-
age falls below the level required for reliable
operation, a low battery pulse tone sounds
and the red LED flashes. Following any sub-
sequent audio message, the momentary low
battery pulse tone is repeated until the batter-
ies are replaced.
If the function switch is set to a vibrate posi-
tion, just the red LED flashes to indicate a low
battery state.  
Function Switch  
According to the specific model ordered, the
function switch will be configured to 2, 3, or 4
positions. Different function modes (monitor/
selective call, scan, etc.), can be configured
for any position of the switch.  
Channel Monitoring  
When the function switch is set to a monitor
position, all voice communications on the
selected channel is heard through the
speaker. When monitoring channel 1 or 2, all
ordered alert options are functional.  
Reset Button  
After receipt of a properly coded message
and after completion of that message, the
alert monitor reverts to carrier squelch moni-
toring. Press the reset button to return your
alert monitor to the standby mode.  
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6 
External Speaker Jack  
When the alert monitor is used in high-noise
environments or when privacy is needed, an
optional Motorola approved lapel speaker or
earpiece can be connected to the external
accessory jack located on the top control
panel. The jack is fitted with a protective plug.  
NOTE  
To prevent entry of dust and mois-
ture, the plug should be inserted
whenever the external accessory
jack is not being used.  
Belt Clip Feature  
An integral part of the clip on the back of your
monitor is a security hook. This hook is
intended to allow easy removal of the alert
monitor, while at the same time preventing the
unit from being pulled off your belt.  
Scan (Two-Frequency Models Only)  
All alert monitors that are equipped with two
frequencies are capable of scanning the two
channels for selective call or monitoring pur-
poses. The scan feature may be programmed
for either priority scan or non-priority scan.
This feature is factory installed as priority
scan. Non-priority scan is field programmable. 
FACTORY OPTIONS 
The options that are described in the para-
graphs that follow are limited to those options
that affect the operation and/or functional
characteristics of your alert monitor. For a
complete list of available options, contact your
Motorola sales representative or authorized
paging system dealer. 
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7 
Fixed-Alert, Audio-Only Volume Control  
When this option is installed, the alert tone is
factory preset (non-adjustable) at the maxi-
mum volume level. Turning the volume control
varies only the voice message volume level.  
NOTE  
Use of audio accessories is not rec-
ommended with this option.  
Time-Out Auto Reset  
This feature allows the alert monitor to be
automatically reset after a predetermined
amount of time. This places the alert monitor
back in standby mode to help conserve bat-
tery power. 
FIELD INSTALLED OPTIONS 
Several alert monitor field programmable
options are available to include the following:
• Non Priority Scan
• Alert Duration
• Priority Alert
• On/Off Duty
• Reset Options
- Carrier Reset
- Delayed N Carrier Reset
- Manual Reset
• Push-To-Listen
Contact a Motorola authorized paging system 
dealer or call 1-800-548-9954 for the addition 
of these features. 
Minitor TIC Book  Page 7  Friday, January 9, 1998  8:10 AM 
						

							 
8 OPERATION 
Perform the following steps to condition your 
alert monitor for operation:  
1.  
Set the FUNCTION switch to a tone-alert
position.  
2.  
 Rotate the ON-OFF SWITCH/VOLUME
CONTROL clockwise to turn on the alert
monitor. Eight short beep sounds occur
and both LEDs light, indicating that power
is applied.  
3.  
Set the FUNCTION switch to a monitor
position.  
4.  
Listen for a transmission and adjust the vol-
ume control to a comfortable listening level.  
5.  
If no transmission is heard, hold down the
RESET button and adjust the background
noise to a comfortable listening level. It may
be necessary to readjust the volume when
a voice signal is present.  
6.  
Set the FUNCTION switch to the desired
operating mode, i.e., selective call tone,
selective call vibrate, monitor, scan, etc.  
7.  
Turn off the monitor by rotating the ON-OFF
SWITCH/VOLUME CONTROL counter-
clockwise until a click is heard and the
mechanical stop is reached.  
SCAN OPERATION 
Priority Scan 
If the alert monitor is programmed for priority
scan, the frequency programmed as F1 is
designated as the priority channel. If there is
no traffic on F1, the alert monitor alternately
listens to F1 and F2 until a transmission is
detected. If a transmission is detected on F1,
the alert monitor stays on that channel until
the transmission ceases. The alert monitor
only decodes tones on the F1 channel. No
tones are decoded on the F2 channel. 
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9 
If the alert monitor detects a transmission on
F2, it stops on F2 then listens for transmis-
sions on F1. Scanback time is programmable
and can be set to 0.5, 1, or 2-second incre-
ments. If a transmission is detected on F1, the
alert monitor switches to F1 cutting off any
transmission on F2. When switching from F2
to F1, the alert monitor listens for any tones
and alerts if the proper tones are detected. It
should be noted that the detection of tones is
very dependent on the duration of the tone
sent over the air. To ensure reliable alerting, it
is recommended that this feature only be
used when the first tone duration transmitted
is one second or more.
During the scan mode, the amber LED blinks
fast to indicate transmission on F1 and at a
slower rate for transmission on F2. 
Non-priority Scan 
In the non-priority scan mode, the alert moni-
tor alternately listens on F1 and F2 for any
transmission. A transmission on either chan-
nel causes the alert monitor to stop on that
channel until the signal disappears. In non-
priority scan, the alert monitor decodes tones
on either F1 or F2 provided the alert monitor
has listened to the appropriate channel at the
correct time. However, it should be noted that
if the alert monitor is listening to traffic on F2
and an alert is transmitted on F1, the alert
monitor will not hear that signal until the trans-
mission on F2 is finished. Therefore, an emer-
gency alert could be missed if the alert
monitor is listening to traffic on one channel
with tones being sent out on the other chan-
nel. 
Minitor TIC Book  Page 9  Friday, January 9, 1998  8:10 AM 
						

							 
10 BATTERY LIFE 
Battery life depends upon the number of calls
received, length of each call, capacity and
charge of the battery, and the mode of opera-
tion. 
When the battery voltage drops below an
acceptable level, the red LED flashes and a
low battery pulse tone is sounded. The LED
continues to flash and voice communication
deteriorates until the batteries are replaced. If
the unit is recharged without being turned off,
the low battery alert signal will continue until
the RESET button is pressed. 
REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE 
Your alert monitor, properly handled, will pro-
vide quality service for years. However,
should it ever require service, call 1-800-548-
9954 for instructions. 
ACCESSORIES 
Motorola offers several accessories to
increase communications efficiently and pro-
vide many unique benefits. Consult your
Motorola sales representative for a complete
list of accessories, prices, and applications.
• Desk-top Battery Charger
• Desk-top Battery Charger/Amplifier with
Antenna and Relay
• Vehicular Charger-Amp with Relay
• Earpieces
• Extra Loud Lapel Speaker
• Nylon Carrying Case 
Minitor TIC Book  Page 10  Friday, January 9, 1998  8:10 AM