Uniden Bc780xlt Trunk Tracker Scanner Owners Manual

							To enter an EDACS®ID:
a. Enter ID you want to store.
Use the  for the “dash”.
b. Press 
E.
Hint: Remember that Unidens AFS format allows you to enter full or partial EDACS IDs for
powerful flexibility in all modes. Be sure to read the section EDACS Reception on
page 49 to learn how this works.
Note: The BC780XLT defaults to “AFS” talkgroup displays for EDACS
®only.
––– OR –––
To enter a LTR ID:
a. Enter Area code and then press  .
b. Enter Home Repeater number and then press .
c. Enter ID you want to store and then press 
E.
Note: To clear a mistake while entering an ID, press  and 
Esuccessively, and 
start over.
4. Press 
MANor HOLD/sto select the next Scan List location.
Program ID Manually with the Menu Mode
Note: It is also possible to do ID programming in the menu mode by selecting TRUNK DATA
- BANK NO. - PROGRAM ID. Do the following:
1. Press 
MENU.
2. Press s or tto select TRUNK DATAand then 
press 
E.
3. Press s or tto select the bank no. and then press 
E.
4. Press sor tto select the PROGRAM IDand then
press 
E.
+ Remember!You can also use the VFOcontrol for scrolling. Also instead of pressing
E, you can press the VFO/SELECTcontrol or press the SELECT/MUTEkey.
5. Select the ID location using the VFO control, keypad,
sor tand then press 
E. (first number represents
the bank number and second number represents the
memory location.)(Direct entry method example: enter
“5-1” by pressing 
5, ,1.) 
6. Press s or tto select IDand then press 
E.
7. Enter the ID number using the keypad and then press 
E.
Note: After you have programmed the ID in a selected bank while still in the menu mode,
you can set your alpha tag (see page 21), flag the individual ID or talkgroup for
recording (see page 32 and 11), or turn on the beep alert for an individual talkgroup
(see page 22).
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							ID Scan Mode
1. Press SCANto begin scanning the lists you 
have programmed.
If you havent programmed any IDs, 
ERRORappears
for a few seconds.
2. To remove a Scan List from active scanning, press
the number of the Scan List on your keypad.
The Scan List indicator turns off, and the IDs in that
list are not scanned.
Note: One Scan List must always be active. If you try
and deactivate all the Scan Lists, Scan List 1 will
automatically be active.
3. To restore a Scan List to active scanning, press its
number again.
4. Press 
SRCHto return to Trunk Tracking Search mode.
For motorola and EDACS system, to change your
display between the Scan List indicators and trunk
bank display, press 
SELECT.
For LTR systems only, the talkgroup must be active in
order to change the scan list and bank indicators. If
the talkgroup is not active, change the scan list by
using the menu screen.
Note: • Once you press 
SCANor SRCHin one bank, all trunking banks will change to 
that mode.
• Selecting a Scan List is also possible in the menu mode. (LTR only)
•ID SCANNINGappears on the bottom of the screen during Trunk Scan instead
of simply SCANNING.
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Setting Priority in Trunking Mode
You can set priority in your trunking lists, just as you do in your conventional ones. You can
set the priority by pressing and holding PRI for 2 seconds. After you’ve set up your Scan
List, press 
PRIto activate it.
It’s very similar to conventional priority although there is no “interrupt” during the
transmissions. Priorities are checked in between transmissions.
With Priority on, you can hold on an ID in your Scan List, such as Scan List 6, memory
position 7, and the scanner will check all the priorities in all the active Scan Lists every few
seconds and in between any transmissions on the ID on which you’re holding. The lowest
numbered priority will be checked first. For example, the priority ID in List 1 will be checked
before the priority in List 2, etc.
Note: This function does not work in LTR tracking.
Programming Scan Lists During Search
To select a Scan List location and store an ID during Search mode, follow these steps:
1. When your scanner stops on an ID you want to store,
press 
HOLD/s.
2. Press 
E, or use HOLD/sor LIMIT/tto select the Scan
List memory location you want to change, then 
press 
E.
3. Press 
SRCHto return to Trunk Tracking Search mode.
Deleting a Stored ID
To delete a stored ID:
a. Press 
MAN.
b. Use 
HOLD/sand LIMIT/tto select the scan list
location you want to delete.
c. Press 
0.
d. Then press 
E.
Moving between Scan List Memories
There are a number of ways to step and move through your Scan List memories:
1. Press 
MANrepeatedly.
2. Or, press 
MAN, then press HOLD/sor LIMIT/t.
3. Or, press 
MAN, next press 0 - 9(scan list number), then press 0- 9(memory position), for
example. To move to Scan List 4, memory position 10, press:
MAN, 4, 0, MAN
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I-Call (Motorola/EDACS)
I-Calls are direct unit-to-unit transmissions that are not heard by other system users. Your
BC780XLT can receive these transmissions. How you receive I-Calls depends on whether
you are in Search or Scan mode.
During I-Call reception the display will show the Unit ID number of either the transmitting or
receiving mobile unit, not a talkgroup. Unit IDs will display differently according to the type of
trunked system, and will replace the ns shown here.
EDACS and MOTOROLA TYPE 1innnnn
MOTOROLA TYPE 2    7nnnnnn
Hint-- There are thousands of Unit IDs in typical systems, but relatively few I-Calls at a
given moment, so it is normally best to let the scanner to receive any I-Call without trying to
specify particular units.
I-CALLS IN SEARCH MODE
In SEARCH mode, the scanner default is that I-Call reception is OFF. This means that 
I-Calls will not be received until you program them to be ON. You have three choices for
controlling I-Call reception. Through the Menu system, go to TRUNK DATA / BANK NO / 
I-CALL , and make your selection. The menu choices are:
I-CALLs TALKGROUPS
1 OFF Not received Received normally This is the BC780XLT default
2 ON YES Received normally Use this choice to receive I-Calls 
together with normal 
talkgroup traffic.
3 ONLY YES NOT RECEIVED Use this setting to listen to 
I-Calls, and block all talkgroup
reception. For quick access to
this mode, press  then SRCH.
In I-Call ONLY mode, the display will show I-CALL, to warn that only I-Calls will 
be received.
You can HOLD any I-Call ID. Because you can only hold on one ID, and there are two IDs
involved in any I-Call communication (the transmitting and the receiving units), you might not
hear the full conversation, but you probably will.
+In SEARCH mode, when you hear an interesting I-Call, you can enter the instant 
shortcut then 
SRCHto enter I-Call ONLY mode. This blocks all talkgroup traffic 
and lets you hear just the I-Call. To return to normal reception, you must use the 
Menu system to select the ON or OFF option.
Note: When storing I-Call IDs, remember that the ID will be for only one of the units -- either
the transmitting or receiving unit. Unless you  specifically want to receive a certain ID,
it might be better to use the special code in the HINT below.
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I-CALLS IN SCAN AND MANUAL MODE
You can store I-Call IDs in scanlists, just like talkgroup IDs, for use by ID Scan and Manual
modes. To program a specific I-Call Unit ID into a scanlist:
EDACS or Motorola Type 1
Enter  followed by the Unit ID digits, then 
E.
Motorola Type 2
Enter 
7followed by the Unit ID digits, then E.
HINT- There is a special code to let you receive all I-Call IDs with a single scanlist entry.
Simply enter  , 
0, E. This will store the special code i0in an EDACS scanlist, or
700000in a Motorola scanlist. Then, whenever you SCAN this entry, or select it in
MANUAL, the scanner will receive any active I-Calls, regardless of the Unit IDs.
Note: Motorola I-CALL tracking performance may vary between systems.
Multi-Track
The BC780XLT allows you to track more than one system at a time. Here are some
highlights of this feature:
vYou can actually track up to 10 trunking systems at one time.
vYou can trunk scan or search and scan conventional frequencies at the same time.
vYou can program conventional frequencies in the same bank as trunking systems.
After the scanner finishes checking a trunked system for activity, it will conventionally
scan the other frequencies in the bank (remember, only trunking frequencies are
programmed in TRUNK mode).
To scan a mix of trunking and conventional banks, select the banks you wish to be active
with trunking off, then press 
TRUNK. The scanner will instantly begin scanning. If you have
not programmed a trunking bank with talkgroup ID’s, you will receive NO ID (----)
message for that bank. You can switch to SEARCH mode and the scanner will search for any
active ID’s on the system.
Multi-Track Operational Details
When more than one trunk system is active (for example two or more trunked systems or a
trunked system and one or more conventional frequencies), the radio jumps between
systems/frequencies as follows:
TRUNK SCAN: The scanner moves to a trunked system and looks for IDs in your Scan
List(s) for up to one second. If it finds no activity on your programmed talkgroups, it moves
on to conventional channels in the same bank or to the next active bank.
If the scanner finds that a talkgroup in one of your active Scan Lists is on the air, you will
begin to hear that communication and the scanner will of course display the proper
talkgroup number and any alpha tag. When the communication ends, the scanner will wait
for any delay period (such as a default of two seconds) for any further replies and, if none,
the scanner will move to the conventional channels in the same bank or to the next bank.
The scanner will not look for any other IDs within the same trunked system (as this would
slow the scan process). Note that if you press 
SCANwhile you are listening to one ID, the
scanner will check to see if another ID in your Scan List is active. It will disregard the ID to
which you were just monitoring.
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TRUNK SEARCH: This mode works similarly to TRUNK SCAN. If the scanner finds any
(non-locked-out) ID when it checks the control channel, you will hear it. You will then hear
any replies that follow within two seconds (or whatever delay you may have set). After that
the scanner will move on and not continuously search the system for additional IDs (on
busy systems you would never leave the system if this were the case). Note that if you
press the 
SRCHkey while monitoring one ID, the radio will check if any other IDs are
active (it will disregard the ID you just left), and if none are active, it will move on.
LIMIT/ tKEY: If you wish to exit a trunked system without waiting for the currently active
talkgroup to finish its communication, press the 
LIMIT/tkey. This is particularly helpful on
very busy systems where many talkgroups are active and activity is frequent and long-
lasting. Pressing this key will move the scanner on to the conventional frequencies in the
same bank or the next bank.
SCAN & SEARCH Icons
For the first time on a Uniden scanner, you will see both the SCANand the SEARCH
icons active at the same time. This indicates that the radio is scanning conventional banks
and Trunk searching trunking banks. When the radio is trunking, only the 
SEARCHicon
will be lit. Note that to start a conventional search, you must place the radio into
conventional manual mode and then press the 
SEARCHkey.
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EDACS®Reception
EDACS®Tracking
TrunkTracker III now allows tracking of EDACS®trunked systems. Until now these widely
used systems have been almost impossible to monitor with a conventional scanner. With
your TrunkTracker III listening to EDACS(s) is remarkably easy, and perhaps even easier
than conventional scanning.
EDACS systems use Transmission Trunking, which means that each transmission is
assigned a new frequency. As the conversation moves through the systems frequencies,
your TrunkTracker II automatically follows it.
This chart shows a 30 second sample of EDACS transmissions. Eight different talkgroups
are using the system as their transmissions switch between the thirteen system frequencies.
Notice how the dotted line shows talkgroup 02-023 moving from channel to channel. Your
BC780XLT can clearly and automatically follow this talkgroup, or any other, as you select.
EDACS systems are organized in a logical way that keeps related talkgroups together. Your
scanner is designed to take maximum advantage of this organization to make your scanning
easy. It lets you zero in on just the part of the system you want to hear, whether it is an
individual channel or an entire department or city.
Programming EDACS System Frequencies
When you program EDACS frequencies, it is critical that you store each one in the
CORRECT LOCATION. By the nature of EDACS systems this is necessary for tracking. This
often is not the frequency order, so you must be sure you have the right sequence. Sources
for this information includewww.trunktracker.comand www.bc780xlt.com.
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An EDACS®Trunked system
This chart shows how talkgroups are organized
within an EDACS system at the AGENCY level.
The individual talkgroups cannot be shown at this
scale because there are over 2000. However the
chart can show the 16 Agencies in this example.
The system is logical and easy to understand.
EDACS systems are typically arranged in an
outline structure.
The system users are given blocks of talkgroups.
Sizes vary but most large cities and other agencies
have blocks of 128 channels. Smaller cities have
only 64 or 32 channels.
In this example, the County Sheriff is agency 01.
The city of Sullivan is Agency 03. Adams Hill and
Matthew Junction share Agency 08.
Your scanner shows EDACS talkgroups in AFS
(Agency-Fleet-Subfleet) format. This helps you see,
at a glance, who you are monitoring. And with the
partial-entry feature you can easily include nearby,
related channels in the same Fleet or Agency. You
can just as easily exclude entire unwanted Fleets
and Agencies.
When in Search mode, with the system frequencies
programmed, and your scanner locked to the control
channel, you can select a desired city by keying in
the AGENCY part of the AFS talkgroup. For
example, you can select the entire city of Sullivan
with 4 key presses zero, three,  , 
SRCH.
When you hear an interesting talkgroup, capture it to
your scan list by pressing 
Eduring the transmission.
Or HOLD on it by pressing the 
HOLDkey.
If you want to monitor the Sullivan Police Dispatch
channel (which is talk group 03-062), press zero,
three,  , zero, six, two, 
HOLD.
Your scanner can also work in DECIMAL format. This
talkgroup in decimal format is 434. But decimal
format does not give you any information about the
system hierarchy. For example Sullivan, in decimal,
uses channels from 384 to 511. This is not as easy
to remember as Agency 03. But decimal is useful if
you need to work from decimal talkgroup lists.
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Special EDACS®Features
AFS Partial Entry Feature
AFS is Unidens method of encoding EDACS talkgroups. AFS stands for Agency-Fleet-Subfleet.
AFS talkgroups are used in all EDACS reception -- in ID SEARCH, ID LOCKOUT and ID SCAN
scanlists. The powerful AFS Partial Entry feature designed into the BC780XLT lets you use either a
complete talkgroup code, or just the most significant part.
This feature lets you expand or narrow searching and
scanning to one of 4 levels. By entering only the desired
part of an AFS talkgroup, you can select 2048 talkgroups,
128 talkgroups, 8 talkgroups, or a single talkgroup. For
example, you could program every talkgroup in a police
department with just 4 key presses. You can use the AFS
Partial Entry feature anywhere that you need to specify EDACS talkgroup.
Your BC780XLT can also enter or display EDACS talkgroups in decimal format (0-2047).
Press MENU - TRUNK DATA, and for banks selected as EDACS banks, select Item 8,
EDACS ID FORM and change it to Decimal. You can use this feature to translate decimal
talkgroups lists to the much more powerful AFS format.
Examples of how you might use AFS are shown above in the description of an EDACS
trunked system, and elsewhere in this manual. It is very easy to use. Be sure to become
familiar with AFS Partial Entry, and your scanning will become far more flexible and efficient.
Emergency Call Alert
Your BC780 alerts you when an EDACS Emergency transmission occurs.
EDACS systems often provide users with an Emergency button on their radios. Users in
trouble can alert the dispatcher and other units and get priority access to the radio system.
When a user activates Emergency mode your scanner will flash EMERGENCY during the
entire transmission. At the beginning of each transmission it will sound a distinctive
emergency alert tone three times.
Patch Tracking
The BC780 can follow EDACS patched talkgroups.
EDACS systems sometimes bring several talkgroups together in a Patch. A patch might be
used by a police agency at night to provide a single channel with a single dispatcher for a
wide area. A patch is created when a single, temporary talkgroup substitutes for the original
talkgroups. While the patch is running, which may be for hours or days, the original
talkgroups cease to be used. If you were monitoring one of these talkgroups, you might 
think there was no traffic, but in fact the talkgroup was operating at the different 
temporary number.
If a talkgroup in your Scan List is patched, your scanner will continue to receive it under its
new identity until the patch is ended. When a patch is being received, the radio will display
[PATCH ID], and will show the temporary common talkgroup plus all the included talkgroups
in a cycling display. The BC780 is limited to following one patch.
The temporary talkgroups used for patches are usually found in AFS code 15-xxx, and
sometimes 00-xxx.
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LT R®Reception
LT R®
Tracking
LT R®(Logic Trunked Radio) systems are trunking systems used primarily by business or
private communications service providers, such as taxicabs, delivery trucks, and repair
services. These systems encode all trunking information as digital subaudible data that
accompanies each transmission. Users on an LTR system are assigned to specific
talkgroups, which are identified by the radio as six digit numbers. These numbers are in the
form AHHUUU, where:
A= Area code (0 or 1)
H= Home repeater (01 through 20)
U= User ID (000 through 254)
When the scanner receives a transmission on a channel set to the LTR mode, it first
decodes the LTR data included with the transmission. In the ID Search mode, the scanner
stops on the transmission and displays the talkgroup ID on the display. In the ID Scan mode,
the scanner only stops on the transmission if the LTR data matches a talkgroup ID that you
have stored in the bank’s talkgroup ID list and have not locked out.
LTR systems are frequently programmed so that each radio has a unique ID code.
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