MODEL HEC-4

Head End Combiner

MANUAL: 004-0357-001-A

INNOVATING SAFETY sales@pbegrp.com

POWERING PRODUCTIVITY www.pbegrp.com
Model HEC-4 Manual Page 2 of 7

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. WARRANTY ............................................................................................................................................................... 3
2. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................................... 3
3. INSTALLATION ........................................................................................................................................................... 4
3.1. MOUNTING ........................................................................................................................................................................ 4
3.2. CONNECTIONS .................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Arterial Connections ............................................................................................................................................................... 4
Surface Connections ............................................................................................................................................................... 4
Auxiliary Connection ............................................................................................................................................................... 4
RF Transmit/Receive Connections .......................................................................................................................................... 4
Loop ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 5
DC Power Connection ............................................................................................................................................................. 5
Alarm Outputs ........................................................................................................................................................................ 5
4. OPERATION ............................................................................................................................................................... 6
Surface Rx Gain....................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Surface Tx Gain ....................................................................................................................................................................... 6
5. TROUBLESHOOTING .................................................................................................................................................. 7

Copyright © 2013 PBE Inc. All rights reserved. No section or element of this document may be removed from this
document, reproduced, electronically stored or transmitted in any form without the written permission of PBE. The
information contained in this document produced by PBE, is solely for the use of the client(s) for the purpose for
which it has been prepared and PBE undertakes no duty to, nor accepts any responsibility to, any third party who may
rely upon this information contained in this document.
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1. WARRANTY
The Model HEC-4 Head End Combiner has a 12 month warranty period on all components. This warranty covers any
defects which prove to be in materials and/or workmanship. This warranty shall be considered void on any unit which
has been subjected to misuse, neglect, or accident or used in violation of instructions. Modifications of this unit will
void any and all warranty, implied, expressed or written. Any defect should be brought to the attention of PBE,
whereupon arrangements will be made to repair or replace the unit at the discretion of PBE.

2. INTRODUCTION
PBE’s Model HEC-4 Head End Combiner is the core of PBE's Minecom Leaky Feeder System. Its purpose is to combine
the RF inputs and outputs of the connected equipment, providing the necessary interface between the repeater
equipment and the Leaky Feeder cable. The Head End Combiner is capable of providing up to eight fully functional
channels with connectivity for up to four 75 ohm Leaky Feeder coaxial cables.

The Head End Combiner also provides:

• An interface for surface communications (with Surface Transmit and Receive ports)
• Auxiliary port for UHF/VHF paging
• Loop ports at the back to connect two HECs (allowing up to 16 channels)
• Diagnostic outputs allowing remote monitoring of arterial current/voltage alarm outputs in PBE’s MineBoss
Mine Wide Monitoring Software
• Digital current/voltage displays for each Leaky Feeder arterial.
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3. INSTALLATION
Installation should only be performed by suitably qualified and authorized personnel.

The Head End Combiner (HEC-4) is typically installed in a communications rack with other equipment, such as
repeaters. The HEC-4 is usually located on the surface or at some central point within the mine. The HEC-4 must be
housed in a weather tight enclosure or building exceeding IP55 rating. The first amplifier can be placed after 350 m
(for UHF systems) to 500 m (for VHF systems) of Leaky Feeder cable from the communications rack.

3.1. Mounting
The HEC-4 and its ancillary equipment must be protected from the environment by installing them in an IP rated rack
enclosure or in a standard rack in a clean air-conditioned room.

The HEC-4 should be installed in the top of the rack. The HEC-4 is 3RU high and fits into any standard 19 inch rack.

3.2. Connections
To minimize loss from the HEC-4 only use RG400 double-shielded coaxial cable or better when wiring the RF
connections in the rack. Use high quality BNC connectors to reduce losses and keep the coaxial cables as short as
possible.

Arterial Connections
The Leaky Feeder cables are connected to the HEC-4 using four N-type sockets. The Leaky Feeder cable must be
connected with a ½ inch N-type coaxial plug (to suit 10D-FB or 9005 cable type).

Surface Connections
The HEC-4 supports a direct Surface Receive and Transmit interface using separate Rx and Tx ports at the back,
allowing direct connections to surface antennas. Connections to these antennas should be N-type connectors and
low-loss coaxial cable. If only one antenna is to be used for both Rx and Tx, an external duplexer, mounted in the
Head End rack, will be required to combine these two signals. When unused, these ports must always be terminated
with 50 ohm terminators (0.25 W for Rx port, 5 W for Tx port).

Auxiliary Connection
The HEC-4 has an AUX port allowing 10 – 120 MHz for VHF or 10 – 250 MHz for UHF built in, which allows for
integration with a separate paging system. This is brought in through a separate port in the rear of the unit and sent
through all the leaky feeder lines. The auxiliary band is only available with PBE's BDA-4 amplifiers (when enabled).

RF Transmit/Receive Connections
The HEC-4 has eight BNC ports for transmitting (BASE Tx) on Leaky Feeder and eight BNC ports for receiving (BASE Rx).
These are connected to the Transmit and Receive ports on the communications repeaters, respectively. Unused BNC
ports must always be terminated with 50 ohm terminators (supplied).
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Loop
The default configuration is to have the LOOP IN and OUT ports connected to each other using the supplied cable. The
loop ports can be used to connect multiple HECs together to provide more channels, where OUT is the combined BASE
Tx and BASE Rx signal and IN connects to the arterial ports. For detailed instructions on the expansion configurations
and how to set these up, see APP-41-00002-01 – Expanding Head End Combiner Channels.

DC Power Connection
DC Power is required for the HEC-4 to function. It can be connected via the rear panel using binding post type
connectors (‘banana plugs’) to the correct 12, 24 or 48 Volts DC power source. PBE recommend using 14 – 16 AWG
cable for DC connection. The power source must be suitably rated to handle the current of the arterial ports, and PBE
recommend using a 20 A power supply at minimum. The HEC-4 is protected by a M205 size 12.5 Amp slow-blow fuse.
The fuse can be removed with a quarter turn using a flat-head screwdriver.

If the POWER LED above the arterial port on the rear panel is on, DC is present. It is recommended that DC be
switched off to the arterial while the Leaky Feeder cable is being connected and installed throughout the mine.
Unused arterials should be protected with dust covers (supplied).

Alarm Outputs
Voltage and current alarms outputs can be connected to PBE’s MineBoss Mine Wide Monitoring System (or a third
party telemetry unit) for remote diagnostics of the Leaky Feeder System. Screw terminals with a removable socket for
easy wiring connection are provided at the rear of the unit.

Figure 1: Head End Combiner (HEC-4) – rear view

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4. OPERATION

To power on the HEC-4, flip the main POWER switch to the left of the unit into the ‘up’ position. It will illuminate
green when power is present.

The displays may take a few seconds to power on.

Surface Rx Gain
Adjustable surface Rx port gain - internal rotary switches for use during initial setup to adjust gain.

Surface Tx Gain
Adjustable Leaky Feeder Rx gain - internal rotary switches for use during initial setup to adjust gain.

The front panel provides digital displays for monitoring the line current and voltage of each of the four leaky feeder
ports. The alarms can be connected to a MineBoss system where alerts are displayed on the screen. For more
information please see the MineBoss manual (004-0206-001).

Voltage alarms: high >48.5 V DC

Low <11.0 V DC

Current Alarms: high >2.0 A DC

Low <0.1 A DC

In the event of a short circuit or excess current (>2.5 A) in any one arterial, an integrated circuit breaker will
disconnect power to that arterial. Once the problem has been rectified, the Power switch for that arterial must be
turned off then on again to reset the red neon circuit breaker and reconnect power to the arterial.

To connect RF from the repeaters to an arterial, flip its individual Signal switch into the ‘up’ position. It will illuminate
green when signal is present.

To supply power to an arterial, flip its individual Power switch into the ‘up’ position. It will illuminate red when power
is present. (This is optional depending on the particular Leaky Feeder System). The voltage supplied to the Leaky
Feeder by the HEC-4 will be the same as is supplied at the rear DC-in ports.
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5. TROUBLESHOOTING
If analysis of the bandpass spectrum is required, the user can make use of the external RF loop back connection for
field testing and cascading of Head End Combiners - for field testing, a network/spectrum analyzer can be used to
check the signal that’s coming in/going out.

If limited functionality, or no power is being observed check the following.

• The HEC-4 has circuit breakers, with Fault indication and Reset buttons for dealing with short circuits or
excess current on arterials.
• The HEC-4 is also protected by a M205 size 12.5 Amp slow blow fuse.