A typical mobile citizens' band radio

Citizens' band radio (CB) is, in the United States, a system of short distance radio communication between individuals on a selection of 40 channels within the single 27 MHz (11 meter) band. This is a Kraco CB Radio. ... This is a Kraco CB Radio. ... Radio transmission diagram and electromagnetic waves Radio is a technology that allows the transmission of signals by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of light. ... Communication is the process of exchanging information usually via a common system of symbols. ...

History

Formed following a decision in 1945 by the US government that its citizens should have the right to a short-distance radio band for personal communication, the CB radio service should not be confused with FRS, GMRS or Amateur Radio. CB does not require a license and unlike Amateur Radio, CB may be used for commercial communication. The 11-meter band was taken from the Amateur Radio service for the Citizen's Band. But it was not until the 1970s, when technology had advanced to reduce costs, that the CB market prospered, US truckers being at the head of the boom. Many CB clubs were formed and a special CB language evolved. The prominent use of CB radios in late 1970s films (see list below), television shows such as The Dukes of Hazzard (1979), and in popular novelty songs such as "Convoy" (1976) helped to establish the radios as a nationwide craze in the late 1970s. 1945 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Family Radio Service is an improved walkie talkie system authorized in the United States. ... The General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) is a land-mobile radio service in the United States available for short-distance two-way communications to facilitate the activities of an adult individual and his or her immediate family members, including a spouse, children, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, and in... Amateur radio, commonly called ham radio, is a hobby enjoyed by many people throughout the world (as of 2004 about 3 million worldwide, 60,000 in UK, 70,000 in Germany, 5,000 in Norway, 57,000 in Canada, and 700,000 in the USA). ... The electromagnetic spectrum encompasses all possible wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation. ... Events and trends Although in the United States and in many other Western societies the 1970s are often seen as a period of transition between the turbulent 1960s and the more conservative 1980s and 1990s, many of the trends that are associated widely with the Sixties, from the Sexual Revolution... The driver of a car transporter truck prepares to offload Skoda Octavia cars in Cardiff, Wales For further uses of the word truck, see Truck (disambiguation). ... Events and trends Although in the United States and in many other Western societies the 1970s are often seen as a period of transition between the turbulent 1960s and the more conservative 1980s and 1990s, many of the trends that are associated widely with the Sixties, from the Sexual Revolution... The Dukes of Hazzard is a American television series that originally aired on the CBS television network from 1979 to 1985. ... 1979 is a common year starting on Monday. ... Depending on context, pop music is either an abbreviation of popular music or, more recently, a term for a sub- genre of it. ... A novelty song is a song, usually in a recorded form, that defies the usual categorisation of music, or may not even be music. ... Convoy is a 1976 novelty song performed by C.W. McCall that became a #1 hit in the USA and helped start a worldwide craze for citizens band radio. ... See also: 1975 in music, other events of 1976, 1977 in music, 1970s in music and the list of years in music Events January-February January 7 - Kenneth Moss, a former record company executive, is sentenced to 120 days in the Los Angeles County Jail and four years probation for...

Originally CB did require a license and the use of a call sign but during the CB craze of the 1970's many people ignored this requirement and used made up nicknames called "handles". The use of handles instead of call signs is related to the common practice of using the radios to warn other drivers of speed traps during the time when the United States dropped the national speed limit to 55 mph (89 km/h). The FCC recommended the use of ten-codes and these were used, often in a shortened form, but also many slang terms were developed. In radio (including television), a callsign or call sign (also call letters) is a unique designation for amateur, broadcast, and sometimes military radio use, as well as for broadcast television. ... 1970 was a common year starting on Thursday. ... A nickname is a short, clever, cute, derogatory, or otherwise substitute name for a person or things real name (for example, Nick is short for Nicholas). ... The term speed trap has several meanings, related to detection of speed limit violations. ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America, the States, or (archaically) Columbia—is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent United States government agency, created, directed, and empowered by Congressional statute. ... Ten-codes, or 10-codes, are used in two-way voice radio communication as numeric codewords for frequently used messages. ... CB slang are terms that those operating CB radio used mainly during the CB craze of the 1970s and 1980s. ...

The low cost and simple operation of CB equipment gave access to a communications medium that was previously only available to specialists. The "boom" in CB usage in the 1970's bears several similarities to the advent of the Internet in the 1990s. The many restrictions on the authorized use of CB lead to widespread disregard of the regulations, most notably in antenna height, distance restriction for communications, licencing and the use of call signs, and allowable transmitter power. The Internet, or simply the Net, is the publicly available worldwide system of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using a standardized Internet Protocol (IP) and many other protocols. ... Events and trends Technology Explosive growth of the Internet; decrease in the cost of computers and other technology Reduction in size and cost of mobile phones leads to a massive surge in their popularity Year 2000 problem (commonly known as Y2K) Microsoft Windows operating system becomes virtually ubiquitous on IBM... In biology, antenna (plural: antennae) refers to the sensing organs of several arthropods. ...

Eventually the license requirement was dropped entirely. The early CB radios sold for mobile use in the US had only 23 channels and almost all were AM only, although Single Side Band was also allowed. In 1977, an additional 17 channels were added for a total of 40 channels, to relieve some of the overcrowding on the original 23 channels. Am is the present-tense, first-person, singular form of the verb to be, the copula of the English language. ... In radio communications, a sideband is a band of frequencies higher than or lower than the carrier frequency, containing energy as a result of the modulation process. ...

Channels near 462 MHZ in the UHF band were formerly allocated to the Citizen's Band "Class A" radio service but this band was never commonly used. In 1973 an attempt was made to allocate frequencies near 220 MHZ to "Class E" Citizen's Band service but this was strongly opposed by amateur radio organizations and was never implemented. The intent was to eliminate some of the interference and skip that existed on the shortwave frequencies. While the extended propagation characteristics on this band was of considerable interest to radio hobbyists, interference from distant stations limited the usefulness of CB for its original purpose. This article is about the radio frequency. ... Amateur radio, commonly called ham radio, is a hobby enjoyed by many people throughout the world (as of 2004 about 3 million worldwide, 60,000 in UK, 70,000 in Germany, 5,000 in Norway, 57,000 in Canada, and 700,000 in the USA). ... Radio propagation is a term used to explain how radio waves behave when they are transmitted, or are propagated from one point on the Earth to another. ... Shortwave radio operates between the frequencies of 3,000 kHz and 30 MHz (30,000 kHz) and came to be referred to as such in the early days of radio because the wavelengths associated with this frequency range were shorter than those commonly in use at that time. ...

Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s a a phenomenon was developing over the CB radio. Similar to the Internet chat rooms a quarter century later, the CB allowed people to get to know one another in a quasi-anonymous manner. Many movies and stories about CBers and the culture on-the-air developed. In more recent years CB has been loosing its appeal in recent years. This could be because of introduction of Mobile phones the Internet FRS and the whims of the 11 year Sunspot cycle. Events and trends Although in the United States and in many other Western societies the 1970s are often seen as a period of transition between the turbulent 1960s and the more conservative 1980s and 1990s, many of the trends that are associated widely with the Sixties, from the Sexual Revolution... Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ... The Internet, or simply the Net, is the publicly available worldwide system of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using a standardized Internet Protocol (IP) and many other protocols. ... A stylised representation of a mobile phone A mobile phone is a device which behaves as a normal telephone whilst being able to move over a wide area ( cordless phone which acts as a telephone only within a limited range). ... 400 year sunspot history A sunspot is a region on the Suns surface (photosphere) that is marked by a lower temperature than its surroundings, and intense magnetic activity. ...

CB Radio Today

CB is still a popular hobby in many countries though its meaning as a method of communication among the general public has diminished recently, due to new developments such as the internet and mobile phones. CB radio is still a popular method of communication among semi truck drivers. Commercial drivers use CB to communicate to other truck drivers directions, traffic problems, and other things of importance. This article is about pastimes. ... Communication is the process of exchanging information usually via a common system of symbols. ... The Internet, or simply the Net, is the publicly available worldwide system of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using a standardized Internet Protocol (IP) and many other protocols. ... A stylised representation of a mobile phone A mobile phone is a device which behaves as a normal telephone whilst being able to move over a wide area ( cordless phone which acts as a telephone only within a limited range). ... semi-trailer truck with sleeper behind the cab. ...

Legitimate, short-range use of CB radio is sometimes made difficult by uncooperative users or illegal high-power transmitters, which are capable of being heard hundreds of miles (km) away. In the United States, the vast number of users and the low financing of the regulatory body mean that the regulations are only actively enforced against the most severe interfering stations, which makes legitimate operations on the Citizen's Band unreliable. Other services, such as Multi-Use_Radio_Service in the VHF band or FRS and GMRS in the UHF band, exist now to provide the reliable short-range communication service originally envisioned for the Citizen's Band. The Multi-Use Radio Service, MURS for short, is a small two-way radio service consisting of five frequencies in the VHF spectrum. ... Very high frequency (VHF) is the radio frequency range from 30 MHz (wavelength 10 m) to 300 MHz (wavelength 1 m). ... FRS is an acronym which can stand for various phrases: As a title of UK citizens, Fellow of the Royal Society In computing, freely redistributable software In telecommunications, Family Radio Service In finance, Financial Records System This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might... The General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) is a land-mobile radio service in the United States available for short-distance two-way communications to facilitate the activities of an adult individual and his or her immediate family members, including a spouse, children, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, and in... This article is about the radio frequency. ...

The maximum legal CB power output level is four watts for AM and 12 watts (peak envelope power or "PEP") for single side band, as measured at the antenna connection on the back of the radio. More powerful external "linear" amplifiers are commonly and illegally used.

Many radio hobbyists operate illegitimately in the so-called "free band", using either Citizen's Band equipment that has been modified for extended frequency range and higher power, or else amateur radio equipment operated outside the assigned amateur 10 meter band. Such operations are not part of the legally authorized Citizen's Band service and should not be called "CB". Out-of-band operations may interfere with licenced, public safety, commercial, or military users of these frequencies. Illegal transmitters may not meet good engineering practice for harmonic distortion or "splatter", and resulting interference to licenced radio spectrum users will often attact the attention of regulating authorities.

Channel Assignments

To simplify selection of an operating frequency, CB equipment divides the authorized band into channels numbered 1 to 40. Frequencies for the channels are 10 kHz apart, but channel numbers are not strictly sequential with frequency. See 27 MHz FCC Bandplan. Radio remote control for models and toys operate on frequencies near CB authorized channels. The U.S. 27 MHz FCC bandplan used in Citizens band radio assigns 40 numbered radio frequency channels between 26. ...

CB Usage in the United States

Typical mobile CB Antenna

In the United States Citizens' Band (CB) Radio Service is intended to be a private two-way voice communication service for use in personal and business activities of the general public. Its communications range is from one to five miles. The Citizens' Band radio services are described in part 95 of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) and is defined as a personal radio service. This is a CB Radio antenna that I had purchased in the early 90s for about $15. ... This is a CB Radio antenna that I had purchased in the early 90s for about $15. ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America, the States, or (archaically) Columbia—is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... The acronym FCC can refer to: Farm Credit Corporation/Farm Credit Canada, a Canadian government organization Federal Communications Commission, a US government organization Families with Children from China, an adoption support organization Florida Christian College, a college in central Florida Foreign Correspondents Club, a group of clubs for correspondents and...

Citizens' Band Radio is a two-way radio service that consists of 40 channelized frequencies in the HF spectrum from 26.960 - 27.410 MHz. There are no age, citizenship or license requirements to operate a CB Radio in the United States. You may operate on any of the authorized 40 CB channels, however channel 9 is used only for emergency communications or for traveler assistance. Usage of all channels is on a shared basis. HF or Hf might be an acronym or abbreviation for: High frequency Radio hafnium, a chemical element the chemical formula for Hydrofluoric acid Historisk-filosofisk fakultet, abbr. ...

You must use an FCC certified transmitter. No modifications are allowed to your equipment. Equipment output power is limited to 4 Watts for AM transmitters and 12 Watts PEP (peak envelope power) for single sideband (SSB) transmitters. There are no restrictions on size or type of antennas, except the antenna must not be more than 20 feet above the highest point of the structure it is mounted to and may not be more then 60 feet above the ground.

Popular CB channels

In the US, CB radio seems to adhere to the following de facto plan:

• Channel 1 Local community calling and working
• Channel 6 High power illegal activity
• Channel 7 Local community calling and working
• Channel 8 Truckers in Australia
• Channel 9 Emergency calling (State troopers and highway patrol vehicles in the US usually monitor this channel)
• Channel 10 Truckers in Quebec, Canada
• Channel 17 North/South freeway traffic and trucks (except in California where all traffic is on 17)
• Channel 19 The main frequency for trucks and freeway traffic. Also the east/west frequency for truck and freeway traffic.
• Channel 35 and above SSB (There seems to be a bootlegger's gentlemen's agreement that long distance SSB be done on or above channel 35)

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is the sixth-largest country in the world, the only country to occupy an entire continent, and the largest in the region of Australasia/Oceania. ... This article describes the Canadian province. ... Canada is a sovereign state in northern North America, the northern-most country in the world, and the second largest in total area. ... Single-sideband modulation (SSB) is a refinement of the technique of amplitude modulation designed to be more efficient in its use of electrical power and bandwidth. ... This article should be split into multiple articles accessible from a disambiguation page. ... A Gentlemens agreement is an informal agreement between two parties. ...

Remote Control

In addition to the voice channels, there are 5 remote control channels for use with remote controlled models such as cars, planes, boats and small toys. These channels are in the unused channel space between some of the voice channels. They get their channel name from the closest adjacent voice channel number below them. Although these channels are still available many of these devices are now controlled in the unlicensed 49 MHz band to avoid interference from nearby CB stations.

Shooting Skip

Although CB Radio was only intended to be a short range communications service, the frequencies on which it operates have some very interesting propagation characteristics. All frequencies in the HF spectrum (from 3-30 MHz) are able to be refracted by the existence of highly charged particles in the Ionosphere. This bouncing of a signal off the Ionosphere is called Skywave propagation or "Shooting Skip". With the ability to shoot skip, CBers have been able to communicate thousands of miles, sometimes around the world. The ability of the Ionosphere to refract signals back to work is caused by the sun and the amount of ionization possible is related to the 11 year sunspot cycle. In times of high sunspot activity the band can remain "open" to much of the world for long periods of time. In years of low sunspot activity it may not be possible to shoot skip at all. The ionosphere is the part of the atmosphere that is ionized by solar radiation, and too tenuous to be cooled by contact with other air. ...

Freebanding

Use of import-specification FM gear, or domestic CB equipment illegally modified to operate on frequencies above ("uppers") or below ("lowers") the established citizens band is sometimes referred to as "freebanding". Frequency modulation (FM) is a form of modulation which represents information as variations in the instantaneous frequency of a carrier wave. ...

Located between the CB band and the Amateur Radio 10 Meter Band from 27.410 - 27.990 MHz Many Freebanders believe it to be a quiet and under utilized part of the spectrum. FCC actions against freebanders have been minimal.

Famous CBers

• Betty Ford "First Mamma"
• Muhammad Ali

White House portrait Betty Ford (born April 8, 1918), a First Lady of the United States, was born Elizabeth Ann Bloomer in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of William Stephenson Bloomer, an industrial supply salesman, and his wife Hortense Neahr. ... Other people with this name: Muhammad Ali of Egypt, Mehemet Ali (Turkey) Muhammad Ali-Haj (born January 17, 1942 as Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. ...

CB in Movies

• 1976 The Gumball Rally
• 1977 Cannonball
• 1977 Smokey and the Bandit
• 1978 Convoy
• 1980 Smokey and the Bandit II
• 1981 The Cannonball Run
• 1984 The Cannonball Run II

See also: 1975 in film 1976 1977 in film 1970s in film years in film film Events March 22 - Filming begins on George Lucas Star Wars science fiction film. ... See also: 1976 in film 1977 1978 in film 1970s in film years in film film Events In the Academy Awards, Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway and Beatrice Straight win Best Actor and Actress and Supporting Actress awards for Network. ... See also: 1976 in film 1977 1978 in film 1970s in film years in film film Events In the Academy Awards, Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway and Beatrice Straight win Best Actor and Actress and Supporting Actress awards for Network. ... Smokey and the Bandit was a 1977 movie starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Paul Williams, and Mike Henry. ... See also: 1977 in film 1978 1979 in film 1970s in film years in film film Events February 1 - Bob Dylans film Renaldo and Clara, a documentary of the Rolling Thunder Revue tour premieres in Los Angeles, California March 1 - Charlie Chaplins coffin is stolen from a Swiss... Convoy was a movie released in 1978, directed by Sam Peckinpah, and starring Kris Kristofferson, Ali MacGraw, Ernest Borgnine, and Burt Young. ... See also: 1979 in film 1980 1981 in film 1970s in film 1980s in film years in film film Events April 30 - The Roger Daltrey film, McVicar, opens in London. ... Smokey and the Bandit was a 1977 movie starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Paul Williams, and Mike Henry. ... See also: 1980 in film 1981 1982 in film 1980s in film years in film film Events January 19 - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquires beleagured concurrent United Artists. ... Cannonball Run was a campy, screwball comedy released in 1981 that starred Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise and Farrah Fawcett-Majors. ... See also: 1983 in film 1984 1985 in film 1980s in film years in film film Events Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film. ...

International use

Although CB was created in and for the United States, similar services exist in other countries around the world. See also: CB radio in the United Kingdom. Technical standards, power levels, and frequencies are different so North American CB equipment may not comply with European regulations, and vice versa. Often other radio services will use FM instead of AM or SSB. CB Radio was first introduced into the United Kingdom in around 1978 (although these dates are hard to confirm accurately). ... Frequency modulation (FM) is a form of modulation which represents information as variations in the instantaneous frequency of a carrier wave. ... Amplitude modulation (AM) is a form of modulation in which the amplitude of a carrier wave is varied in direct proportion to that of a modulating signal. ... Single-sideband modulation (SSB) is a refinement of the technique of amplitude modulation designed to be more efficient in its use of electrical power and bandwidth. ...

A gray market trade in imported CB gear does exist in many countries. In many instances, sale or ownership of foreign-specification CB gear is not illegal, but the actual use of it is. With the FCC's minimal enforcement of its rules regarding CB radio, enthusiasts in the USA often use European FM CB gear to get away from the overcrowded AM channels. American AM gear has also been exported to Europe to a lesser extent. The grey market (in U.S. spelling, gray market) refers to the flow of goods through distribution channels other than those authorized by the manufacturer or producer. ... World map showing location of Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... Frequency modulation (FM) is a form of modulation which represents information as variations in the instantaneous frequency of a carrier wave. ...

In Canada, the "General Radio Service" has the identical frequencies and modes as the United States "Citizen's Band", and no special provisions are required for either Canadians or Americans using CB gear while travelling across the border. Canada is a sovereign state in northern North America, the northern-most country in the world, and the second largest in total area. ...

See also

• Amateur radio
• Tragedy of the commons

Amateur radio, commonly called ham radio, is a hobby enjoyed by many people throughout the world (as of 2004 about 3 million worldwide, 60,000 in UK, 70,000 in Germany, 5,000 in Norway, 57,000 in Canada, and 700,000 in the USA). ... The tragedy of the commons is a metaphor used to illustrate the conflict between individual interests and the common good. ...

Related sites

• Ursine:CB - Detailed CB radio channel plan, 10 codes, Q signals