BVS Wireless Detection PRO1.5 Wolfhound PRO Cell Phone Detector User Manual
- June 11, 2024
- BVS Wireless Detection
Table of Contents
- BVS Wireless Detection PRO1.5 Wolfhound PRO Cell Phone Detector
- INTRODUCTION
- Wolfhound-PRO UNIT DESCRIPTION
- Higher-Level Menu Screens
- Direction Finding Icons
- GPS Tracker Detection Tips for Vehicle Inspection
- Loading Default Parameters
- OPERATION & USE
- MAINTENANCE and TROUBLESHOOTING
- WolfHound-Pro Windows Software
- References
- Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
- Download This Manual (PDF format)
BVS Wireless Detection PRO1.5 Wolfhound PRO Cell Phone Detector
INTRODUCTION
The Wolfhound-PRO cell detector uses a narrow-band/high-selectivity receiver controlled by an on-board processor. The Wolfhound-PRO receiver has a resolution bandwidth of 4 MHz and uses a square-law detector. The receiver can be set to scan multiple up-link frequency bands assigned to North America, the European Union, Asia and Australia, as listed in Table 1:
Air Interface Technology | Up-Link Frequency Band (MHz) |
---|
North America
LTE Uplink
| 698 – 716 MHz
777 – 787 MHz
788 – 798 MHz
GSM-850, GSM-900, CDMA, Cellular
| 824 – 849 MHz
896 – 901 MHz
AWS Uplink| 1710 – 1755 MHz
PCS| 1850 – 1910 MHz
DECT 6.0| 1920 – 1930 MHz
GPS Tracking Devices (GSM)| 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
Europe/Asia/Korea/Australia/Brazil/New Zealand/Israel/Canada/Japan
EGSM-900
Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand
|
880 – 915 MHz
GSM 1800 (DCS-1800)
Europe, Asia, Japan
|
1710.2 – 1784.8 MHz
WCDMA/UMTS
Europe, Asia, Korea, Japan, Australia, Brazil, New Zealand
|
1920 – 1980 MHz
The receiver detector output is used to drive one or more of the following indicators:
- height of coarse and fine bar charts in the OLED display
- pulsing rate of Laser (optional accessory mounted on DF antenna assembly)
- pulsing rate of Sound Alert (speaker or ear bud)
- turning on Vibrator Alert (fixed rate)
The Wolfhound-PRO unit is normally used in the hand-held mode either with an Omnidirectional antenna for cell phone detection only (see left side of Figure 1 below), or with a Direction Finding (DF) antenna for identifying the relative orientation (i.e. Line Of Position) of a radiating cell phone. Either antenna is connected to the Wolfhound-PRO unit RF coaxial port located at the OLED end of the unit as it can be observed from the two photos in Figure 1.
Items Supplied
The standard package (as shipped) includes the Wolfhound-PRO unit and
accessories, including a carrying case as seen in Figure 2:
-
Wolfhound-PRO Cell Detector unit
-
Operators Manual
-
VELCRO hand strap
-
Earbud
-
External AC Power Charger
-
Omnidirectional monopole antenna
-
Direction Finding (DF) Antenna assembly
-
Mini USB cable
-
Pelican® briefcase (black with secure lock and keys)
-
Optionally, the following items are also available:
-
Green Laser module (mounted on DF antenna assembly)
-
PC Software package (for real-time monitoring, data logging and report generation)1
-
1 See Appendix 1 below for a synopsis of the functions performed by this software.
Wolfhound-PRO UNIT DESCRIPTION
Wolfhound-PRO (trackball model) unit appear in Figure 3. The unit has an OLED, navigation trackball, five electrical interfaces and an LED as listed below (see also arrows 1, 2, 3, 6, 7 and 8 in Figure 3):
- Antenna port
- Audio (ear bud) jack
- DC Power jack
- Liquid Crystal Display (OLED)
- Trackball (roll for 2D cursor navigation/press down for selecting)
- Laser jack
- Mini USB jack
- Battery status LED (Red)
Note: Some Wolfhound-Pro models utilize a single trackball for menu navigation and control while other Wolfhound-Pro models use a 5-button layout for navigation. Both units are identical in performance and features leaving the appearance and physical navigation as the only difference between the two models.
- Navigate/adjust up menu
- Navigate/adjust to the right
- Navigate/adjust down menu
- Navigate/adjust to the left
- Select or deselect highlighted icon / Power ON the unit
Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED)
The Wolfhound-PRO unit can be turned on by holding down the trackball or black
center pushbutton (see arrow 5 in Figure 3) at least for about a second. When
the unit is powered, the amber monochrome OLED will display one of the three
measurement screens (Phone Detection, Direction Finding or DECT 6.0 Detection)
from which the unit was turned off. Thus, if the unit was being used in the
Direction Finding mode just before powering off, next time it is powered on
the OLED will display the Direction Finding screen in Figure 4:
The unit can be powered off only from one of the three measurement screens, by choosing the power icon in Figure 4 (the power icon is nearest to the lower right-hand corner of all three measurement screens).
Higher-Level Menu Screens
MAIN MENU Screen (highest-level menu)
The Wolfhound-PRO unit MAIN MENU screen (see Figure 5) is accessed by
selecting the information icon “ i ” from any one of the three measurement
screens (see Figure 4).
Clicking “Back” in Figure 5 or in any other screen where “Back” appears will take the user to the next higher-level menu or screen. The first four items in the MAIN MENU (i.e., Measurements, Effect Options, Settings and Information) are discussed next
MEASUREMENTS Screen
Clicking on “Measurements” from the MAIN MENU (Figure 5) will yield the
MEASUREMENTS Menu:
This menu allows the user to enter one of the three modes of real-time monitoring of the Wolfhound- PRO unit:
Phone Detection Mode
In this mode (see Figure 7), the Wolfhound-PRO will detect the use of one or
more cell phones while monitoring the relative strength of the source
signal(s) and frequencies using the Omnidirectional antenna. The frequency
band needs to be selected via the BAND SELECTION screen. The frequency
indication corresponds to the strongest signal detected in the selected
frequency band, using a coarse bar-chart varying in height on a relative scale
of 0 to 10. Each division on the coarse scale corresponds to approximately
6.4dB change in signal level. In this mode cell phone use can be detected but
direction of maximum signal strength cannot be determined.
Typical Screen
The screen and icons shown is the typical Direction Finding screen but shares many functions and icons of most other measurement screens in the Wolfhound- PRO.
- Coarse Bar Chart: Indicates instantaneous signal strength on a scale of 0 to 10. Maximum hold indication is provided by the two dashes at each side of bar-chart.
- Threshold Setting marker: The threshold setting is adjusted by selecting the “T” icon on the right (see Figure 13), then selecting (up or down) to the desired level with respect to the bar chart scale to the left, then selecting to lock marker setting. This setting controls both the Frequency Field and Cell Phone icon indicators (arrows 4 and 5).
- Direction Finding Features Toggle: This icon will only display when in the Direction Finding selection in the Measurements menu. Selecting this icon and toggle through the following modes: Threshold (T), Reset Maximum Hold (arrow pointing down), Frequency Discriminator Mode (single cellphone), Scan All Mode (3 cell phones), Direction Finding Mode (scale). Once you see the function you like, select that icon and push in the black center push button or trackball (model dependent) to select that function.
- Direction Finding Scale: This vertical scale only appears when Wolfhound-PRO is in the Direction Finding mode. This scale measures signal strength like the scale to the left of it but at a finer resolution making it useful for sensitive direction finding.
- Cell Phone icon: This fixed icon turns on when any signal level in the frequency band exceeds the threshold marker setting.
- Geographic Region: This field indicates one of multiple possible frequency band settings.
- Information Icon: Selecting this icon brings back the MAIN MENU screen
- Direction Finding Mode: Selecting this icon puts the Wolfhound-PRO into Direction Finding Mode. The more granular RSSI scale on the right will appear in this mode.
- Power Off Icon: The unit is turned off by selecting this icon from any one of the three measurement screens (i.e., Phone Detection, Direction Finding or DECT 6.0 Detection).
- Battery Status Icon: This icon indicates the charge status of the internal Lithium Ion Polymer battery. Starting with an almost empty battery, as the unit is charged by the AC charger, this icon will change from an empty rectangle to a solid amber rectangle. If used over 5.5 hours without charging, the unit will eventually turn itself off to avoid permanent damage to the battery. As long as the battery is charging, the battery status LED (red, see arrow 10 in Figure above) will be ON.
- Laser Pulse Indicator: This icon shows that the pulsing laser is active and should be visible while a cell phone is detected. Note: it may be difficult to see the green laser pulse in bright conditions. Try pointing device at a close wall or corner to see laser. NEVER look directly into laser for any reason.
- Vibrator Icon: This icon shows that the vibrating alert mode is active so you should feel the Wolfhound-PRO unit vibrating during cell phone detection.
- Audible Alert Icon: This icon shows that the audible alert is active so you should hear the Wolfhound-PRO unit beeping during cell phone detection.
Direction Finding Icons
These are icons appear in the direction finding mode and their functions are all useful when performing direction finding:
- Select this icon to toggle through the following functions in the Direction Finding Menu:
- Select this icon to set Threshold. The icon will change to for adjustment. Lower or raise the Threshold. Push the trackball or black center pushbutton to select new level.
- Select this icon to reset the maximum signal detected bar.
- Select this icon to remove the strongest signal from the list of detected phones.
- Select this icon to “see” all cell phones detected.
- Select this icon to enter the Direction Finding measurement mode.
Direction Finding Modes
This mode of measurement allows the user to determine the Line of Position of
a radiating cell phone (or, the direction from which the cell phone is
radiating), as well as detecting the cell phone signal (see Figure 9). The
frequency band needs to be selected (US, EU, AU,….) via the BAND SELECTION
screen.
Within the Direction Finding mode there are two different features that allow the user to detect cell phones with greater accuracy. These features can be found by highlighting the spinning wheel icon and selecting it. Here are the two different features in the Direction Finding mode followed by a brief description for each one:
Frequency Discriminator Mode
The Frequency Discriminator mode allows the user to remove the strongest signal of a cell phone from a particular frequency band. This application is helpful when a known cell phone is detected and needs to be filtered out by the Wolfhound PRO so the user can find other hidden cell phones in the same frequency band. When this mode is activated the band selection will display “-“ where the frequency just appeared. To deactivate the Frequency Discriminator mode highlight the icon shown in figure 11 and select it. The icon shown in figure 12 will appear and the band selection will be displayed.
Frequency Discriminator Mode
Direction Finding Scale
When the Direction Finding mode is activated, a graph appears allowing the user to see greater granularity of the detected cell phone signal. It is recommended to use this mode with the Direction Finding antenna attached to the Wolfhound PRO to uncover hidden cell phones. As the signal increases or decreases in the graph to the right the user can determine the direction of the cell phone. For more details on setting up the Direction Finding Antenna refer to Attachment of Direction Finding Antenna. There is also the Threshold Marker and the Reset Max Bars icons that are found using the spinning wheel icon.
Threshold Marker Setting
The Threshold Marker Setting allows the user to set a line anywhere along the scale on the left. Should the Wolfhound-PRO detect a signal that exceeds that threshold, the user will be alerted with one or more alerts (see Activating Accessories for information on this). To change the threshold marker, highlight the T icon and select it. The T icon located near the scale can now be modified up or down using the trackball or up/down buttons on the keypad (model dependent). Press the trackball or keypad center pushbutton again to set the desired level.
Reset Max Bars
The Reset Max Bars mode is activated when the user highlights the spinning wheel icon and selects until the down arrow icon appears as shown in Figure 14. Once a cell phone is detected and the bar appears, the markers will move to the maximum level detected and remain there. This mode is helpful when the user is busy while cell phone activity is occurring. To set the markers to zero, select the down arrow icon while it is highlighted.
DECT 6.0 Detection Mode
DECT 6.0 cordless phone monitoring is initiated from the MEASUREMENTS screen,
regardless of frequency band selection. The various fields in the DECT 6.0
Detection screen are identical to those of the Direction Finding screen with
the exception of the Geographic Region field as follows (Figure 15):
GPS Tracker Detection Mode
While in this mode, a target icon is displayed along with the cellular uplink
frequency that a suspected GPS tracker is currently transmitting on. It is
important for those wishing to detect and locate hidden GPS trackers in a
timely manner, to follow the operational tips below (Figure 16):
Best Practices in Detecting GPS Trackers
Since most GPS trackers are placed somewhere on a vehicle for tracking
purposes, these operational descriptions will deal primarily with that
scenario. For detection of BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) personal trackers such
as Apple’s AirTags, Tile Trackers and Samsung’s Galaxy Smart Tags which can be
secretly placed inside people’s pockets or handbags, please speak with your
BVS sales engineer about personal tracker detection solutions including
Yorkie-Pro.
GPS Trackers Info
Most GPS trackers are active only when they are in motion and even then, GPS
trackers only transmit on a specific RF cellular uplink band to nearby towers
in fractions of second increments. This makes initial detection of a hidden
GPS tracker difficult but certainly not impossible. In order to detect and
ultimately locate a hidden tracker, you will need to be patient and methodical
in your search.
Wolfhound-Pro Info
Wolfhound-Pro takes approximately 20 minutes to entirely scan all cellular
bands that a GPS tracker can possibly transmit. That does not mean that it
will always take 20
minutes to initially detect a GPS tracker but it can take up to that long
depending upon which RF band is being used and the current user settings of
your Wolfhound-Pro.
For any initial search, we recommend sweeping all bands for 60 seconds each.
There is a setting to sweep all bands for only 10 seconds each but we only
recommend using this setting as an accelerated test search method for
verification only after you have identified a possible GPS tracker.When
Wolfhound-Pro has identified a possible tracker, this icon and the tracker’s
frequency will appear (show target icon and freq). You may now choose the
specific bin that contains that frequency in order to begin an accelerated
verification sweep for the GPS tracker. Have a timer ready before you activate
the GPS tracker by either shaking it directly or driving the vehicle. If
you’re using a smartphone, make sure it is set to airplane mode. If you have
access to a working GPS tracker that has been cellularly activated, we
recommend you acquaint yourself with the timing and procedures by first
testing it in a controlled (little to no cellular activity) environment. After
turning on the GPS tracker, simply shake it a few times periodically to make
sure it is transmitting and then make note of the signal detections on
Wolfhound-Pro to determine the current transmit interval settings of that GPS
tracker. This can help some users prepare for a real search by eliminating
some of the unknowns while out in the field. Also take note of the regular
cellular data signals when they occasionally appear on the Wolfhound-Pro as
longer, more frequent but sporadic bursts compared to the short, regular
bursts from a GPS tracker. These details and observations can save you a lot
of time while out in the field. For a complete video tutorial on GPS tracker
detection using Wolfhound-Pro visit this Youtube link:
https://youtu.be/rPeE_PcSgD8
Preparing Before the Search
Before you begin, be sure that everyone within the area (including yourself)
have their phones turned off or left in airplane mode during the entire
process. Any cellular device within a ½ mile radius that is left on can
potentially trigger the Wolfhound-Pro and make the search for a cellular
tracker much more difficult than it should be. Also make sure that you bring
the vehicle in question to an area with little to no cellular activity. Open
areas with no residential or business structures nearby are the best choice to
avoid cellular activity. Remember that GPS trackers are typically triggered by
motion which means you will need to drive the vehicle in question continuously
in order to reliably detect a hidden GPS tracker transmission. We recommend
sweeping the entire area using Wolfhound-Pro in regular cellular scanning mode
(not GPS tracker mode) while driving around before you try to detect any GPS
trackers. Keep a close eye on Wolfhound-Pro for any cellular activity and
avoid all areas with heavy or moderate RF activity.
Beginning to Search
Begin by selecting GPS Tracker in the Measurements menu screen.
After that you will be prompted with a Bin Selection screen allowing you to automatically scan all Bins (frequency ranges) for 10 seconds each, all for 60 seconds each or individual Bins.
Scroll down to More Bins and select that to see more Bin choices. There are a total of (19) Bins:
- 663-683 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 673 MHz
- 680-700 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 690 MHz
- 696-716 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 706 MHz
- 777- 781 MHz: continues sampling of a 4 MHz frequency bin centered at 779 MHz
- 781- 785 MHz: continues sampling of a 4 MHz frequency bin centered at 783 MHz
- 783-787 MHz: continues sampling of a 4 MHz frequency bin centered at 785 MHz
- 814-834 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 824 MHz
- 829-849 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 839 MHz
- 1710-1730 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1720 MHz
- 1730-1750 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1740 MHz
- 1750-1770 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1760 MHz
- 1760-1780 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1770 MHz
- 1850-1870 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1860 MHz
- 1870-1890 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1880 MHz
- 1890-1910 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1900 MHz
- 1895-1915 MHz: continues sampling of a 20 MHz frequency bin centered at 1905 MHz
- 2305-2309 MHz: continues sampling of a 4 MHz frequency bin centered at 2307 MHz
- 2309-2313 MHz: continues sampling of a 4 MHz frequency bin centered at 2311 MHz
- 2311-2315 MHz: continues sampling of a 4 MHz frequency bin centered at 2313 MHz
Scroll down and choose the Bin shown or Back for the previous screen.
Identifying a GPS Tracker
After you have set the BIN SELECTION (Figure 19) in the SETTINGS menu that matches the cellular band of the nearby GPS tracker, you can watch this tracker for cellular spikes by viewing it live by selecting GPS TRACKER under the MEASUREMENTS menu screen (Figure 20).
Once the GPS tracker has been activated through motion, reset Wolfhound-Pro’s maximum detection watermark and frequency by pressing the down arrow icon and then wait for detection while in motion. When detection is received, start the timer. Wait for the signal to hit again and mark the time. The time difference between these two detections should indicate the interval transmit settings in the tracker you are trying to locate. Knowing this interval will help verify this signal as a GPS tracker and not some other cellular device. It will also help in direction finding which can greatly accelerate the discovery of hidden trackers. Be sure to also take note of the watermark and that the signal strength closely matches for each interval transmission. This further verifies a GPS tracker, especially in a moving vehicle. Once you have confirmed a GPS Tracker somewhere inside or outside the vehicle with you, you can then swap out the omnidirectional antenna for the supplied directional antenna (see Figure 22) in order to locate the GPS Tracker. Choose the GPS Tracker frequency you have already identified and adjust the threshold accordingly. Continue to operate the Wolfhound-Pro from the middle of the moving vehicle by pointing the DF antenna towards the front or the back until the threshold is broken a few more times. Point the unit in the other direction and make note of the signal strength compared to the last time the threshold was broken. The GPS Tracker should be located on the side of the car where the signal bar is highest. From there, you can continue to narrow down the location of the GPS Tracker into a quadrant or even smaller area in the car. Be sure to also check above and below for GPS Tracker signals as some trackers are sometimes placed near the floor or ceiling of the interior of the vehicle’s body. If a full search of the vehicle’s interior yields no results, you will need to perform a visual inspection all around the exterior of the vehicle since it can be difficult to scan the exterior of a moving vehicle without additional vehicles and assistance.
GPS Tracker Detection Tips for Vehicle Inspection
Outside the Vehicle
Many individuals secretly tracking someone else do not have easy access to
their vehicle’s interior so they opt for quick and easy exterior hiding
places. GPS trackers are generally inserted at ground level in a reachable
place. If you don’t have access to a lift for a thorough visual inspection,
try an under-vehicle inspection mirror – you can always tape a mirror to a
yardstick.
- Make sure the vehicle has cooled down from any recent trips – no need to get burned feeling your way around the hot metal.
- Search the front driver’s side by tires and wheel well. Continue inspecting under and behind the front and rear bumpers – use a coat hanger to lightly sweep tight areas.
- Continue inspection of the front passenger underside. Look and feel for any adhesive, a zip lock or a small box (roughly sized from a pack of smokes to playing dice) attached without screws or bolts.
- Many GPS tracker housings use strong magnets to attach to ferrous metals found in a car’s chassis while most visible surfaces are just non-ferrous aluminum.
- Check the undercarriage for marks in road dust, streaks, smudges or mud that could indicate a hasty insertion or even recent removal of the GPS tracker.
- Use a strong flashlight to illuminate the sides of the vehicle from both directions to reveal any cloaked areas.
Inside the Vehicle
Getting access to the vehicle is only the beginning. You still must locate the
GPS tracker using a methodical approach.
- Start low in front of vehicle and work up from the floor including feeling under the seats, seat covers, under or inside the headrest and glove compartment.
- Look over door panels for smudges or even damage. Trackers have turned up inside speaker boxes.
- Feel your way over the entire dashboard, especially the hidden area where the windshield meets dash.
- Check carefully under the steering column – OBD-II vehicle diagnostics ports can be found there allowing for continuous power of hidden GPS trackers.
- Search back seats and use a coat hanger to gently sweep in between the cushions.
- Don’t overlook the trunk. You’ll have to remove the spare tire and mats so be thorough. And remember to check under the trunk lid and cardboard panel separating trunk from the back seats.
Under the Hood
If there’s a chance that someone could have access under the hood, it’s worth
checking out this area even though it can get too hot with too much metal for
most GPS trackers to operate effectively.
- The fuse box is a good place to start. You may see wires running from the fuse box, but they do not normally have wires pressed into a fuse circuit. If you see this, try to follow the wires to their final destination.
- Next try the air filter area – it keeps a GPS tracker ventilated and easy to access.
- Don’t spend much time searching areas such as the coolant, hoses or any moving parts as they rarely allow for easy insertion, extraction or operation.
SETUP
Setup of the unit before use requires the completion of the following sequence
of steps:
- attaching one of the provided antennas to the unit as appropriate (Omnidirectional antenna for detecting/monitoring, DF antenna for locating)
- powering up the unit by pushing in the trackball or center keypad pushbutton 2
- activating accessories (Sound, Vibrator, Laser) as needed
- adjusting Volume (if Sound was activated)
- selecting the frequency band (US or EU)
- adding attenuation if necessary (for strong in-band signals)
Each of these steps are discussed in greater detail below
Antenna Connection
The antenna port (SMA-jack) is located just below the OLED when the unit is
held in the normal orientation (arrow (1) in Figure 3). Either one of the two
antennas (Omnidirectional or Direction Finding) will interface with this
connector, as follows:
Attachment of Omnidirectional Antenna
Simply screw the antenna connector at the base of the antenna to the antenna
jack on the unit (see left side of Figure 1).
Attachment of Direction Finding (DF) Antenna
Attaching the DF antenna to the unit is done in three steps, as follows:
- attach the bracket to the DF antenna flange using the two thumb screws
- attach the DF antenna assembly RF and Laser connectors to the Antenna and Laser jacks respectively (see (A) left and right sides in Figure 22). Use of a wrench to tighten the antenna connector may damage unit. Finger-tight only — DO NOT use a wrench.
- secure the Wolfhound-PRO unit to the DF antenna assembly bracket by tightening (finger-tight only) the bracket thumb screw (see (B) in Figure 22).
Figure 22. Attaching DF Antenna Assembly Connectors to Antenna and Laser jacks on unit (A); Securing DF Antenna Assembly Bracket to Unit with Thumb-Screw (B)
CAUTION
The antenna connector should be hand-tightened only to the unit SMA port. Use
of a wrench for this purpose will result in damage to the unit housing and/or
the connector, hence null the product warranty. Application of stress to the
DF Antenna should also be avoided to preclude permanent damage to Unit and/or
the DF Antenna assembly.
Powering Up Unit
The unit is powered up by pushing in the trackball or black center pushbutton
(model dependent) for at least 1 second. When powered, the amber monochrome
OLED will display one of the four measurement screens (Phone Detection,
Direction Finding, DECT 6.0 Detection or GPS Tracker) from which the unit was
turned off the last time it was used.
Activating Accessories (Sound/Vibrator/Laser)
From the MAIN MENU (see Figure 5 above) select “Effect Options” to obtain the
EFFECT OPTIONS menu (Figure 17):
Selecting “Effects On/Off” will cause the OLED to display the “EFFECTS ON / OFF” screen seen in Figure 18:
Check the desired fields (Sound, Vibrator, Laser as needed) displayed with a checkmark and then select “Back” to return to the “EFFECT OPTIONS” screen (Figure 24). The behavior of these accessories as a function of the detected signal strength will be as follows:
Laser: the laser starts pulsing at a constant rate when the signal level
exceeds the Threshold level. the duty cycle of the laser pulse increases with
increasing signal level but the pulse rate (or period of pulse) stays
constant.
Sound: when the signal level exceeds the Threshold level, a sound alarm
starts beeping. The beeping rate increases with increasing signal level.
Vibrator: the Vibrator alert will go off when signal level exceeds the
Threshold level. The vibrator alert will operate intermittently at a constant
rate and duty cycle independent of the detected signal level, as long as it
exceeds the threshold setting.
Adjusting Volume
From the EFFECT OPTIONS menu in Figure 25 select “Volume” to obtain the VOLUME
screen (see Figure 24):
Then, follow the sequence:
- select the second icon from top right-hand corner,
- adjust the volume by selecting up/down as desired,
- select the desired level
- return to the “EFFECT OPTIONS” screen by clicking on the left-arrow icon at top right corner
- return to the “MAIN MENU” screen by clicking on “Back”
Selecting Frequency Band
Starting from MAIN MENU, select “Settings” to enter the “SETTINGS” screen.
Then select “Band Selection” to enter the “BAND SELECTION” screen (Figure 26).
US – iDEN and US + Firstnet bands are for US customers only. US- iDEN filters
out the iDEN
Adding Attenuation (if necessary)
The purpose of this screen is to allow the user to introduce variable
attenuation between the antenna input port and the input to the receiver to
avoid overloading the highly sensitive receiver. This can be encountered when
the Wolfhound-PRO unit is deployed near cell towers or other in-band RF
sources. To do this, select “Settings” from the MAIN MENU screen to get the
“SETTINGS” screen, then select “Attenuation” to enter the ATTENUATION screen
(see Figure 27):
The attenuation level is adjusted by clicking on the second icon from the
upper right corner in Figure 27, then selecting up/down to move the “elevator”
up to increase attenuation while simultaneously observing the signal level
decreasing on the coarse bar chart and scale on the left side of the screen.
The number immediately to the right of the elevator icon represents the
approximate level of attenuation in dB as it is varied over the interval of 0
to 30. The maximum attenuation attainable in this manner is ~30 dB,
corresponding to about 5 divisions on the coarse signal scale.
Information Screen
The Information screen provides crucial information about the Wolfhound-PRO
unit battery status and the unit firmware version. To access this screen,
select “information” from the MAIN MENU to produce the INFORMATION screen seen
in Figure 28:
When the first menu item (Battery Status) is clicked, it will produce the BATTERY STATUS screen with unit-specific time-dependent battery information as seen in Figure 29:
When the second menu item (Product Info) is clicked, the PRODUCT INFO screen appears with the unit’s firmware version and serial number (see Figure 30):
On the actual PRODUCT INFO screen of the unit, the “SN:” characters shall be followed by the six-digit serial number of the unit appearing on the serial number label (with the BVS logo) pasted to the side of the unit. Both of these screens (Figures 29 and 30) are exited by clicking on the left-arrow icon on the top right corner of the screens.
Loading Default Parameters
When the unit is powered up it will recall parameter values (signal threshold level, attenuation, volume, all accessories off, US frequency bands, Phone Detection mode) used before it was turned off. However, at any time the user can re-load default parameters (i.e., parameter values set by BVS before the unit was shipped to the customer) to the Wolfhound-PRO unit by selecting and clicking on “Load Defaults” in the SETTINGS screen (Figure 31):
OPERATION & USE
The Wolfhound-PRO unit is turned on by pressing and holding in the trackball or keypad center pushbutton for at least one second. The unit is turned off by selecting the power-off icon in any one of the following five screens:
- Phone Detection screen (Figure 7)
- Direction Finding screen (Figure 8)
- DECT 6.0 detection screen (Figure 15)
- GPS Tracker screen (Figure 21)
- BATTERY STATUS screen (Figure 29)
The power-off icon is located at the right-hand lower corner of each of these screens.
Resetting the Maximum-Hold Marker
While in any one of the three monitoring modes (Phone Detection, Direction
Finding or DECT 6.0 Detection), clicking on the down arrow icon “ -↓- ”
(the third icon from top on the right-hand side of the screen) will reset the
maximum-hold marker “- -” (i.e., two dashes one on each side of the coarse bar
chart)to the instantaneous signal level on the coarse bar chart. In the
absence of a detected signal, the maximum-hold marker will typically be set to
the ambient noise floor level. Generally, the maximum-hold marker is very
useful for identifying azimuthal antenna orientations yielding maximum signal
strength (see the section entitled “Using the Wolfhound-PRO unit with the
Direction Finding (DF) Antenna”.
Antennas
The Wolfhound-PRO unit comes with an Omnidirectional antenna and a Direction
Finding (DF) antenna assembly with an integral pulsed green Laser. The
Omnidirectional antenna is a monopole, multi-band antenna. When it is oriented
vertically (i.e., tip of monopole pointing straight up) the Omnidirectional
antenna will detect signals with uniform sensitivity around 360 azimuth
degrees in the horizontal plane. Since this antenna will detect RF signals
incident from any direction in the horizontal plane with uniform sensitivity,
the user cannot distinguish the azimuth angle of the RF source. The Direction
Finding antenna will help identify the orientation of cell phones transmitting
RF power in multiple bands (see Table 1 above). The DF antenna output will be
maximum when the imaginary line connecting the antenna to the source is
approximately perpendicular to the plane defined by the flat face of the DF
antenna panel. Sources falling to the rear of the plane of the DF antenna
panel will produce substantially diminished antenna output. To help the user
maintain the proper orientation of the DF antenna, a pulsed green Laser is
integrated into the DF antenna. The Laser is mounted on the lower flange of
the DF antenna assembly. The duty cycle of the pulsed Laser increases with the
increasing level of the detected signal.
General Guidelines for Good Signal Reception
The Wolfhound-PRO unit should be kept at about waist to head height from the
floor, and away from walls and obstructions for proper performance. For the
same reason, keep the Wolfhound-PRO unit at least one foot (but preferably
more) away from large metal obstructions or surfaces (i.e., reflecting metal
walls, heavy steel structural elements, metal-wire screens, etc.). The unit
should not be used while its antenna (either kind) is contained by bags or
enclosures made of metal, carbon or other RF energy-absorbing or shielding
materials; doing so will seriously degrade its performance. These criteria are
listed in Table 2 below:
Table 1. General Criteria for Good Signal Reception
- Keep unit away from large conducting surfaces which tend to short out tangential components of electric fields (this includes the human body).
- The unit should have a 360-degree unobstructed view in the region of space being monitored.
- Avoid enclosing unit in other objects, in particular, objects with conducting or energy-dissipating surfaces.
Monitoring Cell Phone Use in Real-Time
For real-time monitoring of cell phone use, observe the Coarse and Sensitive
bar charts in the OLED Monitoring screen ( see arrows (2), (5) in Figure 4).
Monitoring Coarse Scale Maximum Hold
The Coarse Scale Maximum Hold marker ( see arrows 1 in Figure 7, 8 or 14)
represents the maximum observed level of the detector output signal since the
last re-set of the Coarse Scale Maximum Hold marker register. The Coarse Scale
Maximum Hold register can be reset to the noise level at any time while in the
OLED Monitoring screen, by pressing the “ -↓- ” button (arrow 8 in Figures
7, 8 and 14).
Using Wolfhound-PRO Unit with the Omnidirectional Antenna
To detect and monitor the existence of powered-on cell phones in a confined
space, place the Wolfhound- PRO unit at about waist to head height from the
floor, away from walls and obstructions. For best performance, the
Omnidirectional antenna should be oriented vertically (tip of antenna pointing
to ceiling or up) with respect to the floor plane .
Using the Wolfhound-PRO Unit with the Direction Finding (DF) Antenna
The DF antenna enables the user to determine the direction in the horizontal
(or floor) plane along which the detected signal is maximum. When it is
practical or appropriate, the Green Laser (mounted on the DF Antenna assembly)
may be deployed for assisting the user for aiming the DF antenna to potential
sources. The imaginary line along which the signal is maximum is called a Line
of Position. After an initial Line Of Position (LOP) is established by a
360-degree sweep of the unit/DF antenna, the user takes a few steps in the LOP
direction and then re-confirms the new LOP orientation by sweeping the unit/DF
antenna back and forth about the initial LOP (see Figure 32), while observing
the receiver output on the more sensitive DF Scale. When the unit is oriented
along the LOP, the DF bar chart will always indicate a positive reading
between 0 and 1. A negative reading on the DF bar chart (between 0 and -1)
means that the unit is not oriented along the local LOP.
Once the initial LOP is determined, sources can quickly be located using one
of the following two methods:
Method 1: Maximizing Signal Along the Same LOP
This method is based on approaching the source along the same LOP (see Figure
33) to maximize receiver output at successive points towards the source.
For Method 1 use the following sequence:
- Keep the DF antenna level by observing the height of the point at which the laser beam reflects from a wall or other object (or keep the laser beam parallel to the horizontal or floor plane).
- Sweep the DF antenna in the azimuthal direction, from side to side within an arc of about 90 degrees (i.e., 45 degrees to right, then 45 degrees to left, and repeat…) to determine the relative direction for maximum detector output on the DF bar-chart (see arrows 4 and 5 in Figures 8 and 9).
- While the DF antenna is pointing at the potential source, re-set the Coarse Scale Maximum Hold marker by pressing the “-↓-” button (arrows 1 in Figures 8 and 14). This will make the DF bar chart read the maximum level (i.e. 0 to +1 on the DF Scale”) to help the user make small adjustments to his/her intermediate heading to “lock-in” on the actual orientation of the source.
- Walking slowly in the same heading, scan the unit again for maximum signal in the same manner, while the signal level registered on the coarse bar chart increases.
- Keep walking in the same direction and repeat Steps 3 and 4 for increased signal till the source is within arm’s reach of the Wolfhound-PRO.
Method 2: “Triangulate” with Two (or more) LOPs
This method helps the user rapidly “triangulate” the approximate location of
source by determining two (or more) LOPs of the source from two (or more)
positions on the floor (see Figure 34).
Once the approximate location is known, Method 1 can be used to “zoom in” on the source, by maximizing the receiver signal level. The following sequence is used:
- Choose Point 1 and determine LOP1
- Move away from LOP 1 in the perpendicular direction to Point 2 without getting too close to obstructions and/or walls. At Point 2 determine LOP2.
- Mentally determine the approximate area of intersection for LOP1 and LOP2 within the space monitored.
- Move to point of intersection (of LOP1 and LOP2) and use Method 1 to zoom in on the source, if necessary.
MAINTENANCE and TROUBLESHOOTING
Charging Batteries
The unit batteries are charged by attaching the AC Adapter/Charger output plug
to the DC in jack on the unit. Starting with fully depleted batteries (i.e.,
after the unit has turned itself off), the Battery Status gauge in the
Monitoring screen (see arrow 10 in Figure 7 above) will show “full” (i.e.,
solid amber rectangle) in about 3.5 hours using the AC Adapter/Charger. As
long as the battery is charging, the Battery Status LED (see arrow 8 in Figure
3 above) will be ON.
Appendix 1: Synopsis for the optional Wolfhound-PRO PC Software
At a high level, this software allows the Wolfhound-PRO unit outputs to be
displayed and monitored on a PC or Laptop screen in real-time, by performing
the following functions:
- Receives data from Wolfhound-PRO via mini USB port.
- Real-Time monitoring.
- Alerts when activity is detected above a set threshold.
- Reports power level, and at what frequency the alert was triggered.
- Alert drops when power falls below drop threshold.
- Displays registration, text messages, and call alerts.
- Logs data to a SQL database.
- Reports can be generated from historical data for activity patterns.
- Reports can be printed directly.
The detailed user manual for this software is included in the Wolfhound-PRO PC Software package and is available as an optional item.
WolfHound-Pro Windows Software
Introduction
The WolfHound-Pro is a hand-held portable cell phone detector. The WolfHound-
Pro PC software collects real-time data from the WolfHound-Pro when connected
via a USB cable. This data is stored and can be retrieved at any time for the
display of statistics or the generation of printed reports. Installation of
Software The software is contained on an SD card. After installation is
complete, run the application. If an error occurs when trying to open the
database, please change the properties of the shortcut to run in Windows XP
compatibility mode. Also, please run the application as administrator. This
will help alleviate any security issues with writing to the database.
Getting Started
Connect the provided USB cable to the Wolfhound Pro and PC. Turn on the
WolfHound Pro receiver. Start the Wolfhound Pro software. The status window in
the upper-right portion of the screen will display messages. If connected
properly, the firmware version and serial number of the unit will appear as
messages. The real-time display of signal strength will begin to appear.
NOTE: The first time the software is run, the user will be requested to
enter a registration code. The registration code is provided along with the
software. Type in the registration code to unlock the real-time feature of the
application. The software will not ask for this information again.
Quick Tour
The Wolfhound Pro has a tab control menu on the left-hand side of the main
screen which separates the functionality into main sections. These are: REAL-
TIME – Displays information real-time being collected from the Wolfhound Pro
STATISTICS – Allows the user to review stored information in a graphical
format and to then be able to print out the information in a report. The
Wolfhound Pro also has a menu for Settings and Help along the top edge of the
display window.
REAL-TIME
When the real-time mode is selected, data currently being collected by the Wolfhound Pro is displayed over time. This is displayed in a temporal graph from right to left. There are approximately 5 reports per second. The signal strength is reported between 0 and 100. When the signal strength goes above the currently set threshold (see SETTINGS) the area under the signal strength will appear red. The area will stay red until the signal strength falls below the threshold again. When the threshold has been eclipsed, counters will be updated. These counters include: REGISTRATIONS TEXT MESSAGES CALLS Depending on the length of a threshold incursion, one of these counters will be updated. If it is a short burst, it will simply be a phone registering with the network. Slightly longer would be perhaps a text message. Finally, a lengthy incursion would be an actual phone call. These counters can be cleared at any time by pressing the “CLEAR COUNTS” button.There is also a bar to the right of the temporal screen which displays the current reading. The color changes as the level gets higher. The current band selected is displayed as well as the frequency of the last detection.
STATISTICS
Pressing the statistics button on the left side will display a graph defaulting to cell phone detection for the current date. There are two selection boxes in order to generate statistics. The leftmost box lets the user determine what type of report is to be run. The default is a general detection report. The rightmost box lets the user determine the time frame in which the data is to be extracted. Examples of time spans for these reports is “Today”, “This Month”, and “Last Year”. Choose the appropriate time frame to be studied. Data is grouped in time depending on the selection. For instance, in a report that is for a single day, the data is grouped in 5-minute intervals. These reports may be printed by pressing the “PRINT REPORT” button.
SETTINGS
The settings menu lets the user set the threshold, band, and mute sound. Click
on the requested option on the left-hand side of the dialog. The threshold
setting allows the user to set a level at which it is determined that a
cellphone is in use. Any readings above this level (between 0 and 100) will
show the area under it as red in the temporal screen and an audio alarm will
sound (unless the sound setting has been set to off).
The band settings lets the user select between the United States and European band. Choose the appropriate band for your area.
The sound setting lets the user turn the sound alert on or off. Simply make a selection and it will be applied as soon as the dialog has been closed.
HELP
The help menu shows application information. This includes the software
version, firmware version (of the hardware), and the serial number of the
unit.
Thank you for your purchase, we look forward to supporting you and your team.
Customer Support
- Berkeley Varitronics Systems, Inc.
- Liberty Corporate Park
- 255 Liberty Street
- Metuchen, NJ 08840
- 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM EST
- Toll-Free: 888-737-4287
- Phone: 732-548-3737
- Fax: 732-548-3404
- 24/7 (expect a reply within one day)
- email: support@bvsystems.com www.bvsystems.com
References
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
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