Berkeley Varitronics Systems Cicada Manuale utente
manual version 1.2
manual version 1.2
Cicada
Contents
CICADA ACCESSORIES................................................................................................. 3
CICADA KEYPAD......................................................................................................... 3
GETTING STARTED...................................................................................................... 3
AP MEASUREMENT SCREENS......................................................................................... 4
MAIN MENU.............................................................................................................. 5
AP ANALYSIS............................................................................................................ 5
AP FOLLOWING......................................................................................................... 5
SPECTRUM............................................................................................................... 6
PEAK HOLD.............................................................................................................. 6
CICADA SETUP........................................................................................................... 6
INFO SCREEN............................................................................................................ 7
GPS : ON................................................................................................................. 7
INITIALIZE CARD........................................................................................................ 8
SELECT REGION......................................................................................................... 8
CONTRAST ADJUSTMENT.............................................................................................. 9
BACKLIGHT ADJUSTMENT............................................................................................. 9
WEP ENCRYPTION DETECTION....................................................................................... 9
NETWORKING BASICS.................................................................................................. 10
CICADA ACCESSORIES................................................................................................. 12
DIRECTION FINDING ANTENNA SETUP.............................................................................. 13
CICADA SERIAL INTERFACE (DATA LOGGER)...................................................................... 14
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS.............................................................................................. 14
GPS SCREEN............................................................................................................. 15
SERIAL PORT SCREEN................................................................................................. 15
UNIT SETUP SCREEN................................................................................................... 16
DOLPHIN REAL TIME PLOTTER SCREEN............................................................................ 16
MENU SELECTIONS..................................................................................................... 17
AP ANALYSIS SCREEN................................................................................................. 19
FOLLOW SCREEN....................................................................................................... 19
SPECTRUM SCREEN.................................................................................................... 20
CHAMELEON WLAN DATA CONVERSION APPLICATION.......................................................... 21
GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS........................................................................................... 23
GENERAL SAFETY
ANTENNA RADIATION PATTERNS
CICADA DATA SHEET
INTRUDER ALERT: Recognizing WLAN Attacks & Locating the Culprits (MPD August, 2002)
802.11a Measurement Techniques and Network Issues (MPD November, 2003)
TAKE THE WLAN TEST CHALLENGE (COMMUNICATION NEWS April, 2002)
Page 1
Page 2
Cicada™ is a handheld, wireless receiver designed spe-
cifically for sweeping and optimizing Local Area Networks.
The instrument measures coverage of direct sequence
CDMA networks which operate on the IEEE 802.11b stan-
dard allowing the user to measure and determine the
AP (Access Point), PER (Packet Error Rate), and RSSI
signal levels and access points throughout a building.
Cicada detects and differentiates from narrow-band mul-
tipath interferences such as microwave ovens and direct
sequence systems and features a built-in display, keypad
and removable battery pack for true portability.
Cicada’s battery pack uses common AA battery cells found
in any conveinence store. Ni-Cad, Alkalines, Ni-MH and
Li-Ion cells may all be used. Cicada does require 5 AA
cells with at least 1500 mAh per cell. BVS supplies 2 bat-
tery packs complete with 10 Ni-MH battery cells to get
users working right out of the box. Ni-MH cells are recom-
mended for best performance from your Cicada.
Cicada also includes a simple 2.4 GHz threaded antenna
that screws right into the top of the unit. Additional anten-
nas may be ordered from BVS through BVS.
At the top of the Cicada rests the GPS connector, antenna
connector and upload port. The GPS antenna connector
(left) is a small male connector. The antenna connector
(center) is a 2.4 GHz SMA Female 50 ohm. The provided
antenna easily screws and unscrews from this connec-
tor. Be sure to unscrew antennas when transporting the
Cicada. The upload port (right) is used as a one way
communications port for uploading new firmware to the
Cicada. The port uses the provided cable which employs a
standard RJ-11 phone jack on one end and DB-9 PC serial
cable on the other end.
See UPDATING CICADA FIRMWARE in this manual for firm-
ware updating procedures.
Page 3
CICADA ACCESSORIES
Your Cicada includes all basic operational accessories includ-
ing the following: 2.4 GHz antenna, GPS antenna, 16MB com-
pact flash card, compact flash card reader, 2 (Ni-MH) battery
packs, AC/DC power cable, carrying case and upload cable.
Insert depleted battery pack into charger and plug charger into
AC outlet. See rear of charger for LED status indicator lights.
Approximate charging time for included Ni-MH battery pack is
just over one hour. Run time using these same batteries is just
over two hours.
NOTE: The included charger may only be used to charge the
included Ni-MH batteries or other AA Ni-MH batteries. NOT
Ni-CAD batteries. Batteries are automatically conditioned in
the charger before starting a rapid charge. The charge and
runtime are balanced so that the charge is usually complete
before the Cicada displays low battery indication. This is
an average estimate since the current consumed by Cicada
and runtime depend substantially on the mode of operation.
Expect over 500 cycles from each Ni-MH pack.
CICADA KEYPAD
Cicada uses a raised plastic keypad as its only interface. Below
are simple descriptions of the buttons and their features:
LOGGING - indicates if unit is logging to compact flash
RECEIVE - indicates if any signals are being received
GPS POWER - indicates internal GPS ON / OFF status
1 - toggles backlight ON & OFF
POWER - toggles Cicada ON & OFF
4 - toggles highest signal strength metering ON & OFF
5 - toggles data logging ON & OFF to compact flash
SETUP - enters the setup menu screen
7 - incrementally time stamps
ESC - exits current menu screen
0 - displays contrast screen
ENT - executes currently selected option
UP/DOWN ARROWS - scroll through selections
GETTING STARTED
Operation of the Cicada is straightforward. Insert 5 fresh bat-
tery cells into removable pack. Close the bottom back up and
power on the Cicada by holding down the POWER button for
about 2 seconds.
Page 4
AP MEASUREMENT SCREENS
This is the main measurement screen used for monitoring
and selecting any valid FHSS (Frequency Hopping Spread
Sprectrum) APs (Access Points). This screen displays AP
parameters such as signal strength in dBm, WEP encryp-
tion, current GPS time/position/satellites of Cicada and MAC
address list. The MAc address list consists of all FHSS MAC
addresses detected. Multiple addresses may be listed and
monitored simultaneously here. Use the UP/DOWN ARROW
keys to toggle between all of these selections and ENT to
choose one. Upon choosing an AP, the user will be taken to
the AP Following Screen (below) providing detailed param-
eters for the chosen AP.
AP ANALYSIS SCREEN
NAEur - indicates current region selection for measure
The AP address window at the bottom indicates all IEEE
addresses indentified. (the arrow to the left indicates the
address that is currently selected)
dBm - indicates the signal strength of the last packet mea-
sured.
W - indicates WEP (Wireless Equivalent Privacy). “P” indi-
cates encryption is detected.
LAT - GPS Latitude coordinates
UTC - GPS time stamp
LON - GPS Longitude coordinates
SAT - number of satellites in view
Indicates compact flash has been formatted for Cicada
Indicates data storage remaining in compact flash card
AP FOLLOWING SCREEN
AP: the selected AP’s MAC address
RSSI: last packet’s signal strength measurement in dBm
Hop Set: indicates set number of sets 1,2 or 3
Hop Pattern: indicates pattern number of patterns 1-79
(note: this number corresponds to the IEEE 802.11 spec)
Dwell Time: indicates how long the AP stays on a channel
before it jumps to another channel in TU (Time Units defined
as 1024 microseconds)
TSF: Timing Synchronization Function indicates the AP’s abso-
lute time that counts down to the next channel hop
SSID: currently selected AP’s Service Set IDentification
PER: Packet ErrorRate percentage for the selected AP
Following - Cicada continues to follow AP as it hops
Page 5
MAIN MENU
Press the ESC key at any time to enter the MAIN MENU. This
menu allows access to all controls and parameters found in
the Cicada. Use the UP/DOWN ARROW keys to choose and
press ENT to make the selection.
AP ANALYSIS
This selection places a cursor at the bottom of the screen to
the left of the AP addresses. By pushing ENT, the user selects
(indicated by the arrowhead) a specific AP address to moni-
tor. Use Select AP and the UP / DOWN ARROW keys to toggle
through all received addresses. In this screen, the user may
access up to 16 unique, detected AP addresses by scrolling
through the list and selecting one.
AP FOLLOWING
By selecting an AP to monitor off the AP analysis screen, the
user will prompt this screen to appear. This screen allows
monitoring of the selected AP’s beacon timing channel. After
a few moments of searching, Cicada will “lock on” and follow
the AP’s timing parameters.The parameters are listed on page
4 of this manual. Press ESC at any time to return to the AP
analysis screen.
SPECTRUM
This RSSI screen indicates all received signals at 2.4 GHz in
a 1 MHz bandwidth that Cicada continuously scans. The peak
power is indicated graphically and numerically on this screen
as well as the channel being scanned.
PEAK HOLD
Peak Hold is only activated and deactivated in the Spectrum
Screen. Use Peak Hold when looking for interference sources
with low duty cycles such as APs. Push the 4 key on the keypad
to turn ON the Peak Hold. Push the 4 key again to turn the Peak
Hold back OFF. Each small tick mark indicates a dBm peak
for that portion of the 1 MHz scan. Remember the last signal
displayed will reset when Peak Hold is toggled ON.
CICADA SETUP
Press the SETUP key at antime to access the Setup Menu.
While in the this menu, use the UP/DOWN ARROW keys to
choose a setup option. From this menu, users may access
and/or control features such as unit information, internal GPS,
Compact Flash card and international region. Press ENTER to
select or ESC to return to previous menu screen.
Page 6
Page 7
INFO SCREEN
This informational screen provides information on your Cicada
unit such as firmware version, serial number and current GPS
information.
GPS : ON
Press ENTER to toggle the internal GPS ON and OFF. The GPS
POWER LED indicator above the keypad will light up indicating
the internal GPS is operational. Be sure that the GPS antenna
is connected to the Cicada and not blocked from the satellites
in the sky.
Allow a few minutes for the GPS antenna to acquire a few sat-
ellites and lock. Be sure to keep the GPS off if GPS data is not
needed in WLAN studies as it will draw power and shorten the
running time of your Cicada.
INITIALIZE CARD
Press ENTER to begin initialization of the compact flash card.
A warning screen will then appear asking the user to press
ESC or ENTER. Upon selecting ENTER, and new message will
appear moments later indicating that the compact flash card
is now formatted for use in your Cicada.
SELECT REGION
At anytime, press SETUP on the key pad to access the Select
Geographic Region screen. Use the ARROW keys and ENT to
select between one of the four IEEE allocated regions for scan-
ning.
Page 8
CONTRAST ADJUSTMENT
At anytime, press 0 on the key pad to access the Contrast
Adjustment screen. Use the UP/DOWN ARROW keys to
increase or decrease LCD contrast. When finished, press ESC
to exit this screen.
BACKLIGHT ADJUSTMENT
At anytime, press 1 key to toggle the backlght off and on.
Remember that using the Cicada without the backlight on will
increase overall battery life.
WEP ENCRYPTION DETECTION
A “P” next to its associated AP address and signal strength
indicates that WEP (Wireless Equivalent Privacy) is enabled
and deteced for that particular AP. An empty space indicates
no WEP encryption.
Page 9
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