Highlights from CCIR meetings: 1929–1990

The Hague, 1929: The first CCIR meeting was held in September 1929 and adopted over 20 Recommendations. A number of these Recommendations related to problems of frequency measurement and stability, and the remainder concerned frequency allocation, limiting the power of broadcast transmitters and the elimination of spark transmitters.

Copenhagen, 1931: The second meeting adopted 18 Recommendations on topics ranging from methods for reducing interference to specifications for technical data for inclusion in the International List of Frequencies. Single side-band transmission was recommended at this meeting for future application.

Lisbon, 1934: The third meeting adopted radiowave propagation curves developed in large part by T. L. Eckersley, heralding the start of serious propagation studies in CCIR. Propagation information was vital for the coordination of international use of frequencies. Another highlight was the adoption of technical “Opinions” (authoritative texts) on topics such as standard-frequency emissions and channel spacing for broadcasting stations.

Bucharest, 1937: The fourth meeting dealt with the problem of the widening scope of “Questions” brought before CCIR for study. CCIR Opinions were classified for the first time at the Bucharest meeting, and included a sixlanguage vocabulary of more than 900 terms and a revised table of frequency tolerances. The meeting also planned the Cairo Radio Conference of 1938, which allocated frequency spectrum up to 200 MHz and adopted the famous “Cairo curves” for wave propagation at medium frequencies. In 1939, World War II erupted, and there were to be no more CCIR meetings for a decade.

Atlantic City, 1947: The first major post-war conference was held, which, in addition to setting up the International Frequency Registration Board (IFRB), gave CCIR a new mandate and a general structure. Great strides were made in the use of radio during World War II, especially in radar and microwave communications. Frequency usage had become active up to 10 GHz and occasionally to 30 GHz. In view both of the advances of technology during the war and the need to construct new facilities in many countries after the war, it was generally felt that a review of the rationale for the future role of ITU was in order. And so the Atlantic City Conference was both a Plenipotentiary Conference for revising the International Telecommunication Convention and a World Administrative Radio Conference (WARC).

Stockholm, 1948: CCIR meetings changed name to “Plenary Assemblies”. Consequently, this first post-war CCIR meeting in Stockholm became the Vth Plenary Assembly and elected Balthasar van der Pol of the Netherlands, an eminent mathematician and radio scientist, as Director of CCIR and Leslie W. Hayes of the United Kingdom as ViceDirector. It also set up the first CCIR study groups (thirteen in all) and adopted Recommendations that covered such topics as ionospheric soundings and measurements, standardfrequency transmissions and time signals, and monitoring and measurements of the frequency spectrum. Studies were begun on television standards to allow the exchange of programmes and on the use of a receiver, but subsequent investigations revealed the impossibility in reaching a common world-wide standard for a black and white television as public services having different standards were already too far in operation in a number of countries.

Geneva, 1951: The VIth Plenary Assembly was notable for its adoption of ground-wave propagation curves and for the creation of a new Study Group on vocabulary. The period of the 1950s saw feverish expansion of HF services worldwide, and the introduction of microwave radio-relay services on a large scale.

London, 1953: The VIIth Plenary Assembly adopted a series of texts on microwave radio-relay systems. The “ARQ” error-correcting system for HF fixed services was introduced then.

Warsaw, 1956: The VIIIth Plenary Assembly marked the birth of a Study Group on mobile services. Its mandate was to study, among other things, technical questions regarding the aeronautical, maritime, land mobile and radiolocation and navigation services. Ernst Metzler (Switzerland) was elected Director of CCIR upon the retirement of van der Pol.

Los Angeles, 1959: The IXth Plenary Assembly not only recognized the dawning of the Space Age in telecommunications, following the launch of the first artificial earth satellites in 1957 (Sputnik, Explorer, Vanguardand Discoverer), but also made it a major preoccupation of CCIR. This Assembly established Study Group IV (Space systems) to consider possible developments and implications of communications with, and by means of, space vehicles in general and to prepare the technical basis for the coordinated use of suitable parts of the frequency spectrum to be shared with terrestrial services which were then in regular operation. It adopted the first Recommendations on the selection of frequencies used in telecommunications with and between artificial Earth satellites and other space vehicles.

Geneva, 1963: The Xth Plenary Assembly adopted new Questions on facsimile transmission to ships, signalto-interference ratios at minimum field-strength required in the mobile services, as well as an Opinion on emergency position-indicating radio beacons.

Oslo, 1966: Oslo, 1966:Oslo, 1966: The XIth Plenary Assembly elected Jack W. Herbstreit (United States) as CCIR Director to succeed Leslie W. Hayes, who had served as Director ad interim since the death of Metzler in 1963. The question of international standards for colour television had been in prominence since meetings of a subgroup in 1964 and in 1965. A great debate on the subject took place at the Oslo Assembly. However, agreement could not be reached on a single world-wide standard for colour television given the advanced state of development of, and investment in, competing standards in various countries and the fact that the relative performance of these standards differed only in small degree.

New Delhi, 1970: The XIIth Plenary Assembly modified the CCIR Study Group structure, recognizing the development of satellite communication techniques in nearly all radio services. A new Study Group 1 was established to cover all aspects of spectrum utilization and monitoring, and a new Study Group 2 was assigned studies on space research and radio astronomy. New Questions were also approved on radio paging, the influence of the Doppler effect on radiocommunication in the aeronautical mobile service and direct printing on maritime VHF radiotelephony channels.

Geneva, 1974: The XIIIth Plenary Assembly adopted the first important texts on the characteristics and quality of digital radio-relay systems and on the conditions of the use of the frequency bands between 12 and 20 GHz. Richard C. Kirby was elected Director of CCIR to replace Jack Herbstreit.

Kyoto, 1978: The XIVth Plenary Assembly approved many texts that reflected the growing importance of satellite communications and the use of satellites for sound and television broadcasting. A method for determining the coordination area around earth stations in the fixed-satellite service (FSS) got the green light.

Geneva, 1982: At the XVth Plenary Assembly, a special technical cooperation committee looked into the question of CCIR assistance to developing countries in their use of available technical information and how to promote the active participation of these countries in the work of CCIR.

Dubrovnik, 1986: The XVIth Plenary Assembly examined a prolific number of texts, dominated by the trend towards digital techniques in almost every branch of telecommunications. It gave its unanimous approval to new Recommendations on digital video interfaces and on the recording of digital television on magnetic tape, opening the door to the realization of fully digital television production studios. Much time at that Assembly was also devoted to high definition television (HDTV), a subject of intense interest and activity then and a topic of study within CCIR since 1974. Furthermore, the Assembly refined texts concerning a future global maritime distress and safety system (FGMDSS), paving the way for the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to implement the system in the 1990s. A primary feature of the FGMDSS was that search and rescue authorities ashore, as well as shipping in the vicinity, were alerted to a distress incident so that effective assistance could be provided with a minimum of delay.

Düsseldorf, 1990: The XVIIth Plenary Assembly approved nearly 200 Recommendations, five of which had to do with HDTV paving the way towards a single world-wide standard. A major step was also taken towards universal personal telecommunications with the approval of a new Recommendation on future, public, land mobile, telecommunication systems (FPLMTS, the forerunner to IMT-2000). A number of study groups were reorganized:

• Study Group 3 (HF fixed service) was incorporated into Study Group 9 to create a single group for the fixed service.
• Study Groups 2 and 7 were combined into a new Study Group 7 on “Science Services”, which was to address a mixture of radio services, including radio astronomy, time signals and standard-frequency emissions, space operations and the Earth exploration satellite service.
• A new Study Group 12 was set up to address specific problems of inter-service sharing and compatibility.

A new procedure for the approval of Recommendations between Assemblies was adopted, employing a consultation process amongst administrations.