How Does AutoScan Really Work?

Quote:

Originally Posted by RensoreK

Additional information would be great help. I have somehow either imagined it, or actually noticed with POP mode, AutoScan doesn't do much, but with POP mode off, it cuts off my falses on my daily route by about (I would say) 85%-90%. I haven't seen it cut down the range on real alerts, but I will need more encounters to make sure.

Interesting, I don't think i've ever tested it with POP off. I'll give that a shot tomorrow!

I sent this email to Beltronics and Escort:
(I changed AutoScan to Autosensitivity for Escort)

Quote:

I am thinking about purchasing an RX65, among other radar detectors on the market. I would like to know more about what exactly Beltronic’s “AutoScan” feature does.

A few of your Authorized Dealers state on their websites:

“AutoScan™ is only available on higher end Bel models. It is an "automatic" City/Highway mode. AutoScan™ is designed to automatically adjust sensitivity to X and K Band Radar whatever your driving environment. Whether driving in densely populated urban areas or “wide open” rural areas, AutoScan™ will automatically reject virtually all false signals which are shared with traffic radar on X and K Bands such as door openers and security systems. AutoScan™ is a “no-fuss” means of achieving optimum signal selectivity.”

And:

“Beltronics' patented AutoScan feature continuously analyzes all incoming signals and automatically rejects unwanted false alarms.”

“New features include AutoScan mode, which automatically adjusts X/K/Ka/Ku sensitivity levels wherever you drive to minimize false alerts.”

And your manual states:

“X-band sensitivity is not affected when used in “AutoScan,” or “Highway” modes.”

This is all kind of confusing.

*How does AutoScan really work?
*Is it just raising the alert threshold on X and K bands? If so, what is the minimum level that it will alert to?
*Does it do anything at all on Ka band?
*Is there any "intelligence" to it at all?
*Does it just affect X band?

If you cannot answer this, please forward this email to a knowledgeable engineer who can.

Thank you for your time.

I also asked Roy to find out from Bel. This is the response Roy got:

Quote:

Originally Posted by RadarRoy

From Bel

AutoScan monitors up to eight background radar signals (both bonafide and false) and adjusts alert patterns based upon the likelihood of an actual radar encounter. The feature is primarily an X-band monitor for multiple low level signals. This software and corresponding patents are proprietary with Beltronics.

I have not heard back from Bel yet.
These are the respones that Escort sent me:

Quote:

It is good to hear from you! In a nutshell, the Auto, Highway and City mode affect X-band sensitivity ONLY.
In the Highway Mode, X-Band is always at the most sensitive level.
In City Mode, X-Band sensitivity is reduced according to the level set in the Programming Mode when used in the City setting. City sensitivity programming is ignored when used in Highway or Auto Mode.
Auto mode will begin with slightly reduced X-Band sensitivity, but will Automatically reduce sensitivity even further when it encounters multiple X-band alerts in an area or alerts that do not represent true police frequencies. When you are out of the area, the Auto Mode will Automatically increase the sensitivity of the X-Band.
I hope that helps, and thanks for your interest in Escort!

Quote:

It is good to hear from you! The AUTO mode simply senses if you are getting a lot of "urban falsing" on the X-band. If you are in an area with lots of falsing, the AUTO mode responds by shifting to the CITY sensitivity. This reduces the X-band sensitivity only. When you leave the area, the AUTO mode responds by going back in the HIGHWAY sensitivity for full X-band sensitivity.
Thanks for your interest in Escort!

I replied to Escort, asking them why then is the "X-band sensitivity is not affected when used in "Auto," or "Highway" modes." statement in the manual, and if the Auto mode in the X50 is different than the AutoScan mode on the Bel RX65.

When I asked Escort if AutoSensitivity and AutoScan do the same thing or not, they replied:

Quote:

Although there are different approaches to come to the same result, the Autoscan mode and Auto Mode are designed to reduce stationary alerts from grocery/convenience stores, etc.

I also talked to Chad at Beltronics today. He was well-informed and a pleasure to talk to. He said that Escort's AutoSensitivity is different software, and filters X band only. He also said that AutoScan filters X-band and possibly K-band, but the K band filtering would be minimal if it was there. They have been getting a lot of questions regarding AutoScan lately, and the higher-ups have told them not to tell customers more than that due to patent infringements etc.

He let me know that the RX65 and X50 have basically the same hardware in different cases, but the software and algorithms etc. are quite different. We talked about testing as well, and he said that every detector has its differences in performance, and 2 of the exact same model would perform slightly different in testing.