In essence, a trunked radio system is a packet switching computer network. Users' radios send data packets to a computer, operating on a dedicated frequency called a Control Channel to request communication on a specific talk-group. The controller sends a digital signal to all radios monitoring that talkgroup, instructing the radios to automatically switch to the frequency indicated by the system to monitor the transmission. After the user is done speaking, the users' radios return to monitoring the control channel for additional transmissions.
This arrangement allows multiple groups of users to share a small set of actual radio frequencies without hearing each others' conversations. Trunked systems primarily conserve limited radio frequencies and also provide other advanced features to users.
"Trunked" radio systems differ from "conventional" radio systems in that a conventional radio system uses a dedicated channel (frequency) for each individual group of users, while "trunking" radio systems use a pool of channels which are available for a great many different groups of users.[3]
For example, if police communications are configured in such a way that twelve conventional channels are required to permit citywide dispatch based upon geographical patrol areas, during periods of slow dispatch activity much of that channel capacity is idle. In a trunked system, the police units in a given geographical area are not assigned a dedicated channel, but instead are members of a talk-group entitled to draw upon the common resources of a smaller pool of channels.
Advantages of trunking
Trunked radio takes advantage of the probability that with any given number of user units, not everyone will need channel access at the same time, therefore fewer discrete radio channels are required. From another perspective, with a given number of radio channels, a much greater number of user groups can be accommodated. In the example of the police department, this additional capacity could then be used to assign individual talk groups to specialized investigative, traffic control, or special-events groups which might otherwise not have the benefit of individual private communications.
To the user, a trunking radio looks just like an "ordinary" radio: there is a "channel switch" for the user to select the "channel" that they want to use. In reality though, the "Channel switch" is NOT switching frequencies as in a conventional radio but when changed, it refers to an internal software program which causes a talkgroup affiliation to be transmitted on the control channel. This identifies the specific radio to the system controller as a member of a specific talkgroup, and that radio will then be included in any conversations involving that talkgroup.
This also allows great flexibility in radio usage - the same radio model can be used for many different types of system users (IE. Police, Public Works, Animal Control, etc.) simply by changing the software programming in the radio itself.
Trunked radio systems also provide a small level of extra privacy since the talkgroups are constantly transmitting on different frequencies. This makes it difficult for a scanner listener without a programmed trunk tracking scanner to keep up with the conversation.