What is "u-nii"

The Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) radio band is part of the radio frequency spectrum used by IEEE-802.11a devices and by many wireless ISPs. It operates over four ranges:

• U-NII Low (U-NII-1): 5.150-5.250 GHz. Originally limited to indoor use only. Regulations required use of an integrated antenna, with power limited to 50 mW. Rules changed in 2014 to permit outdoor operation, maximum fixed power 1 watt, maximum fixed EIRP 4 watts (+36 dBm) point-to-multipoint, 200 watts (+53 dBm) point-to-point. 1 However, strict out-of-band emission rules limit practical point-to-point power to lower levels.
• U-NII Mid (U-NII-2A): 5.250-5.350 GHz. Both outdoor and indoor use, subject to Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS, or radar avoidance). Regulations allow for a user-installable antenna. Power limited to 250 mW
• U-NII-2B: 5.350-5.470 GHz. Currently 120MHz of spectrum not allocated by the FCC for unlicensed use.
• U-NII Worldwide (U-NII-2C / U-NII-2e): 5.470-5.725 GHz. Both outdoor and indoor use, subject to Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS, or radar avoidance). Power limited to 250 mW. This spectrum was added by the FCC in 2003 to "align the frequency bands used by U-NII devices in the United States with bands in other parts of the world". The FCC currently has an interim limitation on operations on channels which overlap the 5600 - 5650 MHz band.
• U-NII Upper (U-NII-3): 5.725 to 5.850 GHz. Sometimes referred to as U-NII / ISM due to overlap with the ISM band. Regulations allow for a user-installable antenna. Power limited to 1W
• DSRC/ITS (U-NII-4): 5.850 to 5.925 GHz. At present U-NII-4 spectrum is being considered by the FCC for unlicensed use. U-NII-4 is presently only usable for Dedicated Short Range Communications Service (DSRC) and licensed Amateur Radio Operators.

Band

Freq. Range

Bandwidth

Max Power

Max EIRP

U-NII Low / U-NII-1 / U-NII Indoor

5.150–5.250 GHz

100 MHz

50 mW

200 W

U-NII Mid / U-NII-2A

5.250–5.350 GHz

100 MHz

250 mW

1 W

U-NII-2B

5.350–5.470 GHz

120 MHz

.

.

U-NII Worldwide / U-NII-2C / U-NII-2-Extended / U-NII-2e

5.470–5.725 GHz

255 MHz

.

.

U-NII Upper / U-NII-3

5.725–5.825 GHz

100 MHz

1 W

200 W

DSRC/ITS / U-NII-4

5.850–5.925 GHz

75 MHz

.

.

Wireless ISPs generally use 5.725-5.825 GHz.
In the USA licensed amateur radio operators are authorized 5.650-5.925 GHz by Part 97.303 of the FCC rules.

U-NII is an FCC regulatory domain for 5- GHz wireless devices. U-NII power limits are defined by the United States CFR Title 47 (Telecommunication), Part 15 - Radio Frequency Devices, Subpart E - Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure Devices, Paragraph 15.407 - General technical requirements. Regulatory use in individual countries may differ.

The European HiperLAN standard operates in same frequency band as the U-NII.