Since the SWM ODU acts as a transponder, then if you do not operate your television (TV), does the satellite dish and the transponder stop actively bouncing back signals to one another? In other words, does this wireless form of communication disengage once you are not watching satellite TV actively? Or is there always a continuous stream of wireless radiofrequency (RF) signal? I am perfectly okay with the former vs. the latter theory.
The SWM ODU (known in long form as a Single Wire MultiSwitch [SMU] Outdoor Unit [ODU]) is used with some satellite TV systems. It takes the RF signal from the satellite dish antenna and distributes it, with further processing, throughout the home. This is normally done using coaxial lines (not wireless transmission).
SWMs are mounted in various locations in different systems, sometimes right behind the satellite dish and sometimes inside the house. However, different systems vary. If you have questions about how your particular system is configured, you should contact a TV cable service technician. That said, I am pretty sure that there is no wireless data transmission in your system, only coaxial lines to carry the signals.
Health agencies have not concluded that low-level RF energy associated with wireless communications is hazardous at all. See for example the World Health Organization’s statement on electromagnetic fields and public health.
Kenneth R. Foster, PhD
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