The future of public safety networks

Public safety networks were created to put information in the hands of Emergency Service Officers in the field to help them make decisions more effectively. TETRA has made great strides in delivering this capability and continues to be the cornerstone of public safety networks. The imminent deployment of Tetra Enhanced Data Services (TEDS) will enhance this further along with innovations and improvements in radios and devices. However, with ever increasing demands on public safety bodies such as a growing population and a complex infrastructure, networks must also adapt to help officers get on with their jobs. Technology continues to evolve to meet these challenges and must constantly adapt to ensure high performance in mission-critical situations and to changing operational demands. Motorola is keenly aware of this demand and recently restructured to meet the challenges that lie ahead. The new group, Enterprise Mobility Solutions, brings the knowledge of delivering mobile computing, networks, devices and applications to play in public safety.

“MTM5400: Introducing the first of our next generation devices. It offers extended coverage, exceptional audio performance and secure high speed data connectivity for critical operations.”

Super TEDS

The importance of TETRA can't be understated. It provides a cost-effective, resilient network capable of accessing data nationwide, enabling officers to access information in the field, such as vehicle checks, the electoral roll or the missing person's register. However, as mobile interaction with resources such as police databases becomes more widely available to many users there are a number of areas needed to support a strong user experience such as enhanced capacity networks, collaborative devices, device ergonomics and customized applications.

TEDS provides the same cost-efficient coverage footprint as TETRA but with faster data speeds and also ensures that many current systems can be upgraded. TEDS enables enhanced information access and data input across very wide areas allowing officers to query systems, report from the field, access images, and potentially be sent small CCTV clips to assist in suspect identification. Also, short audio clips (e.g. witness interviews) can be recorded and sent to the office from the field. There's greater pressure on network capacity in metropolitan regions due to the higher number and density of users. There's also a larger concentration of vehicles in the locality equipped with powerful in-car terminals capable of managing complex tasks and inputting more information. Consequently, whilst TETRA (with TEDS) will continue to be the cornerstone communications network for mission critical voice and data services, we also expect to see some agencies starting to use new 4G network technologies alongside their existing TETRA networks.

4G is the generic term for next generation mobile networks such as WiMax and going forwards LTE that deliver broadband-on-the-go. This will enable additional applications such as the use of video to police  crime hotspots, city centres and major events. Indeed, the Abu Dhabi police force, is already leading the way in this area. They recently deployed a real-time video streaming system, allowing them to collect video from mobile cameras in cars and wearable video cameras used by patrol officers. The images are streamed live and recorded in high definition which can then be made available in real time to five command centres across the region. The system can also be connected to other applications used by the Abu Dhabi police, including fixed camera installations, automated speed tracking of vehicles, facial recognition and automatic number plate identification.

Stop, collaborate

In the future devices will increasingly provide flexible connectivity to enable collaboration between different terminals. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth® compatibility for data communications is also likely to be included in public safety radios. Via Bluetooth officers can send data from their radios to other devices such as computers back at HQ or to print information in the field. Indeed, as 4G networks become available, Bluetooth will also support the transfer of data between, for example, a TETRA handheld device and a vehicle terminal equipped with 4G connectivity. Within the public safety field the first devices for 4G networks will be in-car terminals, simply because there are fewer space and power limitations when designing the units. So for example, an officer can take a witness or crime statement using their TETRA radio or PDA. When they get back into the vehicle, Bluetooth will automatically sync the officer's personal device to the in-car terminal. This will then communicate the information back to base using the high-speed 4G network.

A design for life

Motorola puts user centered design at the forefront of everything it does and maintains its focus on developing specific devices for different types of users, for example it's recent covert radios for surveillance users. Future devices are likely to be capable of capture and transmission of video and more powerful in-vehicle command and control functionality. However, there's a clear expectation from end users that, as applications used by officers become more advanced, radios must remain intuitive to use. We expect to see more PDA-style products coming to market with touch-screen capabilities and full QWERTY keyboards to aid data entry. Screens will also become larger and capable of displaying more detail to prepare for video communication.  Research also continues to develop clever ergonomic accessories including discreet microphones and lightweight body mounted video surveillance systems. As devices change, so will applications.

Flexible applications

There is a clear cost benefit in creating common applications at a national level that can be used locally. However, in order for this to happen, the different devices and IT systems in use by the broad range of agencies mean that any application platform must meet two key requirements: it must be flexible enough to provide access to national services and it must seamlessly integrate local applications (such as resource management, local intelligence, etc.) Consequently, it will be necessary to adapt and optimize existing architectures deployed in the enterprise sector for use over mission critical wireless radio systems. Motorola already makes Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) available so a wide range of partners can develop services on its TETRA networks and devices. Furthermore, the application itself must be able to know over what network information is being accessed and by which type of device: for instance, whether an officer is working on a radio with a small screen across TETRA, or is using an in-car laptop in a city connected over a high-speed 4G system. Based on these variables, the application can decide if it's necessary to restrict some features and how information is presented to deliver a strong user experience - or to restrict the type of information sent over each bearer.

Delivering the Future

TETRA will remain the cornerstone network for mission critical public safety voice and data communications with 4G networks offering the potential to enhance data capacity to deliver the multimedia services, such as video, needed in the future for enhanced access to information at the point where it is needed the most.

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