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Chicomm Blog

What to Know about Next Generation 911

Posted by Jill McNamara on Thursday, September 15, 2011
Technology continues to evolve and is more mobile now than ever. First cell phones, and now Voice Over IP (VoIP), text messaging, imagery and video have changed everything, from the way the public places 9-1-1 calls, to the manner in which emergency operations centers field and respond to those calls. The Nation's current 9-1-1 system is designed around telephone technology and cannot handle the text, data, images and video that are both increasingly common in personal communications and critical to future transportation safety and mobility advances. The NG9-1-1 initiative has established the foundation for public emergency communications services in a wireless mobile society (RITA).


What is NG 9-1-1?

Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) addresses the evolution of emergency call taking in a technology-saturated world centered on Internet Protocol (IP). IP will be the foundation of NG9-1-1 for years to come. However, we must not lose sight of the present and the fact that each call center has its own unique needs. After holding Lunch & Learns in partnership with Cassidian Communciations, here we share some important things to consider going forward that can allow you to plan ahead.

What does NG 9-1-1 look like?

  • Steadily increasing amounts of data
  • Operations are modified to reflect more data centric operations
  • Collaboration becomes the norm
  • Infrastructure sharing becomes prevalent
  • Managed services become imperative in a NextGen network IP world
  • Environment begins to take on command and control characteristics

What do these technogical changes mean to the 9-1-1- industry?

These changes can mean different things to each 9-1-1 system center but there are some general things to expect. Past systems have been Analog based and today's systems are emerging with IP, the systems of tomorrow are Core IP based. There will be a common design platform convergence consisting of unified communications and real time data that will be managed with an IP backbone. CAMA will go away eventually and be replaced by Voice Over IP. Voice will become just one of many IP inputs including SMS/Texts and On Demand modes. IP connections will supply calls to the PSAP instead of trunks, as well as fixed answering positions and virtualization of the PSAP should be expected. With all of these changes, new industry norms and rules will develop.

What's Next?

The NG 9-1-1 will no doubt influence interoperability and improve public safety. It focuses on implementing the concept of the 4C's: Command, Control, Communications and Computing. The industry is charging ahead as new capabilities become more essential. Take the next step and find out what the solutions are for your system. To learn more, contact ChiComm today.