Innovation

The Burleson County’s Sheriff’s Office is safeguarding their community using innovative technologies, like drones that enhance situational awareness in their rural part of Texas.

Public safety requested FirstNet emergency support 100+ times for Hurricane Ian. Assets from the dedicated FirstNet fleet supported first responders in affected areas, including Charlotte, Col

The Public Safety Immersive Test Center in Boulder, Colorado, is an innovative test facility, created in partnership between the FirstNet Authority and the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Public Safety Communications Research Division. Virtual and alternate reality technologies will help first responders train, and tracking systems will provide ground truth for location-based services.

When Iowa needed a backup communications network for its public safety answering points, the state turned to FirstNet. Blake DeRouchey, 9-1-1 program manager for the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, shared how Iowa uses FirstNet as a failover so 9-1-1 calls stay connected.

The FirstNet Authority’s Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) and Tribal Working Group (TWG) held their annual fall meetings. The TWG met in Boulder, Colorado to tour the FirstNet Lab, share their experiences with FirstNet equipment on tribal land, and offer insights on how to improve tribal public safety communications. PSAC members gathered in Tysons, Virginia to discuss FirstNet Authority accomplishments in 2022, FirstNet buildout progress, and upcoming plans and activities to support the network’s continued growth and expansion in 2023 and beyond.

The third-quarterly Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Plenary e-meetings of 2022 concluded in September. Participants focused on 3GPP Release 18, which will become the inaugural release for 5G Advanced that includes new innovations toward the 5G vision. The plenary meetings made solid progress on the study items and work items that form the basis to advance Release 18 features.

First responders across the country put their lives on the line to keep Americans safe. Our nation’s public safety community is at the heart of the FirstNet Authority’s mission. On October 28, we recognize their sacrifices and contributions on National First Responders Day.

The Dallas Police Department in Georgia is the first in the state—and one of the first in the country—to completely switch from land mobile radios (LMR) to public safety broadband for their communications. Dallas Police Chief Joe Duvall shared how they made the decision to switch and how it’s going so far.

Renee Gordon leads a large, innovative 9-1-1 center in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. She is an effective 9-1-1 leader because she understands all sides of a 9-1-1 call. She has been a public safety dispatcher, a police officer, and a person who has experienced emergencies. Gordon and her team in Alexandria are known for creative problem-solving, like pioneering remote call-taking during the pandemic. She empowers her public safety colleagues to identify the next innovative solution with the goal of providing better service to their communities.

Before joining the FirstNet Authority as the EMS subject matter expert, Jon Olson spent 31 years working in EMS in Raleigh, North Carolina. We recently sat down with Jon to discuss his perspective on how the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network has evolved from concept to solution and how FirstNet will help advance EMS operations into the future.

 

The FirstNet Authority’s law enforcement expert, Harry Markley, recently sat down with Sheriff Peter Koutoujian who leads the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office in Massachusetts. Sheriff Koutoujian was appointed in October by the Secretary of Commerce to serve on the FirstNet Authority Board. The discussion covered the sheriff’s approach to law enforcement, his views on FirstNet’s value, and what he hopes to accomplish on the Board.

The FirstNet Authority worked with AT&T to host a first responder student innovation challenge at the University of Cincinnati. The two-week event brought UC students together with local public safety agencies to explore how technology could be used to enhance first responders’ ability to address critical situations.

The Public Safety Immersive Test Center is a state-of-the-art facility designed to provide responders, researchers, and developers a virtual environment to develop, test, and evaluate public safety technologies. FirstNet Authority Chief Network Technology Officer Jeff Bratcher and Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) Division Chief Dereck Orr discuss the launch of the Test Center and the history of partnership between the FirstNet Authority and PSCR.

The FirstNet Authority, an independent agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and National Institute of Standards and Technology announced today the launch of the Public Safety Immersive Test Center in Boulder, Colorado, to spur the development and deployment of technologies critical to effective public safety response.  

Long before the rain starts falling or the wind starts blowing, first responders are focused on planning for hurricanes. Innovative features and functions on FirstNet and programs available through the FirstNet Authority help public safety agencies as they prepare for, respond to, and recover from these disasters.

The first-quarterly Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Plenary e-meetings of 2022 concluded in March. Participants completed work on 3GPP Release 17 that enhances aspects of the 5G system and marks the conclusion of the first phase of the 5G technology evolution. Delegates also made significant progress on Release 18 that will include new innovations delivering the 5G vision.

Coverage is king for public safety communications. Since its creation, the FirstNet Authority has focused on ensuring first responders have coverage and connectivity whenever and wherever they need it. Deployables, high power user equipment, and a focus on 5G are some of the new ways FirstNet subscribers can get coverage in hard-to-reach areas.

 

The fourth quarterly Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Plenary e-meetings of 2021 concluded in December 2021. Participants spent time discussing the preliminary scoping of the Release 18 feature list, schedule, and completion dates, as well as issues related to 5G, interoperability, and standards initiatives.

In 2021, the FirstNet Authority delivered its first investments in public safety’s network to help drive a differentiated, dedicated, and enduring network to support first responders. In 2022, the FirstNet Authority will continue to advance public safety communications through close engagement with first responders and expansions in 5G and mission-critical solutions.

When disaster strikes, most emergency managers and public safety officials rely on pen and paper to conduct damage assessments. The process involves slow, manual data entry and can delay disaster aid for weeks. In Cherokee County, Alabama, emergency management personnel are using FirstNet devices to collect and upload damage assessment information in real time so that communities can get the help and resources they need faster.