[LINK] Public Safety Mobile Broadband Trial

[Tom Worthington]

On 17/4/21 12:06 am, Stephen Loosley wrote:

> Long talked about public safety network moves to proof-of-concept stage.
> By Chris Duckett | April 6, 2021 https://www.zdnet.com/article/tpg-telecom-and-nokia-pick-up-public-safety-mobile-broadband-trial/ >
> Traditionally, emergency services have used dedicated radio networks ...

No, shared digital networks have been around for at least a decade. 
These used protocols similar to those for mobile phones, called "trunked 
radio". The European standard TETRA is used in more than 100 countries: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrestrial_Trunked_Radio

> TPG said on Tuesday it had been working with federal and state governments, and emergency services to create a "superior multi-operator solution".

Good luck with that. It is difficult enough to get agencies of the one 
state to cooperate, let alone with the federal government. Also note 
that even if the agencies use the same network they will not necessarily 
be able to communicate with each other.

>... LTE technology and data to allow for the use of messaging services, data analytics, location services, and real-time reporting.

Existing digital networks already provide those features. What they lack 
is bandwidth.

> "Last year's bushfires and the recent floods ...

There are differing requirements for city and regional users. One 
problem is that standards developed for Europe don't work so well in 
outback Australia, as the distances are so much greater.


-- 
Tom Worthington, MEd FHEA FACS CP IP3P http://www.tomw.net.au 
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Honorary Lecturer, Computer Science, Australian National University 
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