Struggle continues to develop 911 system for VoIP calls

With emergency calling from VoIP subscribers a major concern for the country’s public safety answering points (PSAPs), telecom industry stakeholders are forging ahead to develop new solutions that will not only mimic existing enhanced 911 systems, but also offer new functionality. The problem is that VoIP providers appear to be pitted against the public safety community. At least some of the VoIP companies want to reinvent the wheel and make a new 911 system that offers a multitude of new capabilities and functionality, including text messaging and video. On the other side of the table are the public safety stakeholders, which are more concerned with making sure that whatever the new system looks like and new features it offers, it will work with existing equipment and the cost of implementing new versions of 911 systems won’t involve forklift network changes. In an interview with Network Letter last month, London Police Department staff sergeant Peter Glen talked about an application filed by the PSAPs asking the CRTC to order VoIP providers to use existing 911 systems. He also spoke of developments taking place within a number of fora to establish a solution to the VoIP 911 conundrum. As with current circuit-switched enhanced 911 systems, a 911 call reveals both the originating number and the home address of that number. In a VoIP environment, that information isn’t available to the PSAP operator who has to verify that data with the person calling. The next version of VoIP 911, dubbed i2, is supposed to perform in a manner that is similar to current E911. Beyond i2 is i3 and this is where the entire system is supposed to be IP-based. "Where we believe we are going, and hope to go, is to move towards an i2 solution that would allow ," Glen says. "We would receive those calls through the same platforms…but there would be an IP connection that would allow the IP providers to…get to the right tandem and the right PSAP." This is key for at least the next step in VoIP 911 as this would allow PSAPs to use existing equipment and protocols, explains Glen, adding this would eliminate the use of admin lines and backdoor telephone numbers. For more on this matter, refer to the Sept. 1 issue of Network Letter. Using existing equipment to the maximum extent possible, says Glen, is critical to developing next-generation VoIP 911 capabilities. He notes that ILECs had to make some changes, but they weren’t forklift in nature. "It was tweaking what they already had, as opposed to building all new systems," Glen tells NL. "And then when you move forward into an i2 solution, again building with the idea that the components that you have to build , have to develop for i2 can be part of an i3 solution." The CRTC Interconnection Steering Committee’s (CISC) Emergency Services Working Group (ESWG) has been tasked to come up with a workable solution for the Canadian market for VoIP 911. With an interim solution in place – despite some VoIP providers not following the rules – the job at hand now is to develop a solution that will, as Glen describes, "allow IP connectivity to the existing tandems." Rick Galway, Canadian regional VP for the National Emergency Number Association and chair of the ESWG, says that work is progressing. "It’s a bit of a slow grind because of the evolution and development of the technology….It’s ongoing, but we’re not just tasked with tackling VoIP, we’re still dealing with wireless issues," he adds, referring to the Phase II wireless E911 trial taking place in downtown Toronto. Another key element of this entire process to be considered is the cost of rolling a new system out. Governments at all three levels – municipal, provincial and federal – will have to deal with the deployment cost issue at some point in the future. It’s one thing for large municipalities to be able to afford to upgrade existing equipment, but it’s a completely different situation for small centres. In the future, a decision will have to be made regarding who will pay for the systems upgrades both in large centres and small communities. In many respects, Canada looks to what is taking place south of the border before determining a course of action and this case is no different. Given the global nature of VoIP, Canada and the United States are collaborating to make sure a solution is workable on both sides of the border. Canada does have an advantage over the United States when it comes to developing a workable solution for E911 for VoIP. Whereas Canada has five 911 platforms, the US could have multiple platforms within a state. As well, 911 providers in Canada deal directly with PSAPs as opposed to the US practice whereby a third party provides the interface between the PSAP and 911 provider. Both Glen and Galway believe that a workable E911 system for VoIP is within sight. They say that three years isn’t unreasonable to expect an i2 rollout.

Struggle continues to develop 911 system for VoIP calls

News | 09/15/2006 4:00 am EDT

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