Fed Technical Group Seeks Input On Future Radio

As part of the long and on-going effort to fund, design and deploy a nationwide public safety radio network, a federal technical agency is requesting input on the future network’s features and how they might be implemented. The radio network would not only link every participating agency across the country to provide The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) request for comments was formally printed in the Federal Register on Monday, a follow-up to a forum held in August 2010 that generated 15 operational requriements that would provide resiliency, availability and reliability, security, affordability and what the NIST calls “commercial alignment.” Now the NIST is asking for more specific technical input on each requirement, including possible research and development that could take place to close technical gaps, the importance of a multi-vendor environment, and how to engage public safety official to develop prioritization of NIST’s efforts. Download (pdf) the 2010 forum summary here, and the Federal Register pages with the NIST comment request here.