Kenneth C. Budka

Mobile responder communication networks for public safety

This article proposes a paradigm shift from the prevailing public safety model of disparate, agency-owned and -operated Land Mobile Radio networks to Mobile Responder Communication Networks (MRCNs) that are created by unifying communications resources and are shared across cooperating public safety agencies to provide local, regional, or national service. MRCNs use a common IP-based core network employing service-intelligent session control to bridge networks based on LMR and commercial wireless access technologies, thus allowing the support of emerging IP-based multimedia services, high data rate access, and mission-critical tactical group voice and interoperable communications during emergency responses.

Public safety mission critical voice services over LTE

In view of broadband technology trends and the availability of broadband spectrum, public safety agencies have expressed an interest in complementing their current narrowband wireless networks with broadband systems. To support the set of public safety data applications, Long Term Evolution (LTE) has been selected by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for deployment in the broadband portion of the U.S. Public Safety 700 MHz band. This event, together with the mandated migration of narrowband systems to narrower channel widths, are the catalysts for current requests to carry mission critical voice services over the future LTE-based public safety broadband wireless network. Since such services have stringent requirements, this paper covers challenges with an emphasis on interoperability with legacy narrowband systems.

Third-generation wireless services for homeland security

Commercial third-generation (3G) cellular technologies being deployed worldwide offer a host of services that can be used to support communications among public safety officials and members of government agencies and to disseminate information to the general public. This paper reviews some of the unique requirements for voice and data services in the context of homeland security and describes how 3G CDMA2000∗ and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) networks satisfy many of them. It also discusses how the broadcast/multicast services (BCMCS) currently being standardized for 3G cellular technologies can provide team∗∗∗oriented voice and broadband data communications for public safety users. Finally, it proposes an architectural framework that allows the services and capabilities of homeland security wireless networks to be upgraded using commercial 3G cellular technologies while preserving the investment in legacy public safety networks.

Cellular Digital Packet Data: channel availability

Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) systems borrow idle radio channels from Advanced Mobile Phone Standard (AMPS) cellular networks to send short bursts of packet data traffic. Due to trunking inefficiencies inherent to AMPS systems, a relatively large amount of spare AMPS air link capacity can be found for CDPD. In addition, the periods that time AMPS channels are idle are fairly long. Due to fluctuations in the number of AMPS radios in a sector that are busy serving voice calls, there will be periods of time when there is not an ample number of idle AMPS channels to satisfy the demands of CDPD. Resource contention between CDPD and AMPS affects the amount of data that can be carried on the CDPD air link and the performance of link and higher layer protocols. We present a series of analytical results which serve as the basis for cell site capacity engineering rules for CDPD systems.

Cellular digital packet data - advanced mobile phone standard network bandwidth contention

Cellular digital packet data (CDPD) networks borrow idle radio channels from advanced mobile phone standard (AMPS) cellular networks to send bursts of packet data traffic. Due to trunking inefficiencies inherent to AMPS systems, a relatively large amount of spare AMPS air link capacity can be found. In addition, the periods of time AMPS channels are idle are fairly long. Since AMPS calls have pre-emptive priority over CDPD, there will be periods of time when there is not an ample number of idle AMPS channels to satisfy the demands of CDPD. We study the durations of these contention periods as a function of AMPS parameters.

Converged wireless network architecture for homeland security

We propose a converged wireless network architecture that allows both emerging IP-based multimedia services and mission-critical services to be supported for public safety end users. The proposed network architecture allows the technology and cost advantages of commercial wireless technologies (3G cellular, IEEE 802.x) to be leveraged while preserving existing investments in land mobile radio networks. The proposed converged network architecture also fulfils the key requirement of enabling interoperable mission-critical communications between public safety end users during times of need - a current limitation of public safety networks

Telecommunications in vertical markets: Challenges and opportunities

Access to secure, reliable, high-performance communication is fundamental to the operations of energy utilities, healthcare institutions, public safety and defense agencies, transportation systems and financial institutions. These and other industries with specific communication needs beyond those traditionally met by commercial communications services are referred to as vertical markets.