General Dynamics Wraps Up Phase 2 Tests on Public Safety Program-Based LTE System; Bill Weiss Comments

A General Dynamics subsidiary has completed phase two tests on a long-term evolution technology under the Public Safety Communications Research Program that seeks to improve communications for first responders.

The integration of Band Class 14 eNodeB system from General Dynamics Mission Systems with vehicle modems enabled the LTE site to communicate at a range of up to 108 kilometers, General Dynamics said Friday.

Bill Weiss, vice president and general manager of ground systems at General Dynamics’ mission systems business unit, said the LTE-based boomer-cell site intends to provide “first responders with the ability to relay and report critical information when infrastructure is not built, has failed or when towers are down.”

The LTE technology also aims to equip engineers of public safety platforms with economic value and flexibility when assessing tower locations, he added.

The testing took place at the Commerce Department’s atmospheric observatory facility in Colorado.

PSCR is a collaborative effort of the National Institute of Standards and Technology‘s Communications Technology Laboratory and the Institute for Telecommunications Sciences of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.