The P25 User Needs Working Group (UNWG) recently published a new whitepaper titled "Global Positioning System (GPS) for Public Safety Location Services: Use Cases and Best Practices" The paper was published on the SAFECOM/NCSWIC website. The full paper can be downloaded using one of the two links below:
GPS Public Safety Locations Services UNWG 2024
https://www.cisa.gov/safecom/project-25
An Excerpt from the Whitepaper Introduction:
"GPS (global positioning system) is a near-ubiquitous technology commonly embedded in cellular phones, laptops, vehicles, and other consumer devices to support location tracking and navigation capabilities used by many applications and software programs. In public safety communications, Project 25 (P25) land mobile radio (LMR) systems use these same capabilities to maintain situational awareness and to protect the safety and well-being of first responders as they fight fires, respond to emergencies, and perform their day-to-day duties.
This document examines P25 GPS through the lens of public safety practitioners tasked with providing real-time location capabilities to their agencies. It explores real-world applications of P25 GPS, its limitations, and implementation considerations as learned through a series of interviews, a review of the P25 technical standards, and research into current application of GPS technology for public safety."
Our thanks to the agencies who contributed to this document:
•Department of Interior (DOI), Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO)
•Iowa Department of Public Safety
•Los Angeles County, California, Fire Department
•Montgomery County, Texas, Hospital District
•National Park Service
An excerpt from P25 Standards definition in whitepaper:
"Today, Tier 1 and Tier 2 location services are available on select P25 radios and supported by some systems. In situations where they are unavailable or cost prohibitive, auxiliary devices (e.g., SU lapel microphones) that incorporate P25 GPS capabilities are available to provide desired GPS functionality without the need to purchase a new radio (SU).
Tier 1 location services support direct mode sharing of GPS information between SUs and LMR fixed station repeaters and applies to conventional equipment. This basic mode of providing GPS information does not provide Internet Protocol (IP) addressing or fixed host routing information. In this type of configuration, the location service host system (LSHS)2 may reside in the SU or outside of the LMR system.
Tier 2 location services support more complex implementations involving network routing and transport of location data across the P25 infrastructure and to other IP-connected networks. Tier 2 can be used in direct data, repeated data, conventional Fixed Network Equipment (FNE) data, or trunked FNE data configurations.
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