NG911/PSBN Interconnection

The technical means for the interconnection of Next Generation 911 (NG911) and Public Safety Broadband Networks (like the one managed by the FirstNet Authority) is not well understood, established, or widely deployed. A lot of information exists explaining how the NG911 Emergency Services Internet Protocol (IP) Network (ESInet) and the Public Safety Broadband Network (PSBN) will serve public safety and benefit stakeholders, but the industry has yet to determine how to accomplish this objective uniformly, and how public safety applications will utilize this environment.

What’s Happening Now

To address this issue, the National 911 Program is collaborating with a group of public and private sector representatives to articulate the issue of NG911/PSBN connection and establish a list of goals to facilitate actions that actively support its interconnection by all members of the 911 and PSBN stakeholder communities.

This diagram illustrates a simplified view of the ultimate NG911/PSBN interconnection.

Current Activities

The group is focused on two areas:

• Technical – Moving from concept to reality by building and testing an interconnection based on a data conveyance standard under development by a stakeholder group.

• Contract Language – Developing specific contract language around what technical requirements should be included when signing a contract with a broadband network.

The group is currently working together to:

• Understand the current status of NG911/PSBN interconnection

• Establish broad goals to facilitate progress

• Use available resources to encourage actions toward achieving these goals

A variety of public and private entities are also conducting a series of activities to contribute to the ultimate goal of understanding, establishing, and widely deploying a uniform interconnection between the PSBN and NG911.