152.0075 Tone and Voice To End

[dittrimd]

QV has announced that as of December 1st 2006 the alpha paging system will no longer be used to put out tone and voice on 152.0075. The reason for this is to allow for a major system upgrade which included the addition of a paging terminal which will enable the system to be accessed remotely either through phone lines or IP. Currently only the dispatch centers can send out alpha pagers. Many departments want the ability to send out administrative pages without having to go throught the dispatch center.

After years of trying to have both tone and voice and the terminal access it was finally decided to discontinue tone and voice on 152.0075. It will be interesting to see what TN is goning to do since they have never officially bought inton the system and have several departments who are heavily invested in VHF tone paging. Coventry, Mansfield, Vernon, Tolland, Somers, East Windsor, Staffordville to name a few. I also know that Columbia, Andover and Bolton also have a few VHF pagers as well.

I beleive that QV and the other users of the system will still be putting out tone and voice on 33.80 at least for the time being.

 

[NeFire242]

Should do voice with a PL and buy a few Zetrons to handle the alpha pager issue. This would allow them to continue with the voice paging and allow the other agencies to send their own admin pages.

 

[dittrimd]

I am not sure how using a PL tone on tone and voice pagers helps any. Once you open the carrier any signal can interfere with you. In the current situation when 152 tone and voice is going off one tower and the POSCAG data gets sent off all the other towers simultaneously you get interference. Also how what Zetron panel are you talking about and how would that handle the alpha pagers? Please elaborate on both of your statements please. I would like to understand where you are going with this.

Mark

 

[PJH]

There is a multitude to different products and solutions that can do this... from keeping it internally or thru a commerical providers system.

Personally, I have never had a problem with the lowband paging system coverage when I lived out that way, so I am not sure what the big deal is. Last I heard, the VHF tone system was a convience system that was put in place as a courtesy for some departments but was never intended to take the place of 33.80.

Currently I am working on a system that allows Alpha pages to be sent directly from CAD to the proper department when a tone out occurs. Each fire department can connect to the CAD system to see their calls and also send out alpha pages as needed.

Stuff isn't cheap.

 

[dittrimd]

PJH what CAD program are you building the interface for? My dispatch center in Tolland Station TN is having New World System build an interface for thier CAD system that will send out both commercial alpha pages to the cell phones and commercial alpha pagers out there as well as connect too our public safety alpha paging system. I would be interested in your project. Is it personnal or are you working for a commercial entity? They are having trouble getting the interface to do both effectively.

You are right there was never any strong committement to the VHF tone and voice system only to alpha. It was kind of an after thought that built up users over time, primarily in Tolland County. This is why for us tunring off the 152 is a problem.

I know that QV is looking at Zetron Terminals for it access vs. going with a Glenayre terminal although I am not sure why.

I was looking for a bit more explanation from NeFire242 on his suggestion to use PL tones and what equipment from Zetron he was referring to.

See the main problem is that the radios in this system are both digital and analog. If someone is sending out a tone and voice message and the digital simulcast system wants to send out a page it takes priority over the analog systems and literally shuts off the analog transmitter. This means that a tone and voice page could be cut off or missed all together. TN has relays installed at Coventry, Bald Hill (Tolland), and Soapstone (Somers) this helped but did not eleviate the other transmitter putting out 152 digital data while a voice message was being sent. It just never worked right and should have never been supported. TN is looking at building a completely different system on a different frequency with analog radios only. This would completely separate the two systems and eliminate all the previously mentioned problems.

Only issues is cost, tower space and available VHF frequency. Other than it is a snap! I would like TN to offer either 33.80 low band tone and voice or Alpha paging. Time will tell.

Mark

 

[cg]

FYI, WQFM415 is QV's new 159.8700 license as of 8/16/06

chris

 

[dittrimd]

Too bad it will not work in the 151.0000 to 158.9950 subrange pagers that we all have. Keep on the lookout for another license.

Mark

 

[PJH]

Its an old VMS system, but we also went to the New World Ageis CAD with the built in paging.

You can connect into the system and send a command to send your own dept alphanumberic pages and with another code, you can set off the Zetron consoles with tones for your dept. But...that is what we are moving away from to lessen certain chiefs from toning out stupid sh*t without notification.

 

[dittrimd]

QV has already gone to automatic tone and voice as well as alpha but the dispatchers still have to provided the voice and it is only through the NWS cad program. The remote terminal will only provide for alpha pages to be sent. It will also prioritize pages based on where they were sent from. Dispatch centers will have priority and all other locations will be second. Then it is FIFO.

 

[PJH]

NWS is an ok CAD program. The problem that I have with it, is that everytime they come out with a service pack or upgrade, we have to reload some of our custom files. Its so customized per customer that this is what is run into. Sucks, but works.

As long as you properly construct the GEO files how they need to be, its great for boundry lines, multiple district lines etc. However, everytime they "fix" something, something else breaks.

Much better than the old terminal only verison though.

 

[dittrimd]

TN has been having its difficulties with NWS. Their Map files from GDT have been horrible. TN is currently paying a guy with GIS experience to fix every single town. Since the maps are not correct the system cannot run even at its basic level. None of the interfaces will run becuase everything depends on the maps. The dispatchers have had better luck going to mapquest or google (both use the Navteq map files) to give the units in the field directions. TN hopes to have the maps completed by this fall and go live sometime after that. There is still some trainging that has to be done. It is over three years since TN purchased the NWS CAD system and still not online. I am not a dispacther so my observations are from the outside looking in but yikes! Not good.

Mark

 

[PJH]

Yeah the maps, but more important the map layers are the key. We had an outside vendor come in an map the whole county. Between the CAD and Ali Tracker, 99% of the county is mapped. Unlike Connecticut's basic map Ali Tracker that was purchased with the 911 system, our has every street, pond, house, business, exit etc on it. In addition we are using areial maps produced by the state as an optional overlay in Ali Tracker so that you can see how hidden certain houses are behind trees vs looking at lines on a screen.

At the best, NWS CAD will give you two closest cross streets. 55 Main street might be closer to 1st street (or right next to it) with 2nd street being 5 miles down the road, but it will show 55 Main St of having a cross of 1st and 2nd. You can go into the CAD map to see how far, but it doesn't come anywhere close to Ali Trackers.

I'll see if I can post some screen shots in the next few days.

 

[PJH]

Here are a few screen shots, edited of course.

This is the basic call screen. There are all sorts of sub tabs, most which are not used.

This is what the NWS map looks like. This is with a couple of the layers turned on. This is how the districts are determined for run assignments etc. Even though not shown in this page, each street segment is given an address range which also determins whose district it is.

This is the basic view of Ali Tracker. As you can see, it shows buildings and addresses. There are sub fields, location pictures etc that are available if you upload them.

This image is used with some of the GIS photos available. Really helps to see an overall picture and puts depth into giving directions to people in the field as everything isn't a straight line in the world/

 

[kmacinct]

Update re: ALI Tracker Info

Just an update regarding the State of CT and the ALI Tracker Software. ATT is in the process of loading new Hard Drives for all of the PSAP's in the State. They will replace every 911 Terminal w/ a new hard drive already loaded with the ALI Trackker and the NEW AERIAL images of the State of CT - It's a little help, but not too much. When each jurisdiction is able to interact w/ the Ali Tracker, and load usefull info, it will be just another screen in the Center.

KM -

 

[PJH]

ATT?

Would be SBC.

Wouldn't be another screen as the 911 system has been comprised with dual screens since Phase 2 came to CT a few years ago... one being the Pallaudim 911 sceen, the other, Ali Trakker. I know a few months ago an improved map was released, but still lacks detail thats available. Its not an issue that has been ignored, but when that has been studied (for a long time now) on what to do as a fix. For the Phase 2 stuff, it was more than adaquate for the job, but was annoying for actual addresses as most of the street ranges on the basemap were all wrong, but well within the general area.

The biggest issue is, that its a state system on a closed network. The state and SBC isn't going to let people in to make changes and modifications that could compromise the system.

 

[wesct]

ATT?

Would be SBC.

its att:

http://sbc.merger-news.com/index.html

wesct

 

[PJH]

Eh... I always forget about that. Its still SNET to me.

The paint isn't even dry from the SBC takeover...but they did bring me DSL before cable was available.