Metro Net (OC) Robo Dispatch

[RWPowell2]

Robo Dispatch is back! After a twenty-month hiatus Metro Net is again experimenting with data to voice software in place of human dispatchers. I think it is great technology that can turn a message typed into a computer into robotic audio. However, it does not come close to replacing a human dispatcher. Metro Net and the Orange County Fire Authority have great dispatchers that handle hundreds of incidents per shift.

Besides the annoying monotone voice, the software has limitations interpreting some words. An example today was a dispatch to Topaz Street. The software interpreted it as Topa-zee. When the Metro Net IT people first experimented with this software in September 2014 they had a problem with the radio channel field which contains the standard Motorola convention of zone and channel. In the Orange County System we express the zone number followed by the phonetic channel, such as “2-Foxtrot”. The software audio expresses it as “2F”. This was corrected, presumably by building a lookup table for the radio channel field. Unfortunately, the version they introduced today did not have this feature. This also affects the zone field, where the half-square-mile zones are divided into quarter-square-mile grids with the suffixes W, X, Y and Z or Whiskey, Xray, Yankee and Zulo.

I have not had an opportunity to talk to anyone at Metro Net to inquire why they have brought back robo dispatch. It maybe a vacation relief tool. The dispatchers definitely deserve their vacation time. It is also reasonable to point out that the verbal dispatch is subordinate to the digital pagers, the mobile data terminals and the station alarms.

 

[f40ph]

Do you know what vendor they are using? Parts of San Bernardino County have contracted with WestNet who also has this feature. Initially they will not be using the Robo-voice, however, I would expect that to phase in after installations in the station are done. One option they may choose is to have the Robo-voice in the stations only (via IP connection) and not over the air. We will see...

 

[Mikek]

MetroNet is using the best sounding robo-dispatch voice I've heard on 2E today...

 

[allend]

ORCO Fire has been for a long time after 10 or 11pm not dispatching calls over the air.

I can see the pages coming over paging software but no calls are being dispatched over the air especially shootings or stabbings. They keep it hush hush

 

[LZJSR]

Paging software?

 

[allend]

Paging software?

PDW

 

[PaulNDaOC]

Paging software?

Possibly a reference to Pulse Point?

webapp.pulsepoint.org

I have noticed the same late nights with calls not voiced, but normal tac radio traffic.

Maybe it has to do with allowing more dispatchers to sleep/rest since most work a 24 hour shift and most units being in quarters, so most calls aren't needing to be voiced. This may allow the dispatchers that are awake to focus on tac channels and 911.

Just a guess..

 

[deboe]

If you have not heard it yet, here is a recording.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/scanoc-audio-001/3056-1472953548_8.58463e+08.mp3

 

[kma371]

Possibly a reference to Pulse Point?

webapp.pulsepoint.org

I have noticed the same late nights with calls not voiced, but normal tac radio traffic.

Maybe it has to do with allowing more dispatchers to sleep/rest since most work a 24 hour shift and most units being in quarters, so most calls aren't needing to be voiced. This may allow the dispatchers that are awake to focus on tac channels and 911.

Just a guess..

no, he said PDW

PDW Paging Decoder

 

[allend]

no, he said PDW

PDW Paging Decoder

Yes exactly. Works like a charm and you get to see the real raw calls all go out via PDW.

 

[cool80z]

Disliking Robo Dispatch

I have been listening to Fire Dispatch in OC since the low band 46 mhz days. I do not welcome the Robo Dispatch. I like to hear the human voices dispatching calls. I hope this is a temporary situation and we hear the great human dispatchers of Metronet back soon.

 

[cvfd625]

Robo dispatch doesn't both me a bit. I can see the benefits. Kern County ECC could free up a lot of dispatcher time using this to dispatch their 60 stations.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[Eng74]

No thanks. I like a human voice to wake me up at 2 am. But I normally wake up when the printer starts going off before the ztron or quick call goes off. There were many times we got back to quarters and you call ECC to see what all the laughing in the background was about, or to tell them it wasn't funny, well it would have been if it was another station. With some of the street names robo dispatch would have a hard time. Heck even most people have a hard time with them. Lol

 

[allend]

Another way for technology to kill more jobs down the road. Sign of the times.

Robo is here to stay forever now. Other cities and counties will go "Wow we can do this and save money on not hiring another dispatcher".

Then in 10 years from now then Fire will go silent to the Big "E" and then you won't have to hear ROBO anymore.

See the logic now. HAHA

 

[W8RMH]

This is just a tool and doesn't replace a dispatcher. A dispatcher still has to review and approve the run before it is transmitted. The main benefit of automated dispatch systems is they can dispatch up to 20 calls simultaneously which greatly improves response times and saves lives.

 

[allend]

Automation always replaces a warm body no matter what the technology is that you are replacing due to automation.

 

[Eng74]

I am sure one of the reasons to go with robo is to take the emotion out of dispatch. Dispatchers can get hyped up to and then it transfers over to the crews responding. If you have a monotone voice telling you what the call is you will not get the adrenaline pumping fast, which might cause you to make a bad choice.

 

[f40ph]

Here's a "pro" in favor of ROBO...

I dislike it when it's been slow and the dispatchers are not wearing their headset, then a call comes in and they don't fully pick up their microphone off the desk towards their mouth to voice a call...

"what did they say?"
Then you turn up your radio volume.

Then the next dispatcher is correctly wearing their headset and BOOM - blows you outta the vehicle.

 

[PaulNDaOC]

ROBO comes in handy when dispatchers get slammed taking calls amd making notifications.

If you suspect an agency is not staffing enough dispatchers in a given center the accepted standard is one body for each 2,500 calls dispatched. That is not on duty at one time, but authorized/budgeted positions.

 

[allend]

After listening to Robo Dispatch now for a few weeks now its taken the fun of listening to fire dispatching in Orange County very boring now.

I think its because you don't get to hear the live human being anymore. It was always interesting hearing a live person dispatching the calls. Scanning has sure been changing not for the better through-out the last couple of years.

The changes are not for the better in all aspect of the whole experience with more secure comms as well as Robo voices now.