GeoComm, NCTCOG, and RapidSOS Complete Pilot Project Aimed at Testing New 9-1-1 Technology

St. Cloud, MN: GeoComm and RapidSOS recently partnered with the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) to conduct a pilot project in Frisco, Texas. The pilot project focused on integrating mobile phone data received via RapidSOS into NCTCOG’s 9-1-1 PSAP mapping applications provided by GeoComm.

The pilot project tested mobile device enhanced location in an NCTCOG lab environment using smartphones with RapidSOS configuration in the operating system for placing test 9-1-1 calls. A new GeoComm PSAP mapping application deployed to the NCTCOG lab was used to map the test 9-1-1 calls and interfaced to the RapidSOS configuration.

The test calls were placed from multiple devices by team members in the field who were responsible for taking photos of the location, as well as measuring and marketing the floor plan on the field. Team members in the City of Frisco PSAP recorded and captured the testing information. GeoComm and RapidSOS team members were responsible for placing and documenting the test calls as well as executing technical aspects of the test.

“My first reaction when I saw the demonstration was ‘Wow,’” said Christy Williams, Director 9-1-1, North Central Texas Council of Governments. “To see a dot show up on the map with the exact location of the emergency, literally showing to the left or right of a staircase, was truly amazing. I’ve never seen anything like this before the mobile calls – this is huge for telecommunicators who are trying to save lives.”

The pilot project testing indicated that device-based hybrid location technology can provide faster and more accurate indoor emergency location information. In all test scenarios, device-based hybrid caller location was available by the time traditional Wireless Phase 1 information came in, and the caller location was consistently accurate, even for indoor locations where traditional Wireless Phase 2 mapping efforts show mixed results.

CLICK HERE to learn more about GeoComm and RapidSOS partnership, the pilot project, and its test results.

About GeoComm: GeoComm was founded in 1995 to provide county governments with turnkey emergency 9-1-1 development services. Over the subsequent 21 years, the company has grown to serve local, regional, statewide, and military agencies in forty-nine states, helping to keep more than 100 million people safe. Today, GeoComm has a national reputation as a leading provider of public safety GIS systems that route emergency calls to the appropriate call center; map the caller’s location on call taker or dispatcher maps, and guide emergency responders to the scene of the accident on mobile displays within police, fire and ambulance vehicles. Our NG9-1-1 GIS solutions provide GIS data quality control, transformation, and aggregation services as well NG9-1-1 system emergency call routing. To learn more about GeoComm, please visit www.geo-comm.com

About RapidSOS: RapidSOS is an advanced emergency technology company. Formed in 2012 and backed by some of the world’s leading Silicon Valley technologists, RapidSOS is partnering with technology companies and the public safety community to provide transformative data in emergencies. RapidSOS is developing technology to predict and preempt emergencies before they occur, dynamically warn people in harm’s way, and link data from any connected device directly to first responders in an emergency. RapidSOS was named “2016 Start-Up of the Year” by the Consumer Technology Association, a Top Innovation of 2015 by MIT News, and Top 3 Innovative World Technologies by SXSW.