Aeroflex announces R&D agreement with Public Safety Communications Research Program

Under the agreement, PSCR is using Aeroflex’s TM500 Test Mobile system to test LTE (Long Term Evolution) network infrastructure for U.S. public safety broadband networks. The first call was completed successfully on the LTE wireless broadband network designated for public safety using an Aeroflex TM500 Test Mobile with an Alcatel-Lucent base station.

A national, interoperable public safety network has unique needs and specifications compared with other networks. For example, network robustness must be tested to make certain the network can handle sudden spikes in network traffic during emergencies, as well as potential heavy loads in sparsely populated areas. PSCR sees testing to verify these requirements as an important part of its network evaluation process.

The TM500 Test Mobile is the only test system available today that can emulate real emergency network traffic scenarios and public safety use cases with LTE-based public safety network equipment. The TM500 Test Mobile includes the latest 3GPP specification with all features required for public safety communications. As the rollout of LTE public safety network is completed over the next few years, the TM500 Test Mobile can expand to meet any test requirement.

“In an emergency, hundreds of first responders will simultaneously begin using the network with different levels of access and priority. These unique public safety scenarios necessitate testing the type of real world network usage that can only be properly emulated with the TM500 Test Mobile system,” said Oleg Fishel, North American Marketing Manager, Aeroflex Test Solutions.