Teltronic to deliver public protection in Band 68

Spanish critical communications specialist Teltronic has launched what it claims is the first “complete public protection system” over the recently released Band 68 long-term evolution (LTE) 4G radio band.

The move, which Teltronic said would “enable public safety and emergency response agencies to move towards further digitisation” follows the recent allocation in Spain and continental European countries of Band 68 (698-703 MHz/753-758 MHz) for use by public protection systems and disaster relief operations.

Teltronic’s 68-band solution is scalable for all deployments across fixed networks of local, regional or national scope as well as mobile units and tactical cells that can be easily moved to take 4G coverage wherever it is needed, such as for incidents in remote environments.

It consists firstly of the Radio Access Network that provides LTE coverage to the operation area, an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and a catalogue of Mission Critical Services (MCX) for voice, data and video communications. The solution also incorporates different terminals that support this band with different formats such as ruggedised smartphones or CPEs (Customer Premises Equipment) for installation in vehicles, offices or control centres.

Teltronic’s product marketing manager Marta Fontecha said: “Since broadband radio technologies began to be developed, public safety agencies have been demanding the allocation of frequencies that would allow their use in the security and availability conditions they require; Teltronic has been preparing for this moment for years, and now that this demand is finally beginning to be met by the various regulatory bodies around the world, we can offer private 4G networks that enable the digital transformation of these agencies.

“The application of broadband technologies and the transmission of large volumes of broadband data offer great potential to public protection systems; real-time video, personal cameras and wearables, map and database queries and AI analysis are applications that will soon become part of the operation of these agencies, substantially improving their efficiency and security.”

The Spanish company has also developed an LTE base station with a compact format in band 68, a unit prepared to be installed outdoors on a wall or mast without the need for a technical room - by using the 700 MHz range and reserved spectrum, it guarantees wide coverage areas and avoids interference problems.

Band 68 is a dedicated frequency that can be used to support emergency management and other public safety use cases with critical private mobile radio (PMR) communications. As well as Teltronic’s deployment in Spain, across Europe other Band 68 solutions are being developed including Athonet and Crosscall using the availability of band 68 with the CORE-Z5 to deliver critical PMR communications powered by the Qualcomm QCM6490.

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