TCCA issues new specs for 4G & 5G mission critical callout

TCCA has published new Broadband Callout specifications for mission critical paging and alerting over 3GPP 4G and 5G networks.

Paging and callout services form part of how emergency services alert personnel who are on call and capture responses about who can attend an incident. TCCA has maintained a callout specification for TETRA networks for years. The association said broadband mission critical networks lacked an equivalent specification until now.

The new documents cover callout for 3GPP-enabled mission critical networks that use MCX services. These include Mission Critical Push-to-Talk Voice, Mission Critical Video and Mission Critical Data. TCCA said the work aligns with 3GPP MCX standards and uses MCData Short Data Service and MCPTT.

Task force

TCCA's Critical Communications Broadband Group set up a task force to write the specifications. The group contrasted the approach with TETRA callout, which uses Short Data Service and TETRA voice communications.

"Similar to TETRA callout, Broadband Callout is a lightweight service designed for efficient alerting and user responses, and with added features to take advantage of broadband capabilities," said Hans Petter Naper, Task Force Leader, The Norwegian Communications Authority. "Callout is a vital part of dispatch functionality, and a widely adopted and interoperable callout service should be part of broadband mission critical networks."

TCCA positioned the specifications as an additional layer on top of existing standards.

"These are the first technical specifications created on top of 3GPP standards expanding and complementing the capabilities of the under lying MCX services," said Tero Pesonen, Chair, CCBG, TCCA. "TCCA's mission critical Broadband Callout specifications are freely available to encourage the formation of a common global interoperable multivendor market that meets the user needs. We look forward to continuing to serve the critical communication sector with further specifications and guidelines."

Two modes

TCCA described two types of Broadband Callout. It said simple callout uses Short Data Service messages for alerting and collecting responses. It said full callout adds an information phase. During this phase, dispatchers and users can speak in an MCPTT callout group. They can also exchange text information about the incident.

After the callout ends, TCCA said users move back to normal operation on their devices. It said they then use MCX services during the incident handling phase.

TCCA also set out differences from TETRA callout message formats. It said broadband callout alert messages can be longer than TETRA callout messages. It said that allows more detailed incident descriptions and handling instructions.

The specification also covers location information in the dispatch message. TCCA said a dispatch system can include an incident location so that a broadband device can display the incident on a map and provide navigation. It pointed to the use of high-resolution displays on broadband devices.

Availability data

TCCA's documents include a mechanism for users to share their future availability status with a dispatch system. It listed examples such as on duty, off duty, and on holiday. TCCA said the dispatch system can use the information to build and maintain a calendar for each user.

TCCA also described how a dispatch system may use location and other data when selecting who to notify. It said a system can have access to a user's location. It said a system can select available users based on distance and travel time to an incident. It also cited skills and equipment as selection factors.

During an active callout, the specifications direct user devices to use a particular callout communication group for MCPTT and MCData Short Data Service messages. TCCA said devices can switch to another group when the callout ends, for communications during the incident phase.

Interoperability focus

TCCA said the specifications allow callout across different suppliers of MCX clients and dispatch systems, when those implementations follow the documents. It said the specifications support callout for users in different groups or agencies. It also said they support callout across country boundaries.

TCCA linked broader adoption to testing and certification. It said interoperability and certification testing provide the basis for mission critical products. TCCA said it plans to invite vendors to test callout implementations under the ETSI MCX Plugtests programme. It also said it plans to add Broadband Callout to the Global Certification Forum mission critical services certification programme.