E-112

Emergency Number Services: every second counts.

Today, mobile phones are fast becoming the dominant means of voice communication throughout Europe. In emergency situations, every second and every call must count. For this reason, the European Commission and the governments around the world are currently considering recommendations for the implementation of an emergency services system for calls made from mobile phones, in which the caller's location would be provided automatically to the nearest Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP).

In the U.S., the process of deploying such a system has already been completed. The U.S. system, called Enhanced 911 or E-911, is modeled on a 1996 mandate issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that requires wireless carriers to implement technology that accurately and automatically determines wireless callers' locations.

The need for Emergency Wireless Location (E-112, E-999, etc.)
When a mobile phone subscriber uses an emergency number service, like 999, emergency dispatchers currently have no way to accurately determine their locations. Frequently, callers do not know their whereabouts, are disoriented, or may not speak the native country language. In addition, for all of the 999s that are out there, there are equally as many 112s, 114s, 199s, so mobile subscribers need to learn the emergency number for that country. And, in some cases, different countries have different phone numbers for fire, ambulance, and police. All of these factors can lead to delays that not only tie up valuable public safety resources, but also can prevent emergency help from arriving in time to administer critical emergency care.

Lessons learned in the U.S.
The U.S. wireless system reached its present success only after a great deal of negotiation between wireless operators and the FCC. With even more obstacles facing other parts of the world trying to implement emergency numbers, like the EU, such as the variety of languages, local governments, cultures, and response systems, achieving country-wide or continent-wide emergency phone numbers will be challenging.

Thanks to the advances already made in the U.S., the other countries will have a solid foundation to build on. For one, the technology needed to deploy a standard emergency number service, like 112 or 999 is now readily available and serving hundreds of millions of wireless subscribers in the U.S.

TruePosition, the world's largest company solely dedicated to the development and implementation of wireless location products and services, has created technology that has been instrumental in reducing response times, improving emergency call processing, and saving lives.