New Web Site Offers Education on Next-Generation 911 Industry
VIXXI Solutions Inc. (Greenwood Village, Colo.) launched new Web site at www.vixxisolutions.com containing a wealth of information and technical tutorials on the E911 industry.
E911 encompasses the ability to validate and register a person’s address in the 911 database upon turn-up of his or her voice service and then correctly route an emergency call to the appropriate public safety answering point (PSAP), providing the location information associated with the telephone number calling 911. VIXXI notes that, in general, the public takes this ability for granted and assumes that when “9-1-1” is dialed--whether from a wireline, VoIP, or wireless phone--the location information will be transmitted to the correct PSAP, but because of an aging infrastructure designed for wireline use in the 1970s, E911 coverage is inadequate for many of today’s commonly used communication technologies.
As a result, incumbent 911 providers are scrambling to come up with solutions on the fly, resulting in several non-integrated, non-standard networks for VoIP and wireless, and still no solution for other existing technologies like text, video, and telematics (such as Onstar), VIXXI says, adding that because the 40-year-old infrastructure is circuit-switched and built on analog technology, it is challenged in handling modern Internet-based or digital communication technologies. The safety repercussions created by the limited infrastructure have forced the 911 community to take a look at how to transition 911 systems to accommodate the expectations of the public as well as the emerging technologies of today and tomorrow. The result is “Next Generation 911” or E911, which is where companies such as VIXXI come in.
Covering the end-to-end architecture of emergency communications with patent-pending, IP-based technology, VIXXI offers customized solutions for legacy and next-generation environments, supporting wireline, wireless, VoIP, and telematics on a single platform in effort to increase the effectiveness of the nation’s public safety system. The company’s new Web site offers education related to E911, selecting an E911 provider, and geospatial routing, along with links to other 911-related sites. The company says that in the next few weeks it also will be launching VIXXI-Secure, a single sign-on portal for customers who have multiple 911 applications. The portal will be accessible directly from the VIXXI Web site.