Digital Radio Communication System

Installation, Commissioning and Maintenance of Digital Radio Trunked system for small offices to large area network. We have deployed Digital radios in Kenya and continue to address growing demand as we engage the market in deploying advanced digital radio communication solutions for safety, security and communication backed with efficient support and service delivery.

We are in partnership with some of the leading Radio communication technology developers in the world such as Hytera, with whom we have invested in order to build and retain engineering and commercial capacity.

Why Digital Radio

Digital mobile radio (DMR) is an open standard defined in the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) Standard TS 102 361 parts 1–4^[1] and is used in commercial products around the world.

DMR was designed with three tiers. DMR tiers I and II (conventional), first published in 2005, and DMR III (trunked), published in 2012.

This system (DMR) provide the ability to send and receive voice and low data rate information in a highly efficient and cost effective manner. It utilizes technologies similar to the computer-controlled telephone networks to logically organize a large number of users into an orderly communications network.  A computerized central switch, referred to as a central controller, makes channel selections and other decisions previously made by the user.  Channel assignment is automatic and completely transparent to the individual users.

The primary goal of the standard is to specify a digital system with low complexity, low cost and interoperability across brands, so that radio communications purchasers are not locked into a proprietary solution. In practice, many brands have not adhered to this open standard and have introduced proprietary features that make their product offerings non-interoperable.

The system include state of the art tracking capabilities in addition to its already high tech communication capabilities. Counties can now continuously locate and identify workers and vehicles exact whereabouts and can react to panic alerts, communicate and assist when needed.

 

Typical digital radio system architecture

 

Backbone Network

BS

Dispatch Consoles

System Monitoring and NMS

Telephone Interconnect

BS: Base Station NMS: Network Management System NOC: Network Operation Center PSTN: Public Switched Telephone Network

PSTN

BS

BS

BS

Central Controller

Mobile Radio User

Portable Radio User

NOC/Master Site

 

 

Benefits of Digital Radio Tier III system:

 

Systems employing Digital trunked radio technology offer many benefits besides spectrum efficiency, which include:

• Larger coverage areas up to approximately 20-mile-radius geographic coverage where all users on the system have coverage over the entire area, not just in the relatively small areas around each base station that agencies deem crucial for communications, which is a typical coverage area for single-agency systems;
• Interoperability with other agencies and users on the system completely defined by talk-group management, as needed to handle special events or emergencies;
• Faster system access since there is no need to monitor the channels prior to use;
• More user privacy because users in the same talk-groups are given exclusive access to a voice channel for the duration of a conversation;
• Flexible expansion because talk-groups can be added or modified without necessarily requiring additional channels or modifying existing radios;
• Dynamic regrouping which allows the system to reassign units so users can talk between departments for special events; and
• Protection of lost or stolen radios since any radio can be disabled remotely by the central controller.
• Communication to all devices simultaneously
• One-on-one or to compiled group Communication
• Instant messaging to all users
• Monitoring all remote working staff and vehicles
• User friendly interface

 

The ability to combine multiple departments or agencies under one system while maintaining independent operations is the cornerstone of the trunking advantage.  The advanced features listed above will also help ensure that each user has reliable, quick access to a channel during emergencies.

Has Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) been used in Kenya or East Africa?

 

Yes. The DMR Tier III solution is currently used nationally by:

 Kenya Ports Authority

 Kenya Wildlife Services

 Tanzania Port Authority

 Uganda Police

 Rwanda Police service