The Software Defined Radio (SDR) Forum has announced that the Institute for Telecommunication Sciences has joined the Forum as a new member. Based in Boulder, Colo., ITS is the research and engineering laboratory of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). It supports such NTIA telecommunications objectives as promotion of advanced telecommunications and information infrastructure development in the United States, enhancement of domestic competitiveness, improvement of foreign trade opportunities for U.S. telecommunications firms, and facilitation of more efficient and effective use of the radio spectrum. Additionally, ITS also serves as a principal resource for solving the telecommunications concerns of other federal agencies, state and local governments, private corporations and associations, and international organizations.

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According to Rob Stafford of ITS’s Network Planning Division, ITS is currently investigating the use of SDR radios as versatile, field-programmable test instruments for specialized measurement applications, as well as the potential for SDR technology in the public safety arena.

“We are also researching the potential use of low-cost SDR platforms as rapidly reconfigurable test instruments for tests of digital wireless technologies,” stated Stafford.  “The dynamic modulation flexibility inherent in software defined radios is of some interest for applications addressing public safety radio interoperability.”

Stafford said that ITS envisions taking an active role in the Forum’s public safety special interest group, since it parallels some of the organization’s current efforts in public safety telecommunications.  He added, ITS is also investigating possible roles in the security and cognitive radio groups, among others.

 “The SDR Forum is excited to have ITS join its growing list of federal government agencies focused on the public safety sector,” stated Forum CEO Lee Pucker.  ”By collaborating at the SDR Forum with radio system providers, end users, and technology developers at all levels of the value chain, these member organizations can leverage both the latest in reconfigurable radio technologies and lessons learned in supporting the needs of first responders and other public safety personnel.”
www.sdrforum.org
www.ntia.doc.gov