December 1, 2020
Mapping, tracking, and navigating indoors is one of the greatest challenges facing first responder safety today. The built environment is growing both in volume and complexity – increasing the potential frequency of public safety response to 911 calls made within structures where locating victims poses unique challenges. Today more than ever, first responders need solutions to provide better situational awareness indoors, equipping them with necessary capabilities to operate effectively while maximizing responder and citizen safety.
NAPSG Foundation is responding to this need by partnering with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Public Safety Communications Research Division (PSCR) to develop a Best Practices Guide to Indoor Mapping, Tracking, and Navigation. This guide seeks to accelerate the adoption of Location-Based Services (LBS) by providing first responders with a resource to start or improve their current programs.
The Best Practices Guide has been developed over the past year with input from the LBS First Responders Working Group, a group of experts made up of representatives from law enforcement, fire, emergency medical services, emergency management, the private sector, and the military. Additional input has been solicited from researchers working on LBS and vendors who provide these technologies.
To view the first version (V1) of the Best Practices Guide, click here.
You have the opportunity to comment on V1 of the Best Practices Guide and help fellow public safety agencies navigate these emerging technologies.
To provide recommendations on current best practices, or to submit a new best practice, click here.
Additionally, NAPSG Foundation has set up an i-Axis Community Hub. This hub provides documentation on LBS Working Group meetings, sandboxes to test out mapping, tracking, and navigation applications, and additional resources for agencies looking to implement a program.
If you have questions about the Best Practices Guide or the i-Axis Community Hub, please send an email to Kevin Kay with NAPSG Foundation at kkay@publicsafetygis.org.
