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| [February 24, 2010] |
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First "Smart City" White Spaces Network Trial Delivers Safer, Greener Connected Community to North Carolina
WILMINGTON, N.C. --(Business Wire)--
TV Band Service (TVBS) LLC, in partnership with Spectrum (News - Alert) Bridge Inc, announced today that the City of Wilmington and County of New Hanover, N.C. have launched the nation's first "Smart City" wireless network trial utilizing TV white spaces spectrum. TV white spaces are the unused TV broadcast channels made available by the recent transition from analog to digital TV. The Wilmington/New Hanover County area was selected for this trial network because it was the first major TV market in the nation, as selected by the FCC (News - Alert), to convert from analog to DTV broadcasting. In what local officials have described as a "model for public-private partnerships", the network will help government leaders identify how TV white spaces can expand existing and deliver new services cost-effectively and with minimal impact on the environment.
TV white spaces are the open frequencies in the TV band, and are well suited for wireless data networks. The FCC has ruled that these frequencies can be used on an unlicensed basis similar to WiFi (News - Alert). TV white spaces hold enormous potential for delivering cost-effective connectivity for a wide range of consumer, business and government applications.
"White spaces technology can open the door to future Smart Network applications by providing government more real time information at a lower cost to our citizens and environment," said Bill Saffo, Mayor of the City of Wilmington. "This is an example of technology offering us the tools to operate the City more efficiently and effectively. For example, our Traffic Division can use the technology to manage signals and monitor vehicle flow without the costs and disruption of running additional fiber or cables. We would like to thank TV Band Service and Spectrum Bridge (News - Alert) for selecting our community for this experimental white spaces network."
The initial applications deployed using TV white spaces frequencies include:
Department of Transportation Traffic Cameras - Provides real-time traffic monitoring for the department of transportation to reduce congestion, fuel consumption, travel time, support local law enforcement, and assist with hurricane and disaster evacuations
Public Safety and WiFi Access at Community Parks - Delivers real-time video monitoring to improve overall security and gives local law enforcement a virtual presence in the parks. In addition, high-speed WiFi access in the parks enables county employees to be more productive and offers citizens the opportunity to stay connected via laptops, SmartPhones and netbooks while in the park.
Water & Wetlands Monitoring - Enables remote monitoring and management of wetland areas, which eliminates the costs associated with physically driving or boating to the monitoring stations to collect data required by the environmental protection agency (EPA)
Additional applications planned for deployment as part of the Smart City trial network include:
Water Pump Station Monitoring and Control - Reduces energy consumption and costs, increases equipment life and enables faster identification and mitigation of spills
Medical telemetry - Enables remote monitoring and reporting of biometric measurements for at risk populations
Expanded Broadband Access for Schools - Increases student, teacher and administration access to internet based educational resources
"Building upon our current information technology investments, TV white spaces will help the County make the most efficient use of our existing resources and infrastructure. It is allowing us to extend video and data connectivity to areas that were once outside of the bounds of current technology due to cost or environmental concerns," said Jason Thompson, Chairman, New Hanover County. "For example, we are now able to deploy video cameras and WiFi in our parks, which increases both security and enjoyment for our residents and tourists visiting these areas."
Wireless signals in the TV Band can travel over large distances, and are particularly useful in sending signals across difficult terrain. In the case of the City of Wilmington and New Hanover County, the unique geographical challenges of the coastal community and surrounding wetlands were perfectly suited for white spaces. TV white spaces allows a robust network to be deployed with fewer towers than were required for previously available unlicensed frequencies, reducing costs and impact to the environment.
"We've had tremendous support from the City of Wilmington, the county of New Hanover, and our technology partner Spectrum Bridge," said Dr. John Chapin, consultant to TV Band Service. "We expect to learn a lot about the technology and the uses of the TV White Spaces through this trial. Here in Wilmington we're pulling together a variety of radios and applications. We're excited to grow the trial network and invite future participation by radio vendors, government organizations and potential users."
To ensure that the white spaces network does not cause interference with licensed television broadcasts and other protected TV band users, the system operates under the control of Spectrum Bridge's intelligent TV white spaces database. This database dynamically assigns non-interfering frequencies to white spaces devices, and adapts in real-time to new TV broadcasts, as well as other protected TV band users operating in the area.
"This network is further evidence that TV white spaces can be used to deliver innovative services without impacting protected users operating in near-by TV channels," said Peter Stanforth, CTO and co-founder of Spectrum Bridge. "The valuable data and knowhow gained from real world network deployments greatly increases our understanding of how TV white spaces and database-driven spectrum access can cost-effectively address the increasing demand for wireless bandwidth."
TV white spaces availability can be found for any location in the US by using the free search tool at Spectrum Bridge's ShowMyWhiteSpace.com website, or by downloading the company's free Show My White Space iPhone application from the Apple (News - Alert) App Store.
About TV Band Service, LLC:
TV Band Service LLC provides wireless communication services to government and enterprise operations. The company employs next-generation wireless technology including TV White Spaces to reduce cost and improve performance for a range of applications including environmental monitoring, traffic management, security and law enforcement, energy conservation and wireless broadband internet. In addition, TV Band Service supports an open test bed at its headquarters for evaluation and trials of innovative wireless systems. TV Band Service is a privately held company headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina. For more information contact us at (910) 343-3737 or visit tvbandservice.com.
About Spectrum Bridge, Inc.:
Spectrum Bridge, Inc. (SBI) delivers software and services to wireless service providers and equipment manufacturers. SBI enables wireless networks to access and use all types of spectrum at any place or time via a database driven cognitive network architecture. The Company's products are embedded in subscriber devices and network equipment to more efficiently allocate bandwidth throughout the entire wireless network. SBI's technology provides customers greater capacity, coverage and utilization of scarce spectrum resources. Named to Fierce Wireless' "Fierce15" as one of "the most innovative and smart emerging companies in the wireless industry", the company is privately held and headquartered in Lake Mary, Florida. For more information, contact us at (866) 598-7426 or visit SpectrumBridge.com.
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