A new ATSC 3.0 system has been deployed at the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) Technical Support Services Facility near Washington, D.C., aimed at enhancing emergency alerting and demonstrating advanced public warning features.
Partnership Details
The system is a collaborative effort between FEMA IPAWS, the NextGen Video Information Systems Alliance (NVISA), and the ATSC’s Advanced Emergency Information Implementation Team. The installation includes a full ATSC 3.0 broadcast chain contained within the FEMA facility, allowing for hands-on testing and simulation of emergency alerting capabilities.
System Capabilities
The deployed system can showcase Advanced Emergency Information features, improved Emergency Alert System (EAS) displays, integration with Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), and other advanced public warning services. It also provides live over-the-air monitoring capabilities to ensure real-world testing.
Stakeholder Education
This initiative offers opportunities for educating government and private sector stakeholders about next-generation public warning systems and advanced broadcast services. The system aims to facilitate broader public-private partnerships in advancing emergency messaging technologies.
Industry Quotes
NVISA Chair Ed Czarnecki expressed optimism about the collaboration, stating, “We are looking forward to this initiative becoming the start of a broader public-private partnership to advance future public warning capabilities.” ATSC President Madeleine Noland added, “The increasing adoption of ATSC 3.0-enabled technologies is expected to drive fundamental transformations in emergency information services.”
Technological Integration
The system interfaces with the FEMA IPAWS network to aggregate alerts for both broadcast (EAS) and mobile (WEA) platforms, directing them into ATSC 3.0-enabled services. This integration allows for secure testing of advanced warning practices in real-world scenarios.
Contributing Companies
Several companies provided technology and expertise for the system:
- Digital Alert Systems (alert and advanced emergency information management)
- Harmonic (live media processor)
- Hitachi-Comark (ATSC 3.0 exciter/transmitter)
- Triveni Digital (ATSC 3.0 scheduling and transport encoding)
- WRAL/Capitol Broadcasting (video server and broadcast video content)
- DekTec (ATSC 3.0 test modulator)
- Zapperbox (ATSC 1.0/3.0-enabled set-top receiver and home gateway)
- Zinwell (ATSC 1.0/3.0-enabled set-top receiver and home gateway)