REDIRNET · Emergency Responder Data Interoperability Network

Over the past 5 years the majority of the REDIRNET consortia have participated in Projects SECRICOM and FREESIC; this has involved partners engaging significantly with a wide range of public safety officers across the EU. A benefit of this engagement has been the recognition that in addition to agency interoperability of communications a pressing need exists for agency interoperability of additional IT systems such as databases, sensor systems and cameras. REDIRNET provides a framework for addressing this need with detailed mapping of user preferences and related legal requirements using innovative technologies.The consortium is aware that frequently it is non-technical issues that hinder agency interoperability regardless of the quality of technical solutions. Consequently user engagement across a range of agencies EU-wide will be ongoing throughout the duration of REDIRNET. This will lead to the first of two elements of the REDIRNET framework - a quality repository of user identified interoperability issues and proposals for their resolutionThe second element of REDIRNET will be technology. REDIRNET will provide a decentralized framework for interoperability for first responders’ systems based on a public meta-data gateway controlled by the agencies themselves via a REDIRNET socio-professional web. Agencies will be able link up to partner agencies of their choice and operational need; they will also be able to manage the scope of such interoperability. To help set up these link-up arrangements REDIRNET will be enhanced with semantic web methods in accordance with the vocabulary and processes of the user community. Inter-operating agencies will need only to develop one gateway (to REDIRNET) leading to a cost effective solution; agent technologies will also be developed to facilitate the integration of user systems into REDIRNET.