FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PBS NORTH CAROLINA AWARDED BEIT ‘BEST PAPER’ FOR ATSC 3.0 EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS RESEARCH
PBS North Carolina Chief Technology Officer Fred Engel accepted the award on behalf of the station and co-authors at the annual NAB Show in Las Vegas, NV.
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC, 4/25/2022 — PBS North Carolina Chief Technology Officer, Fred Engel, was one of two winners of the 2022 BEIT Conference Proceedings Best Paper Award at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Broadcast Engineering and Information Technology (BEIT) Conference, in Las Vegas, NV, over the weekend. The paper, “ATSC 3.0 as a Use Case for Public Safety Communications - Development Milestones” was co-authored by Red Grasso of the NC Department of Information Technology (NCDIT)’s First Responder Emerging Technologies (FirstTech) program and Chris Lamb and Tony Sammarco of North Carolina-based Device Solutions, with support from the Wireless Research Center of North Carolina.
Each year, presenters at the NAB BEIT Conference are encouraged to submit written papers on the subjects of their presentations. The annual proceedings are a compendium of the Conference’s technical papers, and an important archive of the leading edge of broadcast engineering issues.
“As America’s ‘first informers,’ broadcasters take seriously their responsibilities to keep our communities safe when disaster strikes,” said Sam Matheny, NAB executive vice president of Technology and chief technology officer. “This paper provides a framework for implementing public safety initiatives made possible by the ATSC 3.0 standard and that can help local TV stations aid first responders with lifesaving information in times of crisis. We congratulate the co-authors on this well-deserved recognition and their innovative work.”
The paper proposes the use of datacasting technology to provide a redundant method for critical data distribution over a wide area to serve the paging needs of public safety and uses North Carolina as a test case. The concept could lead to cost-sharing, higher reliability, greater collaboration across jurisdictions, and reduced response times.
“PBS North Carolina and our partners in the Digital Paging over Public Broadcasting effort, the NCDIT FirstTech team and Device Solutions Inc. are honored that our paper has been recognized at NAB Broadcast Engineering and IT Conference,” said Fred Engel, PBS North Carolina chief technology officer. “We look to continue our work to develop our applications utilizing ATSC 3.0 broadcast technology to serve public safety officials and, hopefully, to save lives”
Collaboratively with NCDIT and Device Solutions, Engel has been instrumental in merging ATSC 3.0 technology with public broadcasting to improve public safety communications and security. Last year, the group announced the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant awarded to them by the Department of Homeland Security to continue the development of a new emergency digital paging system over public television.
About Device Solutions Inc.
Device Solutions Inc. is an engineering firm located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina and provides feasibility studies, embedded hardware and software design and development, industry and carrier certifications and approvals, deployment services, and manufacturing support. Device Solutions is a testing and certification center for FCC, UL, Bluetooth, and cellular carriers and is experienced in the building of electronic devices for the vertical marketplace including medical, asset tracking, remote monitoring and control, consumer electronics, home and office automation, and utilities. Visit device-solutions.com for more information.
About The National Association of Broadcasters
The National Association of Broadcasters is the voice for the nation's radio and television broadcasters. As the premier trade association for broadcasters, NAB advances the interests of our members in federal government, industry and public affairs; improves the quality and profitability of broadcasting; encourages content and technology innovation; and spotlights the important and unique ways stations serve their communities. Learn more at nab.org.
About PBS North Carolina
As North Carolina’s statewide PBS network serving the country’s third-largest public media market, PBS NC educates, informs, entertains and inspires its statewide audience on-air, online and in-person. Through its unique partnership of public investment and private support, the statewide network includes in-person engagement, digital-first social and online content delivery, and four over-the-air channels—PBS NC, the North Carolina Channel, Rootle 24/7 PBS Kids and the Explorer Channel. Its transformational events and content spark curiosity and wonder for all North Carolinians. Additionally, PBS NC serves as the backbone for North Carolina’s state’s emergency services. Visit pbsnc.org and join the conversation at facebook.com/MyPBSNC and @MyPBSNC on Instagram and Twitter.
-PBS NC-
Media Contacts:
Kathleen Kramer, PBS North Carolina Marketing & Communications
kkramer@pbsnc.org
919-549-7059
