The First Responder – Response Mobile Communications System (RMCS), developed by CERDEC’s Space and Terrestrial Communications Directorate (S&TCD), was recently demonstrated at the U.S. Army Garrison, Fort Monmouth August 29, 2005. “The RMCS will bridge the communications interoperability gaps between defense and civil support missions,” said Gary Blohm, S&TCD director. The new, rapidly deployable communications system provides wireless connectivity, situational awareness and 3-D location and tracking in the absence of a fixed communications infrastructure. RMCS monitors vital signs of responding personnel and provides the incident commander cognitive oversight of the responders’ environmental conditions. It also delivers voice communications and live high-quality video to the incident commander and headquarters coordinating the operation.
First demonstrated in August 2005, RMCS went through a year of refinement based on feedback received from Defense Department emergency response personnel and Department of Homeland Security public safety experts. Improvements resulted in reduced size, weight and power consumption of the overall system, while increasing range and data capacity to enable broad integration with standard first responder applications.
