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NXDN Forum Launches Interoperability Initiatives (2/12/10)

The NXDN Forum announced two initiatives Friday to boost interoperability among NXDN vendors and interoperability with Europe’s digital Private Mobile Radio (dPMR) standard.

The forum announced plans for interoperability and conformance testing procedures for NXDN products “similar in nature to the recently completed Project 25 Compliance Assessment Program (CAP) testing program.” The NXDN Forum was established in July 2008 and has 13 mobile radio company members.

The new testing procedures will ensure that products from multiple manufacturers based on the NXDN air interface protocol will interoperate with each other, a statement said. A product that successfully passes the testing process will then be considered compliant with the interoperability and conformance requirements, allowing that product to display the NXDN logo indicating its compliance.

“With the implementation of these testing procedures, the NXDN Forum is aiming to create an environment to assure current and future end users of NXDN technology that they can expect products they purchase from any NXDN manufacturer will interoperate with each other,” the forum said in a statement.

Separately, the chairman of the NXDN Forum announced that it will collaborate on issues of common interest in the promotion of 6.25-kilohertz FDMA technology with the dPMR memorandum of understanding (MoU). dPMR is a European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) standard.

While the two protocols are not compatible with each other, they are both 6.25-kilohertz FDMA technologies with the purpose of providing spectrum efficiency and the advantages of digital two-way radio. The NXDN Forum promotes and maintains interoperability of the NXDN digital protocol in North America, and the dPMR MoU Group was formed for a similar purpose in Europe.

The NXDN Forum offered the following information to clarify specifics about the two technologies.

• The two technologies are not compatible with each other, because the basic air interface format is different.

• NXDN is an open-proprietary protocol supported by the members of the NXDN Forum.

• dPMR is an ETSI open technical standard supported by the members of the dPMR MoU Group.

• A number of LMR industry companies are members of both groups.

Members of the NXDN Forum include Kenwood, Icom, Kenwood USA, Icom America, Aeroflex, Daniels Electronics, Ritron, Trident Micro Systems, Anritsu, CML Microsystems, Etherstack, General Dynamics Satcom Technologies and Meteor Communications.

Companies that are members of the dPMR MoU Group include Kenwood, Icom, Aeroflex, CML Microsystems, CTE International, Etherstack, Fylde Micro Systems, Shenzhen HYT Science & Technology, Sicomm and Unication.

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