First responders would like to be able to send messages simultaneously to all the emergency workers at the scene of a disaster if necessary, but lack of interoperability among various types of radio equipment prevents them from doing so today. In the future, first responders converging on a disaster scene may be able to quickly and easily exchange emergency messages and data using a wireless ad hoc network recently developed and tested by scientists and engineers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. NIST’s work in this area is part of the federal government’s efforts to improve first responder communications in light of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

The network consists of personal digital assistants equipped with wireless local area network cards. Transmission routes among the PDAs are established automatically and without need for networking infrastructure at the emergency site as the first responders arrive on the scene. The network may use any nearby PDA to relay messages to others at the scene and allows transmission of voice, text, video and sensor data. If a worker leaves the disaster scene or a device is destroyed, the network automatically reorganizes itself.

Small video screens can display the names of workers and their roles. In buildings equipped with radios at reference locations, the network would determine the locations of first responders and track their movements. The devices also could receive information from smoke, heat or vibration sensors embedded in smart buildings that could be transmitted by wireless sensor networks or distributed by first responders during emergencies.