By Kameron Behnam, FirstNet Device Test & Certification Manager

In this blog post, we profile FirstNet’s high-level vision for approving wireless mobile devices to operate on the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN).  Section 6206 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (“the Act”) is driving the instantiation of a device approval process as described in this blog.

With the potential for millions of public safety users of the network, FirstNet will have the scale and leverage to drive the development and procurement of devices at the best possible prices.  Scale can also spur interest from a number of new vendors, which can enhance vendor/design diversity, increase competition, and help lower prices for public safety devices.  

In the future, FirstNet will work with industry to develop device types and applications to meet public safety use cases identified by public safety users.  FirstNet devices and applications will undergo a variety of testing and certification in areas such as interference, operation, environmental factors, and security.

All major commercial mobile network operators (MNOs) ensure that end user devices they intend to sell to meet specific technical requirements; therefore, they are subjected to a device approval process prior to widespread deployment in the field.  Typically, the approval process employed by a commercial MNO includes the following major components:

• Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Regulatory Approval:  This is a legally required test and verification process, performed by accredited test labs, to ensure that the device’s Radio Frequency (RF) emission levels meet the FCC’s regulations.  A device must complete this process before it can be sold in the United States.  At the conclusion of this process, an FCC ID is assigned to the device.
• Commercial Carrier Acceptance:  This is the process employed by a commercial MNO to ensure device compliance with unique operator requirements such as frequency band support (such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) Bands 4, 12, 17, 13, 25 etc.) and feature requirements.  

Commercial MNOs also require conformance to the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) specifications.This is typically handled through the PCS Type Certification Review Board (PTCRB) or the Global Certification Forum (GCF). 

Additional test phases for carrier acceptance testing may include the following items:

• Safe For Network (SFN) – Initial lab and field testing to verify device quality prior to entering detailed carrier acceptance test phase
• Lab Tests – Testing on network simulation platforms and lab infrastructure setups to verify functionality in a controlled environment
• Field Tests – Field testing of devices in locations providing each deployed infrastructure configuration  
• Interoperability Tests – Testing between the device and the network in both lab and field environments

The output of the above processes yields a device that has been thoroughly tested and is approved for sale and use on the commercial MNO’s network.  Note that even devices that are bought in the open market (the Bring Your Own Device, or BYOD, model) have to undergo a similar approval process to be legally authorized for sale to consumers.

In general, the mobile device approval process is necessary to verify that a device meets certain technical specifications and unique operator requirements to ensure that the device is interoperable with the operator’s network and doesn’t negatively impact network performance. “Rogue” devices are traditionally the major violators of network rules, and they are also the biggest culprits in degrading network performance.  Consequently, the approval process helps to ensure good end user experience and acceptable device performance.

FirstNet envisions its device approval process to be very similar to that of the commercial MNOs, with an additional component.  This component is known as FirstNet Carrier Acceptance. The FirstNet device approval process is depicted in the figure below.

FirstNet’s carrier acceptance process will ensure that a device containing LTE Band 14 meets 3GPP specifications and public safety specific requirements.  In this context, the term “requirements” refers to features and functions.  FirstNet plans to and is currently leveraging the PTCRB to ensure devices equipped with Band 14 meet the 3GPP specifications and are interoperable per the CTIA LTE Interoperability test plan. 

FirstNet plans to have its own carrier acceptance test plan that focuses on validating a device is safe for use on the Band 14 network, testing device features unique to public safety, and testing performance aspects of Band 14 that are above and beyond the 3GPP and other specifications.   Examples of features unique to public safety include direct mode, proximity services, mission critical push-to-talk, etc.

Further, section 6206(c)(6) of the Act states that the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), in consultation with FirstNet and the FCC, will ensure the development of a list of certified devices and components.  In order to satisfy this section of the Act post contract award, FirstNet envisions supplying an updated list and supporting information to NIST on a periodic basis or whenever a new device is considered an approved device. 

Going forward, the Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) program and FirstNet will maintain a strong relationship, with PSCR focusing on forward looking research, standards, metrology and technology development, while FirstNet’s focus will remain on the mission of building and operating the nationwide public safety broadband network.  This relationship will be leveraged in the development of FirstNet’s device approval process. 

The primary purpose of this blog has been to serve as an introduction to FirstNet’s device approval process.  As we continue to expand our research, stay tuned for future blogs that will describe this process in more detail.

Thanks,
Kameron