Not Possible to Give 911 Caller's Floor Number, NextNav Says
Giving 911 responders a caller’s estimated floor number isn’t “technically feasible with current technology and available building databases,” NextNav filed, posted Tuesday about meetings last week with FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly and aides to Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks.…
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NextNav sympathizes with APCO and others seeking an “actionable” location like floor number (see 1911050032), but said “technological hurdles must first be overcome, including surveying and electronic mapping tall buildings in order to address variations in ceiling heights and floor numbering conventions (such as skipping the 13th floor).” Horizontal location also would need to be more accurate than the FCC requires -- within 50 meters for 80 percent of calls -- because a 50-meter radius in a city would cover multiple buildings, NextNav said. The FCC should move forward now with adopting a vertical metric within 3 meters, it said.