A redundant tracking system for Public Safety and Emergency Response : Reporting past research , present findings and future directions

Tracking is playing very significant role in modern public safety and emergency response. There are many tracking technology available. Such as the geographic information systems (GIS) and global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) have transformed local, national and international emergencies and disasters response services. GIS/GNSS technologies offer great deal of assistance in public safety and emergency response enabling emergency management agencies to efficiently allocate resources, model risk and direct emergency response and recovery personnel. On the one hand, these technologies are bringing many innovative advantages to organizations responsible for public safety and emergency response. While on the other hand, it brings many challenges. For example, current GNSS-based tracking systems have serious technical flaws and vulnerabilities. This paper is reporting our research studies conducted in various projects and it also presents our finds including a detailed modular system-level description for a hybrid tracking system including control, space, tracking, communication, data processing, end-user and external applications segments. The paper further discusses and suggests how the technical vulnerabilities of GNSS-based tracking systems could be avoided considering hybrid tracking segment and multichannel communication paths. The paper is also exploring future possibilities to provide smooth tracking for public safety and emergency response. Keywords— Emergency management, Public Safety, Geographic information system, Security, Multichannel communications, Tracking.