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REACH112: REsponding to All Citizens needing Help

The goal of the REACH112 project is to make 'telephones' accessible for all people. That includes the range of services from person to person communication right through to 999/112 Emergency Services. The solution is to add video and real-time text to the calls (forming Total Conversation TC - a European standard) so that it is possible to continue to connect to voice telephones. The benefit of adding video is that sign language, lip-reading and general face recognition can be used. The benefit of adding real-time text (RTT) (where the users can see each other's text as it is being typed) is that a rapid text conversation can be performed when one or both users have limited use of voice or video for communication.

The concept is presented simply in the illustration. In the UK, users will be able to see each other when they call, will be able to use interpreter relay services (from May 2010) and will also be able to reach 999 services directly (from January 2011). They will be able to use standard telephone numbers and will be reachable by textphone users and by hearing people who will be automatically routed to the interpreting service.

In a nutshell, there are to be

  • 1200 home installations of TC & RTT
  • Creation of TC relay service
  • New framework for registration, download and online support service to users
  • Network infrastructure validation
  • Installations of TC in contact centres for direct routing
  • Interface to textphones & text relay & 112
  • Testing of all components from user to contact centre
  • Collection of user data, analysis and reporting
  • Creation of business model and sustainability

More details on the project can be found at www.reach112.eu. There are 22 partners in the project include major telecoms companies, as well as Deaf and hearing organisations in five countries. The emergency services are also partners. The work is to be analysed and reported on as a pilot which is of strategic importance to European policy making for future emergency service arrangements throughout Europe. The project is supported by co-funding from the EC ICT PSP for €4.4m. ( http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/ict_psp/index_en.htm) For more information contact: JLIB_HTML_CLOAKING

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Category: Uncategorised
Published on Monday, 09 May 2011 13:52
Written by Super User
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