PULLING THE FUTURE FORWARD

PSCR.GOV

ABOUT

PSCR

5 KEY 

RESEARCH AREAS

RESEARCH

FACILITIES

RESEARCH

PARTNERS

INTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

EXTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

The Public Safety Communications 

Research (PSCR) Division is the 

primary federal laboratory 

conducting research, development, 

testing, and evaluation for public 

safety communications technologies. 

It is housed within the 

Communications Technology 

Laboratory (CTL) at the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology 

(NIST). It addresses the R&D necessary 

for critical features identified by public 

safety entities beyond the current 

generation of broadband technology.

MISSION

PSCR is driven towards advancing public 

safety communications technologies by 

accelerating the adoption and 

implementation of the most critical 

communications capabilities to ensure the 

public safety community can more effectively 

carry out their mission to protect lives and 

property during day-to-day operations, large 

scale events, and emergencies.

PROMISE

PSCR accelerates innovation by investing in 

research to transform the future of public safety 

communications, technology, and operations.
PULLING THE FUTURE FORWARD

PSCR.GOV

ABOUT

PSCR

5 KEY 

RESEARCH AREAS

RESEARCH

FACILITIES

RESEARCH

PARTNERS

INTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

EXTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

USER INTERFACE

USER EXPERIENCE

LOCATION-BASED 

SERVICES

MISSION CRITICAL

VOICE

SECURITY

UNCREWED 

AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS
PULLING THE FUTURE FORWARD

PSCR.GOV

ABOUT

PSCR

5 KEY 

RESEARCH AREAS

RESEARCH

FACILITIES

RESEARCH

PARTNERS

INTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

EXTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

RESEARCH FACILITIES

Public Safety Innovation Lab

40–Gigabit 

Core LTE 

Network

P25 Phase 1 & 2 

LMR System

2 RF Chambers 

for Testing 

Devices

Interoperability Lab 

Interconnecting LMR 

and LTE Systems

Virtual and 

Augmented 

Reality Lab

Mobile Research 

Vehicle for Field 

Measurements

Public Safety Immersive Test Center

A Modular 

Layout

A Motion Capture System with 62 High 

Speed Optical Tracking Cameras 

Capable of Centimeter Accuracy

A Variety of Augmented 

& Virtual Reality 

Headsets

A Mobile Staircase & 

Other Equipment for 

Z-Axis Motion

Physical Furniture and 

Gear to Add a Tactile 

Component to Simulations
PULLING THE FUTURE FORWARD

PSCR.GOV

ABOUT

PSCR

5 KEY 

RESEARCH AREAS

RESEARCH

FACILITIES

RESEARCH

PARTNERS

INTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

EXTRAMURAL

IMPACTS
PULLING THE FUTURE FORWARD

PSCR.GOV

ABOUT

PSCR

5 KEY 

RESEARCH AREAS

RESEARCH

FACILITIES

RESEARCH

PARTNERS

INTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

EXTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

PRODUCTS

Measurement Method Metrics

MCV Quality Of 

Experience

Public Safety 

Push-To-Talk 

Modeling

XR Test Bed 

for Usability

Public Safety 

Analytics 

Open Framework

Indoor 

Localization 

Accuracy

Research Tools

25 Open Source

Software 114 Internal 

Publications

Standards

LTE

483 Contributions for Public 

Safety Service & Feature 

Requirements, Architecture, 

& Protocol Specifications

LMR 

to LTE

Initiated Many 3GPP Standardsbased LMR to LTE Interfaces for 

Public Safety

REACH

Hosted Events

More than

108

Stakeholder Engagements 

Since 2016

Lab Visitors

More than

2750

On-site and Virtual 

Visitors Since 2016

STAFF

39

Staff Members Working 

on PSCR’s Mission
PULLING THE FUTURE FORWARD

PSCR.GOV

ABOUT

PSCR

5 KEY 

RESEARCH AREAS

RESEARCH

FACILITIES

RESEARCH

PARTNERS

INTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

EXTRAMURAL

IMPACTS

EXTRAMURAL RESEARCH

Grants and Cooperative agreements

$108M

In Grants 

Awarded to Date

262

Total Award Recipients, 

Subcontractors, and Public 

Safety Practitioners

200+

External Software Resources

7

Patents 

Granted

13

Patent 

Applications 

Submitted

Open Innovation

Winners from

31 STATES

&

7 COUNTRIES

21

Challenges

Launched

274

Winning

Teams

$7M+

In Prizes 

Awarded 

To Date

734

Prizes 

Awarded

1,035

Total 

Submissions

Which words best describe PSCR’s 

Annual Stakeholder Meeting?

Research Publications

300+

External Journal and Conference 

Publications