With the increasing need for more effective and efficient responses to man-made and natural public safety threats, the necessity for improved private mobile and commercial wireless digital communication systems has become apparent. This one-of-a-kind resource describes today's public safety communication requirements and radio systems from a technical perspective, and shows you how communication systems are evolving to meet the growing demands of multimedia wireless applications. It covers leading-edge technologies being utilized worldwide, including the European standard TETRA (Terrestrial Trunked Radio) ? a digital communication technology used to support the needs of emergency services.The book helps you evaluate attributes of emerging mobile radio and wireless communication technologies for public safety, particularly speed of response, coverage, voice recognition and security. It brings you up-to-date with recent spectrum regulatory action for public safety radio, guides you in choosing the best frequency band for a mobile radio system, and gives you an understanding of the complexities of modern digital communication systems. What's more, the book summarizes the important innovations in the new shared-systems philosophy, developing from the U.S. Government's Public Safety Wireless Network (PSWN) initiative and corresponding efforts in Western Europe. Extensively referenced with 138 equations and 225 illustrations.