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Start of the Project HeERO - Harmonised eCall European Pilot
January 2011 marks the start of the HeERO project (Harmonised eCall European Pilot). This three-year project is partially funded by the European Commission under the ICT PSP programme and gathers 40 partners from all over Europe, including user organisations and telecommunications companies. 9 countries will prepare for the deployment of the necessary infrastructure in Europe with the aim of making the harmonised Pan-European interoperable in-vehicle emergency call service "eCall" a reality.
HeERO addresses the pan-European in-vehicle emergency call service "eCall" based on 112, the single European Emergency number. The in-vehicle eCall is an emergency call generated either manually by vehicle occupants or automatically via activation of in-vehicle sensors. When activated, the in-vehicle eCall system will establish a voice connection directly with the relevant PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point), this being either a public or a private eCall emergency centre operating under the regulation and/or authorisation of a public body. At the same time, a minimum set of incident data (MSD) will be sent to the PSAP operator receiving the voice call.
The pan-European in-vehicle emergency call, 'eCall', is estimated to have the potential to save up to 2 500 fatalities annually in EU-27 when fully deployed, to reduce the severity of injuries, bring significant savings to society in healthcare and other costs and reduce human suffering.
The project's predeployments based on ETSI and CEN standards will occur in Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Sweden and The Netherlands. In the different countries the full eCall service chain (PSAPs, Emergency Dispatch and Management Centres, Mobile Network Operators, Fleet owners, Public and Private Road Operators, OEMs) will be covered for the execution of the pilot.
"The start of the HeERO project is a major step towards the complete roll-out of eCall in Europe and the EENA is dedicated to be part of this initiative that will have a significant impact on citizens' safety", commented Olivier Paul-Morandini, President of the European Emergency Number Association.
About the EENA:
The EENA - European Emergency Number Association - was set up in 1999 as a non-profit association registered in Belgium to serve as a neutral discussion platform for emergency services, industry and informed citizens with the aim of getting efficient, interoperable and harmonised emergency telecommunications in accordance with citizens' requirements. EENA has been advocating to authorities the issues related to 112 as there are more and more EU citizens travelling for business or leisure. EENA is also promoting the establishment of a general, pan-European, multilingual, simplified and efficient system for alerting citizens about imminent or developing emergencies. The EENA memberships include 450 emergency services representatives from 39 European countries, 25 solution providers, 9 international associations/organisations as well as 26 Members of the European Parliament.
HeERO's Dissemination Manager: Jerome Paris - jp@eena.org