Come See Us at the USGS Conference

MeteorComm will have a booth at the USGS 2007 Central Region Data Conference in Tulsa, Oklahoma on May 15-17. Meteorcomm CONUS is a robust data acquisition network that cover over 95% of the lower 48 states. Meteor burst communication relies on the phenomenon of reflecting radio waves off the ionized trails left by micrometeors as they enter the atmosphere and disintegrate. Billions of dust-size meteor large enough to give usable trails enter the atmosphere each day.

The operational principle is as follows: the Master Station transmits a continuous, coded signal. When a meteor appears in the proper location, it reflects that signal to a receiving Remote Station. The Remote Station decodes the signal, turns on its transmitter and reflects a signal back along the same path to the Master Station. This transfer of information can have a range up to 1600 km (1000 miles).

Join us at the event or log on to www.meteorcomm.com to find out how this technology can be used to transmit sensor data and monitoring data in those remote regions of the U.S.


Please visit the USGS website to register for the conference.

MeteorComm to Showcase at IWCE

MeteorComm, the company that commercialized meteor burst communications in the
1970's, made it possible for developing countries to create affordable remote climatic and
hydrologic monitoring systems that are critical to weather prediction and flood control.
This year at the International Wireless Communications Expo (IWCE), MeteorComm
will be introducing a new multi-band, voice and data Software Defined Radio (SDR)
designed for safety critical applications.

MeteorComm has applied its expertise in reflecting radio waves off of ionized meteor
trails traveling at thousands of miles per hour to delivering reliable, mobile data and
voice communications products and network services to commercial and public safety
fleets. MBNET™, MeteorComm's peer-to-peer, mesh network protocol suite delivers
reliable, end-to-end data packet delivery for mobile applications such as mission critical
fleet tracking, messaging and status reporting. The centerpiece of MeteorComm's
hardware platform is the MCC-6100 SDR that was designed to provide interoperable data
and voice communications for the Railroad Industry and built to withstand the punishing
environment of a locomotive cab. MBNET™ and MeterComm's base stations and
mobiles have been deployed across 23,000 miles of track, that stretches across 27 States,
from the challenging Anchorage to Fairbanks rail corridor to the searing plains of the arid
Southwest. With the approval from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA),
MeteorComm radios and MBNET™ services form the communications backbone for
Electronic Train Management Systems across the nation, operating 24/7 in a safety
critical environment.

At the IWCE MeteorComm will introduce the MCC-6100 SDR as a solution to
interoperability concerns of Public Safety, Emergency Services, Railroad Police as well
as local and state Police, Fire and Disaster Response Units. The secure private wireless
communication system that will be on display will showcase how the radio can interact
with different communication systems seamlessly and on different frequency bands.

MeteorComm™ is a wireless telecommunications company that provides reliable, cost
effective data communications solutions and services around the world through its robust
packet-switched data networks. With over 30 years of technology experience,
MeteorComm™ has been serving industries in railroad, marine, public safety and
environmental monitoring.

Click here to download or print this press release.

MeteorComm Powers BNSF’s Electronic Train Management Communications

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) with Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF) announced, on January 8th 2007, FRA’s approval of BNSF’s Product Safety Plan (PSP) allowing
BNSF’s to implement the Electronic Train Management System (ETMS) on portions of their railroad network.

In commenting on the PSP approval, FRA Administrator Joseph R. Boardman said, “This is a major achievement that marks the beginning of a new era of rail safety.”

ETMS requires movement-related information, such as authority limits, speed limits, signal aspects, switch position and work zones delivered reliably in real-time for Wabtec’s onboard computer system to process. BNSF realized that its existing data communications infrastructure would not have the capacity and performance needed to move this information between the locomotive, waysides and dispatch center. BNSF turned to MeteorComm’s™ MBNET technology to provide a high performance, robust wireless network to meet the demand. MeteorComm™ developed a new Software Defined Radio (SDR) platform for the locomotive industry that contains up to three Part 90 transceivers (VHF and UHF), Wi-Fi and GPS that functions like a router by automatically directing voice and data packets (information) between various wireless networks and on board devices as the locomotive transitions from the yard to line-of-way. The SDR can automatically tune itself to the correct base station using the appropriate Radio Frequency (RF) and data protocols based on its location. Not only does this create seamless communications within BNSF’s network but it also allows a BNSF locomotive to be interoperable with other railroad equipment while on their track.

Don Sytsma, MeteorComm™ president and chief executive officer said, “The approval by the FRA to operate ETMS is a milestone for the railroad industry and MeteorComm™ is proud of its SDR platform and engineering team that helped make ETMS possible.”

“ETMS is the first approved automatic train control system that prevents train collisions and over speed accidents, meeting the criteria of one the National Transportation Safety Board’s most wanted list,” said Matthew K. Rose, BNSF chairman, president and chief executive officer.

MeteorComm’s™ vision is to provide wireless solutions to the railroad industry for making timely, informed decisions to enhance productivity and safety awareness. BNSF has relied upon
MeteorComm™ radios and network protocol to provide wireless communication not only for the ETMS program but their Hy-Rail Limits Compliance System (HLCS) as well.

MeteorComm™ is a wireless telecommunications company that provides reliable, cost effective data communications solutions and services around the world through its robust packet-switched data networks. With over 30 years of technology experience, MeteorComm™ has been serving a diverse customer base that has served industries in railroad, marine, public safety and environmental monitoring.

Click here to download a pdf file of this announcement.