- What is OmniAir?
- Why was OmniAir established?
- What is the association's status today?
- What does the name 'OmniAir' mean?
- What goal does OmniAir Certification help realize?
- Tell me more about the OmniAir Certification Program?
- Why is certification important?
- How can I increase the benefits of OmniAir?
The OmniAir Consortium, Inc. is a non-profit association created to advance the deployment of DSRC by providing third-party certification services that ensure standards-compliance and enable True Interoperability™. OmniAir unites DSRC stakeholders from all sectors and provides a forum to which they can collaborate and achieve their common goals.
In response to imperfect industry conditions, OmniAir was started by those interested in interoperable, reliable, and cost-effective DSRC systems. Today's DSRC technology is based on proprietary protocols that, while functional, result in systems that are not interoperable, and a market that suffers from the shortcomings of closed standards and limited competition. 5.9GHz DSRC technology offers a way out of this situation.
OmniAir is an alliance of DSRC system manufacturers, operators, integrators, application service providers and others. Its members are an active community supporting 5.9GHz DSRC through specific tools that advance its deployment. These tools include a certification program that tests for standards-compliance and interoperability between systems at the device level. OmniAir will also tackle standards for electronic payment services. National reciprocity accords, standard application definitions, common device and account management policies, and open interface specifications characterize the future of national interoperable EPS.
OmniAir signifies 'standards-compliance.' It is thus intended to be the mark that confirms a DSRC system to be compliant with industry-designed and maintained standards. This third-party certification helps advance interoperable, secure, and cost-effective radio system communications, particularly 5.9GHz DSRC systems that will operate in the FCC-allocated ITS frequency band. The certification program provides industry a clear means of identifying compliant products.
The primary goal is to advance the 'next generation' technology into the device, peripheral, integrator and operator markets so that interoperable, standardized systems exist nationally. OmniAir supports the USDOT vision of ubiquitous deployment of seamless DSRC services that save lives and enhance mobility. To help achieve this, the Consortium will:
- For the Hardware, develop the DSRC Certification Program - an unbiased test and certification of device standards-compliance and interoperability;
- For a key application, create an Electronic Payment System National Interoperability Specification that will allow market-driven, nationally-interoperable transaction services;
- For the Community, educate and build acceptance of user-defined, standards-compliant, interoperable platforms and encourage the community to support, supply, procure and deploy them.
OmniAir services are being designed now to provide stakeholders an unbiased, independent, impartial and centralized product evaluation. The program tests for specific conformance, performance and functionality attributes based on standards. Components and systems passing a rigorous analysis are granted the license to bear the OmniAir mark. The objective is that OmniAir-certified devices from different manufacturers can interoperate in the same communication system.
Certification is an essential element of successful deployment. Certification provides assurance to users. OmniAir Certification will deliver that assurance because its certification program is developed by consensus by members - people and organizations that require and will benefit from it. With certification, any individual or organization will be able to manufacture, purchase, integrate, operate, maintain and upgrade interoperable devices from a number of manufacturers. The four primary benefits Certification offers to the DSRC community:
- Provides assurance to facility operators, systems integrators, device manufacturers, application developers, and users that compliant products meet industry-defined standards and requirements;
- Helps shorten time-to-market for new products by providing a common, independent evaluation, thereby relieving each operator or supplier of the need to design and conduct specific and expensive testing scenarios for each project where systems are being deployed;
- Promotes competition and enables a true multi-supplier/integrator market to emerge;
- Gives stakeholders an introduction to the value of standards-certification and conveys important information about the technology resulting in realistic expectations and increased market acceptance.
The best way is to join OmniAir and participate. Get involved in OmniAir-sponsored standards work, review OmniAir-developed specifications, programs and business documents, provide input, and essentially create the tools that will shape your future.