By Alice Lipowicz
Washington Technology
June 23, 2006


Wireless equipment provider Ericsson Inc.’s proposal for the massive
Secure Border Initiative Network includes neither unmanned aerial
vehicles nor facial recognition software, a senior Ericsson official
told Washington Technology.

“UAVs are not 24/7/365. They are a gap filler,” said Douglas Smith,
executive vice president for government solutions.

Ericsson is promoting its experience operating a wireless sensor and
camera surveillance system along the 200 kilometer border of Norway
and Russia since 2003.

For SBI-Net, the Ericsson team intends to build a wireless broadband
network along the U.S. borders. The network will be able to carry
live video feeds, and will be used to talk and share data, Smith
said. Ericsson will leverage its ability to quickly deploy the
towers, cables and other infrastructure needed to create commercial
cellular phone networks in the project.

Most details are under wraps, but Ericsson said its proposal
includes video analytics, which use algorithms to help identify
unusual events occurring in real time, and integrates the
surveillance system with border control command and control centers
and operational units.

The Homeland Security Department has received proposals from five
federal contracting teams vying for the anticipated $2 billion
contract to construct a comprehensive camera and sensor surveillance
and communication system along the U.S. borders.

Ericsson, of Plano, Texas, has teamed with Computer Sciences Corp.
of El Segundo, Calif. and other to compete against four, formidable
teams led by Boeing Co., Lockheed-Martin Corp., Northrop Grumman
Corp. and Raytheon Co.

The five teams submitted proposals May 30. The department will hold
meetings with each of the bidders this summer, and an award is
expected in September.

“We have a proven system that has the ability to be deployed
rapidly,” said Ben Gianni, vice president of homeland security for
Computer Sciences.

While there has been speculation about the possibility of UAVs and
facial recognition software being included, Ericsson and Computer
Sciences officials said that their SBI-Net proposal includes
neither. Facial recognition software for identifying an individual
in a group or from a distance is considered an evolving technology
that is not widely used in major applications.

In addition, Ericsson already has arranged to lease radio spectrum
along the U.S. borders to be used in SBI-Net. It is commercial
spectrum that is not being used, and will be available for SBI-Net
border control agents and other authorized users only, Smith said.