Device, system and method for dynamic channel assignment

A method comprising:

• receiving, at a controller of a communication device, via a communications interface of the communication device, an incident location, the communications interface configured to communicate with a plurality of mobile radios using predefined wireless channels associated with first responders, each of the plurality of mobile radios associated with respective first responders;
• selecting, at the controller, at least one assigned mobile radio associated with a respective first responder, from the plurality of mobile radios, to respond to the incident location;
• receiving, at the controller, from at least one of the plurality of mobile radios, via the communications interface, one or more lists of unusable wireless channels at respective locations as determined by the at least one of the plurality of mobile radios at the respective locations, the unusable wireless channels selected from the predefined wireless channels associated with the first responders, wherein an unusable wireless channel comprises a wireless channel of the predefined wireless channels, which causes problems when a mobile radio responding to an incident at the incident location attempts to communicate using the wireless channel, and
• wherein at least one list of the unusable channels, of the one or more lists of the unusable channels received from at least one of the plurality of mobile radios, includes an indication of priority;
• in response to receiving the indication of priority included in the at least one list of the unusable channels:
• selecting, at the controller, at least one assigned wireless channel from the predefined wireless channels excluding the unusable wireless channels in a geographic region around the incident location as determined from the one or more lists;
• and
• controlling, using the controller, the at least one assigned mobile radio to communicate using the at least one assigned wireless channel in the geographic region, wherein the one or more lists indicative of the unusable wireless channels at the respective locations include respective times at which a given wireless channel was unusable, the controller configured to:
• add or remove the indication of the unusable wireless channel from a master list, in association with a given location, when the respective location is within a threshold distance of a given location stored in the master list;
• and
• select the at least one assigned wireless channel from the predefined channels excluding the unusable wireless channels in the geographic region and according to a current time.

A communication system, comprising:

• a plurality of mobile radios associated with respective first responders:
• and
• a base station, the base station assigning one or more wireless channels associated with first responders, for use by one or more of the plurality of mobile radios in a geographic region around an incident location using one or more lists of unusable wireless channels in the geographic region, wherein an unusable wireless channel comprises a wireless channel, associated with the first responders, which causes problems when a mobile radio responding to an incident at the incident location attempts to communicate using the wireless channel, the one or more lists of the unusable channels received from the plurality of mobile radios, the unusable wireless channels determined by the at least one of the plurality of mobile radios in the geographic region,
• wherein at least one list of the unusable channels, of the one or more lists of the unusable channels, received at the base station includes an indication of priority, the one or more wireless channels assigned for use excluding the unusable wireless channels in the geographic region, the one or more wireless channels assigned by the base station in response to receiving the indication of priority in the at least one list,
• wherein the one or more lists indicative of the unusable wireless channels at the respective locations include respective times at which a given wireless channel was unusable, the base station configured to:
• add or remove the indication of the unusable wireless channel from a master list, in association with a given location, when the respective location is within a threshold distance of a given location stored in the master list;
• and
• select the at least one assigned wireless channel from the predefined channels excluding the unusable wireless channels in the geographic region and according to a current time.