• Local and wide area radar data networks.
• Primary radar video interfacing, data compression and networking.
• SSR interfacing, format conversion and networking.

Where several neighbouring ATC units each have their own primary radar, it is often useful to exchange this data, so that co-ordination, safety and low level coverage are enhanced. In every RDS 1600 RDP, three separate software tasks are installed:

• Primary radar data server, which performs scan conversion and data compression.
• Secondary radar data server.
• Display task.

All communications within each RDP (i.e. between these tasks) uses TCP/IP network protocols. The interesting consequence of this method is that the display task and the radar data server tasks can be remote from one another, by simply using their network protocols over: an ISDN line, a fibre optic WAN (as at East Midlands and Liverpool), or a dedicated LAN extender (UHF or FO). This capability is useful to permit:

• Displays to be distributed amongst separate buildings.
• Neighbouring airfields to swap their primary radar data and maintain their ATC services when either radar is offline.
• To improve co-ordination between units by each having access to a common air picture.
• To provide ATC services at airfields which do not have their own radar
• To economically replace old cross site links.
• Provide wide area coverage.