Digital Eyes

The latest generation of in-car video systems offers features that could only be dreamed of in analog systems.

Next to concealable soft body armor few advances in technology have saved more American law enforcement officers than the development of in-car video systems.

In-car video systems have justified uses of force, exonerated officers accused of abuse, and incriminated motorists who were culpable of offenses. In-car video systems have even saved officers’ lives by providing law enforcement with numerous vivid examples of what not to do at a traffic stop that can be used for training.

With each succeeding generation of cameras, improvements have been made in clarity, recording time, storage, and transfer capabilities. Physically, they are now designed to be less obtrusive to the officers working in the cars. Some agencies, such as the Los Angeles Police Department, even have cameras mounted so as to document what happens in the rear of the patrol vehicle.

But by far the greatest technological innovation in the short history of in-car video has been the advent of digital recording systems. Whether they capture video on DVD discs, hard drive, or flash memory card, digital systems offer much greater resolution and easier and less expensive evidence storage than earlier analog VHS machines. They also capture the prelude to incidents by constantly recording video on a loop.

The following is a quick look at some of the finest digital in-car video systems on the market and why certain agencies selected them for their vehicles.

Data 911
The word “system” is really the only way to describe Data 911‘s digital video product. It’s a module in a system that includes a ruggedized computer, computer-aided dispatch software, automated field reporting, and other tools. You can even add automated license plate recognition as an option.

The Mobile Digital Video (MDV) system is Data 911’s complete mobile video capture solution designed for the specific challenges within public safety environments. The system employs a web-based, user friendly software interface supported by comprehensive server side software.

One of the coolest things about Data 911 mobile video equipment is that it can stream live video of an incident back to a watch commander or supervisor. The MPEG-4 or H.264 compression video can be streamed to a remote viewer and recorded simultaneously. Another great feature is the integrated mapping. The VidNet back-end Web-based system utilizes your agency’s GIS maps to provide real-time vehicle information.

User Experience: The Data 911 video capture system is in operation with the Pacifica (Calif.) Police Department. Four years ago the agency went from VHS to an all digital system.

“All the data now sits on a server, and it’s all electronic,” says Eric Ruchames, the Pacifica PD’s project manager. “Anyone with proper authority can now view the videos from any workstation in the building.”

Pacifica PD’s digital video is automatically downloaded when the patrol vehicle returns to the station at the end of each shift. Once in the server, the data is extremely secure. And that’s one of the many things that Pacifica PD likes about the system.

“As system administrator, you can set privileges for watching and exporting the videos,” says Ruchames, a retired watch commander. “We don’t let our officers view any videos other than their own, and no one can make copies other than the system administrator. That way, they won’t show up on TV or YouTube.”

Digital Ally
The advanced design of Digital Ally‘s DVM-500 system maximizes valuable real estate within the patrol car by integrating the entire video system into a replacement rearview mirror.

The 3.5-inch color video monitor is located behind a one-way mirror so that it’s invisible when not in use. Buttons located around the margin of the mirror control the camera, microphone, speaker, and recording features. A GPS marking feature pinpoints the cruiser’s location at the time of the incident being recorded. The system includes both a forward-mounted camera and a covert rear seat camera with infrared LEDs to capture sufficient video evidence to prosecute criminals.

User Experience: The West Virginia State Police have used the Digital Ally DVM-500 in their patrol cars for two-and-a-half years. Cpl. Jerald Dornburg cited price and the DVD recording capability as the two main reasons the department chose Digital Ally over other systems that utilize hard drives or servers.

With 62 offices dispersed throughout the state, the ability for individual supervisors to replace the flash card, review the footage, and burn and save DVDs for evidentiary use is an important factor for this department. They also found the units to be easy to install, taking less than 30 minutes per unit.

Federal Signal
The new VelocityCAM in-car data and video system from Federal Signal is designed to be extremely flexible. Users can choose to download video wirelessly, record it to removable memory, or burn it to CD or DVD.

VelocityCAM’s hardware package includes a 36x and 432x digital zoom front camera that can capture images in extremely low light and an infrared camera for capturing video in total darkness. The system’s 2.4GHz wireless microphone includes a compact transmitter with a 49-inch lapel mic and a 16-foot internal mic for capturing sound from the back seat. Recording can be initiated by a variety of triggers, including radar gun readings.

Features of the VelocityCam system include remote access to the car cameras and real-time fleet tracking. A GPS camera can be used to pinpoint the location where a suspect has thrown contents from his or her car.

User Experience: VelocityCAM is in initial testing by a number of agencies.

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