Rafe Needleman writes about Good Surveillance :: AO and a company that can spot a shot with great precision:
ShotSpotter works by triangulating the sound of gunshots using a network of fixed microphones. This audio information is fed to a computer system that is able to differentiate between gunshots, firecrackers, car backfires, and other sounds with excellent accuracy, CEO James Beldock told me. For a single-gunshot incident, ShotSpotter's location accuracy is about twenty feet. But when more than one gunshot is fired, the system is able to cancel out the effects of wind and weather (which can't be determined in a single-shot scenario). In these instances, the system can determine the location of the gunshots to a precision measured in inches.
Law enforcement not always convinced:
I read that some police districts are wary of the technology because it is both accurate and prolific; it sends the cops out to investigate more gunshots than the current citizen-based reporting system does. And, of course, by the time police arrive on scene, the shooters are almost always gone.
Don't they couple these with camera systems that zoom in on the gunner to take a nice little mug shot? The arriving police would then already know whom to look for and what kind of gun they used.
Sensor Networks is also part of the Physical Space Theme of AC2004. SAP is the leader in the area of RFID. And Sensor Networks is a natural evolution from the dump tags that get deployed today. Senior SAP Researcher Thomas Odenwald will introduce his Sensor Networks results and lookout on the Pervasive Computing panel on Saturday of the conference. See you there.
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