VPN/Mobile Computing App Example for inspectors

Here is an app that is from the Mesquite, NV Police department website utilizing VPN, GPS, and mobile computers deployed in concert. Something like this could be prototyped for our inspectors in AFO or elsewhere.

THE TECHNOLOGY
Panasonic CF-28 Laptop
Panasonic PDRC Remote Display
Sierra MP775 EDGE Modem
Ledco Trunk Mount Laptop Dock
Netmotion Wireless VPN
Trimble GPS


Today's Police Departments require not only the latest technology, but also the most reliable. Officers cannot afford to go onto the streets without being armed with information. The MPD Intranet helped to fill this gap. With over 70 databases accessible on the Police intranet at their desk or in their car, a simple interface was required to manage all of this data and not get lost in this "sea of information".

The Process

The home page of the MPD intranet displays the most relevant information for the officers shifts. Items include the most recent stolen vehicles, BOLO's (Be on the lookout) with photos, weather maps and much more.

The tools that are available to officers are very specialized for each task. One such tool is the mugshot system. Officers in the field have access to over 50,000 mugshots via the intranet in their cars and this tool has identified many suspects without having to return to the station to retrieve this information.

With the amount of data available to the police officers, the Super Query tool was developed to help process all of the information in a reasonable amount of time. The Super Query can search through over five hundred thousand records in a matter of seconds. Just a few of the options that can be searched include addresses, partial names, partial license plates, vehicle makes and colors.

A new technology that was developed by Google and further developed for the MPD Intranet is Google maps. The data on the maps is automatically populated by reading the crime data from existing databases eliminating the need for a person to manually create the maps. Visual maps of crimes and sex offenders are easier to process than a plain text list. These maps can pinpoint crimes, sex offenders and problems areas. Several other departments outside the Police Department are now utilizing this technology. Similar applications from commercial vendors are priced over $80,000.00. Think of how you can use this open source technology for free.

Numerous other databases have helped the Police Department save money and allocate resources elsewhere. All of the ideas for the MPD Intranet come from the people that use it daily and this has enabled it to grow tremendously since its inception several years ago.

The Hardware

The Panasonic CF-28 laptop could be considered the Abrams Battle Tank of the laptop world. This unit meets Military Specifications for heat, vibration and durability. The unit is encased in a Magnesium alloy housing and is completely moisture and dust resistant. The hard drive is encased in a gel packed case to help dampen any vibrations that would destroy a normal hard drive and its data.

While the laptop spends 100% of its time in the trunk of the police car, a device called a PDRC sits up front with the officer. The PDRC is a ruggedized display screen and is touch screen enabled so that officer can request information on the computer by simply touching items on the screen. The officer also has a regular keyboard that is used when they need to enter or request specific data. The computer also has built-in wireless LAN so that the officers can receive large software or map updates when they're near a WIFI hotspot at a city facility.

The communications hardware for getting all of the data to and from the police vehicles is the Sierra Wireless MP775. This modem is also ruggedized and is designed for the harshest environments. This modem can transmit data at speeds over 150kbps and was designed for wide area mobile communications. This modem also helps address officer safety by transmitting GPS coordinates back to the Police Dispatch center. Dispatchers can easily see where any patrol car or fire apparatus is at by looking at the GPS mapping screen on their dispatch console.