Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Big Brother -- real time monitoring of gunshots

Excerpts from a funding report:
When a gun goes off, wireless sensors spread throughout a neighborhood register the instant the sound wave reaches them, using GPS to pinpoint the moment to within 20 nanoseconds. The sensors then transmit the timing data to a server within the police department’s control. This server makes the calculations necessary to triangulate the source of the sound and, within 5-10 seconds of the shot being fired, specially-equipped police cars on patrol get both the precise origin of the shot and a playback of its audio signature, allowing the officers to determine how many shots were fired and make a tactical decision from there.

The technology ... is deployed in neighborhoods throughout 15 American cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, Oakland, and DC.

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