Posted: 8/5/2008 11:57:19 AM EDT
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I am embarking on my own mission to learn about what is needed to put computers in patrol cars. My department is one of very, very, very, few in this area of the state that does not have any computers in the cars. I talk with officers in bordering departments and watch them do all kinds of useful stuff like run plates, message each other with information, add narratives to reports, etc etc, all while I am doing the same thing by calling it in over the radio or returning to the station to do a report. I have no idea what it takes to implement such a system, but I'm hoping I could get some information on infrastructure and needed equipment. My eventual goal is to put together a packet and present it to the Chief as a proposal. Obviously the first order of business is computers. I see Toughbooks are chosen a lot. What do you guys use? What about software? Does the software have to be tailored to a specific state, or does one type of MDT software work for all states? What about connectivity? Do you piggyback off of cell-phone networks? Do you use some kind of a WAN that connects back to the station? What about integration with a CAD system? I hear neighboring departments having a dispatcher send a photo or a file from the station directly to the computer of the patrol car. Any information you guys have would be much-appreciated. ETA: The department would only need 3 or so computers. This makes it harder to get a budget discount but maybe would make things cheaper in the long run. |
I think the main reason most larger departments use MDT's is because their dispatch uses some type of CAD system. If you only need 3 MDT's I would ask if the department can afford to upgrade to a cad based system and the implement the necessary infrastructure to support it and mdts. |
Not a true CAD system, no. We have computers in dispatch to log events and run license checks, etc, but the whole system isn't integrated into one cohesive unit. It's a mish-mash of separate systems. |
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Like has been said above. Start in dispatch. If you are not on a CAD system of some sort putting MDT's in the car would not be as productive as possible. This is a HUGE can of worms that you are about to enter. You need to decide what features you want. We write reports in the car, run NCIC, licenses, plates, etc, in the cars. We can silently talk to dispatch and to other officers, we also get silent dispatched to calls and can enter notes into our events. Some MDT's are set up to move photos and video files back and forth. Something to consider is this, do you have cameras in your cars? Is it VHS or digital? Do you want the ability to move your files silently and think about the possibility of integrating your camera system and a computer. AGAIN, big CAN OF WORMS. Don't think about what you need now too, think about what you will want in five years. Comms with your switch depends on what is available in your AO. Some depts. use cell technology (EVDO) or some use 802.11 or some use WIMAX, start researching what things in your area can carry the types of data you want to move. If its small packets of text slow is ok, if you want to move pictures or video better be thinking mobile broadband. As far as hardware goes, we use Toughbooks. Our CF-28's are now five years old and we have ten that get tossed back and forth between 25 guys. They get abused and take it. Their weaks spots are the keyboards and touch screens. Hard drives are bomb proof for the most part. Big bucks for Toughbooks though. We have pondered the idea of buying Dells POS's with three year warranty's and scrapping after three years. That decision is above my pay grade though. Good luck. |
| We used Toughbooks for a lota years, but we got them w/ grant money. The toughbooks are by far the very best, but they are VERY expensive. We put in a bid last year for 6 new TB's and they were gonna be right around $25k. We ended up with Dell ATG's on a 2 year upgradable lease, thet're not TB's but they're OK. We use the counties CAD system(InfoCop), its $350 a year per computer. We use Sprint unlimited aircards, I'm not exactly sure what the aircards run, I believe they're around $65 a month. You can figure on $200 a car for stands and mounts. I'm off til Thursday...i'll try to get you some exact numbers and possibly the number to the company we lease our computers from. |
My department is a very large department in our area with many smaller departments surrounding. Some smaller departments end up using our dispatch and MDT's.. using our software, hardware and techs... |
I do not know the costs involved, but this is what my old dept. did when then went to MDC's. Dispatch was through the county, but they got access to the Wisconsin State Patrol's system for the in car computers. |
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Laptop: Toughbook is my first choice. Keyboards are a bit stiff and you have to strike the keys solidly to get reliable copy. We who can type are not big fans of the keyboard... but it is weatherproof and spill proof. I highly recommend giving the option of an external keyboard for the lap. I believe Motorola has a similar model nowadays. I won't buy any Dell stuff for field use. Mount: You'll need a mounting base (attaches to seat floor frame) mounting tube (vertical tube that gives height), motion devices (allows tilt/swivel/extension) and a laptop dock (built-in power supply connector, lockable to secure the laptop, port replicator, etc.). I like the LEDCO products a lot, especially the airbag-compatible/locking Cobra Swing Arm. Some of the LEDCO docks have antennas built in--which is way better than running a long, lossy, contorted, thin coax to the trunk or roof. LEDCO also features a decent, locking dock. Do not buy the universal Jotto Desk swing arm setup. You will hate it if you share cars between shifts like we do. Knobs are a ROYAL PITA, pursuit driving can be dangerous as laptop flops around and airbag possibly deploys, forcing laptop/mount at a high rate of speed into your body. Jotto has a newer "Smooth Glide" computer mount that keeps the laptop centered on the transmission hump and at/below the dash. However, I do NOT like the use of simple cables to secure the laptop and lack of port replication that facilitates cable management. Software: Whatever you do, try to buy a single-source CAD/RMS/MDT package. It gives you a single source for tech support and they know how to make their stuff talk to each other. There's nothing like having to go between three vendors to try to get/keep your stuff up and running. Connectivity: We use AT&T cellular cards. Speed varies wildly, especially when vehicles are moving. Not possible to reliably run LPs. I still radio in when I'm alone, and it's safer, too, because you keep your eyes on the road and activity in the passenger cabin. |
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First off, not LE, I'm IT systems support for our county, including sheriff's office. While computers are the visible component of the system, they are the last thing to think about. To run plates and DLs (which is the first thing everyone wants) you need some sort of system to extend that data from your station to the car's. Usually, this is done as part of a CAD system. You may be able to extend the same programs that the dispatch center uses, (that are probably supplied by the state) to the cars, but some states won't allow it, or it may not work for technical reasons. A real cad system will tie into the state systems, and give one interface for everything. It will (usually) be "mobile centric" allowing use of touch screens, big fonts, night mode, etc. Connectivity: We get ours from verizon, about $60 per month per car. It sounds expensive, but it's vastly cheaper than trying to build and maintain some sort of network ourselves. We have had a couple cities try and build their own and they had complete disasters. Don't do this. For 3 cars, I think you would be much better off to try and hang off of a larger agency. We do that for several smaller ones, and it brings them tools that they could never afford on their own. They just have to pay for aircards, laptops, and a license of the CAD software. We've paid for servers, storage area networks, mobile VPN software, etc. We use: Spillman technologies CAD/RMS/JMS Netmotion wireless VPN software Panasonic Toughbooks and arbitrator cameras. |