Have you ever watched a video shot from the in-car camera of a police car and wondered why the quality wasn’t quite as good as the dashcam you picked up off Amazon for under a hundred dollars? Well, the LAPD seems to think there was room for improvement, especially as their fleet’s cameras are based on technology that’s over a decade old. The solution is a system of connected cameras in each patrol car, able to upload footage in real-time.
It may not be as exciting an announcement as the NYPD’s GPS trackers that can be shot out of a modified AR-15, but improving camera quality could help those reviewing details and paint a clearer version of events in court.
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Specifics of the new cameras, such as resolution, weren’t made clear, but the cameras have been described as “high resolution.” Each patrol car will have a dash cam up front pointed out of the windscreen, with a wide three-lane field of view. An additional interior camera will be fitted in the cabin, pointed at the backseat. This camera can capture a “knee-to-head occupant view” and features enhanced night view capabilities with infrared. The forward-facing dash cam is automatically activated when an officer switches their light bar on.
The camera system is the Fleet 3 from Axon, a company that already has a contract with the LAPD for its Body 3 body cameras and Taser devices. Although not mentioned in the official release from the LAPD, according to Axon’s website, the Fleet 3 can also act as an Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) with AI that are able to read eight times more number plates than other units. In addition, the data can be monitored via a central network. Whether that aspect is an element of the LAPD system at present remains to be seen.
What we do know, though, is that the new camera system has other neat tricks. For instance, the Fleet 3 can pair with officer’s Axon bodycams to capture sound, eliminating the need for separate mics that could get dislodged in altercations. And, with the installation of new routers from Cradlepoint, videos from the Fleet 3 and the bodycams can be instantly uploaded to the system’s cloud for review by commanders. The routers use both FirstNet and Verizon Wireless networks to ensure connectivity.