Hitech Systems Inc., whose SafetyNet computer-aided dispatch and records management systems power law enforcement, fire, and EMS agencies across North America, has partnered with Fusion Technology Group to create SafetyNet Mobile Insight, a complementary public-safety app for the Apple iPhone and iPad.
“SafetyNet Mobile Insight gives public-safety personnel powerful information wherever they are, exactly when they need it, while cost-effectively integrating with our existing dispatch systems,” said Henry Unger, Hitech’s president. “It puts powerful augmented-reality technologies immediately at the fingertips of every public-safety officer. ‘Touch and see’ allows them to simply point to a location and see its details and history.”
“Augmented reality” is the hottest trend in mobile computing, tying databases of information to a specific location to provide rich, immediate understanding about that place and its history. With SafetyNet Mobile Insight, an officer can point an iPhone’s camera at a location and see information about that site overlaid on top of the image on the iPhone’s screen. Wherever the camera’s viewfinder is pointed, the screen will be overlaid with icons indicating premises history, hazards, and other important information derived from the computer aided dispatch (CAD) system in operation at the 9-1-1 communication center.
SafetyNet Mobile Insight for iPhone and iPad gives public safety personnel who are away from in-vehicle mobile computers access to the full range of emergency dispatch center information, including maps, locations of other public safety personnel, “Be On the Lookout” warnings, hazard information, and more.
As an app, the program is a cost-effective solution that easily installs on Apple iOS-based devices through Apple’s private online process for enterprise systems. SafetyNet Mobile Insight integrates smoothly and securely with Hitech’s SafetyNet CAD systems in use by hundreds of public safety agencies in the U.S. and Mexico, including Mexico City’s, with 20 million people in its metropolitan area.
“Now the officer on foot, on horseback, on a bicycle or motorcycle, can have a powerful computer system at his belt,” Unger said. “That officer or firefighter can know what’s behind the door, accessing a deep history of the premises, including past emergency calls, and much else. It makes for smarter responses, safer officers, and a safer public.”
Given the strong positive response so far to SafetyNet Mobile Insight, Unger said Hitech is evaluating other mobile platforms for further expansion of the app.
