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kaleidoscope
2002
University Police
jump into new technology
By Ryan Ritchie
On-line Forty-Niner
A new communications
console at the University Police Department at Cal State Long
Beach is making life a bit tougher for criminals on campus.
The console is a central point where the numerous systems
the department uses come together. Now, the dispatch and records
management systems, business phones, blue light emergency
phones, 911 phone lines and various radio systems all function
under one operation. The department also now has the ability
to send calls to the computer screens in patrol cars, along
with sending officers instant messages. The console includes
a screen, called the Automatic Vehicle Location, which allows
the people in the office to find each patrol car in real time.
One major advantage of the new console is the front end of
the radio system is all software. With the old equipment,
the department would have to buy a module that fit into each
operator position to add a radio channel. An engineer would
have to make a copy of the chip and program whatever options
the department wanted into that chip. The department can now
add and remove channels without relying on others.
The equipment was updated because the old unit was failing
and the manufacturer was no longer issuing parts for it, said
Gregory Parcal, communications supervisor for the University
Police Department.
"The old equipment was set up for the old way of doing
business," Parcal said. "As technology improved
and we got more automated, we had to kind of retrofit things
back into it to a physical structure that really wasn't set
up the high level of automation that we currently have."
The new console gives the department new features and additional
capabilities that were not available with the old system.
Parcal said the new third radio position helps the officers
know who is speaking when the radio transmits, a feature not
included in the old console.
The new equipment not only makes catching law breakers easier
for the police, it also makes the dispatcher job much more
painless.
"With the old furniture, we had the keyboard and the
monitors at a level that was kind of equally uncomfortable
for everybody," Parcal said. "With this new setup,
both the keyboard surface and the monitor surface are infinitely
adjustable from about 28 inches up to about 46 (inches)."
Dispatchers now have one headset for the 20 incoming phone
lines and one keyboard for the three different computers attached
to the console. This contributes to a better work experience
for the dispatchers.
Wayne Joyner, a dispatcher with the department, has no complaints
about the new console.
"It's a little more user-friendly," Joyner said.
"We can actually do more with less equipment because
of the ability of the equipment to more than one function."
As with any new computerized programs, the longevity and lifespan
of the new console is uncertain. Parcal said the equipment
is under warranty for seven years and should hopefully last
that long.
"I would anticipate that the life of this will to the
extent," Parcal said, "but I don't know what new
technology is coming out."
This article was originally published in the Feb. 18 issue
of the Forty-Niner.
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