Computer-aided dispatch of police officers, firemen or ambulances to a location of crime, fire or medical emergency respectively Real-time enquiry into various criminal and offense data bases held in local, regional, state/provincial, national (NCIC in USA and CPIC in Canada) Links to emergency departments of local Hospitals  Employs  end-to-end systems using proprietary (some agencies have started using public shared CDPD networks recently) private radio network technology Stand-alone records management system (RMS) applications on mobile workstations that feeds into RMS servers in the county offices Electronic Citation (Ticketing) applications Accident Data Collection systems - where police can record relevant accident information on the scene of the accident

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Because of the nature of their work, public safety agencies such as police, fire safety and ambulance services were justified in employing radio networks and implementing mobile computing applications long before they could be cost-justified in the private sector. Vendors such as Motorola worked closely with public agencies and terminal manufacturers like MDI (which Motorola eventually acquired) to design customized end-to-end systems that used proprietary radio network technology for the following applications:

• CAD for police, fire and ambulance vehicles
• Queries to local police databases and state/provincial transport systems for vehicle and driver information;
• Records management (in some cases, on site, right in vehicles)

Early applications were implemented on mini-computers such as DEC VAX and mainframes such as IBM, UNISYS and Tandem. Hardware used in the vehicles was pre-PC, with limited intelligence and storage for store screen formats only. This was done to conserve radio network bandwidth, which was typically 2400 bps in the early ’80s.

Current Public Safety Application Trends

The following public safety trends are noteworthy :

• Microsoft Windows-based Notebooks Replacing MDT's - Public agencies are now piloting and building additional applications on Windows-based PC notebooks using open hardware platforms with far more power and flexibility. Stand-alone records management applications are being offered on these mobile workstations, as well. Some jurisdictions are experimenting with Electronic Citation (Ticketing) applications with on-the-spot payment by credit card and credit authorization links to banks. Several agencies have developed Accident Data Collection systems for recording collision information at the scene, thereby eliminating extensive paper trails.
• Notebooks in Cruisers but Smaller Handheld Devices For Foot Patrol Duty: Several public safety application vendors (XWave and Aether, in particular) have introduced a subset of the application functionality on handheld devices - Palm, Windows CE, Pocket PC, etc.
• Private and Public Shared Network Infrastructure: Because of economic constraints and the high costs of wireless networks, many agencies are consolidating their network requirements into common infrastructures for public safety applications. Also, they are experimenting with public packet switched networks like RAM, Motient, CDPD, etc. While response time is better with these public networks than on their older 2400 bps radio systems, network coverage is sometimes spotty because police and other public safety vehicles travel in rural areas as much as they do in urban areas. For example, a police agency in Groton, CT, has implemented their MDT application on a CDPD network and pen based computers. Groton police have found that CDPD costs for law enforcement applications are less than those of Motient or RAM Mobile Data.
• APCO & Tetra Standards: We would like to mention two emerging public safety network standards. The first standard, called APCO 25 (Associated Public Safety Communications Officials), has finally emerged after many years of work and is being promoted by police organizations throughout North America. Vendors like Motorola, E.F.Johnson and Ericsson have all announced product plans for the standard. The second standard, established in Europe, is called TETRA (Trans European Trunked Radio).

Major Application Package Providers for Public Safety 

• Aether Systems - formerly Cerulean 
• IBM
• Intergraph for CAD
• Paradigm4
• PRC - a custom software development and consulting company 
• Public Safety Management
• Motorola - Integrated Solutions Division of America - sold recently
• Unisys
• XPediter, San Diego 
• XWAVE of Ottawa

Ruggedized Device Requirements for Public Safety Application

Public safety application requires that the mobile devices be highly ruggedized that can withstand extreme temperatures ranges (hot and cold), be shock-resistant and be fall-proof from a distance of 3 to 4 feet on a concrete floor. Several vendors provide such ruggedized devices. Go to ruggedized end user device pages and vendors such as  Amrel and Xenocom.