• Network-based tracking, an alternative to GPS

    With improvements in network-based tracking police and first responders now have a reliable alternative to GPS tracking when searching for suspects or responding to 9-1-1 emergencies; using signals from cell phone towers to triangulate a phone’s location, network-based tracking has steadily improved and in some regards surpassed GPS-tracking; unlike GPS-tracking, network-based solutions cannot be jammed by a user and law enforcement officers do not need to carry any additional equipment; with network-based tracking police can find an individual’s position within fifty meters using data from cell phone towers; despite improvements in network-based tracking, the system is not perfect and GPS still has many strengths

  • Taser's AXON wearable camera system provides police concrete evidence

    Police officers in several states are testing out wearable cameras to help increase transparency and provide clear evidence in officer conduct cases; Taser Corp. has developed the Axon Personal Camera System for police officers; the Axon system consists of a small camera, capable of recording at thirty frames per second, that is attached to an officer’s ear; initially developed in 2008, police departments are only beginning to adopt the technology to help minimize complaints over officer conduct; departments that have tested the system find it particularly helpful in providing concrete evidence

  • Michelin developing puncture-proof tires

    Michelin, the French tire manufacturer, has invented the “Tweel” which could make vehicles impervious to punctures or even explosions; The Tweel is a combination tire and wheel that infuses the best elements of both designs; the Tweel has no pneumatic rubber shell leaving nothing to deflate or puncture; the Tweel resembles a wagon wheel with polyurethane spokes and rubber for the treads, but is not entirely rigid as the spokes are flexible; despite these improvements in design, Tweels have several flaws that have kept them from being widely implemented