[Scan-DC] MPD "Mysterious" data noise

[Doug K.]

Shawn hath writ:

>From: Shawnerz <shawnerz@yahoo.com>
>To: scan-dc@mailman.qth.net
>Subject: Re: [Scan-DC] MPD "Mysterious" data noise
>Date: Fri, 12 Dec 2003 07:16:10 -0800 (PST)

(snip!)

>Mike: Thanks for pstong the detailed info on SCADA
>units.

Ditto from me, Mike!

>
>Everyone else:  After I sent the email, a couple of
>other possibilites hit me.  I'm sure it's data, but
>does anyone know if Mont. Co. uses AVL to track their
>police cars?  I believe AVL is Automatic Vehicle
>Location/Locator.  It is used so the dispatcher knows
>where the closest cruiser is located for an incident.
>If Mont. Co. uses AVL, how does that data get back to
>the dispatch center?

Since nobody else has said anything... I _think_... that MC is either using, 
or going to use, AVL or GPS (are they the same thing?) or something to track 
both "po-lice" and "far" "vee-hickles"... but not sure that it's 
online/working right yet!  (Based only on sorta secondhand stuff left over 
from when they cut over... a lot of the delay was with map grid overlays, is 
what I heard).

I've / I'd hoped they would have some kind of public tour or dedication or 
something of the new PSCC, but haven't heard anything... maybe Ed Tobias can 
wrangle us some information on that, hint, hint??  :)

The way the FD _used_ to get _status_ info back to "Hidquaters" (at one 
time) was via a separate (second) radio transmitter on each piece of 
apparatus, that was dedicated to data only.  It seemed to work maybe 66% of 
the time!  (Hope I'm not repeating something that was well known...)  I 
would guess that they're doing something similar now, right?  But no idea 
exactly how, and whether there's a separate transmitter again, or maybe a 
separate freq or talk group or whatever in the same radio... but I'm just 
speculating or WAGuessing!  Technology is passing me by - I don't really 
even understand trunking, let alone GPS or any of that other stuff - have 
some ideas, but I may be 'way off base - but hope this is useful!

Regards,

Doug

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