The police cars of the not-so-distant future will do a whole lot more than just carting officers to where they need to go. These cars will be number-reading, data-gathering, computer-powered machines.
The New York Police Department (NYPD) is well on its way to making this futuristic notion into a reality, according to a report published online Thursday by the Wall Street Journal. The report describes a "smart car" prototype the department has been testing for the past year as a part of a wider initiative to leverage technology for crime fighting.
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"If you look in the trunk of a police car, we have a lot of things that aren't smart, but they are necessary," NYPD Deputy Inspector Brandon del Pozo told the Journal. "We have a shield, we have a fire extinguisher … we have a very powerful flashlight, we have a first aid kit. So, the thought is always, what can cops bring with them to the scene that can increase their effectiveness."
Del Pozo is in charge of taking action on an NYPD technology initiative called NYPD2020, and the new smart car is one of "dozens" of projects the agency is developing through the initiative, the Journal reports.
Detailing the NYPD's "smart" patrol car prototype in this @WSJGraphics chart: http://t.co/FWv2M0Jpbn pic.twitter.com/SNsqaSxjgf
— WSJ Greater New York (@WSJNY) December 26, 2013
The high-tech cruiser is said to have an infrared monitor on the trunk that can automatically scan license plate numbers and run them through crime databases to determine if a car was stolen or if the driver has outstanding infractions. Even if the license plate doesn't get a hit in the database, the number is stored for an indefinite period in case it might be useful in future criminal investigations, del Pozo said.
Also on the rear of the car is a radiation detector that relays data about air contaminants to an NYPD command center. A surveillance camera on the car's dashboard can send live video to NYPD headquarters.
Del Pozo told the Journal future models may also include fingerprint scanners and facial recognition technology.
The current prototype, which operates from the city's 84th Precinct in Brooklyn Heights, has been on the road for a year. It's not currently clear if and how soon the department will employ these technologies on a larger scale, but "NYPD says it is the cruiser of the very near future," according to the Journal.
When Bill de Blasio takes over for Michael Bloomberg as mayor of NYC on Jan. 1, so too will the police commissioner change from Raymond Kelly to William Bratton, who previously served as NYC police commissioner from 1994 to 1996 under Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
A spokesperson for Bratton told the Journal that he had not yet seen the NYPD2020 report and thus could not comment on the smart car or other tech projects.
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