Content area
Full Text
- LONGMONT - When police, firefighters and first responders need to download critical information in the field, they need a wireless system that is affordable and secure.
To answer that need Longmont-based Fidelity Comtech Inc. developed a system known as the Phocus Array System for public-safety departments and the military.
Rick Prouty, vice president of business development for Fidelity Comtech, said the system sends a signal farther, which reduces the number of access points needed to cover a geographical area. The technology automatically controls the signal beam and rapidly repoints it to the intended recipient when necessary.
The 9-pound system, which includes an antenna, is installed high up on outdoor poles. Prouty said the system is inconspicuous and doesn't stand out like a cellphone tower.
Joe Carey, president of Fidelity Comtech, said many police departments today pay cellphone companies to download emergency data. He said it would be more cost-effective for the municipality to build its own wireless system for its police and fire departments.
Prouty said police officers often download information from other law enforcement databases, while firefighters download information on a building that is on fire. Firefighters using Fidelity Comtech's system also could set up a network of cameras around the fire.