Local Police in the Asturian town of Gijón in the north of Spain have a new weapon at their disposal to tackle motoring offences, a laser-guided detector that does far more than monitor speed.
The TruCAM unit has a built in camera and monitors the vehicle´s movements, recording speed but in addition it is capable to monitoring if the vehicle occupants are wearing seatbelts and if the driver is talking on a mobile phone.
Not only that, the infrared laser allows the unit to operate at night, without having to use a flash or other illumination, thus rendering its use impossible to spot.
The unit price starts at 18,000 euro, although optional extras such as the night-vision capabilities will increase the cost to 24,000 euro and up to 74,000 euro for it to be installed in a vehicle. The road safety implications far outweigh the costs however, given the number of drivers who are likely to be caught by the officers using the kit.
Unlike the Guardia Civil patrols who display signs indicating their presence when monitoring speed by the roadside, there is no requirement for the local police to do the same, although the police have said that they “will not hide” when using it, as the main objective is to increase safety and not only issue fines. The police have issued a list of locations where they will rotate the use of the device in order to show their transparency.
It is believed that this is the first time this sort of equipment has been used in Spain, although the success will be tested but both the infractions identified and the reduction in road related incidents.
You can read more about the device via their website here.
TruCAM Specifications
| Weight: | 3.3 lbs (1.50 kg) |
| Size: | 8.27 x 3.86 x 12.47 in (21.0 x 9.8 x 31.7 cm) |
| Construction: | Composite polycarbonate outer shell; Aluminum internal chassis |
| Maximum Range: | 4,000 ft (1,200 m) |
| Minimum Range: | |
| Speed Mode: | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Weather Mode: | 200 ft (60 m) |
| Continuous Mode: | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Range Accuracy: | ± 6 in (±15 cm) absolute accuracy |
| Display Resolution: | |
| Speed: | + 1 mph (+ 2 km/h) |
| Range: | ± 0.1 unit of measure |
| Speed Range: | ± 200 mph (± 320 km/h) |
| Speed Accuracy: | ± 1 mph (± 2 km/h) |
| Measurement Type: | Automode and single-shot |
| Power: | |
| Battery Pack: | Lithium-ion polymer rechargeable battery pack (up to 15 hours of cordless operation) |
| Battery Charger: | Automatic laser jammer avoidance |
| Main Charger: | 110 v ac to 240 v ac |
| Automobile Charger: | 11 v dc to 16 v dc |
| Communication: | RS232, serial communications port RS485, nighttime flash signal, USB 2.0, image data transfer, touch-panel input |
| Measurement Time: | 0.33 second |
| Environment: | NEMA 4/IP55 water- and dust-Resistant |
| Temperature Range: | 14° F to 140° F (-10° C to +60° C) |
| Eye Safety: | FDA Class 1 (CFR 21) IEC 60825-1 |
| Laser Wavelength: | 905 nanometers nominal |
| Beam Divergence: | 2.5 milliradians nominal |
| Hardware: | |
| Capture Data Storage: | Removable SD card (supports up to 2 GB and larger; SD and SDHC formats) |
| Display: | 2.7 in (6.9 cm), 240 x 320 pixel, color, 18 bits per pixel (bpp) |
| Camera Lens: | 3.1 megapixel (2048 x 1536) 75 mm |
| GPS Receiver: | 20 channels |
| Firmware: | |
| Operating System: | Linux based |
| Anti-Jam: | Automatic laser jammer avoidance |
| Video Size: | Standard format: 240 x 180 pixels, Extended format: 480 x 360 pixels |
| Video Modes: | LP (long play), EP (extended play) |
| Still Image Sizes: | Selectable (1920 x 1440 pixels or 1440 x 1080 pixels) |
| Data Encryption: | AES-128, U.S. Federal Information Processing Standards, Advanced Encryption, Standard 128 bit |
NOTE: All specifications are subject to change without notice. (Rev. 9.12)
