CAD

The rapid development of computer technology, which occurs at an exponentially faster pace with each passing year, is behind the dominance of Computer-Aided Dispatch. Where once such networks, coupled with wireless communications technology (all of which started with the first cell phones in the 1970s), could do relatively little, they are now expected to do everything.  We don’t just rely on them; we take them for granted. This reliance on modern computer technology, modern networking, and [...]

As we explore the history of Computer-Aided Dispatch, it’s worth considering the development of computers themselves. Once behemoths that did little but took up entire rooms, modern computers changed with the advent of the modern microcomputer in the 1970s. As personal computers began to find their way into the homes of everyday people, computers became more and more important to the business and municipal world. They also became vital to first response. Computers were first used [...]

A lot has changed in the world of public safety and emergency response in the last several decades. The pace of that change has increased with each successive year, too. Technology, relatively slow to innovate in the 1960s and 1970s, saw the birth of several devices whose presence would start to be felt in every aspect of the modern world. The cell phone and the microcomputer, together, would change modern society as we know it, just [...]

Every year, Americans dial 911 about 240 million times. That’s one call for every 1.4 people. The sheer volume of calls isn’t the biggest challenge (although having enough personnel at 911 call centers is one of the issues faced by public safety professionals). Caliber Public Safety is proud to produce Computer-Aided Dispatch software (among many other pieces of software) that helps first responders and emergency personnel do their jobs. A CAD software system does not simply [...]

Previously we covered the possibility that AI could be used to augment the fielding and processing of first-response and emergency calls, such as to 911 centers running computer-aided dispatch. Interestingly, this was the topic of a recent article by Chris Bibey that appeared in Yahoo Finance. It was titled, “From January 6th Rioters To Black Lives Matter Protests, Artificial Intelligence Is Becoming An Integral Part Of Law Enforcement.” “Artificial intelligence (AI) technology continues to make its [...]

Previously in these virtual pages we have discussed the future of computer-aided dispatch or, more accurately, the past predictions where the future of computer-aided dispatch is concerned. Computer-aided dispatch (CAD) software, together with records management systems like Caliber Public Safety’s Online RMS, has become an integral part of law enforcement, emergency response, and other first-response activities in the modern landscape. As technology and software continue to advance (a progression whose leading-edge Caliber and its personnel are [...]

Five years ago, EMS1 published a piece about the future of computer-aided dispatch. In it, contributor Megan Wells highlighted multiple advances in “next generation” technology that would inform the direction and growth of ever-more critical computer-aided dispatch systems and software. Now, five years later, it’s interesting to look at those predictions and compare them to the current (and leading edge) technology landscape. Among Wells’ predictions for technology that will affect the future of computer-aided dispatch are [...]

A tour of a typical 911 center, the type of site that boasts a 911 CAD system like the ones Caliber Public Safety offers, will include a few things you’d expect. There are large synchronized time displays, which represent network-synchronized time across the 911 call center’s network. There are workstations at which call-takers and dispatchers do their work. There are support personnel in their various offices. And there will usually be a small, dimly lighted room. [...]