Cops stream live chopper pics over IP

Internet Protocol TV beams eye-in-the-sky footage to police command centre

Humberside Police is installing internet protocol television (IPTV) from Cisco, providing senior officers with access to live footage filmed from its helicopter.

Command centre staff at stations around the region will be able to watch events being filmed as they happen.

"This will be useful in our command centres where they control police officers on the ground," said network systems and security supervisor Mike Foster.

"The TV will give them an accurate picture of what is happening and a picture is worth a thousand words."

Foster, who came up with the idea of extending the microwave signals that previously transmitted images to one site to multiple locations, tested his theory with equipment borrowed from Cisco.

Satisfied that his idea worked, the force spent £15,000 on its own IPTV equipment.

Foster explained that other forces have already expressed interest in the solution.

"Each force is an individual and they have their own projects. Once this gets a bit more publicity it could really take off. I know of six other forces that are interested," he said.

Humberside has been using a Cisco-based network for the past couple of years, making installation of IPTV relatively simple. "The only question was: did we have enough bandwidth?" said Foster.

He expects the solution to be fully operational by the end of May, and envisages 10 stations being able to access footage in the long term.