Edesix, the provider of body worn cameras, is showcasing how its fleet of body worn cameras are becoming increasingly important to the safety and development of first responders around the globe at the 2017 Emergency Services Show.
At the show, Edesix is demonstrating its newly launched VideoTag (VT-50), its smallest incident recorder to date, as well as the VideoBadges utilised by Police Services Northern Ireland, South Australian Police, Her Majesty’s Prison Services and West Midlands Fire Services.
VideoTag discreet incident recorder
Edesix’s VideoTag is its smallest, lightest and most discreet incident recorder to date and is proven to deter aggression, protect staff and provide secure evidential-quality footage on demand.
Designed for less frequent use than Edesix’s VideoBadge body worn cameras, the VideoTag is lightweight, unobtrusive, cost-effective and easy to use. It requires no extra training, streams live footage, and has a standby battery-life of up to three months meaning users don’t need to worry about charging the device often. The VideoTag also provides complementary audio and video capture of incidents when utilised as part of a larger body worn camera and CCTV security function.
Police body worn cameras
Police on the front line have found that body worn video helps prevent both criminal and anti-social behaviour when out on patrol. Additionally, the captured footage not only provides greater transparency of the interactions with the public, but can also significantly increase early guilty pleas when used in a prosecution.
Edesix’s VideoBadges are currently utilised by Police Forces around the globe, including Police Services Northern Ireland, Police Scotland and South Australian Police.
Superintendent David Moore, from PSNI, where over 400 VideoBadges have now been deployed, commented: “Video evidence puts the victims of crime first. The pilot of this technology in Foyle district evidenced how Body Worn Video has the potential to improve the quality of evidence provided by Police officers and thereby increase the number of offenders brought to justice.”
Police on the front line have found |
Cameras for prison officers
Edesix is the preferred supplier for the UK Prison Service nationally. However, it is the sophisticated solution provided by the company, inclusive of bespoke hardware and software, which benefits the service most.
The hardware and infrastructure provided by Edesix ensures efficient workflow and ease of use for prison officers, and those managing the data. Using a combination of DockControllers (a device which allows up to 84 VideoBadges to be connected, assigned and managed from one instance of VideoManager) and MicroServers for data storage; large estates of cameras can be simply rolled-out and centrally managed.
Although complex in its design, the Edesix solution ensures that the day to day operation of prison-wide BWCs is simple to manage, unobtrusive for staff, and easily scaled upon demand. The cameras worn by prison officers are capable of recording up to eight hours of footage including audio, and come with flexible mounting options for uniforms. The entire solution is secure and encrypted, meaning that even in the worst circumstance, a lost or stolen camera’s footage cannot be viewed, deleted or shared.
WiFi enabled cameras for fire services
In 2016 Edesix became one of the first BWC providers to supply fire services in the UK. After a successful trial at ten Birmingham fire stations in 2016, Edesix currently supplies fire-fighters in the West Midlands with its VB-300 series of Body Worn Cameras - its first generation of WiFi enabled VideoBadges.
West Midlands Fire Services are also trialling Edesix’s X-100 side-mountable tactical head cameras, which are connected to the VB-300. The X-100 offers automatic rotation of footage, meaning it can be worn on either side of the head without requiring user configuration to rotate footage. It is connected to a VB-300 with a convenient two-part cable for easy removal, which allows a VB-300 to be situated under a uniform or on a belt pocket.
Watch Commanders attending call outs throughout the West Midlands are now equipped with VideoBadges to help share best practice techniques and complement firefighter training, ultimately improving the service’s operations well into the future.
