ISTI offers a new detection system to the facility security and safety industry to quickly neutralize an active shooter and more quickly secure and protect occupants. When confronted with an active shooter situation first responders and safety personnel face immediate tactical disadvantages. Beyond rushing towards ensuing chaos, 9-1-1 calls and eye witness reports are often disjointed, inaccurate, and lack precise location information required to make real time responsive decisions as they arrive on scene. Likewise within the building, the crisis triggers panic and chaotic scrambles towards exits and assumed safe havens. However unorganized and uniformed retreats may actually be leading evacuees back into harm’s way.
ISTI’s innovations for indoor gunshot location bring the capabilities needed to detect the incident in real time and orient both first responders and building occupants with accurate, life-saving details. Instead of receiving sparse information from 9-1-1 dispatch reporting an armed suspect near an interior reference point that means little to someone unfamiliar with the building (i.e. “he’s near the lunchroom”), first responder’s now can receive real time information on where in the building the last shot occurred spatially referenced to the actual building floor plan. Similarly, our automated localization and reporting application quickly provides occupants with incident alerts buying more time to correctly shelter in place or move towards safe exit away from the shooter’s location.
System Features
The building is monitored by a network of low profile, embedded acoustic sensors. Each sensor is equipped with a powerful DSP processor that intelligently monitors the environment weapons discharge acoustics. Each pod communicates in the detection network over standard wired Ethernet. Installation is fast and easy requiring only a 4-hole mounting bracket and the Ethernet cable when the power-over-Ethernet (PoE) option is utilized. The processor hardware is hardened against misuse and hacking that would transform the sensor into an eavesdropping device. The entire package is approximately the same size and cost as an industrial smoke detector and features unobtrusive enclosure styling that can be supplied in several architectural colors.
The digital signal processor embedded in each gunshot sensor pod uses custom DSP logic originally developed for a military application. After initial detection, a high speed algorithm is used to verify that the detected acoustics match weapons discharge and are novel from typical background noises. With this approach, ISTI’s detection system is capable of eliminating false alarms with over 99% probability. From initial detection to alerting the end-user, each step of the process is completely automated and requires no human interaction.
The system is used and managed using a responsive web-application user interface. After incident detection, the condition alert appears on the application within 5 seconds. At the same time, automatic paging to 9-1-1 is started. The native web application can be launched from within a web browser. Remote client versions of the app can be installed on any Android or iOS based mobile device.
The application provides several different capabilities depending on the user signed in. Students and staff can install the app on their smartphones in order to get real time emergency alerts and information on where the incident occurred within the building. Administrative staff can additionally access other modes for viewing system health, sensor status, and setting the installation location of sensors over the building floor plan.
The sensor network’s physical installation is contextualized into your exact setup through the user interface app package. From the app, your facility’s floor plans are loaded into the system as image files. Once uploaded, the floor plan becomes a visual reference for placing the sensors at their installed location using an intuitive drag-and-drop process.
From the pod firmware to the base station services, the infrastructure is designed with robustness as a critical requirement. Our firmware is application specific and eliminates security concerns by including no additional services and communication backdoors. The implemented communications protocols are limited in function only to reporting and management of the sensor pod network.
The network is easily grown and managed with several built-in automation features. If a new sensor is added to the network, the base station control software automatically detect the presence of the sensor and programs its detector settings to match the configuration of other sensors already installed in the network. Additionally system alerts can be configured from the UI to automatically notify staff if any pod unexpectedly goes offline.
Other than the sensor pods themselves, ISTI’s solution does not require specialized network or base station hardware. Operators need not be concerned with keeping expensive, customized equipment on hand as backups for faulty network hardware.
Key Advantages
Actionable Situational Awareness:
ISTI’s gunshot detection and localization systems can be integrated to respond to incidents occurring both indoors and outside. Our systems can be used to provide students, staff, and first responders with information relevant to their unique roles in ensuring safety and neutralizing threats.
Robust against False Alarms:
ISTI understands the risk of yelling “fire” in a crowded theater. Our technology is intentionally designed to eliminate false alarms by using a multi-layer detection and verification approach.
Economically Feasible:
Each gunshot sensor pod costs less than $250 and can be installed in both new and existing construction will minimal labor. It is really less complicated than installing new light circuit!
Always Vigilant:
ISTI’s solution is unique in that it provides automatic detection, verification, system monitoring, and reporting. Emergency alerts and 9-1-1 reporting can be completed without any human interaction.
