ShotSpotter’s Gunshot Location & Detection System
Saturday, May 17th, 2008Ahha, no more gang-land activities will taken place since this system installed on your hometown-cities. ShotSpotter is the world leader in gunshot location and detection systems for the public safety and military markets. The company has been delivering patented, state-of-the-art gunshot location and detection solutions for more than a decade. Every day, officials in more than a dozen cities rely on ShotSpotter systems, with each and every customer a willing reference to our capabilities and results.
A ShotSpotter network includes 12 to 20 sensors per square mile. Roughly the size of a medium pizza, the devices are hidden on rooftops, utility poles, and in other inconspicuous places. Here are the components of a typical unit:
| Microphone An internal microphone array gives the sensor 360-degree coverage and makes it possible to determine the direction a sound came from. | ![]() |
| GPS Receiver Global positioning satellites give the location of each sensor. GPS also serves as a central clock, making it possible to triangulate an incident’s location based on the speed of sound. | ![]() |
| Thermometer Air temperature determines the speed of sound — crucial to calculating a shot’s location. The server at the station checks the Net for other atmospheric conditions that affect sound waves. | ![]() |
| Network Connection Each sensor is in constant contact with the server. Some are connected by a telephone line. Others have a digital link managed by a microprocessor. | ![]() |
| Memory In sensor units with a processor, if communication is interrupted or bandwidth becomes clogged, the memory stores the sounds until they can be uploaded. | ![]() |
Wired Reviews: Shot Spotter, Ears on the Street, Spotting the Shot
Website: Shotspooter




