San Jose State University in San Jose, Calif., is adding gunshot detection microphones to its security infrastructure as part of an effort to upgrade surveillance on its campus.
The San Jose Mercury-News reports that the devices are intended to speed up police response to violent incidents that otherwise rely on 911 calls.
The detection equipment is an added feature of a security camera system being installed throughout the campus.
“The cameras came with these extra bells,” University Police Capt. Alan Cavallo says. “It’s another layer of security.”
The devices, which are to be activated early next year, are attuned to the specific sound of gunfire and use algorithms to pinpoint its location.
Once a shooting is detected, the police watch commander and on-duty officers will receive emergency alerts on their smartphones that will direct them to the source.
Cavallo says he sees the new technology as part of a larger security initiative that includes blue emergency phones placed throughout campus, nighttime security escorts, and new cameras installed in the university’s parking garages.
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