Pen technology benefits police in spite of UK budget cuts

Swindon, Wiltshire November 24, 2010, Following the latest round of government spending cuts the police are expected to find most savings through greater efficiency in the back office and redesign front line operations to make them cheaper. So how can pen technology help cut costs and improve front line efficiency?

Let’s explain that the pen technology is more than just an ordinary ink pen. Yes the pen contains ink, looks like a normal pen albeit slightly thicker, writes on paper and is used in the same way as a normal ink pen, except the pen being considered here is a high tech digital pen. “Alongside an ink cartridge the digital pen also contains a camera that takes and stores images as the pen writes. This allows completed forms, notes and signatures to be captured electronically” explains Juniper Innovations, a Wiltshire based company in England that work with digital pen technology.

A pen can be linked directly with a computer via a docking station, or connect to a mobile phone. This allows all the captured images to be sent to secure databases, in almost real time, link to backend office systems and even immediately email colleagues. For the police this could mean recording and transferring urgent interview or crime scene information from the field, linking it automatically to case histories and files and distributing urgent copies of notes. As Juniper Innovations explains “using tick boxes for example on forms is one way to ensure consistency and overcomes difficulties in reading someone else’s handwriting. Plus advanced handwriting recognition software exists at the secure backend servers that can interpret handwriting and allow the interpretation it to be modified later.”

As the technology is a pen, it means it is versatile and can be used by anyone that has to perform writing and data capture tasks. This means a very low amount of training and officers do not have to be computer experts so can be up and running with the technology quickly. Plus for those that want to link their pen with a smart phone, digital pen software on the phone enables pictures and even GPS data to be linked and sent with completed form or note details. So for example crime scene pictures and location details can be captured.

On top of all this, playback functionality on the secure backend software shows how letters, words and numbers were formed as a handwriting style, so everything including signatures can be submitted as court evidence.

Juniper Innovations suggest pricing is also worth looking at since a digital pen costs far less than a personal digital assistant or other rugged data capture device. Plus the technology infrastructure can be light on police forces too as the backend software is managed on secure servers. Since training requirements are minimal and can happen at any time, deployment can be quick. As Juniper Innovations advise “the return on investment can be measured and compared with a forces current technology to understand the immediate cost savings. With budgets being cut this is one piece of equipment that can help reduce technology costs and improve efficiency.”

Juniper Innovations provide innovation, investment and support models for organisations. In addition Juniper Innovations also provide free tracking and authentication hints and tips on their blog site.

Juniper Innovations provide the best tracking and authentication solutions. We specialise in continually finding the best ways to innovate your organisation's systems and processes.

We use our Innovation Program and Return On Investment models to help find companies the best solutions and achieve the best results, then are able to supply them with off the shelf and custom built tracking and authentication solutions to realise their investment returns and help their organisation prosper.

Juniper Innovations consist of business consultants and software engineers that have a passion for wanting organisation’s to have improved business processes and get more from technology. We believe in delivering to you against our mantra of “profit from IT.”

Pitchens End
Broad Hinton
Swindon
SN49PR

This release was published on openPR.