Apple's CarPlay is being used for an unusual purpose, with Motorola Solutions and Western Australia Police creating an app for law enforcement that takes advantage of the in-vehicle display.
CarPlay is typically used by apps for audio playback management and displaying a map for navigation, among other uses, but not usually for work-related tasks. In a new mobile application produced between Motorola Solutions and the WA Police, Apple's in-car platform is being used to help police officers do their jobs.
OneForce Core is based on Motorola Solutions' PSCore public safety mobile application, an app for task management intended for essential services such as the police. Announced by Motorola on Friday, the CarPlay integration of OneForce Core cuts down on the need for an officer to look at an iPhone or iPad while in a vehicle.
Instead, the app displays essential information that an officer may need while driving in the car's built-in display, such as locations of incidents that they may need to attend. By using CarPlay, the app provides enough details to the officer while they are driving, without overwhelming them with other distracting information, and without needing any extra equipment.
While behind the wheel, officers can still interact with the app via CarPlay, by touching the screen or by taking advantage of verbal commands via Siri.
PSCore is already being used to help the WA Police move to digitally managing traffic infringement notices, with the CarPlay addition extending the app to further assist the more than 5,000 frontline officers.
"When police officers respond to an incident they need accurate and relevant information to inform their decisions and keep themselves and community members safe," said WA Police Deputy Commissioner Col Blanch. "Since deploying OneForce Core, our officers have been better informed with access to critical information wherever they are."
15 Comments
When I see articles like this, I realize how many assumptions I make. I assumed this was already happening at large. Adoption of things like CarPlay and USB-C at large has been painfully slow.
Security of information tends to be a drag on such systems. Commercial comms, like iPhones, are often unacceptable because their security, though likely very good, cannot be validated by the appropriate regulators. Given privacy laws and respect for individuals' data, this is understandable.
If you want an example of how use of commercial comms can go wrong, look at the Russian army in Ukraine.
Apple needs to allow a CarPlay-like mode to be enabled or activated to run on iPhone directly. Many vehicles (even recent ones) only support BT audio and would cut down on a lot of the fiddling that unfortunately still happens while driving.