Resource Centre > Blog > Emesent Hovermap for Public Services, LiDAR Mobile Mapping When Every Second Counts

Emesent Hovermap for Public Services, LiDAR Mobile Mapping When Every Second Counts

While many may associate LiDAR mobile mapping technology with the specific needs of machinery and maintenance-heavy industries like mining, oil, and construction, digital data capture also offers unique value to the public services sector.

LiDAR mobile mapping fulfills specific needs in scenarios where time, proximity and accuracy are so critical that they are often a matter of life and death. The sectors with these needs include:

  • Law enforcement
  • First responders
  • Homeland security
  • Department of Transportation
  • Schools and hospitals

How LiDAR Mobile Mapping Works for the Public Service Sector

LiDAR mobile mapping technology allows for a simple process of scanning sites and structures, then mapping that data and creating “digital twins” (or digital replicas) of the space or scene scanned. The less obvious, but extremely important and valuable, use case that has emerged includes the public services sector. But how exactly is this technology used in each of these areas?

First Responders

Emesent Hovermap has presented a unique value-add to first responders looking to better equip themselves with the tools needed in emergency situations.

For instance, Hovermap can be used to accurately map and create digital twins of public facilities like schools and hospitals. In the situation of natural disasters, active shooter scenarios, floods, fires, and other life-threatening situations, first responders can reference their detailed digital twins and data maps to better navigate through those spaces and more quickly come to the rescue of those in emergency situations.

This can all be done without first responders having to visit the physical space or remember nuances of it that could pose challenges in an emergency situation. Instead, a database can be created for reference during these situations. Most importantly, LiDAR mobile mapping with Hovermap can often be captured by more novice users, allowing these entities to use their own resources for mapping and logging facility digital twins.

Police

In addition to the emergency situations that Hovermap can support, it can help police forces to map crime scenes quickly and in their entirety. Since evidence is often tampered with in the process of an investigation or clearing of a scene, it can make it difficult to use that evidence to solve cases.

Police can use Hovermap to capture a scene before an investigation even begins so that scenarios and evidence can hold up better in court to secure convictions in the future. Processing a crime scene often takes some time, so Hovermap can also be used to quickly collect data so critical details can give police quicker answers in an open case. Depending on the location of the crime committed, scenes may need to be quickly cleaned up so Hovermap can give investigators a snapshot of the scene exactly as it was found.

Department of Homeland Security

Other uses of Hovermap in the public services industries can include benefits to homeland security by mapping borders and terrain, or structures of interest. With its ease of use, Hovermap can help Homeland Security secure data more quickly and efficiently with lower costs by using their own resources to deploy the technology.

Fire Departments

Fire departments also offer a unique use case solved by Hovermap. When assessing the damages of a fire, sending firefighters into a structure creates unnecessary risk. But understanding the extent of damages is also necessary to protect civilians. Hovermap can be sent into a structure via drone or ground robot to protect firefighters and civilians alike.

Additionally, the Hovermap data can be used to assess damages, take measurements, and collect other information on the scene after the fire has been extinguished. As opposed to sending people into a structure that may be damaged and unstable to take measurements that may not be very accurate, Hovermap LiDAR mobile scanning technology can be deployed safely to capture accurate and actionable data.

Department of Transportation

The Department of Transportation is always prioritizing ways to make roads safer. When an accident does occur, it’s critical that the DOT can understand what road hazards could have contributed to it. Using Hovermap, the DOT can map an accident scene within minutes after it happens so they can do a thorough evaluation and make improvements to keep drivers safer.

Part of keeping roads safer is also clearing accidents quickly after they occur so that normal traffic patterns can be restored. Hovermap can be deployed quickly to make sure that important accident data is gathered, without slowing down the clean-up process.

The unique value-add that Hovermap brings to the public services sector is its ability to be deployed any time, anywhere and by fairly novice users. These industries can’t wait days or weeks to evaluate these situations because that extra time completely eliminates the benefit of data mapping in the first place.

The use cases can be versatile because the LiDAR mobile scanning can be performed with:

  • Drone
  • Vehicle
  • Backpack
  • Pole
  • Handheld device
  • Ground robot

It has a plug and play design and quick-release mechanism that allows for switching between different device set-ups. So even if a situation or scene has some added complexities, Hovermap can be used to fulfill every need.

To learn more about how the technology of Hovermap can help optimize your public service sector operation, request a demo with the Emesent team.


Start mapping the inaccessible