Abstract

The gunshot detection technology for urban security formally appeared as the result of the transfer of the sniper detection technology from military to civilian context. Motivated to provide a solution to sniper fire events in the Bosnian War, the US Army starts a joint research program in gunshot and sniper localization together with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and several defense technology industries [1]. Among the several technological approaches developed as part of the DARPA initiative, an acoustics-based gunfire location system was introduced. This approach was capable to be deployed in an urban warfare scenario. The System for the Effective Control of Urban Environment Security (SECURES) developed by Alliant Techsystems, Inc. was first installed at the Fort Benning Olympic Village during the games of Atlanta in 1996 [2]. Although it was originally conceived for military purposes, its introduction as an instrument for surveillance of public spaces constitutes the first successful application of a gunshot detection system in the context of urban security. After the successful results of SECURES in Fort Benning, the system was implemented in Dallas and in a number of locations around the United States.