Abstract: An in-car video system and method is provided where a wireless microphone is configured with bi-directional communications capability. In response to a received RF activation signal, the wireless microphone is automatically switched on to capture (and transmit back to the in-car video system) an audio soundtrack that accompanies the images captured by the car-mounted video camera. A wireless microphone controller mounted in the car transmits the RF activation signal to the wireless microphone. The wireless microphone controller is arranged to transmit the RF activation signal when the VCR starts recording. In an illustrative embodiment of the invention, the wireless microphone receives information, including a confirmation that the VCR is recording, from an RF information signal received from the wireless microphone controller mounted in the car. The wireless microphone displays the information to the officer on a display screen.

Abstract: Dynamic load balancing of network traffic is achieved using one or more access points by using a server-centric approach where rules are applied to attributes and characteristics observed by the server which form a profile of wireless clients accessing the network, such as in-car video systems. In various illustrative examples, priorities are assigned to in-car video systems and data files stored therein to which the server applies rules to responsively invoke commands performed by the in-car video systems to balance the uploading of data files to the server. The commands, when executed, allow high priority data files, or data files from high priority in-car video systems or users to be uploaded first, while lower priority data files or users are put on hold. In other illustrative examples, in-car video systems are commanded by the server or forced to roam between access points having overlapping coverage but operating on different non-interfering channels.

Abstract: A method of storing digital video is provided where an original video clip is selected, according to selection criteria, from video clips stored on a digital storage medium. The frame rate associated with the selected video clip is lowered and a downgraded version of the original video clip is written to a digital storage medium at the lowered frame rate. The original video clip may then be overwritten or erased to thereby reduce the storage space requirements for the downgraded video clip by approximately the percentage reduction in downgraded frame rate.

Abstract: An in-car video system and method is provided where a wireless microphone is configured with bi-directional communications capability. In response to a received RF activation signal, the wireless microphone is automatically switched on to capture (and transmit back to the in-car video system) an audio soundtrack that accompanies the images captured by the car-mounted video camera. A wireless microphone controller mounted in the car transmits the RF activation signal to the wireless microphone. The wireless microphone controller is arranged to transmit the RF activation signal when the video recording device starts recording. In an illustrative embodiment of the invention, the wireless microphone receives information, including a confirmation that the video recording device is recording, from an RF information signal received from the wireless microphone controller mounted in the car. The wireless microphone displays the information to the officer on a display screen.

Abstract: An in-car video system and method are provided where a vehicle speed derived from a vehicle speed sensor (“VSS”) signal is compared against a user-settable threshold value. If the vehicle speed exceeds the threshold value, an alarm is generated. The alarm is used by the in-car video system to automatically activate the record function of a video recorder. The alarm may be optionally sent to a remote location, such as a police agency's headquarters as an alert that the vehicle speed has exceeded a set threshold and that a possible high speed pursuit has commenced. Vehicle speed information derived from the VSS signal is generated into a form that is continuously displayable on an in-car video monitor or continuously recordable by the video recorder along with the video and audio information captured by the in-car video system camera and microphones.