CURRENT TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE FIELD OF TRAFFIC LAW ENFORCEMENT

POLICE DEPARTMENTS NOW CONDUCT SIMPLE ENFORCEMENT SURVEYS TO DETERMINE HOW WELL TRAFFIC REGULATIONS ARE OBSERVED AND TO ASCERTAIN WHAT MEASURES SHOULD BE TAKEN ON REPORTED COMPLAINTS. TRAINING AMONG POLICE OFFICERS HAS BROADENED TO INCLUDE SUBJECTS OF A TECHNICAL NATURE. AMONG THE DEVICES DEVELOPED TO ASSIST TRAFFIC CONTROL ARE THOSE USED TO MEASURE SPEEDS. THE KANSAS CITY SPEED METER, MIRROR BOXES AND MORE RECENTLY, THE RADAR SPEED METER HAVE ALL FOUND INCREASING USE AMONG POLICE DEPARTMENTS. TO ASSIST POLICE IN MAKING COMPUTATIONS FOR PRE-ACCIDENT SPEEDS BASED ON SKIDMARKS, THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION HAS DEVELOPED A SIMPLE SPEED CALCULATOR WHICH ELIMINATES THE NECESSITY FOR LONG, COMPLICATED MATHEMATICAL COMPUTATIONS. THIS DEVICE CONSISTS OF TWO CONCENTRIC CIRCULAR DISKS WITH LOGARITHMIC SCALES. IT IS A SIMPLIFIED SLIDE-RULE ADAPTED FOR POLICE OFFICERS' SPECIAL USE. PROGRESS IS MADE IN THE SCIENTIFIC EXAMINATION AND ANALYSIS OF EVIDENCE FROM HIT-AND-RUN ACCIDENTS. THE SPECTROGRAPH, SPECTROPHOTOMETER, X-RAY DIFFRACTION SPECTROMETER, PETROGRAPHIC MICROSCOPE, COMPARISION MICROSCOPE AND REFRACTOMETERS ARE USED. THE SPECTROGRAPH DETERMINES THE QUANTITY AND TYPE OF METALLIC ELEMENTS CONTAINED IN A SUBSTANCE. THE SPECTROPHOTOMETER DISCLOSES UNKNOWN DYES AND COLORING AGENTS. EACH DYE OR COLORING AGENT IS IDENTIFIED BY A PARTICULAR TRANSMISSION CURVE, DETERMINED BY THIS EXAMINATION. THE X-RAY DIFFRACTION SPECTROMETER SUPPLEMENTS THE ANALYSIS OF EVIDENCE BY ASSISTING IN IDENTIFYING CRYSTALLINE MATERIAL. BY STUDYING THE CURVES OBTAINED WITH THIS INSTRUMENT, THE CRYSTALLINE SUBSTANCE CAN BE IDENTIFIED. BY MEANS OF THE PETROGRAPHIC MICROSCOPE AND REFRACTOMETERS, ROCKS, ROCK-FORMING MATERIALS AND SOILS ARE CLASSIFIED AND IDENTIFIED. THE STANDARD BINOCULAR MICROSCOPE AND THE COMPARISON MICROSCOPE ARE USED EXTENSIVELY TO AID IN EXAMINATIONS MADE WITH THE ABOVE INSTRUMENTS AND TO EXAMINE AND COMPARE HAIRS AND FIBERS FOUND ON A SUSPECT AUTOMOBILE WITH THOSE OBTAINED FROM THE VICTIM. /AUTHOR/

• Record URL:
  https://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrbproceedings/29/29-027.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Vol 29, pp 384-392, 2 FIG, 6 PHOT. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Kunz, F M
• Publication Date: 1950

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Monograph Title: Proceedings of the Twenty-Ninth Annual Meeting of the Highway Research Board Held at Washington, D.C. December 13-16, 1949.
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Board Proceedings
  • Volume: 29
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Diffraction; Hit and run crashes; Microscopes; Petrography; Police; Radar; Refraction; Spectrophotometers; Spectroscopy; Speed indicators; Traffic law enforcement; X rays
• Uncontrolled Terms: X-ray diffraction
• Old TRIS Terms: Refractometers
• Subject Areas: Highways; Law; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00221320
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Jul 25 1971 12:00AM