Cerulean's PacketCluster moves to Windows 95; lays the foundation for 21st century crime-fighting applications; PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 works with third-party applications to make police officers more efficient.

MARLBOROUGH, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 17, 1996--Cerulean Technology, Inc. is arming police officers on patrol with a powerful new Windows 95-based mobile information system to help apprehend wanted persons, quickly identify stolen vehicles and enforce motor vehicle laws.

With the launch of Cerulean's new PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 software today, PacketCluster's instant access to local, state and national motor vehicle and criminal databases will allow officers to tie into other Windows-based applications, such as digital imaging systems and fingerprint records, from their patrol car notebook computers, helping them work more safely and efficiently.

This announcement lays the foundation for adding a variety of new applications, such as voice recognition, vehicle identification and criminal investigation programs, to the PacketCluster technology.

PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 delivers a more flexible, standards-based computing environment which will allow police departments to take advantage of new technology and resources as they become available. For example, by connecting to the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) 2000 network, which will become available over the next five years, officers will be able to scan fingerprints from crime scenes into the FBI's network to make a match, and receive mug shots over the wireless communications network in less than a minute.

"It is important to arm officers with the latest technology so they can do their jobs more effectively. By providing them with as much information as possible in their patrol cars, we can keep more officers out on the road where they should be," said Chief Richard Mulhall of the Bloomfield, Connecticut Police Department, a PacketCluster Patrol user since 1993. "What makes PacketCluster Patrol so easy to use is that it was designed with the real-world needs of patrol officers in mind."

Leveraging the benefits of Windows 95

PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 combines the features, functionality and ease-of-use of Cerulean's widely-used DOS-based system with the inherent benefits of Windows 95, such as multitasking with other applications, and an easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI). Cerulean has implemented the latest object-oriented technologies that use common interface elements in PacketCluster Patrol 3.0, making it compatible with other widely-used Windows applications.

"We are dedicated to providing technology that meets the changing needs of our customers and the demands of society for effective law enforcement," said William C. Poellmitz, Cerulean's vice president of marketing. "We are committed to an open architecture, standards-based approach to deliver 'best of breed' products to public safety users. Customers will no longer accept proprietary, closed technology. PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 lets them make appropriate choices today, while providing a smooth upgrade path to incorporate new technologies."

With Windows 95's true 32-bit multitasking power, PacketCluster 3.0 lets officers move easily between the software and other applications they use frequently, such as word processing and spreadsheets, enabling them to capture information from different applications and embed it into their reports. This eliminates the redundancy of writing information on paper then typing it into a records system later. For example, after responding to an incident, officers can simply type their report into the word processor, import data collected from local or national databases into the report, and upload the entire report to headquarters using the PacketCluster wireless technology.

Because this latest release also retains all the straightforward simplicity that has made it the market leader in intelligent mobile information systems for law enforcement, current PacketCluster Patrol users do not have to re-learn the software. Officers running PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 can operate the program using function keys, graphical push bars and buttons, or pull-down menus. With more choices of fonts, type sizes and graphics, the Windows-based version also makes it easier to read information on the display.

The PacketCluster technology advantage

Traditionally, mobile information systems have been based on expensive proprietary mainframe computers controlling networks of non-intelligent terminals. By using an industry-standard 486 or Pentium processor-based personal computer for PacketCluster Patrol, the system moves the processing power into the field where it is much more efficient. The system's client/server architecture makes information readily available, significantly decreasing the cost and complexity of past-generation, expensive mainframe-based hardware platforms.

In addition to providing access to criminal warrants and motor vehicle records, PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 offers a silent dispatch capability that allows encrypted digital transmissions between police cruisers, and between the dispatcher and the cruisers, preventing individuals with police radios from intercepting sensitive information.

Availability and pricing

PacketCluster Patrol 3.0 is available in August, with pricing for a basic system -- including all required third-party hardware -- starting at under $25,000.

Founded in 1992, privately held Cerulean Technology, Inc. is a fast-growing developer of innovative, client/server software applications for public and private wireless networks. The company's PacketCluster Patrol has been chosen by police departments in more than 20 states. The Marlborough, Mass.-based company is the market leader in wireless mobile information software for law enforcement and public safety.

-0- PacketCluster is a registered trademark and PacketCluster Patrol is a trademark of Cerulean Technology, Inc.

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