Nassau County Sheriff’s Office drives simulator
The Nassau County Sheriff’s Office is looking to give their deputies a realistic raining experience with a high-tech driving simulator. The simulator is designed to help deputies reduce accidents on the road, especially during tough weather conditions.
This equipment is pretty realistic. Action News Jax was able to try out this simulator and from first-hand experience, the device looks and feels like you’re on the road in a patrol car.
The L3 Harris Patrol Slim Law Enforcement Driving Simulator might look like a cool video game, but it is meant to help prepare deputies.
Its state-of-the-art driving technology is equipped with an ignition, seatbelt, light, siren, horn, dispatch, and computer database just like a real patrol vehicle.
“It really gives us the ability to create scenarios that you can’t always create or have a deputy go through in training in the real world,” says Padgett.
The driving simulator teaches recruits and veteran deputies. It can even be programmed for different scenarios, like a high-speed pursuit, bad weather or an unintended object like a human or an animal.
“It really helps them pick a vehicle specific to them we drive Tahoes here. They drive on wet roads and muddy roads so they can get a feel for how the vehicle’s going to react,” says Padgett.
When Detective Padgett says you can get a feel, he is not joking. If you go over a speed bump, dip into a pothole, or jump a curve, the simulator and you will feel it.
The same goes for hitting the brakes and pushing the gas pedal. You can feel and hear the engine make a sound.
With this simulator, deputies get experience without the risk of injury or wear and tear on the equipment. Even better, this simulator came at no expense to taxpayers.
“Through the result of criminals, we seized assets from those that we arrest and that went to good use of purchasing this simulator,” says Leeper.
This new simulator has only been in operation for four days. For now, training is not required but the NCSO does nope to get the entire force trained on it and soon.
NCSO says their goal at the end of the day is to make a good officer even better.
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