Almost overnight – a strange machine has appeared in Douglas Park and people from Grand Rapids have been asking about it. According to the local who snapped the picture – this was originally placed there by a number of police officers and has lived there ever since.

As seen in the image below, it looks quite futuristic and almost looks out of place considering how high-spec it looks for a park. In fact, some have even called it an eyesore due to looking so modern compared to its surroundings. The question remains, what is it?

Despite looking like a glorified solar panel – this is actually a crime prevention tool that uses special cameras to detect facial recognition. In other words, it’s just a modern take on CCTV to stop people from offending. This isn’t the first of its kind in Grand Rapids either – as there are others located in Meijer on Clyde Park and Cabelas in Grandville as well.

This sort of technology isn’t exclusive to Grand Rapids either – as Detroit police have used similar tactics when recording traffic data. Although this differs from the Detroit version, it still has similar functions and looks equally clunky.

Whether you like it or not, this is what modern policing looks like. It also brings moral questions about human rights and personal privacy into question – but on the plus side, it may also help fight crime.