New York City Cabs to Map Out Cell-Phone Dead Zones

Ericsson recently got approval from New York's taxi commission to place mobile sensors in the trunks of at least 50 cabs in an attempt to better map dead zones in mobile phone networks.

The small devices, about the size of a computer modem, will automatically feed information about signal strength and clarity to engineers.

Because taxis in New York are on the road all day and all night, and ostensibly travel into every corner of the city, company executives said they are a cheap way of covering vast amounts of territory with limited effort.

The research program is being conducted on behalf of an undisclosed wireless provider. Cab companies will be paid for participating.

Source: AP, FoxNews.com