A telescoping or telescopic mast is an upright pole or portable tower that consists of tubular sections that slide within another in order to be extended or retracted. Telescopic mast can be made from a variety of materials including aluminum, steel or carbon fiber depending upon the application, mission requirements and can be mounted any number of ways including a vehicle’s 2x2” hitch receiver, building or command center wall, freestanding tripod, on a mobile surveillance vehicle or trailer, folded down on a roof and even through a hole in the roof via a roof bearing!
For example, The Rapid All-Terrain Tower (aka The RATT) is a mobile tower system that employs a pneumatic telescopic mast system made from high-strength aluminum in order to keep it lightweight (under 100lbs), simple and rapidly deployable for law enforcement mobile surveillance (special events), tactical long range surveillance, situational awareness, investigations, AI, LPR, video analytics (face, appearance & object search), firefighting to see smoke/hotspots with a thermal camera, monitoring large public events, crime scene surveillance/deterrent, radio/WiFi/mobile repeater antenna, long-range acoustic devices, construction site video security, edge network applications, UAV/drone detection, UAV/drone antennas, 3D laser scanners and more.