University researchers are working to create a breakthrough weapons detection system capable of scanning open spaces to identify the presence of guns, knives and other potential dangers, a spokesman with the Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute said.
The system would differ from existing technology because it would detect weapons in open spaces without employing X-ray technology. Using wall-mounted sensors that emit radio wave-like signals, the system is designed to detect, and in some cases pinpoint, the specific type of concealed weapons, said Austin Farnham, the president of Pharad LLC and a university alumnus, whose company is partnering with the university on the project.
“The sensor includes a video camera,” Farnham said. “If the sensor picks up there is a weapon in its field of view, that video image is available to security personnel.” The technology will not interfere with pacemakers, hearing aids or other similar electronic health devices, he said.
Funding has been secured by the Department of Homeland Security, and Farnham said once the product is developed, his company plans to market it to transportation terminals such as airports and train stations, but added that clients such as shopping malls and courthouses may also be interested in the technology.
Farnham’s company became involved because of its expertise in wireless technology for military and homeland security uses, and teamed up with Professor K.J. Ray Liu of the electrical and computer engineering department to develop the detection system.
Liu, who was traveling and did not return calls, commonly uses teams of graduate students to develop complex algorithms used in technologies such as the weapons system, said Martha Connolly, the director of Maryland Industrial Partnerships. Also known as MIPS, the program is aimed at connecting private Maryland-based companies with university researchers and facilities using joint funding.
“What [Liu] is doing is identifying different signatures that certain weapons give off and developing algorithms the sensors can use to detect them,” Connolly said. “What’s nice about this project is they can hire someone of Dr. Liu’s expertise” without having them on staff, she said.
She added that MIPS will help fund about 50 similar projects over the next year, some of which will be devoted to Homeland Security-funded projects.
The university secured more than $134,000 in funding for the project, Connolly said, $70,000 of which was contributed by MIPS. Farnham declined to comment on how much the total project would cost his Glen Burnie-based company, but said an engineering prototype of the screening sensor is expected to be completed in June 2007. Homeland Security will then conduct testing on the project and will decide whether to issue final approval.
Contact reporter Emily Groves at newsdesk@dbk.umd.edu.
