Design Interactive Develops Training System for X-Ray System Operators
Design Interactive, a Florida-based company, has developed a training system to make operators of X-Ray screening systems more efficient while also maintaining their accuracy, says the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate, which funded and helped manage the work. S&T’s Office for Public Safety Research (OPS-R), which managed the program, says existing training software is based on examples to help Transportation Security Administration Security Officers (TSO) become more efficient but is not adaptive to an individual’s needs, and doesn’t leverage the latest training methods or technology, and doesn’t identify the root causes of a TSO’s deficiencies. The ScreenADAPT software developed by Design Interactive and OPS-R is based on the latest visual search research and uses eye-tracking technology to examine visual search performance. The eye-tracking technology allows trainers and trainees to objectively measure where they are looking on the screen, for how long and in what pattern. It can determine if a threat was missed because a trainee did not look at that area of an image, or didn’t recognize the items as a threat. ScreenADAPT also provides metrics on TSO performance and automatically adapts to the trainee’s needs by varying the type of training, type of threats, level of bag clutter and difficulty. S&T says the initial evaluation of the new training system shows a 45-percent improvement in efficiency with no loss in threat detection effectiveness. TSA has deployed 50 ScreenADAPT systems for larger training effectiveness evaluations at six airports.
Israeli Firm Showcasing Miniature Radars at ISC West
Israel-based Magos Systems Ltd. this week at the annual ISC West conference is displaying its family of miniature radars for critical infrastructure protection. The company says the SR-500 line is ideal for perimeter security of airports, seaports, government facilities, correctional facilities, power sub stations, and more. “We are extremely proud of our SR-500 line, which is a unique cost-effective solution for a problem previously dealt with multiple expensive day/night cameras,” says Gadi Bar-Ner, vice president of Marketing for Magos. “With no moving parts, our systems require almost no maintenance and operate 24/7, in all weather conditions.”
Safran Identity & Security Unveils MorphoAccess SIGMA Extreme
Safran Group’s Safran Identity & Security business this week is launching its MorphoAccess SIGMA Extreme, a new access and time fingerprint terminal designed to operate in harsh conditions, resisting rain, snow, dust and salt mist. The new terminal, which will be displayed at ISC West in Las Vegas this week, replaces the MorphoAccess and Bioscrypt 4G legacy systems. The MA SIGMA EXTREME features a large area optical fingering sensor, a high visibility display that automatically adjusts to the ambient light and a powerful loudspeaker for noisy environments.
DHS S&T Announces Change in Project 25 Compliance Assessment Program
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate says a change has been made in the Project 25 Compliance Assessment Program listing of grant-eligible radio equipment for first responders that now requires encryption to use the Advanced Encryption Standard 256. “Interoperability is a critical issue for first responders, says DHS acting under secretary for SS&T Robert Griffin. “The problem posed by using variant, non-standard encryption capabilities exacerbates the interoperability challenge.” S&T says that the P25 stakeholder community had frequently raised the issue of manufacturers providing non-P25 standard encryption algorithms for their radio technology that ultimately would cause interoperability issues with neighboring agencies who were using other encryption.