A portable biometric scanner takes security everywhere

It is nicknamed, with a little bit of boasting, the most powerful biometric identification device ever seen. In fact, HIIDE (which stands for Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment) has well deserved to be defined like this, thanks to the approximately 65 thousand units currently in use around the world, especially in areas like Iraq and Afghanistan, and thanks to a 10 million dollar order that the US Department of Defense has recently placed with Whipsaw, the factory which produces it.

What is it exactly? HIIDE is a portable biometric scanner, which looks not much different from a standard photo camera, which thanks to three different parameter (analysis of iris, of fingerprint and of facial features) is capable of establishing and verifying a person’s identity.
It can work either connected to a PC or stand alone, making it a perfect tool for identification in open areas.

HIIDE can store up to 22000 different complete profiles, with two iris scans, a face picture, ten fingerprints and a full set of personal data of the identified person.
Just take a scan of the eyes, a face picture, ask the person being identified to pass their fingers on the fingerprint sensor, and the job is done.

At this point, the data gathered is matched against the database on the device, which can store up to 256 MB of names. If the name and details are not found, it is possible, through a wireless connection, to match it against an array of worldwide databases covering the entire planet.

Once the person standing before you is identified and recognized, they will gain access to the protected area or facility. Otherwise their data might be stored after the standard identification procedures, and added to the worldwide database.

New infrared micro lens for enhanced night vision

Great news for those who are engaged with night surveillance and monitoring of sensitive targets… but the news are bad for those who hope that darkness might help them hide their activities, especially if they are illegal, from prying eyes.

In fact, a research team from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York State, is at work on a micro lens which might help in the creation of high power satellite cameras and night vision devices.

In order to augment the sensitivity to infrared light, researchers have been using a set of nanotubes coated with gold; thanks to the nanotubes’ capability of focusing the light which is picked up by the infrared detector, the normal sensitivity is doubled; by applying further modifications and improvement to the system, made up of myriads of gold-plated tiny holes, the researchers’ goal is to multiply the lenses’ sensitivity up to 20 times when compared to systems currently in use.

By applying this technology to satellite imaging systems, there would be benefits not only in satellite monitoring of military targets or sensitive areas, but also In scientific research, for example to keep under control the health level of our forests and, on a larger scale, to monitor climate changes.

In the video surveillance field, the benefits in terms of performance are immediate, as surveillance operations would find a new tool capable of dramatically improving the current night vision systems’ performance, providing absolute reliability to an evidence or intelligence gathering operation in low lighting conditions.

Furthermore, this technology might be put to good use in the military field, giving soldiers on a night mission on hostile areas or rough terrain one more device to easily detect hidden enemies.