SAFETY & SECURITY
Homeland Security Innovation
Last November the Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute (www.export.gov.il) played host to some 600 participants at its first international conference on homeland security.
Experts shared insights on airport security, safe city and emergency management while Israeli companies showcased some of their hottest innovations. We take a glance at some of the products currently being developed and marketed.
Too Much Information?
One of the drawbacks of 24-7 video surveillance is that it often requires 24-7 review and analysis to be a useful intelligence or enforcement tool.
With BriefCam’s (www.briefcam.com) Video Synopsis, a day’s worth of tape can be reviewed in a few minutes by summarizing the activities captured on camera and indexing the reference to the original footage. It interfaces seamlessly with existing video surveillance devices and analytic programs.
Sweden’s, Axis Communications (www.axis.com) and the Danish Milestone Systems (www.milestonesys.com) are among the company’s technology partners.
Recognized as a breakthrough technology in the security market, BriefCam won the Wall Street Journal’s 2010 Technology Innovation Awards in the Physical Security category, the 2010 IFSEC Security Industry Award for Best CCTV System and is among Red Herring’s Top 100 Europe and CNBC Europe’s 25 Most Creative Companies.
Sniffing Out the Big Bang
Several companies worldwide have developed sniffer technologies to detect explosive materials. Few of these, however, have been able to compete successfully with man’s best friend, still recognized as the most reliable detector on the market.
Recently researchers at Tel Aviv University have developed an explosives detector 1000-times stronger than a dog’s nose. The new sensor can detect extremely small traces of commonly used explosives in liquid or air in a few seconds. The technology is not only beneficial in thwarting impending terrorist attacks, but instrumental in detecting contamination on former military sites.
The device, based on a silicone-coated nano-scale field-effect transistor, can provide a field-ready, miniaturized and streamlined alternative to current methods of air analysis. It promises to render reliable results in less time and at lower cost than existing technology, obviating the need for prior sample preparation or bulk instrumentation.
Researchers have used the nano-wire detector to identify within seconds TNT and plastic explosives RDX and PETN at concentrations lower than one part per trillion.
Disarming Fire-breathing Robot
Rafael’s Land Warfare Systems (www.rafael.co.il) have developed the Pincher, a prototype miniature robot designed to neutralize improvised explosive devices (IEDs) from long distances. With pinpoint accuracy, the Pincher fires pencil-sized (20 cm long) pyrophoric rockets at its target.
Upon impact, it burns rather than explodes the IED and in so-doing eliminates the risk of shrapnel.
Unlike kinetic projectiles fired from a gun, the arrow stores enough kinetic energy to fracture the outer envelope of the target and its pyrophoric material combusts in flames instantly as it penetrates the target, consuming it in fire without causing an explosion. It can be potentially deployed indoors and underwater and can operate as a stand-alone system or integrated to existing robotic platforms.
Once operational, Pincher will join Thor, the product of collaboration between Rafael and General Dynamics, which uses a high-energy laser and a 12.7 mm machine gun to neutralize IEDs from a distance.
