New approach for detecting and classifying concealed weapons

Lyle G. Roybal; Philip M. Rice; Joseph M. Manhardt

doi:10.1117/12.266790

14 February 1997 New approach for detecting and classifying concealed weapons

Lyle G. Roybal, Philip M. Rice, Joseph M. Manhardt

Proceedings Volume 2935, Surveillance and Assessment Technologies for Law Enforcement; (1997) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.266790
Event: Enabling Technologies for Law Enforcement and Security, 1996, Boston, MA, United States

Abstract

The possession of a weapon in the courtroom of our American justice system is a Federal offense. A weapon in the courtroom is a particularly serious problem for judges, plaintiffs, defendants, and bystanders because of the emotional nature and environment of the courtroom. Potential violators include organized criminals and gangsters, individuals with personal vendettas, and otherwise sane and reasonable people who, because of the emotion of the moment, lose sight of right and wrong in our justice system. Most Federal courthouses incorporate some sort of metal detection apparatus used to screen and prevent individuals from carrying personal weapons into courtrooms. These devices are considered conventional in the sense that they employ an active electromagnetic induction technique that is sensitive to the presence of metal. This technique provides no information concerning the massiveness and location of the offending metal object and is prone to false alarms. This work introduces an alternative method for weapons discrimination that is based on passive magnetics technology in concert with simple comparative algorithms such that massiveness and location of suspected weapons may be determined. Since this system provides information not available from conventional metal detectors, false alarms will be greatly reduced, allowing remote monitoring of all entrances into a courtroom from a single vantage point, thereby saving considerable resources used on personnel costs.

Citation Download Citation

Lyle G. Roybal, Philip M. Rice, and Joseph M. Manhardt "New approach for detecting and classifying concealed weapons", Proc. SPIE 2935, Surveillance and Assessment Technologies for Law Enforcement, (14 February 1997); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.266790

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