As the recent July 7th London bombings would reveal, biometric technology images from over 200,000 video surveillance cameras are key weapons against the terrorists. What makes these biometric cameras so extraordinary is that these cameras have a 360-spherical lens, called a fisheye, to follow someone’s movements and the camera’s computers can be programmed to identify particular faces from a database. The fisheye and other security solutions are manufactured by Ipix Corporation, which provides governments and large firms with the latest video surveillance technologies. Says Ipix president, Clara Conti, “These cameras don’t have any blind spots. Fixed cameras have blind spots.” These cameras capture the biometric facial recognition data needed to identify suspects and solve crimes. What is biometrics? Biometrics is a field of technology that uses automated methods for identifying or verifying a subject based on a physiological or behavioral characteristic. Among the features measured are the face, fingerprints, hand geometry, handwriting, iris, retinal, and voice. The individual’s characteristics are then compared to other individuals stored on biometric templates within a database. If there is correlation between the template and the subject, a high score would be generated and the authorities alerted. Using biometric technologies to identify the bombers’ faces is an accurate and cutting-edge solution. A4Vision Inc, a 3-D facial imaging products and technology manufacturer, transfers barely-visible infrared light onto a subject’s face to determine its facial contours from the light pattern. Another manufacturer, Geometrix, combines two or more cameras to build a 3-D shape via triangulation. Its ActiveFusion surveillance technology blends 3-D face, 2-D face, and fingerprint biometrics to claim submillimeter accuracy. Both of these companies’ systems need high resolution cameras to achieve the results expected and they work best when the subject is a few feet away from the video cameras. Although a poor image can reduce the effectiveness of the camera’s work, a great deal is being done in this technological field to standardize image quality, and improve the quality and size of the biometric template database. How to evaluate these biometric solutions Although evaluation techniques for biometric solutions are not standardized, research enterprises and commercial firms are encouraged to take the Face Recognition Vendor Tests (FRVT). The FRVT will perform tests on all of the databases in order to achieve an objective and fair comparison among the vendors. These evaluations will provide the U.S. Government and law enforcement agencies with information to determining where and how facial identification technology can best be deployed. In addition, FRVT results will help identify future research directions for professionals in the video surveillance and biometric field. Biometric technologies are the foundation of a new identification solution for video surveillance. As terrorism threat increases, more businesses and governments are turning to biometrics to quickly resolve security issues to make their employees and citizens safer. Copyright © 2005 Evaluseek Publishing. About the Author Alice Osborn is a successful freelance writer providing practical information and advice about everything related to CCTV systems and related topics. Her numerous articles include tips for saving both time and money when shopping for video security products; equipment reviews and reports; and other valuable insights. Learn how to record your CCTV system footage using a digital video recorder server or DVR software when you visit Video-Surveillance-Guide.com today!
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