Ultrasound sensor for remote imaging of concealed weapons

Franklin S. Felber; Charles E. Mallon; Norbert C. Wild; Christopher M. Parry

doi:10.1117/12.266729

18 February 1997 Ultrasound sensor for remote imaging of concealed weapons

Franklin S. Felber, Charles E. Mallon, Norbert C. Wild, Christopher M. Parry

Proceedings Volume 2938, Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence Systems for Law Enforcement; (1997) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.266729
Event: Enabling Technologies for Law Enforcement and Security, 1996, Boston, MA, United States

Abstract

A breadboard ultrasound sensor was developed for remotely detecting and imaging concealed weapons. The breadboard sensor can detect metallic and non-metallic weapons concealed on a human body under heavy clothing at ranges up to 8 m and image the concealed weapons at ranges up to 5 m. This breadboard sensor has produced the only remote ultrasound images of concealed weapons ever published, including lexan (plastic) knives and a handgun concealed under a heavy sweatshirt at 15 feet. The remote imaging by ultrasound was made possible by several new technological developments. The sensor includes a novel, highly efficient source of high-power, tunable ultrasound radiation suitable for remote imaging in air. Together with millimeter-sized, highly sensitive ultrasound detectors and high-gain transceivers, these advances make possible the centimeter- resolution imaging of concealed weapons at ranges between 1 m and 5 m. The ultrasound images are processed by our IMAGE binary-thresholding program, which filters for noise, frequency, brightness, and contrast. To be developed is a brassboard sensor with an imaging array of ultrasound detectors, capable of real-time, video-frame-rate imaging of weapons concealed on moving humans.

Citation Download Citation

Franklin S. Felber, Charles E. Mallon, Norbert C. Wild, and Christopher M. Parry "Ultrasound sensor for remote imaging of concealed weapons", Proc. SPIE 2938, Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence Systems for Law Enforcement, (18 February 1997); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.266729

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