WAKE FOREST – The Wireless Research Center will partner with Spectrohm, which is developing a new radio frequency inspection technology that could have a significant impact in public safety and in homeland security.
Spectrohm describes its technology as one that “can simultaneously image inside an object and identify what it’s made of while it moves on a high-speed conveyor, making comprehensive inspection at the speed of commerce a reality,” on its website.
And under the terms of the new partnership, the company will leverage the Wireless Research Center’s capabilities to accelerate its deployment of a fully autonomous screening system for U.S. government customers.
That system, which Wireless Research Center senior engineer John Swartz called “visionary,” will image, process, and identify in real-time any threats in packages or mail, according to the company’s statement.
The Wireless Research Center is also involved in the development and implementation program for a new statewide paging system for first responders.
With SBIR grant, IoT firm and partners to test new statewide paging system for first responders
Behind the tech
Here’s how it works, according to the Tysons Corner, Virginia-based company.
Because organizations are increasingly turning toward Internet-of-Things sensors and algorithms that use artificial intelligence to automate certain tasks, why not design a system built on technology that can also use sensor data to automate threat detection?
The patented technology “supercharges AI’s ability to identify package contents like explosives, drugs, and contraband,” the company statement notes. It’s an industry that’s expected to grow to $50 billion, according to Spectrohm.
“Using ‘long’ radio wavelengths gives us the RF ‘color’ to both see and identify threats,” said Tim Cargol, founder and CEO of Spectrohm. “These colors give AI the extra data it needs to quickly and accurately identify threats.”
Spectrohm won an SBIR Phase II grant in June worth about $1 million from a program administered by the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate. That followed a $2 million fundraising round, which closed in May, according to a statement.
“Our technique is revolutionary, but what we’re building is highly feasible thanks to the maturity of the underlying technologies and advancements in sensors, manufacturing, and AI software,” said Cargol in a statement in May.
