But, Isn’t UVSS Technology Complicated to Use?

Under vehicle scanning systems (UVSS) have been around for decades, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that hi-tech static scanning systems emerged in the under vehicle scanner market. By 2002, real-time video scanning technologies became a viable alternative. The newer video technologies introduced lower cost, scanner mobility, higher scan speeds, and ease of use to the industry.

When you invest in technology systems that improve your business, especially your business’s security, you have to consider its ease of use to make sure the technology is used consistently and efficiently to garner the desired results of your investment. If a UVSS is difficult to understand or operate, your employees may not tap the full potential of your investment. Look for these ease-of-use tip-offs when choosing an employee-friendly under vehicle scanning system.

When shopping for your UVSS, take note of amount of time required for the vendor to present a live product demonstration. Peruse the training materials employees will be required to use. Ask about post-sale training and product support. If required trainings are long, technical ordeals, it may make sense to keep shopping. Considering the turnover rate among security personnel, it’s best to choose UVSS that are quick and easy to learn. Thirty minutes is about the right length for desired field training for current and new employees.

Look for UVSS with motion-activated imaging rather than systems that require manual initiation by employees. On-screen image control should be simple, like the ability to zoom in on specific areas of the under carriage, and store, retrieve and compare data easily. Also, look for vendors who provide a simple interface with your company’s existing technologies, and product training and technology support that is straightforward and easily accessible.

Another consideration in ease of use is mobility. If your business is such that you are solely operating stationary UVSS, this may not be an issue. If, however, your company frequently sponsors off-site events that require you to temporarily establish a secure perimeter, the ease-of-use setup of a mobile UVSS is important. Real-time video under vehicle scanning can provide the mobile technology that stationary static scanning devices cannot, due to their light weight and compact size. They can be set up at any location with a flat surface within minutes by a single employee.

When you take the end user, your employees, into consideration before purchasing your UVSS, you will realize the full potential of your investment.

Tags: uvss,uvis,under vehicle inspection scanner,under vehicle scanner,under carriage inspection system,under vehicle inspection system , www.intelli-scan.net

Which Under Vehicle Scanning Technology is Better?

Under vehicle scanning technologies are currently on the market in two types, static scanning, which collects a series of images, and real-time video scanning, the latest to come to market. Both are excellent options and are effective in securing a perimeter at either stationary locations. Deciding which technology is better for your business is a personal choice based on your company needs. Here’s how to choose.

With a static under vehicle scanning system, the under carriage of a vehicle is captured with a series of high-speed still images when the vehicle passes over the scanner’s camera. Photos are then processed into a seamless single view of the entire under carriage. Distortions caused by the speed at which the vehicle passes over the scanner are corrected via an encoder. The end result is a complete, high resolution image of the underside of the vehicle uniformly lit with little to no distortion. The process of static under vehicle scanning takes a bit longer than video, but the quality is slightly superior to real-time video.

A real-time video under vehicle scanning system captures images with full-color video cameras within the scanner. It offers views of the underside of the vehicle from different angles with multiple cameras that capture overlapping images. When it is displayed on the security inspectors’ screen some distance from the scan, it streams the video in a variety of formats. It’s a bit quicker than static under vehicle scanning technology, because it is displayed in real-time, so there is no processing delay between the scan and the display. If the access point sees a high level of vehicle traffic, this choice scans vehicles more quickly and diminishes delays.

Real-time video under vehicle scanning systems are less costly than static scanning systems, and can in fact, be about one-third the cost. This is due primarily to the size and cost of the technology required for static scans – the camera size and the processing costs. The importance of the one-time higher cost may be superseded by the accuracy of a static scan, depending on the security concerns of your facility. If loss prevention of proprietary information/products are an issue, accuracy may outweigh cost concerns.

Both UVSS provide the best technologies on the market. You will need to decide which under vehicle scanning system’s benefits more closely resonate with your company’s needs. If your priority is accuracy, static units could be for you. If your priority is cost, mobility, or speed, real-time video units may be for you.

#1 Benefit of an Under Vehicle Inspection Scanner

There is no doubt that the crises of the world are spilling into the workplace with greater regularity. You need look no further than the 2015 attack a French magazine, a Nigerian shopping mall bombing during the 2013 World Cup, a hotel bombing in 2015 in Kabul, Afghanistan, and hundreds of other orchestrated and willful acts of violence. Going to work has become hazardous business for everyone from journalists, to store clerks, to hotel receptionists. No employee is more at risk, however, than security personnel.
Now, more than ever before, it is imperative for businesses to put the safety of their employees at the top of their priority list. One piece of a comprehensive plan is the installation of an under vehicle inspection scanner at every point of entry, effectively establishing a secure perimeter for your facilities. Employee safety, both for those carrying out the work of your business and those securing their safety on the front line is the number one benefit of a hi-tech under vehicle inspection scanner.

This important tool replaces the old convex mirror with an elongated handle and underground inspection bays used to surveil the under carriage of incoming and exiting vehicles. Both of these methods put security employees at grave risk of injury and loss of life. An under vehicle inspection scanner keeps pace with increasingly sophisticated threats with quick and accurate threat detection that far outperforms older methods, and keeps employees safer.

An under vehicle inspection scanner is capable of scanning the entire underside of a vehicle quickly and delivering a full-color, high-resolution image in real time to a control monitor remotely managed by security personnel. In this way, security inspectors are able to detect threats from a safe distance, and can respond to potential threats in seconds.
Add-ons like automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) technology link under carriage inspection images to the vehicle’s license plate. Stored images can then be used for comparison and immediately detect anomalies in a future scan, and identify vehicles attempting to illegally gain access to the premises.

While you cannot prevent violence in the world, or even being the business in proximity to a targeted attack, you can minimize risk by securing the perimeter of your workplace with an under vehicle inspection scanner at each point of entry. Now is a good time to assess the risks of your business and put more stringent security measures in place for employee safety. You don’t want to be the company that ups security post-tragedy.

5 Ways Under Carriage Inspection Systems Improved Security

Over the years since the first under carriage inspection system was first developed, the industry has enjoyed vast technological improvements. Scanners went from handheld wands with convex mirrors to the first electronic systems with white and black images to the advanced technologies in place today. These systems now offer color imagery, safer employee conditions, faster scans, real time processing, and mobile units. They’re also customizable with a variety of add-ons.

What were once black and white images taken by area scan cameras, have become accurate full-color images right down to the line-scan pixel. This improved view has made it easier for security personnel to quickly identify foreign objects, no matter how quickly they pass over an under carriage inspection system. These devices offer full-color scans with zero distortion that allow for clear, sharp images.

The hi-tech under carriage inspection system that replaced handheld convex mirrors on an elongated wand have eliminated the need for security personnel to be in close proximity of the vehicle during a scan. This greatly increased the safety of employees implementing under carriage inspections. Vehicles pass over inspection systems and the data is communicated to security personnel remotely.

The new systems have reduced the time it takes to scan a vehicle exponentially. The old handheld wand method was extremely time consuming, besides being dangerous. Modern technologies have made it possible for a vehicle to pass over a static under carriage inspection system and process and relay an accurate full-color image to security personnel in eight seconds.

Real-time video inspection technologies, the latest improvements to hit the market, have zero processing time, and see the image as the vehicle passes over the under carriage inspection system. Images immediately come on the screen where security personnel simultaneously review the results from a safe distance. This allows trained personnel to assess the undercarriage of all vehicles quickly and efficiently without interrupting the flow of traffic.

The real-time video under carriage inspection system is also a mobile unit. When security needs shift to other venues, these non-intrusive devices can be deployed quickly and easily on any flat surface by a single employee. Securing off-site events is now possible with the mobile devices. Special add-on features like Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR), auto detection ability, bi-directional scanning, and temperature regulators enhance the capabilities of the mobile units.

A modern under carriage inspection system as a part of your security repertoire makes good business sense and improves workplace security.

Under Vehicle Inspection Scanner Threat Responsiveness

The benefit of a modern day under vehicle inspection scanner is that it is capable of reacting to a threat where and as soon as it occurs. While permanent scanner systems may have limited usage in ad hoc security operations, mobile scanners can quickly come to the aid of security personnel within a matter of minutes, helping to reduce the effectiveness of a possible threat at any public event.

This flexibility of security maintenance has wide ranging applications including use at military checkpoints, government building, hotels, airports, railway stations, royal events, convention centers and border crossings.
The benefit of a mobile under vehicle inspection scanner is that it is extremely quick to deploy and doesn’t interfere with the flow of traffic. Threat responsiveness is very important to security personnel and a scanner will eliminate the need to alarm the public and create panic unnecessarily.

A manual method of threat detection such as the mirror and the stick approach doesn’t have the same effectiveness in terms of security. Although it can be deployed rapidly as a security measure and is extremely cost effective, the limited range of the mirror itself makes it more difficult to determine objects which may be hidden in the middle of the vehicle’s undercarriage.

The manual method of vehicle checking is also extremely time consuming. An under vehicle inspection scanner can reduce a vehicle check from minutes down to seconds eliminating the need to stop a vehicle for an extensive period of time. In a heavy traffic flow area, a manual search may mean that not every vehicle will have the opportunity to be searched; at best, spot checks can only be carried out. An inspection by a scanner will ensure that high levels of security are not compromised on the scene.

Manual methods of security checking also cannot guarantee a scanner’s safety particularly when event explosives may be present on a particular vehicle. A scanner needs to be directly situated next to the vehicle in order to carry out a thorough search.
While security personnel can have a difficult task in following up on every security risk and threat presented to them, the inspection systems will help act as a deterrent to those looking to cause harm to others or carry out illegal activities.

An under vehicle inspection scanner allows security personnel to act quickly when it comes to security threats and help maintain high levels of public safety.

The Mirror on a Stick

The Mirror on a Stick is Essentially Obsolete When it Comes to Under Vehicle Scanning

The mirror on a stick method of under vehicle scanning has been in use since the 1940s and is still in use in many industries today. But as terrorist threats and illegal activities increase, so too does the intelligence and sophistication of the methods used. It makes sense that the technology used by security personnel needs to improve to enable more accurate screening methods to counteract these threats.

One of the main problems concerning the use of handheld mirrors to determine illegal contraband is that security personnel are in a direct line of fire when investigating the vehicle, and as such, staff are exposed to potential and disastrous situations particularly when it comes to bomb threats.

Secondly, the manual method of under vehicle scanning is time consuming, meaning that a thorough check can take upwards of a few minutes. This then becomes a labor intensive exercise for the security team. In a busy vehicle thoroughfare, security personnel have the choice to stop and search each vehicle causing long delays at the entrance, or to only spot check certain vehicles limiting the success rate of their search.
Mirrors also unfortunately only have the ability to provide a limited view of the underside of the vehicle failing to highlight contraband which may be secured to the middle of the vehicle itself.

When comparing an under vehicle scanner to a conventional mirror search, it has many security and safety advantages that a mirror cannot compete with.
In terms of personnel safety, an under vehicle scanning system puts extra layers of security between the vehicle and the scanner. Trained personnel are able to inspect and review the scanning results from a safe distance without putting themselves in harm’s way. And instead of the whole scanning procedure taking minutes to complete, it can be done in mere seconds, with no need to delay the vehicles as they pass over the scanner.
Thanks to many major technological advances recently, the scanning systems are up-to-date in terms of make and model recognition and Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR). The whole underside of the vehicle can be accessed and compared, eliminating threats of terrorist activity and contraband smuggling, and stored in a database for future comparison.

While the mirror on a stick method may have limited uses in today’s searches, an under vehicle scanning system is paramount when it comes to ensuring your security and the safety of your staff.

Wide Ranging Applications of a UVSS

An Under Vehicle Scanning System (UVSS) has many applications when it comes to 21st century security measures. As terrorist and bomb threats become more commonplace in the security world, more and more companies, government bodies, and official police and defense units are turning to the use of a UVSS to assist them with their security requirements.
An example of an industry employing the use of an automatic scanning system to inspect the undercarriage of incoming and outgoing vehicles is at London’s Gatwick airport. The airport uses the under vehicle scanner on all vehicles entering protected zones, particularly those located on the airside section of the airport. Gatwick is using the system to prevent acts of terrorism and smuggling, which may otherwise occur.

Prior to installing the electronic scanning system, Gatwick employed the mirror on a stick method to check the undercarriage of passing vehicles. Not only was this labour intensive for the security staff, such methods failed to highlight contraband or packages which may have been located in the middle of the underside of the vehicle as a result of the mirror’s limited sight range.

Due to the high volume of catering and maintenance vehicles passing through certain checkpoints 24-hours a day, the airport needed to find a method which would aid their security without disrupting the flow of operations in either direction. One of the major advantages to such a system is that a scanning system can store vehicle information down to accurate millimeter precision, and can record the images for future vehicle recognition.

Following the Mumbai terror attacks in India, security measures were tightened in many areas. For example, Tiruchi Railway Station was one such organization that looked to the aid of a vehicle scanner to help tighten their security measures. The scanner was set up in front of the Passenger Reservation Center with a number of pre-fabricated scanner buildings set up to help monitor the undercarriage results.

The Eurotunnel is another location that utilizes vehicle scanner technology to prevent admission into the tunnel of vehicles carrying an explosive device attached to its undercarriage. The system is located prior to immigration checkpoints, giving security staff enough time to view and process the images. The system itself is also set up to reference a police-generated black list to help identify particular vehicles of interest.

As technology improves, multiple organizations, government bodies, and defense units will see the need to apply a UVSS as part of their current security operations.

Tags: uvss,uvis,under vehicle inspection scanner,under vehicle scanner,under carriage inspection system,under vehicle inspection system , www.intelli-scan.net