WSi News2017-02-02 11:08:22
INTOS and Stage Gate 11 develop the first shoe scanner based on light rays
UV-scan technology detects dangerous substances in passenger footwear in airports
INTOS, one of the biggest interiors specialists in the Netherlands, together with Stage Gate 11 (SG11), a start-up in technological product development for the security industry, have recently developed the Delta R Shoescanner. The Shoescanner is a detection unit that uses UV light. More accurately and rapidly than before, airports can now pick out passengers who have hidden unsafe and undesirable substances, like explosives, in their shoes.
The Shoescanner is one of the products based on the UV-scan technology that SG11 has owned the exclusive mondial rights to and has developed since last year. The technology, discovered at the University of Florida, detects traces of substances using UV reflection. It compares the emitted beam of light with the reflected one that has bounced off a surface. Because all substances have their own unique patterns, the technology rapidly and accurately recognises traces of, for example, explosives or narcotics.
The Shoescanner scans passenger footwear as they pass through, without anyone having to remove their shoes. This increases the efficiency of security checks in airports and the passengers are checked in a far friendlier manner.
“INTOS is continuously involved in innovation that influences our markets, including airports. Based on our reputation and a fascination for UV-scan technology, we were invited to collaborate on the development of the Shoescanner. Starting with the idea, INTOS advised SG11 about the design, material, sustainability and possibilities for maintenance. And the resulting stand-alone column that now is the Shoescanner, is manufactured entirely in-house. The technology is suitable for many different applications, like sample - and parcel scanning. Hopefully INTOS will be invited to contribute in the following product developments”, says Jan-Willem Spanjaart, INTOS Business Development Manager.
“We have the technology and application possibilities. But we really needed INTOS, as a knowledge partner, to design the Shoescanner. Their years of experience at Schiphol and other international airports meant that INTOS knew exactly which requirements a product had to meet for optimum performance in an airport. All this led to the perfect transformation of our ideas into an aesthetic concept and ultimately a functional product”, Michiel Poppink, joint owner SG11.
