Innovations in Concealed Weapons Detection Technology

• NCJ Number: 211738
• Date Published: October 1997
• Length: 1 page
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Best Practice/State-of-the-Art Review

Annotation

This article describes several technologies useful for the detection of concealed weapons.

Abstract

Illegally concealed weapons are a public safety threat and the current detection methods, mainly metal detectors, are not efficient enough to detect all types of weapons. The National Institute of Justice’s (NIJ’s) National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC)-Northeast is currently evaluating several emerging technologies for the detection of concealed weapons. Among these technologies is the Passive Millimeter Wave (MMW), which uses natural (passive) emissions from objects to see contraband concealed under multiple layers of clothing without a direct physical search. Electromagnet (EM) Technology, which uses an electromagnetic pulse to identify metallic objects, and Fluxgate Magnetometers Technology, which is expected to reduce false positive rates, was also being investigated for corrections and law enforcement uses. Other technologies under evaluation include the Modified, Off-the-shelf, Compton Scattered X-ray Imaging System; the Millimeter Wave and Infrared Cameras in a Stand-Alone and Sensor Suite Combination; and the Sensor Suite Combining Radar and Ultrasound Imaging.