Oct 29 2008
A novel 3-D face imaging system which will capture detailed images of people’s faces as they pass through high security zones has been developed by academics at the University of Hertfordshire.
The system, which uses multimedia technology, was developed by Dr Sooda Ramalingam at the University’s School of Electronic, Communication and Electrical Engineering, will be running at the Stuff Live show at ExCel London from 31 October to 2 November.
According to Dr Ramalingam, this face imaging system which applies new mathematical algorithms to standard Matlab software and uses a stereo camera setup from Videre Design, captures detailed images of people’s faces and processes them in real time.
“Other two dimensional face imaging systems capture people’s faces, but if people are wearing make-up or wigs, they can cheat the system,” she said. “Our new 3D vision system goes beyond the skin and is equivalent to measuring the bone structure. As people stand at border control, detailed images can be taken and processed immediately.”
Dr Ramalingam’s system also enables specific segments and features of a person’s face to be photographed, which can then be checked to see if the features match the overall photo.
“We believe that this system, which is now ready to use as a research product, has many commercial applications,” said Dr Ramalingam. “This is much faster than any 3-D system and processes twenty-four frames per second in real time.”