Associated Press
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By Juanita Cousins
Associated Press Writer
ATLANTA - Biometric smart cards activated by individual finger prints and security robots that deliver medical specimens to labs dominated the floor at an international security seminar this week.
More than 950 companies showed off their cutting-edge products to law enforcement officers, security managers and product manufacturers at the 54th annual American Society for Industrial Security International Seminar and Exhibits.
The cutting-edge technology hasn't eclipsed more traditional security. A black Labrador retriever named Jake, an explosive-sniffing dog, playfully leapt 3 feet into the air to put his paws on the chest of trainer Liz Hurtz as she talked about services offered by Explosive Countermeasures International Inc., which is contracted to counteract bomb threats.
Independent security consultant Ron Lander, a retired law enforcement officer from Norco, Calif., said the industry hasn't seen an explosion of new technology this year, but existing products have been enhanced.
He noted strong growth in video surveillance camera technology, for example.
"Three years ago, 380 lines of horizontal video was good but now there are 540 lines, which means better video for surveillance cameras," Landers said. "What does that mean to you? If you are the person who is accosted in a parking lot in semidarkness you want to have as many lines as possible of video for police to look at and reconstruct the incident."
New cameras also include talking robots, such as CCSRobotic's RoboSentry, which is a favorite for hospitals, said engineer Tony Dioato. The knee-high 110-pound robot is programmed with blueprints to navigate around buildings, gather security and maintenance data, and transport files or specimens like a human courier.
Also on display was a smart-card access device encrypted with biometric data to prevent use by other people - if lost, it requires a specific finger print for use.
The exhibit also included a close-up look at so-called visitor management technology. The equipment screens guests' driver's licenses, photographs them and instantly cross-references national databases such as sex offender lists to alert building officials of unwelcome guests.
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