It has become an essential function for security teams to protect the public by preventing weapons and other prohibited items from being brought into the spaces where people gather for entertainment, learning, worship, and more. Security measures in places such as stadiums, outdoor venues, schools, religious facilities, convention centers, corporate campuses, and government buildings need to be efficient to safely process large volumes of people. Further, there is a growing need for contactless security in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic that will allow physical distancing while also respecting the privacy of individuals to improve the security experience.
Traditional methods of screening such as walk-through and handheld metal detectors have been in use for decades, and while historically, they have been effective for the detection of metal weapons, they are also very prone to high false alarm rates. Additionally, they are not particularly efficient, with limited throughput and the need for patrons to remove certain clothing such as belts or to empty items from their pockets such as keys and cell phones. And even with these steps, it is often necessary to include secondary screening measures such as pat downs.