US DHS contracts BD&E to develop photothermal emission-based explosives detector

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has awarded a Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contract to Bodkin Design & Engineering (BD&E) to support explosives and chemicals detection at airport security checkpoints.

Under the contract, the company will develop a photothermal emission-based stand-off explosives detector to identify explosives and other chemical residue on people and luggage at airports.

BD&E principal Andrew Bodkin said, "The innovative device being built by BD&E improves on current methods for stand-off detection, and satisfies the Department of Homeland Security’s need for speed, accuracy, and data rate."

The BD&E built innovative device uses photothermal emission, which enables observation of chemical signatures through thermal imaging cameras.

The detector will become an integral part of penetrating scanners such as luggage x-rays and millimetre wave imaging scanners to enable detection of internal contents and surface chemical residues simultaneously.

Currently, various procedures to acquire chemical signatures are available that hardly meet the requirements of the DHS.

The department intends to use the detector for chemical defence, autonomous material identification, and homeland security.

Funded under the SBIR Program established by the Small Business Administration Office, the six month project ensures that the nation’s small, high-tech, innovative businesses form a significant part of the federal government’s research and development efforts.