Kerala gets 1st thermal scanner powered with AI to ensure social distancing

A thermal imaging scanner powered with artificial intelligence (AI) has been commissioned at the Thiruvananthapuram Central railway station for ensuring health sand safety checks of passengers as well as to ensure social distancing. The thermal scanning equipment at Thiruvananthapuram station, is a a first of its kind thermal scanning technology in India and will be used for screening railway passengers for checking the body temperature and other parameters.

The Thiruvananthapuram station is the largest railway station in the city and a major junction for the Southern Railways (SR) zone. A Southern Railways official told The Federal that the new state-of-the-art facility will ensure and maintain social distancing, conduct temperature screening of passengers through artificial intelligence.

The AI technology enables the machine to conduct face detection, give alerts for high or abnormal temperature, conduct mask recognition, and give alerts for isolation if required, through a 100 per cent non contact screening process. The equipment serves two major purposes – detecting metal objects and screening body temperature.

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This is an initiative by the Prama Hikvision India Limited through the Chandran Tharoor Foundation. The equipment has scope to screen 45,000 – 48,000 passengers on a daily basis. It is placed at the main entrance of the Thiruvanthapuram station.

Similar thermal scanning machines have been planned to be installed at airports and other railway stations across the state. It is said to be of immense help for screen the passengers entering the states from other countries through the repatriation flights.