Ajman: Ajman Police are now using smart helmets to detect people for Coronavirus by screening their temperatures. The helmet has special features that enables it to detect symptoms of Coronavirus infection by remotely measuring people’s temperatures, recognising faces and reading the licence plates of vehicles.

Launched in coordination with the Ministry of Interior, the thermal imaging camera uses artificial intelligence (AI) to allow quick scanning of crowds. Lieutenant Colonel Saif Abdullah Al Falasi, Director of Traffic and Patrols Department at Ajman Police, said that the smart helmets can detect if someone has a high temperature enabling officers to take necessary action.

Lt Col Al Falasi said smart helmets were being used in order to enhance the quality of life by ensuring human health and safety, strengthening preventive measures, helping in early detection of cases of infection at public places thereby helping limit the spread of COVID-19.

Lt Col Al Falasi said the smart helmets were equipped with features and sensors that enable them to automatically measure the temperatures of pedestrians from a distance of up to five metres as soon as they pass in front of the helmet. These helmets can screen up to 200 people per minute and can identify people whose body temperatures exceed 37.3 degrees Celsius. If anyone is detected with high temperature then the person is handed over to the competent authorities at the nearest medical facility for necessary follow-up measures.

Lt Col Al Falasi indicated that the use of these smart helmets greatly contributed towards limiting the spread of the virus in public places, as Ajman Police managed to conduct a complete survey of tourist areas and public places in Ajman, including parks and beaches, in addition to conducting a comprehensive survey of 778 shops and a shopping centre in the emirate. Even groceries and shops in all areas of the emirate are being screened. The number of those examined with smart helmets reached 33,910. During the screening procedure, police personnel conducted awareness drives for more than 18,740 people, educating them about the importance of taking precautionary and preventive measures such as wearing a mask and gloves and maintaining social distancing.

A total of 2,031 instances of violations were registered for not wearing face masks in public places.