Government authorities in Japan have opted to use Panasonic technology to implement facial recognition for border security at a major airport in the country.
Panasonic’s solution has already been trialed at the Tokyo International Airport since October 18th, the company says. Panasonic has deployed three automated border gates that rely on facial recognition to identify Japanese citizens returning to the country: Their faces are automatically compared to the biometric data embedded in their passports to verify their identities, who are then able to easily pass through the gates without delay. The system is designed to be easy to use, and uses “advanced technology that can deal with appearance-altering variations such as aging, makeup, facial expression, and image quality”, according to a statement from Panasonic.
Going forward, the company says it “will continue to help authorities implement smooth and strict immigration control procedures at airports and seaports throughout Japan as the country aims to establish itself as a tourism nation toward 2020 and beyond.”
This appears to be one of the important first steps in a broader plan to implement a biometric entry and exit plan in the country, at least for citizens. Meanwhile, government authorities have also shown an interest in developing biometric technologies that could allow tourists to pay for purchases and book amenities with a fingerprint scan, which would in turn be used by tourism officials to track spending habits and related data during the 2020 Olympics.
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December 15, 2017 – by Alex Perala
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