NEC Enables Contactless Check-ins With New Front Desk Assistant

NEC is pitching its Front Desk Assistant (FDA) to companies that are looking to reopen safely during the COVID-19 pandemic. FDA is designed to automate various check-in procedures and reduce the need for physical contact at building entrances.

To that end, FDA uses facial recognition and QR codes to verify the identities of visitors and staff as they enter the building, and supplements that with temperature detection to make sure that no one is running a fever. The temperature scan is carried out with an optional thermal tablet, which is built with a thermal imaging camera.

FDA also comes with pre-registration software to make sure that the people who are in the building are supposed to be there. Visitors who register in advance will be sent a single-use QR code that they can use to sign in when they arrive for their appointment. Employees, on the other hand, will be sent a QR code that does not expire, or can use their face for clearance. Both methods are fully contactless, and minimize the need for face-to-face human interaction.

Employees will receive a notification when their visitor has checked in, and FDA will automatically create an auditable record of access events. That record includes information like temperature and time of entry, and can be converted to an Excel spreadsheet for easy viewing.

Finally, venue operators can use FDA to set capacity limits. No one will be allowed to check-in and enter a facility once that capacity has been reached, and FDA will send out an alert to let people know that no one else will be allowed into the building.

NEC added thermal screening to its access control portfolio in the early days of the pandemic. It then updated its facial recognition engine to make sure it would be able to identify people who are wearing masks. The company has repeatedly emphasized the health and safety benefits of contactless technologies during the pandemic, and is currently working with SITA to bring mobile screening solutions to international airports. 

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March 9, 2021 – by Eric Weiss