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3D Face Cameras
newsblaze writes "Now there is a fast, inexpensive device for simultaneous acquisition of accurate three-dimensional and two-dimensional human faces. It will allow law enforcement and security agencies to capture both types of mug shots in seconds as a single snapshot and provides incredible accuracy in correctly mapping the individual being booked in 3D."
I'll have to make sure I am bloated... that way they won't be able to identify me when I am not!
Maybe it's just me, but I would think that people with 2-Dimensional faces would be easy to spot. Look! Over there! The guy without the nose!
Spiderman Joining Microsoft? It's on the web!
Reminds me that I really need to wear that Darth Vader mask in public a lot more.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
The industry that always takes the forefront in technological innovation will be all over this one too.
Yes, I mean porn.
Mr. Duron adds, "At BlueBear Network, we are dedicated to helping law enforcement keep our neighborhoods safe by providing the best biometric identification and information sharing technology available in a way that is easily deployed, totally integrated to existing systems and affordable for all police services from small detachments to large metropolitan police forces."
"At RedBear Network, we are dedicated to helping law enforcement keep degrading personal privacy by providing the best and most intrusive biometric identification and database sharing technology available in a way that every government sector can integrate personal data tracking features into existing personal information database creation systems which is affordable for all taxpayers both in rural and metropolitan areas who are getting fucked by this under the guise of added benefit."
Thanks for continuing to support companies with free advertising on Slashdot by giving them exposure for stealing our rights to privacy.
Remember, just because you were arrested and your mugshot was taken does not mean that you should be kept in a 3D database linked to every other anti-terrorist database out there, especially if your *alleged* offense occurred with the boundaries of the USA where you used to be innocent until proven guilty.
The real problem with this type of work is when software is used to match mugshots to actual pictures and video. Even leading researchers are still having a very difficult time doing this. I think the government should be focusing more on advancing the work of these researchers than on gathering more data.
Voice your opinion!
... was full of bullshit. No technical details were given, the release had OK spelling, but poor grammar, and practically everything was advertising-speak. Who wants to bet that this is a good example of vapor-ware?
This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined in the Securities Litigation Improvements Act of 1996. The words "believe, expect, estimate and project" and similar expressions define forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date the statement was made. BBNI undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are currently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted or quantified. Future events and actual results could differ materially from those set forth in, contemplated in, or underlying the forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties to which forward-looking statements are subject include, but are not limited to, the company's ability to meet its projected growth, the effects of government regulation, competition, and other material risks.
just in case *ahem* I want to have a nice cup of tea waiting for her.....
Don't anthropomorphize computers: they hate that.
From the article :
Mr. Duron adds, "At BlueBear Network, we are dedicated to helping law enforcement keep our neighborhoods safe by providing the best biometric identification and information sharing technology available in a way that is easily deployed, totally integrated to existing systems and affordable for all police services from small detachments to large metropolitan police forces."
Yup, I hear you. And how is this device supposed to help identify muggers hiding behind, say, an old-fashioned hood ? You know, like in those '80s movies, where muggers were real muggers and were easily recognized by their black hoods and mean attitude ? (besides, a good hood keeps you warm in winter).
Though I suppose hooded people may now be sued in the US under the DMCA... "biometric information concealing using a hood -> they must have reverse engineered our devices !!"
Karma cannot be described by words alone.
I know a lot of one dimensional people. Would this take pictures of them too?
It's nice to see that their crack team of token racially-diverse employees
http://www.bbninternational.com/company.html can make sure that everyone who's between the ages of 32 and 36 will be so catalogued.
To say the least! The article mentioned "acquisition of accurate three-dimensional and two-dimensional human faces". It did not say photographs or images or any sort of virtual recreation. This thing must rip the face off your skull. That's gotta hurt.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
From a down-market PR firm. Do you have any idea of the difference between news and paid publicity?
The article says about as much as the summary. It would be nice to know how the 3D aquisition is done!
I used to work at the computer vision research lab at Notre Dame, and we had a pretty cool device that was used to capture 3-D frontal images of anything (we used it for faces). IIRC, it scanned a horizontal laser line down across the subject and measured reflected light using two sensors, triangulating to compute 3D information. I wonder if this camera uses the same concept? Some drawbacks of the afore-mentioned technique are that you can only capture a terrain-style 3D map of one side of an object, and subjects that open their eyes cause holes in the terrain where the reflected light was scattered by the wet surface. To get a 360 degree capture requires multiple scans and software to merge the resulting models.
Lots of ugly thieves getting face lifts and nose jobs.
That should at least be good for the economy! And heck, who wouldn't want to get mugged by a handsome thief with a pretty face and straight nose? Oh and lets not forget to fix those teeth too, and lose about 20 pounds!
To the making of books there is no end, so let's get started
I wanted to see some pictures. Oh well I guess I'll just take the article for "face" value.
Ba-dum-bum.
Thanks, I'll be here all week. Don't forget to tip your servers.
-- (Score:i , Imaginary)
Very cool technology. Casinos will most likely implement something like this first. In Nevada it is state law that if someone has registered as a compulsive gambler the burden is on the casino to keep them out.
My sigs offend the max # of people all over the world, regardless of race, religion, color, sex or creed. It's a gift.
Oops! A crack in the floor!
--
"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
99.999% of cop shops won't be able to afford it or be able to deploy it.
Its a solution (maybe) that's looking for a problem. They're hoping somebody out there is stuck looking a crap load of picures and trying to match a face.
The situation is more complex. To pick a face out of a crowd, you need to scan the crowd and match every face out there against a database full of faces.
The had part is in being able to pick out the faces, not filling the database.
MSBPodcast.com The opinions expressed here are my own. If you don't like 'em... Think up your own stuff.
With that kind of database the children would be safe! Think of the children!
I
There's at least one company with a product that makes a good 3D image from a 2D image. There are applications in security for matching two images taken from different angles - you want to match in 3D, not 2D.
Sure, it's making up information, but the human head isn't an unknown amorphous blob, there is a certain regularity to it.
If you have the conditions to use special hardware and photography techniques you might get better 3D, but if this is being aimed at security, that's not a luxury you usually have.
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/kent/45 34903.stm
Some point out that this has potential for abuse, probably related to the fact it's being marketed to police. Well, so does just about every piece of modern technology. It's pretty obvious, though, that while things like master databases and 3D mugshots can be abused by a police state, you also need these improvements to stop increasingly sophisticated criminals.
You can't stop technology, because people won't stop craving progress. The only way to prevent these tools from making a Better Police State, is by having a culture that won't tolerate a police state to begin with. That means watching the government, but it also means that individuals have personal ethical standards that keep them from making the little decisions that contribute to misuse of technology. You can be both safe and free, but you can't be safe, free, and ignorant.
Don't listen to that man, he's obviously line!
Chicken Mind Reading Study Concludes
.... who immediatly thought of the old "Sit on the Photocopier" trick?
Even better, only now it will be in 3D!
Which one of these buttons calls your parents to pick you up?
Lasers Controlled Games!
I've seen half-a-dozen of these press releases by facial-recognition companies and they never say anything about false positives. In fact they rarely provide numbers at all.
"dramatic improvements in the accuracy and performance for facial recognition," yeah, well, how does "dramatic" translate to percentages?
The old familiar math... if there is one known terrorist per million people, and if the false positive rate is one in a thousand, then 999 out of 1000 people identified as "terrorists" will be innocent.
"How to Do Nothing," kids activities, back in print!
OK, that was just plane mean.
Raise your children as if you were teaching them to raise your grandchildren, because you are.
That reminds me. I want to get one myself. First, I'll shut off my Dell iMac, then I'll hop in my Chevrolet Taurus, and see if my local Target Wal-mart has one. Once I get it, I'll post a few GIF JPG's.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.