Olympic Game News Part 2

Finally, the long awaited Beijing Olympic Games have begun. During the opening ceremony tens of thousands of people moved in a very orderly fashion through more than 100 audience passages designed by AuthenMetric rapid face recognition system. After unremitting efforts, scientists and researchers from Digital AuthenMetric Technology Co. Ltd and the Center for Biometrics and Security Research, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences realized their dream of creating a safe Olympic Game using innovative technology. China owned the independent intellectual property right of face recognition system which has withstood the most rigorous test during the Olympic Games opening ceremony. It also set a precedent for the application of face recognition technology in the Olympic Games.

The 2008 Beijing Olympics is a big event for China and the world. It is the largest scale Olympics, with the highest standards in the history of the Olympic Games. However, with the international security situation deteriorating in recent years, and targeted terrorist activities increasing, the 2008 Beijing Olympic security faces even more challenges. Therefore, efficient, rapid and accurate personal identification, early detection of suspicious people, and early-warning security measures are being used as effective means to counter terrorist activities.

Under the concept of Hi-tech Olympics and Safe Olympics, scientists and researchers from Digital AuthenMetric Technology Co., Ltd., and the Center for Biometrics and Security Research,Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences innovatively applied China’s independent intellectual property right, internationally advanced technology-human face recognition system into Olympic Games. This is the first time such advanced technology has been used in the security of the Olympics as an intelligent means of personal identification.
The human face recognition comparing system has redefined the real-name checking of ticket holders and people’s identity for the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as provided policy support for the Olympics security and important data of people’s admission.

The Beijing Olympic committee used the real-name system to manage the tickets. The ticket holders were asked to submit their personal information and photos as a means of eliminating potential security vulnerabilities and enhancing Olympic security level, as well as anti-terrorism technology. Likewise, human face recognition is the most natural, visual, and innovative way of biological identification. It will recognize the human physiological visual habits just as human beings recognize others by our faces and can be widely dispersed.

After much research and exploration, scientists from the Center for Biometrics and Security Research developed the high-performance face recognition technology and integrated it with RFID Radio Frequency card technology; customizing a rapid personal identification system for the Beijing Olympics. It worked as a first line of defense for the Beijing Olympics opening and closing ceremonies and verified ticket holders’ identity through a real-name system.

The system first scanned the identity photos submitted by ticket holders, acquired facial features and input them into an information database. At the entrance, it recorded the picture of the ticket holders from a video camera and compared them with the data from the database. Real ticket holders will be released while the fraudulent ticket holders will be transferred to the relevant departments. The system can adapt to different environmental variants like different heights and light variants such as direct sunlight at dusk.

The system can be widely applied to occasions where personal identification is needed. Such occasions may include: large-scale sports events, ports, airports, scenic spots, major conference entrance, examination, government agencies and entrance control of enterprises, etc.

The leading scientist of this project is Doctor Li Ziqing - the researcher with the Center for Biometrics and Security Research, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Through nearly a year’s hard work, Dr. Li has led his highly qualified team in the completion, development, design and implementation of the face recognition comparing system. Aerospace Changfeng Group, the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, the Beijing NorthTek, Norco and Huifeng Enterprise are also involved in this project.