CTX (explosive-detection device)
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The CTX (Computer Tomography X-ray) is an explosive detection device, a family of
x-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10  nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...
devices developed by
InVision Technologies InVision Technologies, Inc. was a publicly traded company based in Newark, California, that manufactured and sold airport security screening devices to detect explosives in passenger baggage. One of its most well-known products is the CTX explos ...
in 1990 that uses CAT scans and sophisticated
image processing An image is a visual representation of something. It can be two-dimensional, three-dimensional, or somehow otherwise feed into the visual system to convey information. An image can be an artifact, such as a photograph or other two-dimensio ...
software to automatically screen checked baggage for explosives.


CTX-5000

In 1994, the CTX-5000 became the first computed tomography explosive detection system certified by the
US Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
(FAA). The certification of the CTX-5000 followed nine years of development. During that time the FAA invested $90 million in explosives detection and nearly $8.6 million in the specific technology. From 1995 to 1997, the CTX-5000 was tested to solve the challenges involved in integrating an explosives detection system into a baggage system and to validate the estimated costs of wide-scale deployment of the systems.


CTX-5000 SP

The CTX-5000 SP scanning system, an improved version of the CTX-5000 for checked baggage, was delivered to the FAA in 1997 and placed at several of the US's busiest and largest airports. From 1997 to 2000, more than 100 of the systems have been purchased by the FAA to install in US airports, according to InVision.


CTX-5500DS

The CTX-5500DS is an automated explosives detection system that uses computed tomography to characterize materials in checked bags and automatically identify objects that could be
improvised explosive device An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mecha ...
s. The CTX-5500DS is the most widely used, FAA-certified Explosives Detection System in the world. It can be used for either standalone applications or in an integrated manner with airport baggage handling systems. It can also be configured to detect other types of contraband material. The CTX-5500DS has an FAA-certified throughput of 384 bags per hour. Its Dynamic Screening (DS) capability offers flexibility by allowing manual or automatic switching between various screening modes.


CTX-2500

The CTX-2500 is a small-sized explosives detection system that is half the length of earlier CTX models. The CTX 2500 utilizes a single rotating X-ray source to acquire positioning images and CT-slice images, thus achieving its smaller size. The CTX 2500 system is the first FAA-certified Explosives Detection System (EDS) mounted on a truck for easy mobility and access to cargo. One of the units costs approximately US$700,000.


CTX-9000

The CTX-9000 DSi system is the world's fastest FAA-certified (Certification moved to TSA Transportation Security Lab in 2002) Explosives Detection System, handling 542 bags per hour. It features alternate operational modes yielding even higher throughputs. The CTX-9000 DSi is designed for integrated airport installations. Its 1-metre wide conveyor coordinates with standard airport baggage handling systems. The system's architecture utilizes modular components, helping to ease scanner upgrading and servicing. The scanner contains 4 active radiation-shielding curtains. In addition, the gantry rotates at 120 RPM, enabling a slice image to be generated within half a second. A high-speed RF data link connects the rotating gantry to the stationary part of the unit. An air-conditioning unit ensures high performance and reliability in hot, dusty and humid airport environments.


Competition

In the late 1990s, L-3 Communications developed a competing computerized tomography system that also met FAA approval, however it was not TSA Qualified until late 2002. In November 1999, the FAA awarded a contract worth up to US$75 million to L-3 to purchase up to 60 of its explosive detection systems. The
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3DX 6000 explosive detection system developed by L-3 operates similarly to the CTX system. In 2013
Rapiscan Systems Rapiscan Systems is an American privately held company that specialises in walk-through metal detectors and X-ray machines for screening airport luggage and cargo. The company is owned by OSI Systems. The company headquarters, in Torrance, Cal ...
made the first delivery of its RTT product. This machine operates with a non-rotating 360 degree multi source X-ray tube and detector array CT imaging system so the only moving part is the conveyor belt. This allows it to achieve a throughput of 1800 bags per hour.


Recent Developments

Recent research has evaluated the use of
computer vision Computer vision is an interdisciplinary scientific field that deals with how computers can gain high-level understanding from digital images or videos. From the perspective of engineering, it seeks to understand and automate tasks that the human ...
based algorithms that operate on the volumetric data used collected as CT-slice images by these and other manufacturers computed tomography (CT) baggage scanner machines for the automatic detection of other threat types (e.g. guns, knives, liquid containers) using 3D object classification.


References

{{Reflist * Airport Control and Security Systems
CATs at the airport
1 November 2000 * Boeing Airport Security

Radiography Aviation security Explosive detection