Digital X-ray System Scans Around the World

For example, SAIC has developed a digital X-ray system — the RTR-4® — that enables quick searches for weapons, drugs, and contraband in areas too difficult or time-consuming to search by hand. In addition, the portable system helps enhance the safety margin for explosive ordnance disposal professionals (and innocent civilians).

The key discriminator of the RTR-4 is that it is the only system in the world that's fully digital. That is, the communications between the controller and the imager are digital, as is every other facet of the system. Other systems translate digital images into analog and send the data to the controller and redigitize it.

The RTR-4 can even collect the images over the Internet with no additional equipment. The ethernet interface means that no matter how far away you send an image, it does not lose quality. You can send an image across the room or across the continent, and the quality will be exactly the same. This also enables wireless communications with inexpensive, reliable, commercial off-the-shelf equipment.

One key challenge for SAIC was developing the digital interface; the other was getting the price down to where it was feasible for communities.

In fact, many cities and counties around the U.S. use the RTR-4 system to detect weapons and drugs. (SAIC has sold thousands of RTR-4 systems in the last four years.) The FBI and the U.S. Post Office have purchased systems. A large number of systems have been distributed to various bomb squads in regions around the country.

In addition, all of the branches of the U.S. Armed Forces use the RTR-4 system around the world. For example, the U.S. military has used the system in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Bosnia, as well as Cambodia and other far-flung places, for explosive ordnance disposal and base security applications. (The rugged and flexible RTR-4 family of products can even be transported in a compartmentalized padded backpack for use in remote locations.)

The system's flexibility and adaptability can be illustrated by the experience of a customer with hundreds of X-rays at a certain location. The RTR-4 worked for several days, constantly shooting, and came through unscathed — no objects blew up. The customer was able to inspect virtually everything on site in a reasonable amount of time, and it enabled them to release the area and declare it safe faster than they could have under other circumstances.

The largest future growth area for the system, however, is overseas. In fact, Italy bought the first RTR-4 systems. With the simple, flexible architecture of the RTR-4, customizing the system for other languages has been very simple, shortening the time to market and making it potentially available to the whole world.

Related Information

• RTR-4N™ product information
• Safety and Security Products
• Homeland Security solutions