DUCHBLICK project closure

Due to the increasing dissemination of simple instructions for preparing improvised explosive devices (IEDs), Germany and Austria face serious threats to public security. Yet, technologies available to security forces only offer limited possibilities. The objective of the bilateral German-Austrian project DURCHBLICK was to investigate a robot-assisted, high-performance multi-sensor system to be used in such difficult settings. A key element was to enable novel sensor systems for deployment, which until then had not been available for this purpose before. It was an essential issue that also objects that are accessible from only one side can be examined.

Project research included the use of imaging methods by mobile X-ray backscatter technology as well as, together with the Freiburg Materials Research Center (FMF) at Freiburg University, the gamma camera to detect radioactive materials.

The goals set for the two-year project could be accomplished and it was shown that the investigated concept is viable and that the sensor technologies offer practical added value. In consultation with the end-users, several scenarios were defined for realistic tests on the sensor technology, and these experimental setups were also featured during the project closure events in Germany and Austria. During the project period and after, the results were disseminated in several popular-scientific publications of broad impact (interviews, magazine articles), in eight publications in scientific journals and by participating in seven conferences, workshops and specialized fairs. In this context, particular emphasis can be put on the presentation of our findings at the international congress of bombdisposal (EOD) experts of the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) in November 2018.