Optex, the Japanese intrusion detection specialist, shares with asmag its latest innovation, laser detector RLS-3060L/RLS-3060SH.
Laser technology is usually applied for industrial measurements and rarely used in security products, said Yoshi Hamamoto, Security Sensing Innovation Department, Security Business Division. According to Hamamoto, this is the first laser detector on the market. The silver bullet-shaped detector utilizes Class 1 laser, which is harmless to the human body. The RLS-3060L/RLS-3060SH can be set up horizontally or vertically on the wall to cover a range of 30 meters in a horizontal deployment. Its intelligent detection capability enables it to tell flying birds apart from humans climbing up a wall. The detector can determine an object's speed, distance and size. People detected by the laser appear as red, blue or yellow circles on the computer screen. In addition, the detector has the capacity to control IP or analog PTZ cameras with its four outputs, Hamamoto said.
As with most new products, the detector does not come cheap, costing about 10 times the average price of Optex IR detectors. Despite the price tag, it has sold more than 1,000 units per year in Japan. The product currently targets high-end security sectors, such as military facilities, nuclear plants and prisons.
Without competition, it would be difficult to lower such detector's selling price and improve market adoption. Its future lies in the will of cash-strapped governments to invest in expensive protection gear for critical public facilities.