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Portable backscatter technology (ZBV) and drug detection

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

We have all heard of backscatter technology, technically known as Z Backscatter, first used at ports and border crossings for essentially x-raying trucks and railroad cars looking for dirty bombs, human cargo, or contraband. But, the manufacturer's website shows it used for packages and suitcases, "personnel inspection," and at airport entry points. Now, instead of a fixed device that something must be run by, the backscatter device can come to you in a van, known as ZBV. The manufacturer even touts its product for drug detection: A breakthrough in X-ray detection technology, AS&E's Z Backscatter Van (ZBV) is a low-cost, extremely maneuverable screening system built into a commercially available delivery van. The ZBV allows for immediate deployment in response to security threats, and its high throughput capability facilitates rapid inspections...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on February 09, 2008 (boomark / email).