Open architecture: integrating checkpoint technologies for more efficient airport security

Security has been a core focus for airports worldwide for several years. As threats evolve and passenger expectations for seamless services grow, security checkpoint technologies must also progress. Over the past decade, innovations such as remote screening, automated tray return systems and CT scanners have made their way into airport security checkpoints. These advances have made the security screening process faster, more efficient and – most importantly – more secure.

However, integrating these technologies presents its own set of challenges, which is why the industry has been turning its attention towards open architecture. The Airports Council International (ACI) paper ‘Open Architecture for Airport Security Systems’ states: “Key to our success is the shared ability to collaborate across the public, private and academic sectors. It is through these partnerships that we bring the best technologies and brightest minds together and rise to the collective challenge of outmatching a dynamic threat.”

At Vanderlande, open architecture principles have been an integral part of our passenger checkpoint solution design since the inception of our airport checkpoint products. Launched over a decade ago, the PAX Multiplex screening software is built to integrate seamlessly with scanners, lanes and detection algorithms from any vendor. More recently, this capability has been demonstrated at an airport’s security checkpoint, where collaboration between three vendors was necessary to perform a security checkpoint upgrade.

Enhancing threat detection capabilities

As passenger traffic recovered post-pandemic, the airport looked to enhance its threat detection capabilities by upgrading screening equipment and installing CT scanners on existing lanes. To optimise the use of the new scanners and bring more efficiency to its operations, the airport also opted to implement Vanderlande’s remote screening software across the checkpoint.

In a context where the screening lanes, scanners and screening software were provided by the three vendors, collaboration was crucial to the project’s success. Vanderlande’s PAX Multiplex software was at the core of the integration process: its open platform design allowed for the integration of the lane and scanner data using a RESTful API1. Relying on HTTP data communication methods, the API provides a standard and consistent way for the different active systems to communicate.

Towards an industry-wide standard

While this project is a great example of how multiple vendors can collaborate to provide an effective, sustainable checkpoint solution, an industry-wide standard remains to be defined. Following the release of the first open architecture paper by ACI in 2020, the European Organisation for Security (EOS) formed the EOS Security Screening and Detection Working Group (SSDWG).

Vanderlande is a proud contributor to this group, which has been working to address challenges related to the delivery of open architecture in the aviation industry. It also aims to develop a standard API for the industry. Non-proprietary in nature, the API will facilitate the exchange of DICOS2 x-ray images and related data between operational screening devices for image analysis and display of screening results.

The adoption of an industry-approved standard and clear guidelines for open architecture will enable the evolution of security checkpoint technologies using innovative solutions. As a result, airports will be able to pick and choose the most appropriate solutions without having to worry about integration challenges. These will be secure, tested and ready for operations thanks to established industry standards for interoperability and security regulations compliance. Ultimately, passengers will benefit from a more seamless and secure travel experience.