A university student has invented a security technology solution that seeks to monitor and restrict unauthorised entry into institutions and premises.
Francis Ng’ang’a, a Zetech Electrical and Electronic Engineering student, says the Advanced Face Recognition system that scans people’s faces and eye iris to ascertain their identity will come in handy in preventing strangers from entering institutions.
The technology, he says, has high-precision algorithms to accurately identify individuals, reducing errors associated with manual checks.
He adds that its processing capability is able to handle large volumes of people accessing entry, thus enhancing convenience with improved security through biometric data, safeguarding against identity theft and unauthorised access.
This, he says, will come as a boost to universities and colleges that have been grappling with restricting access to their premises using identification cards.
“This more secure and efficient technology seeks to replace the manual identification method. It ascertains people’s identity through their face and eye iris, which is quite effective compared to students’s identification cards,” says Ng’ang’a.
The security, he says, has a backup that ensures that when it fails, other identification keys, including fingerprints, can be used.
“The system can be used in a school setup where students scan their faces as they enter the schools. What the system aims to do is scrap off the use of student identification cards,” Francis said.
He has developed the prototype in three main phases, which were research and ideation phase, development phase (prototype development), and testing phase.
According to Ng’ang’a, the technology can still be developed further as there is advancement of technology, including the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
“The good thing about machine learning and AI is that the system is able to learn as it works depending on the users using the system. It also acts on feedback to improve and reinforce its learning,” Ng’ang’a asserted.
He says with the technology, students will not need to always carry their identification cards.
“There are instances where a student may forget their ID, and so they are turned away. The face recognition system helps to bridge this gap. The system can also be deployed in classes to mark class attendance,” he added.
To market the innovation, the young innovator calls on stakeholders, including schools, security organisations, and banks, to buy into the innovation to enhance their security systems.
“Offices can also use the technology if they want to lock out strangers from their enterprises,” he said.
He called for support to mass develop the technology, saying it will be a huge boost in offering security solutions.
“For instance, every school and institution of higher learning should have such technology so as to keep off strangers and criminals from gaining access to the institution. If it can be produced on a large scale, it will be a huge boost,” he said.
Ng’ang’a called on fellow young innovators to familiarise themselves with copyright laws to ensure their creative ideas are trademarked to prevent theft and malicious use of their innovations.
Zetech Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Alice Njuguna applauded the innovators, saying the University has set up a kitty to support them.
Professor Njuguna said that the success of these projects highlights the university’s commitment to fostering innovation and providing students with the resources and support needed to develop impactful technologies.
“We have the chancellor’s kitty that seeks to fund innovative ideas to completion. We also have skilled lecturers who have been taking the innovators through to the completion of their innovations. Besides, we have also been linking our innovators to the market to have their technologies absorbed by the industry. This has helped the institution in remaining marketable and attractive to students,” said Prof. Njuguna.
By Muoki Charles
