Muon Cargo
In Muon Systems we have always been convinced of the great potential of muon tomography for the inspection of cargo and vehicles.
Now, with our developments for the industrial sector and with the support, advice and funding of the Ports 4.0 program, we are more prepared than ever to make it a reality.
Ports 4.0
The Muon Cargo project aims muon tomography to become a true system for innocuous and non-invasive inspection of goods for the detection of threats and fraud at ports and borders.
The illegal traffic of substances and materials represents a major risk for our societies. The massive trade in goods around the world creates a need for efficient procedures to inspect shipping containers and vehicles for hidden materials.
Due to the continuous growth of the sector, new agile inspection technology solutions with a high degree of automation are required to join current control techniques.
Since 2015, Muon Systems has been working hard to bring muon tomography to industry. The current level of development allows us to propose a complete device for the non-invasive inspection of containers and vehicles using muon tomography, to cover the current needs of inspection of goods in ports and borders. With Muon Cargo we will carry out a pilot in the port environment with the support and financing of the Ports 4.0 from Puertos del Estado.
The Muon Cargo Project
Simulation
Simulation of the detection system, data collection and cargo placement. Training algorithms for detection of anomalies and non-permitted materials.
Manufacturing
Production of the complete tomography system, with 2 tracking detectors made up of 2 muon chamber each. The device is based on our design and we will follow the manufacturing process that we have been improving since 2015.
Pilot at port
Installation in a port environment of a pilot checkpoint for the on-site training process and real-cargo testing.
The main objective of the Muon Cargo project is to provide a fast, innocuous and non-invasive container inspection device to detect threats, the traffic of illegal goods and hidden people, with muon tomography technology. This will reduce the number of manual checks, increase the number of containers scanned and improve security within the port logistics chain.
Muon tomography, or muography, makes use of particles called muons that are produced in the upper layers of the atmosphere and that reach the earth's surface at a rate of 10,000 per minute and square meter, having great penetrating power in the matter. When these particles pass through an object, their energy and trajectory are modified depending on the nature (density, composition and geometry) of that object.
Muon tomography requires to measure these trajectory deviations by placing muon detectors before and after the object studied. The measured deviations can be used through reconstruction algorithms to obtain a inside density map of the object. The main targets of the project are:
- Threat and anomaly detection software, developed with AI algorithms.
- Detection hardware manufacturing: construction of high-resolution muon detectors.
- Full system training in real environment.
The result of the project is a scanning device capable of detecting a wide range of materials in terms of resolution and inspection time. The technology combines the ability of muography to discriminate different types of materials and machine learning to improve accuracy and alarm response times.