Liberty Defense Holdings, a technology provider of concealed weapons and threat detection solutions, announces that its millimeter-wave shoe screening technology, initially developed at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), and a 2020 R&D 100 award winner, was awarded the 2022 Interagency Partnership Award from the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (FLC).

The annual FLC awards are among the top honors in the technology transfer field and recognize federal laboratories for outstanding technology transfer achievements. PNNL was honored for its work on the technology, which was developed in partnership with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Science and Technology Directorate, and exclusively licensed to Liberty Defense in 2021 for commercialization.

“This is a great accomplishment and a true reflection of the partnership between PNNL and Liberty to bring innovative and next-generation security technology to the market,” said Bill Frain, CEO of Liberty Defense. “The shoe screening technology, paired with the High-Definition Advanced Imaging Technology body scanner, also licensed to Liberty, will revolutionize screening at aviation checkpoints.”

The millimeter-wave shoe scanner uses advanced imaging to detect concealed objects in footwear without the wearer having to remove their shoes, creating a highly efficient, seamless screening process.

“In practice, the shoe screener could be integrated into the floor of the existing airport body scanning portals or be used as a standalone unit at the checkpoint,” said Frain. “Our goal is to improve not only the efficacy of airport screening but also improve the experience of passengers. This technology has the potential to do just that.”