Peabody Company Develops State Of The Art Airport Security Machine

PEABODY (CBS) - A Peabody company is working with the TSA to introduce new technology to make airport security more effective and efficient.

Analogic showed WBZ-TV COBRA, a piece of machinery that uses a rotating x-ray tube and computer detection system to automatically determine what items are in carry-on bags, without human screening.

"We get a very high resolution image. We can tell what's in the bag and we can tell what material the things are that are inside the bag," Analogic CEO James Green said.

Green says the system spins around the bag and takes in thousands of images to develop a three dimensional image of the bag and its contents. That means passengers can leave their liquids, gels, and laptops inside.

The company says COBRA also speeds up bag checking time significantly. Currently, roughly a 150 passengers are screened at airport security checkpoints per hour, Green said. He says COBRA can increase that rate to over 300 passengers per hour.

COBRA is already in place in London and Green says his company is working with the TSA to get final approval to put it in any airport in the U.S.