Vision-Box Launches Biometric Screening Pilot at Bulgarian Land Borders

Vision-Box has received the go-ahead for a new contactless screening pilot at two land borders in Bulgaria. Both borders are part of the European Union’s Entry/Exit System (EES), which is set to go into effect in 2022 and will require member states to collect the biometric information of third party nationals.

The pilot concerns a new Self-Service Enrollment system that will allow travelers to pass through border checkpoints more quickly. The system will consist of touchless registration kiosks, a biometric corridor, and handheld tablets, all of which will run on Vision-Box’s flagship Orchestra identity management platform.

From the traveller’s perspective, the experience will begin with the kiosk, which is able to gather personal information from travel documents, in addition to biometric information through touchless fingerprint sensors and facial recognition cameras. The individual can also use the kiosk to answer entry questions, both for Bulgaria and for the European Union.

Once that process is complete, the passenger will be directed to the corridor, where their biometrics will be used to verify their identity as they pass through the border. Those who cannot be identified will be redirected to a border agent for a more traditional manual screening, which will be carried out with legacy Coppernic technology.

When running properly, the system will minimize the amount of contact between travelers, border staff, and physical border infrastructure. The first phase of the pilot kicked off this month at the Kapitan Andreevo BCP crossing, where the self-service system is available for pedestrians and car travelers entering Bulgaria from Turkey. The second phase will make the technology available to those leaving Bulgaria for Serbia at the Kalotina BCP exit.

Vision-Box’s Orchestra technology has previously been deployed at airports all over the world. Emirates is using the platform to screen passengers in Dubai, while AirAsia is integrating it with its own face-based biometric check-in system. The Bulgaria pilot has the backing of Frontex, which acts as the European Commission’s Border and Coast Guard Agency.

Source: Asian Aviation

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June 28, 2021 – by Eric Weiss