Fever-screening cameras offer an instant warning of coronavirus risk

The two engineers from Bridgnorth have come up with a device they hope to supply to businesses and educational establishments. Anyone passing by a thermal camera gives off a reading, giving information about their body temperature.

The invention has been unveiled by Rik Bartholomew and Oliver Granger, who had been developing the technology before the current crisis.

They say with businesses looking for a way out of lockdown, it could be an essential weapon against the arrival of a second wave of infection.

Even before the Covid-19 outbreak was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation on March 11, Rik and Oliver had been researching fever-screening cameras for months.

Now the duo, who run RBE Electrical & Security and ORG Electrical respectively, have teamed up to form their new business, ProServe Technical, and believe the heat-detecting gadgets may soon be taking people's temperatures in schools, gyms, pubs and workplaces.

The devices scan the forehead of those in shot before bringing up a live temperature reading within seconds. The cameras can also sense whether or not a person is wearing a protective mask and can advise them to do so if not, as well as deny access through doors to those regarded as a health risk.

Despite the technology having existed for a while, the pair said it has rapidly accelerated as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and people are looking at implementing it in new ways.

"It will scan your forehead, read your body temperature and if it reads outside of a safe range, it will cause an alert," said Rik.

"We can see these being everywhere. Obviously it does depend on what and if new legislation is brought in, but they could become vital if there was to be another peak or allow businesses to reopen sooner."

Although the cameras only read temperature and cannot give a diagnosis, Rik believes they could bring peace of mind to people in busy places.

"We've already installed these at a business in London as well as a few gyms in the area and although there's not a lot of public knowledge, we're beginning to see them creep out," he said.

"They would be good to see. If you're in a bar with one of these, you know none of those people have fever symptoms.

"Schools could use these to check the temperature of students as they walk through the door, as could businesses. In some cases they could deny access to people with a high reading, creating a safer working environment."

Rik added: "The technology has been there for a while but it's coming on rapidly. It's similar to a thermal police camera, but this is more widespread and it's been tweaked for purpose.

"It's exciting being part of a different ball game. We're used to security and we'll continue to do that, but now we're also looking at scanning for fevers to help businesses and the public.

"Unfortunately they won't tell you if you have coronavirus, but it's a box ticked for employers and peace of mind for members of the public."