Southampton University has recently carried out tests to see whether the way that a person walks could be used to identify them. Most people walk in a unique way and so if their gait was recorded it could be compared to that of those held on a database and used to identify people.
They used a very special tunnel which has 12 cameras in it, all synchronised which recorded 25 participants as they walked along. They then used this information to build a 3D image, which they found allowed them to identify the person who was walking in 95% of cases.
It is hoped that the results could mean that things like airport security could be tightened up by using equipment to study the way that people walk. The researchers state that if people were just asked to walk down a narrow hall it could contain the necessary cameras and be used to identify them.
One of the researchers stated that masks can be worn, as well as gloves and hats in order to eliminate many ways of capturing him such as DNA and fingerprints, however, he will still have to walk to the scene of the crime.
With cameras being all around us then it could be used to identify people as they walk down the street, visit public buildings or go anywhere outside of their home where there is a camera. Many cameras are hidden and others are not that noticeable but there are a lot around these days and so the chances of being caught on camera are very high..
It was found that extreme changes in clothing could make the data less reliable and so this is a factor which would need to be considered if this is is used outside of the laboratory and may be a factor which needs improving first.