On-board aircraft sensors detect terrorists armed with pathogens

Aren’t we getting a little ahead of ourselves? Researchers at Purdue University are developing a sensor-based system that will not only detect the release of pathogens in an airplane cabin but also pinpoint the exact seat location. The idea, of course, is to identify terrorists, but it could also be useful in quickly identifying a person suffering from a severe communicable disease. The system relies on a complex mathematical modeling technique known as inverse simulation, which analyzes how a material disperses throughout a space and then runs the dispersion in reverse to find its origin. Sensors track the airflow pattern and collect data related to factors such as temperature, velocity and concentration of gases and particles in the air.

“This is difficult to do, in part because an airline cabin is a pretty large area,” said professor Qingyan Chen. “The procedure now requires several days of computing time to complete the track, meaning the method could be used only after a contamination occurs.” Not afraid of life-sized models either, Chen has recreated a commercial airliner’s passenger compartment, complete with rows of seating. Boxy devices located on several seats reproduce body heat, and each has a tube that expels a gas to simulate passengers exhaling. Recreating body heat is important because it affects airflow inside airliners, Chen said. Future work will concentrate on speeding the computation time, with a goal of one day creating a system that alerts pilots in real time and pinpoints a contaminant’s source. “We need to find a way to enhance the computing speed, and we have a strategy to do that,” Chen said.

The research is supported by the Air Transportation Center of Excellence for Airline Cabin Environment Research, established by the Federal Aviation Administration.