In a post shutdown world, providing a healthy workplace will be a critical responsibility for employers. One way to achieve this goal is to prevent symptomatic individuals from entering the building. Toward this end, passive body temperature cameras can be used to notify security personnel when individuals with elevated temperatures are attempting to enter the premises.

Body temperature camera systems typically include two cameras—a standard video camera with an infrared LED and a thermal imaging camera—contained in a single enclosure. The camera enclosure is typically mounted 2 to 2.3 m above the ground level. In addition to the cameras, a temperature calibration device or “Blackbody” is also mounted in the camera field of vision to provide a constant temperature reference source for the thermal camera. When a Blackbody device is present, the accuracy of most thermal cameras is 0.3⁰ C.

The optimal placement of the thermal camera enclosure is 3m to 5m from the focal point of anticipated human traffic. The Blackbody device should also be mounted 3m to 5m from the camera enclosure.

The typical system can isolate and track up to 15 faces as they enter the field of view. If the thermal camera measures a facial body temperature that exceeds a preset threshold, then an alarm is generated and the event is recorded for later review. If employee photos are entered into the application database, then the software can identify the individual that triggered the alarm.

Body temperature camera systems cannot detect the presence of an illness like COVID-19. But they do add a layer of security that can be an important part of a comprehensive security policy.