Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Israeli company developing see-through-wall imaging system

From: NEXTEL-1
Date: Sat, 17 Jul 2004 16:39:13 -0400

Israeli company developing see-through-wall imaging system
By ISRAEL21c staff   July 11, 2004

The Camero system will initially be
targeted towards Fire & Rescue, Law
Enforcement and Special Forces
operatives. Its radar system produces
three-dimensional pictures of the space behind a wall from a distance of
up to 20 meters.

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Jerusalem Global Ventures

One of the biggest obstacles facing rescue teams or military operations
around the globe is not knowing what's on the other side of the wall.

Countless wasted hours and even possible loss of life are at risk if a
rescue team has to enter blaze-engulfed room without knowing if there
are victims inside.

Likewise, police or soldiers attempting to raid a building or room are
at an extreme disadvantage by not knowing what awaits them on the other
side in terms of manpower and firepower.

It may sound like a super hero ability worthy of Superman, but now an
Israeli company is actually developing a unique, portable "through-wall
imaging micro-power radar," which will enable rescue forces and military
units to operate more effectively in saving lives and protecting their
own lives.

Jerusalem-based Camero Inc. recently announced closure of a Series A
financing round led by Jerusalem Global Ventures, and joined by Motorola
Ventures, the venture capital arm of Motorola Inc. and Walden Israel
Venture Capital.

The Camero system will initially be targeted towards Fire & Rescue, Law
Enforcement and Special Forces operatives. Its radar system uses
ultra-wideband (UWB) technology to produce three-dimensional pictures of
the space behind a wall from a distance of up to 20 meters. The
pictures, which reportedly resemble those produced by ultrasound, are
relatively high-resolution and are produced in real time.

"The company was born of urgent operational needs," CEO Aharon Aharon
told Ha'aretz. "When disaster victims must be rescued from a collapsed
building or a fire, time is of the essence. Rescue forces often invest
enormous resources and precious time in combing the rubble, or endanger
their lives by entering the flames, even if it is not clear that there
are any survivors behind the walls."

Until now, other partial solutions were used, such as fiber optic
cameras inserted through holes drilled in a wall, or certain sound
amplification systems that highlight the noise in a certain room.

The Camero solution was born at the Jerusalem Global venture capital
fund (JVG), when Amir Be'eri, a former defense establishment employee
developed a way to emit UWB radio waves. Radio waves can be used to
visualize an image, but the kinds of radio waves available did not
provide high enough resolution to be useful and could not penetrate
walls built of certain kinds of metals, including steel-enforced
concrete walls.  UWB was a new technology at the time, and it was
necessary because ordinary radio waves do not provide high enough
resolution to be useful. Yet radio waves are necessary because other
types of waves do not pass through walls.

Camero has developed a certain kind of ultra radio wave that can be
emitted to generate a high-definition image and also invented the
technology that allows the enhanced wave to pass through virtually any
wall, according to Aharon. Another problem with radio waves is that they
do not function well around metal.  However, Camero's sophisticated
software enables its technology to work even on steel-reinforced
concrete walls.

Be'eri, with his defense background, recognized the potential of the new
technology and recruited Aharon, a former senior executive at Zoran and
Seabridge. Together, the two recruited seven experts in RF (radio
frequency) technology, signal processing and three-dimensional imaging.

"We believe that the company's strong technical leadership in
multidisciplinary fields, including RF and signal and image processing,
will provide us with a key competitive edge in the market," said Aharon.

Aharon said an initial prototype of the device is expected to be
ready in 18 months. He acknowledges that it will be in direct
competition with a company called Time Domain, which is
offering a similar product. But according Aharon, Camero's
technology is superior in several important respects. First, it can
be used from a distance of 20 meters, whereas Time Domain's
product must be right next to the wall in question. Second, it
gives a detailed picture of everything in the room, whereas Time
Domain's product locates objects, but gives no information about
their shape or size

"Camero's world-class founding team is developing a unique, life-saving
system with huge market potential. The money raised will be used to
complete research & development and launch marketing activities," said
Dr. Shlomo Kalish, Founding Partner in Jerusalem Global Ventures about
the round of financing.

Motorola Ventures was also enthusiastic about Camero's technology.
Matthew Growney, the company's managing director said that he believed
Camero's advanced 3D imaging technology and portability advantage will
significantly improve critical detection and rescue operations of many
public safety agencies around the world.

So the next time a miracle is needed, don't look in the sky for
Superman. Camero's life-saving system just may put him out of business.
http://www.israel21c.org/bin/en.jsp?enPage=BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=object&enDispWho=Articles%5El728&enZone=Technology&enVersion=0&

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