Panasonic Corporation has announced that it will be providing additional automated facial recognition gates for use at an expanded number of airports in Japan. The additional order will bring the total number of automated gates to 203 units across the country (123 units to be used for foreign nationals).
In October 2017, Panasonic’s automated facial recognition gates were first chosen by the Immigration Services Agency of the Ministry of Justice, and 137 units have since been put into operation at five major airports in Japan (Tokyo Haneda, Tokyo Narita, Nagoya Chubu Centrair, Osaka Kansai, and Fukuoka). For the additional order, beginning at Haneda Airport in Tokyo in July 2019, another 66 units will begin operation at a total of seven airports including Sapporo New Chitose (in mid-November) and Okinawa Naha Airport (in early July 2020).
Without the need for prior registration of biometric data, the system compares photographic data of the traveller’s face in the IC chip embedded in the passport with an image taken at the facial recognition gate to verify identity.