How to Test and Compare Two Security Metal Detectors

Discrimination is the word used to represent how security metal detectors read the difference between little metal objects, such as a bobby pin, to large metal objects such as a weapon. It can be important to determine how each metal detector is working because if one unit is having a higher percentage of alarms, it can cause the whole system to slow down.

When determining the difference in discrimination between two units, both units should be set to their optimal condition of operation. This is the setting where the walk-through metal detector will constantly detect a weapon while being set at a minimum level of sensitivity. It is important to make sure that one unit doesn’t have more external interferences than the other one. It is also imperative to make sure the units don’t influence one another by being placed too close together.

How to Test Two Security Metal Detectors

When you’ve determined the units are at peak functioning mode, have a person walk through one of them with a small amount of metal on their body. Then have them walk through the other one with the exact same object in the exact same place on their person. Keep doing this with random items, progressively getting larger, until you are at the point where someone is testing the machines by walking through with a weapon or firearm. Doing this will show where one unit may not be catching some items that the other unit is. If this is the case, make sure to adjust the units to have the same sensitivity levels. It may require the testers to go through this process several times to ensure the units are working the same.

Things to Consider When Testing

Testing more than one unit at a time should be done routinely to make sure the units are both working properly in the same fashion. Testing should always be redone if one of the units is moved to another location as there may be new types of interference. Testing should also be done if a security guard or other person monitoring the unit starts to notice one of the security metal detectors seems to be setting off alarms more frequently than the other unit.