WO2016124875A1

WO2016124875A1 - Portable risk-determining apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2016124875A1
Application number: PCT/GB2015/050291
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mohammed Yusuf DERIA; Ahmed Mohamed MOHAMOUD
Original assignee: Tag Team (World) Malta Limited
Priority date: 2015-02-04
Filing date: 2015-02-04
Publication date: 2016-08-11

Abstract

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10) for determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, comprising a user monitoring element (16) including at least a sensor (22) in communication with the user; an alert output element (18); and a processor (20) in communication with the user monitoring element (16) and the alert output element (18). The alert output element (18) is activatable by the processor (20) if the processor (20) determines the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed based on an input received from the sensor (22). A portable wearable risk-determining device (12),method (200) of determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, and risk-determining system (300) are also provided.

Description

Portable Risk-Determining Apparatus

The present invention relates to a portable risk-determining apparatus, and in particular to an apparatus for determining whether a user poses a risk of performing a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others. The invention further relates to a wearable device for determining a risk posed by the wearer, and to a risk-determining system including a plurality of the said apparatuses. Furthermore, the invention relates to a method of determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed.

Terrorist attacks on civilian populations occur on a regular basis, and are often perpetrated by individuals, making the attacks very difficult to prevent. In order to maximise exposure and damage, such attacks will often target areas which are densely populated or crowded, and this makes mass gatherings of people, for instance at marketplaces, churches, mosques or temples, highly vulnerable.

One such gathering is the Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage to the holiest city in Islam, Mecca. Hajj takes place once every Islamic year and lasts for five consecutive days, from the 8^th to the 12^th days of Dhu al-Hijjah. During this period, Muslims from all over the world make the journey to Mecca, in order to fulfil one of the Five Pillars of Islam. In recent years, the number of pilgrims has grown substantially, from 1.9 million in 1996 up to a peak of 3.2 million in 2012. This number is expected to continue growing in the coming years, and surpass 4 million pilgrims in total.

The mass-movement of individuals on such a large scale presents a particular problem for security services which are tasked with keeping order and proactively preventing attacks, since suspicious activity will not be immediately obvious amongst the crowds. Furthermore, the security services are often preoccupied with ensuring an appropriate flow of foot traffic, and attending to the infirm, and therefore may not be able to devote their full attention to suspicious behaviour.

In such crowds, it can therefore be more straightforward than under normal circumstances to smuggle weapons or bombs, for example, into the area, allowing would-be terrorists the opportunity to commit atrocities more easily. It is an object of the present invention to improve or substantially obviate the problems as presented above, by providing a means of determining the risk of performing a forbidden activity posed by individuals within a crowd.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a portable risk-determining apparatus for determining a risk of a forbidden activity being performed, the apparatus comprising: a user monitoring element including at least a sensor in communication with the user; an alert output element; and a processor in communication with the user monitoring element and the alert output element; the alert output element being activatable by the processor if the processor determines the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed based on an input received from the sensor.

By providing an apparatus which is capable of determining whether there is a risk that a person will perform a forbidden, typically but not necessarily violent, activity which will result in physical harm occuring to others, it is advantageously possible to pre-empt the forbidden activity if a third-party, typically the authorities, are forewarned. This could beneficially prevent terrorist attacks on civilian populations and thus save lives.

Preferably, the sensor may include a weapon detector, which may include a metal detector and/or a firearm discharge detector. Additionally or alternatively, the weapon detector may include a chemical sensor, which may be adapted to detect explosive compounds, or alternatively may be adapted to detect airborne chemical ions. Furthermore, the weapon detector may include an auditory detector.

Forbidden activities are typically violent, and therefore a user monitoring element may determine whether or not an individual poses a risk is by sensing whether an instrument of violence is in their possession. The most common weapons used in terror attacks are firearms and explosives, and therefore physical and/or chemical detectors would be the most effective means of detecting these items.

Optionally, the sensor may include a biometric monitor, which may include a pulse-rate monitor, a skin conductivity monitor, and/or a mass sensor.

There are many biological indicia which would be associated with performing a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others, the chief of which are the physiological manifestations of anxiety, such as sweating or increased pulse-rate. Therefore, the user monitoring element could advantageously monitor one of these biological indicia in order to pre-empt the performing of a forbidden act by an individual.

The apparatus may further comprise a data storage element, within which historical data may be stored, and the data storage element may preferentially be a biometric data storage element for storing historical biometric data of the user. The biometric data storage element may be in communication with the processor, the processor using the input from the sensor in combination with biometric data stored in the biometric data storage element to determine the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed.

To determine whether or not a given characteristic is indicative of risk, there needs to be a comparator of some description. Ideally, this would be historical data relating to the characteristic, and therefore it would be beneficial to provide for some form of data storage connected to the processor of the apparatus in order to store and/or record historical data.

Preferably, there may be provided an apparatus location element for determining a location of the portable risk-determining apparatus, and this may be a satellite location device.

In order to better co-ordinate a response to a determined risk, it is advantageous for the co-ordinating party to know the location of the individual who is likely to be posing the risk, such that they may quickly intercept and neutralise any perceived threat.

The alert output element may advantageously include an audible or visible alarm, or alternatively may include a wireless transmitter capable of transmitting an alarm signal to a third-party receiving device.

The alert output element may take many forms. A localised audible or visible alarm may be useful to warn other individuals in the vicinity of the person having the apparatus to the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, or more likely, the alert output element may be silent so as to avoid alerting the individual likely to carry out the forbidden act, instead alerting the authorities. This ensures that the alarm does not inadvertently cause initiation of the forbidden act, which may have disastrous or fatal consequences. A user attachment means may be provided for attaching at least the user monitoring element to the user, and this may include a strap and/or a lanyard.

It is preferable to ensure that the user of the apparatus cannot easily dispose of the device in order to commit a forbidden act, and therefore a wrist strap may be the best means of attaching the apparatus to an individual. In particular, if the apparatus must be worn in order for the user to be admitted to a particular vulnerable location, then a greater degree of security can be achieved.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a portable wearable risk-determining device for determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed by the wearer, the device comprising: a device housing; a wearer monitoring element including at least a sensor in communication with the wearer; an alert output element; a processor in communication with the wearer monitoring element and the alert output element, the processor, wearer monitoring element and alert output element being housed in or on the device housing; and a wearer attachment means affixed to the device housing for attaching the device to the wearer; the alert output element being activatable by the processor if the processor determines the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed based on an input received from the sensor.

A wearable device beneficially houses all of the relevant components within a single housing, meaning that devices can be disseminated upon entry to a particular vulnerable location, meaning that a third party, typically local authorities, can track all persons entering that area. Not only will this advantageously permit all individuals wearing the device to be monitored, there is also an added deterrent effect perceived by would-be terrorists attempting to smuggle weaponry into the location.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, the method comprising the steps of: a] providing an individual with a portable risk- determining apparatus, preferably in accordance with the first aspect of the invention; b] measuring a characteristic of the individual via the portable risk-determining apparatus; c] determining whether the characteristic of the individual is outside a predetermined acceptable characteristic range; and d] if the characteristic is outside of the said predetermined acceptable characteristic range, determining whether this represents a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed.

Preferably, the characteristic to be measured during step b] may be any one of: the presence of a weapon; the presence of an explosive compound; the presence of a contraband chemical; user pulse rate; user mass; user skin conductivity.

Ideally, the predetermined acceptable characteristic range may be measured under controlled conditions prior to step a].

During step d] the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others may be determined to be present as soon as the measured characteristic is outside of the predetermined acceptable characteristic range, or alternatively, the risk of a forbidden activity may resulting in physical harm to others be determined probabilistically and/or heuristically.

By monitoring the individual upon receipt of the apparatus, and comparing the data to that measured, a third party tracking the risk determined will have a better idea of normal fluctuations in a particular characteristic which is being measured, advantageously limiting false positive results for perceived risk. This can be achieved particularly successfully if a probabilistic and/or heuristic approach is taken to the determination of risk. Additionally, the method may further comprise step e] subsequent to step d] of alerting a third-party if a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others is determined.

Alerting the security services upon receipt of a positive indication of risk beneficially allows said security services to efficiently evaluate and intercept the risk before it develops.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a risk-determining system for detecting a risk posed by individuals within a crowd, the system comprising: a plurality of a portable risk-determining apparatuses, preferably in accordance with the first aspect of the invention; a third-party receiving device, configured to receive transmissions from the said plurality of portable risk-determining apparatuses; and a central processor in communication with the third-party receiving device, the central processor being arranged to determine a risk posed by an individual within a crowd based on a transmission from the alert output element of one portable risk-determining apparatus.

The system may further comprise an alarm device which is associated with the central processor to alert third-parties to the said determined risk posed by the individual.

Each risk-determining apparatus may also be arranged to communicate with the other risk-determining apparatuses to determine a risk posed by a plurality of individuals within a crowd.

A system which allows the authorities to monitor the risk posed by individuals within a crowd obviates many of the challenges associated with crowd-control, such as the difficulty of finding a particular individual. Suspicious individuals are ordinarily determined by visual identification, which requires experience on the part of the security staff, and therefore by providing an alternative, risk determination can be substantially automated, increasing the efficiency of detecting individuals likely to commit a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others.

The invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a perspective representation of a first embodiment of portable risk-determining apparatus in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, formed as a portable wearable risk determining device in accordance with the second aspect of the invention; Figure 2 shows a diagrammatic representation of a second embodiment of a user wearing a portable risk-determining apparatus in accordance with the first aspect of the invention;

Figure 2a shows an enlarged representation of the portable risk-determining apparatus of Figure 2;

Figure 3 shows a diagrammatic representation of a method of determining the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, in accordance with the third aspect of the invention; and

Figure 4 shows a perspective representation of a risk-determining system in accordance with the fourth aspect of the invention.

Referring firstly to Figure 1 of the drawings, there is shown a portable risk-determining apparatus for determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, shown globally at 10. In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus 10 is provided as a portable wearable risk-determining device 12, but it will be readily apparent that, using modern wireless communications technology, the individual components of the apparatus 10 could be spread across multiple devices utilising a computer-interconnected data-transfer network, such as the Internet.

In the embodiment shown, the portable wearable risk-determining device 12 comprises a device housing 14 which houses or mounts a user monitoring element 16, an alert output element 18 and a processor or controller 20 for the device 12.

The user monitoring element 16 may include a sensor 22 which is, in the depicted embodiment, a pulse-rate monitor 24 positioned on a lower surface of the device housing 14 so as to in-use contact the skin of a wearer of the device 12.

The alert output element 18 as shown is or includes a wireless transmitter 28, such as a Wi-Fi or other wireless protocol transmitter, capable of transmitting a signal to an external receiving unit 130, such as that shown in Figure 2, illustrated as a satellite receiver. However, the alert output element 18 could just as easily be a visual or audio alarm element, capable of transmitting a localised alarm to third-parties. The processor 20 is in wired communication with both the pulse-rate monitor 24 and the wireless transmitter 28 in the depicted embodiment. However, as described above, if the apparatus 10 were not provided as a single device 12, wireless communication would be necessary, and it will therefore be appreciated that this is an acceptable alternative. In this instance, as the user monitoring element 16 is a pulse-rate monitor 24, it is preferable to provide a base reference against which a measured pulse rate can be compared, and to that end, a data storage element 26 is locally on-board or remotely provided in communication with the processor 20 for the storage of historical biometric data, the resting pulse-rate in this instance. However, if a different user monitoring element 16 were to be used, this data storage element 26 may not be necessary.

The data storage element 26 in the depicted embodiment is illustrated as being a physical memory storage device such as an SD card insertable into the device housing 14, but it will be readily apparent that any appropriate data storage element could be provided in communication with the processor, for instance, being an in-built memory storage element and/or a remote cloud-based memory storage element.

The processor 20 can also be associated with an apparatus location element 32, as is the case for the depicted embodiment which utilises a satellite location device 34 such as a GPS tracking device to determine an absolute location of the portable wearable risk- determining device 12. The portable wearable risk-determining device 12 further includes a user attachment means 36 which is used to attach the device 12, via the device housing 14, to the user. The critical component of the device to be attached, however, is the pulse-monitor 24.

The user attachment means 36 in the illustrated embodiment is a strap portion 38, typically a wrist-strap, which can be attached around a limb or body part of the user. However, any appropriate user attachment means 36 could be provided, such as a lanyard, or the device 12 could even be formed so as to be readily insertable into a pocket of the user's clothing.

In use, the pulse-rate monitor 24 is positioned so as to contact the skin of the wearer such that it can measure the pulse-rate of the wearer. When the portable wearable risk- determining device 12 is initially supplied to the user, a resting pulse-rate can be measured by the pulse-rate monitor 24 and stored in the data storage element 26 of the device 12 as historical biometric data.

An elevated pulse-rate might be indicative of exertion on the part of the wearer, but in a crowd of people may in fact be a better indicator of stress or anxiety. Stress and anxiety are emotions which are experienced by individuals prior to entering dangerous situations, for example, if the person has a weapon, or intends to commit a terrorist act. Alerting the authorities to such indicia could therefore be highly advantageous.

The pulse-rate as measured by the pulse-rate monitor 24 is passed to the processor 20 which can compare the measured pulse-rate to historical pulse-rate data. By doing so, the processor 20 can determine whether the pulse-rate falls outside of an acceptable pulse-rate range, determined based on the historical pulse-rate data or otherwise. If the pulse-rate is, for example, highly elevated, the processor 20 can log this and activate the transmitter 28. Furthermore, the pulse-rate monitor 24 could be used as a means of determining that the user attachment means 36 has not been removed by the user. This could then be used as a means of ensuring compliance with the wearing of the portable risk-determining device 12.

The transmitter 28, upon receipt of an activation command from the processor 20, will transmit a signal to an external receiving unit 130. Upon receipt of the signal, the external receiving unit 130 may authorise a third party to either investigate or intercept the individual wearing the portable wearable risk-determining device 12.

As indicated previously, a pulse-rate monitor 24 is by no means the only type of user monitoring element 16 which could be used to determine whether or not the individual poses a risk. The user monitoring element 16 could determine other characteristics of the user, for example, whether they possess a weapon or a bomb. The user monitoring element 16 could therefore be or include a weapon detector, incorporating for instance a metal detector or a firearm discharge detector, be it an auditory sensor or a chemical sensor. Alternatively, the user monitoring element 16 could incorporate a specialised chemical sensor, capable of detecting, for instance, explosive compounds or airborne chemical ions.

In the case of an auditory sensor, such as a microphone, this may be utilised to monitor for keywords indicative of a forbidden act to be committed. The auditory sensor may be permanently activated allowing remote constant monitoring for listed keywords, for example, 'attack', bomb', 'gun', via a suitable computer algorithm, or the processor 20 may include a suitable monitoring circuit that monitors for the listed keywords and then automatically activates a monitoring device, which may be onboard or remote, to determine the relevancy of the conversation or discussion, either algorithmically or by a remote analyst. Alternatively, the auditory sensor could be arranged to detect the sound of the discharge of a firearm, for example.

Different types of biometric monitor could also be used to determine characteristics of the user, such as skin conductivity or mass, which might respectively be indicative of the presence of excess sweat and therefore anxiety, or the presence of a weighty weapon or explosive device.

To aid the third-party in locating the user whom has been determined to present a risk, the transmitter 28 may also transmit the location of the portable wearable risk- determining device 12 to the receiving unit 130, as determined by the satellite location device 34. This allows a third-party in communication with the receiving unit 130 to rapidly intercept and assess the actual risk posed by the individual for which the risk has been determined.

An alternative embodiment of a portable risk-determining apparatus is shown globally in Figure 2 as 110. Identical or similar components to those of the first embodiment will be referred to using identical or similar references hereafter, and therefore further detailed description is omitted for brevity.

In this second embodiment, the apparatus 110 is not formed as a single device. A user monitoring device 112 is provided which incorporates a user monitoring element 116, the sensor 122 of which in this embodiment being a chemical sensor 140 capable of detecting airborne chemical ions, such as those associated with the discharge of firearms or explosives. This device 112 is shown in more detail in Figure 2a.

Such chemical sensors 140 could include ion sensors, which are capable of detecting chemical ions present in the air, for instance, by spectroscopic or physicochemical means. The user monitoring device 112 further includes a wireless monitoring transmitter 142 in direct or indirect communication with the chemical sensor 140, the wireless monitoring transmitter 142 being capable of transmitting signals received from the chemical sensor 140 to a receiver 144 of a receiving device 146 external to the user monitoring device 112. The user monitoring device 112 will typically also include a device location element, as in the first embodiment, and a user attachment means 136, in this embodiment, illustrated as a lanyard 148.

This receiving device 146 includes a processor 120 and an alert output element 118, which in this instance is a further transmitter 128 which is capable of transmitting processed signals to a third-party receiving unit 130. The receiving device 146 in the depicted embodiment is a smartphone of the user 150, but could easily be an alternative device capable of computational processing, and may belong to a third-party.

In use, the chemical sensor 140 may detect the presence of a chemical compound on or around the user 150, for example, chemical compounds associated with the discharge of a firearm 152, and this detection will be transmitted via the wireless monitoring transmitter 142 to the receiver 144 of the receiving device 146. The processor 120, being in communication with the receiver 144, will then determine whether the detected signal constitutes a risk, and therefore whether to activate the alert output element 118, with which it is also in communication.

A generalised method of using a portable risk-determining apparatus is illustrated in Figure 3, and indicated globally at 200. The method illustrated assumes that the portable wearable risk-determining device 12 is being utilised as the portable risk-determining apparatus 10, but any relevant apparatus could be used, including that of the second embodiment of the apparatus 110 as herebefore described.

A portable wearable risk-determining device 12 is supplied S210 to an individual, for example, upon arrival at their destination. Authorities at the destination could, for instance, enforce S215 wearing of the device 12 prior to allowing the individual entry to the destination. At the point of supply, the device 12 may also determine one or more characteristics of the individual, so as to establish a predetermined acceptable characteristic range S220 preferably measured under controlled conditions and stored S225 in a data storage element 26 of the device 12, although it will be appreciated that this step could be pre-programmed into the device without taking any measurements via the user monitoring element 16.

Whilst the individual is wearing the device 12, the user monitoring element 16 will be constantly monitoring in real-time S230 the relevant characteristic or characteristics, be that the presence of a weapon, presence of explosive compounds, presence of contraband chemicals, abnormal pulse-rate, mass and/or skin conductivity, a combination of two or more thereof, and/or any other indicative characteristic.

The processor 20 is able to determine if the characteristics as measured then fall outside of the predetermined acceptable characteristic range S240, and if so, determine whether this constitutes a risk S250. If a risk is determined, then the processor 20 can activate the alert output element 18 at S260 to alert a third party, such as a security force, police, army or other suitable organisation, to the risk.

The processor 20 can be configured in various ways in order to determine whether an individual presents a risk or not. The determination could be based simply on a comparison between the measured characteristic and the predetermined acceptable characteristic range, a risk being determined as soon as the measured characteristic falls outside of the range. Alternatively, the processor 20 could take a more probabilistic and/or heuristic approach, determining the probability of an individual posing a risk depending upon the difference between the measured characteristics and on-going monitoring.

If a risk has been determined, the alert output element 18 can then transmit a signal S260 to an external receiving device. Such an approach would allow the third party monitoring the output of the alert output element 18 to coordinate their response to the risk, based upon the probability of any given individual posing a risk. Whilst localised alerting of third parties to the possibility of an individual presenting a risk is useful, this is not necessarily sufficiently useful for a security service to be able to adequately police a crowd of people, some of whom may pose a risk, given that they will be substantially outnumbered. It is therefore possible to provide a risk-determining system 300 utilising a plurality of portable risk-determining apparatuses 10, such as that shown in Figure 4. Again, it will be appreciated that although the system is described hereafter in terms of the first embodiment of the portable risk-determining apparatus 10, any appropriate portable risk-determining apparatus could be used.

The risk-determining system 300 comprises a plurality of portable risk-determining apparatuses 10 which are provided to individuals, a third-party receiving device 352, configured to receive transmissions from the said plurality of portable risk-determining apparatuses 10, and a central processor 354 in communication with the third-party receiving device 352, the central processor 354 being arranged to determine a risk posed by an individual 150 within a crowd 356 based on a transmission from the alert output element 18 of at least one portable risk-determining apparatus 10.

The third-party receiving device 352 is a receiver arranged so as to be capable of receiving signals from the alert output element 18, which in the illustrated embodiment is a wireless receiver receiving signals from the wireless transmitters 28 of the apparatuses 10. The central processor 354, being in communication with the receiving device 352, is therefore capable of receiving simultaneous signals from a plurality of apparatuses 10, and concurrently analyse and determine the risk posed by each individual. The central processor 354 will ideally be connected to an alarm device 358 which is capable of alerting third parties, such as security staff, to the risk presented by an individual, such that they may respond in a timely manner.

The signal received and analysed by the central processor 354 would ideally include the absolute or relative location of the individual who has been flagged as being a risk; this can be achieved by transmitting the location as determined by the apparatus location element 32. Using this system 300, it is possible for a security force to more effectively police individuals in a crowd, since likely incidents will be relayed to the central processor 354 and therefore to a central location, such as a command centre 360, from which a response may be more readily co-ordinated. It is also feasible that, on the receipt of a possible positive alert from an individual wearing his or her portable risk-determining apparatus 10, feeds from one or more further such apparatuses 10 in the vicinity of the said individual can be taken to determine whether the positive alert is indicative of the current situation or surroundings, such as being within a crowd, the ambient temperature having changed, exertion being applied, for example, to walk up steps, and so on. If the characteristics of the said individual fall in line with a general change in characteristics of people in the near vicinity of the said individual, then it may be determined that the positive alert is actually a false-positive. However, if the majority of people around the said individual are not expressing a particular change in characteristic, then the said individual can be more closely monitored or an appropriate alert can be sent to security personnel.

It will be appreciated that the above-described components of a portable risk- determining apparatus are not exclusive, and the apparatus could advantageous be combined with additional features. For example, the apparatus could be registered so as to correspond with a particular individual upon entry to an attraction or location, and could also function as an electronic entry ticket.

Whilst the portable risk-determining apparatus is described as having a variety of different possible user monitoring elements, it will be clear to the skilled person that other possible types of user monitoring element could be used, and the list of elements above is non-exhaustive. It is therefore possible to provide a portable risk-determining apparatus which is capable of determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, by providing a user monitoring element in communication with the user of the apparatus, the user monitoring element being in communication with a processor which can determine the risk based on an input from a sensor of the user monitoring element. The words 'comprises/comprising' and the words 'having/including' when used herein with reference to the present invention are used to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof.

It is appreciated that certain features of the invention, which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

The embodiments described above are provided by way of examples only, and various other modifications will be apparent to persons skilled in the field without departing from the scope of the invention herein described and defined.

Claims

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) for determining a risk of a forbidden activity being performed, the apparatus (10; 110) comprising: a user monitoring element (16; 116) including at least a sensor (22; 122) in communication with the user; an alert output element (18; 118); and a processor (20; 120) in communication with the user monitoring element (16; 116) and the alert output element (18; 118); the alert output element (18; 118) being activatable by the processor (20; 120) if the processor (20; 120) determines the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed based on an input received from the sensor (22; 122).

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sensor (22; 122) includes a weapon detector.

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the weapon detector includes a metal detector.

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the weapon detector includes a firearm discharge detector.

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the weapon detector includes a chemical detector.

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 5, wherein the chemical detector is adapted to detect explosive compounds.

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 5, wherein the chemical detector is adapted to detect airborne chemical ions.

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the weapon detector includes an auditory detector.

A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sensor (22; 122) includes a biometric monitor.

10. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the biometric monitor includes a pulse-rate monitor 24.

11. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the biometric monitor includes a skin conductivity monitor.

12. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the biometric monitor includes a mass sensor.

13. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 12, further comprising a data storage element (26), within which historical data may be stored.

14. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 13, wherein the data storage element (26) is a biometric data storage element for storing historical biometric data of the user.

15. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 14, wherein the biometric data storage element is in communication with the processor (20; 120), the processor (20; 120) using the input from the sensor (22; 122) in combination with biometric data stored in the biometric data storage element to determine the risk of a forbidden activity being performed.

16. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising an apparatus location element (32) for determining a location of the portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110).

17. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 16, wherein the apparatus location element (32) is a satellite location device (34).

18. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the alert output element (18; 118) includes an audible or visible alarm.

19. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the alert output element (18; 118) includes a wireless transmitter (28; 128) capable of transmitting an alarm signal to a third-party receiving device (130).

20. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a user attachment means (36; 136) for attaching at least the user monitoring element (16; 116) to the user. 21. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 20, wherein the user attachment means (36; 136) includes a strap portion (38).

22. A portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) as claimed in claim 20 or claim 21, wherein the user attachment means (36; 136) includes a lanyard (148).

23. A portable wearable risk-determining device (12) for determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed by the wearer, the device (12) comprising: a device housing (14); a wearer monitoring element (16) including at least a sensor (22) in communication with the wearer; an alert output element (18); a processor (20) in communication with the wearer monitoring element (16) and the alert output element (18), the processor (20), wearer monitoring element (16) and alert output element (18) being housed in or on the device housing (14); and a wearer attachment means (36) affixed to the device housing (14) for attaching the device (12) to the wearer; the alert output element (18) being activatable by the processor (20) if the processor (20) determines the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed based on an input received from the sensor (22).

24. A method (200) of determining a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed, the method comprising the steps of: a] providing (S210) an individual with a portable risk-determining apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 22; b] measuring (S230) a characteristic of the individual via the portable risk-determining apparatus; c] determining (S240) whether the characteristic of the individual is outside a predetermined acceptable characteristic range; and d] if the characteristic is outside of the said predetermined acceptable characteristic range, determining (S250) whether this represents a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others being performed.

25. A method as claimed in claim 24, wherein the characteristic to be measured during step b] is any one of: the presence of a weapon; the presence of an explosive compound; the presence of a contraband chemical; user pulse rate; user mass; user skin conductivity.

26. A method as claimed in claim 24 or claim 25, wherein the predetermined acceptable characteristic range is measured (S220) under controlled conditions prior to step a].

27. A method as claimed in any one of claims 24 to 26, wherein during step d] the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others is determined to be present as soon as the measured characteristic is outside of the predetermined acceptable characteristic range.

28. A method as claimed in any one of claims 24 to 26, wherein during step d] the risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others is determined probabilistically and/or heuristically.

29. A method as claimed in any one of claims 24 to 28, further comprising step e] subsequent to step d] of alerting a third-party (S260) if a risk of a forbidden activity resulting in physical harm to others is determined.

30. A risk-determining system (300) for detecting a risk posed by individuals within a crowd, the system comprising: a plurality of a portable risk-determining apparatuses (10; 110) as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 22; a third-party receiving device (352), configured to receive transmissions from the said plurality of portable risk-determining apparatuses (10; 110); and a central processor (354) in communication with the third-party receiving device (352), the central processor (354) being arranged to determine a risk posed by an individual within a crowd based on a transmission from the alert output element (18; 118) of one portable risk-determining apparatus (10; 110).

31. A risk-determining system (300) as claimed in claim 30, further comprising an alarm device (356) associated with the central processor (354) to alert third- parties to the said determined risk posed by the individual.

32. A risk-determining system (300) as claimed in claim 30 or claim 31, wherein each risk-determining apparatus (10; 110) is arranged to communicate with the other risk-determining apparatuses (10; 110) to determine a risk posed by a plurality of individuals within a crowd.