Science Update: Links with the law

VOICE-PROCESSING technology has not been an unbounded success, but researchers at Edinburgh University are not to be put off.

They are working with Cairntech, a small Fife-based company, to develop products for the security industry. One idea, as part of the pounds 250,000 Department of Trade and Industry-sponsored project, is to build a system that lets the police check motor vehicle details from a central database more quickly than today's voice-over-radio links.

Such a system would ensure the strict security standards demanded of police systems, but should also allow more data to be transmitted more quickly. Cairntech hopes to complete prototypes before the end of the year.