Hong Kong Will Have World's Smartest Prison With Wearable Trackers And Poop-Cleaning Robots

Overseeing a prison isn't all about just keeping inmates from escaping, it's also up to authorities to keep them safe from each other and themselves.

Convicts frequently overdose from drugs smuggled in, get into vicious brawls and feuds, and even commit suicide.

A robotic arm will search inmates' feces for contraband - Images courtesy SCMP

Now, it seems China is looking at ways to improve inmate security and safety in its prisons by utilising a number of technological advances. The Correctional Services Department in Hong Kong this week announced a new plan to monitor inmates using a combination of robots, wearables, and IoT technology.

The department oversees the housing of around 8,300 criminals in its jail son average, so they think a "smart prison" will help make policing them a little easier. They intend to run smaller tests in prisons first before implementing them on a larger scale if thy prove successful.

The South China Morning Post reports that one of these tech measures will be a robotic arm to do the "dirty work" of sifting through the feces of newly admitted inmates for contraband. This could include everything from drugs, to cash, to weapons. Previously, this job would fall to security officers with wooden sticks.

Another measure they will be testing is a tracking wristband. Similar to a fitness band on the commercial market, this will help digitally keep track of inmates' whereabouts in real time, and alert officials if they're doing something suspicious or sustained an injury.

Video analytics will pinpoint odd behaviour

In the Pik Uk Prison, authorities are already testing a new video surveillance system. Its 12 cameras don't just stream live footage from inside the prison, but also feed into an algorithm trained on archived footage to detect unusual behaviour in the prison. If any event is flagged, authorities are automatically pinged on the spot.

Of course, this raises other issues as well. No one could complain about a robot sifting through poop in place of humans, but the problem is the surveillance system. For one thing, two of the cameras at Pik Uk Prison are reportedly inside inmate restrooms. And though the prison superintendent told SCMP parts of the footage is "obscured" it wasn't mentioned whether that happens automatically or is done later. If it's the former, it opens the door for corrupt employees to exploit inmates by selling the footage on the black market.

It all depends on whether the corrections department is able to walk the line between safety and the inmates' rights.