In tests, passengers using the new trolley system passed security four times faster than using standard security, according to Danish developer Exruptive.

Passengers arriving at the airport scan their boarding pass to collect a luggage trolley with a touchscreen display which directs them to the shortest security queue. .

Exruptive says it alleviates the weak spot of the current system, where the slowest person – fumbling with jewellery, boots and pockets of change – dictates the speed of the security check.

It eliminates other bottlenecks too: unpacking electronic equipment and plastic bags of toiletries.

Exruptive chief executive Jakob Schmidt says higher security standards and budget airlines’ baggage policies have brought the 40-year-old security scanning system to the brink of collapse, with queue processing times down from 350 people per hour 15 years ago to less than half that now, the company says. “The emergence of low-cost carriers mean people are packing more and more things into their hand luggage in order to avoid luggage check-in fees,” he told Thelocal.dk.

Faster service

Exruptive’s new security system ensures only those ready to approach security pass through the X-ray scanners. Tests with the Technical University of Denmark indicated up to 600 passengers could be screened an hour – four times current averages. Passengers liked the new system, too.

“People said they didn’t feel any stress and don’t even feel like they were waiting in line. They just proceeded at their own tempo,” said Mr Schmidt.

Denmark’s disruptive Exruptive security scanning system is likely to debut next year at Dubai international airport.