May 8, 2026 — Athena Security, a leading provider of AI-enabled physical security solutions, has announced an innovative Ambulance Bay Weapons Detection System. Powered by a new Ambulance Bay AI Agent, the system automates weapons screening for patients arriving via stretcher or wheelchair — removing the need for hand-wanding and closing one of healthcare’s most critical security gaps.
Lisa Falzone, co-founder and President of Athena Security, pointed out:
The ambulance bay has always been one of the hardest areas in healthcare to secure. Security teams are forced to choose between speed and safety. With our new Ambulance Bay AI Agent, they no longer have to. Our system brings automation, precision, and accountability to a part of the hospital that has historically been left exposed.
A critical gap in emergency department security
Hospital emergency departments face a uniquely complex screening environment. Patients often arrive unconscious or in distress, on fully metal gurneys, making traditional metal detectors ineffective and manual screening both time-consuming and inconsistent.
Historically, hospitals have relied on handheld wands to screen patients — an approach that is inherently flawed. Because stretchers are entirely metal, wands frequently trigger false positives, requiring multiple passes over the body. In emergency situations, where seconds matter, this process is often rushed or skipped altogether.
Athena’s new system eliminates these challenges entirely.
Instead of stopping to manually scan a patient, staff can simply wheel the patient through the system, allowing the AI Agent to conduct a full-body scan in seconds — reducing screening time by up to 30–60 seconds per patient while improving accuracy and consistency.
Key features and benefits of the Ambulance Bay Weapons Detection System:
- Automated weapons detection (no hand-wanding required) — Eliminates reliance on manual screening and reduces human error
- Fast, frictionless screening — Full-body scan completed in seconds as patients are wheeled under the scanner
- Built for gurney-based screening — Accurately detects objects on patients lying on fully metal stretchers without interference
- RedBox location-based alerts — Pinpoints the exact location of potential threats on the body for rapid response
- Improved throughput — Reduces screening time by 30–60 seconds per patient, helping maintain speed of care
- Consistent, repeatable process — Removes variability caused by rushed or incomplete manual screening
Unlike traditional systems, Athena’s Ambulance Bay WDS is purpose-built to operate in high-pressure medical environments, delivering reliable performance without slowing down emergency workflows.
A unified workflow from detection to documentation
Chris Ciabarra, co-founder and CTO of Athena Security, stated:
Our job is to detect and show exactly where the object is. From there, each hospital follows its own policies on how to handle the situation. But we eliminate the guesswork. You’re no longer relying on someone manually waving a wand and hoping they didn’t miss anything.
The Ambulance Bay AI Agent replaces the need for manual hand-wanding entirely — automating a process that has historically been inconsistent due to time constraints, human error, and the urgency of emergency care.
Athena Security’s Ambulance Bay WDS combines real-time detection with image capture, incident logging and documentation within a single, unified workflow. The system performs the scan, generates alerts, and automatically logs each event, delivering improved speed, accuracy and accountability. It also includes seamless chain-of-custody tracking for confiscated items, ensuring that every screening event is fully documented, auditable and supportive of both compliance and operational oversight.
A modern approach to hospital entryway security
By transforming ambulance bay screening from a manual, inconsistent process into a fast, automated, AI-driven workflow, Athena Security is enabling hospitals to improve safety without slowing down care.
The Ambulance Bay Weapons Detection System integrates seamlessly with Athena’s broader entryway security platform, including visitor management, weapons detection, and AI-assisted X-ray, delivering a unified approach to facility-wide security.
Learn more about the Ambulance Bay Weapons Detection System at Athena Security. Founded by Revel Systems co-founders, Athena Security was reportedly the first to market with AI evasion detection and has since integrated AI Assisted X-ray, AthenaVision AR Alert Glasses and Telepresence Security Officers. Athena Security helps protect individuals in schools, hospitals, retail and public spaces across the globe. Athena Security is headquartered in Austin, TX, and San Francisco, CA, with a remote office in Jacksonville, FL.
