New technology that can detect emotional distress when loved ones visit inmates to be trialled
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Visitors testing out the autonomous tele-visit system at the Singapore University of Technology and Design on April 15.
PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
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SINGAPORE – Sentiment analytics may soon be used to help prison officers detect emotional distress when loved ones interact with inmates during tele-visits.
This will enable the officers to step in and intervene, potentially defusing the situation in a timely manner.
The new technology will be used in the autonomous tele-visit system that will be on trial from October 2025. It was showcased at the Singapore Prison Service (SPS) and Yellow Ribbon Singapore (YRSG) Corporate Advance event held at the Singapore University of Technology and Design on April 15.
Second Minister for Home Affairs Josephine Teo attended the annual workplan seminar, along with about 800 SPS and YRSG staff and community partners.
SPS said in a statement that the autonomous tele-visit system, which was jointly developed with the Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX), has facial recognition technology and artificial intelligence.
For the trial, it will be deployed at the premises of community partner New Life Stories, and can be expanded to other locations, including family service centres or community centres.
Currently, visitors can visit their loved ones in prison face to face at the Changi Prison Complex for 20-minute sessions.
For 30-minute tele-visits, they can go to five prison link centres located in areas like Geylang Bahru and Tanah Merah, or any of the six satellite visit centres, in places like Assyakirin Mosque in Jurong and Woodlands Social Centre.
SPS said there were about 130,000 face-to-face and tele-visits between inmates and their families or loved ones in 2024.
Speaking to the media at the event, Assistant Commissioner of Prisons Soh Beng Koon, director of the transformation and technology division at SPS, said emotional distress during tele-visits is currently detected “by chance” when an officer walks past the booth and hears something, or if the inmate confides in the officer after the visit.
He said typical situations that can cause aggressive or emotional behaviour include spousal arguments, suspicions of a “third party” in the relationship, stress faced by inmates in prison or their loved ones outside, and financial issues faced by an inmate’s family.
AC Soh said: “Sometimes during the visit, the visitors or the inmate can become hysterical. We want to make sure that we are able to come in at an appropriate time and to help to calm things down.”
He added that the new technology being tested out can detect facial movements like frowning and eye and mouth movements. Officers will be alerted and can assess the situation to see if there is a need to intervene.
Assistant Commissioner of Prisons Soh Beng Koon, director of the transformation and technology division at SPS, said the new technology can help prison officers to intervene and calm things down between inmates and their visitors during tele-visits when necessary.
PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
Apart from helping officers defuse tension, AC Soh said that being aware of an argument between the inmate and his loved ones can also assist officers in following up to provide assistance or closure.
The autonomous tele-visit system will also be able to detect visitors using their mobile phones.
Visitors are not allowed to bring their phones for the visit sessions and must place them in lockers provided.
In a speech at the event, Mrs Teo, who is also Minister for Digital Development and Information, said the use of technology is a key strategy for Corrections 2030. “Technology will improve SPS’ operational efficiency and free up officers’ time to do more meaningful work, such as in purposeful engagement with inmates and working on their rehabilitative needs.”
Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo said the use of technology is a key strategy for Corrections 2030.
PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
One example she highlighted was smart sensors mounted on the walls of prison medical wards and selected prison cells that can remotely monitor the vital signs of inmates, such as breathing rate, and detect events such as falls and abnormal heart rates.
Such a system is being trialled at the Changi Prison Complex Medical Centre. SPS said the preliminary results from the trial are promising, adding that it is exploring the possibility of rolling out the system to more medical wards and prison cells together with HTX.
Mrs Teo said the life signs monitoring system will complement the current methods of keeping an eye on the inmates during physical patrols and medical rounds.
“Operating together, they will enhance SPS’ ability to respond quickly to emergencies and render medical interventions more promptly,” she added.
