
The University of Bradford is at the frontline of developing technology in the search for missing persons.
Researchers at the university have developed a method of ageing facial images that could enhance the search for long-term missing people worldwide.
The method maps out the key features, such as the shape of the cheek, mouth and forehead, of a face at a certain age. This information is fed to a computer algorithm which then synthesises new features for the face to produce photographic quality images of the face at different ages.
The method teaches the machine how humans age by feeding the algorithm facial feature data from a large database of individuals at various ages. Consequently, the method improves on existing techniques, achieving a greater level of accuracy.