3:49 p.m. - GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) -- A softball-sized globe filled with infrared motion sensors could be a key in northern border security.

Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., used the little globe as a prop Wednesday in discussing a Border Patrol project. Conrad said it is part of an intelligence reform bill that passed the Senate last week, and is expected to pass the House later this year.

The project could wind up in the Border Patrol's Grand Forks sector, with benefits for the University of North Dakota, North Dakota State University and the Grand Forks Air Force Base, Conrad said. It would include a system of ground sensors, remote cameras, drone aircraft and software to gather and interpret the data along the border.

In a parallel effort, Gov. John Hoeven is asking the Department of Homeland Security, the Border Patrol's parent agency, for $38 million to improve border security. Some of that money would be used for technology and the rest to organize border communities and law enforcement authority to work together.

Lonny Schweitzer, the Border Patrol's Grand Forks sector assistant chief, said the new sensors would be easier to use because they would be scattered on the ground instead of requiring installation as the existing sensors do.

NDSU is helping develop the sensor technology. Mechanical engineer Zane Johnson said the sensors would be the size of golf balls, with microchips to process information.

The University of North Dakota would use its computer system to help interpret the data. The Grand Forks Air Force Base could be a home to drone aircraft that also would be part of the project.