Ultrasonic fingerprint biometrics meet real world demands

Citation

(2003), "Ultrasonic fingerprint biometrics meet real world demands", Sensor Review, Vol. 23 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/sr.2003.08723aab.009

Ultrasonic fingerprint biometrics meet real world demands

Ultrasonic fingerprint biometrics meet real world demands

Keywords: Biometrics, Ultrasonics, Fingerprints

A year-long survey of ultrasonic fingerprint readers for health benefit providers and transportation depot demonstrates no failures in the enrollment of more than a million users.

Ultra-Scan Corporation has announced the initial results of a year-long survey of customers using its ultrasonic biometric technology, calling the results “a clear demonstration that ultrasonics will soon become the technology of choice for fingerprint identification systems”.

Ultra-Scan Executive Vice President Michael Rohleder went on to say that following the events of last September, the country recognized the need for a fail-safe biometric technology for absolutely accurate individual identification. “Our objectives shifted dramatically,” Rohleder said, “from demonstrating that ultrasonics is a more accurate technology for reading fingerprints, to demonstrating that it is the only technology capable of reading virtually any fingerprint on the planet.”

The survey was based on information from full-scale customer installations of ultrasonic readers using automatic fingerprint identification system (AFIS) software in a variety of real-life installations in the United States, Canada, and South America. According to the company, the results demonstrate three critical requirements for any security system that uses fingerprint biometrics: the ability to enroll the entire population without regard to physical characteristics or age (enrollability); ease of use in real-world applications (usability); and error-free matching (accuracy).

“Many of the fingerprint biometric systems now in use simply do not work well in real-world commercial applications,” Rohleder said. “Since older technologies have difficulty in enrolling as much as a third of the population, they are virtually useless in a diverse society. Our customers have shown us that addressing the issues of enrollability, usability, and accuracy is essential for the successful operation of a fingerprint biometric system.”

Ultrasonics is the only technology able to enroll any human fingerprint

Enrollability is critical to the effectiveness of a fingerprint matching system. For years, existing fingerprint scanning technology has been hampered by an inability to read and enroll difficult prints, such as those of older people with dry skin or of some groups, particularly Asian women, with petite, delicate fingers and a fine ridge structure.

For over a year, an Ultra-Scan system has been used by a consortium of health maintenance organizations throughout Chile to identify patients and access their medical records. During the past year, the system database has grown to nearly 800,000 users, with 250,000 individual identifications each month and no reported cases of patients who could not be enrolled or identified.

Dirty, stained fingers pose no problem for use of ultrasonic readers. Once a user is enrolled in a fingerprint system, the challenge shifts to the system’s ability to quickly and easily read (scan) and match that person’s fingerprint under real-world conditions that might include bright light, darkness, weather extremes, or simple dirt, grease, or other contaminants on the scanner or on a person’s finger. To be truly effective, a fingerprint biometric system needs to accurately read fingers in any condition, without the need for an operator, and with minimal maintenance.

Earlier this year, an ultrasonic ID system was installed at commercial cargo terminals as part of a major port control project. The goal was to create a fast, automatic means of positively identifying drivers and cargo loads and establishing an entry control system capable of reliable tracking and tamper-proof transactions. All-weather kiosks were installed at rail-yard entrances and some 2,600 drivers were enrolled. To date, more than 100,000 identifications have been made using the system, with no reported failures.

Critical applications can rely on ultrasonics for the highest levels of accuracy

The accuracy of a fingerprint identification system is necessary for positive identification. A fingerprint system that relies on a personal identification number (PIN) to make a match circumvents the advantages of an unique biometric identifier. Ultra-Scan’s tokenless ultrasonic fingerprint readers and match software provide the highest levels of accuracy for true identity biometrics.

Working with the New York State Office of Science, Technology, and Academic Research, Ultra-Scan’s ultrasonic fingerprint systems were installed at two public health clinics. The Ultra-Scan technology was incorporated into ID workstations at the clinics. Once enrolled, the patient can be identified by the medical staff in a few seconds by simply placing their finger on the ultrasonic fingerprint reader. According to statistics compiled by clinic employees, use of the new ID system was successful in more than 100,000 patient visits since the stations were installed, providing accurate tracking records and eliminating medication errors resulting from patient misidentification.

Additional tests of ultrasonic fingerprint ID systems were run for a US Army munitions facility, in an employee ID system for a major airline, and are ongoing by the Port Authority of NY/NJ at LaGuardia and JFK Airports in New York.

For further information, visit the web site at: http://www.ultra-scan.com/