Random biometric authentication utilizing unique biometric signatures

• US 20030163710A1
• Filed: 12/17/2002
• Published: 08/28/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IP Venue, LLC (Ortiz & Lopez PLLC)
• Original Assignee: Random Biometrics LLC
• Inventors: Ortiz, Luis Melisendro, Lopez, Kermit Dean
• Granted Patent: US 7,921,297 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/186
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00563 using personal physical data of the operator, e.g. finger prints, retinal images, voicepatterns
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/082 applying multi-factor authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0861 using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231

Abstract

A user can be challenged to provide at least one randomly selected biometric attribute. The randomly selected biometric attribute input by the user is automatically compared to a plurality of biometric attributes of the user contained in a user profile. The user can then be authenticated if the randomly selected biometric attribute input by the user matches at least one of the plurality of biometric attributes of the user contained in the user profile. Biometric attributes analyzed according to the methods and systems of the present invention, include, but are not limited to, for example, fingerprints, iris, retina, and/or tissue characteristics, such as skin morphology, skin layer thickness, collage density and orientation, tissue hydration, optical patent length differences, etc.

Claims

1. A method for the random biometric authentication of a user utilizing unique biometric attributes associated with said user, said method comprising the steps of:

challenging a user to provide at least one randomly selected biometric attribute;

automatically comparing said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute to a plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in a user profile; and

authenticating said user, if said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute input by said user matches at least one of said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile;

obtaining biomedical data from at least one sample provided by said user, said at least one sample being associated with the provision of said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute input by said user.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of:

permitting said user access to an electronic system in response to authenticating said user, if said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute input by said user matches at least one of said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said user profile contains at least one of the following biometric attributes of said user:

fingerprint data, iris data, retina data, skin characteristics, voiceprint information, hand geometry, facial information, physical signature characteristics, biomedical attributes.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile includes at least one of the following biometric skin attributes of said user:

thickness of skin layers, morphology of skin interfaces, scattering properties due to collagen density and orientation, sex and age related compositional differences of skin, tissue hydration, and optical path length differences.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of:

maintaining said user profile in a database of user profiles, wherein said database is stored within a memory associated with a server.

6. A method for the random biometric authentication of a user utilizing unique biometric attributes associated with said user, said method comprising the steps of:

challenging a user to provide at least one randomly selected biometric attribute;

automatically comparing said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute to a plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in a user profile;

analyzing a tissue of said user for at least one tissue biometric attribute thereof associated with said user;

authenticating said user, if said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute input by said user matches at least one of said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile and if said tissue biometric attribute of said user matches at least one tissue biometric attribute of said user contained in said user profile.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the step of analyzing a tissue of said user for at least one tissue biometric attribute thereof associated with said user, further comprises the step of:

analyzing a tissue of said user for at least one tissue biometric attribute thereof associated with said user utilizing a skin sensor.

8. The method of claim 7 said skin sensor comprises a system for collecting spectral information from tissue for performing biometric tasks, wherein said system includes:

a plurality of discrete light sources;

means for directing light into said tissue;

means for detecting light that substantially passed through subsurface tissue;

means for recording and storing resulting detector signals; and

means for processing resulting spectral data to perform a biometric determination.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute comprises at least one of the following biometric attributes of said user:

fingerprint data, iris data, retina data, skin characteristics, voiceprint information, hand geometry, facial information, physical signature characteristics, and tissue characteristics.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein said tissue biometric attribute of said user comprises at least one of the following tissue biometrics:

thickness of skin layers, morphology of skin interfaces, scattering properties due to collagen density and orientation, sex and age related compositional differences of skin, tissue hydration, and optical path length differences.

11. A system for the random biometric authentication of a user utilizing unique biometric attributes associated with said user, said system comprising:

random challenge module for challenging a user to provide at least one randomly selected biometric attribute;

comparison module for automatically comparing said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute to a plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in a user profile; and

authentication module for authenticating said user, if said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute input by said user matches at least one of said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein said user is permitted access to an electronic system in response to authenticating said user, if said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute input by said user matches at least one of said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile.

13. The system of claim 11 wherein said user profile contains at least one of the following biometric attributes of said user:

fingerprint data, iris data, retina data, skin characteristics, voiceprint information, hand geometry, facial information, and physical signature characteristics.

14. The system of claim 11 wherein said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile includes at least one of the following biometric skin attributes of said user:

thickness of skin layers, morphology of skin interfaces, scattering properties due to collagen density and orientation, sex and age related compositional differences of skin, tissue hydration, and optical path length differences.

15. The system of claim 11 wherein said user profile is maintainable in a database of user profiles, wherein said database is stored within a memory associated with a server.

16. A system for the random biometric authentication of a user utilizing unique biometric attributes associated with said user, said system comprising:

random challenge module for challenging a user to provide at least one randomly selected biometric attribute;

comparison module automatically comparing said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute to a plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in a user profile;

sensor for analyzing a tissue of said user for at least one tissue biometric attribute thereof associated with said user;

authentication module for authenticating said user, if said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute input by said user matches at least one of said plurality of biometric attributes of said user contained in said user profile and if said tissue biometric attribute of said user matches at least one tissue biometric attribute of said user contained in said user profile.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein said sensor comprises a skin sensor.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein said skin sensor comprises a device for collecting spectral information from tissue for performing biometric tasks, wherein said device includes:

a plurality of discrete light sources;

means for directing light into said tissue;

means for detecting light that substantially passed through subsurface tissue;

means for recording and storing resulting detector signals; and

means for processing resulting spectral data to perform a biometric determination.

19. The system of claim 16 wherein said at least one randomly selected biometric attribute comprises at least one of the following biometric attributes of said user:

fingerprint data, iris data, retina data, skin characteristics, voiceprint information, hand geometry, facial information, physical signature characteristics, and tissue characteristics.

20. The system of claim 16 wherein said tissue biometric attribute of said user comprises at least one of the following tissue biometrics:

thickness of skin layers, morphology of skin interfaces, scattering properties due to collagen density and orientation, sex and age related compositional differences of skin, tissue hydration, and optical path length differences.