Authentication apparatus

• US 20040151348A1
• Filed: 01/02/2004
• Published: 08/05/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ono, Shuji
• Granted Patent: US 7,366,329 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/115
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/37 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 17/10 Multimodal systems, i.e. based on the integration of multiple recognition engines or fusion of expert systems

Abstract

The invention matches a countenance of a user during authentication to a countenance of the user'"'"'s head shot held in advance. An authentication apparatus for certifying the user using a picture registered in a memory, comprises an image pickup unit for taking the picture of the user, and an authentication unit for certifying the user by letting the user to bring into a predetermined action and comparing the user'"'"'s picture taken by the image pickup unit when the user brings into the predetermined action and the picture registered in the memory. In addition, the image pickup unit takes an animated image of the user, the memory supplies an animated image of the user who brings into the predetermined action to the authentication unit, and the authentication unit certifies the user by comparing the user'"'"'s movement in the animated image taken by the image pickup unit and the user'"'"'s movement in the animated image acquired from the memory.

Claims

1. An authentication apparatus for certifying a user using a picture registered in a memory, comprising:

an image pickup unit for taking the picture of the user; and

an authentication unit for certifying the user by letting said user to bring into a predetermined action and comparing said user'"'"'s picture taken by said image pickup unit when said user brings into the predetermined action and the picture registered in said memory.

2. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said image pickup unit takes an animated image of the user,

said memory supplies an animated image of the user who brings into said predetermined action to said authentication unit,

said authentication unit certifies said user by comparing said user'"'"'s movement in the animated image taken by the image pickup unit and said user'"'"'s movement in the animated image acquired from the memory.

3. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein said image pickup unit takes an animated image of head shots of said user,

said memory supplies an animated image of head shots of said user to said authentication unit,

said authentication unit certifies said user by comparing a movement of the head shots taken by the image pickup unit and a movement of the head shots acquired from the memory.

4. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a registration information acquiring unit for acquiring a voice of said user and the head shot of said user corresponding to said voice from said memory, wherein

said image pickup unit takes the head shots of said user, and said authentication unit certifies said user by comparing the head shots of said user taken by the image pickup unit and the head shots acquired from the memory when a degree of coincidence between a voice newly uttered by said user and the voice acquired from said memory satisfies a predetermined reference.

5. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein

said memory holds the animated image of the head shots when said user has uttered said voice,

said image pickup unit takes the head shots of said user as the animated image when said voice has been uttered, and

said authentication unit certifies said user by comparing the animated image acquired from the memory and the animated image taken by the image pickup unit.

6. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 5, further comprising a microphone for newly acquiring the voice that said user utters, wherein

said authentication unit certifies said user by respectively selecting frame pictures at the time that the user utters the same voice out of the animated image acquired from the memory and the animated image taken by the image pickup unit using the voice acquired from said memory and the voice acquired by said microphone, and comparing the selected frame pictures.

7. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein said authentication unit certifies said user by selecting a plurality of combinations of the frame pictures at the time that the user utters the same voice out of the animated image acquired from the memory and the animated image taken by the image pickup unit, and comparing the selected plurality of combinations of the frame pictures respectively.

8. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein said authentication unit includes a synchronization unit for synchronizing each frame picture of the animated image acquired from the momory with the respective frame pictures at the time that the user utters the same voice in the animated image taken by said image pickup unit using the voice acquired from said memory and the voice acquired by said microphone, and certifies said user by comparing the synchronized frame pictures.

9. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein said authentication unit certifies said user by selecting a plurality of frame pictures at the time that the user utters the same voice out of each of the animated image acquired from the memory and the animated image taken by the image pickup unit, comparing a difference between the plurality of frame pictures selected out of the animated images acquired from said memory and a difference between the plurality of frame pictures selected out of the animated images taken by said image pickup unit, and comparing the movements of said user'"'"'s face.

10. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said authentication unit certifies said user by respectively cutting a mouth of said user from the plurality of frame pictures, calculating and comparing the plurality of the differences of the cut user'"'"'s mouth, and comparing a movement of the user'"'"'s mouth in the animated image acquired from said memory and a movement of the user'"'"'s mouth in the animated images taken by said image pickup unit.

11. The authentication apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein

said memory stores head shots at the time that said user does not utter the voice,

said image pickup unit takes the head shots at the time that said user does not utter the voice, and

said authentication unit certifies said user by comparing the head shots acquired from said memory and the head shots taken by said image pickup unit at the time that said user does not utter the voice.