TOUCHLESS FINGERPRINTING ACQUISITION AND PROCESSING APPLICATION FOR MOBILE DEVICES

• US 20140212008A1
• Filed: 01/27/2014
• Published: 07/31/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telos Corporation (L3Harris Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Diamond Fortress Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Hatcher, Charles W. II, Butler, Ryan R., Lucas, William C.
• Granted Patent: US 9,251,396 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/124
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20132 Image cropping
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20182 Noise reduction or smoothing in the temporal domain; Spatio-temporal filtering
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/70 Denoising; Smoothing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/73 Deblurring; Sharpening
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/17 using hand-held instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1312 direct reading, e.g. contactless acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1376 Matching features related to ridge properties or fingerprint texture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/71 Charge-coupled device [CCD] sensors; Charge-transfer registers specially adapted for CCD sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/76 Addressed sensors, e.g. MOS or CMOS sensors

Abstract

This disclosure is of a biometric authentication system and method. The system includes a mobile device having a camera and a screen, and a database. The system is programmed to superimpose on the screen an overlay of a finger over a real-time image seen by the camera, capture an image of a fingerprint of a user with the camera, compare the captured image with an authenticated fingerprint image that is stored in the database, and return a positive result if the compared images match.

Claims

1. A method for biometric authentication of a user comprising the steps of:

a) providing;

a mobile device comprising a camera and a screen; and

a database;

b) superimposing on the screen an overlay of a finger over a real-time image as currently seen through the camera;

c) capturing with the camera an image of a fingerprint of the user;

d) comparing the captured image with an authenticated fingerprint image that is stored in the database; and

e) returning a positive result if the compared images match.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, in step c), an area only within the overlay is captured and an area outside the overlay is not captured.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein a shape and size of the overlay is determined by a previously-captured image of the user'"'"'s finger.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the overlay is placed in step b) in the upper third of the mobile device screen.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein step a) further comprises providing a server external to the mobile device, wherein the server comprises the database;

the method further comprising step;

f) sending the captured image to the server;

wherein step f) occurs after step c) and before step d).

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising step:

g) processing the fingerprint image, which includes at least one of;

converting the fingerprint image to black-and-white;

reducing noise in the fingerprint image;

reducing blurring of the fingerprint image;

enhancing ridge contours of the fingerprint image;

compressing the fingerprint image; and

encrypting the fingerprint image;

wherein step g) occurs after step c) and before step d) and can occur either before or after step f).

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the database is stored on the mobile device.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the database provided in step a) includes multiple authenticated images of the user'"'"'s fingerprint.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein, in step c), at least one of the top and bottom one-third portion of a field of view of the camera are either:

1) not imaged, or 2) cropped out after imaging.

10. A method for biometric authentication of a user comprising the steps of:

a) providing;

a mobile device comprising a camera and a screen;

a database; and

a randomly-generated image that is unique to each user using the mobile device;

b) capturing with the camera an image of a fingerprint of the user;

c) extracting first significant geographical areas of the fingerprint image;

d) extracting second significant geographical areas of the randomly-generated image;

e) concatenating the first significant geographical areas with the second significant geographical areas to produce a concatenated string;

f) comparing the concatenated string with an authenticated concatenated string that is stored in the database; and

g) returning a positive result if the compared strings match.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising step:

h) discarding the fingerprint image.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein step a) further comprises providing a server external to the mobile device, wherein the server comprises the database;

the method further comprising step;

i) sending the concatenated string to the server;

wherein step i) occurs after step e) and before step f).

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the randomly-generated image of the user is stored on that user'"'"'s mobile device.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the database is stored on the mobile device.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising step:

j) superimposing on the screen an overlay of a finger over a real-time image as currently seen through the camera;

wherein step j) occurs after step a) and before step b).

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the comparing of step f) comprises performing standard deviation analysis.

17. The method of claim 11 further comprising step:

k) the positive result in step g) causing at least one of the following group of actions;

unlocking the mobile device;

accessing an application on the mobile device; and

authenticating a mobile payment system.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the database provided in step a) includes authenticated concatenated strings for a plurality of users using the mobile device;

wherein step a) further comprises providing a plurality of randomly-generated images, each of which is unique to each of the plurality of users using the mobile device;

wherein step d) comprises extracting second significant geographical areas of each of a plurality of randomly-generated images in sequential iterations of steps d)-g);

wherein step e) comprises concatenating the first significant geographical areas with the second significant geographical areas of each of a plurality of randomly-generated images in sequential iterations of steps d)-g) to produce a new concatenated string in each iteration;

wherein step f) comprises comparing the concatenated string of each iteration of steps d)-g) with the authenticated concatenated strings that are stored in the database; and

wherein step g) further comprises identifying the user for who the compared strings match.

19. A biometric authentication system comprising:

a mobile device comprising a CCD or CMOS camera and a screen; and

a database;

wherein the system is programmed to;

superimpose on the screen an overlay of a finger over a real-time image seen by the camera;

capture an image of a fingerprint of a user with the camera;

compare the captured image with an authenticated fingerprint image that is stored in the database; and

return a positive result if the compared images match.

20. The biometric authentication system of claim 19 further comprising an HTTP web server, which comprises the database.