Individual identification apparatus

• US 4,573,193 A
• Filed: 07/03/1984
• Issued: 02/25/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/1983
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Miyagawa, Tamotsu, Shuto, Yukichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Boudreau, Leo H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US06/627,605
• Time in Patent Office: 602 Days
• Field of Search: 382/2, 382/4, 340/825.31, 340/825.34
• US Class Current: 382/115
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1172 using fingerprinting
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/11 Hand-related biometrics; Hand pose recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/13 Sensors therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/37 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voice recognition

Abstract

Four fingers of a hand of an individual person, i.e. the index finger, the middle finger, the medical finger and the little finger are placed on a transparent measuring table in juxtaposition. A guide member is also placed on the table to restrict the position of the hand and light is irradiated onto the table. The intensity of the light passed through the transparent measuring table is scanned by a television camera and so on at every light receiving point to convert it an electrical signal. Thus obtained electric signals are processed to calculate the differential data of the finger lengths thereby detecting an individual person.

Claims

1. An individual identification apparatus, which comprises:

(a) a transparent measuring table, on which four fingers of a hand of an individual person to be an object of identification are placed in juxtaposition;

(b) a guide member mounted on said measuring table to restrict the position of the hand on it and establish finger lengths;

(c) a light source for irradiating light onto said measuring table;

(d) a two-dimensional photo-electric conversion device to receive light irradiated from said light source and passed through said measuring table, and to generate electrical signals of an intensity to be determined by an intensity of the light at every light receiving point on the two-dimensional plane;

(e) means for outputting electrical signals generated at every light receiving point of said two-dimensional photoelectric conversion device as the video electrical signals by scanning said two-dimensional plane at a predetermined scanning speed;

(f) a comparator for quantizing intensity of the video electrical signal from said output means into a level of intensity of the transmitting light at the portion where the hand and the guide member are not placed on said measuring table and a level of intensity of the transmitting light at the portion where both are placed; and

(g) an information processing unit for receiving said quantized intensity of the video electric signal from said comparator for establishing a base line perpendicular to said guide member on said hand, and for determining therefrom the distance between said base line and the tips of said four fingers and the three differences between the distances of adjacent fingers and for identifying an individual person as the object of the identification on the basis of said three differences.

2. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 1, in which said light source is a halogen lamp.

3. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 2, in which light from said halogen lamp is irradiated onto the measuring table through a Fresnel lens.

4. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 3, in which said halogen lamp is disposed on the same side of said measuring table as said hand.

5. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 1, in which said light source is a plurality of fluorescent lamps.

6. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 5, in which light from said plurality of fluorescent lamps is irraidated onto the hand through said measuring table.

7. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 1, in which said guide member to be provided on said measuring table is positioned between the thumb and the index finger of the hand to be placed on said measuring table.

8. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 1, in which said guide member to be provided on said measuring table is positioned next to the little finger of a hand to be placed on said measuring table.

9. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said two-dimensional photo-electric conversion device is a television camera.

10. The individual identification apparatus according to claim 1, in which said two-dimensional photo-electric conversion device is a two-dimensional solid-state camera.