Data and image capture, compression and verification system

• US 6,725,383 B2
• Filed: 05/13/2003
• Issued: 04/20/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Biocom LLC
• Original Assignee: Biocom LLC
• Inventors: Kyle, Wayne
• Primary Examiner(s): Peeso, Thomas R.
• Application Number:
  US10/437,331
• Publication Number:
  US 20030217294A1
• Time in Patent Office: 343 Days
• Field of Search: 713/202, 713/182, 713/183, 713/186, 713/189, 713/200, 713/201
• US Class Current: 726/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/94 Hardware or software architectures specially adapted for image or video understanding
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/16 Human faces, e.g. facial parts, sketches or expressions
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2209/10 Comprising means for protocol conversion, i.e. format conversion
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/37 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/38 with central registration

Abstract

The present invention includes a communication control device that connects directly to at least one camera. Either analogue or digital cameras are connected to the communication control device. The communication control device captures, compresses, digitizes and/or encrypts the photographic images communicated to the communication control device from each camera and then communicates the processed or compressed images through a TCP/IP or other network protocol to a computer for further processing. The device can further bi-directionally communicate common protocols such as RS232 or RS485 protocols over new or existing computer networks using a TCP/IP or other network protocol. This allows for data input devices such as keyboards, magnetic stripe card readers, proximity readers, barcode scanners, document scanners or similar devices to be interfaced directly into the communication control device. The communication control device can also communicate such protocols to visual output devices such as LCDs to provide interactive feedback on the status or outcome of the verification to the user of the verification system.

Claims

1. An identity verification system, the verification system comprising:

(a) entry means for receiving biometric data;

(b) a data input device;

(c) display means for displaying information to a user;

(d) a communication control device remote from said entry means, data input device and display means, said communication control device having

(i) receiving means for receiving a set of biometric data from the entry means and a set of input data from the data input device,

(ii) a first conversion means for selectably capturing a portion of the set of biometric data received from the entry means and converting said portion of captured biometric data into a compressed digital file of the captured biometric data,

(iii) a second conversion means for formatting the set of input data into a network protocol standard,

(iv) transmitting means for transmitting data from the communication control device to the display means, and

(v) connecting means for connecting the first conversion means to the entry means, the second conversion means to the data input device, the transmitting means to the display means, and the communication control device to a computer network;

(e) at least one central processing unit remote from the communication control device and in direct communication with the communication control device having

(i) an installed biometric recognition system,

(ii) storage means for storing a set of digital biometric templates in a biometric database,

(iii) searching means for searching the biometric database for a stored biometric template linked with an identifying parameter,

(iv) first processor means for generating a test biometric template from the captured biometric data using the installed biometric recognition system,

(v) second processor means for comparing the test biometric template with the stored biometric template using the installed biometric recognition to provide a validation signal when a correspondence between the test biometric template and the stored biometric template is detected.

2. The identity verification system of claim 1, wherein the entry means is a camera.

3. The identity verification system of claim 2 having a plurality of cameras.

4. The identity verification system of claim 1, wherein the data input device is a digital reading device that reads and transmits digital data recorded on a personal identification mechanism.

5. The identity verification system of claim 4, wherein the personal identification mechanism is a passport, a driver'"'"'s license, a national identification document, a credit card, a bankcard, or an authorized employee card.

6. The identity verification system of claim 1 having a plurality of data input devices.

7. The identity verification system of claim 1, wherein the display means is a liquid crystal display.

8. The identity verification system of claim 2, wherein the first conversion means converts the portion of captured biometric data into a set of JPEG, MPEG, Bitmap or Wavelet image formatted files.

9. The identity verification system of claim 1, wherein the network protocol standard is a TCP/IP, HTTP, UDP or ARP protocol standard.

10. The identity verification system of claim 1, wherein the installed biometric recognition system is a face recognition system.

11. A communication control device for capturing biometric data for identity verification, said device consisting essentially of:

(a) receiving means for receiving a set of biometric data from a biometric data entry device and a set of input data from a data input device,

(b) a first conversion means for selectably capturing a portion of the set of biometric data received from the biometric data entry device and converting said portion of captured biometric data into a compressed digital file of the captured biometric data,

(c) a second conversion means for formatting the set of input data from the data input device into a network protocol standard,

(d) transmitting means for transmitting data from the communication control device to a visual output device, and

(e) connecting means for connecting the first conversion means to the biometric data entry device, the second conversion means to the data input device, the transmitting means to the visual output device, and the communication control device to a computer network.

12. The communication control device of claim 11, wherein the biometric data entry device is a camera.

13. A communication control device for capturing biometric data for identity verification, said device consisting essentially of:

(a) a camera server having

a video engine in communication with at least one camera, wherein the video engine selectably captures a set of photographic images taken with the camera and converts the images into a compressed digital file,

a first data conversion engine in communication with at least one data input device, wherein the first data conversion engine captures a set of input data from the data input device and formats the captured data into a network protocol standard, and

a second data conversion engine, wherein the second data conversion engine formats a set of output data for communication with a visual output device; and

(b) a main board that connects the camera server to the camera, the data input device, the visual output device and a computer network.

14. The communication control device of claim 13, wherein each camera in communication with the video engine has an identification code, said identification code linked to the compressed digital file of images originating from the camera.

15. The communication control device of claim 14, wherein the set of input data is linked to the digital file of images.

16. A method for image capture and verification comprising:

sending a live video stream of an individual taken with a camera to a communication control device;

capturing at least one photographic frame out of the video stream;

converting the photographic frame into a compressed digital file;

capturing a set of input data in a common protocol format from at least one data input device;

converting the common protocol formatted data into a network standard protocol;

sending the compressed digital file and converted input data to a central processing unit for image verification or identification; and

providing feedback on the status of the verification process to a visual output device.

17. A face recognition based method for verifying the identity of an individual, the method comprising the steps of:

entering an identifier associated with an individual through a referenced data input device into a communication control device, said communication control device in communication with a CPU;

searching an enrolled face database residing on the CPU for the identifier, wherein said enrolled face database links a set of previously obtained and stored digitized facial template files with the previously obtained and stored personal identifiers of various persons;

activating a camera reference-linked to the referenced data input device;

gathering a plurality of photographic images of the individual;

capturing a set of selected photographic images with the communication control device and generating a compressed digitized image file from the selected photographic images;

transmitting the compressed digitized image file to the CPU;

processing the compressed digitized image file though a face recognition system residing on the CPU to form a test facial template file;

comparing the test facial template file with a specific stored facial template file linked to the individual'"'"'s identifier in the enrolled face database; and

providing feedback on the correspondence of the test facial template file with the previously stored facial template file linked to the individual'"'"'s identifier to a visual output device associated with the biometric data entry mechanism.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of alerting security if the test facial template file and the previously stored facial template linked to the individual'"'"'s identifier do not correspond.