Biometric identity check

• US 7,333,637 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2001
• Issued: 02/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Precise Biometrics AB (Precise Biometrics Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Precise Biometrics AB (Precise Biometrics Incorporated)
• Inventors: Walfridsson, Krister
• Primary Examiner(s): Mancuso; Joseph
• Assistant Examiner(s): Yuan; Kathleen
• Application Number:
  US10/258,815
• Publication Number:
  US 20040052405A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,569 Days
• Field of Search: 382/124, 382/209, 340/5.83, 235/382
• US Class Current: 382/124
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1365 Matching; Classification
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00 Individual registration on entry or exit

Abstract

A portable data carrier comprises a communication means and a memory with a biometric template which is intended to be compared with a biometric sample for identity check. The biometric template is divided into a private part which is adapted to be exclusively used in the portable data carrier and a public part which is adapted to be transferred, with the aid of the communication means, to an external processing unit and be used therein. Moreover, a processing unit for use in biometric identity check is described, comprising a processor and a communication means. The communication means is adapted to receive a biometric sample and a public part of a biometric template, the processor is adapted to compare the received public part of the template with the biometric sample, and the communication means is further adapted to transfer, when a comparison criterion has been satisfied, at least part of the biometric sample to the portable data carrier for further comparison on the data carrier. A method for recording a biometric template and performing a biometric identity check is also described.

Claims

1. A portable data carrier, comprising:

a memory with a biometric template which is intended to be compared with a biometric sample for identity check,

wherein the biometric template is divided into a) a private part which is adapted to be exclusively used in the portable data carrier, wherein said exclusive use includes comparison of at least a part of said biometric sample with said private part and b) a public part which is adapted to be transferred to and used in an external processing unit, and

wherein the public part of the biometric template comprises at least one partial area, which constitutes a public partial area, of a digital image of an individual-specific parameter, and the public and private parts are non-overlapping areas in the digital image.

2. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 1, wherein the private part of the biometric template comprises at least one partial area, which constitutes a private partial area, of the digital image of the individual-specific parameter.

3. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 1, wherein the individual-specific parameter is a fingerprint.

4. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 1, wherein the public part of the biometric template comprises information which is intended to be used for determining a reference point in the biometric sample, which reference point corresponds to a reference point in the biometric template.

5. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 1, wherein the public part of the biometric template comprises information which is intended to be used for determining how the template is oriented in relation to the biometric sample.

6. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 2, wherein the number of private partial areas is greater than the number of public partial areas.

7. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 2, wherein at least one private partial area is located in immediate connection with a public partial area in the digital representation.

8. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 2, wherein the public part of the biometric template further comprises information about how said at least one private partial area is located in relation to a reference point.

9. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 2, wherein the private part of the template comprises at least one threshold value which indicates to what extent said at least one private partial area is to match a corresponding partial area of the biometric sample for these two partial areas to be considered to originate from the same individual.

10. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a communication means, via which the public part of the biometric template is adapted to be transferred to the external processing unit.

11. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a signal processing means which is adapted to carry out a comparison between the private part of the template and at least part of the biometric sample.

12. A portable data carrier as claimed in claim 1, wherein the portable data carrier is a smart card.

13. A method for biometric identity check in a processing unit, comprising the steps of:

receiving a biometric sample and a public part of a biometric template, the biometric template further has a private part that is stored in a second unit and that is adapted to be exclusively used in the second unit, said public part of the biometric template comprising at least one partial area in a first digital image of an individual-specific parameter, the public and private parts are non-overlapping areas in the first digital image;

comparing the received public part of the template with the biometric sample; and

transferring, when a comparison criterion has been satisfied, at least part of the biometric sample to the second unit for further comparison in said second unit with the private part of the biometric template.

14. A method as claimed in claim 13, wherein said at least part of the biometric sample comprises at least one partial area in a second digital image of an individual-specific parameter.

15. A method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the private part of the biometric template comprises at least one partial area in the first digital image of the individual-specific parameter.

16. A method as claimed in claim 13, further comprising using the result of the comparison in order to determine which at least part of the biometric sample is to be transferred to the portable data carrier.

17. A method as claimed in claim 13, further comprising determining a reference point in the biometric sample by means of the public part of the template.

18. A method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the received public part of the biometric template comprises information about how said at least part of the biometric sample that is transmitted to the second unit is to be located in relation to the reference point, and further comprising using this information to determine which at least part of the biometric sample is to be transferred to the second unit.

19. A method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the biometric sample is a fingerprint.

20. A method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the second unit is a smart card.

21. A computer program product stored on a computer readable medium comprising program code which, during execution in a computer, carries out a method according to claim 13.

22. A processing unit for use in biometric identity check, comprising:

means for receiving a biometric sample and a public part of a biometric template, the biometric template further has a private part that is stored in a second unit and that is adapted to be exclusively used in the second unit, wherein the exclusive use includes comparison of at least a part of said biometric sample with said private part, said public part of the biometric template comprising at least one partial area in a first digital image of an individual-specific parameter, the private and public parts are non-overlapping areas in the first digital image;

means for comparing the received public part of the template with the biometric sample; and

means for transferring, when a comparison criterion has been satisfied, at least part of the biometric sample to the second unit for further comparison within the second unit with the private part of the biometric template.

23. A processing unit as claimed in claim 22, wherein said means for receiving comprise a processor and a communication means.

24. A processing unit as claimed in claim 22, further comprising a sensor for recording the biometric sample.

25. A method for producing a biometric template, comprising the steps of:

recording a biometric sample in the form of a digital image of an individual-specific parameter;

selecting a first part in the biometric sample, said first part comprising at least one partial area, which constitutes a public partial area, of the digital image;

selecting a second part in the biometric sample which does not overlap the partial area of the first part; and

storing the selected first and second part in a memory in a first unit in a public part and a private part, respectively, of a biometric template, the private part being adapted to be exclusively used in the first unit, wherein the exclusive use includes comparison of at least a part of said biometric sample with said private part, and the public part being adapted to be used outside the first unit.

26. A method as claimed in claim 25, wherein selecting a second part comprises selecting at least one partial area, which constitutes a private partial area, in the digital image.

27. A method as claimed in claim 26, further comprising determining the positioning of the private partial area in relation to a reference point which is defined by the public part of the template, and storing information about the positioning in the public part of the template.

28. A method as claimed in claim 26, further comprising storing in the first unit a threshold value which indicates to what extent said at least one private partial area is to match a corresponding partial area of the biometric sample for these two partial areas to be considered to originate from the same individual.

29. A method as claimed in claim 25, wherein the digital image is a fingerprint.

30. A method as claimed in claim 25, wherein the first unit is a smart card.

31. A computer program product stored on a computer readable medium that comprises program code which, during execution in a computer, carries out the method according to claim 25.

32. A method for carrying out biometric identity check, comprising the steps of:

recording a biometric sample which represents an individual-specific parameter;

comparing in a first unit a public part of a biometric template, which public part has been received from a second unit and which public part comprises at least one partial area of a first digital image of an individual-specific parameter, with the biometric sample in order to find out whether a first predetermined comparison criterion has been satisfied;

selecting, if the first comparison criterion has been satisfied, at least part of the biometric sample according to a predetermined private selection criterion and transferring said at least part of the biometric sample to the second unit;

comparing, in the second unit, said at least part of the biometric sample with a private part, stored and adapted to be exclusively used in the second unit, of the biometric template to find out whether a second predetermined comparison criterion has been satisfied, wherein the public and private parts are non-overlapping areas in the first digital image.

33. A method as claimed in claim 32, wherein the biometric sample is recorded as a second digital image of the individual-specific parameter.

34. A method as claimed in claim 32, wherein said at least part of the biometric sample comprises at least one partial area of a second digital image of the individual-specific parameter.

36. A method as claimed in claim 32, wherein the second unit is a smart card.

37. A computer program product stored on a computer-readable medium comprising program code which, during execution in a computer, carries out the method according to claim 32.

35. A method as claimed in 32, wherein the private part of the biometric template comprises at least one partial area of the first digital image of the individual-specific parameter.