Iris authentication apparatus with optical bandpass filter and adjustable fixed focus lens

• US 7,760,919 B2
• Filed: 04/04/2006
• Issued: 07/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hongbog Corp.
• Original Assignee: Jiris Co Ltd
• Inventors: Namgoong, Jong
• Primary Examiner(s): Werner; Brian P
• Assistant Examiner(s): DRENNAN, BARRY T
• Application Number:
  US11/278,596
• Publication Number:
  US 20070171297A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,568 Days
• Field of Search: 382/117, 348/78, 348/335, 348/342, 348/345, 340/5.53, 340/5.83
• US Class Current: 382/117
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/19 Sensors therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/56 provided with illuminating means

Abstract

The present invention generally relates to a photographing apparatus for iris authentication, a photographing module for iris authentication, and a terminal having the photographing apparatus for iris authentication, and the photographing apparatus for iris authentication in accordance with the present invention comprises: a body case whose front side is open; a camera module disposed inside the body case, generating an iris pattern image by photographing iris patterns while generating a general image by photographing a general object, and consisting of a housing, a lens module moving in front/rear directions, and a pickup device for converting an image incident through the lens module into an electric signal; a band pass filter disposed in front of the camera module, and transmitting 400 to 1000 nm wavelength beams in more than 50%, among beams incident on the lens module; and an LED lamp disposed around a front side of the camera module, and irradiating infrared wavelength beams forward.

Claims

1. A photographing apparatus for authentication that photographs iris patterns of a recognized person for iris authentication and photographs a general object, comprising:

a body case whose front side is open;

a camera module disposed inside the body case, and generating an iris pattern image by photographing the iris patterns while generating a general image by photographing the general object wherein the camera module comprises;

a housing;

a lens module where more than one lens is arrayed in a line, and moving in front/rear directions; and

a pickup device disposed at the back of the lens module, and converting an image incident through the lens module into an electric signal;

a band pass filter disposed in front of the camera module, wherein the band pass filter has a transmittance of 90% to 95% for beams having a wavelength of 750 nm to 1000 nm and a transmittance of 55% to 65% for beams having a wavelength of 400 nm to 750 nm, among beams incident on the lens module; and

an LED lamp disposed around a front side of the camera module, and irradiating infrared wavelength beams forward.

2. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein the body case comprises an input/output port connected to a terminal that authenticates the recognized person by using the iris pattern image through a cable, and the photographing apparatus for iris authentication is supplied with power from the terminal through the cable, and transmits the generated iris pattern image to the terminal.

3. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein the lens module is a focus lens having a fixed focal distance.

4. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein a focal distance of the lens module is between 8 and 35 mm.

5. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein a screw thread is formed in the mobile range of the lens module along the inner circumference of the housing, while a screw thread is formed along the outer circumference of the lens module, so that the screw thread of the housing and the screw thread of the lens module are mutually connected.

6. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein the lens module and the pickup device become more distant during the iris photographing, compared to a case when the general object is photographed.

7. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 6, a distance between the lens module and the pickup device is automatically controlled.

8. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein the pickup device is an optical signal sensor with a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) having more than ¼

inch, which is capable of photographing at low illumination.

9. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein the pickup device is an optical signal sensor with a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) having more than ¼

inch, which is capable of photographing at low illumination.

10. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein only one LED lamp is equipped in a lower part of a front side of the camera module.

11. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein the LED lamp irradiates an 850 nm single wavelength beam.

12. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 1, wherein the LED lamp expands an angle of a condensing area at more than 40°

, and is disposed within 1 cm from a center of the lens module.

13. In a photographing module for iris authentication comprising a photographing apparatus for iris authentication that photographs iris patterns of a recognized person for the iris authentication and photographs a general object, and an image conversion module that converts an image of the iris patterns photographed by the photographing apparatus for iris authentication into a code,

wherein the photographing apparatus for iris authentication comprises:

a camera module composed of a lens module that configures a focus lens having a fixed focal distance by arraying more than one lens in a line and that moves in front/rear directions, and a pickup device that converts an image incident through the lens module into an electric signal by being disposed on a rear side of the lens module, and generating an iris pattern image by photographing the iris patterns while generating a general image by photographing the general object,

a band pass filter disposed in front of the camera module, wherein the band pass filter has a transmittance of 90% to 95% for beams having a wavelength of 750 nm to 1000 nm and a transmittance of 55% to 65% for beams having a wavelength of 400 nm to 750 nm among beams incident on the lens module; and

an LED lamp that irradiates an infrared wavelength band of a beam for photographing the iris patterns forward, by being disposed around a front side of the camera module; and

the image conversion module, comprising;

a temporary memory for storing the iris pattern image; and

an image processor for converting the iris pattern image into a code and generating the iris pattern code.

14. The photographing module for iris authentication of claim 13, wherein the image conversion module further comprises an interface for transmitting the iris pattern code in connection with a terminal that authenticates the recognized person by using the iris pattern code.

15. The photographing module for iris authentication of claim 14, wherein the interface is connected with the terminal through a wired network using Ethernet.

16. The photographing module for iris authentication of claim 14, wherein the interface is connected with the terminal through a wireless network using one of CDMA and GSM forms.

17. The photographing module for iris authentication of claim 13, wherein the image processor is selected from one of DSP (Digital Signal Processing) and ROM-type chips.

18. A terminal having a photographing apparatus for authentication that photographs iris patterns of a recognized person and a general object, and authenticating the iris of the recognized person by photographing iris patterns of the recognized person to give a right to use and access to the recognized person, with the photographing apparatus for authentication, comprising:

the photographing apparatus for iris authentication that generates an iris pattern image by photographing the iris patterns of the recognized person and generates a general image by photographing the general object;

wherein the photographing apparatus for iris authentication comprises;

a camera module composed of a lens module that configures a focus lens having a fixed focal distance by arraying more than one lens in a line and that moves in front/rear directions, and a pickup device that converts an image incident through the lens module into an electric signal by being disposed on a rear side of the lens module, and generating the iris pattern image by photographing the iris patterns while generating the general image by photographing the general object;

a band pass filter disposed in front of the camera module, wherein the band pass filter has a transmittance of 90% to 95% for beams having a wavelength of 750 nm to 1000 nm and a transmittance of 55% to 65% for beams having a wavelength of 400 nm to 750 nm among beams incident on the lens module; and

an LED lamp that irradiates an infrared wavelength band of a beam for photographing the iris patterns in a forward direction, by being disposed around a front side of the camera module; and

an image conversion module for converting the iris pattern image photographed by the photographing apparatus for iris authentication into a code wherein the image conversion module comprises;

a temporary memory for storing the iris pattern image; and

an image processor for converting the iris pattern image into a code and generating the iris pattern code; and

wherein the iris authentication of the recognized person is conducted by comparing the iris pattern code with an iris authentication code registered by previously photographing iris patterns of a user permitted to access the terminal.

19. The photographing apparatus for iris authentication of claim 18, wherein the terminal further comprises:

a local connector for data communication within the terminal;

a memory for storing the iris authentication code; and

a processor for authenticating the recognized person by comparing the iris pattern code with the iris authentication code; and

wherein the image conversion module further comprises an interface for transmitting the converted iris pattern code in connection with the local connector.

20. The terminal having the photographing apparatus for authentication of claim 19, wherein the interface and the local connector are connected through one of UART (Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter), PS/2, and USB (Universal Serial Bus) terminals.

21. The terminal having the photographing apparatus for authentication of claim 19, wherein the processor controls the terminal to access a DB server and a remote authentication server that provides a particular service to the recognized person, according to the compared results of the iris authentication code and the iris pattern code.

22. The terminal having the photographing apparatus for authentication of claim 19, wherein the memory is selected from one of CF card, XD card, SD card, smart media, memory stick and smart card memories.

23. The terminal having the photographing apparatus for authentication of claim 18, wherein the terminal further comprises an output device that carries out at least one of display and alarm outputting processes for the compared results of the iris authentication code and the iris pattern code.

24. The terminal having the photographing apparatus for authentication of claim 18, wherein the terminal is selected from one of PC, PDA, portable phone, navigation, Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) and Point to Multi-Point (PMP) terminals.