NCJ Number
215929
Journal
Evidence Technology Magazine Volume: 4 Issue: 4 Dated: July-August 2006 Pages: 12-14
Date Published
July 2006
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article examines the concepts developed by three organizations or agencies awarded Federal grants to develop a process to make the capturing of fingerprints faster and easier in both the public and private sector.
Abstract
Carnegie Mellon University’s group approach to a faster and easier method to plain-impression flat fingerprint capture consists of a box with a hole where the entire hand would be inserted and the computer would capture a digital image of the whole hand, getting the palm and fingers all at once. Cross Match Technologies’ concept consists of a “flexible foil contact sensor.” The sensor conforms to the shape of the finger and a two-dimensional sensor array captures the impression. TBS North America’s approach is to have a series of cameras and mirrors in a box. All at one time the system would take a series of photographs of the fingers at different angles. The computer than takes different slices of each picture and merges them together. The result is a complete rolled-equivalent view of the finger. Today, there is a growing demand to identify not only known criminals, but also new and old employees, or individuals entering the United States from other countries. Digital fingerprint capture devices, also called "livescan" devices offer an improved method of collecting 10-print records from individuals. This application is called the “slap capture” or a plain-impression flat capture. However, the Federal Government challenged the biometric industry to come up with a faster and easier way of performing plain-impression flat captures. In 2004, the U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice issued a grant solicitation to develop devices that would meet the needs of collecting a 10-print flat capture in 15 seconds or less, a device that weighs less than 5 pounds and measures less than 6 x 6 x 6. In addition, the final images had to meet the FBI’s quality standards.