US 8,009,881 B2 · Digitization of a papillary structure

Abstract

A method and apparatus is described for recording and digitizing intensity profiles (IP) of the papillary structure of the skin with high intensity resolution using sensors S with low intensity resolution. For this purpose, a plurality of digital image signals (DS, DS1, DS2) of an identical subarea e.g. of a fingerprint are recorded, whereby the continuous intensity domain (KI) of the fingerprint is scanned in different intensity resolutions, and/or different portions (A1, A2) of said continuous intensity domain (KI) are mapped to discrete intensity domains of the single digital image signals (DS, D1, DS2). By the pixelwise combination of all digital image signals (DS, DS1, DS2), a digital fingerprint image signal (PS) is finally produced whose discrete intensity domain (DI) represents a larger portion of the continuous intensity domain (KI) of the fingerprint and/or has a higher resolution intensity than each single one of the digital image signals (DS, DS1, DS2).

Claims22

Dependent claims

A method for digitizing at least a subarea of the papillary structure of skin, the subarea defining an intensity profile with a continuous intensity domain, comprising the steps of:

transforming the intensity profile into at least one analog electrical signal, and
transforming said analog electrical signal into at least one digital signal with an intensity domain comprising discrete intensity values and a space domain comprising discrete positions,
repeatedly performing the steps of transforming the intensity profile into at least one analog electrical signal and of transforming said analog electrical signal into at least one digital signal with an intensity domain comprising intensity values and a space domain comprising discrete positions for the same subarea to form different digital signals with different intensity discretizations in each case, and
combining the different digital signals into a common digital papillary structure signal with an intensity domain formed from discrete intensity values and a space domain formed from discrete positions in such a way that the intensity domain of the papillary structure signal has more intensity values than the intensity domains of each single one of the different digital signals.

1 more element

An apparatus for digitizing at least a subarea of the papillary structure of skin, the subarea defining an intensity profile with a continuous intensity domain, comprising a transformation device for transforming the intensity profile into at least one analog electrical signal, and an analog/digital converter for transforming said analog electrical signal into at least one digital signal with an intensity domain comprising discrete intensity values and a space domain comprising discrete positions,

a control device which causes the transformation device and the analog/digital converter to perform for the same sub area,
the transforming of the intensity profile into at least one analog electrical signal and the transforming of the analog electrical signal into at least one digital signal with an intensity domain comprising discrete intensity values and a space domain comprising discrete positions for the same subarea repeatedly to form different digital signals with different intensity discretizations in each case, and
a combination device which combines the digital signals into a common digital papillary structure signal with an intensity domain comprising discrete intensity values and a space domain comprising discrete positions in such a way that the intensity domain of the digital papillary structure signal has more discrete intensity values than the intensity domains of each single one of the digital signals.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Digitization of a papillary structure

Life of this patent

Digitization of a papillary structure

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims22