Looking like something out of a futuristic science fiction movie, eye scanner technology companies hope to see this advanced security feature utilized as a means of identification in more US settings, like airports.
Last week it was announced that one such company, Aoptix Technologies Inc., has acquired $123 million in investment funding since 2000 in order to develop, market and sell the technology, and they are aiming for it to be used in airports on a wider scale. These scanners are currently in use at the London Gatwick Airport for those passengers who access the international departure lounge, and has even been implemented in Qatar to assist in border control.
An eye scanner has the ability to scan from up to six feet away, and with its highly accurate technology and less invasive nature it is becoming the security measure of choice. Homeland Security tested these scanners a few years back, and reports indicate they have been utilizing them since to assist in identifying illegal immigrant issues at ports.
In July of 2005, Orlando International Airport launched their Clear program, and for $79.95 travelers could join the program allowing them to avoid lengthy security checks by submitting to an iris scan instead. In 2006, the Freehold Borough School District in New Jersey installed and tested eye scanners in three of their schools as a means of establishing a system that allows only certain authorized people to enter and pick up children. The school superintendent Phil Meara stated, "Biometrics is the wave of the future." He also stated, "Everything I've heard is that there will be a tremendous emphasis on making schools as safe as possible. If our school process [shows] that this system works, yes, it might just take off."
An eye scan is similar to a fingerprint in that no two people's are alike; however the eye actually contains more variations than a fingerprint, making the number of differences even greater than a fingerprint. The scanner checks and compares “more than 200 matching points on the iris” in order to establish positive identification. Of course, before this system can be established in any large scale use, it requires a majority of people to submit themselves to the initial eye examine in order to be in the system and have a record for comparison. At first thought, I wondered how long it would take for such a system to be in place with that requirement, but then I remembered that almost every time we go to the DMV for a driver’s license, we have to take an eye examine. So in a four-year period, a huge percentage of the US population could be easily scanned.
On a smaller scale, this technology is already being used for personal security. Laptop and desktop computers can be purchased with this technology in place, and there are even mobile device apps that can secure your device with this technology. So the idea of this technology is already reaching a large amount of people, making a use of it on a larger scale that much easier of a transition.
With the technology being less invasive, quick and easy to perform, and more accurate than most identification methods, it can be easily seen that this will be the new wave that will wash into the technology market on a larger scale in the future.
Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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