FB pixel

Amazon patents ear recognition technology for smartphones

| Justin Lee
Categories Access Control  |  Biometrics News  |  Consumer Electronics  |  Trade Notes
 

Amazon has received a U.S. patent for ear recognition technology that scans the user’s ear with a smartphone’s front-facing camera to unlock the device when holding it up to the ear to answer a call, according to a report by Slash Gear.

Research shows that the shape of an individual’s ears are just as unique as fingerprints, which would enable the technology to accurately identify the ear of the smartphone owner when the device is being held up to it.

Besides being used as an unlocking mechanism, the technology may prove to be useful in situations where only the smartphone owner needs to be able to answer incoming calls.

Additionally, the technology would allow users to automatically switch to or from speakerphone as well as adjust the earpiece volume according to the distance between the phone and the individual’s face.

The patent was initially filed in 2011, long before Amazon launched its first Fire Phone.

The company said it will eventually release another model of the Fire Phone, which could potentially feature the new ear-scanning technology.

Previously reported, Descartes Biometrics Inc. showcased its new HELIX flagship ear image recognition technology for enterprises at the International CES on the Hill event in Washington DC on April 15.

Article Topics

 |   |   |   | 

Latest Biometrics News

 

Face biometrics use cases outnumbered only by important considerations

With face biometrics now used regularly in many different sectors and areas of life, stakeholders are asking questions about a…

 

Biometric Update Podcast explores identification at scale using browser fingerprinting

“Browser fingerprinting is this idea that modern browsers are so complex.” So says Valentin Vasilyev, Chief Technology Officer of Fingerprint,…

 

Passkeys now pervasive but passwords persist in enterprise authentication

Passkeys are here; now about those passwords. Specifically, passkeys are now prevalent in the enterprise, the FIDO Alliance says, with…

 

Pornhub returns to UK, but only for iOS users who verify age with Apple

In the UK, “wanker” is not typically a term of endearment. However, the case may be different for Pornhub, which…

 

Europol operated ‘shadow’ IT systems without data safeguards: Report

Europol has operated secret data analysis platforms containing large amounts of personal information, such as identity documents, without the security…

 

EU pushes AI Act deadlines for high-risk systems, including biometrics

The EU has reached a provisional agreement on changes to the AI Act that postpone rules on high-risk AI systems,…

Comments

18 Replies to “Amazon patents ear recognition technology for smartphones”

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Continue Reading

Biometric Market Analysis and Buyer's Guides

Most Viewed This Week

Featured Company

Learn More

Biometrics Insight, Opinion

Digital ID In-Depth

Biometrics White Papers

Biometrics Events