CrucialTec to release on-screen fingerprint sensor solution this year

Fingerprint module developer CrucialTec said it will begin supplying its on-screen fingerprint sensors that allows for biometric authentication on a smartphone screen, as opposed to the home button, to smartphone vendors around the world later this year, according to a report by The Investor.

The move comes a couple years after CrucialTec was granted a patent for new technology to install fingerprint sensors under the display panels of smartphones.

Several smartphone vendors have been waiting for the new fingerprint sensors that offers improved security and more flexible device design.

“Our on-screen fingerprint solution, dubbed Display Fingerprint Solution or DFS, is getting positive responses from our clients, especially those in China,” a CrucialTec official said, adding that the company is still in related talks with smartphone vendors. “The first smartphones with the fingerprint solution will hit the market this year.” He declined to name the smartphone vendors.

With 50 patents related to the new biometric technology, CrucialTec’s new module comprises of transparent parts including a thin film transistor and a sensing electrode, which can be embedded under the smartphone screen.

The company said the fingerprint sensor is capable of detecting the touch of a single hair and can obtain a high-resolution fingerprint at 500 dots per inch.

The new fingerprint technology allows users to place more than one finger on the screen for authentication, the CrucialTec official said.

He added that some flagship phones and wearable devices are expected to embed the fingerprint technology partially starting this year.

“The company aims to commercialize an upgraded solution that enables fingerprint authentication on any part of the smartphone screen next year,” he said.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  CrucialTec  |  fingerprint sensors  |  smartphones  |  Thin Film Transistor (TFT)