KT&C earns government accreditation for iris biometrics from a meter away

A patented iris recognition solution that works at a meter’s (3.3 feet) distance from South Korea-based KT&C has won government accreditation, Pulse reports.

KT&C’s iris biometrics technology also reportedly captures data at 20 to 30 percent wider angles than existing iris scanners. The article notes that other iris biometric solutions on the market work from a maximum distance of 40 cm. Iris ID said it was capturing iris biometrics from distances of 24 inches (61 cm) back in 2019.

The biometric scanning system was awarded New Excellent Product (NEP) certification from the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards, which is a body within the Ministry of Trade.

The KT&C accreditation is the first for iris biometrics among 1,000 NEPs certified over the past 20 years, according to the report.

The company believes NEP certification will boost its iris biometrics sales. It says it is targeting 10 billion won (approximately US$7 million) in sales of iris recognition devices next year, and that it is already drawing export interest from the U.S. and Europe. To maintain the NEP status, public institutions will have to make up 20 percent of KT&C’s sales.

KT&C claims to have also developed a scanner that can perform iris recognition from up to 2 meters (6.6 ft) away. The company wants to develop technology that can match iris biometrics of a person while walking.

Iris recognition researchers are also working on liveness detection for the modality.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  contactless biometrics  |  iris biometrics  |  iris recognition  |  research and development