Touch Biometrix launches ‘largest ever’ TFT capacitive fingerprint sensor

When it comes to biometric sensors some believe that bigger is better. Touch Biometrix claims it has built the world’s largest and thinnest capacitive fingerprint sensor based on thin-film transistor (TFT) technology.

Named TCAP60, the sensor is 3.2 by 3 inches, and therefore meets the criteria for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) FAP60 standard. FAP 50 and 60 scanners can be used to capture 4 flat fingers and rolled fingers simultaneously.

The UK-headquartered startup has been gunning for a piece of the market for enterprise and government applications. It announced plans to launch the product in April 2022, after receiving an unspecified Series B funding round led by the Deepbridge Capital Technology Growth Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) fund.

“Touch Biometrix decided to develop TCAP60, in FAP60 size and resolution as its first product, even if it is with the most challenging dimension within the FBI-certified list, because we knew our technology had the full scalability to any size and we wanted to prove to the world Touch Biometrix’s technology is the one to adopt,” says the company’s Chief Technology Officer Eric Derckx.

In 2020, Touch Biometrix Founder and CEO Mike Cowin revealed in an interview with Biometric Update that the company was also working on a biometric card application and a laptop trackpad application.

Aside from its size, the company says that the TCAP60 fingerprint sensor’s main selling point is its scalability to any shape. It can be flexible and rigid while maintaining high sensitivity and low energy consumption.

The TCAP60 device is available as a half module ready for integration into security services applications. The sensor was built in collaboration with Sharp Display Technology, using the company’s Active Pixel architecture and fabricated by Sharp on its IGZO TFT-based substrate.

“There is a huge opportunity out there in fingerprint biometrics and Sharp strongly believes in Touch Biometrix’s technology,” says Jens Hoeper, General Manager for Sales at Sharp Devices Europe.

The high-resolution sensor contains 500 pixels per inch and captures the fingerprint patterns using Touch Biometrix chip design ROIC (Read Out IC), the company says in a release. The ROIC was developed with its partner Systematic.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  fingerprint biometrics  |  fingerprint sensors  |  Thin Film Transistor (TFT)  |  Touch Biometrix