Biometrics startup IDloop has received €10 million in funding from the European Union (EU) to develop its 3D scanning technology, which captures fingerprints without contact and with microscopic resolution. Featuring a completely noncontact instrument, IDloop’s approach speeds up matching with existing databases, and is secure and hygienic, according to the company.
IDloop’s 3D scanning technology captures fingerprints at microscopic resolution without contact. Courtesy of IDloop.
More than three billion people are currently registered in government fingerprint databases, according to IDloop, which debuted in 2022. All of the corresponding data was recorded contact-based, by touching scanner surfaces. As a result, data obtained via this approach can only be matched using this approach, the company said.
IDloop’s scanner technology operates at a resolution of 10 μm. The user holds one hand over the optics while the scanner captures a 3D image. From the 3D data, the system calculates 2D grayscale images in real time — that is, classic fingerprint images.
With the the technology, fingerprints taken without contact are compatible with existing fingerprint databases, IDloop said.
“The micrometer-accurate detection of moving objects — for example, the hand in our scanner — is one of the challenging tasks in biometric image capture,” said Jörg Reinhold, CEO at IDloop. “With high-performance graphics processors and artificial intelligence-based software, we have managed to fit this complex issue into an easy-to-use device measuring just 15 × 15 × 15 cm.”
The EU is supporting the further development of the system to market readiness as part of its EIC Accelerator program with €10 million, consisting of grants and investments through the EIC Fund.