Use of fingerprints on smartphone screens has been used for a long time. The technology serves well and has stagnated in recent years. However, Xiaomi intends to change that and has now filed a patent application for a fingerprint sensor that can be used across the entire screen of the device.
Xiaomi patents fingerprint recognition technology anywhere on the screen
According to the latest data from the Chinese Patent Office, the company has obtained a patent for fingerprint scanning technology. The technology allows you to use the scanner more freely without having to place your finger on a certain point on the screen.
In the patent, Xiaomi described the operation of a network of integrated infrared LED elements located between an AMOLED display and a capacitive touch layer. The network of “receivers” will be under the display. These elements will form the basic building blocks of the new scanner, which will serve the entire screen of the device.
Xiaomi’s patented fingerprint sensor
When the user touches the screen with their finger, the touch layer records the touch, its location, and the shape of the fingerprint, after which the LED elements begin to emit infrared light in the desired area. In this case, elements elsewhere on the screen will remain inactive.
Infrared light is then reflected off the fingertip and projected onto the receivers. The system will process the data to obtain a “card” of the fingerprint and the smartphone will compare it with the sample saved in memory. Once the fingerprint is identified, the user can unlock the device by touching any part of the screen.
Xiaomi’s patent is a major advance in fingerprint recognition and a smartphone, which currently has small screen spaces for this recognition. In addition, users increasingly seek convenience, and this patent brings that too.
In August, Huawei patented its technology for a similar purpose in several markets, including China, Europe, USA, Japan, Korea, and India, but the development did not find commercial use, which, according to the site, must have been due to US sanctions that seriously restrict the company’s technological capacity. As Xiaomi has not yet faced such sanctions, new scanners may be launched shortly.
Source: SempreUpdate