Fujitsu To Make Palm-Scanning Laptops

Japanese hardware company Fujitsu, is working on palm readers for smartphones, tablets and laptops. The readers will scan an entire palm and use the unique network of veins to identify approved users.


As veins are internal in the body and have a wealth of differentiating features, attempts to forge an identity are extremely difficult, thereby enabling a high level of security. Additionally, the sensor of the palm vein device can only recognize the pattern if the deoxidized hemoglobin is actively flowing within the individual's veins.

Fujitsu's device is about the size of a regular fingerprint scanner (just a bit more than 1 inch x 1 inch) and uses beams of near-infrared light to read palms held about two inches above its surface. Because there's no need to touch the scanner, users won't leave traces, which Fujitsu says makes the scanner more secure and hygienic.

Palm scanning device has a fail-safe against even the most gristly biometric workarounds: Fujitsu says that the scanner can detect whether blood is pumping through the palm's veins, and will not unlock if it detects no blood flow. That means a severed hand or a dead body could not be used to unlock the device.

The scanner is compatible with Windows XP and later versions of Windows, as well as Linux (kernel 2.6.32 or later). It can currently be purchased as a standalone device, or comes built into several Fujitsu laptops.

- NBC