Sagem Sécurité, Hitachi combine fingerprint and vein recognition technologies

Published 25 March 2009

Two leaders in biometric technologies combine their respective technologies — finger prints and vein architecture — in a multimode biometric recognition module

Sagem Sécurité, member of the SAFRAN group, is partnering with engineering and information technology giant Hitachi to develop a multimode biometric recognition module. The company says that the module, developed and produced by Sagem Sécurité, will combine the best of Hitachi’s vein imaging technology (VeinID) and Sagem Sécurité’s fingerprint identification technology (MORPHO).

The complementary nature of these two identification methods — recognition of the pattern of minute blood vessels under the skin, and simultaneously processing of fingerprint data — means that the module developed by Sagem Sécurité will offer high levels of security and accuracy. The companies say the module will meet requirements for a range of applications, including access control, identity checks, and secure payments.

Jean-Paul Jainsky, Chairman and CEO of Sagem Sécurité, said that “By combining vein recognition with fingerprint analysis in a single, innovative module, we will be able to offer biometric equipment that boasts unrivaled security performance. Working with Hitachi as our partner also gives us the opportunity to develop our presence in the Asian biometric market.”

Hideyuki Ariyasu, managing director of Hitachi Europe, said, “Our finger vein recognition is already widely used by Japanese banks to give customers easy, secure access to thousands of ATM machines. Combining this highly secure imaging technology with the world-class expertise of Sagem Sécurité, a leader in the security solutions market, provides an exciting opportunity to set a new authentication technology standard for goods and — even more importantly - to protect people’s identities.”