A PROPOSED NOVEL DESIGN FOR AN OPTICAL FINGERPRINT SENSOR

Abstract

We are proposmg a novel technique to capture the fingerprint pattern optically. The technique depends on searching for the position of the first minimum in an interference pattern generated inside a pixel. This means that the detection process is independent of the light source intensity. This sensor is a microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) fingerprint sensor that has protrusions on the sensor surface in order to detect clear fingerprint images for various finger surface conditions. T-shaped protrusions on the sensor surface are proposed as an interface to mediate the contact. Some analytical simulations are held to validate the consistency of the deduced equations that controls the capturing process. The proposed fingerprint sensor is a sweeping mode fingerprint sensor, consists of a line of pixels; about 256 pixels in the length of 11.2 mm, which yields a high spatial resolution of 508 dots-per-inch (dpi).With these pixels working together, fingerprint images were• obtained in simulations. The sensor is supposed to produce clear fingerprint images regardless whether the finger was dry or wet.