At the end of July Patently Mobile posted a report about Samsung inventing an ultrasonic based fingerprint scanning system that will be engineered under the smartphone display. According to a Digitimes report this week, global shipments of in-display fingerprint sensors are expected to top 42 million units in 2018 thanks to increasing adoption of fingerprint recognition technology by smartphone vendors like Samsung.
While optical models are likely to account for a large portion of in-display fingerprint sensor shipments in 2018, shipments of ultrasonic models will come at an amount higher than expected due to the adoption by Samsung and others.
On Thursday the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published a key Samsung patent application covering an in-display fingerprint sensor system. It is the most elaborate and detailed patent on the subject to date from Samsung.
Samsung's invention relates specifically to methods for controlling a fingerprint sensor to obtain a user's fingerprint in an electronic device. More specifically, Samsung's invention covers the use of at least one fingerprint sensor disposed on at least a part of the touch screen, and a processor electrically coupled to the touch screen and the at least one fingerprint sensor.
The processor is configured to control the touch screen to display one or more graphic objects, detect attribute information of at least one graphic object associated with the fingerprint sensor from among the one or more graphic objects, activate an area of the fingerprint sensor corresponding to the at least one graphic object based on the attribute information, and acquire fingerprint information through the activated area.
The processor of an electronic device can also determine an optimized fingerprint sensing area for scanning a user's fingerprint. By performing a scan in the determined fingerprint sensing area, a fingerprint scanning speed can be reduced. Also, by minimizing a scan area, the battery consumption can be reduced.
At one point in the patent filing, Samsung describes using as many as four fingerprint sensors to provide users with maximum fingerprint ID flexibility depending on the applications being used.
Getting to the heart of the matter we fast forward to Samsung's patent FIG. 7 below which presents a diagram illustrating an example of activating a fingerprint sensing area in an electronic device having one fingerprint sensor.
As shown in parts (a) to (c) of FIG. 7, the smartphone #400 may include one fingerprint sensor #410 that covers the entire area or a partial area of the display #424.
In the fingerprint sensing area 410a of the display (in figure b), the UI object #601 related to the fingerprint recognition function may be displayed. Information about the fingerprint sensing area covering the entire or partial area of the display may be mapped on a one-to-one basis to region information of the display.
In particular, the fingerprint-sensing activated area #605 of the fingerprint sensor may be determined on the basis of the coordinate information of the UI object #601 (in figure a). The fingerprint-sensing activated area of the fingerprint sensor may also be referred to as a fingerprint acquisition area.
Any touch contact #609 acquired from a touch area other than the fingerprint-sensing activated area #605 may be ignored. So if the side of a thumb accidentally touches the display, it will be ignored by the fingerprint sensor.
According to one embodiment, the fingerprint recognition application of the smartphone may transmit information to the processor about the fingerprint-sensing activated area including the coordinates of a certain reference point (e.g., an upper left point #607) in the UI object #601 and the height and width values (H and W) of fingerprint information, and any touch information obtained from the touch area other than the fingerprint-sensing activated area #605. Then, the processor may determine the fingerprint-sensing activated area on the basis of the received information.
Smartphone or Tablet: Sensors with High Accuracy
Samsung's patent FIG. 11 below is a diagram illustrating an example of setting a portion with high accuracy as an activated area of a fingerprint sensor in a smartphone or tablet having one fingerprint sensor.
As shown in FIG. 11 above, the electronic device may include one fingerprint sensor that covers the entire or partial area of the display. Also, information about the fingerprint sensing area #410a covering the entire or partial area of the display may be mapped on a one-to-one basis to region information of the display.
Specifically, as shown in parts (a) to (c) of FIG. 11, when user authentication is utilized for payment, secure application access, unlocking, or any other secure data-based transaction, etc., the electronic device, according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may determine, as the activated area within the fingerprint sensing area 410a, a portion that allows accurate recognition of the user fingerprint information (or biometric information), based on a particular attribute information (e.g., a touch position, a touch size, a touch acceleration, or a touch pressure) of a user input.
For example, in the example of part (a) of FIG. 11, when a part of the user's body (e.g., a tip of the index finger) touches a portion of the fingerprint sensing area #410a of the display, the processor of the electronic device may determine, based on attribute information (e.g., touch information) of the user input, that a certain quantity of pressure (e.g., a threshold level of pressure) is distributed to a lengthwise central region 602a of the part of the user's body contacting the display. Accordingly, the processor may select the lengthwise central region #602a as the `activated` area for recognizing fingerprint information and acquire the fingerprint information.
Up to 4 Fingerprint Sensors may be Implemented
Samsung's patent FIG. 14 presented below is a diagram illustrating an example of activating a fingerprint sensing area in an electronic device having four fingerprint sensors.
As shown in FIG. 14, the electronic device may include the first fingerprint sensing area #411a, the second fingerprint sensing area #412a, the third fingerprint sensing area #413a, and the fourth fingerprint sensing area #414a.
Samsung later points out that when the fingerprint recognition application of the electronic device executes the fingerprint recognition function, the processor may display the UI object #601 (e.g., a login icon) related to the fingerprint recognition function on the display.
Samsung's patent FIG. 15 presented below is a diagram illustrating an example of activating two fingerprint sensing areas in an electronic device having four fingerprint sensors; the first fingerprint sensing area #411a, the second fingerprint sensing area #412a, the third fingerprint sensing area #413a, and the fourth fingerprint sensing area #414a.
As shown in part (a) of FIG. 15, when the fingerprint recognition application of the electronic device executes the fingerprint recognition function, the processor may display the UI object #601 (e.g., a fingerprint-like icon) related to the fingerprint recognition function at a lower center position of the display.
The lower center position may be formed of parts of the third and fourth fingerprint sensing areas #413a and #414a. When the user touches the UI object the coordinate information corresponding to the user touch may be sent to the processor. Then, based on the coordinate information, the processor may determine the fingerprint sensing area to be activated.
According to one embodiment, as shown in part (a) of FIG. 15, the UI object for fingerprint recognition may be displayed at the lower center position of the display. When the user touches the UI object# 601, the processor may control the third and fourth fingerprint sensing areas 413a and 414a to be activated as shown in part (b) of FIG. 15, based on the coordinate information of the user touch.
As shown in FIG. 16, the electronic device may define the first and second fingerprint sensing areas #411a and #412a at some portions of the display (e.g., upper and lower portions). Alternatively, the electronic device may define one fingerprint sensing area #410a at the center of the display.
According to one embodiment, as shown in part (a) of FIG. 16, the UI object #601 for fingerprint recognition may be displayed at an upper portion of the display. When the user touches the UI object, the processor may control the first fingerprint sensing area #411a to be activated as the fingerprint-sensing activated area as shown in part (b) of FIG. 16, based on the coordinate information of the user touch. Then, the processor may acquire the user fingerprint information through the activated area #411a.
Alternatively, When the UI object is touched by the user it's disposed at the center of the display, the processor may control the one fingerprint sensing area #410a to be activated as shown in part (c) of FIG. 16, based on the coordinate information of the user touch. Then, the processor may acquire the user fingerprint information through the activated area #410a.
Fingerprint Processor may use Different Scan Frequencies
Samsung's patent FIG. 17 below is a diagram illustrating a method for performing touch acquisition and fingerprint acquisition through different scan frequencies in an electronic device.
According to one embodiment, when the electronic device is capable of acquiring both touch information and fingerprint information, the processor may change a scan frequency of the fingerprint-sensing activated area for acquiring the user fingerprint information.
For example, when acquiring the touch information by using the touch panel #422 as shown in part (a) of FIG. 17, the electronic device may scan the user touch information through the first scan frequency.
In another example, when acquiring the fingerprint information by using the fingerprint sensor #410 as shown in part (b) of FIG. 17, the electronic device may scan the user fingerprint information through the second scan frequency which is different from the first scan frequency. According to some embodiments, the second scan frequency may be higher than the first scan frequency.
In still another example, as shown in part (c) of FIG. 17, the electronic device may acquire the user fingerprint information from a portion of the fingerprint sensor #410 using the second scan frequency.
According to various embodiments, when the user grips the electronic device, the processor of the electronic device may detect a user's grip state and determine the fingerprint sensing area based on the detected grip state.
For example, if the user grips the electronic device with one hand, the electronic device may operate in a one-hand mode and suitably adjust the position of the fingerprint sensing area to accommodate the one-handed grip.
Samsung filed this U.S. patent application back on January 10, 2018 and published by USPTO on August 9, 2018. Considering that this is a patent application, the timing of such a product to market is unknown at this time.
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