KR20160083032A - User authentication biometrics in mobile devices - Google Patents

Abstract

The authentication process may involve providing an image on the display device, such as an icon associated with the application, indicating an area to be touched by the user. At least partial fingerprint data may be obtained during one or more finger taps or touches in the area. Based on the comparison of the partial fingerprint data with the legitimate user's master fingerprint data, the control system can determine whether to invoke the function. Invoking a function may involve authorizing commerce or unlocking the display device. In some implementations, determining whether to invoke a function may be based on a security level.

Description

USER AUTHENTICATION BIOMETRICS IN MOBILE DEVICES < RTI ID = 0.0 >

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61 / 900,851 (Attorney Docket No. QUALP211PUS / 133057P1), filed on November 6, 2013, entitled "USER AUTHENTICATION BIOMETRICS IN MOBILE DEVICES, Lt; / RTI > This application claims priority to U.S. Serial No. 14 / 178,156 (Attorney Docket No. QUALP211US / 133057), filed February 11, 2014, entitled " USER AUTHENTICATION BIOMETRICS IN MOBILE DEVICES, "Lt; / RTI > This application also claims priority to U.S. Serial No. 14 / 071,362, Attorney Docket No. QUALP200US / 133242, filed November 4, 2013, entitled "DISPLAY WITH PERIPHERAL CONFIGURED ULTRASONIC BIOMETRIC SENSOR" Thereby being incorporated by reference. This application also claims priority to U.S. Serial No. 14 / 071,320, Attorney Docket No. QUALP207US / 132882, filed on November 4, 2013, entitled "PIEZOELECTRIC FORCE SENSING ARRAY" ≪ / RTI >

[0002] This disclosure generally relates to authentication devices and methods, and in particular authentication devices and methods applicable to mobile devices.

[0003] As mobile devices become more versatile, user authentication becomes increasingly important. Increasing amounts of personal information may be stored on the mobile device and / or accessible by the mobile device. Moreover, more and more mobile devices are being used to make purchases and perform other commerce transactions. Existing authentication methods generally involve the use of passwords or pass codes, which may be forgotten by a legitimate user or used by unauthorized persons. Improved authentication methods would be desirable.

[0004] The systems, methods and devices of the present disclosure each have several innovative aspects, although only one of these aspects is not solely responsible for the desired attributes disclosed herein.

[0005] One innovative aspect of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure includes providing an image on a display device representing a region for a user to touch and obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region The method comprising the steps of: The finger touch may involve, for example, left-thumb-side touching, right-thumb-side touching, or fingertip touching. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to the touch portion of the finger or the thumb. The method may involve comparing partial fingerprint data to legitimate user ' s master fingerprint data, and determining, based at least in part on the comparison process, whether to invoke the function. Invoking a function may involve authorizing a transaction, starting a personalized application, or unlocking a display device. In some instances, determining whether to invoke a function may involve determining whether to permit the transaction based on the security level.

[0006] In some implementations, the partial fingerprint data may include new fingerprint data and known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data. The method may involve updating the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data. The update process may involve incrementing the master fingerprint data and / or adapting the master fingerprint data.

[0007] The method may involve determining the legitimate user's finger tap data. The step of determining whether to invoke the function may be based at least in part on comparing the current user's finger tab feature data with the legitimate user's finger tab feature data. In some implementations, a finger tap feature may correspond to a number of taps, a frequency of taps, a sequence of taps, and / or an auditory signature.

[0008] The process of obtaining partial fingerprint data may involve an ultrasonic imaging process. In some of these implementations, the process of obtaining partial fingerprint data may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data through the ultrasonic sensor array while keeping the ultrasonic transmitter in the "off" state.

[0009] In some implementations, the method may involve receiving device movement data. The decision process may be based at least in part on device movement data.

[0010] The displayed area for the user to touch may vary depending on the implementation. In some examples, the area for the user to touch may be within the display area, outside the display area, or behind the display device. In some implementations, the area for the user to touch may overlap at least a portion of the fingerprint acquisition system.

[0011] In some implementations, the method may involve prompting a user to provide substantially complete fingerprint data for at least one finger. The method may involve associating substantially complete fingerprint data with a legitimate user, and storing substantially complete fingerprint data in memory.

[0012] In some instances, the method may involve providing one or more purchase icons on the display device. The purchase icons may correspond to, for example, purchaseable items. The method may involve moving a representation of one of the purchase icons to a displayed area in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb. This method may involve the step of determining whether to permit the transaction.

[0013] In some implementations, the method may involve providing one or more application icons on a display device. Each of the application icons may correspond to a software application. The method may involve moving the representation of the application icon of one of the application icons to the displayed area in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb. The method may involve determining whether to start the corresponding application.

[0014] Other innovative aspects of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented in a manner involving providing an image on a display device indicative of an area for a user to touch in order to perform commerce. The method may involve determining a level of security that may correspond to commerce. The method may also involve obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the area. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to the touch portion of the finger or the thumb. The method may also involve comparing partial fingerprint data to legitimate user ' s master fingerprint data, and determining, based at least in part on the comparison process and security level, whether to allow commerce.

[0015] The security level may be based on one or more of the requested payment amount, the amount of credit available, the amount of money to be transferred between accounts, the type of product, or the user's credit score. In some instances, the method may involve determining that the security level indicates that additional data will be required to determine whether to allow commerce. Additional data may include full fingerprint data, finger tap features, and / or device movement data for at least one finger. The finger tap feature may correspond to the number of taps, the frequency of taps, the sequence of taps, and / or the audio signature.

[0016] Some or all of the methods described herein may be performed by one or more devices depending on the instructions (e.g., software) stored on the non-transitory medium. Such non-volatile media may include, but are not limited to, those described herein, including but not limited to memory devices, such as random access memory (RAM) devices, read-only memory have. Accordingly, other innovative aspects of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented in a non-transient medium in which software is stored. For example, the software may include instructions for controlling the at least one device to provide an image representing a region for a user to touch and to obtain partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region . The partial fingerprint data may correspond to the touch portion of the finger or the thumb. The software may include instructions for controlling the at least one device to compare the partial fingerprint data to the legitimate user's master fingerprint data and to determine whether to invoke the function based at least in part on the comparison process .

[0017] The function may involve authorizing the transaction, starting the personalized application, or unlocking the display device. The partial fingerprint data may include new fingerprint data and known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data. The software may include instructions for controlling at least one device to update the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data. Updating may involve at least one of augmenting the master fingerprint data or adapting the master fingerprint data. Acquiring may involve an ultrasonic imaging process.

[0018] The software may include instructions for controlling at least one device to provide one or more purchase icons on the display device. Purchase icons may correspond to purchaseable items. The software is operable to move the representation of one of the purchase icons to the displayed area in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touching portion of the finger or thumb and to instruct at least one device to control the at least one device to determine whether to permit the transaction Lt; / RTI >

[0019] In some instances, the software may include instructions for controlling at least one device to provide one or more application icons on the display device. Each of the application icons may correspond to software applications. The software may control, in response to a corresponding dragging movement of a touch portion of a finger or thumb, at least one device to move a representation of one of the application icons to a displayed area, Lt; / RTI >

[0020] Other innovative aspects of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented in an apparatus that may include a display, a fingerprint acquisition system, and a control system. The control system controls the display to provide an image representing a region for the user to touch and controls the fingerprint acquisition system to obtain partial fingerprint data from the at least partial finger touch in the region, Or corresponding to the touch portion of the thumb, the partial fingerprint data may be compared to the legitimate user's master fingerprint data, and based on, at least in part, the comparison process, whether to invoke the function.

[0021] The apparatus may include a motion sensor system capable of sensing device movement and providing device movement data to the control system. The control system can determine whether or not the device movement data corresponds to the legitimate user ' s device movement data.

[0022] In some implementations, the device may include a finger tap detection system. The control system may receive information about one or more finger taps from the finger tap detection system and may determine finger tap feature data based on information about one or more finger taps. Determining whether to invoke the function may be based at least in part on comparing the finger tap feature data with the legitimate user's finger tab feature data. The finger tap feature data may correspond to at least one of a number of taps, a frequency of taps, a sequence of taps, or an audio signature.

[0023] In some instances, the fingerprint acquisition system may include an ultrasound imaging system. In accordance with some such implementations, the ultrasound imaging system may comprise an ultrasonic sensor array and an ultrasonic transmitter. In some instances, the acquisition process may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data through the ultrasonic sensor array while keeping the ultrasonic transmitter in the "off" state. In some implementations, the fingerprint acquisition system may be positioned within the display area. However, in alternative implementations, the fingerprint acquisition system may be positioned at least partially outside the display area. For example, the fingerprint acquisition system can be positioned on the periphery of the display area, on the side of the device, on the back side of the device, and so on.

[0024] Other innovative aspects of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure may be embodied in a manner that may involve providing an image on a display device representing a region for a user to touch. The image may correspond to an icon associated with the first software application. The method may involve obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the area. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb.

[0025] The method may involve comparing partial fingerprint data to legitimate user ' s master fingerprint data. The master fingerprint data may correspond to a second software application, for example, with respect to an authentication function. The method may involve determining whether to update the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data, based at least in part on the comparison process. In some instances, the first software application is not associated with an authentication function. In some implementations, the updating step may involve incrementing the master fingerprint data and / or adapting the master fingerprint data.

[0026] The method may involve obtaining new finger tap feature data of a legitimate user. The decision process may involve determining whether to update the legitimate user's existing finger tab feature data according to the new finger tap feature data. In some examples, a finger tap feature may correspond to a number of taps, a frequency of taps, a sequence of taps, and / or an audio signature.

[0027] In some implementations, the method may involve receiving new device movement data of a legitimate user. The decision process may involve determining whether to update the legacy user ' s existing device movement data in accordance with the new device movement data.

[0028] Another innovative aspect of the claimed subject matter is the provision of a method for providing a user with one or more icons on a display device and a method for touching an area of a display device corresponding to one of the icons to which a user ≪ RTI ID = 0.0 > and / or < / RTI > The method includes moving a representation of one of the provided icons to an area indicative of a selection of an icon in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the finger, when the finger is positioned in the fingerprint sensing area, And invoking the function based on the obtained biometric information.

[0029] The acquisition process may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data from the finger. The step of invoking the function may involve authorizing the transaction, starting the application, or unlocking the display device.

[0030] Yet another innovative aspect of the claimed subject matter is the provision of an image on a display device representing a region for a user to touch and obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region In a manner that can be accompanied. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb. The method may involve performing an authentication process based at least in part on partial fingerprint data.

[0031] In some implementations, the method may involve determining whether to invoke the function based, at least in part, on the authentication process. For example, the step of invoking the function may involve authorizing the transaction, starting the personalized application, or unlocking the display device.

[0032] Additional innovative aspects of the claimed subject matter include providing one or more icons on a display and receiving an indication that the user is interacting with at least one of the provided icons Can be implemented in a way that can be achieved. The method may involve acquiring biometric information from a finger during user interaction with the icon when the finger is being positioned in the fingerprint sensing area. The method may involve invoking a function based at least in part on the obtained biometric information.

[0033] In some instances, the acquiring process may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data from a finger. The step of receiving an indication that the user is interacting with the icon may involve receiving an indication that the finger is touching an area of the display device corresponding to one of the provided icons. Alternatively or additionally, the receiving may involve receiving an indication of a dragging movement of the finger towards the displayed area. The displayed area can be displayed, for example, on a display. However, in some examples, the displayed area may be the edge of the display, the side of the display device, or the back side of the display device. For example, the display may be on the front side of the display device, and the fingerprint sensing area may be on the side of the display device or behind the display device.

[0034] In some implementations, receiving an indication that the user is interacting with the provided icon may involve receiving an indication that the user has tapped the icon multiple times or within a range of time intervals. In some instances, acquiring biometric information may involve an ultrasonic imaging process.

[0035] Other innovative aspects of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented in an apparatus that may include a display, a fingerprint acquisition system, and a control system. The control system controls the display to provide an image indicative of the area to be touched by the user in order to perform commerce, determines that the security level can correspond to the commerce, and, via the fingerprint acquisition system, Partial fingerprint data can be obtained from the touch. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb. The control system can compare partial fingerprint data with the legitimate user's master fingerprint data and determine whether to allow commerce based at least in part on the comparison process and security level.

[0036] In some embodiments, the security level may be based on one or more of a requested payment amount, an amount of available credit, an amount of money to be transferred between accounts, a type of product, or a user's credit score. According to some implementations, the control system may determine that the security level indicates that additional data will be required to determine whether to allow commerce.

[0037] Still other innovative aspects of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented in an apparatus that may include a display, a fingerprint acquisition system, and a control system. The control system may control the display to provide an image indicative of a region for the user to touch and may obtain partial fingerprint data from the at least partial finger touch in the region through the fingerprint acquisition system. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb. The control system can compare the partial fingerprint data with the legitimate user's master fingerprint data and determine based on, at least in part, the comparison process to authorize the transaction, start the personalized application, or unlock the device .

[0038] In some implementations, the device may include a touch sensitive system. The control system may control the display to provide one or more purchase icons on the display. Purchase icons may correspond to purchaseable items. The control system may receive, via the touch sensitive system, an indication of a dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb, and in response to a dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb, To the displayed area, and may determine whether to allow the transaction.

[0039] In some implementations, the control system may control the display to provide one or more application icons on the display device. Each of the application icons may correspond to a software application. The control system may receive, via the touch sensing system, an indication of a dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb, and in response to a dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb, To the displayed area, and determine whether to start the application corresponding to the representation of one of the application icons.

[0040] [0011] Yet another innovative aspect of the claimed subject matter described in this disclosure is a display; Touch sensing system; Biometric sensor; And a control system. ≪ RTI ID = 0.0 > [0031] < / RTI > The control system may control the display to provide one or more icons and receive via the touch sensing system an indication that the user's finger is touching an area of the display device corresponding to one of the provided icons can do. The control system may receive, via the touch sensing system, an indication of a dragging movement of the finger and, in response to a dragging movement of the finger, move the representation of one of the provided icons to an area indicative of the selection of the icon The display can be controlled.

[0041] The control system may obtain biometric information from a finger when the finger is positioned in a region corresponding to the biometric sensor and may invoke the function based on the obtained biometric information. For example, acquiring biometric information may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data from a finger. Invoking a function may involve authorizing a transaction, starting an application, or unlocking a device.

[0042] The details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and description. Other features, aspects and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings and claims. It is noted that the relative dimensions of the figures below may not be shown to scale.

[0043] The details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and description. Other features, aspects and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings and claims. It is noted that the relative dimensions of the figures below may not be shown to scale. In the various figures, the same reference numerals and designations denote the same elements.
[0044] FIG. 1A is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method using touch biometric.
[0045] Figs. 1B and 1C show examples of providing an image on a display device that displays an area to be touched by a user.
[0046] FIG. 1D shows an example of a bar code displayed on a display device.
[0047] FIG. 1e is a flow chart of another example of a method using touch biometric.
[0048] FIGS. 1F and 1G illustrate examples in which a user drags icons and provides purchase icons on a display device.
[0049] FIG. 1h is a flow chart of another example of a method using touch biometric.
[0050] FIGS. 1I and 1J illustrate examples of providing areas and application icons on which a user drags icons, on a display device.
[0051] FIG. 1K is a flow chart of another example of a method using touch biometric.
[0052] FIG. 11 is a flowchart of another example of a method using touch biometric.
[0053] FIG. 1 m is a flowchart of another example of a method using touch biometric.
[0054] Figures 2 (a) to (l) illustrate examples of fingerprint images corresponding to partial fingerprint data.
[0055] FIG. 2M shows an example of an image corresponding to a master fingerprint.
[0056] Figure 3A is a flow chart illustrating examples of some methods of updating master fingerprint data.
[0057] FIG. 3B provides an example in which the user holds the mobile display device in the left hand.
[0058] FIG. 3C provides an example in which the user holds the mobile display device in the right hand.
[0059] FIG. 3d provides an example in which a user interacts with a mobile display device on a surface.
[0060] FIG. 3E shows another example of a display device including a fingerprint acquisition system.
[0061] FIG. 4A is a flowchart that provides an example of determining whether to permit a transaction based at least in part on a security level.
[0062] FIG. 4B is a graph showing an example of determining a security level based on a transaction amount.
[0063] Figures 4C and 4D show examples of device moves that can be captured as device movement data.
[0064] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating examples of display device components.
[0065] FIG. 6A is a block diagram of an example of a touch sensing system.
[0066] Figures 6b and 6c are schematic representations of examples of the touch sensing system shown in Figure 6a, with additional details of a single sensor pixel shown.
[0067] Figure 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an example of a process for receiving a user input from a force-sensing device and turning the ultrasonic transmitter on or off according to user input.
[0068] Figures 8A-8C provide examples of the process described in Figure 7.
[0069] FIG. 9A shows an example of a developed view of a touch sensing system.
[0070] FIG. 9b shows an exploded view of an alternative example of a touch sensitive system.
FIGS. 10 to 12 show examples of display devices having an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor positioned outside the display area.
[0072] Figures 13A and 13B illustrate examples of system block diagrams illustrating a display device including a touch sensing system as described herein.

[0073] The following description relates to specific implementations for the purposes of illustrating innovative aspects of the disclosure. However, those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the present teachings can be applied in a number of different ways. The described implementations may be implemented in any device, device, or system, including a touch sensitive system. In addition, the described implementations may be implemented in a variety of electronic devices: mobile phones, multimedia Internet enabled cellular phones, mobile television receivers, wireless devices, smartphones, Bluetooth® devices, personal data assistants (PDAs) Mail receivers, hand-held or portable computers, netbooks, laptops, smartbooks, tablets, printers, copiers, scanners, facsimile devices, global positioning system (GPS) receivers / navigators , Cameras, digital media players (such as MP3 players), camcorders, game consoles, wristwatches, desk clocks, calculators, television monitors, flat panel displays, electronic reading devices (E.g., readers), mobile health devices, computer monitors, automatic displays (odometer and speedometer displays, etc.), cockpit controllers (E.g., a display of a rear camera of a vehicle), electronic photographs, electronic billboards or signs, projectors, architectures, microwaves, refrigerators, stereo systems, cassette recorders Such as DVD players, CD players, VCRs, radios, portable memory chips, washes, dryers, washer / dryers, parking ticket collectors, packaging (such as microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) (Such as, but not limited to, electro-mechanical systems (EMS) applications and non-EMS applications that include applications), aesthetic structures (such as the display of images on a piece of jewelry or clothing) Or < / RTI > be associated therewith. The teachings herein are also applicable to electronic switching devices, radio frequency filters, sensors, accelerometers, gyroscopes, motion-sensing devices, magnetometers, inertial components for customer electronics, Can be used in applications such as, but not limited to, liquid crystal devices, liquid crystal devices, electrophoretic devices, drive schemes, manufacturing processes and electronic test equipment. Accordingly, the teachings are not intended to be limited to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, but instead have broad applicability as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0074] Some implementations described herein use touch biometrics to authenticate a user of a device such as a mobile display device. In some implementations, the authentication method may include providing an image on the display device that indicates an area for the user to touch, e.g., tap. The image may be, for example, an icon associated with an application or "app" provided on a display device. The method may include obtaining at least partial fingerprint data from one or more finger taps or touches in the area. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb. As used herein, the term "fingerprint" may be referred to as a fingerprint or a thumbprint.

[0075] The method may include comparing the partial fingerprint data with the legitimate user ' s master fingerprint data and determining, at least in part, whether to invoke the functionality based on the comparison process. For example, the master fingerprint data may correspond to a relatively more complete fingerprint image stored in a memory of the display device or accessible by the display device. The functions may include, for example, authorizing commerce, starting an app, or unlocking a display device. In some implementations, the functionality may include authorizing the transaction based on the security level.

[0076] Some such methods may involve acquiring and using touch biometrics, such as fingerprint data and / or finger tap features, in a manner that is transparent to the user. Fingerprint data, finger tap properties, and / or other biometric data may be obtained and used to register and / or authenticate a user while the user interacts with the application in a normal manner, e.g., in the native environment of the application. For example, the method may include providing an image (e.g., an icon) on the display device and prompting the user to touch or tap the image to cause electronic payment. The payment can be authenticated using the biometric information obtained during the touch without requiring the user to know the process.

[0077] 1A is a flow diagram illustrating an example of a method of using touch biometrics. As with other methods described herein, the blocks of method 100 are not necessarily performed in the indicated order. In addition, such methods may be shown and / or may include more or fewer blocks than those described. In this example, the block 105 comprises providing on the display device an image representing the area to be touched by the user. In some implementations, the image may be an icon, an image of a button, etc., indicating that the user must touch the image. Alternatively, the image may display other areas that the user will touch. The icon may include, for example, an outline of the box indicating where the underlying fingerprint or other biometric sensor may reside. Alternatively, the icon may include, for example, a fingerprint or other biometric sensor location where the sensor is positioned with respect to the display, such as below or on the display, or on the back or side of the display device enclosure. Alternatively, the image may be a message or commands by which a user may touch an area or perform an action using a biometric or fingerprint sensor, which is known to the user for this purpose. Alternatively, a message may be displayed to prompt the user to understand that the user should touch the fingerprint or other biometric sensor. For example, displaying the message "Authentication" signifies input to a fingerprint or other biometric sensor.

[0078] Block 110 includes obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the area. Here, the partial fingerprint data corresponds to the touch portion of the finger or the thumb. As used herein, "fingerprint data" includes fingerprint or fingerprint ridge image data and fingerprint detail such as data corresponding to types, positions and / or intervals of fingerprint minutiae May include various types of data known by those skilled in the art in various fields of fingerprint identification or "dactyloscopy ", including, but not limited to, data used to characterize content have. Examples of partial fingerprint data are described below, for example, with reference to Figs. "Partial fingerprint data" may correspond only to a portion of what will be described below as "substantially complete" or "full" fingerprint data, for example. For example, partial fingerprint data may correspond to less than 2/3, less than half, less than 25%, or even less than 10% of the "total" fingerprint.

[0079] In this example, block 115 includes comparing the partial fingerprint data to the master fingerprint data of the legitimate user. The master fingerprint data may have been obtained during the registration process and during the registration process a legitimate user has provided "complete" or substantially complete fingerprint data for one or more fingers and / or thumbs. The terms "full fingerprint data" and "substantially complete fingerprint data" may be used interchangeably herein. These terms can be obtained, for example, by placing a finger or thumb on a substantially flat position over the area corresponding to the fingerprint acquisition system, by "rolling " a finger or thumb over the area, It is possible to cope with the fingerprint data. It will be appreciated that "full" or "substantially complete" fingerprint data does not necessarily mean fingerprint data corresponding to each and every individual finger ridge or whorl of the finger or thumb. Some such implementations may include urging a legitimate user to provide full fingerprint data for at least one finger, associating full fingerprint data with a legitimate user, and storing the entire fingerprint data in memory. Such full fingerprint data may be stored as at least a portion of the master fingerprint data. In some implementations, for example, the entire fingerprint data for one finger may be aggregated into the entire fingerprint data for at least one other finger, thumb, etc. as master fingerprint data. The fingerprint data may include portions of one or more fingertips near the fingernail, indicating where the individual can physically touch the touch screen of the mobile device.

[0080] However, as described below, some implementations allow a user to interact with a display device such as by tapping a touch panel during interaction with other software applications on the display device (such as browsing the Internet, using cellular phones, performing commercial transactions, etc.) Increasing, adapting and / or updating the master fingerprint data while performing other operations using the master fingerprint data.

[0081] The master fingerprint data may be stored locally, e.g., in the memory of the display device. Alternatively or additionally, the master fingerprint data may be stored in another device, such as a memory device accessible via the data network. For example, the master fingerprint data may be stored in a memory device accessible by the server's memory device or server.

[0082] In this example, block 120 includes determining whether to invoke a function based, at least in part, on the comparison process of block 115. Invoking a function may involve, for example, authorizing a transaction such as commerce. In some implementations, invoking a function may include starting a personal personal use application or unlocking a display device. In some implementations, the personalized application is an application that displays a personal email account, a personal calendar, or a meter of the number of steps and calories burned that can be measured by a user's physical activity, e.g., . In some implementations, the personal-only application may be a virtual private network (VPN) and invoking the functionality may include configuring the VPN. According to some such implementations, the VPN may be set up based only on partial fingerprint data, while in alternative implementations additional information such as user ID and / or pass code may be set before the VPN can be established May need to be provided and evaluated.

[0083] In some implementations, block 120 may include invoking computer software for fingerprint identification, which may also be referred to as a fingerprint personalization. Such software may be stored in a non-volatile medium such as a portion of a memory system of a display device. Alternatively or additionally, at least some of the associated software may be stored, for example, in a memory system of another device that the display device can access through the data network. Such fingerprint identification software may control one or more devices that apply critical scoring rules to determine, for example, whether master fingerprint data and partial fingerprint data correspond to the same finger (s) or thumb (s) Lt; / RTI > The scoring rules may relate, for example, to comparing types, positions and / or intervals of feature points of the finger represented by the master fingerprint data and the partial fingerprint data.

[0084] In some implementations, additional types of authentication data may be evaluated in method 100 and / or other methods described herein. In some such implementations, since the determination of whether to invoke a function (block 120 of FIG. 1A) may include determining whether to permit the transaction based on, for example, a security level, Authentication data of the types can be evaluated. As described in more detail below with reference to FIG. 4A, high security levels may correspond to evaluating additional types of authentication data in a process that determines whether to invoke a function, such as determining whether to permit a transaction have.

[0085] For example, in some implementations, the finger tap feature data may be evaluated to determine whether finger tap feature data corresponds to legitimate user ' s finger tap feature data. The finger tap feature data may include, for example, the frequency of taps (e.g., as measured by the average time interval between taps) and / or the number of taps (e.g., the average number of taps over a predetermined time interval, Or by the dwell of the tab). Thus, the frequency of taps and / or the number of taps can be reduced, for example, when interacting with one or more graphical user interfaces displayed on a display device (e.g., interacting with a keypad) It can indicate how quickly the user is typically tapping.

[0086] The frequency of taps and / or the number of taps may be determined by the finger tap detection system. In some implementations, the finger tap sensing device may include a microphone of the display device. In some implementations, the finger tap sensing system may include a touch sensing system of a display device including, but not limited to, the types of touch sensing systems described herein.

[0087] In some implementations, the finger tap feature data may be based, at least in part, on the audio signature of the legitimate user's finger tabs. For example, some users may have relatively long nails in general. The sound produced by tapping the display device with the fingertip including the nail will be different from the sound produced by tapping the display device with the fingertip not including the nail. Relatively thin fingers will produce different tapping sounds than relatively fat fingers. Large fingers will tend to produce different tapping sounds than relatively smaller fingers. The microphone of the display device may be used, for example, to capture audio data corresponding to tapping sounds of a legitimate user during a registration period or during routine use of the display device.

[0088] Based at least in part on the audio data corresponding to the tapping sounds, the control system of the display device (or other device) may determine the audio signature of the legitimate user's finger tabs. For example, the control system may convert audio data from the time domain to the frequency domain. The control system may divide the frequency domain data into a predetermined number of frequency ranges and determine the power corresponding to the audio data in each of the frequency ranges. In such implementations, the audio signature of a legitimate user's finger taps may be based, at least in part, on the average power of each of the frequency ranges. For example, the audio signature of a legitimate user's finger taps may be based, at least in part, on the power of each of the frequency ranges. The resulting audio signature may be used during the authentication process, for example, by comparing the audio signatures of the legitimate user's finger taps with the audio signature of the person using the current display device. In some implementations, a sequence of taps, such as a tap-tap-pause-tab, is sensed and compared to a stored sequence, thereby determining that the user is a legitimate user and invoking the function if the sequences match.

[0089] Thus, the determination of whether to invoke the function (at block 120 of FIG. 1A) may be based, at least in part, on evaluating the finger tap feature data. Alternatively or additionally, method 100 may include receiving device movement data, and the determination process of block 120 may be based, at least in part, on device movement data. Examples of device movement data are described below, for example, with reference to Figures 4B-5.

[0090] Figs. 1B and 1C show examples of providing an image on a display device representing an area that the user touches. Thus, 1b and 1c provide examples of block 105 of FIG. 1a. 1B and 1C, display devices 1340 are providing images associated with commerce. In the examples shown in FIGS. 1B and 1C, commerce includes purchasing coffee. Thus, a cup of coffee and its price are displayed on the display areas 125 of the display devices 1340.

[0091] In the implementation shown in FIG. 1B, the image 130 is an icon that indicates that the user must touch the area where the image 130 is displayed. The image 130 may be provided as part of a third party software application or "app" for purchasing coffee online. For example, the software may be an app that a user has downloaded from the App Store or from a company website, such as Starbucks ™, Peet's ™, etc., to the display device 1340. When the user touches or taps the area corresponding to the image 130, the touch panel of the display device 1340 can detect the touch of the user. The app may control the display device 1340 to transmit a signal over the data network indicating that the user wants to purchase the coffee at the price displayed on the display device 1340. [ The signal can be sent to a server controlled by the company that provided the app, for example.

[0092] However, in addition to providing functionality for the app, partial fingerprint data may be obtained when the user touches or taps the finger or thumb of the area of the image 130. Thus, this process is an example of block 110 in FIG. 1A. In some implementations, registration is performed in a natural use environment of the app. An app may or may not be associated with an authentication function. Registration can be performed incrementally by acquiring, correlating, and aggregating partial fingerprint data that is obtained each time a user touches or taps a finger or a touch portion of a finger or thumb of an area of the image 130. [

[0093] For example, block 105 of FIG. 1A may include providing an icon associated with a first software application not associated with an authentication function. If it is determined at block 115 that the partial fingerprint data corresponds to the legitimate user's master fingerprint data, the method 100 may be modified to include new fingerprint data even if the authentication process is not currently used in connection with the first software application And determining whether to update the master fingerprint data. According to these methods, registration may occur, at least in part, in a natural use environment of the first software application, as opposed to a conversation format in which the user is given explicit registration instructions.

[0094] Other types of authentication data may be obtained in a similar manner. For example, such methods may involve acquiring new finger tap feature data while a legitimate user is using a software application not associated with the authentication function. The determination process of method 100 may involve determining whether to update the legacy user's existing finger tab feature data according to the new finger tap feature data. Similarly, such methods may involve acquiring new device movement data while a legitimate user is using a software application not associated with the authentication function. The determining process of method 100 may involve determining whether to update the legacy user's existing device movement data in accordance with the new device movement data.

[0095] Referring again to FIG. 1B, in this example, the partial fingerprint data is obtained by a fingerprint acquisition system 135 positioned within a portion of the display area 125. The size and position of fingerprint acquisition systems 135 shown in Figures 1B and 1C are exemplary only. The fingerprint acquisition system 135 may include, for example, an optical fingerprint sensor, a capacitive fingerprint sensor, an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor, or any other suitable type of fingerprint sensor.

[0096] Thus, in some implementations, block 110 of FIG. 1A involves an ultrasound imaging process. Some examples of ultrasound fingerprint acquisition systems and related devices are described below with reference to Figures 6A-12. As described below, for some such implementations, block 110 may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data through an ultrasonic sensor array using an ultrasonic transmitter to generate ultrasonic waves. In some implementations, the fingerprint data may be acquired while at the same time keeping the ultrasonic transmitter in the "off" state.

[0097] In alternative implementations, the image 130 may display other areas for the user to touch. In the example shown in FIG. 1C, the image 130 is an icon that indicates that the user must touch an area adjacent to the area where the image 130 is displayed. In this implementation, the image 130 indicates that the user must touch an area outside the display area 125, e.g., within the border area 140. [ In some implementations, the boundary region 140 may comprise an opaque material through which visible light may not penetrate. For example, the boundary region 140 can often be covered by an opaque case or "skin ". In some implementations, the boundary region 140 of the display device itself may be substantially opaque to visible light.

[0098] Thus, in this example, the fingerprint acquisition system 135 may include a type of fingerprint sensor capable of acquiring fingerprint data through substantially opaque material. In some implementations, for example, the fingerprint acquisition system 135 may include an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. Examples of display devices having an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor positioned outside the display area are described below with reference to Figures 10-12.

[0099] 1D shows an example of a barcode displayed on a display device. In this example, a legitimate user of the display device 1340 provides partial fingerprint data while using one of the coffee-buying apps described above with reference to Figures 1B and 1C. Thus, if the partial fingerprint data at block 115 of FIG. 1A is compared to the legitimate user's master fingerprint data, the transaction may be processed by the display device 1340, for example, under control of an entity that provided the coffee- Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > 120 < / RTI > In this example, the display device 1340 receives an authorization signal for purchasing coffee from such a server over the data network. Display device 1340 may control display 1330 in response to commands of the coffee-buying app in order to provide an image of barcode 145 in response to an authorization signal. The bar code 145, which can represent the user's account number, can be used to obtain a cup of coffee at the participating café.

[00100] 1e is a flow chart of another example of a method for using touch biometric. In this example, block 152 of method 150 involves providing one or more purchase icons on the display device. Purchase icons may be associated with or associated with one or more purchaseable items, such as items from an online store. Purchase icons may include text, graphics, photographs, images, or other suitable indicators of purchaseable items. As described above in block 154 and as described above for block 105, the user may be provided with an image on the display device indicating the area to be touched by the user. In this example, the user can touch the displayed area by first touching the purchase icon associated with the item to be purchased using the touch portion of the finger or the thumb. The representation of the icon may be moved in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb as described in block 156, towards the displayed area, above the displayed area, or otherwise to the displayed area. The display may simulate a "dragging" action corresponding to a dragging movement of the user's finger or thumb by updating the position of the purchase icon to follow the user's finger when dragged towards the area in which the icon is displayed. As previously described for block 105, the displayed area may be within the display area or outside the display area, e.g., in a bezel area near the periphery of the active display area where the biometric sensor is positioned, such as a fingerprint acquisition system have. As shown in block 158, partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the displayed area can be obtained. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to the touch portion of the finger or the thumb. If the fingerprint data is acquired, the image indicating the purchase icon and possibly where the user should touch may disappear for at least one hour. For example, an image representing a purchase icon or sensor area may appear when a permit may occur, and may disappear after the fingerprint data is acquired to minimize erroneous operations. As shown in block 160, the partial fingerprint data may be compared to the legitimate user's master fingerprint data. As shown in block 162, the determination of whether to permit the transaction may be based at least in part on the comparison process.

[00101] FIG. 1F shows an example of providing purchase icons on the display device and an area for the user to drag icons. Although the "dragging" operation is often described as being performed by the user, the dragging operation is generally performed by a user, for example, a display that controls the display to move the graphical representation of the icon in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the user ≪ RTI ID = 0.0 > device. ≪ / RTI > A number of purchase icons 168a, 168b, and 168c are shown on the display 1330 of the display device 1340. If the user desires to purchase an item associated with purchase icons 168a, 168b or 168c, the user may place a portion of the finger or thumb on the surface of display 1330 on the selected purchase icon. The representation of the selected icon can be moved to the displayed area (as indicated by the image 130), over the displayed area or otherwise displayed in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb have. The displayed area (here, image 130) may correspond to an area of the fingerprint acquisition system 135 that is positioned within a portion of the display area 125. If above the fingerprint acquisition system 135, the image of the user's finger may be acquired and used to authenticate the user and authorize the transaction.

[00102] FIG. 1G shows another example of providing purchase icons on the display device and an area for the user to drag icons. When a user wants to purchase one or more items associated with purchase icons 168, the user places a portion of his or her thumb or thumb on the surface of display 1330 on the desired purchase icon 168 can do. The representation of the selected icon may be moved toward the edge of the display area 125 (as indicated by image 130), in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb. The user may be urged to move the touch portion of the finger or thumb onto the fingerprint acquisition system 135 that is positioned outside the display area 125, e.g., on the bezel or border area 140 of the display device 1340 .

[00103] 1h is a flow chart of another example of a method of using touch biometric. In this example, block 172 of method 170 involves providing one or more application icons on the display device. The application icons may correspond or be associated with one or more software applications running on the mobile device, such as a personal email application, a personal calendar application, or a personal photo application. The application icons may include text, graphics, photographs, images, or other suitable indicators of applications. As described above in block 174 and as described above for block 105, the user may be provided with an image on the display device indicating an area to be touched by the user. In this example, the user can touch the displayed area by first touching the application icon associated with the application using the touch portion of the finger or thumb. The representation of the icon may be moved in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touching portion of the finger or thumb as described in block 176, towards the displayed region, above the displayed region, or otherwise to the indicated region. The position of the application icon may be updated on the display to follow the dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb, to provide a simulation of what is being dragged towards the area where the icon is displayed. As previously described for block 105, the displayed area may be within the display area or outside the display area, e.g., in a bezel area near the periphery of the active display area where the biometric sensor is positioned, such as a fingerprint acquisition system have. As shown in block 178, partial fingerprint data may be obtained from at least a partial finger touch in the displayed area. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to the touch portion of the finger or the thumb. When the fingerprint data is obtained, the application icon (and, in some implementations, the image indicating where the user should touch) may disappear for at least one hour. For example, an image representing an application icon or sensor area may appear when launching of an application may occur, and may disappear after the fingerprint data is acquired to minimize erroneous operations. As shown in block 180, the partial fingerprint data may be compared to the legitimate user's master fingerprint data. As shown in block 182, the determination of whether to launch the application may be based at least in part on the comparison process.

[00104] Figure 1I shows an example of providing on the display device an area and applications for which the user drags the icons. A number of application icons 184a, 184b and 184c appear on the display 1330 of the display device 1340. If the user wishes to launch, open, or otherwise start a software application associated with application icons 184a, 184b or 184c, the user may, on the surface of display 1330, select a finger or thumb Can be placed. The representation of the selected icon is displayed in a region of the fingerprint acquisition system 135 (represented by image 130) that is positioned within a portion of the display area 125, in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb. Toward that region, or otherwise to that region. When the touch portion of the finger or thumb is positioned over the fingerprint acquisition system 135, an image of at least a portion of the user's finger or thumb may be acquired and used to authenticate the user and start the application.

[00105] Figure 1J shows another example of providing areas and applications on the display device where the user drags the icons. When a user wants to launch, open, or otherwise launch a software application associated with application icons 184, the user may place a finger or a portion of the thumb on the desired application icon 184 on the surface of display 1330 Can be deployed. The representation of the desired application icon 184 may be moved toward the edge of the display area 125 (represented by the image 130), in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb. The user can be guided to place the touch portion of the finger or thumb on the fingerprint acquisition system 135 positioned outside the display area 125, e.g., in the bezel or border area 140 of the display device 1340 have.

[00106] 1K is a flow chart of another example of a method for using touch biometrics. In this example, block 188 of the method 186 for biometric authorization entails providing one or more icons on the display device. The icons may correspond to, or be associated with, one or more of the software applications running on the mobile device, for example, or one or more purchaseable items from the on-line store. The icons may include text, graphics, pictures, images, or other appropriate indicators of applications or purchaseable items. The user can select an icon of one of the provided icons using a part of the finger, e.g., a finger or a thumb. Thus, in this example, block 190 entails receiving an indication that the user's finger is touching an area of the display device corresponding to one of the icons provided. As shown in the optional block 192, the representation of the selected icon is moved in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the user's finger, toward the displayed area, over the displayed area, or otherwise to the displayed area . The position of the icon may be updated on the display to follow the user's finger to cause an impression that the icon is being dragged towards the displayed area. Alternatively, the display may indicate a copy or impression of the selected icon, and an updated copy or position of the impression when dragged towards the area where the icon is displayed. As previously described with respect to block 105, the displayed area may be in a display area or outside the display area, e.g., in a bezel area near the periphery of the active display area, where in the active display area a biometric sensor, e.g., , The fingerprint acquisition system is positioned so that biometric information can be obtained. As shown in block 193, when at least a portion of the user's finger is positioned in the displayed area, biometric information, e.g., full or partial fingerprint data, may be obtained. Thus, in some implementations, the biometric information may be obtained at least partially in a fingerprint acquisition system, e.g., one or more fingerprint sensing areas of the fingerprint acquisition systems 135 discussed elsewhere herein. have. The fingerprint sensing area may be in an area of the display providing the icons, or in a boundary area outside the display. In some implementations, the display may be on the front side of the display device, and the fingerprint sensing area may be on the back side of the display device. If the fingerprint sensing area is an area outside the display or behind the display device, the display device can provide the user with audio and / or visual prompts to touch the area, for example. As shown in Figures 3D and 3E and described below, some implementations include buttons at least partially corresponding to the fingerprint sensing area. At block 194, based on the biometric information obtained, the function may be invoked (e.g., the transaction may be granted, or the application may be started).

[00107] FIG. 11 is a flow chart of another example of a method of using touch biometrics. In this example, block 196 of the method 195 for biometric authentication entails providing an image on the display device indicating the area to be touched by the user. In some instances, the image may be one or more of the software applications that are running on the mobile device, or one or more of the software applications that may be associated with or associated with one or more purchaseable items from the on- Icons. The image may include text, graphics, photographs, images, or other suitable indicators of applications or items available for purchase, or may simply include a display of the display to be touched by the user, The area can be displayed (e.g., using text, arrows, etc.). As shown in block 197, the partial fingerprint data may be obtained from at least a partial finger touch in the area. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb. As shown in block 198, the authentication process may be performed based at least in part on partial fingerprint data. Various examples of such authentication processes are provided herein. Based on the authentication process, it can be determined whether the function is invoked. The function may involve authorizing the transaction, starting the personalized application, unlocking the display device, and the like.

[00108] 1M is a flow diagram of another example of a method for using touch biometrics. In this example, block 102 entails providing one or more icons on the display. In some implementations, the icons may correspond to software applications. Alternatively, or additionally, icons may correspond to purchaseable items. In this example, block 104 entails receiving an indication that the user is interacting with at least one of the provided icons. Block 104 may entail receiving an indication that a finger is touching an area of the display corresponding to one of the icons provided. For example, the indication may be received via the touch sensing system. In some implementations, block 104 may involve receiving an indication of the dragging movement of the finger towards the displayed area. In some instances, the displayed area may be displayed on the display. However, in other examples, the displayed area may be the edge of the display, the side of the device including the display, the back of the device containing the display, and so on. Block 104 may entail receiving an indication that the user has tapped the icon several times and / or within a range of time intervals. In this implementation, block 106 involves acquiring biometric information from a finger when the finger is positioned in the fingerprint sensing area during user interaction with the icon. For example, biometric information may be obtained through a fingerprint acquisition system or through other types of biometric sensor systems. Obtaining may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data from a finger. Here, block 108 involves invoking a function based, at least in part, on the obtained biometric information. For example, block 108 may involve an authentication process based at least in part on the obtained biometric information.

[00109] The methods of biometric authorization using select and drag operations on the display screen allow for a secure or secure choice so that the user can feel secure or safe when opening a personalized application or purchasing an on-line item . For example, a user may simply open an email account, select an appropriate icon, and access the personal calendar by dragging the selected icon to an authentication zone where the biometric information can be obtained and the application is started or the action can be performed View a private stock portfolio, or view a video. The user may feel very secure when performing this operation in this manner. Other applications or folders, such as folders containing personal information, may be similarly opened. In other implementations, biometric-security applications or file folders can be selected and accessed using drag and authentication operations.

[00110] Methods of biometric authorization using select and drag operations may allow quick and secure purchases of on-line items. In a "one-click" purchasing method, in another reminiscent way, in a "one-drag" purchasing method according to one embodiment of the present invention, the user selects an icon associated with the purchasable item, You can drag it up.

[00111] In alternative arrangements, the user can select an icon on the highlighted display device and then touch or partially touch the displayed area on the display device for acquisition of biometric information. During successful matching of the biometric information, the application associated with the selected icon may be started, the selected item may be purchased, or the action may be performed.

[00112] Figures 2 (a) to 2 (l) illustrate examples of fingerprint images corresponding to partial fingerprint data. In this example, a through l in Fig. 2 are a group of partial fingerprint images 13 obtained during multiple iterations of the process, such as the process of block 110 in Fig. 1a. During this process, partial fingerprint data corresponding to the partial fingerprint images 13 can be obtained. The partial fingerprint data may include, for example, types, locations and / or gaps of fingerprint feature points 205a shown in Figure 2b and / or fingerprint feature points 205b shown in Figure 2h .

[00113] 2M shows an example of an image corresponding to a master fingerprint. In some implementations, the master fingerprint image 215 may have been obtained during the registration process as described above. Master fingerprint data corresponding to the master fingerprint image 215 may be stored in memory for authentication processes such as those described herein. The master fingerprint data may include, for example, the types, locations and / or spacing of the fingerprint feature points 205c and / or fingerprint feature points 205d shown in Figure 2m. In some implementations, the comparison process of block 115 of FIG. 1A may include comparing such master fingerprint data with partial fingerprint data. For example, if partial fingerprint data obtained at block 110 corresponds to that shown in FIG. 2B, then block 115 determines the types, positions, and / or gaps of fingerprint feature points 205a as fingerprint feature points 205c , ≪ / RTI > and / or gaps).

[00114] However, in some implementations, the master fingerprint image data may be obtained, at least in part, in accordance with alternative processes. In some such implementations, at least a portion of the master fingerprint image data may be acquired during routine use of the display device. For example, in some implementations, the partial fingerprint data may include the current master fingerprint data and the known fingerprint data of the new fingerprint data. These implementations may include updating the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data. For example, as fingerprints grow and fingerprints of childhood become larger and larger, master fingerprint data can also evolve accordingly. For identification purposes, such as school lunch programs, accurate identification of users throughout the growth period during a school year without requiring re-registration can be useful and convenient.

[00115] Figure 3A is a flow chart outlining examples of some methods of updating master fingerprint data. In this example, method 300 begins with block 305 which includes receiving partial fingerprint data. In some implementations, block 305 may be similar to block 110 of FIG. 1A. However, in other implementations, block 305 may include obtaining partial fingerprint data in other manners, for example, during routine use of a display device. For example, the fingerprint acquisition system may be positioned below the commonly used buttons, icons, etc. of the display device. The fingerprint acquisition system may acquire partial fingerprint data on a regular basis, periodically, or in other units.

[00116] Here, block 310 includes determining whether partial fingerprint data includes known fingerprint data and new fingerprint data. If so, at block 315 the master fingerprint data may be updated to include the new fingerprint data.

[00117] In accordance with some of these implementations, the updating process may include augmenting the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data. For example, referring to FIGS. 2A-1, it is assumed that at a particular time, the current master fingerprint data will include fingerprint data corresponding to the fingerprint images 13 shown in the area 210. The master fingerprint data may have been obtained during multiple iterations of the process, such as the process of block 110 of Figure 1A, and / or during the registration process. During some instances of the process, such as the process of block 110, partial fingerprint data obtained may include new fingerprint data and known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data.

[00118] For example, if the obtained partial fingerprint data corresponds to the fingerprint images 13 shown in FIG. 2C or F, the partial fingerprint data obtained is the fingerprint data shown in FIGS. 2B, Will contain the known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data, corresponding to images 13. There may be a sufficient overlap between the pre-known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data and the newly-obtained partial fingerprint data to determine that the newly obtained partial fingerprint data has been obtained from the legitimate user. However, the newly-obtained partial fingerprint data will also include new fingerprint data corresponding to the correct portions of the fingerprint images 13 shown in Fig. 2c or f. Some implementations may include augmenting master fingerprint data to include new fingerprint data. These implementations may include adding new data to the master fingerprint data regarding the location, spacing, and / or types of feature points. Some related methods and devices are described in US patent application Ser. Nos. 13 / 107,635 entitled " Ultrasonic Area-Array Sensor with Area-Image Merging " filed on May 13, And corresponding figures, whereby the contents of the aforementioned U. S. Patent Application are incorporated by reference.

[00119] Alternatively or additionally, the updating process may include adapting the master fingerprint data. As a child grows, for example, children's fingers will become larger and the spacing between feature points will increase. However, the types of feature points and their relative positions can be maintained substantially the same. Thus, at block 310, partial fingerprint data may be recognized as those of a legitimate user, although the spacing between feature points may, for example, increase beyond a predetermined threshold. Block 315 may include updating the master fingerprint data by changing, scaling, or otherwise adapting data corresponding to the interval between at least some of the feature points. In this example, the process ends at block 320. However, some implementations involve multiple iterations of the blocks shown in FIG. 3A.

[00120] Mobile handheld display devices can be moved, held and touched in many different ways. Thus, the various methods described herein can adapt to many different ways in which the same user can interact with their device. Figure 3b provides an example in which the user holds the mobile display device in the left hand. In this example, the user is touching the image 130 (which is an icon in this example) through the touch portion of the left thumb 325a. The touch portion is, in this example, the lateral portion of the left thumb 325a. Thus, the finger touch shown in Figure 3B involves left-thumb-side touch.

[00121] 3C provides an example of a user holding a mobile display device in the right hand. In this example, the user is touching the image 130 through the touch portion of the right thumb 325b. The touch portion is, in this example, the lateral portion of the right thumb 325b. Thus, the finger touch shown in Figure 3c involves right-thumb-side touch.

[00122] FIG. 3D provides an example of user interaction with a mobile device device lying on a surface. In this example, the user is touching the image 130 through the touch portion of the right index finger 330. The touch portion is the fingertip portion of the right index finger 330 in this example. Thus, the finger touch shown in Fig. 3D involves a fingertip touch. In the example shown in FIG. 3D, at least a portion of the fingerprint acquisition system 135 is located outside the area of the display 1330. In this implementation, the portion of the fingerprint acquisition system 135 that is located outside the display 1330 partially corresponds to the location of the button 370a. 3E shows another example of a display device including a fingerprint acquisition system. In this example, at least a portion of the fingerprint acquisition system 135 is located behind the display device. The appearance and / or tactile sensations of the buttons 370a and 370b enable the use of the fingerprint acquisition system 135. For example, these visual and / or tactile cues can be used to determine where a user or a fingertip can move to obtain fingerprint data, even if the user is viewing a display on the front of the current display device 1340 It is easy to decide whether or not to arrange it.

[00123] 4A is a flow chart that provides an example of determining whether to permit a transaction based at least in part on a security level. In this example, the method 400 begins with block 405, which involves providing the display device with an image representing a region for a user to touch to perform a commerce transaction. In some implementations, the image may be an icon, such as the "tap to pay" icons shown in Figures 1B and 1C.

[00124] In this implementation, block 410 includes determining a security level corresponding to the commerce. Block 410 may include determining a security level based on, for example, a payment amount requested for commerce and / or a transaction amount that may correspond to an amount of money to be transferred between accounts. In alternate implementations, the security level determined at block 410 may be based on various other factors such as the type of goods, the amount of available credit, and / or the user's credit score.

[00125] In this example, block 415 involves acquiring partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the area as provided in block 405. [ The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb. Here, block 420 involves comparing the partial fingerprint data to the legitimate user's master fingerprint data. In this implementation, block 425 involves determining whether to allow commerce based at least in part on the comparison process and security level.

[00126] In some implementations, the method 400 (and / or other methods described herein) may involve determining that additional data will be required to determine whether to allow commerce. Additional data may include full fingerprint data for at least one finger, finger tap features, device movement data, other authentication data, or a combination thereof. Some examples are provided below.

[00127] 4B is a graph showing an example of determining the security level based on the transaction amount. In this example, all transactions will require, at least, partial fingerprint data acquisition, as illustrated by blocks 455. If the transaction amount exceeds the threshold 460, both the partial fingerprint data and the finger tap feature data, as shown by blocks 465, will be evaluated. If the transaction amount exceeds the threshold 470, partial fingerprint data, finger tap feature data, and device movement data, as shown by blocks 475, will be evaluated. Finger tap feature data, device movement data, and full fingerprint data (and / or multiple fingerprints), as shown by blocks 485, if the transaction amount exceeds the threshold 480. [ Data) will be evaluated. For example, a user may be urged to provide full fingerprint data by placing one or more fingers or thumbs flat on a designated area of the display device.

[00128] In alternative implementations, the lowest security level may correspond to other authentication data including (but not limited to) other types of authentication data as shown in FIG. 4B. For example, in some alternative implementations, the lowest security level may correspond to finger tap feature data. Moreover, other types of authentication data may be captured and evaluated as part of the decision as to whether to invoke the function, e.g. whether to allow the transaction. For example, in some implementations, the handwriting data may be obtained from a user and used as one type of authentication data. In some implementations, voice data may be obtained from the user (e.g., via a microphone) and used as one type of authentication data.

[00129] 4C and 4D show examples of device moves that can be captured as device movement data. 4C, when a left-handed user tries to start using the display device 1340, the user typically moves the display device 1340 in a counterclockwise direction as shown by arrow 477a . In this example, the left-handed user has just rotated the display device 1340 about an axis 479. However, in other instances, the display device 1340 may be rotated about another axis, such as an axis within an angular range of the axis 479 (e.g., within 30 degrees, within 45 degrees, etc.).

[00130] 4D, when the right-handed user tries to start using the display device 1340, the user typically moves the display device 1340 in a clockwise direction as shown by arrow 477b . In this example, the right-handed user has rotated the display device 1340 about axis 479 precisely, but in other instances, the axis of rotation may be changed. In the case where the user picks up the pawn from the table, the axis and direction of rotation may depend on the initial orientation of the pawn on the table and the handle of the user, while withdrawing the pawn from the wallet or pocket has the opposite rotation . The orientation in the phone and each rate sensor can provide useful information in detecting a particular user ' s handling profile.

[00131] Each user may have habitual or characteristic ways of moving a display device, including but not limited to a rotational angle, rotational speed, and / or acceleration associated with the device movement described above. The user may also have characteristic ways of moving and / or holding the display device when using the display device, such as characteristic viewing angles, characteristic tapping forces, characteristic tapping directions, and the like. For example, some users may tend to use a "landscape" view, other users may prefer a "portrait" view, and others may switch between such views. Tapping with the left thumb will tend to create tapping with the forefinger or tapping with the right thumb and different device movements. Tapping a display device on a surface such as a desktop will tend to create device movements that are different from tapping a hand held display device.

[00132] Corresponding device movement data may be detected by one or more motion sensors of the motion sensor system, e.g., by one or more gyroscopes and / or accelerometers of the motion sensor system. In some implementations, some device transfers (e.g., of the type shown in Figures 4C and 4D) may cause a control system, such as a fingerprint acquisition system, to switch on the device. In some implementations, the legitimate user's device movement data can be obtained and stored, e.g., while the display device is being used normally by a legitimate user and / or during the registration process. Legitimate user device movement data can be used as one type of authentication data. In some implementations, the sequence of twists and rates of twist (e. G., Two counterclockwise snaps of a phone with a break step intervened) may be combined with other data to authorize transactions or authenticate the user Can act as an authorization code.

[00133] 5 is a block diagram illustrating examples of display device components. In this example, the display device 1340 includes a display 1330, a fingerprint acquisition system 135, and a control system 50. Display 1330 can be any suitable type of display, such as display 1330 of the types described below with reference to Figures 13A and 13B.

[00134] Control system 50 may be implemented within one or more general purpose single- or multi-chip processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) Logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or combinations thereof. The control system 50 may also include one or more memory devices, such as one or more random access memory (RAM) devices, read-only memory (ROM) devices, and the like And may be configured to communicate with one or more memory devices).

[00135] The control system 50 may control the display to provide an image indicative of the area the user is touching and may control the fingerprint acquisition system to obtain partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the area. The partial fingerprint data may correspond to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb. The control system 50 may compare the partial fingerprint data with the legitimate user's master fingerprint data and determine whether to invoke the function based at least in part on the comparison process. Invoking a function may involve, for example, authorizing a transaction, starting a personalized application, or unlocking a display device.

[00136] In some instances, the partial fingerprint data may include new fingerprint data and known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data. In some implementations, the control system may update the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data. For example, the control system may augment the master fingerprint data and / or adapt the master fingerprint data.

[00137] The fingerprint acquisition system 135 may be any suitable fingerprint acquisition system including, but not limited to, the examples described herein. In some implementations, the fingerprint acquisition system 135 may include an ultrasound imaging system. For example, the fingerprint acquisition system 135 may include an ultrasonic sensor array and an ultrasonic transmitter. According to some implementations, the acquisition process may involve acquiring partial fingerprint data through the ultrasonic sensor array while at the same time keeping the ultrasonic transmitter in the "off" state. In some instances, the fingerprint acquisition system 135 may be positioned within the display area or at least partially outside the display area.

[00138] In some implementations, the display device 1340 may include a motion sensor system 520. The motion sensor system 520 may detect device movement and provide device movement data to the control system. The control system can determine whether or not the device movement data corresponds to the legitimate user ' s device movement data. The process of determining whether to invoke a function may be based, at least in part, on whether the device movement data corresponds to a legitimate user's device movement data.

[00139] In some instances, the display device 1340 may include a finger tap detection system 530. The finger tap detection system 530 may include one or more microphones. In some implementations, the finger tap detection system 530 may include one or more components of the fingerprint acquisition system 135 and / or one or more components of the touch detection system.

[00140] The control system may receive information from the finger tap detection system 530 on one or more finger taps. The control system can determine finger tap feature data based on the finger tap information. For example, the finger tap feature data may correspond to the number of taps, the frequency of taps, and / or the audio signature. The process of determining whether to invoke a function may be based at least in part on comparing finger tap feature data with legitimate user's finger tab feature data.

[00141] Various implementations described herein relate to touch sensing systems including pressure and force sensing devices capable of sensing dynamic or dynamic forces. For the sake of brevity, these pressure and force sensing devices may simply be referred to herein as "force sensing devices ". Similarly, with the understanding that applying force to a physical object will also involve applying pressure, the applied pressure and force may simply be referred to herein as "applied force" or the like. In some implementations, the touch sensing system may include a piezoelectric sensing array. In these implementations, the applied force may be detected (and optionally recorded) for a period of time during which the force is applied and changed. In some implementations, the force-sensing device may have a sufficiently high resolution to function as a fingerprint sensor.

[00142] In some implementations, the touch sensing system may include one or more additional components capable of fingerprint sensing, such as an ultrasonic transmitter that allows the device to be an ultrasonic transducer capable of imaging a finger in detail . In some such implementations, the force-sensing device may also function as an ultrasonic receiver to detect acoustic or ultrasound energy, such as acoustic emissions from taps on the surface of the sensing system, or ultrasonic waves reflected from the surface.

[00143] 6A is a block diagram of an example of a touch sensing system. Figures 6B and 6C are schematic representations of examples of the touch sensitive system shown in Figure 6A, with additional details of a single sensor pixel being shown. Referring first to FIG. 6A, in this example, the touch sensing system 10 includes a force-sensing device 30 having an array of sensor pixels 32 disposed on a substrate 34, The array of piezoelectric film layers 32 may receive charges from the piezoelectric film layer 36 through the pixel input electrodes 38. [ In this example, the piezoelectric film layer 36 is also configured for electrical contact with the receiver bias electrode 39. The control system 50 is capable of controlling the force-sensing device 30, for example, as described below.

[00144] In the example shown in Fig. 6B, the substrate 34 is a thin film transistor (TFT) substrate. An array of sensor pixels 32 is disposed on the TFT substrate. Here, the array of sensor pixels 32 has a corresponding pixel input electrode 38 configured for electrical connection with the discrete element 37 of the piezoelectric film layer 36. In this example, a receiver bias electrode 39 connected to an externally applied receiver bias voltage 6 is disposed on the opposite side of the piezoelectric film layer 36 with respect to the pixel input electrodes 32. In this example, the applied receiver bias voltage 6 is at ground potential. In some implementations, it may include a continuous receiver bias electrode 39 for each row or column of sensor pixels 32. Alternate implementations may include a continuous receiver bias electrode 39 above all of the sensor pixels 32 of the sensor pixel array.

[00145] In this example, the force applied by the object 25, which is a finger, can be squeezed or otherwise deformed at least a portion of the discrete elements 37 of the piezoelectric film layer 36. The receiver bias electrode 39 and the pixel input electrodes 38 provide electrical charge generated on the surfaces of the discrete elements 37 of the piezoelectric film layer 36 resulting from deformation of the discrete elements 37, Allowing the array of pixels 32 to measure.

[00146] 6B also shows an enlarged view of an example of a single sensor pixel 32a. In this example, the charge generated at each of the pixel input electrodes of each sensor pixel is input to the charge amplifier 7. [ The amplified charges from the charge amplifier 7 are provided to the peak detection circuit 8 in this example. The peak detection circuit 8 may be capable of registering the maximum amount of charge generated by the force applied to the piezoelectric film layer 36 as amplified by the charge amplifier 7. [ The output signal 12 from the peak detection circuit 8 can be read out at the corresponding output connection. In this implementation, the reset device 9 is capable of discharging the storage capacitor of the peak detection circuit 8, so that the force-sensing device 30 is able to detect subsequent force or pressure instances. In this example, charge is maintained until a corresponding signal is provided to the control system, such as the control system 50 shown in FIG. 6A. Each row or column of sensor pixels 32 may be scanned through row selection mechanisms, gate drivers, shift registers, and the like. Some examples are described below.

[00147] Control system 50 may be implemented within one or more general purpose single- or multiple-chip processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) Logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or a combination thereof. The control system 50 may also include (and / or be configured to communicate with) one or more memory devices, such as one or more random access memory (RAM) devices, read-only memory )can do. The control system 50 may be capable of determining the position at which the object 25 exerts a force on the force-sensing device 30 in accordance with signals provided by the plurality of sensor pixels 32. In some implementations, the control system 50 may be capable of determining positions and / or movements of a plurality of objects 25. In accordance with some such implementations, the control system 50 may be capable of controlling the device in accordance with one or more determined locations and / or movements. For example, in some implementations, control system 50 may control a mobile display device, such as display device 1340 shown in Figures 13A and 13B, according to one or more determined locations and / It can be possible.

[00148] According to some implementations, the force-sensing device 30 may have a resolution high enough to allow the touch sensing system 10 to function as a fingerprint sensor. In some implementations, some of which are described below, the touch sensing system 10 may include an ultrasonic transmitter, and the force-sensing device 30 may be capable of functioning as an ultrasonic receiver. The control system 50 may be capable of controlling the ultrasonic transmitter and / or the force-sensing device 30 to acquire fingerprint image data, for example, by capturing fingerprint images. Whether or not the touch sensing system 10 includes an ultrasonic transmitter, the control system 50 may be capable of controlling access to one or more devices based at least in part on fingerprint image data.

[00149] According to some implementations, the control system 50 may operate the touch sensing system in an ultrasonic imaging mode or a force-sensing mode. According to some implementations, the control system may be capable of keeping the ultrasonic transmitter in the "off" state when operating the touch sensing system in the force-sensing mode.

[00150] In this example, the reset device 9 may be capable of resetting the peak detection circuit 8 after reading the charge so that the peak detection circuit 8 is ready to read subsequent charges from the charge amplifier 7. [ Depending on some implementations, the addressing and / or reset functionality may be provided by the TFTs of the TFT substrate 34. The read transistor for each row or column may be triggered to allow the magnitude of the peak charge for each pixel to be read by an additional circuit, not shown in Figure 6B, e.g., a multiplexer and / or an A / D converter have.

[00151] The elements of the force-sensing device 30 shown in Figures 6A and 6B are merely examples. An alternative implementation of force-sensing device 30 is shown in Fig. 6c. In this example, the charge amplifier 7 is an integrated charge amplifier including a diode and a capacitor. In this implementation, the array of sensor pixels 32 is formed from discrete elements 37 corresponding to respective affected sensor pixels 32 that are tapped, squeezed or otherwise deformed. 36) can be measured. Here, the charge of each affected sensor pixel 32 is input to the integrated charge amplifier. Charges from the integrated charge amplifier can be processed substantially as described above.

[00152] In some implementations, the touch sensing system 10 may include one or more additional components, such as an ultrasonic transmitter, which allows the touch sensing system 10 to function as an ultrasonic transducer capable of imaging a finger in detail . In some such implementations, the force-sensing device 30 may be capable of functioning as an ultrasonic receiver.

[00153] 7 is a flow chart outlining an example of a process for receiving a user input from a force-sensing device and turning the ultrasonic transmitter on or off according to a user input. In this example, the method 700 begins at block 705, which includes receiving an indication of a user touch or tap from the force-sensing device 30 of the touch sensing system 10. [ Block 710 includes operating the touch sensing system 10 in an ultrasound imaging mode based at least in part on a touch or a tap.

[00154] 8A-8C provide examples of the process outlined in FIG. 8A, the touch sensing system 10 includes an ultrasonic transmitter 20 and a force-sensing device 30 under the platoon 40. As shown in FIG. Where the control system 50 is electrically connected (directly or indirectly) to the ultrasonic transmitter 20 and the force-sensing device 30. In this example, the force-sensing device 30 may function as an ultrasonic receiver. Here, the force-sensing device 30 comprises an array of piezoelectric material and sensor pixel circuits disposed on a substrate.

[00155] The ultrasonic transmitter 20 may be a piezoelectric transmitter (see FIG. 8B) capable of generating ultrasonic waves 21. However, at the instant shown in FIG. 8A, the ultrasonic transmitter 20 may be switched off or in a low-power "sleep" mode. Upon receipt of a user touch or an indication of a tap from the force-sensing device 30, the control system 50 may switch on the ultrasonic transmitter 20.

[00156] In the example shown in FIG. 8B, the control system 50 may control the ultrasonic transmitter 20 to produce ultrasonic waves. For example, the control system 50 may supply timing signals that allow the ultrasonic transmitter 20 to generate one or more ultrasonic waves 21. In the example shown in FIG. 8B, the ultrasonic waves 21 are shown moving through the force-sensing device 30 to the exposed surface 42 of the platoon 40. At the exposed surface 42, the ultrasonic energy corresponding to the ultrasonic waves 21 is absorbed or scattered by the object 25 in contact with the platoon 40, such as the skin of the fingerprint ridge 28, Can be reflected.

[00157] In the example shown in Fig. 8C, in such positions that air contacts the exposed surface 42 of the platoon 40, e.g., in the valley 27 between the fingerprint ridges 28, Most of the energy of the sensor 21 will be reflected back toward the force-sensing device 30 for detection. The control system 50 may then receive signals from the force-sensing device 30 indicative of the reflected ultrasonic energy 23. The control system 50 may utilize the output signals received from the force-sensing device 30 to determine the position of the object 25 and / or to configure the digital image of the object 25. [ In some implementations, the control system 50 may be configured to process output signals corresponding to the various objects 25 simultaneously. According to some implementations, the control system 50 may also continuously sample the output signals over time to detect movement of one or more objects 25.

[00158] 9A shows an example of a developed view of a touch sensing system. In this example, the touch sensing system 10 includes an ultrasonic transmitter 20 and a force-sensing device 30 under the platoon 40. The ultrasonic transmitter 20 includes a substantially planar piezoelectric transmitter layer 22 and may be capable of functioning as a planar wave generator. Ultrasonic waves can be generated by applying a voltage to a piezoelectric layer to expand or contract the layer, depending on the applied signal, thereby creating a planar wave. In this example, the control system 50 may cause a voltage to be applied to the piezoelectric transmitter layer 22 through the first transmitter electrode 24 and the second transmitter electrode 26. In this way, the ultrasonic wave can be made by changing the thickness of the layer. This ultrasonic wave passes through the platoon 40 and can move toward the finger (or other object to be detected). A portion of the wave that is not absorbed by the object to be detected may be reflected back to be transmitted through the platoon 40 and received by the force-sensing device 30. The first and second transmitter electrodes 24, 26 may be metal layers that coat opposing sides of the metallized electrode, for example, the piezoelectric transmitter layer 22.

[00159] The force-sensing device 30 may also include an array of sensor pixel circuits 32 and a piezoelectric film layer 36 disposed on the substrate 34, which may also be referred to as the backside. In some implementations, each sensor pixel circuit 32 may include one or more TFT elements and, in some implementations, one or more additional circuit elements such as diodes, capacitors, and the like. Each sensor pixel circuit 32 can be configured to convert the electrical charge generated in the piezoelectric film layer 36 near the pixel circuit into an electrical signal. Each sensor pixel circuit 32 may include a pixel input electrode 38 that electrically couples the piezoelectric film layer 36 to the sensor pixel circuit 32.

[00160] In the illustrated implementation, the receiver bias electrode 39 is disposed on one side of the piezoelectric film layer 36 near the platoon 40. The receiver bias electrode 39 may be a metallized electrode and may be biased or grounded to control which signals are delivered to the array of sensor pixel circuits 32. Ultrasonic energy reflected from the exposed (upper) surface 42 of the platoon 40 may be converted into localized electrical charges by the piezoelectric film layer 36. These localized charges may be collected by the pixel input electrodes 38 and transmitted to the lower sensor pixel circuits 32. [ The charge can be provided to the control system 50 that is amplified by the sensor pixel circuits 32 and then processes the amplified signals. Simplified examples of the sensor pixel circuit 32 are shown in Figures 6b and 6c. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that many variations and variations to the exemplary sensor pixel circuit 32 can be considered.

[00161] The control system 50 is electrically (directly or indirectly) connected to the sensor pixel circuit 32 on the receiver bias electrode 39 and the substrate 34, as well as the first transmitter electrode 24 and the second transmitter electrode 26. [ As shown in FIG. In some implementations, the control system 50 may operate substantially as described above. For example, the control system 50 may be capable of processing the amplified signals received from the sensor pixel circuits 32.

[00162] The control system 50 may be capable of controlling the ultrasonic transmitter 20 and / or the force-sensing device 30 to obtain fingerprint image data, for example, by acquiring fingerprint images. Whether or not the touch sensing system 10 includes an ultrasonic transmitter 20 or not, the control system 50 may control access to one or more devices based at least in part on the fingerprint image data have. The touch sensing system 10 (or associated device) may include a memory system including one or more memory devices. In some implementations, the control system 50 may include at least a portion of a memory system. The control system 50 can capture the fingerprint image and store the fingerprint image data in the memory system. In some implementations, the control system 50 may capture the fingerprint image and store the fingerprint image data in the memory system while keeping the ultrasonic transmitter 20 in the "off" state.

[00163] In some implementations, the control system 50 may operate the touch sensing system in an ultrasonic imaging mode or a force-sensing mode. In some implementations, the control system may maintain the ultrasonic transmitter 20 in an "off" state when operating the touch sensing system in the force-sense mode. The force-sensing device 30 may function as an ultrasonic receiver when the touch sensing system 10 is operating in the ultrasonic imaging mode.

[00164]  In some implementations, the control system 50 may be capable of controlling other devices, such as a display system, a communication system, and the like. In some implementations, for example, the control system 50 may power on one or more components of a device such as the display device 1340 described below with reference to Figures 13A and 13B. Accordingly, in some implementations, the control system 50 may also include one or more components similar to the processor 1321, array driver 1322, and / or driver controller 1329 shown in Figure 13b. have. In some implementations, the control system 50 may detect touches or taps received via the force-sensing device 30 and enable at least one feature of the mobile display device in response to a touch or tap. A "feature" may be a component, a software application, or the like.

[00165] The platoon 40 can be any suitable material that can be acoustically coupled to the receiver, examples of which include plastic, ceramic, sapphire, and glass. In some implementations, the platoon 40 may be a cover plate, for example, a cover glass for a display or a lens glass. Particularly when ultrasonic transmitter 20 is in use, fingerprint detection and imaging can be performed, for example, via relatively thick plaques of, for example, 3 mm and beyond. However, for implementations in which the force-sensing device 30 is capable of imaging fingerprints in the force detection mode, a platone 40 that is thinner and more compliant is desirable. In accordance with some such implementations, the platons 40 may comprise one or more polymers, such as one or more types of parylene, and may be substantially thinner. In some such implementations, the platons 40 can be tens of microns thick, or even less than 10 microns thick.

[00166] Examples of piezoelectric materials that can be used to form the piezoelectric film layer 36 include suitable acoustic properties, for example, piezoelectric polymers having an acoustic impedance of about 2.5 MRayls to 5 MRayls. Specific examples of piezoelectric materials that may be used include ferroelectric polymers such as polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and polyvinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene (PVDF-TrFE) copolymers. Examples of PVDF copolymers include 60:40 (mole percent) PVDF-TrFE, 70:30 PVDF-TrFE, 80:20 PVDF-TrFE, and 90:10 PVDR-TrFE. Other examples of piezoelectric materials that may be used include polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) homopolymers and copolymers polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) homopolymers and copolymers and diisopropylammonium bromide (DIPAB).

[00167] The thickness of each of the piezoelectric transmitter layer 22 and the piezoelectric film layer 36 may be selected to be suitable for generating and receiving ultrasonic waves. In one example, the PVDF piezoelectric transmitter layer 22 is approximately 28 microns thick and the PVDF-TrFE receiver layer 36 is approximately 12 microns thick. Exemplary frequencies of ultrasonic waves may range from 5 MHz to 30 MHz with wavelengths on the order of about 0.25 mm or less.

[00168] Figure 9B shows an exploded view of an alternative example of a touch sensing system. In this example, a piezoelectric film layer 36 is formed in the discrete elements 37. 9B, each of the discrete elements 37 corresponds to a single pixel input electrodes 38 and a single sensor pixel circuit 32. In the embodiment shown in Fig. However, in alternative implementations of the touch sensing system 10, there is not necessarily a one-to-one correspondence between each of the discrete elements 37, the single pixel input electrode 38 and the single sensor pixel circuit 32 . For example, in some implementations, there may be a plurality of pixel input electrodes 38 and sensor pixel circuits 32 for a single discrete element 37.

[00169] Figures 8A-B illustrate exemplary arrangements of ultrasonic transmitters and receivers of a touch sensing system, other arrangements are possible. For example, in some implementations, the ultrasonic transmitter 20 may be on the force-sensing device 30, and thus is closer to the object (s) 25 to be detected. In some implementations, the touch sensing system 10 may include an acoustic delay layer. For example, the acoustic delay layer may be incorporated into the touch sensing system 10 between the ultrasonic transmitter 20 and the force-sensing device 30. [ The acoustic delay layer can be used to adjust the ultrasonic pulse timing and at the same time electrically isolate the force-sensing device 30 from the ultrasonic transmitter 20. The acoustic retardation layer can have a substantially uniform thickness and the thickness of the material and / or retardation layer used for the retardation layer provides the desired retardation of the time the reflected ultrasound energy reaches the force-sensing device 30 . In doing this, the range of time over which an energy pulse that conveys information about the object by reflection by the object can be made to reach the force-sensing device 30 is a reflection of the reflection from other parts of the touch sensing system 10 During which the energy is not likely to reach the force-sensing device 30. In some implementations, the substrate 34 and / or the platons 40 may serve as an acoustic retardation layer.

[00170] Figs. 10-12 illustrate examples of display devices having ultrasonic fingerprint sensors that are positioned outside the display area. Figure 10 is a schematic top view of a conceptual 43 x 59 pixel display device (total 2537 pixels), with display pixel circuit 1006 associated with each pixel and locating near each pixel, on a backplane 1002 Locating. In this example, display scan traces 1008 are associated with each column of display pixel circuits 1006, and display data traces 1010 are associated with each row of display pixel circuits 1006. The display driver chip 1014 is located on one side of the display pixel array 1018. The display scan select circuitry 1020 may be configured for individual control of each display scan trace 1008. The display scan selection circuit 1020 may be driven from the display driver chip 1014 or from another source. The display data traces 1010 are routed through a display fanout 1012 so that the spacing between the pinout intervals of the display driver chip 1014 and the display data traces 1010 Can be accommodated. A display flex cable 1016 is coupled to the display driver chip 1014 to enable other components capable of transmitting data to the display module 1000 for output to be communicatively coupled to the display module 1000, ) ≪ / RTI > input / output traces.

[00171] In this example, a smaller array of sensor pixel circuits 1026 within sensor pixel array 1038, which is an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor pixel array, is also shown in FIG. Each sensor pixel circuit 1026 in the sensor pixel array 1038 may be coupled to a sensor scan trace 1028 and a sensor data trace 1030. Data traces 1030 may be routed to sensor driver chip 1034 via sensor fanout 1032. [ The sensor scan selection circuit 1024 may be configured for individual control of each sensor scan trace 1028. [ The sensor scan selection circuit 1024 may be driven from the sensor driver chip 1034 or from another source. A sensor flex cable 1036 may be connected to the pinouts of the sensor driver chip 1034. [ Each sensor pixel circuit 1026 may include one or more TFTs, and in some implementations may include one or more other circuit elements such as capacitors, diodes, and the like. In contrast to the display pixel circuits 1006 that drive display pixels, which may be configured to supply voltage or current to the liquid crystal element or OLED element, the sensing elements 1026 may instead be over- And may be configured to receive charges generated by a piezoelectric ultrasonic receiver layer that overlay.

[00172] It will be appreciated that the components shown in FIG. 10 are not shown to scale, and that other implementations may be significantly different from those shown. For example, the pixel resolution of the display shown may be relatively small, but the same backplane arrangement may be used for higher-resolution displays, such as 1136 x 640 pixel displays, 1920 x 1080 pixel displays, and so on. In the same manner, the sensor pixel array may be larger than the 11 x 14 pixel sensor pixel array 1038 shown. For example, the resolution of the sensor pixel array 1038 may produce pixel per- centimeters (ppi) of approximately 500 pixels per inch, which may be very suitable for fingerprint scanning and sensing purposes.

[00173] In the implementation shown in Figure 10, the display pixel array 1018 and the sensor pixel array 1038 may be distinct from one another in all other respects, other than being located on a common backplane 1002. The display pixel array 1018 is in communication with its own display driver chip 1014 and display flex cable 1016 and the sensor pixel array 1038 has its own sensor driver chip 1034 and sensor flex cable 1036, Lt; / RTI >

[00174] A more integrated version of display module 1100 is shown in FIG. In Fig. 11, the structures shown in the drawings may be mostly the same as those shown in Fig. It should be understood that the elements of FIG. 11 numbered with the same last two digits of callouts as similar structures in FIG. 10 are substantially similar to the corresponding structures of FIG. For the avoidance of repetition, the reader refers to the preceding description of such elements in FIG. 10 with respect to FIG.

[00175] One important difference between Figures 10 and 11 is that the display driver chip 1114 and the sensor driver chip 1134 are adjacent to each other and connected to the common touch and ultrasonic flex cable 1140. [ In some implementations, the functions of the display driver chip 1114 and the sensor driver chip 1134 may be provided by a single integrated chip.

[00176] The configurations shown in Figures 10 and 11 can be implemented with little difficulty in existing TFT backplanes since no changes are required for the display pixel arrays 1018/1118. Additionally, the TFTs and other circuit elements forming the sensor pixel circuits 1026/1126, e.g., sensor pixel circuits 1026/1126, may be the same as those used to form the display pixel circuits 1006/1106, Can be formed during processes. Thus, TFT backplane manufacturers may be faced with no redesign for the display pixel array 1018/1118, which causes the fingerprint scanning function to be added to the area adjacent to the display pixels with reduced development costs. Furthermore, the same processes already used to generate display pixel arrays 1018/1118 can be leveraged to generate sensor pixel arrays 1038/1138 simultaneously, so that sensor pixel arrays 1038 / 0.0 > 1138 < / RTI > may involve negligible additional costs.

[00177] Figure 12 shows an example of the display module of Figure 10 with a high-width ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. In Fig. 12, the structures shown in the drawings may be mostly the same as those shown in Fig. It should be understood that the elements of FIG. 12 numbered with the same last two digits of callouts as similar structures in FIG. 10 are substantially similar to the corresponding structures of FIG. For the avoidance of repetition, the reader refers to the preceding description of such elements with respect to FIG. 10 with respect to FIG.

[00178] As seen, the sensor pixel array 1238 of FIG. 12 is considerably larger in width than the sensor pixel array 1038 of FIG. 10. This allows multiple fingertips to be placed simultaneously on the sensor pixel array 1238, which allows simultaneous fingerprint recognition across multiple fingertips. Moreover, such larger footprint sensor pixel arrays can be used to obtain other biometric information, such as when a person presses the cover glass of the display onto the palm of their hand, a palm print ( Or partial palm pattern) can also be obtained. In the same way, when different parts of the human body are pressed against the cover glass, other biometric data may be obtained, such as ear prints, cheek prints, and the like. At the same time, larger sensor pixel arrays may also allow additional input functionality. For example, the sensor pixel array can be configured to detect when the stylus is in contact with the cover glass and to track the movement of the stylus. The resulting XY position data for the stylus tip may be used, for example, to acquire a user's signature or receive a stylus input for purposes such as text entry or menu selections. Depending on the packaging arrangement, the sensor pixel array may be located on the side of the same display module 1200 as shown, i.e., the display fanout 1212, or may be located on the opposite side of the display module 1200 I.e., on the opposite side of the display pixel array 1218 from the display fanout 1212. In the former case, the sensor pixel array 1238 may need to share a backplane real estate with the display fanout 1212. In the latter case, the sensor pixel array 1238 can extend relatively unimpeded over the entire width of the display module 1200 (vertical height relative to the orientation of FIG. 12). In implementations in which the sensor pixel array 1238 and the display pixel array 1218 do not share a common backplane, then the same display pixel array (1212) as the display fanout 1212 A full-width sensor pixel array 1238 can be implemented that is located on the side of the sensor array 1218. [

[00179] 13A and 13B illustrate examples of system block diagrams illustrating a display device including the touch sensing system described herein. Display device 1340 may be, for example, a mobile display device such as a smart phone, a cellular or mobile phone, and the like. However, the same components of display device 1340, or some variations thereof, also illustrate various types of display devices such as televisions, computers, tablets, e-readers, handheld devices and portable media devices do.

[00180] In this example, the display device 1340 includes a housing 1341, a display 1330, a touch sensing system 10, an antenna 1343, a speaker 1345, an input device 1348 and a microphone 1346 . The housing 1341 can be formed from any of a variety of manufacturing processes, including injection molding and vacuum forming. In addition, the housing 1341 can be made of any of a variety of materials including, but not limited to, plastics, metals, glass, rubber and ceramics or combinations thereof. Housing 1341 may include removable portions (not shown) that may be interchanged with other removable portions of a different color or may include different logos, photographs, or symbols.

[00181] Display 1330 may be a flat panel display such as a plasma, an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) or a liquid crystal display (LCD), or a non-planar display such as a cathode ray tube And may include any of a variety of displays, including a panel display. Display 1330 may also include an interferometric modulator (IMOD) -based display or a micro-shutter based display.

[00182] One example of components of the display device 1340 are illustrated schematically in Figure 13b. Here, the display device 1340 includes a housing 1341, and the interior may include additional components that are at least partially enclosed. For example, the display device 1340 includes a network interface 1327 that includes an antenna 1343 that can be coupled to a transceiver 1347. The network interface 1327 may be a source for image data that may be displayed on the display device 1340. Thus, while network interface 1327 is an example of an image source module, processor 1321 and input device 1348 may also serve as an image source module. Transceiver 1347 is coupled to processor 1321 and processor 1321 is coupled to conditioning hardware 1352. Conditioning hardware 1352 may be capable of conditioning the signal (such as applying a filter or manipulating a signal). Conditioning hardware 1352 may be coupled to speaker 1345 and microphone 1346. Processor 1321 may also be coupled to input device 1348 and driver controller 1329. The driver controller 1329 can be coupled to the frame buffer 1328 and the array driver 1322, which in turn can be coupled to the display array 1330. One or more elements in the display device 1340, including elements not specifically shown in FIG. 13B, may function as a memory device and be capable of communicating with processor 1321 or other components of the control system. In some implementations, the power supply 1350 can provide power to substantially all components in a particular display device 1340 design.

[00183] In this example, the display device 1340 also includes a touch and fingerprint controller 1377. The touch and fingerprint controller 1377 may be part of the control system 50, for example, as described above. Accordingly, in some implementations, the touch and fingerprint controller 1377 (and / or other components of the control system 50) may include one or more memory devices. In some implementations, control system 50 may also include components such as processor 1321, array driver 1322 and / or driver controller 1329 shown in FIG. 13B. The touch and fingerprint controller 1377 may be capable of communicating with the touch sensing system 10, for example, via routing wires, and may be capable of controlling the touch sensing system 10. The touch and fingerprint controller 1377 may be capable of determining the position and / or movement of one or more objects, such as fingers, near or on the touch sensing system 10. In alternative implementations, however, the processor 1321 (or other portion of the control system 50) may be capable of providing some or all of this functionality.

[00184] The touch and fingerprint controller 1377 (and / or other elements of the control system 50) may be capable of providing inputs for controlling the display device 1340 in accordance with one or more touch locations. In some implementations, the touch and fingerprint controller 1377 may be capable of determining movements of one or more touch locations and providing input for controlling the display device 1340 in accordance with the movements. Alternatively or additionally, the touch and fingerprint controller 1377 may be capable of determining positions and / or movements of objects near the display device 1340. Accordingly, the touch and fingerprint controller 1377 can detect finger or stylus movements, hand gestures, and the like, even when no contact with the display device 1340 is made. The touch and fingerprint controller 1377 may be capable of providing an input for controlling the display device 1340 in accordance with these detected movements and / or gestures.

[00185] As described elsewhere herein, touch and fingerprint controller 1377 (or other element of control system 50) may be capable of providing one or more fingerprint detection modes of operation. Thus, in some implementations, the touch and fingerprint controller 1377 (or other element of the control system 50) may be capable of generating fingerprint images.

[00186] In some implementations, the touch sensing system 10 may include a force-sensing device 30 and / or an ultrasonic transmitter 20 as described elsewhere herein. In accordance with some of these implementations, the touch and fingerprint controller 1377 (or other element of the control system 50) receives inputs from the force-sensing device 30 and transmits signals to the ultrasonic transmitter 20 and / 1340 may be powered on or "woken up ".

[00187] The network interface 1327 includes an antenna 1343 and a transceiver 1347 so that the display device 1340 can communicate with one or more devices over the network. The network interface 1327 may also have some processing capabilities to mitigate, for example, the data processing requirements of the processor 1321. Antenna 1343 can transmit and receive signals. In some implementations, the antenna 1343 may be an IEEE 16.11 standard including IEEE 16.11 (a), (b) or (g), or an IEEE 802.11 standard including IEEE 802.11a, b, To transmit and receive RF signals. In some other implementations, antenna 1343 transmits and receives RF signals in accordance with the Bluetooth 占 standard. In the case of a cellular telephone, the antenna 1343 may be a radio frequency (RF) antenna, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) (Evolved Data Optimized), 1xEV-DO, EV-DO Rev A, EV-DO (Enhanced Data Service), EDGE (Enhanced Data GSM Environment), Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) Rev B, High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), Evolved High Speed Packet Access (HSPA +), Long Term Evolution (LTE) Or other known signals used to communicate within a wireless network, such as a system utilizing 4G or 5G technology. Transceiver 1347 can pre-process signals received from antenna 1343 such that they can be received by processor 1321 and further manipulated. The transceiver 1347 may also process signals received from the processor 1321 so that they can be transmitted from the display device 1340 via the antenna 1343. [

[00188] In some implementations, transceiver 1347 may be replaced with a receiver. In addition, in some implementations, the network interface 1327 may be replaced with an image source capable of storing or generating image data to be transmitted to the processor 1321. The processor 1321 may control the overall operation of the display device 1340. Processor 1321 receives data, such as compressed image data from network interface 1327 or an image source, and processes the data into raw image data or a format that can be easily processed into raw image data. Processor 1321 may send the processed data to frame buffer 1328 or driver controller 1329 for storage. The raw data typically refers to information that identifies image characteristics at each location within the image. For example, such image characteristics may include color, saturation, and gray-scale levels.

[00189] The processor 1321 may include a microcontroller, a CPU, or a logic unit to control the operation of the display device 1340. Conditioning hardware 1352 may include amplifiers and filters to transmit signals to speaker 1345 and to receive signals from microphone 1346. [ Conditioning hardware 1352 may be discrete components in the display device 1340 or may be included within the processor 1321 or other components.

[00190] The driver controller 1329 can take raw image data generated by the processor 1321 either directly from the processor 1321 or from the frame buffer 1328 and provide the raw image data as appropriate for high speed transmission to the array driver 1322 You can reformat it. In some implementations, the driver controller 1329 may reformat raw image data into a data flow having a raster-like format so as to have a suitable time sequence for scanning across the display array 1330. [ The driver controller 1329 then sends the formatted information to the array driver 1322. [ Although the driver controller 1329, such as an LCD controller, is often associated with the system processor 1321 as a stand-alone integrated circuit (IC), such controllers may be implemented in many ways. For example, the controllers may be embedded in the processor 1321 as hardware, embedded in the processor 1321 as software, or fully integrated into the hardware in the array driver 1322.

[00191] The array driver 1322 may receive formatted information from the driver controller 1329 and may receive many times per second on hundreds and sometimes thousands (or more) of leads arising from the xy matrix of display elements Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > waveforms. ≪ / RTI >

[00192] In some implementations, driver controller 1329, array driver 1322, and display array 1330 are suitable for any type of display described herein. For example, the driver controller 1329 may be a conventional display controller or a bistable display controller (e.g., an IMOD display element controller). Additionally, the array driver 1322 may be a conventional driver or a bistable display driver. Furthermore, the display array 1330 may be a conventional display array or a bistable display array. In some implementations, the driver controller 1329 may be integrated into the array driver 1322. Such an implementation may be useful in highly integrated systems, such as mobile phones, portable-electronic devices, clocks, or small-area displays.

[00193] In some implementations, the input device 1348 may be enabled, for example, to allow the user to control the operation of the display device 1340. The input device 1348 may be a keypad, such as a QWERTY keyboard or a telephone keypad, a button, a switch, a rocker, a touch-sensitive screen, a touch-sensitive screen incorporated in the display array 1330, membrane. The microphone 1346 may function as an input device for the display device 1340. In some implementations, voice commands via the microphone 1346 may be used to control operations of the display device 1340.

[00194] The power supply 1350 may include various energy storage devices. For example, the power supply 1350 may be a rechargeable battery such as a nickel-cadmium battery or a lithium-ion battery. In embodiments using rechargeable batteries, the rechargeable battery may be charged using power generated from, for example, a wall socket or photovoltaic device or array. Alternatively, the rechargeable battery may be chargeable wirelessly. The power supply 1350 may also be a solar cell containing a renewable energy source, a capacitor or a plastic solar cell or a solar-cell paint. Power supply 1350 may also be enabled to receive power from the wall outlet.

[00195] In some implementations, the control program capability resides in the driver controller 1329, which may be located in various places in the electronic display system. In some other implementations, the control program capability resides in the array driver 1322. The above described optimizations may be implemented in any number of hardware and / or software components and in various configurations.

[00196] As used herein, the phrase referring to "at least one" in the list of items means any combination of these items, including one member. By way of example, "at least one of a, b or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c and a-b-c.

[00197] The various illustrative logics, logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm processes described in connection with the implementations disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. Hardware and software interoperability has been described generally in terms of functionality and has been illustrated in the various exemplary components, blocks, modules, circuits, and processes described above. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[00198]  The hardware and data processing apparatus used to implement the various illustrative logic, logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose single- or multi-chip processor, a digital signal processor (DSP) Discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination of these designed to perform the functions described herein, as well as other programmable logic devices, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) Or may be performed. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration . In some implementations, specific processes and methods may be performed by circuitry specific to a given function.

[00199]  In one or more aspects, the functions described may be implemented in digital electronic circuitry, computer software, firmware, hardware, or any combination thereof, including the structures disclosed herein and structural equivalents thereof. Implementations of the claimed subject matter described herein may also be embodied as one or more computer programs encoded on computer storage media for controlling the operation of the data processing apparatus or for execution by the apparatus, Can be implemented as a module in excess.

[00200]  When implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted by one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium, such as a non-transitory medium, as the code. The processes of the methods or algorithms disclosed herein may be implemented as processor-executable software modules that may reside on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both communication media and computer storage media including any medium that can be enabled to transmit a computer program from one place to another. The storage medium may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. Non-limiting examples of non-transitory mediums include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, FLASH memory, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, And any other medium that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection may be properly termed a computer-readable medium. Disks and discs as used herein may be in the form of a compact disc (CD), a laser disc, an optical disc, a digital versatile disc (DVD), a floppy disc, Discs, where discs typically reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically using a laser. Combinations of these should also be included within the scope of computer readable media. In addition, the operations of a method or algorithm may reside as one or any combination or set of codes and instructions on a machine readable medium and a computer readable medium that may be included in a computer program product.

[00201]  Various modifications to the implementations described in this disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the claims, principles, and novel features disclosed herein. The word "exemplary" is used exclusively herein to mean "anyway, instance, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments no.

[00202]  The specific functions described herein in the context of separate implementations may also be implemented in combination in a single implementation. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single implementation may also be implemented individually in multiple implementations or in any suitable sub-combination. In addition, one or more features from the claimed combination may be deleted from the combination in some cases, and the claimed combination may be deleted from the combination, even though the features may work in certain combinations and may even be described above as initially claimed. Can be directed to a variation of the combination or sub-combination.

[00203]  Similarly, although the operations are shown in the figures in a particular order, it is to be understood that these operations may be performed in a specific order or sequential order shown, or all of the illustrated operations need to be performed It should not be understood. In certain situations, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. It should also be understood that the separation of various system components in the implementations described above is not to be understood as requiring such separation in all implementations and that the described program components and systems are generally integrated together into a single software object, It should be understood that it can be packaged in software products. Further, other implementations are within the scope of the following claims. In some cases, the operations described in the claims may be performed in a different order and still achieve desirable results.

[00204] If the peripheral context does not imply that the features of any of the specifically described implementations are not explicitly identified as being compatible with each other, or that they are mutually exclusive and not readily combinable in complementary and / or complementary sense, It will be appreciated that the present disclosure envisions and envisages that certain features of these complementary implementations may be selectively combined to provide one or more generic technical solutions (albeit slightly different). It is therefore to be further appreciated that the above description is given by way of example only, and modifications of detail can be made within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims (65)

As a biometric authentication method,
Providing an image on a display device representing a region for a user to touch;
Obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, wherein the partial fingerprint data corresponds to a touch portion of a finger or thumb;
Comparing the partial fingerprint data with a master fingerprint data of a legitimate user; And
And based on at least in part the comparison process, determining whether to invoke the function. The method according to claim 1,
Invoking the function entails authorizing a transaction, initiating a personalized application, or unlocking the display device. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the partial fingerprint data includes new fingerprint data and known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data,
Wherein the method further comprises updating the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data. The method of claim 3,
Wherein updating is accompanied by at least one of the step of augmenting the master fingerprint data or the step of adapting the master fingerprint data. The method according to claim 1,
The method further comprises determining finger tap characteristics data of the legitimate user,
Wherein determining whether to invoke the function is based at least in part on comparing the current user's finger tab feature data with the legitimate user's finger tab feature data. 6. The method of claim 5,
Wherein the finger tap feature corresponds to at least one of a number of taps, a frequency of taps, a sequence of taps, or an auditory signature. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the acquiring step involves an ultrasound imaging process. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein said acquiring comprises acquiring said partial fingerprint data through an ultrasonic sensor array while at the same time maintaining an ultrasonic transmitter in an "off" state. The method according to claim 1,
The method further comprises receiving device movement data,
Wherein the determining process is based at least in part on the device movement data. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the area is within the display area, outside the display area, or is behind the display device. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the region overlaps at least a portion of the fingerprint acquisition system. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the finger touch involves at least one of left-thumb-side touch, right-thumb-side touch, or finger touch. The method according to claim 1,
The method comprises:
Prompting a user to provide substantially complete fingerprint data for at least one finger;
Associating the substantially complete fingerprint data with the legitimate user; And
Further comprising the step of storing said substantially complete fingerprint data in a memory. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein determining whether to invoke the function comprises determining whether to permit a transaction based on a security level. The method according to claim 1,
The method comprises:
Providing one or more purchase icons on the display device, the purchase icons corresponding to purchaseable items;
Moving a representation of one of the purchase icons to a displayed area in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb; And
Further comprising the step of determining whether to permit the transaction. The method according to claim 1,
The method comprises:
Providing one or more application icons on the display device, each of the application icons corresponding to a software application;
Moving a representation of one of the application icons to a displayed area in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb; And
Further comprising the step of determining whether to start the corresponding application. As a method,
Providing an image on a display device representing a region for a user to touch to perform a commerce transaction;
Determining a security level corresponding to the commerce;
Obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, wherein the partial fingerprint data corresponds to a touch portion of a finger or thumb;
Comparing the partial fingerprint data with a master fingerprint data of a legitimate user; And
And determining whether to allow the commerce based at least in part on the comparison process and the security level. 18. The method of claim 17,
Wherein the security level is based on one or more of a requested payment amount, an amount of available credit, an amount of money to be transferred between accounts, a type of product, or a user's credit score. 18. The method of claim 17,
Further comprising determining that the security level indicates that additional data will be required to determine whether to allow the transaction. 20. The method of claim 19,
Wherein the additional data comprises one or more of full fingerprint data, finger tap features, or device movement data for at least one finger. 20. The method of claim 19,
Wherein the additional data comprises a finger tap feature,
Wherein the finger tap feature corresponds to at least one of a number of taps, a frequency of taps, a sequence of taps, or an audio signature. As a non-temporary medium in which software is stored,
The software,
Providing an image displaying a region for the user to touch;
Obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, the partial fingerprint data corresponding to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb;
Compare the partial fingerprint data with the master fingerprint data of the legitimate user; And
Based at least in part on the comparison process, determine whether to invoke the function
And instructions for controlling at least one device. 23. The method of claim 22,
The function entails authorizing a transaction, initiating a personalized application, or unlocking a display device. 23. The method of claim 22,
Wherein the partial fingerprint data includes new fingerprint data and known fingerprint data of the current master fingerprint data,
Wherein the software includes instructions for controlling at least one device to update the master fingerprint data to include the new fingerprint data. 25. The method of claim 24,
Wherein updating is accompanied by at least one of augmenting the master fingerprint data or adapting the master fingerprint data. 23. The method of claim 22,
Wherein acquiring entails an ultrasonic imaging process. 23. The method of claim 22,
The software,
Providing one or more purchase icons on a display device, the purchase icons corresponding to purchaseable items;
Move the representation of one of the purchase icons to the displayed area in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb; And
To decide whether to allow the transaction
And instructions for controlling at least one device. 23. The method of claim 22,
The software,
Providing one or more application icons on a display device, each of the application icons corresponding to a software application;
In response to a corresponding dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb, moving the representation of one of the application icons to the displayed region; And
To determine whether to start the corresponding application
And instructions for controlling at least one device. As an apparatus,
display;
Fingerprint acquisition system; And
Control system,
The control system includes:
Control the display to provide an image displaying a region for the user to touch;
Control the fingerprint acquisition system to obtain partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, wherein the partial fingerprint data corresponds to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb;
Compare the partial fingerprint data with the master fingerprint data of the legitimate user; And
And determine, based at least in part on the comparison process, whether to invoke the function. 30. The method of claim 29,
Wherein the device further comprises a motion sensor system capable of sensing device movement and providing device movement data to the control system,
Wherein the control system is able to determine whether the device movement data corresponds to the device movement data of the legitimate user. 30. The method of claim 29,
The apparatus further comprises a finger tap detection system,
The control system may further comprise:
From the finger tap detection system, information about one or more finger taps; And
Determine finger tap feature data based on information about the one or more finger taps,
Wherein determining whether to invoke the function is based at least in part on comparing the finger tap feature data with the finger tap feature data of the legitimate user. 32. The method of claim 31,
Wherein the finger tap feature data corresponds to at least one of a number of taps, a frequency of taps, a sequence of taps, or an audio signature. 30. The method of claim 29,
Wherein the fingerprint acquisition system comprises an ultrasound imaging system. 34. The method of claim 33,
The ultrasound imaging system includes:
Ultrasonic sensor array; And
Comprising an ultrasonic transmitter,
Acquiring acquires the partial fingerprint data through the ultrasonic sensor array while keeping the ultrasonic transmitter in the "off" state. 30. The method of claim 29,
Wherein the fingerprint acquisition system is positioned within the display area or at least partially outside the display area. As a method,
Providing an image on a display device representing a region for a user to touch, the image corresponding to an icon associated with the first software application;
Obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, wherein the partial fingerprint data corresponds to a touch portion of a finger or thumb;
Comparing the partial fingerprint data with a master fingerprint data of a legitimate user, the master fingerprint data corresponding to a second software application with respect to an authentication function; And
Determining whether to update the master fingerprint data to include new fingerprint data based at least in part on the comparison process. 37. The method of claim 36,
Wherein the first software application is not associated with an authentication function. 37. The method of claim 36,
Wherein the updating step comprises at least one of a step of augmenting the master fingerprint data or a step of adapting the master fingerprint data. 37. The method of claim 36,
The method further comprises acquiring new finger tap feature data of the legitimate user,
Wherein the determining process involves determining whether to update the legitimate user's existing finger tab feature data according to the new finger tab feature data. 40. The method of claim 39,
Wherein the finger tap feature corresponds to at least one of a number of taps, a frequency of taps, a sequence of taps, or an audio signature. 37. The method of claim 36,
The method further comprises receiving new device movement data of the legitimate user,
Wherein the determining process involves determining whether to update the legitimate user's existing device movement data in accordance with the new device movement data. As a biometric authentication method,
Providing one or more icons on a display device to a user;
Receiving an indication that the user's finger is touching an area of the display device corresponding to one of the provided icons;
Moving, in response to a corresponding dragging movement of the finger, a representation of one of the provided icons to an area indicative of selection of the icon;
Acquiring biometric information from the finger when the finger is positioned in the fingerprint sensing area; And
And invoking the function based on the obtained biometric information. 43. The method of claim 42,
Wherein the acquiring step involves obtaining partial fingerprint data from the finger. 43. The method of claim 42,
Wherein invoking the function involves authorizing a transaction, initiating an application, or unlocking the display device. As a biometric authentication method,
Providing an image on a display device representing a region for a user to touch;
Obtaining partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, wherein the partial fingerprint data corresponds to a touch portion of a finger or thumb; And
And performing an authentication process based at least in part on the partial fingerprint data. 46. The method of claim 45,
Further comprising determining based on at least in part the authentication process whether to invoke the function. 46. The method of claim 45,
Wherein invoking the function comprises authorizing a transaction, initiating a personalized application, or unlocking the display device. As a biometric authentication method,
Providing one or more icons on a display;
Receiving an indication that the user is interacting with at least one of the provided icons;
Obtaining biometric information from the finger during user interaction with the icon when the finger is being positioned in the fingerprint sensing area; And
And invoking the function based at least in part on the obtained biometric information. 49. The method of claim 48,
Wherein the acquiring step involves obtaining partial fingerprint data from the finger. 49. The method of claim 48,
Wherein receiving an indication that the user is interacting with an icon comprises receiving an indication that the finger is touching an area of the display device corresponding to one of the provided icons. 51. The method of claim 50,
Wherein receiving the indication further comprises receiving an indication of a dragging movement of the finger toward the displayed area. 52. The method of claim 51,
Wherein the displayed area is displayed on the display. 52. The method of claim 51,
Wherein the displayed area is an edge of the display. 49. The method of claim 48,
Wherein receiving an indication that the user is interacting with the provided icon involves receiving an indication that the user has tapped the icon multiple times or within a range of time intervals. 49. The method of claim 48,
Wherein acquiring the biometric information involves an ultrasound imaging process. 49. The method of claim 48,
The display is on the front side of the display device,
Wherein the fingerprint sensing area is on a back surface of the display device. As an apparatus,
display;
Fingerprint acquisition system; And
Control system,
The control system includes:
Control the display to provide an image representing a region for a user to touch in order to perform a commerce transaction;
Determine a security level corresponding to the commerce;
Through the fingerprint acquisition system, obtain partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, the partial fingerprint data corresponding to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb;
Compare the partial fingerprint data with the master fingerprint data of the legitimate user; And
And to determine whether to allow the commerce based at least in part on the comparison process and the security level. 58. The method of claim 57,
Wherein the security level is based on one or more of a requested payment amount, an amount of available credit, an amount of money to be transferred between accounts, a type of product, or a user's credit score. 58. The method of claim 57,
Wherein the control system is able to determine that the security level indicates that additional data will be required to determine whether to grant the commerce. As an apparatus,
display;
Fingerprint acquisition system; And
Control system,
The control system includes:
Control the display to provide an image displaying a region for the user to touch;
Through the fingerprint acquisition system, obtain partial fingerprint data from at least a partial finger touch in the region, the partial fingerprint data corresponding to a touch portion of a finger or a thumb;
Compare the partial fingerprint data with the master fingerprint data of the legitimate user; And
Based on at least in part on the comparison process, determine whether to authorize the transaction, start the personal-only application, or unlock the device. 64. The method of claim 60,
The apparatus includes a touch sensing system,
The control system includes:
Control the display to provide one or more purchase icons on the display, the purchase icons corresponding to purchaseable items;
Through the touch sensing system, receive an indication of a dragging movement of a touch portion of a finger or a thumb;
Control the display to move the representation of one of the purchase icons to the displayed area in response to a dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb; And
A device capable of determining whether to permit a transaction. 64. The method of claim 60,
The apparatus includes a touch sensing system,
The control system includes:
Control the display to provide one or more application icons on a display device, each of the application icons corresponding to a software application;
Through the touch sensing system, receive an indication of a dragging movement of a touch portion of a finger or a thumb;
In response to a dragging movement of the touch portion of the finger or thumb, move the representation of one of the application icons to the displayed region; And
And determine whether to start an application corresponding to a representation of one of the application icons. As an apparatus,
display;
Touch sensing system;
Biometric sensor; And
Control system,
The control system includes:
Control the display to provide one or more icons;
Through the touch sensing system, receive an indication that the user's finger is touching an area of the display device corresponding to one of the provided icons;
Through the touch sensing system, receive an indication of a dragging movement of the finger;
In response to a dragging movement of the finger, control the display to move a representation of one of the provided icons to an area representing a selection of the icon;
Acquire biometric information from the finger when the finger is positioned in an area corresponding to the biometric sensor; And
And to invoke the function based on the obtained biometric information. 64. The method of claim 63,
Wherein obtaining biometric information entails obtaining partial fingerprint data from the finger. 64. The method of claim 63,
Invoking the function entails authorizing a transaction, initiating an application, or unlocking the device.

Images