Patents have long been a source of rumors from Apple, and since they are available to the public there is little that Apple can do to stop it. In this newest find from Patently Apple, it seems that iPhone may soon be capable of scanning your fingerprint with a system built directly into the bezel of the device.
The specific design of the scanner is classically Apple, as it is built to take up the minimum amount of room possible, by using a somewhat different scanning procedure from the norm.
In operation, a user will simply swipe a finger over a surface of the sensor. The sensor will capture a number of thin strips of the fingerprint as the finger is swiped, and the complete fingerprint is assembled in software for use in authentication. Such a sensor apparatus is typically preferred when a compact sensor is desired.
Several different possible designs are discussed in the patent, but it seems as though Apple will be wanting to build these devices in to the device right next to the screen, so that simply swiping the bezel is all it would take to, say, authenticate a purchase.
E-commerce is one of the leading reasons Apple has been developing this technology, as well as security for the iPhone, apparent from a 2010 patent. Now however, it is exciting to finally be seeing how this system could be implemented in an actual iPhone. How would you want the fingerprint scanner to be used?
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