Fingerprint sensor for smart phones

     CrucialTec, a South Korean supplier of fingerprint sensors for smartphones, said its subsidiary Canvasbio developed the CB2400, the most suitable fingerprint sensor for use on the side of smartphones. The feature of the product is that the sensor width is reduced to 2.2mm in order to be configured on the thin side of the smartphone. Recently, smartphone manufacturers have shown a tendency to minimize the number of Home buttons and speakers in order to maximize the screen. So there are attempts to move the fingerprint sensor, which was originally installed in the front, to the back or side.

     Crucialtek's fingerprint sensor is located on the side. According to Crucialtek, "The technology is spatially limited by the thinning of cell phones and the expansion of curved glass, but it is beneficial in enlarging the front image and maximizing battery space." "We have already produced fingerprint recognition modules with side configuration in the Japanese and Chinese markets, and our strategy is to strengthen our business competitiveness by combining sensors and modules."

     South Korean biometric technology company CrucialTec says its technology won't be available in mobile phones until 2018, despite being in development for five years. CrucialTec supplies fingerprint sensors to most of the world's top smartphone manufacturers, including SONY, Huawei, LG, Meizu, OPPO, and others. The company, which owns the most patents related to fingerprint sensors, is developing what it calls the most reliable and accurate under-screen fingerprint sensor available.

     CrucialTec CEO Charles Ahn said in an interview with The Korea Herald that the company is "in talks with well-known display manufacturers around the world, and the first smartphone with an under-screen fingerprint sensor will not be released until the first half of next year." Ahn noted that CrucialTec is "the only company in the world" that has mastered the technology to produce high-quality underscreen fingerprint sensors. The fingerprint sensor under the screen is composed of integrated circuit, chip package, component, firmware and special algorithm.

     According to Digital Trends, the CrucialTec sensor, which sits on the display panel beneath the protective glass, transmits up to 90 percent of the light - the same as a display without a fingerprint sensor. Three years ago, CrucialTec achieved only 50 percent light transmittance. The sensor supports fingerprint recognition and normal touch screen use. Ahn said CrucialTec is currently working to improve the accuracy of the fingerprint sensor under the screen, which is "the only remaining challenge."

     Samsung has not been able to use the under-screen fingerprint sensor in the 2017 product line, and there is basically no suspense that the Galaxy Note 8 will not use this technology. Some leaked information shows that Apple's iPhone 8 or iPhone X uses an under-screen fingerprint sensor, and some show that the fingerprint sensor is located on the back of the body, which indicates that the under-screen fingerprint sensor technology is not yet satisfied with Apple. According to CrucialTec, most other companies developing under-screen fingerprint sensors are developing optical or ultrasonic sensors, which are expensive because of their low yield and lack of accuracy.

     Are our hopes for an under-screen fingerprint sensor in this year's iPhone really dashed? CrucialTec is clearly keen to talk about its technology and downplays the efforts of its competitors, but its technology in under-screen fingerprint sensors is indisputable. However, in terms of the under-screen fingerprint sensor, it has previously had optimistic predictions, and has said that this technology will be realized in 2014. It's worth considering that Apple, which acquired biometric technology company AuthenTec in 2012, has its own fingerprint sensor team, and Apple has never said that it won't use the on-screen and off-screen fingerprint sensor this year. But, given CrucialTec's predictions, it would be a remarkable technological achievement if Apple could offer a practical under-screen fingerprint sensor this year.