Method and system for biometric recognition

Abstract

High quality, high contrast images of an iris and the face of a person are acquired in rapid succession in either sequence by a single sensor and one or more illuminators, preferably within less than one second of each other, by changing the data acquisition settings or illumination settings between each acquisition.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method for determining a rotational adjustment angle from an image having biometric information, for image adjustment prior to biometric matching against stored biometric information, the method comprising:
 acquiring, by a sensor, a first image comprising one or both of a subject's eyes;   determining an orientation of at least one feature in the first image, in relation to the first image's orientation;   determining a rotational adjustment angle based at least in part on the determined orientation, the rotational adjustment angle comprising an angle of tilt of the subject's face within the first image; and   adjusting stored or acquired biometric information based on the determined rotational adjustment angle, to substantially remove orientation difference if present, between the stored and the acquired biometric information.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein adjusting the stored or the acquired biometric information comprises substantially removing orientation difference to reduce further adjustments if any during biometric matching in searching for an improved match. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising performing biometric matching between the stored and the acquired biometric information responsive to the adjustment, detecting that an orientation difference remains, and further adjusting one of the stored and the acquired biometric information to search for an improved match. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising adjusting the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising information from a second image acquired within a predetermined time of the first image. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising adjusting the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising information from a second image acquired by a second sensor. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising adjusting the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising information from the first image. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising adjusting the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising at least one of: iris and face data. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising adjusting, based on the first image, an illumination level, a zoom level or a focus setting for acquiring a second image. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising extracting, from the first image, an image portion comprising an iris of the subject. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining the orientation of the at least one feature comprises determining a relative position of the subject's eyes, in relation to the first image's orientation. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising determining a pose of the subject's face, comprising one or more of: pan, tilt, yaw and translation of the subject's face in three-dimensional space. 
     
     
         12 . A system for determining a rotational adjustment angle from an image having biometric information, for image adjustment prior to biometric matching against stored biometric information, the system comprising:
 a sensor acquiring a first image comprising one or both of a subject's eyes; and   a biometric system:
 determining an orientation of at least one feature in the first image, in relation to the first image's orientation; 
 determining a rotational adjustment angle based at least in part on the determined orientation, the rotational adjustment angle comprising an angle of tilt of the subject's face within the first image; and 
 adjusting stored or acquired biometric information based on the determined rotational adjustment angle, to substantially remove orientation difference if present, between the stored and the acquired biometric information. 
   
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system adjusts the stored or the acquired biometric information to reduce further adjustments if any during biometric matching in searching for an improved match. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system performs biometric matching between the stored and the acquired biometric information responsive to the adjustment, detects that an orientation difference remains, and further adjusts one of the stored and the acquired biometric information to search for an improved biometric match. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system adjusts the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising information from a second image acquired within a predetermined time of the first image. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system adjusts the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising information from a second image acquired by a second sensor. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system adjusts the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising information from the first image. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system adjusts the stored or the acquired biometric information, the acquired biometric information comprising at least one of: iris and face data. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system adjusts, based on the first image, an illumination level, a zoom level or a focus setting for acquiring a second image. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system extracts, from the first image, an image portion comprising an iris of the subject. 
     
     
         21 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system determines the orientation of the at least one feature by determining a relative position of the subject's eyes, in relation to the first image's orientation. 
     
     
         22 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the biometric system determines a pose of the subject's face, comprising one or more of: pan, tilt, yaw and translation of the subject's face in three-dimensional space.