First Full-Screen Fingerprint Sensor Emerges as Mobile Biometrics Move Into the Display

“…given the growing consensus that mobile fingerprint sensors are moving into device displays, extending the scanning capability across the entire display surface would seem to be a logical next step for smartphone brands…”

In the midst of the SID Display Week trade show in San Jose, Taiwan-based optoelectronics specialist AU Optronics (or “AUO”) has announced a six-inch smartphone screen with an optical fingerprint sensor built right into its LCD structure.

The announcement comes in the same week that the CEO of one of the world’s leading fingerprint algorithm specialists, Precise Biometrics, revealed in a quarterly update that he sees the mobile biometrics industry trending toward fingerprint sensors that can operate across the entire device display. The CEO in question, Stefan K. Persson, predicted that the first devices featuring this kind of technology could arrive by the end of this year; and as if on cue, AUO is claiming its full-screen sensor solution is the first of its kind.

What’s more, AUO says its solution offers a ‘sensor response time’ of 30 milliseconds, suggesting it could power very fast fingerprint scanning. AUO’s display solution also offers 1080 x 2160 HD resolution and 403 PPI pixel density.

It’s too early to say how smartphone makers will respond to AUO’s technological innovation. But given the growing consensus that mobile fingerprint sensors are moving into device displays, extending the scanning capability across the entire display surface would seem to be a logical next step for smartphone brands looking for every technological edge over the competition.

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May 16, 2019 – by Alex Perala