Microvision, which makes light-scanning technologies, and Robotic Vision Systems, maker of machine vision and bar-code technology, said their new mobile identification system will target the government's national defence program and private industries.
The system will combine Microvision's Nomad Personal Display System and Robotic Vision Systems' ID Trace biometric authentication technology. The companies plan to co-market the system, which could be used to verify identity, and control access to naval and military bases, as well as high-security civilian buildings.
The system includes a wearable display that identifies the individual in question, is readable in brightly lit environments and may be used outdoors. Information stored in the tamper-resistant device can be encrypted or changed frequently for even higher levels of security, the companies said.
Despite the growing interest in biometrics, analysts are sceptical about the technology's effectiveness, due in part to the public's reluctance to embrace "smart cards"--which would embed biometric information on a chip--and to concerns about error rates in technologies such as facial recognition.
