Ears could provide new security measure

Listen to this! Ears could be the new front-runners in identification at Heathrow Airport Security…

We have all heard of finger printing and iris recognition being used instead of the good old passport photo to combat security threats and illegal immigration problems at British airports.

Three different ears as identification with the new Heathrow Airport scanners

Now scientists at Southampton University’s school of electronics and computer science have suggested that our ears may provide an even more reliable means of ID, with an accuracy rate of 99.6%.

Each one of us has a uniquely shaped ear and it is now possible to scan them accurately and compare them with a database of images.

The technology works by mapping features of the ear such as wrinkles, curves, cartilage, and lobes using something called "image ray transform".

Various ears being used as practice on the new Heathrow Airport Scanners

All UK passports now have enough space to hold biometric information, so it would be possible to add details of holders’ ears if this method were to be introduced. Stansted airport has been conducting trials of facial recognition and retina scanning over the last two years but has encountered several problems.

Technology cannot cope with facial expressions or even, in some instances, make up, whilst crow’s feet can also be a major problem.

Ears on the other hand (and no pun is intended here) apparently “age gracefully”. Your ears stay the same shape from birth, apart from the fact that they grow proportionately as you age and the lobes elongate slightly.

Whilst Professor Mark Nixon of Southampton University is very excited about the discovery, the Home Office is being a little more cautious, saying that whilst they welcome new and innovative technology, there are no set plans at the moment to pursue the idea at British airports.

9 Responses to “Ears could provide new security measure”

  1. The idea of using ears as a security measure is intriguing, and it’s a topic worth exploring for your dissertation. To dive deeper into this concept and gather relevant information, you can enlist the help of the https://phdify.com/dissertation-introduction dissertation writing service. They can assist you in researching the latest advancements in biometric security measures, including ear-based identification, and help you present a comprehensive overview of its potential applications and challenges.

  2. 99.6 is exceptionally high accuracy of recognizing human identity. Southampton University’s technology scientists did a good job, but what happened to their impressive invention of an already past decade? Or tech is always like this, once scientists invent one thing and then set to test the technology, a lot of time passes and then other invention comes into being which is more progressive and nobody cares about the previous one. Experts from MyassignmentLab, my current technical homework helpers, once claimed that for the past decade they’ve been asked to write a number of STEM projects, which seemed so innovative and timely back then. Students and their university professors believed that today, in their future, there would be no smartphones and gasoline cars, for example. But reality is different, mainly because scientists didn’t prove the practical, ecological and to some extent ethical aspects of new tech.

  3. The idea of using ears as a new security measure is fascinating. It’s impressive to see how technology is evolving to utilize unique biometric features for enhanced security. This could offer a more secure and convenient alternative to existing methods.

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