Use the iris as an access key for personal computers, mobile telephones and credit cards.

This simple action could become reality in the near future thanks to methods developed by researchers of the Biomedical Image Technologies group at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Technical University of Madrid).

In the context of biometric identification, the patterns that exist on the iris are considered to be one of the most trustworthy alternatives—better than finger prints—given that the iris is unique and differentiating for every person and further does not change during a person’s life.

Currently, biometric recognition using the iris is used successfully under different circumstances, such as at doorway entrances in New York’s JFK airport, or for census taking by the UN at Afghan war refugee camps in Pakistan. However, the use of these systems is restricted by the need for cooperative behavior on the part of the individual, and for highly controlled image-taking conditions. In order for them to function correctly it’s necessary for the subject to be very close to the camera, and stare at it without moving for several seconds.

To analyze these problems and look for possible solutions, a worldwide contest called “Noisy Iris Challenge evaluation” was held, where examples of irises were examined obstructed by eyelashes and eyebrows, reflections, covered by glasses, etc. The goal was to develop algorithms that could be used to analyze such noisy images. The team made up of researchers from the Technical University of Madrid, the Paris School of Mines and the Paris Institute of Complex Systems submitted one of the most original solutions, which could have a great impact for security, video surveillance and e-government development applications.