LG Innotek develops cover glass with fingerprint recognition
LG Innotek has developed a cover glass for smartphones that has fingerprint recognition module embedded in it, the company said.
The sensor is more sensitive than those currently in the market and does not require a separate sensor -- most of the market's fingerprint sensors on smartphones are a circular or square-shaped sensor "button" that requires direct contact with the user's fingers.
The sensor fits in a 0.3 millimetre-deep space at the backside of the bottom of the glass, allowing it to read fingerprints if the user touches the glass covering it.
The cover glass will allow smartphone manufacturers to develop lean products that don't require the sensor to stick out. The sensor embedded in the glass will also make it easier for manufacturers to design phones to be water- and dust-proof, the company said.
The sensor has a 99.998 percent accuracy and is highly unlikely to give an inaccurate reading, LG added.
According to IHS, a total of 499 million fingerprint recognition modules shipped last year and this figure will grow to 1.6 billion by 2020.
LG is keen to develop new techs in biometrics; in February, it announced the development of an ultra-thin heart rate sensor for wearables.
LG Innotek supplies various components and modules for LG Electronics, such as the camera module in the newly-released G5.