Support FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Products - ExpressID AFIS

Products - IDKit PC SDK

Products - IDKit Mobile SDK

Products - ANSI&ISO add-on

Technology

Purchasing

Licensing

Fingerprint Readers/Scanners

Other

Products - ExpressID AFIS

Q: What is ExpressID AFIS?
A: ExpressID AFIS is a complete matching server software. It is provided as a stand-alone matching server software (which runs manually or automatically as a Windows Service), and a client SDK (on PC or Mobile platform). The client SDK is used to develop the workstation application that communicates with to the matching server. ExpressID AFIS matching server can match 1 500 000 (six hundred thousand) fingerprints per second on one standard computer with Intel QuadCore processor (called Node). ExpressID AFIS in Government edition includes distributed cluster architecture, which allows you to put several matching Nodes in parallel to increase matching speed (using 10 PCs will search up to 6 million fingerprints per second). ExpressID AFIS has been developed to power Civil ID and Commercial ID applications requiring high fingerprint speeds.
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Q: The matching speed is impressive. What kind of applications require such fast matching speed?
A: There are two kinds of applications. (A) De-duplication where at registration ExpressID AFIS quickly searches the database of registered fingerprints and identifies individuals attempting to register more than once. Typical applications are Civil ID projects such as issuance of secure documents, passports, drivers' licenses, ID cards, or at the payment of pensions, social benefits, or at the opening of a new credit account. (B) Instant identification where ExpressID AFIS instantly identifies a person, based on her fingerprint, from a database of millions of fingerprints. Typical applications are Commercial ID projects such as identification of returning customer to a bank, or identification of a patient to a hospital, or identification of a returning customer to a retail store (membership / loyalty programs) or to a nation-wide fitness center.
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Q: What are Innovatrics ExpressID AFIS competitive advantages against other AFIS providers?
A: 1. Faster matching speed on standard off-the-shelf PC: Other AFIS providers use specific hardware (Risc processors or proprietary hardware accelerators). The specific hardware is expensive to buy and to maintain, since you can buy them only from AFIS vendors directly, as opposed to commercial off-the-shelf PCs.
2. Higher accuracy: Other AFIS providers use techniques such as classification (separating database depending on the fingerprint pattern) which introduce errors. We use exhaustive search: every request matches 100% of fingerprints in the database.
3. Better affordability: Together with the possibility to use commercial off-the-shelf PCs, we offer the best price/performance ratio on the market.
4. Flexible payment terms: Other AFIS providers require 100% upfront payment. Our customers can pay per blocks as the AFIS database grows. This reduces financial burden on system integrators who must often finance projects upfront, such as BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer).
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Q: Has it been tested against big databases ( i.e. >1 000 000 fingerprints)?
A: Yes, it has been tested and deployed databases bigger than 10 000 000 fingerprints. For example we have deployments in Mozambique for 10 million people, or in Ghana for 1.5 million people with 10 fingerprints registered.
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Q: Can your AFIS run out of the box to meet full AFIS, with GUI, project requirements?
A: Yes the server software is an executable file that runs out of the box. It will search the database of fingerprints and tell you if the person is there or not. However, on the client side we provide an SDK (both on PC and on Mobile devices) which you will use to develop the front end application.
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Q: Do you have PC client software that can talk to AFIS server, out of the box, without development?
A: No because the front end changes for every project (language requirements, fields to put on the form, etc). For demo purposes, we provide IDDemo PC application http://download.innovatrics.com/products/iddemo. It can run as as a client software application and talk directly to AFIS server out of the box. For this, you simply need to install AFIS server, write down its IP address and put that IP address into the IDDemo Setting tab.
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Q: I intend to use Lumidigm sensor. Does your AFIS support it?
A. Yes. The AFIS will be provided to you with an SDK (a set of .dll files, with documentation) to develop the client application. The SDK supports Lumidigm Venus of course.
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Q: Does ExpressID AFIS store images of fingerprints or just templates?
A: It stores the templates, and if you choose so, it can also store images. We recommend storing fingerprint images for future use, if possible.
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Q: What are the hardware requirements of ExpressID Government?
A: Memory: ExpressID AFIS loads templates into the memory for search. One templates takes approximately 1kB. Therefore, if you have 1 million templates to match on 1 Node, that Node must have 1GB of RAM available.
Processor: Two Intel cores per node should be used at a minimum. Quad core nodes provide observably higher performance.
Database: Database server should have fast disk with storage size triple the amount of table data. Table data size is 1KB per template and 100KB per image (if stored). 1GB of memory is sufficient for database to operate efficiently (depending on quality of the DBMS).
Client: ExpressID SDK consumes about 1MB of memory when active. Every template extraction consumes 300ms of computing time of a single core.
All calculations assume 1KB average template size and 100KB average fingerprint image size in PNG format. Note that one user record can contain several fingerprints which multiplies template count and storage requirements.
Nodes: The number of Nodes to install depends on the required matching speed of the project, which can be calculated using two parameters: (A) the number of fingerprints used for 1:N identification, and (B) the number of identification requests per minute.
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Q: Can you calculate for me the hardware required to full-fill the needs of my project?
A: Sure, please address an e-mail to sales@innovatrics.com with your complete answers to these questions:
- how many user records (persons) will be enrolled into the central AFIS?
- how much time (in months) do you have to enroll all the persons?
- how many days can AFIS match in a month (standard is 20 days, but it can be running 30 days if the matching is on during weekends as well)?
- how many hours can AFIS match in a day (standard is 12 hours, but it can be running 24h/24)?
- how many fingerprints will be registered per person, at enrollment (we recommend at least 2)?
- how many fingerprints will be used from that person for 1:N search (we recommend at least 2)?
- what is the identification target response (real-time, or over-night, or several days)?
- how many workstations (enrollment or identification stations) will connect to the central AFIS?
- after initial registration, how often do users come back for identification on average?
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Q: How do I purchase and what is the pricing?
A: Our customers - system integrators - first purchase ExpressID AFIS Development license for either Enterprise edition or for Government edition. They use it to develop the application for the final customer (government, bank, hospital, ...). Once the application is developed - for the deployment the customer facilities - the customer purchases a runtime license. The runtime license price is priced per number of enrollees (user records), not fingerprints (one enrollee is a user record with 1-10 fingerprints registered not fingerprints) in the database. It is our strategy to offer the most affordable AFIS to provide the best price/performance ratio on the market. To request a quote, please send an e-mail to sales@innovatrics.com describing the application and specifying the following elements:
- number of enrollees planned to be registered in the AFIS
- number of workstations connected to the AFIS
- type of target application (ID cards, passports, drivers' licenses, elections, ...)
- target market (government, commercial, ...)
- target territory
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Q: I have a potential project for Criminal AFIS, which requires to match palm prints and match latent fingerprints (from crime scene) against the database of tenprints. Can I use ExpressID AFIS?
A: No. ExpressID AFIS does not support palmprints and does not support matching of partial, latent prints from crime scenes, against the database of tenprints. ExpressID is a very fast AFIS intended for Civil ID projects (to eliminate duplicate registrations, or to instantly identify a person, based on her fingerprint, from a database of millions of fingerprints).
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Products - IDKit PC SDK

Q: Where can I find more information about your SDK?
A: The SDK for PC-based products (desktops, laptops) is called IDKit PC SDK and more information can be found here: http://download.innovatrics.com/products/fingerprint-identification-sdk.
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Q: Does IDKit return the best matching user or the first matching user?
A: IDKit always returns the best match. Whole database is internally sorted by similarity score. Threshold and result count limit are used only to select the top matching users.
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Q: How does IDKit handle ambiguity?
A: If there are multiple matches above the threshold, they are returned all, sorted by score, up to the results count limit. It is up to the application to decide what to do with multiple users matching with score above threshold. If you have too many false positives, it might help to raise the threshold.
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Q: How does image DPI affect error rates?
A: IDKit internally converts all images to 500DPI before extracting template. For this reason, 500DPI images provide highest accuracy. Lower DPI images are accepted and they still provide acceptable error rates. DPI higher than 500 is unnecessary. IDKit DPI setting should be left on 500 if image DPI only slightly differs from 500 (for example, the 508DPI Upek scanners). This is because the conversion from 508DPI to 500DPI causes more loss of accuracy than slightly incorrect DPI setting.
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Q: How can I use IDKit templates in other software?
A: IDKit templates cannot be used outside IDKit, because they contain various IDKit-specific information intended to improve accuracy and performance. IDKit can export templates in ANSI format. ANSI templates are fairly compatible with other software.
If you need to use other matching software, you can also take the original fingerprint image and create new vendor-specific template using SDK from the other vendor.
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Q: Where can I download IDKit PC SDK for testing purposes?
A: You can subscribe for IDKit PC FREE SDK plan in our web shop at shop.innovatrics.com.
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Q: Can I program in C# or VB with your SDK?
A: Yes, IDKit PC SDK contains .NET connector which allows you to program in either C# or VB. Examples with source code in C# are included in the SDK.
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Q: What is the difference between IDKit PC SDK and ExpressID AFIS?
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- IDKit SDK is a set of .dll files, which will help the integrator to include the 1:N algorithm into their application. IDKit SDK on PC is limited to 1:50 000 (it can match up to 50 000 user records on 1 PC) and it's speed is 200 000 fingerprints per second.
- ExpressID AFIS is a matching server (runs as a standalone application or as a Windows service automatically on start-up of the server) with client-server architecture allowing several computers with scanners to connect to the same central matching server. The central matching server can be composed of several Nodes, each Node can match 1 500 000 fingerprints per second. It is also provided with an SDK which allows developing the client-side application with customer-specific GUI.
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Q: Can I use my own database (MS SQL 2005) or do I have to use the proprietary flat format that ships with the SDK, and does your DB require further licensing (which it shouldn’t)?
A: IDKit includes its own databases SQLite which you can use. The database does not require further licensing. If you wish to use an external database - that's possible too. In this case, you use IDKit memory matching functions only. It works this way: IDKit SDK supports a so-called "memory database", you can store templates in your database and then copy them into IDKit SDK "memory database" for identification.
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Q: Can I use your SDK for integration with a Sagem MSO 300 reader? (The templates would’nt not be the same but the bitmap should be compatible)
A: IDKit SDK accepts images from external sensors, you can capture image using Sagem reader and use the image in IDKit SDK to generate template
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Q: How do I acquire images from fingerprint readers for use in IDKit?
A: You can use our IScanners SDK to access a range of supported scanners. You can also use scanner manufacturer's original SDK to access the scanner directly. Both IScanners SDK and manufacturer's SDK will provide you with either BMP or raw images (in memory or in files) that can then be imported into IDKit.
IScanners SDK is generally easier to use, but it supports only the mainstream scanner models. Manufacturer's SDK also provides access to scanner-specific functionality.
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Q: Can we use IDKit from .NET applications?
A: All IDKit functionality is available through integrated documented .NET Connector.
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Q: What development languages do you support?
A: Supported languages include unmanaged C++ and all .NET languages including C++, C#, and VB. You can also use other development tools as far as these tools can link to either IDKit C++ API or to IDKit .NET API.
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Q: Do we have to run extraction again in order to use rolled mode?
A: Rolled fingerprint mode affects only search algorithm. Template extraction is not affected. Rolled mode uses the same templates as general mode. There is no need to perform template extraction again, because the generated templates would be the same.
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Q: I need to import ANSI templates
A: ANSI templates cannot be imported into IDKit SDK, because ANSI templates do not support fast 1:N identification. If you need just 1:1 verification, I would recommend to use our ANSI & ISO SDK which has full support for ANSI templates. Our customers who need both fast identification and ANSI templates generally use both IDKit SDK (or ExpressID AFIS) and ANSI & ISO SDK and synchronize them through the ANSI template export function.
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Products - IDKit Mobile SDK

Q: What fingerprint readers can I use?
A: Any, as long as you have the image acquisition and drivers from the fingerprint reader manufacturer for the handheld you intend to use.
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Q: What is the image format I can use?
A: .raw, .bmp
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Q: If I do not have a fingerprint sensor manufacturer, is there a company you would suggest?
A: Our partners UPEK and Futronic provide necessary tools and assistance to integrate their sensors into a handheld/mobile device.
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Q: Does IDKit Mobile SDK support WSQ image standard?
A: No. We use the WSQ implementation from NIST, which does not work on mobile devices.
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Q: What is the matching speed of IDKit Mobile SDK?
A: The fingerprints matching speed of IDKit Mobile SDK is 40 000 fingerprints per second on Intel (Marvel) PXA 270 @ 624MHz (see page http://download.innovatrics.com/products/fingerprint-mobile-wince-sdk). With this configuration, if there are 40 000 fingerprints on the handheld, the search of all on-board fingerprints will take 1 second.
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Q: How many fingerprints can I search on one handheld?
A: The limitation for fingerprint search on PDA is only one: amount of available RAM. Note that fingerprint templates ready for search are charged in the memory (this is automatically done by IDKit Mobile SDK), and 1 fingerprint template takes approximately 1kB. For instance, searching 30 000 fingerprints on handheld requires 30MB of free RAM.
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Q: Can I use one database for both ‘IDKit PC’ and ‘IDKit Mobile’?
A: IDKit Mobile SDK can read SQLite database files generated by IDKit PC SDK. This means that if you use IDKit PC SDK own database SQLite, it

will generate a file called *.db which contains all the data. Simply copy that file to your Mobile device and you are done. If you wish to use your own database (MS SQL 2005, Oracle), then you can use "memory database" feature in IDKit Mobile SDK. This works this way: IDKit Mobile SDK supports a so-called "memory database", you can store templates in your own database and then copy them into IDKit Mobile SDK "memory database" for identification.
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Q: Is there any API to access fingerprint reader?
A: Every fingerprint reader has different API to obtain fingerprint images. You will need an image acquisition SDK for the particular reader device you are using. You can obtain such SDK from fingerprint reader vendor. Once you have acquired an image, you can than match it with other fingerprints in IDKit Mobile SDK.
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Products - ANSI & ISO SDK

Q: What is the difference between IDKit SDK and ANSI & ISO SDK?
A: The differences between IDKit and ANSI & ISO can be found detailed in the Product Comparison Table on our website: http://download.innovatrics.com/products/product-comparison/. In summary, main differences are as follows:
- ANSI & ISO can 1:1 match ANSI-378 templates, IDKit cannot.
- IDKit SDK can 1:N search fingerprints in database, ANSI & ISO cannot.
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Q: Does ANSI & ISO SDK contain 1:N identification?
A: No. It includes extraction of ANSI/INCITS-378 and ISO 19794-2 templates from an image, and 1:1 matching of two ANSI/INCITS-378 or ISO 19794-2 templates.
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Q: My project requires 1:N identification (AFIS for de-duplication for example) and support of standard ANSI 378 templates. How do I do it?
A: Our customers who need both fast identification and ANSI templates generally use both or ExpressID AFIS and ANSI & ISO SDK. ExpressID AFIS is used to do 1:N search and export ANSI template (for storage on a card or a passport). ANSI & ISO SDK is used to verify (1:1 match) issued card or passport against the person holding it.
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Q: How can we use ANSI & ISO SDK from a .NET application?
A: Standard installation doesn't include .NET support. Upon request, we can send you a .NET DLL that wraps all functionality in ANSI & ISO SDK. API of this .NET Connector closely reflects C++ API.
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Q: Do you support ISO 19794 templates?
A: ISO 19794 is supported in a separate product called ANSI & ISO SDK (formerly ANSI-Kit). ANSI & ISO SDK supports only 1:1 verification. Fast identification is supported only in IDKit SDK. Templates from IDKit SDK can be exported into ISO 19794 format for use in ANSI & ISO SDK.
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Q: How fast is the matching procedure with ANSI & ISO SDK?
A: ANSI & ISO SDK supports only 1:1 verification at speed of hundreds to thousands of verifications per second depending on maximum rotation and processor.
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Q: How do I acquire images from fingerprint readers for use in ANSI & ISO SDK?
A: You can use our IScanners SDK to access a range of supported scanners. You can also use scanner manufacturer's original SDK to access the scanner directly. Both IScanners SDK and manufacturer's SDK will provide you with either BMP or raw images (in memory or in files) that can then be imported into IDKit.
IScanners SDK is generally easier to use, but it supports only the mainstream scanner models. Manufacturer's SDK also provides access to scanner-specific functionality.
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Q: Does ANSI & ISO SDK support JPEG images?
A: ANSI & ISO SDK has built-in support only for BMP images. You will need some conversion library (either the one in Windows or a third-party library). Image distortion caused by JPEG compression doesn't influence matching accuracy in any way.
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Technology

Q: Do you support 1:N search on ANSI/INCITS-378 or ISO 19794-2 standard templates?
A: No. We have decided not to implement fingerprint search on standard ANSI-378 or ISO 19794-2 templates. Since ANSI-378 or ISO 19794-2 templates contain minutiae only, the search would not be sufficiently accurate and the reliability of the system would not be sufficient, resulting in non-usable biometrics. At Innovatrics we believe that only reliable biometric systems will be spread and adopted by the mainstream. The fingerprint 1:N search can only be performed on proprietary templates. You can however, with IDKit SDK export Innovatrics proprietary templates to ANSI-378 or ISO 19794-2 templates.
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Q: Is the algorithm portable to other platforms?
A: It depends on the platform (processor + OS). The algorithm core uses only fixed-point mathematical operations, so theoretically porting it to other platforms is often a matter of compilation. We currently have versions running on PC, PXA and ARM9 platforms. We do not port the algorithm to 16-bit and lower processors.
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Q: How exactly is the fingerprint quality calculated?
A: Fingerprint image quality is linked to the total length of ridges found in the fingerprint. Only ridges that are well defined and can be extracted safely are counted, if a ridge belongs to the background (noisy) zone, it is not considered. Total ridge length is normalized by the total sensor surface, fingerprint quality is therefore a number between 0 and 100.
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Q: What fingerprint quality is sufficient for use?
A: Quality threshold depends on application. You should perform your own tests to adjust quality threshold. Generally we recommend minimum quality 40% for both registration and identification.
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Q: Do you have any benchmark results for your matching algorithm? We may need to deal with several millions of records. Is it possible to have an explanation of the basic concept of the matching algorithm you have: is it memory based (all finger print records loaded in memory), is it database oriented (finger print classification and indexing)?
A: Yes we participate in international competitions (US Government NIST MINEX, FVC2004, FVC2006, upcoming US Government SDK test) to prove the speed and accuracy of our matching algorithms. Moreover, please note that our unique competitive advantage is the fingerprint search speed - we can search the database at the speed of 1 500 000 fingreprints per second on a standard off-the-shelf computer. The speed and accuracy are reached because of a unique technique which combines minutiae-based and pattern-based search algorithms. Every request searches through the entire database with 100% penetration, without fingerprint indexing or classification (which introduce errors). The search is done in memory - fingerprint templates are stored in memory. One fingerprint templates takes approximately 1kB.
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Q: Do you use any kind of finger print classification/indexing when storing it in the database?
A: No. Techniques of classification / indexing are used by slow algorithms to reduce the database size. However, classification and indexing introduce errors. That is the reason why classification and indexing algorithms are not used by customers who require the maximum reliability of the system (US Army).
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Q: Does your 1:N matching algorithm support pre-filtering?
A: Yes. It is possible to call identification on a subset of the original database by calling FindUserInSelection/FindFingerprintInSelection. It's up to the application developer to remember ID's of the desired subset of enrollees. In addition, the Government version of ExpressID AFIS allows clustering. Putting more servers in parallel will increase the matching speed, in case you wish to search the entire database at each request.
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Q: What is the impact of several hundreds of concurrent users inserting finger print records or running the matching algorithm?
A: It treats incoming requests in FIFO order (first in first out). Some requests run in parallel in order to guarantee the optimal usage of all present processor cores (AddFingerprint function). All functions of our products are thread safe. In client/server environment (ExpressID AFIS), in order to guarantee the best performance, the extraction is done on client, only the identification is performed on server.
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Q: Is your algorithm image based or template based? Are you MINEX certified?
A: Template based. Yes our ANSI-378 algorithm is MINEX certified. You can export Innovatrics proprietary search templates into ANSI-378 templates.
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Q: What is the template size?
A: Template size varies depending on number of recognizable features in fingerprint image. Larger fingerprints have larger templates. Average template size is under 1KB. This applies to fingerprint images from standard fingerprint readers. Template size is the same for all versions of IDKit.
There is no absolute maximum to template size in IDKit SDK. Innovatrics offers ANSI & ISO SDK which has a well-defined maximum template size of 1568 bytes. Some of our customers make use of ANSI & ISO SDK when they need to fit templates in 2D bar code or other limited storage.
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Q: Is it possible to reconstruct fingerprint image from Innovatrics template?
A: The 1KB Innovatrics templates don't contain enough information to reconstruct fingerprint images. Templates contain minutiae and patterns. Patterns describe a sample fraction of ridge shapes.
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Q: How can I use Sagem templates with your products?
A: Sagem templates are not supported. IDKit SDK supports only proprietary Innovatrics templates. ANSI/ISO SDK supports ANSI/INCITS 378 and ISO/IEC 19794-2 templates. IDKit SDK additionally supports one-way export of ANSI and ISO templates.
You can retrieve fingerprint images instead of templates from Sagem SDK. These images can then be converted to Innovatrics templates using IDKit PC SDK.
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Q: Do you perform any classification (loop, whorl, etc.) in order to speed up the identification?
A: We do not use fingerprint class information for matching. This is what makes our system more accurate - finger print class detection is error prone and risky. Fingerprint class of some fingerprints cannot be detected accurately. We prefer to do the matching using directly minutiae points and ridge flow and to ignore fingerprint class information.
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Q: Is it possible to match against a fingerprint card?
A: Our SDK can match individual fingerprints but not directly a fingerprint against a finger print card. In order to match a fingerprint against a finger print card, you need first to run a segmentation algorithm on finger print card. Segmentation algorithm splits fingerprints that are present in the card into individual fingerprints, that can be directly compared with our SDK.
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Q: Can your SDK match latent fingerprints against other latent fingerprints?
A: Our SDK can be used for matching latent fingerprints against other latent fingerprints. However, when working with latent fingerprints, you will need an adapted GUI that will make possible for the AFIS operator to specify where the latent fingerprint is on the image (often there may be more latent fingerprints in the same image, etc..).
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Q: Can your algorithm match second knuckle fingerprints?
A: Yes, the algorithm would work well on such images.
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Q: Can your algorithm match palm prints?
A: Even if the accuracy will not be 100%, it will work as palm print contains ridges/valleys and minutiae points and is very similar to fingerprint pattern.
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Q: Is it possible to edit minutiae points manually?
A: We do not provide GUI for minutiae positions/orientations editing. However, if the client orders a full solution from us, we can either help you to develop such a GUI or to develop it in house.
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Q: Does your algorithm use any other information besides minutiae?
A: We use both minutiae information and ridge flow information.
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Q: How do we best implement duplicate detection?
A: Duplicate detection can be implemented as a simple identification query over database of already registered users. If you do duplicate detection with high threshold (and consequently low FAR), it is best to consider all matches above the threshold. Set candidate count high enough to receive all candidates above the threshold. Default threshold is sufficient to reduce false matches to minimum. It is also possible to use lower threshold, but then you need non-biometric checks to filter out false matches, because FAR is rising quickly with lower threshold.
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Q: Is there any way to create a generalised template from multiple images?
A: Tests have showed that blending does not improve accuracy as much as registering multiple slaps (called views) of the same finger. The recommended way to go about this is to register multiple views of the same finger under one user ID. Identification algorithm uses all available fingerprints to produce more accurate similarity score.
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Purchasing

Q: How can I buy?
A: You can buy either directly by sending an e-mail with order to sales@innovatrics.com or from our resellers in your geographical region. Upon reception of the order, we will send you an invoice. Upon payment of the invoice, we will open a customer account for you on http://crm.innovatrics.com where you will be able to (1) download the full version of our products and (2) generate licenses for your PCs.
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Q: What is the cost of finger print insert in the database?
A: Runtime licenses for deployment of ExpressID AFIS are priced per user record (not per fingerprint) - user record is an enrollee with 1-10 fingers registered. Runtime licenses for deployment of SDKs (IDKit, ANSI & ISO) are priced per PC.
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Licensing

Q: What is the difference between SDK License and Runtime License?
A: Our customers - developers and system integrators - first use SDK License for development of their application. Then they use runtime license for deployment of their application for their customers.
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Q: What is the licensing mechanism?
A: On PC products (ExpressID AFIS, IDKit PC SDK, ANSI & ISO PC SDK) the license is protected either by a software file or by an USB dongle - you choose. On mobile products (IDKit Mobile SDK, ANSI & ISO Mobile SDK) the license is protected by a software file. Every license file is linked to a hardware ID of the target computer or device. The hardware ID is a string generated by Innovatrics License Manager, included in every SDK. On ExpressID AFIS, one license file on the server is sufficient (no need to put licenses on workstation PCs), since the server license will check the number of client computers connecting to it. IDKit SDK and ANSI & ISO SDK look for a license file on the PC on which they run.
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Q: How can I get a new license file or a new USB dongle?
A: Once you become our customer, we will create an account for you on http://crm.innovatrics.com where you will be able to generate license files for your deployment, or order USB dongles. Obtaining a new license is very simple: you just input the hardware ID into a form on the http://crm.innovatrics.com and you will be able to download the license file directly.
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Q: Is there a limit of users on each license?
A: There is no limit of users verified. Depending on a license, there is a limit of the maximum size of the database that can be searched. For example with 1:10 000 license you will be able to to 1:1 verification (compare two fingerprints) and 1:N identification of up to 10 000 enrollees stored on that device.
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Q: What hardware components are included in hardware ID?
A: On Windows platforms, hardware ID includes processor ID and disk ID. Disk ID sometimes isn't included in case it cannot be obtained because of special hardware configuration.
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Q: How can I upgrade/downgrade the software?
A: For upgrade, just run installer for the new version. For downgrade, first uninstall the higher version and then install the lower version.
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Q: Where can I find older versions of the software?
A: Older versions of the software are not available for download, but they can be mailed on request.
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Q: I entered lowercase hardware ID and now the license doesn't work
A: Hardware IDs are case-sensitive. Hardware IDs should be uppercase the way they are displayed in license manager.
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Fingerprint Readers/Scanners

Q: Can I use any fingerprint scanner?
A: Yes. On PC platform you can either use our IScanners SDKto extract the fingeprint image from supported scanners, or extract image from your scanner by yourself (using manufacturer's image acquisition drivers) and use that image as input into our PC products (ExpressID AFIS, IDKit PC SDK, ANSI & ISO SDK). On Mobile platforms you can use any scanner as long as you have the image acquisition and drivers from the fingerprint reader manufacturer for the handheld you intend to use.
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Q: What are the fingerprint scanners supported by IScanners?
A: Lumidigm Venus, Futronic FS80 & FS88, DigitalPersona U.are.U, UPEK TCS1 & TCS2, CrossMatch Verifier 300LC, SecuGen Hamster
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Q: Do you support Microsoft Fingerprint Reader?
A: It is legally forbidden to support Microsoft Fingerprint Reader. Microsoft has not released (and will not release) an officially available image access driver. You may still use any scanner you wish with IDKit if you are able to acquire the image from the Microsoft scanner. If you want a reader with the same functionality, you may use DigitalPersona reader (www.digitalpersona.com). Innovatrics as DigitalPersona partner supports DigitalPersona U.are.U 4000B directly, or other readers that are directly supported by IScanners.
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Q: How do I access multiple scanners?
A: You will have to use scanner manufacturer's SDK to access the scanners, because our IScanners SDK doesn't support access to more than one scanner at a time. Once you get the image from the scanner, you can import it into our products. Most scanners produce raw or BMP images which can be used by our products directly.
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Q: Why do I have to install drivers for my sensor?
A: Sensors typically come with two pieces of software: drivers for deployment PC and SDK for application development. IScanners SDK integrates SDKs for all supported sensors, but drivers still have to be installed on the deployment PC.
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Other

Q: The SDK you have seems to be a good solution for us, but your solution is only PC based, and most of our architectures are IBM, SUN, HP based.
A: Our SDKs and Matching Servers run on x86 architectures. For some customers we can compile a specific version, for example recently we have created a version for Itanium processors for Government of Colombia.
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Q: How can I get template data from IDDemo?
A: IDDemo is not intended to be used as a product. It's intended to showcase our technology, especially the speed of our identification algorithm. We sell IDKit SDK which provides you with full access to our technology. You can subscribe for IDKit PC FREE SDK plan in our web shop at shop.innovatrics.com.
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