Patent EA-003598-B1 (EA)
Title: Secure system using continuously-changing features of a body part as a key
Inventor: BAILEY KENNETH S
IPC: G06F21/32
Filed: 1999-12-08
Abstract: 1. A method of verifying a remote transaction, comprising: receiving information indicative of a look of a user's unique body part, said information including only part, but not all of the look of the user's body part, and the part which is received being different at a first time than it would be at a later time; comparing said information with information in its own database; and accepting a transaction only if the received information corresponds to the information in its own database. 2. A method as in claim 1 wherein said user's body part is a fingerprint. 3. A method as in claim 2 wherein said information indicates samples of said fingerprint only along certain segmented portions. 4. A method as in claim 3 wherein said segmented portions vary at different times, so that a distance between said segmented portions varies at a first time as compared with at a second time. 5. A method as in claim 4 wherein said segmented portions are formed based on random indicia. 6. A method as in claim 5 wherein said random indicia is based on a time stamp. 7. A method as in claim 1 wherein said information includes samples of a user's fingerprint, each said sample indicating an angle of the fingerprint along a specified line, locations of the specified line being variable. 8. A method as in claim 7 wherein said line is variable at a first time relative to a second time. 9. A method as in claim 8 further comprising converting said angles into a logarithm indicative of said angle, and transmitting said angle. 10. A method as in claim 2 further comprising compensating said fingerprint for an amount of tilt between a first time and a second time. 11. A method as in claim 9 further comprising compensating said fingerprint for an amount of tilt between a first time and a second time. 12. A method as in claim 11 wherein said accepting comprises determining if the angles of parts along said line have a relationship to one another which is the same as a relationship in said data base to inherently carry out tilt compensation. 13. A credit card fraud reducing system, comprising: a scanner which takes an image of a user's body part; and a processor, receiving said image, and transmitting only part, but not all of said image, said only part being a constantly-changing only part which is different at a first time than it is at a second time, said processor converting said information into numbers indicative of the information, and transmitting said information. 14. An apparatus as in claim 13 wherein said processor comprises a device which segments the image into a plurality of lines, which have constantly changing spaces there between that are different at a first time than at a second time, and determines only an image part along said line, only said image part along said line being transmitted. 15. An apparatus as in claim 14 wherein said body part is a fingerprint, and said image part along said line includes an angle of the fingerprint relative to the line, and wherein said angles are transmitted. 16. An apparatus as in claim 15 wherein said processor further comprises an element for converting said angles into a logarithm and transmitting said logarithm. 17. A method of verifying a credit card transaction, comprising: receiving a user's credit card in a first remote computer; receiving a user's fingerprint also in said first remote computer; obtaining a random number which is different at a first time than it will be at a second time; using said random number to select only part of the image of the user's fingerprint, and not all of the user's fingerprint, for transmission; obtaining only part but not all of the user's fingerprint based on said random number; converting said only part into numbers which indicate said only part, and which will be used to transmit said user's fingerprint; transmitting the credit card number, along with said only part of the user's fingerprint to a remote location for processing; in said remote location, receiving said credit card number, and obtaining an image of the user's fingerprint; receiving the only part of the user's fingerprint, and determining if said only part of the user's fingerprint matches the image of the user's fingerprint in the memory of the remote computer, said determining including compensating for tilt relative to perpendicular in the user's fingerprint, and if the user's fingerprint does not match to the image of the fingerprint in memory, then determining if a tilt-compensated version of the image matches the image in memory. 18. A method as in claim 17, wherein said converting comprises converting said only part into angles of the fingerprint where they cross-align. 19. A method as in claim 18 further comprising encrypting said system using a logarithmic encryption system. 20. A method as in claim 17, wherein said random number is obtained from a clock of the PC, at the user's end, and further comprising comparing said clock, at said remote end, with a clock at said remote end.