Hyundai unveils fingerprint technology for vehicles

2 January 2019 Hyundai Motor Company has developed smart fingerprint technology that allows drivers to both unlock the vehicle and start it. The company plans to implement the technology on its new Santa Fe SUV model that is to be released in select market during the first quarter of 2019. It believes the vehicle will be the first to feature such technology, most commonly seen on smartphones. To unlock the vehicle, the driver needs to place a finger on the sensor located on the door handle. The encrypted fingerprint information will be identified and delivered to the fingerprint controller inside the vehicle. The driver can also easily start the vehicle by touching the ignition that is also equipped with a fingerprint scanning sensor. The technology also provides a customized driving environment. Matching information of driver preference with fingerprint data, the vehicle automatically adjusts seating positions, connected car features, and side-view mirror angles according to the driver. ′In the future, Hyundai Motor plans to further expand the application of the technology to allow the adjustment of temperature, steering wheel position, and many other features which will be tailored to driver’s preferences’ said Albert Biermann, President and Head of Research & Development Division of the Hyundai Motor Company. ′This will ultimately offer quality driving experience to each and every Hyundai customer.’ Hyundai also addressed the security issues on the smart fingerprint technology. With capacitance recognition, which detects differentials in the electricity level in various parts of the fingertip, the fingerprint technology efficiently prevents forgeries and faked fingerprints. The technology’s chance of misrecognizing other person’s finger print as the driver’s is only 1 in 50,000 making it five times more effective than conventional vehicle keys, including smart keys. Moreover, through real-time learning of fingerprints supported by ′dynamic update’ system, the fingerprint system can continually improve its success rate. Hyundai will apply the fingerprint technology in select markets and gradually expand to the other markets. Hyundai Motor also plans to continue to implement other customizable technologies to vehicle line-up, to strengthen technological leadership in the future mobility market.