New AUO LCD Panels Scan Fingerprints, Detect UV Levels

We've seen plenty of Sci-Fi movies in which the characters gain access to a computer network, for example, by simply pressing their finger against a screen. Well, it would seem that all those movies might turn real soon enough, courtesy of a new type of LCD panel developed by the researchers from AU Optronics, which will be able to do exactly the same thing.

According to a report by Takuya Otani for Nikkei Electronics (TechOn), it would seem that the Taiwanese display solutions manufacturer has developed a special type of LCD panel, which is actually capable of scanning a person's fingerprint in a matter of seconds and then transmitting it to a nearby processing unit that will be able to interpret the results.

The prototype panel, which has a diagonal size of around 2.8 inches, features optical sensors and a detection circuit, each pixel being equipped with four sensors. The display has a 320 x 240 pixel resolution, while each of the built-in sensors sports a 640 x 480 pixel resolution.

Using the same technology described above, AU Optronics has also developed an LCD screen capable of measuring the intensity of ultra-violet rays and then associating the recorded value to a numerical one in the 0 – 11 range. As the company states, this particular type of panel (or, more likely, devices that incorporate such a panel) will target women in particular, which are, typically, more concerned about the values of UV radiation outside.

As mentioned earlier, the new displays from AUO are nothing more than prototypes for the time being, which means that it will most likely be a while before we'll actually see them implemented in real-life products. But given the features they can provide, we might not have to wait for that long, after all.

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