Lumidigm, a company specializing in multispectral imaging biometrics solutions, announced that it is offering the Venus Series multispectral imaging sensors for fingerprint readers at Free Amsterdam University (VU), one of Europe’s most prestigious colleges.

The fingerprint readers are used by approximately 8,000 students, faculty and staff to enter the school’s multiple recreation facilities spread throughout Amsterdam, company officials said. 

VU adopted the fingerprint scanning method in tandem with a major software upgrade -- migration to a TopTix SRO software platform. 

Biometric integrator EasySecure International of Rotterdam proposed the Lumidigm solution for VU.

According to Wouter Kropman, director of facilities at VU, the purpose of implementing the biometric system was to eliminate the opportunity for students to pass their cards to others. 

“The system gives us a very professional look plus, in the long run, it saves us money,” Kropman added. “Within three to five years, the biometric solution becomes a break-even with plastic cards because of their associated costs, including cartridges, printers, support and management.  Fingerprints provide a sustainable solution.”

The selection of biometric systems in governmental and semi-governmental organizations has to be done adhering to strict practices. VU interviewed four companies and found that EasySecure’s solution using Lumidigm’s multispectral imaging fingerprint sensor provided what they needed.

“This solution was more expensive but the high quality of the system, both in hardware and software, was decisive,” Kropman said.

Lumidigm solution works by using multiple wavelengths of light and advanced polarization techniques that can extract unique fingerprint characteristics from both the surface and subsurface of the skin, so it can provide results that are more consistent, more inclusive and more tamper resistant than other biometrics. This multispectral imaging also allows the reading of dirty, calloused, wet or dry fingerprints.

The fingerprint technology from Lumidigm recently received the New Product Innovation of the Year Award, Fingerprint Biometrics, North America, 2010 from Frost & Sullivan (News - Alert). According to Frost & Sullivan, Lumidigm’s “innovative technology allows Lumidigm fingerprint sensors to provide highly accurate biometric data even in adverse conditions where traditional fingerprint sensors fail.”

Recently Lumidigm also announced that i-Evo, Newcastle-based provider of fingerprint access control technology, picked Lumidigm multispectral imaging sensors "to produce a line of extremely versatile fingerprint readers that can be used both indoors and outdoors, including in harsh environments that render most biometric readers inoperable."