 |
|
|
Biometric Access Control
Application: Biometric Security Checkpoint at Restricted
Location
Quatech Products Used: ESE-100D
8 Port RS-232 Serial Device Server
Biometric scanning has become increasingly popular, and increasingly
inexpensive over the past few years. It is a trusted method of identification
that cannot be easily lost, stolen or illegally duplicated, as could a
security access card. Many systems, as does the one pictured above, use
a multi-pronged approach to authenticating users granted access to restricted
areas. For example, one might need to swipe an access card and enter a
pin code for a less secure area, and in the highest secured areas, a full
4-pronged identification process would be required.
In the system pictured above, Quatech's ESE-400D is used to provide the
serial connections that connect the devices that comprise the biometric
access control system. In this case, six of the eight serial ports are
used to connect the iris scanner, fingerprint scanner, card reader, pin
pad, text display screen, and the door latch. (This system provides the
flexibility of two open ports that can be used in the future to add such
security features as a Pan-Tilt-Zoom control to a monitoring camera.)
A person will swipe a card, enter a pin, scan their finger, and scan their
iris (or any combination of the 4), and that data will be transmitted
via Ethernet directly to a back office server, just as if the individual
devices were connected directly to the computer. The data is then logged
and validated, and if approved, the door mechanism is released and access
is granted.
Using a serial device server, instead of a dedicated PC with hardwired
RS-232 connections, has many advantages. For example, a large complex
with many security access points can use a single back office server to
monitor and control them all. In addition, any computer on the network--provided
it has been authorized to do so--can access any control console in the
compound. And, when attached to the device server, all components of the
system can be remotely monitored and tested so that any potential problems
can be recognized and addressed before they effect system functionality--a
particularly important feature for a high-security area.
Other Access Control Applications:
|
|
