A Japanese electronics company is preparing to launch a system that transmits data through the surface of the skin. NTT Electronics believes the system will be of particular use for in-office security systems.

Security systems that use integrated circuit identity cards currently require the individual to hold the card up to a reader. NTT’s system, the manufacturer claims, transmits identification data through electric fields on the surface of the body, meaning that the individual need only have the card about their person while touching the reader with their hand.

The company has “developed technologies to send alternating-current electric signals through electric fields on the human skin, ensuring stable and highly sensitive signal reception without reducing efficiency,” it said in a press release.

The system will be on sale in Japan in the spring.

Look out for a feature on the diversity of biometrics in the February issue of Information Age.

Further reading

The truth about biometrics The adoption of biometrics is at a tipping point after decades of failed trials and mistrust

One touch commerce Banks and retailers are throwing their weight behind contactless payments systems, giving rise to the e-wallet

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