A prototype system known as SkullConduct selects up on the way sound waves change as they pass through a human’s skull. As we know that everyone’s skull is different, and the sound produced by a skull is also different, which means it could be also used as a form of biometric identification. Researchers at the University of Stuttgart, the University of Saarland and the Max Planck Institute for Informatics in Germany are working on a new system called SkullConduct, which is basically an authentication system that uses a bone conduction speaker and mic on the head to identify the user. Although, the team only tested the device among 10 individuals, they found that their system perfectly identified its test subjects 97 percent of the time, solely based on their skull sounds. The researchers claim that the system could be also implemented in a virtual Google Glass Style handset, so that users could use online services without having to remember a password. The prototype was tested without the presence of noise in the background, the team will also work to make it work in an everyday environment. The researchers further said that the sound [some white noise], could also be irritating to users, and may need to be replaced with a short piece of music or a jingle. The team’s work will be displayed at the Conference for Human-computer Interaction in San Jose, California next month.
