Apple's Multi-User Face Recognition Plans for iPad Revealed in Patent

[TennisandMusic]

This stuff has existed for quite some time in one form or another. It was talked about for Windows 8 awhile ago as well.

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/042211-windows8-facial-recognition.html

None of this stuff is new whatsoever. It's already in shipping products as noted by some here and the above article.

 

[thenerdal]

So, topical. Can anyone see any potential television applications of this technology? I hear Apple might make a tv.

Just sayin'...

It'd be cool to have something like Kinect on an Apple TV.

 

[Billy Boo Bob]

It sounds interesting... Even if it wasn't used for multiple users of the device, or not for unlocking for any given user if iOS does get multi-user features (it could eliminate a step for handicapped users switching to their user), I could see it being used by developers for things like:

• Which user is about to play a given game (In effect, log into the game as a given user).
• Which user is about to take a turn in a (local/hands on) multi-player game (switch over to show your cards in your hand, or your tiles in Scrabble, etc...).

And for log-in, as mentioned before, it could be useful for small children in effect logging in, even if you never actually leave the master/parent's account (whose email and other apps are hidden)...

A little O.T... I don't know what ever happened to the tech, but I presume it had it's own problems (seeing that it was being used on Windows systems) and died away, but I remember seeing a couple computer keyboards with a fingerprint scanner on them. I guess the idea was that it would bypass selection of user/password to log in to the machine. I doubt Apple would ever place a thumb/finger scanner like that on an iOS device, but it sure seems like it would be easier to secure than facial recognition using a built-in camera. True security for auto-login on iOS devices would cost too much, like retina scanning, but it sure sounds sexy.

 

[rstansby]

So instead of implementing this multi-user approach Apple abandoned any semblance of multi-user features. The iPad, puts the "I" into PCs.

I really wish Apple would revisit the idea of having multiple users on an iPad. As it is the built in mail, contacts,calendars are only personalized to one person, and that person might not want to give access to all of the other people who use an iPad.

 

[*LTD*]

I apologize for raining on your parade, but somebody needs to tell you that Android 4 already has face recognition for authentication built in. It's just ANOTHER feature that Apple "borrows" from Android.

And it kinda (really) sucks.

A perfect opportunity for Apple to yet again, do their own implementation, and do it right.

 

[kdarling]

Everyone has great ideas, but it's interesting that the patent only mentions multi-user in just one sentence:

"If the detected face can be matched with one of the target faces, the appliance can present the authenticated user with a personalized configuration in accordance with a profile associated with the authenticated user. "

Everything else in the application is about the low power skin tone recognition, and the example images are of an iPhone.

I guess that's all it takes to turn a patent about skin tones into being "Apple's Multi-User Face Recognition Plans for iPad"

 

[thenerdal]

And it kinda (really) sucks.

A perfect opportunity for Apple to yet again, do their own implementation, and do it right.

Guess you haven't tried the Galaxy Nexus then.

 

[D.T.]

A little O.T... I don't know what ever happened to the tech, but I presume it had it's own problems (seeing that it was being used on Windows systems) and died away, but I remember seeing a couple computer keyboards with a fingerprint scanner on them. I guess the idea was that it would bypass selection of user/password to log in to the machine. I doubt Apple would ever place a thumb/finger scanner like that on an iOS device, but it sure seems like it would be easier to secure than facial recognition using a built-in camera. True security for auto-login on iOS devices would cost too much, like retina scanning, but it sure sounds sexy.

It just never got much traction beyond some Federal use for highly secure environments and some vertical integration into things like security devices at entry points (Universal Studio uses a fingerprint scanner at the entrance). My HP Winders© machine has one ... worked OK, when I upgraded to Win7 I never got functional drivers on it.

My [since returned] Motorola Atrix had a fingerprint scanner on the on/off/sleep button, so you could swipe to unlock ... it was a little wonky, I wound up not using it (maybe with longer ownership I would've gotten good at swiping, it was kind of off angle on the top-rear).

We looked at one of the APIs to use it for a "quick validator" for some of our Federal apps, was interesting, but everything we do is web based, so there wasn't a simple way to access the interface in a "pure web" based implementation.

 

[Mobster1983]

Doesn't the iPhone 4s use an Infrared sensor to detect the proximity to the users ear, turning on and off the screen? This could fairly easily be modified to detect the contours of a persons face, enhancing the facial recognition and preventing unauthorized access with a photo.

BTW, with millions of people having photos online with Facebook and other sites, getting a photo of someone you dont even know is not that difficult today.

 

[notromeel]

Everyone has great ideas, but it's interesting that the patent only mentions multi-user in just one sentence:



Everything else in the application is about the low power skin tone recognition, and the example images are of an iPhone.

I guess that's all it takes to turn a patent about skin tones into being "Apple's Multi-User Face Recognition Plans for iPad"

Yeah, no one is really reacting to the core of the patent - I guess because the concept of multi-user facial recog is more gossip worthy.

 

[blackhand1001]

Hey Samsung, did you get that?

Already have it, its called the galaxy nexus and its made by Samsung.

 

[i.mac]

Ugh.... please no face nonsense unless you can really, really, really do it well. I really don't like this idea. Didn't like it on Droid, don't like it on iPhone.

Relax....

I'm sure that this may be an opted feature easily disabled.

If not, no worries. I'm sure there are about a hundred lawyers already planning the next sue due to 'privacy concerns'.

 

[blackhand1001]

These kind of patents shouldn't be allowed. It covers an idea and doesn't even regard how its done. Even if someone were to copy this idea, they still have to write thousands of lines of code and incorporate it into the OS. Apple is by far not the first person to think of doing this. (who honestly hasn't thought about this concept in the last 10 years) People can say what they want about android but every feature in it was written from scratch and they aren't using apple code to do so. If this software patent thing continues we are all in trouble. Just because android has multitouch doesn't mean that they didn't have to write the code for it to work. That is where all the work is. That and the company who makes digitizers on the screen (not apple). They are the one who gets the biggest credit. These type of patents are hurting the consumer more than anyone and it will reduce the amount of choice we have. Anyone who supports them is clearly blinded by a distortion field.

 

[i.mac]

Guess you haven't tried the Galaxy Nexus then.

Yes, but Sam-steal.from.apple-sung implementation is brain dead, and not cool.

 

[dokujaryu]

Guess you haven't tried the Galaxy Nexus then.

We immediately defeated the facial recognition "security" at work by taking a picture of the person with an iPhone and holding it up to the nexus.

Do you own a Galaxy Nexus? Just curious.

 

[applefan227]

For all you who think android had this face recognition first they didn't. Apple did. It say clearly in the article that they patent this idea June of 2010. Android just came out with a crapper version in October of 2011.

 

[Oletros]

For all you who think android had this face recognition first they didn't. Apple did. It say clearly in the article that they patent this idea June of 2010. Android just came out with a crapper version in October of 2011.

Ah, you know that there is no patent about that?

 

[daverobeson]

Original iPad doesn't have cameras.

Yes, the tone of my comment implied that I was totally serious so thanks for pointing out this important fact.

 

[HiRez]

Personally, I don't care if it's secure, all I want is to have my stuff be there when I'm using it, but not when someone else is. It's all family members so it's just a way to switch prefs/apps/email quickly. Should be an option even without security.

 

[DanteMann]

WOW!!! The blind loyalists are out in full force. I just love when Apple blatantly does something that has already existed and more recently has already shown up on another mobile OS *ahem* ICS, it's labelled as Apple doing it "the right way" or Apple "making it better." I think the only thing more pathetic than Apple and all its patent trolling are these lame excuses from the loyalists for Apple playing catch up with existing industry features. Lurrrrrrves It!

 

[kdarling]

Yeah, no one is really reacting to the core of the patent - I guess because the concept of multi-user facial recog is more gossip worthy.

Yes, that's definitely more interesting. Plus it's often easier to talk about made-up issues than to take the time to understand the facts

This is actually not a very useful patent in comparison to using other methods. Why waste energy on a camera and processing images, when you could just use a proximity sensor to start things up?

To me, the real importance of this application is that it speaks to the idea of always-on recognition, not just when you hit a button. Imagine if this were built into a magic bathroom mirror that recognizes you each morning.

For all you who think android had this face recognition first they didn't. Apple did. It say clearly in the article that they patent this idea June of 2010. Android just came out with a crapper version in October of 2011.

As I have pointed out a couple of times above, this patent application is about scanning for skin tones (to notice when someone is in front of the device), not about the far more basic idea of user recognition.

 

[thenerdal]

We immediately defeated the facial recognition "security" at work by taking a picture of the person with an iPhone and holding it up to the nexus.

Do you own a Galaxy Nexus? Just curious.

No, i don't own a Galaxy Nexus, but I know people who do. The facial unlock isn't meant to be a security feature, it's just meant to be something other than the slide to unlock feature.

 

[petsounds]

I wrote a facial recognition system like this for the Flash platform a couple years ago. I was detecting both skin tone as well as eye color. It worked pretty well, but the problem was the variance in light as compared to the original saved facial profile for the user. Since most webcam CCD sensors auto-adjust for light exposure levels, it made compensating for light fluctuations infeasible. I determined that this kind of system would only work as a fixed installation, in a room with a controlled light source.

Since the iPad has a camera that auto-adjusts for exposure, I wonder how Apple plans to deal with light variance. Perhaps they ran into the same problem I did.

 

[Burger Thing]

Wirelessly posted (Opera/9.80 (Android 2.3.6; Linux; Opera Mobi/ADR-1111101157; U; en) Presto/2.9.201 Version/11.50)

We immediately defeated the facial recognition "security" at work by taking a picture of the person with an iPhone and holding it up to the nexus.

Do you own a Galaxy Nexus? Just curious.

No, i don't own a Galaxy Nexus, but I know people who do. The facial unlock isn't meant to be a security feature, it's just meant to be something other than the slide to unlock feature.

Most of the Nexus reviews seem to suggest, that this feature doesn't work very well, though.

 

[divinox]

Apple "inventing" again, i see.

I actually may have thought of this before Apple. Why didn't I patent it!

Something like this would be perfect for families. My mom doesn't even use the email app (just uses Safari to login) because my little sister uses it and likes to snoop. When you press the sleep/wake, home button or open the smart cover it could activate the facial recognition. Put in your password and if it matches your face (auto substituting as username) then it configures the iPad once unlocked. Email accounts can be enabled/disabled on the fly, wallpapers switched, apps hidden, shown and reorganized according to user preference. iCloud accounts can be flipped around. But I'd expect something like this to be a bit memory intensive to achieve, so it's likely that only something like the iPad 3 or later with 1GB of ram would see this in the update. But Apple occasionally surprises. But this would be a welcome change. My wife and I share an iPad, but she feels like its not really "hers" because I have the wallpaper, iCloud, and apps organized how I want it. The bookmarks also sync from my Mac so she doesnt even have those. iCloud combined with this user account reconfiguring could be really useful. I think about it less as a security issue and more about convenience and enhanced usability.

You, Bob, Jane and everyone else. Congratulations!