IDEX and Infineon Ship Reference Design for Major Card Manufacturer

IDEX Biometrics has already picked up its first customer for a new reference design for biometric payment cards. The design was developed in collaboration with Infineon, and combines the latter’s SLC38BML800 security controller with IDEX’s TrustedBio fingerprint authentication solution. The two companies first started collaborating in 2018, and announced the completed reference design earlier this month.

Now IDEX is shipping the development system for the platform to a major card manufacturer. That development system includes all of the hardware and software needed to integrate the joint solution into a biometric card, with support tools that will minimize the amount of time needed to bring a new solution to market. IDEX did not disclose the identity of its customer, but indicated that it is one of the top three card manufacturers in the payments industry.

At the moment, IDEX has only made the development platform available to its customers. However, any interested parties can place orders for the TrustedBio sensor module and the Infineon security controller. The module will enter mass production in the third quarter of 2021, while the security controller will reach that point before the end of the year. IDEX, meanwhile, believes that the solution will help accelerate the development and mainstream adoption of biometric payment cards.

“The biometric smart card design enables a user transaction experience that is indistinguishable from a standard contactless transaction,” said IDEX CEO Vince Graziani. “The solution enables EMV payment transactions to be completed approximately three times faster than any other solution in the market. Also, the reference design allows for use of a fully passive interconnect for low-cost manufacturing and improved manufacturing yields.”       

The TrustedBio sensor is scheduled to appear in a new digital wallet from Chutian Dragon. That wallet is being developed for China’s Digital Currency/Electronic Payment initiative, which seeks to establish a national digital currency for the country.

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July 22, 2021 – by Eric Weiss