Global Health Medical Device Compendium/Iris recognition system

Each year, about 25 million infants in resource-limited settings do not receive necessary vaccinations. 2.4 million of those infants die from diseases that could have been prevented by proper vaccinations. The lack of child identification technology and medical records in low resource settings severely limits the ability for these areas to identify children that need to receive vaccines.

The National University of Singapore developed a biometric identification algorithm that can be loaded on to any typical cell phone. It recognizes each child's iris and stores this as identification in a database. With just a picture of the child's eye, complete identification and medical records can be accessed for the child. This device is low-cost and easy to use, and will ultimately allow for rapid determination of vaccination status and administration needs.

• Designed by: National University of Singapore, led by Lim Wee Chuan
• Manufacturer (if different):
• Manufacturer location: Singapore

Field testing was performed in Singapore in 2011.

Recipient of Grand Challenges Explorations Grant

National University of Singapore. (December 2011). Cell phone-based iris recognition system to help immunization programmes. Retrieved January 9, 2014 from here.

AlphaGalileo. (2011). NUS research team nets grand challenges explorations grant to develop low-cost cell phone-based iris recognition system. Retrieved January 9, 2014 from here.