NCJ Number
188701
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 28 Issue: 5 Dated: May 2001 Pages: 80-85
Date Published
May 2001
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This article examines recent and proposed improvements in the automated fingerprint identification system.
Abstract
Today fingerprints can be scanned into a computer directly from livescan fingerprinting stations and palmprint scanners linked directly to the system, where they are stored in digitized form. All the images can be compressed into file sizes for quick travel over a networked system. Efforts to improve the automated fingerprint identification system (AFIS) resulted in the Scan and Retrieve (SCAR) system. This expands the AFIS case management database to include a latent case management database and, when completed, will allow for side-by-side print comparison on a desktop computer monitor. In the future, the SCAR system will be integrated with the FBI's and other agencies' AFIS networks. Networking technology will facilitate comparison of non-AFIS quality latent prints and palms with ten-prints in AFIS systems around the world. Future developments will also include the instant input of developed fingerprints from crime scenes directly into the database using handheld latent scanners. Figure