Journal of Advances in Science and Engineering 7 (2022) 18 – 23

Journal of Advances in Science and Engineering

(JASE)
J o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : www.sciengtexopen.org/index.php/jase

Design and implementation of a fingerprint-based biometric access

control system
a b
E. Esekhaigbe , E. O. Okoduwa
a, b
Department of Electrical/Electronic Engineering, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Nigeria

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Article history: Security systems are often penetrated by sophisticated criminals, thus there is always a
Received 29 March 2022 need for new solutions to be devised to give sufficient security to houses and other
locations. The goal of this project is to build and deploy a fingerprint-based biometric
Received in revised form access control system. The fingerprint is a pattern of ridges and valleys on the surface of
17 June 2022
a fingertip. Among various biometrics, fingerprint recognition is the most extensively
Accepted 28 June 2022 and internationally accepted biometric because of its uniqueness, accuracy, cost-
Available online effectiveness, non-transferability, and ease of use. Presented is the system architecture
14 July 2022 for the system development that demonstrates component augmentation, detail
extraction, and matching methodologies. MATLAB and the programming language C
Keywords:
were used to develop a software application that was used to build algorithms for
Arduino improvement, minutiae extraction, and matching processing. The software works by
Biometric access control
extracting meaningful features known as minutiae points from the person’s fingerprint,
C-Language
Fingerprint
then records and stores these minutiae points to verify the person’s identity in the
MATLAB future. The resulting minutiae information is used to find matching fingerprints and to
Minutiae register these fingerprints in the system database. Finally, a verification system and
identification system were realized. The proposed automatic door access control system
was implemented using the Arduino Atmega 328p microcontroller. The proposed system
was tried-out in real-time, and its performance was deemed adequate.

1. Introduction available for use on the internet, the need to secure data
from hackers and unauthorized individuals becomes
The primary concern of people is security. Thus, it increasingly apparent. Passwords may assist in
befits us to proffer workable remedies and ideas to avoiding this. The problem is that users may reuse
protect our possessions and privacy. Home security and passwords across many devices. Furthermore, these
possessions may be a serious concern for individuals, passwords might be exchanged and broken by someone
businesses, or governments. Property security and with advanced technical abilities. Locksmiths
intrusion into properties have been a critical concern developed security technologies and equipment
since the start of civilization [1]. Door security controls throughout the development and fall of civilizations [5].
may now easily safeguard a facility. Unauthorized According to [6], fingerprint biometrics is
individuals are denied entry and their movements are considered to be the most trustworthy and universally
tracked [2]. One of the ways to regulate entrance to acceptable biometric recognition; because of its traits
certain areas is via locking indoors [3]. As technology of uniqueness, accuracy, non-transferable, ease of use
evolves and the world around us becomes more digital, and cost-effectiveness. Trauring [7] published the first
protecting sensitive information becomes more scientific paper on biometric recognition based on
difficult. Passwords and keys were formerly regarded fingerprint matching, the study aimed to provide a
to be sufficient for secure data transfers, and other method of decentralized automatic identity verification
reasons. However, sophisticated hacker attacks and using minutiae in finger-ridge patterns. Subsequently,
unauthorized internet users have exposed them [4]. biometric recognitions based on other traits (face,
With the advancement in technology, culminating in voice, iris, signature and hand geometry) were
the emergence of different sophisticated devices developed. Thus, it is over 58 years that the first
———
 Corresponding author
E-mail address: [email protected]
https://doi.org/10.37121/jase.v7i1.183
2636–607X /2736–0652 © 2022 the authors. Published by Sciengtex. This is an open access article under CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
 E. Esekhaigbe & E. O. Okoduwa. / Journal of Advances in Science and Engineering 7 (2022) 18 – 23 19

research publication on biometric recognition was 2.1. The Power Supply Unit
produced [8-10]. Wayman [11] concluded that a brief A 220/12V step-down transformer powers the
assessment of biometric history indicates that much of system. The secondary side of the transformer's output
what is considered to be "new" in biometrics was was rectified using a diode bridge rectifier. Filter
genuinely envisaged decades ago. There's still work to capacitors in the circuit (Fig. 2) assist filter residual AC
be done, but it's better to focus on what's new than to (ripples). The system needed a controlled 5V DC to
recycle old studies. Jain et al. [12], reviewed the state- power the various components, hence the LM7805 was
of-the-art biometric identification and identified major chosen. The voltage regulator transforms rectified 12V
challenges. Moreover, their findings highlighted the to 5V. Due to the high frequency and high current pulse
great potential for basic and applied biometric research. loads of the system, ceramic capacitors were used in
As a result, scientists and engineers were inspired to the power supply design.
explore biometrics, leading to greater interest in
2.2. Fingerprint Module Unit
developing biometric solutions for resource-
constrained devices. The fingerprint module unit stores pre-scanned
To address the drawbacks and disadvantages of fingerprints. It is retrieved at the time a user inserts his
traditional locks, smart security solutions that are easy finger on the module unit. The module's behaviour and
to use, accessible, and trustworthy have been pattern were analysed from its datasheet. To enable the
developed; aside from the use of smartcards and module, the power source must offer 5V. The pins of
biometrics [13,14]. Advancement in technology spurs the module output respectively link pins 2 and 3 of the
people to look out for sophisticated security gadgets Atmega328p. Fig. 3 shows the fingerprint module.
which are flexibly beneficial for home use. Thus, 2.3. Microcontroller Unit
researchers are attempting to build intelligent and user- An 8-bit Atmega328p microcontroller, shown in
friendly security devices for smart homes in response Fig. 4, is used in this study. The microcontroller uses
to the growing demand. Based on their intended use, Vcc, GND, TX, RX (the serial port) to operate the H-
devices are created from a variety of perspectives. bridge switch. It consists of a memory that can only be
Some security systems are concerned with unlawful read (ROM). Ports B, C, and D were employed for
entry into the house [15-17]. Some have to do with diverse reasons. In this study, the timer interrupt service
safety from fire consequent upon gas leakage [18], and approach and ADC function were employed. The signal
others covered the use of a password or biometric lock LEDs on the microcontroller were programmed using
for access to the home [19-21]. PD4-PD7, while the modules were set up using PD0
2. Methodology and PD1, the respective module's transmitter and
receiver. PC1, PC2, PC3, and PC4 were the trigger pins
System components include the following units: for the H-bridge motor, and PB0 through PB5 were the
power supply, fingerprint module, LCD, H-bridge LCD pins. Pin UT1 of the ADC keypad was connected
motor, microcontroller, as well as control buttons, to PC0 through down resistors, and the CPU was linked
buzzer and signal LEDs. The supply unit powers the to the emergency and setting buttons.
microcontroller, the fingerprint module and the LCD
with a controlled 5V. Additionally, it provides the same
voltage to the motor unit. The microcontroller unit acts Fingerprint
Power DC Motor
module
as the system’s nerve centre, directing the operations of Supply Atmega3
the other elements. When a fingerprint picture is Unit 28p
Signal, LEDs
identified by the fingerprint module, it is routed via the LCD
Buzzer Unit
system’s database where it is compared with previously
recorded image scans. Upon recognition, the micro- Control
Keypad
controller permits the H-bridge motor to regulate the
automated sliding door opening. The functional block Fig. 1 Functional block diagram of the proposed system.
diagram of the proposed system is shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 2 Power supply unit.

 E. Esekhaigbe & E. O. Okoduwa. / Journal of Advances in Science and Engineering 7 (2022) 18 – 23
20

2.5. LCD Unit

The supply unit provides 5V to the liquid crystal
display. It shows pre-programmed instructions and data
from the system CPU to the user to improve the
system's user interface. The LCD pins are linked to
microcontroller port B. The power LED "D1" is
powered by the power supply and shows that the system
Fig. 3 Fingerprint module unit.
is turned on. D5" LED signifies that the system is in
"normal mode," while the "D2" LED indicates that a
user has been authorized to gain access. The two LEDs
are controlled by the main CPU.
2.6. The Flow Chart Analysis
Regarding the flowchart diagram in Fig. 5, when the
system is turned "ON," it takes 5 seconds to configure
all hardware, including the control buttons, fingerprint
module, and microcontroller, while the LCDs indicate
the system's status. It determines if the administrator
button has been touched and asks the user to input
control buttons. If no card is inserted, the regular mode
Fig. 4 The microcontroller unit. is entered. If an administrator has not yet been
established, the device scans your fingerprint to
When the emergency button is hit, the micro- generate one and thereafter asks the user to push the
controller opens the automated door whenever a reset button. If there is already an administrator, the
fingerprint is scanned, regardless of whether or not the admin menu is accessed by scanning for the
fingerprints are authorized. The settings button grants administrator's fingerprint, if accessible. If not
the chosen officer access to user control or admin mode. accessible, "fingerprint not found" is shown. Using the
The user may alter the administrator's fingerprint and control buttons, the admin menu provides choices to (1)
add or delete fingerprints from the system's database. add the user, (2) delete the user, (3) change admin, (4)
PC4 encodes the escape button into the microcontroller empty the database, and (5) leave the menu.
so that the door may be opened from the inside. To The door opens, shuts, and decrements the count if
satisfy system requirements and avoid component the button is pressed from the inside when the door is
damage, resistors were employed to lessen the initialised during normal mode operation. From the
sensitivity to fluctuations in Vcc voltage. Connecting outside, where the fingerprint sensor is located, the
the reset, enter, exit, and emergency buttons to Vcc will LCDs the instruction "To enter, put your finger on the
restart the system. fingerprint scanner”. If a person is favourably
2.4. The Motor H-Bridge Driver Unit scrutinised, access is granted while the count is
This unit controls the sliding door's motion using H- incremented before shutting straightaway. On the
bridge switches and an electric motor. The supply unit condition that it is not in agreement with any in the
furnishes the motor (a DC motor that may be operated database, the person is prompted to retry.
in either direction) with 5V. The microcontroller 3. Results and Discussion
controls this machine by simply switching the power
polarity and applying a low-level logic input signal. Shown in Table 1 are designed values and selected
The microprocessor changes the polarity of the motor values of the components that were used in the study.
to regulate its direction. To move the motor forward, The components were connected and soldered.
switch TR1 and TR4 must be activated. Logic 1 Thereafter, the design circuit was tested and found to
activates BC557 to convey a voltage signal into M1 work as shown in Figs. 6 and 7 while the front view of
while logic 0 triggers TR4. The 1N4004 grounds M2, the designed system is shown in Fig. 8.
leading the motor to be driven forward by the H-Bridge 3.1. System Performance
as depicted. To reverse the direction of the motor Following the successful implementation of the
switches TR3 and TR2 are closed. The microcontroller design, its performance was tested. This was done to
applies logic 1 to TR3 and logic 0 to TR2 to complete validate the operating performance of the system
the circuit and move the motor in the opposite direction. developed. The results are depicted in Table 2.
The resistors were added to modify the system's
sensitivity.
 E. Esekhaigbe & E. O. Okoduwa. / Journal of Advances in Science and Engineering 7 (2022) 18 – 23 21

Start

Initialise all
hardware

If Keypad is Y If admin switch Y Y

If Already Admin Enter admin mode
entered pressed

N N N
Create admin
Enter normal mode

Y Y Y
Door remains If emergency If outside switch If user Door Door
Initialize door
open switch is pressed is pressed recognised Opens Close

N N
N
Door Closed Finger
Door remains
print
closed
Door Unknown
If inside button
opens(decre
is pressed Y ment count)

N
Door remains
closed

End

Fig. 5 The flow chart of proposed system functionality.

Table 1: Parameters of the Designed System

Components Designed Values Selected Values
R1 33.94Ω 34Ω
R2 4kΩ 4kΩ
R3 9.8kΩ 10kΩ
R4 10.3kΩ 10kΩ
R5 3.2kΩ 3kΩ
R6 1.1kΩ 1kΩ
C1 1000.05µF 1000µF
C2 2200µF 2000µF
C3 2200µF 2000µF
C4 2200µF 2000µF
C5 470µF 470µF
Fig. 7 Components mounted in casing.
C6 1nF 1nF

Fig. 6 A prototype of system design on a breadboard. Fig. 8 Front view of the designed system.
 E. Esekhaigbe & E. O. Okoduwa. / Journal of Advances in Science and Engineering 7 (2022) 18 – 23
22

Table 2. System performance.

Parameters Theoretical Values Measured Values Variation (%)
AC Mains (Vac) 220V 200V 9.1
Transformer Output 12V 11.3V 5.8
Rectifier Output 12V 11.5V 4.2
Voltage Regulator 5V 5V 0
Scanning Rate 2 2 0

.
It was observed that: intelligence methods to expedite as well as simplify the
(a) Access to the restricted area was only granted to identification of individuals utilizing facial recognition
persons whose fingerprint minutiae have been technology and a database of well-known thieves. The
extracted, recorded and stored. scope of this effort in the future is exceedingly
(b) When access is granted, the door remains opened expansive.
for 4secs and thereafter closes; to prevent
Conflict of Interests
unauthorised users.
(c) Alarm is activated if an unauthorised user is The authors declare that there is no conflict of
attempting to forcefully gain access. interests regarding the publication of this paper.
3.2. Discussion ORCID
The measured voltage of the power supply unit was E. Esekhaigbe https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5082-4169
5.45V and it was approximately equivalent to the E. O. Okoduwa https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5899-4720
voltage needed for the components to operate. The
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