Locking and unlocking a mobile device using facial recognition

摘要

In an embodiment of the invention, an unlocked mobile device is configured to capture images, analyze the images to detect a user's face, and automatically lock the device in response to determining that a user's face does not appear in the images. The camera capturing and face recognition processing may be triggered by the device having detected that it has been motionless for a threshold period of time. In another embodiment, a locked mobile device is configured to capture an initial image using its camera, capture a new image in response to detecting movement of the device, determine that the device moved to a use position, capture a subsequent image in response to determining that the device moved to a use position, analyze the subsequent image to detect a user's face, and unlock the device in response to detecting the user's face. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.

主权项

1. A method for automatically unlocking a mobile device having a camera, comprising:
capturing an initial image using the camera while the device is locked; monitoring a motion state of the mobile device to determine whether the device is moving or is motionless; while the device is locked, detecting movement representative of intended movement of the device; in response to detecting the movement of the device, capturing a new image using the camera; determining that the device moved to a use position by comparing the new image with the initial image and comparing a movement pattern to movement patterns indicating that a user is likely to want to use the device; in response to determining that the device is in the use position, capturing one or more subsequent images using the camera; analyzing the one or more subsequent images to detect a user's face; and in response to detecting the user's face, unlocking the device.