Fingerprint image enhancement using weak models

Biometrics-based authentication and identification systems have to handle images acquired in noisy and hostile environments. The signal quality is assessed to decide if there is sufficient signal strength to process further. Poor quality signals require "enhancement" before further processing of the input signal. Often enhancement implies creating a more visibly pleasing image. However, biometrics signals need to improve the image quality for machine processability. This means that the enhancement algorithm should have some weak model about the sample (image) formation process. Enhancement is then some type of "normalization" or "beautification". We present a weak model-based image enhancement algorithm for fingerprint images. The results of the proposed algorithm are presented in terms of the improvements in the overall system performance measured in terms of a Receiver Operating Characteristics curve.