Oak Ridge Associated Universities 2006 Annual Report

PROFILE
DHS Intern Uses the Iris for
Identification
Almost everyone has seen secret agent movies
where a person’s eyes are scanned for identity
and security clearance. Start taking notes 007,
because Cody Schoener researches that same
technology.
Selected as a DHS Scholar, Schoener interned
this summer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory
(ORNL), one of approximately 25 DHS-affiliated
facilities across the country.
Schoener studied the iris, the colored part of
the eye that controls the pupil, to create a more
efficient means for identification. He helped
create applications for iris recognition and helped
produce a graphical interface for characterizing
iris images at ORNL. As a part of his research,
he also rendered models of the human eye and
studied the relationship between the iris and
pupil dilation.
“The purpose of the research is to promote
a faster, more accurate way of identifying
and matching people to names based on iris
patterns,” Schoener said. “This will make the
United States a safer place to live and provide
the latest technology.”
A biomedical engineering student at Texas
A&M University, Schoener conducted his
DHS research under Dr. Ken Tobin in ORNL’s
Engineering Science and Technology Division.
Schoener said he believes his internship and
others like it will help to support national security.
“Using the latest technology helps us be a step
ahead of the enemy and prevent them from
harming others.”
Although Hollywood has used iris recognition in
many of its movies, Schoener said, “Researchwise,
we are just beginning to make the
technology robust and reliable.”
A native of Texas, Schoener plans to attend
graduate school and continue studying
biomedical engineering.
Of the DHS Scholarship Program itself, Schoener
said, “This program has taught me more about
myself and others in ten weeks than I have
learned in three years.”
Image Information:
Schoener, a DHS scholar and biomedical
engineering student at Texas A&M University,
spent the summer of 2006 trying to prove the
mathematical relationship of the eye—linear
(which is assumed but not proven) or polymetric.
Schoener conducted his research at ORNL, a DHS
Center of Excellence.
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