Fiddling with annoying plastic hotel-room keys after a tiring journey could soon be a thing of the past. Imagine, instead, the door to your place of rest opening in the blink of an eye.
Three words: iris identification technology (IIT). Among its pioneers is the ultra-hip Nine Zero Hotel in Boston, the first hotel to use the system as a substitute for keys.
The system works by using a specially designed camera to take a digital picture of the iris, the coloured part of the eye.
Each iris is unique and has more measurable characteristics than a fingerprint does. This image is then converted into a code which is stored on a computer and, voila, your eye now doubles as a room key.
The advancement is about more than just convenience.
IIT is already used for security purposes by several airports, including Amsterdam Schiphol and JFK in New York. At the Nine Zero it was the high-profile nature of its guests - such as Bill Clinton, Christina Aguilera and Jerry Seinfeld - that prompted the hotel to invest in what general manager Jim Horsman describes as "James Bond-like technology". First introduced for the penthouse suite, the system was rolled out across the hotel last year.
Civil-liberties campaigners may argue the technology smacks of Big Brother. And have you seen Minority Report?
Things didn't work out too well forTom Cruise.
But just think: no more time wasted searching formissing keys orweary treks down to reception for replacements.
Just perfect.
(c) 2005 Newsquest Media Group Source: Financial Times Information Limited - Europe Intelligence Wire
