As science and science fiction continue to converge, one of the most interesting new technologies is facial recognition applications. These computer systems are designed to identify a person based on a digital image or video frame. The benefits for video surveillance systems are obvious, but just how good are these systems?The technology has indeed come a long way since its beginnings. One of the earliest known projects was done by Woody Bledsoe, Helen Chan Wolf, and Charles Bisson in the mid-1960s. With this early system, the human researchers could select a number of features from a photograph. The computer would then scan a selection of photographs and pick out the closest matches.Today, most facial recognition systems are automated, but still rely on this basic theory. A facial recognition algorithm may calculate data such as the position and size of the eyes, nose, jaw, and cheekbones before matching it against a database. Another system might normalize a database of facial images and then separate the useful distinctions.Three-dimensional face recognition is a recent technological advance. By using all three dimensions of the face’s geometry, this method has proven to be more accurate and efficient than 2D modeling, approaching the same recognition statistics as fingerprint recognition. This method is limited by the necessity of capturing 3D images. Previously, this required a range camera, which shows the distance to particular points in an image. 2010 saw the release of several 3D cameras and even camcorders from leading electronics manufacturers.Skin texture analysis is an addition to facial recognition that is said to increase recognition success by 20-25. STA can mathematically represent the unique features of a person’s skin.Several software solutions are available even at the consumer commercial level. Have you noticed Facebook recognizing you in the photos you upload and asking you to tag them? That’s just one representation of this technology in action. Sony’s Picture Motion Browser, a digital photo organizer, has a similar feature for ease in separating photos. However, Google’s Picasa, a photo organizing web site and application, may be the best recent example. Facial recognition was added in 2008 to the Picasa Web Albums web site, two years after Google acquired the recognition technology of Neven Vision.Facial recognition does work best under optimum conditions, such as in well-lit areas with a full-frontal image of the face. Any obstruction of the face, such as hair or sunglasses, may affect the system, as might an extreme facial expression. Despite these weaknesses, expect to see facial recognition systems continuing to appear in security and commercial applications near you.