Putting a small device, the size of a key fob, in your pocket could "authenticate" your entire body for various purposes, such as unlocking your front door, or using a firearm. Those items wouldn't work for someone else who didn't have the device on them. The company Microchip Technology announced the product called BodyCom, which is a short-range security communication system.
Edward Dias, Microchip’s security business development manager, says the company envisions a slew of potential security applications for BodyCom. With the technology in place, you could unlock your front door just by touching the doorknob; power tools and guns could be secured so that only a user with the right fob could get them to work. (The idea is similar to the RFID- or biometric-equipped “smart gun” that some lawmakers are mulling.) BodyCom could be used for pets, too: a collar-mounted fob could let a pet open the doggy door with its nose or paw, but unwanted animals wouldn’t be able to get in.
Already, Dias says, a company in Italy is using BodyCom to ensure that motorcyclists cannot zoom off bare-headed. The key fobs are incorporated into helmets, while the handlebars of the motorcycle act as the base station.
The fob doesn't yet distinguish between the legitimate user and, say, someone who has stolen the fob, but it is small and hidden, and not labeled as to its use. Still, if you forget to take it out of your pants pocket, only the washing machine will be able to open the front door. If this technology could keep my kids from using my scissors, I'm all for it. Link
(Image credit: Microchip)