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Greene County firms collaborate on biometrics and defense

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In Greene County, two firms with complementary specialities in weapons development and biometrics, FnBiometrics and ISM Weapons Technology, have developed an informal partnership to develop applications for security and defense industries.

Biometrics goes beyond fingerprints to measure unique physical characteristics,such as palm prints, voice patterns, and retina scans, to verify identity. FnBiometrics takes the field a step further with its ability to detect unique characteristics–in this case, fingernails–even through protective gear, dust or dirt.

Eric Chornenky, founder of FnBiometrics, say his firm’s patented technology is an “intelligent” biometric that identification with intelligence capabilities. The nail-based biometrics “is connected to a receiver so that it can go through unusual conditions, like gloves or a haz-mat suit,” he explains. It has applications for security and military issues, as well as uses in Greene County’s burgeoning gas drilling and coal mining operations.

Other potential uses include financial institutions and hospitals. The firm’s new Waynesburg location is also convenient to the Moundsville, West Virginia location of the Office of Law Enforcement Technology Commercialization, which has demonstrated interest in the FnBiometrics technology.

In nearby Carmichaels, ISM Weapons Technology, a spin-off of ISM Services, a facilities management and threat assessment firm, is working with FnBiometrics to develop a biometric trigger lock. “You have to have both the trigger and the lock to make the weapon function,” says founder Bill Faddis.

Sources: Eric Chornenky, Fn Biometrics; Bill Faddis, ISM Services
Writer: Chris O’Toole

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