Today’s Sonavation announcement may change the way we look at fingerprint readers forever. The ultrasound biometrics technology company has discovered a way to bond 3D biometric sensors with Corning Gorilla Glass, allowing for reading fingerprints through said material.

This new implementation can effectively lower manufacturing costs and maximize space by discarding the need for home buttons, glass cut-outs or special sensors in other areas of the phone. Furthermore, this method can be used as the breakthrough technology that brings discrete fingerprint readers to wearables and IoT devices, as it maximizes the space such products usually lack.

“Consumers and enterprises are relying on mobile devices more than ever before, and our advancement provides new, more cost effective and secure options for manufacturers. Touch-under-glass also means eliminating the expensive process of cutting a hole in the glass. Those looking to deliver secure solutions can now ensure biometrics are a natural extension of the user experience and make the necessary moves towards a new frontier of authentication options.” – Karl Weintz, CEO of Sonavation

Just how well will this technology work, though. While we can’t attest to its effectiveness yet, Sonavation claims its hardware and software can read accurately identify your fingerprint’s “ridges and valleys” for user authentication. Furthermore, this 3D ultrasound biometric system is said to work efficiently “despite moisture, dirt or oil”.

Sonavation is only announcing support for Gorilla Glass for now. There’s no news on expansion just yet, but that’s no issue considering most phones sport Corning’s fortified glass. It’s might be a posibility to see the expanding in the future, as well. The only real issue we would worry about is adoption. Companies often develop great components that could revolutionize our experiences, only to find that manufacturers are not interested in adopting them.

Do you think this will take off, or is it another great idea facing its impending failure?