Adafruit
Ultra-Slim Round Fingerprint Sensor and 6-pin Cable
Secure your project with biometrics - this adorably tiny, all-in-one, optical fingerprint sensor will make adding fingerprint detection and verification supe...
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Secure your project with biometrics - this adorably tiny, all-in-one, optical fingerprint sensor will make adding fingerprint detection and verification super simple. It's extremely slim, with a plastic casing that can be glued or panel mounted into any enclosure! There are some embedded blue LEDs that light up the outer casing when the sensor is waiting for finger touches.
These modules are typically used in safes - there's a high powered DSP chip that does the image rendering, calculation, feature-finding, and searching. Connect to any microcontroller or system with TTL serial, and send packets of data to take photos, detect prints, hash, and search. You can also enroll new fingers directly - up to 80 fingerprints can be stored in the onboard FLASH memory.
It also comes with a 6-pin Molex-style 1mm pitch connector, which you can easily cut off and solder directly to the wires.
But, of course, we wouldn't leave you a manual and a "good luck!" - we've written both an Arduino library and CircuitPython library so that you can get running in under 10 minutes. The library can enroll and search so it's perfect for any project. We've also written a detailed tutorial on wiring and use of these types fingerprint sensors.
Use this pin-out to connect to your microcontroller, and then use our library to interface over UART pins. Please note this sensor uses 115200 baud rather than the 'standard' 57600 used by many other sensors, so you'll need to update the examples to 115200 baud for the sensor to respond.
- Black to GND
- Yellow to Microcontroller TX (data out from microcontroller)
- Green to Microcontroller RX (data in from microcontroller)
- Red to 3.3V VIN
- White to IRQ (can leave disconnected)
- Blue to 3.3V VCC (can leave disconnected)
Datasheets, software, wiring examples and more all in the Learning System guide
- Sensor diameter: 20.8mm
- Cable assembly length: ~100mm
Jargon buster
Plain-language definitions for the technical terms used above.
- baud
- Baud is the signalling rate of a serial connection, often used as the speed setting for UART communication. Matching the baud rate matters because both connected devices must use the same setting for readable data.
- CircuitPython
- A beginner-friendly version of Python designed to run directly on microcontroller boards. If a product supports CircuitPython, you can often program it by copying code files onto the board rather than setting up a more complex toolchain.
- DSP
- Digital signal processing means using software or hardware to analyse or modify signals such as audio, vibration, or sensor readings. A board suited to DSP is useful when a project needs fast maths for filtering, synthesis, or real-time signal analysis.
- Flash memory
- Flash memory is non-volatile memory that retains stored data even when power is removed, and can be erased and rewritten in blocks. It lets data such as firmware, settings or saved records persist across power cycles.
- GND
- GND is the ground or reference connection (0 V) for a circuit. When connecting two devices together, their grounds must be joined so both agree on what counts as a low or high signal.
- IRQ
- IRQ (interrupt request) is a signal line a device uses to alert a microcontroller that something needs attention, so the microcontroller does not have to poll continuously. Wiring an IRQ pin to a free input lets code respond promptly to events such as new data being ready.
- microcontroller
- A microcontroller is a small computer on a single chip that runs a stored program and controls connected inputs and outputs such as buttons, sensors, displays and communication interfaces. In a device built around one, it is the part that executes the code and coordinates the device's behaviour.
- RX
- RX means receive, usually showing data being received by the board. An RX indicator LED can help with troubleshooting USB or serial communication.
- TTL serial
- A simple serial data connection that uses microcontroller logic-level voltages (typically 3.3 V or 5 V) rather than the higher, inverted voltages of computer RS-232. When a device lists TTL serial, it can usually wire straight to a microcontroller's UART pins or to a USB-to-TTL serial adapter, but it needs a level converter before connecting to a true RS-232 port.
- TX
- TX means transmit, usually showing data being sent from the board. A TX indicator LED can help you see when the board is communicating or uploading code.
- UART
- UART is a simple asynchronous serial interface that sends data over separate transmit and receive wires, usually labelled TX and RX, with both ends set to the same baud rate. It is a common way for microcontrollers and other serial devices to exchange data.
- VCC
- VCC is the positive power-supply connection on a chip or module. Connecting it to the correct supply voltage is needed for the part to power on and helps avoid damaging the electronics.
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