After the summer holidays, school started as usual. However, the lunch line had shrunk because of the introduction of fingerprint-based biometrics system for lunch payment.
This technology is completely cashless. The system requires a fingerprint-based biometric reader as the hardware and cafeteria management software, which runs on the hardware and manages the process of balance enrolment, student database, blocked users, etc. This system aimed to transform the snail-paced queue into efficient cashless transactions, saving time and effort.
Post-paid and pre-paid modes
The fingerprint reader converts the scanned fingerprint of a student into an image which identifies the student the next time he/she places their finger on the device. Ensuring security, this system works in post-paid and pre-paid mode of payment.
In the post-paid mode students’ biometrics are already enrolled in the school database with a particular amount allocated to each student. Whenever a student punches in at the cafeteria, an amount is deducted from his/her account in real-time according to the order they have placed.
In the pre-paid mode, RFID cards are allocated to each student with a fixed amount stored on them. Every time a student punches in with the card, the amount of the order placed is deducted from his/her account.
Benefits of this technology
This technology has some appealing benefits. The issue of food wastage can be addressed by having students punch in at the device in the morning. Admin can also gather an idea of food consumption through reports, of user-wise consumption on a monthly or weekly basis, which can be generated from the software.
The system replaces the long queues of the previous a give-cash-take-token system, with fully cashless transactions. The problem of students losing their money will be eliminated through this practice.
The use of biometrics in cafeterias is just the tip of the iceberg; there is a growing demand for biometrics to be used in schools for attendance and access control as well.