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OSAC Lexicon

The OSAC Lexicon is a compendium of forensic science terms and definitions. This terminology tool was created to help bring consistency and understanding to the way terms are used by the various forensic science. Use of the OSAC Lexicon does not replace the need to reference the original published source.

The terms and definitions in the OSAC Lexicon come from the published literature, including documentary standards and technical reports. It is continually updated with the latest work from OSAC units, as well as terms from newly published documentary standards and standards elevated to the OSAC Registry.

Gradually terms are evaluated and harmonized by the OSAC to a single term. This process results in an OSAC Preferred Term. An OSAC Preferred Term is a term, along with its definition, that has undergone review and evaluation by the FSSB Terminology Task Group and has been approved by the FSSB. The FSSB recommends that subcommittees use OSAC Preferred Terms when drafting standards.

The OSAC Lexicon should be the primary resource for terminology and used when drafting and editing forensic science standards and other OSAC work products

Searches term, definition, and source for any of these keywords.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4

A 10-print search is conducted on a fingerprint record which is often a reproduction of all ten fingers. An automated 10-print inquiry normally requires a minutiae search of only the thumbs or index fingers. Submitted fingerprints commonly have sufficient clarity and detail to make searching of more than two fingers unnecessary. This can be performed by a computer, in a 'lights out' setting if the quality of the record is high enough. A latent print search can be utilized for searching unknown deceased records when multiple fingers are not printable or present, and/or the quality of the recording is poor. A latent print search can often be more time consuming and require additional expertise. A latent print examiner conducts an analysis of the quality and quantity of information in the print and marks the individual minutiae in the print according to each individual AFIS system's requirements. Due to the lower quality and quantity of information often found with PM fingerprints, the analysis of each impression by a latent print examiner along with the marking of the specific minutiae for AFIS searches can yield better results. The AFIS system typically returns a candidate list of possible individuals that must be manually compared by the latent print examiner to determine if there is an identification.

Date Added to Lexicon
Standard Source (Designation Number Title of Standard. Publisher, Place, Year.)
ANSI/ASB Best Practice Recommendation 007 Postmortem Impression Submission Strategy for Comprehensive Searches of Essential Automated Fingerprint Identification System Databases. AAFS Academy Standards Board (ASB), 410 North 21st Street, Colorado Springs, CO 80904, 2018. Source link

Two-dimensional
Date Added to Lexicon
Standard Source (Designation Number Title of Standard. Publisher, Place, Year.)
ANSI/ASTM E3115-17(2023) Standard Guide for Capturing Facial Images for Use with Facial Recognition Systems. ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428, 2023. Source link
Reprinted, with permission, from ASTM, copyright ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428. A copy of the complete standard may be purchased from ASTM International, https://www.astm.org

A container format used for multimedia applications. It was developed by the ThirdGeneration Partnership Project 2(3GPP2) and is similar to 3GP.

Date Added to Lexicon
Standard Source (Designation Number Title of Standard. Publisher, Place, Year.)
ANSI/NIST-ITL 1-2011 Update:2015 Data Format for the Interchange of Fingerprint, Facial & Other Biometric Information. ANSI/National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2011. Source link

A container format used for multimedia applications. It was developed by the ThirdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP). It is used on 3G mobile phones, and some 2Gand 4G phones.

Date Added to Lexicon
Standard Source (Designation Number Title of Standard. Publisher, Place, Year.)
ANSI/NIST-ITL 1-2011 Update:2015 Data Format for the Interchange of Fingerprint, Facial & Other Biometric Information. ANSI/National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2011. Source link