Abstract: A method for obtaining image information, for example, about the surface structure of the inside surface of a hand, the edge of a hand, the extended four fingers or an extended thumb with high image quality. The surface to be recorded is placed on a scanning surface and an image of this surface is recorded by means of a beam path. The scanning surface has an aspect ratio BA:HA<1. The aspect ratio of the image is changed during optical transmission from the scanning surface to the optoelectronic image converter, wherein the height is compressed in such a way and/or the width is expanded in such a way that an image which is optically distorted to the aspect ratio of BE:HE>1 reaches the reception surface of the image converter, wherein the optically distorted image is then rectified by a computational operation. An arrangement for carrying out the method is also disclosed.

Abstract: An arrangement for detecting the surface structures of fingers, palms or other parts of the skin placed on an image scanning surface, wherein the image scanning surface is formed at a scanning prism, an illumination beam path is directed to the image scanning surface in the interior of the scanning prism, and the light reflected from the latter impinges on the reception surface of an optoelectronic detection device. In an arrangement of the type described above, a part of the illumination beam path or a separate illumination beam path is directed to reference structures which are fixed in place and, from the latter, to the reception surface, wherein separate partial areas of the reception surface are reserved for the detection of the surface structures and for the detection of reference structures.