Systems and methods may be used by an automatic fingerprint identification system to estimate patterns of a latent fingerprint. A latent fingerprint image, and a plurality of reference ridge flow maps may initially be obtained. Each reference ridge flow map may be associated with a particular fingerprint pattern. A latent ridge flow map for the obtained latent fingerprint image may be computed. One or more characteristics associated with the latent ridge flow map may be compared to one or more characteristics associated with each of the plurality of reference ridge flow maps. A similarity score between the latent ridge flow map and a particular reference ridge flow map may be computed for each of the plurality of reference ridge flow maps. One or more fingerprint patterns present within the latent fingerprint may then be determined and provided for output.