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Securely transporting data across a data diode for secured process control communications

  • US 10,270,745 B2
  • Filed: 10/24/2016
  • Issued: 04/23/2019
  • Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2016
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A method for securely transporting communications from a process plant to another system via a data diode, the method comprising:

  • provisioning a field gateway of the process plant and an edge gateway communicatively connected to the another system, including;

    establishing a temporary communication channel between the edge gateway and the field gateway;

    receiving a first key at the field gateway from the edge gateway via the temporary communication channel; and

    upon the reception of the first key at the field gateway, disestablishing the temporary communication channel;

    encrypting, by the field gateway using the first key, an initialization message, the initialization message including a second key that is to be utilized with subsequent messages transmitted by the field gateway to the edge gateway, and the subsequent messages including data generated by the process plant while controlling a process;

    providing, by the field gateway, the encrypted initialization message including the second key to the edge gateway via the data diode, the data diode providing unidirectional communications from the field gateway to the edge gateway and the data diode preventing communications from the edge gateway to the field gateway;

    encrypting, by the field gateway using the second key, the subsequent messages; and

    transmitting, by the field gateway, the encrypted subsequent messages to the other system via the data diode and the edge gateway.

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