Method and system for producing a graphical password, and a terminal device

• US 20040260955A1
• Filed: 06/18/2004
• Published: 12/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Conversant Wireless Licensing S.à.r.l. (f/k/a Core Wireless Licensing S.a.r.l.) (MOSAID Technologies Inc. (f/k/a Conversant Intellectual Property Management))
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Mantyla, Janne
• Granted Patent: US 7,376,899 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/36 by graphic or iconic representation

Abstract

In the method according to the invention, a graphical password is produced for an electronic system, such as a database, a computer program or Internet pages, the password being composed of various identifier images that are clearly distinguishable from each other. The system according to the invention can be located in a terminal device used by the user, such as a mobile phone or an object separate from the terminal device, to which the user can be connected via the terminal device. For producing the password, the electronic system includes an image archive, in which various partial images representing certain subareas of a whole identifier image have been saved in electronic form. The partial images have been divided into subgroups so that the partial images of the same subgroup always represent the same subarea of the identifier image. In this invention, the identifier images belonging to the graphical password are composed by selecting partial images from different subgroups and by combining the selected partial images into one complete identifier image. The complete identifier images are shown to the user on the display of the terminal device. The identifier images are preferably facial images of people, and the partial images are images showing different subareas of a human face.

Claims

1. A method for producing a graphical password composed of identifier images, in which method the identifier images are selected from images saved in the image archive of the electronic system and shown on the display of a terminal device connected to the system,

wherein the identifier images are created

by dividing the image archive into subgroups,

by saving partial images describing a certain subarea of the identifier image in each subgroup,

by selecting randomly partial images from the subgroups, and

by combining the selected partial images into one whole identifier image.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein one partial image is selected from each subgroup.

3. A method according to claim 1 wherein the partial images are selected only from some of the subgroups.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein the partial images are images-that represent certain subareas of the human face.

5. A method according to claim 1 wherein the partial images are images that represent human body or certain subareas thereof.

6. A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of creating a new password comprises

creating a desired number of identifier images, which form a graphical password, and

showing all the identifier images together on the display of the terminal device.

7. A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of asking the password comprises

arranging on the display a group of images, which include one identifier image belonging to the graphical password and a number of other images formed by combining from the partial images, and

asking the user to point out the identifier image belonging to the graphical password from the group of images.

8. An electronic system for producing a graphical password composed of identifier images, comprising an image archive for saving the images and a terminal device connected to the system, the terminal device having a display for presenting the identifier images and means for pointing out the identifier images, wherein the image archive is divided into subgroups, and partial images describing a certain subarea of the identifier image have been saved in the subgroups so that individual partial images selected from the subgroups can be combined into one identifier image.

9. A system according to claim 8, wherein the partial images are images representing certain subareas of a human face.

10. A system according to claim 8, wherein the partial images are images that represent a human body or subareas thereof.

11. A system according to claim 8, wherein the partial images are images that represent constructed environment and/or natural landscape.

12. A system according to claim 8, wherein the partial images are images representing flags of countries or other symbols.

13. A system according to claim 8, wherein the partial images are text files containing words with a known semantic content.

14. A system according to claim 8, wherein the partial images can be combined into an identifier image representing a face, a human body, constructed environment, natural landscape, symbols of countries or combinations thererof.

15. A system according to claim 8, wherein the terminal device is a portable terminal device, such as a mobile phone.

16. A terminal device with an electronic system for producing a graphical password composed of identifier images, the system comprising an image archive for saving the images, the terminal device having a display for presenting the identifier images and means for pointing out the identifier images, wherein the image archive is divided into subgroups, and partial images describing a certain subarea of the identifier image have been saved in the subgroups so that individual partial images selected from the subgroups can be combined into one identifier image.

17. A terminal device according to claim 16, wherein the partial images are images representing certain subareas of a human face.

18. A terminal device according to claim 16, wherein the partial images are images representing a human body or certain subareas thereof.

19. A terminal device according to claim 16, wherein the partial images are images representing constructed environment or natural landscape.

20. A terminal device according to claim 16, wherein the partial images are images representing flags or other symbols of countries.

21. A terminal device according to claim 16, wherein the partial images are text files containing words with a known semantic content.

22. A terminal device according to claim 16, which is a portable terminal device, such as a mobile phone.