Using timing signals to determine proximity between two nodes

• US 20050114647A1
• Filed: 03/11/2003
• Published: 05/26/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Epstein, Michael Abraham
• Application Number:
  US10/507,540
• Publication Number:
  US 20050114647A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/153
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/50 Testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0492 by using a location-limited connection, e.g. near-field communication or limited proximity of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A system and method facilitates a determination of proximity between nodes based on the communication time between the node. A source node communicates a query, or “ping”, to a target node. The target node is configured to automatically send a response to the sender of such a query. The communication time is determined based on the time duration between the transmission of the query and receipt of the response at the source node. The communication time is compared to a threshold value to determine whether the target node is local or remote relative to the source node.

Claims

1. A method of determining proximity of a target node to a source node, comprising:

communicating a query from the source node to the target node,

communicating a response from the target node to the source node,

receiving the response at the source node,

determining a measure of query-response time between communicating the query and receiving the response, and

determining the proximity of the target node based on the measure of query-response time.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein

determining the proximity includes comparing the query-response time to a threshold value that distinguishes between local and remote nodes.

3. The method of claim 2, further including

restricting communications with the target node based on the proximity.

4. The method of claim 1, further including

restricting communications with the target node based on the proximity.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein

communicating the query and response is effected via a TCP/IP ping network command.

6. A node on a network including:

a communication device that is configured to transmit a query to a target node and to receive a corresponding response from the target node,

the response from the target node including a measure of processing time required to generate the response at the target node, and

a processor that is configured to;

generate the query,

receive the response,

measure a query-response time between generating the query and receiving the response, and

determine a proximity of the target node relative to the node based on the query-response time.

7. The node of claim 6, wherein

the processor is configured to determine the proximity based on a comparison of the query-response time to a threshold value that distinguishes between local and remote nodes.

8. The node of claim 7, wherein

the processor is further configured to control subsequent communications with the target node based on the proximity.

9. The node of claim 6, wherein

the processor is further configured to control subsequent communications with the target node based on the proximity.

10. The node of claim 6, wherein

the processor generates the query using a TCP/IP ping network command.