Secure device and information processing unit

• US 20050258229A1
• Filed: 09/21/2004
• Published: 11/24/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Minemura, Atsushi
• Application Number:
  US10/946,550
• Publication Number:
  US 20050258229A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0719 at least one of the integrated circuit chips comprising an arrangement for application selection, e.g. an acceleration sensor or a set of radio buttons application selection on smart cards using pure software control, see G07F7/10
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/346 Cards serving only as information carrier of service
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3576 Multiple memory zones on card
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0886 the card reader being portable for interacting with a POS or ECR in realizing a payment transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system

Abstract

The present invention provides a multi-application IC card capable of displaying a plurality of card functions internally incorporated so as to be easily comprehensible. Further, it provides an information processing unit such as a mobile terminal device to utilize card functions with the corresponding IC card held. In the invention, the IC card 10 having a plurality of card functions is configured so as to hold obverse side data to display images 21 and 22 of the obverse sides of respective cards. Using the obverse side data, it is possible to display the images 21 and 22 of the obverse sides of the cards expressing respective card functions of the IC card 10, wherein a user is able to intuitively interpret the types of card functions internally incorporated in the IC card 10 on the basis of the obverse side images 21 and 22.

Claims

1. A secure device having one or more card functions, comprising:

means for storing card information to carry out an optional card function; and

means for storing obverse side data to display an image corresponding to said card information, which is the obverse side of the card.

2. The secure device according to claim 1,

wherein said obverse side data storing means holds the surface data for displaying the surface image of a card as the obverse side data.

3. The secure device according to claim 2,

wherein said obverse side data storing means further holds reverse side data for displaying the reverse side image of a card as the obverse side data.

4. The secure device according to claim 1, further comprising:

sound data storing means for holding sound data to reproduce sounds corresponding to said card information.

5. The secure device according to claim 1, further comprising:

deformation data storing means for holding data of images corresponding to said card information, which are deformation images whose data amount is smaller than said obverse side data.

6. The secure device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising:

means for displaying the obverse side images using said obverse side data.

7. The secure device according to claim 3, further comprising:

first means for displaying the obverse side image of a card using said obverse side data; and

second means for displaying the reverse side image of a card using said reverse side data.

8. The secure device according to claim 3, further comprising:

means for displaying the obverse side image using said obverse side data;

wherein said displaying means displays the reverse side image of a card next to the image of the surface of the card, or displays the image of the surface next to the reverse side image thereof.

9. An information processing unit making access to a secure device, which holds card information to execute an optional card function and obverse side data to display the obverse side image of said card corresponding to said card information, and reading out said obverse side data, comprising:

means for displaying an image on the basis of the obverse side data read out from said secure device;

means for receiving a display instruction of the obverse side image; and

means for controlling reading-out of said obverse side data and image display of said displaying means on the basis of a display instruction received by said display instruction receiving means.

10. The information processing unit according to claim 9,

wherein said displaying means includes:

a first displaying portion for displaying an image of the surface of a card by using the surface data, which are included in said obverse side data, for displaying an image of the surface of a card; and

a second displaying portion for displaying an image of the reverse side of a card by using the reverse side data, which are included in said obverse side data, for displaying an image of the reverse side of a card.

11. The information processing unit according to claim 9,

wherein said displaying means alternately displays the surface data for displaying an image of the surface of a card, which is included in said obverse side data, and the reverse side data for displaying an image of the reverse side of the card.

12. The information processing unit according to claim 9, further comprising:

surface data processing means for processing the obverse side data read out from said secure device in accordance with an image size and display resolution power of said displaying means.

13. The information processing unit according to claim 9, further comprising:

means for reading out data of deformation images from said secure device,

wherein said displaying means displays a deformation image using said deformation data, and

wherein said obverse side data reading means reads out said obverse side data after said displaying means displays said deformation image, and said displaying means displays the obverse side image.

14. The information processing unit according to claim 9, further comprising:

means for reading out data of deformation images from said secure device; and

means for selecting display contents displayed in the information processing unit on the basis of an image size and display resolution power of said displaying means,

wherein said obverse side data reading means or said deformation data reading means reads out data from said secure device on the basis of the display content selected by said display data selecting means, and

wherein said displaying means displays an image using the data read out from said secure device.

15. The information processing unit according to claim 14,

wherein said secure device holds data of deformation images and data of sounds in addition to said obverse side data, and

wherein said display data selecting means selects display contents displayed by the information processing unit among the obverse side data, deformation image data and sound data.

16. The information processing unit according to claim 9, which reads out all the obverse side data from said secure device, holds the same in a memory area, displays an image of the obverse side in said displaying means using the obverse side data read out from said memory area, and updates the obverse side data of said memory area by the obverse side data periodically read out from said information storing unit.

17. The information processing unit according to claim 9,

wherein said display instruction receiving means detects that the information processing unit is swung, and receives the swing as a display instruction.

18. The information processing unit according to claim 9,

wherein said controlling means controls the image display of said displaying means based on the detection information of said display instruction receiving means having detected that the information processing unit is swung, and the status of the information processing unit.

19. The information processing unit according to claim 9,

wherein said controlling means controls image display of said displaying means based on a detection direction of said display instruction receiving means having detected the direction along which the information processing unit is swung.

20. The information processing unit according to claim 9,

wherein, when the display instruction receiving means does not detect a next display instruction even if a fixed period of time elapses since the obverse side image is displayed by said displaying means, said controlling means controls the information processing unit so that the information processing unit is returned to the status before displaying the obverse side data.

21. The information processing unit according to claim 9,

wherein said controlling means controls commencement of power supply to said secure device based on a detection information of said display instruction receiving means having detected that the information processing unit is swung.

22. An information processing unit incorporating a secure device that holds a plurality of card information to carry out a process in relation to an optional card and the obverse side data to display an image of the obverse side of said card corresponding to said card information, comprising:

means for reading out the obverse side data from said secure device;

means for displaying an image of the obverse side using the read-out obverse side data; and

means for controlling processes related to the obverse side data reading means, displaying means and card information.

23. The information processing unit according to claim 22,

wherein, when said secure device carries out a process regarding the card information selected by communications with a peripheral unit, said displaying means displays an image of the obverse side corresponding to said card information at the moment of time when said process is commenced.

24. The information processing unit according to claim 23, further comprising:

means for designing lock applications, which designates all the card information other than the card information corresponding to the obverse side displayed by said displaying means and instructs start and stop of a designated card information.

25. The information processing unit according to claim 24,

wherein said lock application designating means gives said secure device an instruction so that selection of a peripheral unit corresponding to the designated card information is denied only one time.

26. The information processing unit according to claim 23,

wherein said controlling means controls said displaying means so that an image of the obverse side displayed by said displaying means at the moment of time of commencing a process related to the card information of said information storing unit is continuously displayed until a fixed period of time elapses after said process is terminated.

27. A secure device having one or a plurality of card applications stored therein, comprising:

means for storing data presented to a unit in which said corresponding secure device is held,

wherein said card application registers data requested to be presented by said unit in said storing means.

28. The secure device according to claim 27,

wherein obverse side data expressing the obverse side of a card are registered in said storing means.

29. The secure device according to claim 27,

wherein sound data are registered in said storing means along with the image data expressing the obverse side of a card.

30. The secure device according to claim 27,

wherein lighting instruction data of lighting means of said unit are registered in said storing means along with the image data expressing the obverse side of a card.

31. The secure device according to claim 27,

wherein action instruction data of vibration displaying means of said unit are registered in said storing means along with the obverse side data expressing the obverse side of a card.

32. The secure device according to claim 27,

wherein said storing means includes a common interface for said card applications.

33. The secure device according to claim 32,

wherein said storing means prohibits that card applications other than the card applications access the data registered by the card application.

34. An information processing unit having a secure device, comprising:

means for receiving a display instruction;

means for reading out obverse side data registered in the storing means of said secure device;

means for displaying an image of the obverse side using said obverse side data; and

means for instructing read-out of obverse side data from the storing means of said secure device to said data reading means, transmitting said obverse side data read out by said data reading means to said displaying means and displaying an image of the obverse side when said display instruction receiving means receives a display instruction.

35. The information processing unit according to claim 34,

wherein said controlling means designates the next obverse side data to be read out in said data reading means when said display instruction receiving means receives a next display instruction within a prescribed period of time after receiving the last display instruction.