Intelligent gate distributed use and device network access management on personal area network

• US 20050282522A1
• Filed: 02/22/2002
• Published: 12/22/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Valtrus Innovations Limited (f/k/a Dolya Holdco 9 Limited) (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Wang, Gary, Rubinstein, Alan
• Granted Patent: US 7,194,251 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/411
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0218 Distributed architectures, e.g. distributed firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0876 based on the identity of the terminal or configuration, e.g. MAC address, hardware or software configuration or device fingerprint
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/71 Hardware identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/00 Wireless channel access
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for managing access to a wireless personal area network in an intelligent concentrator. The method manages wireless access to a network by providing wireless communication in the network, providing firewall protection between the network and a wireless access device, receiving an identification code from the wireless access device to the network, determining whether the identification code is valid, granting network access to the wireless access device when the identification code is valid, denying network access to the wireless access device when the identification code is not valid, and issuing an alert to a network manager when the identification code is not valid. The identification code can be the unique media access code of the wireless access device or any other unique identification code previously registered with the network manager.

Claims

1. A method for managing access to a network, comprising:

providing wireless communication in a network;

providing a firewall protection between said network and a wireless access device;

submitting an identification code to said network from said wireless access device, said identification code associated with and pertaining to said wireless access device;

determining the validity of said identification code;

granting wireless network access to said wireless access device when said identification code is valid;

denying wireless network access to said wireless access device when said identification code is not valid;

issuing an alert when said identification code is not valid.

2. The method described in claim 1, wherein said providing said wireless communication is accomplished with an intelligent concentrator enabled for wireless communication.

3. The method described in claim 2, wherein said providing said wireless communication is accomplished in circuitry resident in said intelligent concentrator.

4. The method described in claim 2, wherein said identification code is the media access control number of said wireless device.

5. The method described in claim 1, wherein said determining said validity of said identification code is accomplished by reference to a list of valid identification codes.

6. The method described in claim 2, wherein said list of valid identification codes is resident in said intelligent concentrator.

7. The method described in claim 5, wherein said list of valid identification codes is resident in a server in said network.

8. The method described in claim 1, wherein said denying said wireless access to said network is accomplished simultaneously with granting access to said wireless accesses devices with valid identification codes.

9. The method described in claim 1, wherein said network is a wireless personal area network.

10. A computer network, comprising:

a server;

a wireless connection device communicatively coupled with said server;

a wireless access device enabled to wirelessly submit an identification code to said wireless connection device, said identification code associated with and pertaining to said wireless access device; and

a firewall communicatively coupled to said server and said wireless connection device, wherein said firewall is enabled to grant network access to said wireless access device when said identification code is valid and to deny access to said network by said wireless access device and issue an alert when said identification code is not valid.

11. The computer network described in claim 10, wherein said server is an internet portal.

12. The computer network described in claim 10, wherein said wireless connection device is an intelligent concentrator enabled for wireless communication.

13. The computer network described in claim 10, wherein said wireless access device is a wirelessly enabled laptop computer.

14. The computer network described in claim 10, wherein said wireless access device is a wirelessly enabled personal data assistant.

15. The computer network described in claim 10, wherein said wireless access device is a wireless telephone enabled for data communication.

16. The computer network described in claim 10, wherein said wireless access device is a wirelessly enabled computer peripheral device.

17. The computer network described in claim 12, wherein said firewall is a distributed firewall and is resident in said intelligent concentrator.

18. The computer network described in claim 17, wherein said distributed firewall is enabled to obtain a list of valid identification codes from said server.

19. The computer network described in claim 18, wherein said distributed firewall is enabled to verity the validity of said identification code submitted from a wireless access device.

20. An intelligent concentrator, comprising:

a housing;

a cable connector coupled to said housing and adapted to communicatively couple said intelligent concentrator to a network data cable;

electronic circuitry mounted in said housing enabled to wirelessly communicate with a wireless access device and a network; and

a distributed firewall resident in said electronic circuitry wherein said firewall is enabled to control the access to said network of said wireless access device, said control via an identification code associated with and pertaining to said wireless access device.

21. The intelligent concentrator described in claim 20, wherein said intelligent concentrator is enabled as a hub of a personal area network.

22. The intelligent concentrator described in claim 20, wherein said distributed firewall is enabled to obtain a list of valid identification codes from a server in said network.

23. The intelligent concentrator described in claim 20, wherein said distributed firewall is enabled to verify validity of said identification code submitted by said wireless access device.

24. The intelligent concentrator described in claim 20, wherein said distributed firewall is enabled to deny access to said wireless access device if said identification code is not valid.

25. The intelligent concentrator described in claim 20, wherein said distributed firewall is enabled to issue an alarm to a network manager is said identification code is not valid.