Authentication card and wireless authentication system performing mutual authentication by means of the authentication card

• US 20060003739A1
• Filed: 09/13/2005
• Published: 01/05/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ryujin Fujinomaki
• Original Assignee: Kenichi Miyamoto, Toyoki Sasakura
• Inventors: Miyamoto, Kenichi, Sasakura, Toyoki
• Granted Patent: US 7,555,286 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/411
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/35 communicating wirelessly
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/445 by mutual authentication, e.g. between devices or programs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/88 Detecting or preventing theft or loss
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2143 Clearing memory, e.g. to prevent the data from being stolen
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0022 arrangements or provisious for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device "transfer between computer elements G06F13/00 "; data-transmission H04L
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/10 at least one kind of marking being used for authentication, e.g. of credit or identity cards verification of coded identity or credit cards in mechanisms actuated by them G07F7/12
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1427 with transmitter-receiver for distance detection
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0213 System disabling if a separation threshold is exceeded disabling electrical appliances in case of unplugging G08B13/1409
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0853 using an additional device, e.g. smartcard, SIM or a different communication terminal cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving additional secure or trusted devices H04L9/3234
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0869 for achieving mutual authentication cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for mutual authentication H04L9/3273
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/675 the user being required to insert a coded card, e.g. a smart card carrying an integrated circuit chip
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

The present invention provides an authentication card inserted to a portable device. The authentication card 1 is inserted (installed) in a cellular phone 30 and the authentication card 2 is inserted (installed) in a PDA 40. The authentication card 1 comprises an identification code transmission unit 10 and the authentication card 2 comprises a usage restriction cancellation unit 20. The units 10 and 20 exchange the identification code by means of wireless signal and mutually authenticate the identification code mutually. In case that the PDA 40 is moved more than the predetermined distance from the cellular phone 30 and the reception level of signal from the unit 10 received by the unit 20 is smaller than the predetermined value, or the unit 20 can not authenticate the identification code of the unit 10, the unit 20 stops transmission of the usage restriction cancellation signal to the PDA 40.

Claims

1. An authentication card that is installed in a portable apparatus that is carried by an owner and which performs wireless authentication for a device authentication card that is installed in another device, comprising:

a storage portion for storing data of a call signal, an identification code of the authentication card, and an identification code of the device authentication card;

a transmission portion that transmits the call signal that is stored in the storage portion or the call signal and the identification code of the authentication card stored in the storage portion by means of a wireless signal of a predetermined transmission level;

a reception portion for receiving the identification code of the device authentication card transmitted by means of a wireless signal from the device authentication card in response to the transmission of the transmission portion;

a judgment portion for judging whether the reception level of the identification code received by the reception portion is equal to or more than a predetermined value and for judging whether the identification code received by the reception portion and the identification code of the device authentication card stored in the storage portion match; and

a warning portion that outputs a warning signal to the portable apparatus when, as a result of the judgment by the judgment portion, the reception level of the identification code received by the reception portion is smaller than the predetermined value or the identification code received by the reception portion and the identification code of the device authentication card stored in the storage portion do not match.

2. The authentication card according to claim 1, wherein the transmission portion transmits only the call signal stored in the storage portion;

and

the authentication card further comprises;

an identification code transmission portion that transmits the identification code of the authentication card stored in the storage portion by means of a wireless signal of a predetermined transmission level when the judgment portion judges that the reception level of the identification code received by the reception portion is equal to or more than the predetermined value and the identification code received by the reception portion and the identification code of the device authentication card stored in the storage portion match.

3. The authentication card according to claim 1, wherein the call signal is an M sequence signal or a binary pseudo-random signal containing a C/A code, P code or a linear FM signal.

4. The authentication card according to claim 1, further comprising:

a connection portion that forms an electrical connection with the portable apparatus as a result of being installed in the portable apparatus, renders the level of a predetermined signal of the portable apparatus a first level by forming the electrical connection and renders the level of the predetermined signal a second level as a result of being removed from the portable apparatus and the electrical connection being broken,

wherein the portable apparatus is in an unusable state as a result of the level of the predetermined signal being the second level.

5. The authentication card according to claim 4, wherein, for the unusable state of the portable apparatus, the portable apparatus turns off the supply of power from the power supply of the portable apparatus to the constituent elements of the portable apparatus to be in a state where inputs to the portable apparatus are not accepted or erases the content of the memory of the portable apparatus.

6. The authentication card according to claim 1, wherein the authentication card is a memory stick, SD memory card, or multimedia card.

7. An authentication card that is installed in devices including information devices, home electronic locks, and automobile electronic locks and which performs wireless authentication for a portable authentication card that is installed in a portable apparatus that is carried by an owner, comprising:

a storage portion for storing data of a call signal, an identification code of the authentication card, and an identification code of the portable authentication card;

a reception portion for receiving a wireless signal from the portable authentication card;

a first judgment portion for performing a first judgment to judge whether the reception portion receives a wireless signal within a predetermined time, a second judgment to judge whether, when the reception portion receives a wireless signal within the predetermined time, a signal matching the call signal stored in the storage portion is contained in the wireless signal, and a third judgment to judge whether the reception level of the wireless signal is equal to or more than a predetermined level; and

a signal output portion for outputting, to the device, a signal to put the device in an unusable state when at least one of the first to third judgments is not established as a result of the judgment by the first judgment portion.

8. The authentication card according to claim 7, wherein, when the wireless signal received by the reception portion contains only the call signal, the third judgment by the first judgment portion is whether the reception level of the call signal is equal to or more than the predetermined level and, when the wireless signal received by the reception portion contains the call signal and the identification code of the portable authentication card, the third judgment by the first judgment portion is whether the reception level of the identification code of the portable authentication card contained in the wireless signal is equal to or more than the predetermined level.

9. The authentication card according to claim 7, further comprising:

a transmission portion that transmits the call signal and the identification code of the authentication card stored in the storage portion by means of a wireless signal of a predetermined level when all the judgments by the judgment portion are established.

10. The authentication card according to claim 9, further comprising:

an identification code reception portion for receiving the identification code of the portable authentication card transmitted by the portable authentication card in response to the transmission by the transmission portion; and

a second judgment portion that judges whether the identification code received by the identification code reception portion and the identification code of the portable authentication card stored in the storage portion match and judges whether the reception level of the identification code is equal to or more than a predetermined level,

wherein the signal output portion outputs a signal for putting the device in an unusable state to the device when at least one of the two judgments is not established as a result of the judgment by the second judgment portion.

11. The authentication card according to claim 7, wherein the call signal is an M sequence signal or a binary pseudo-random signal containing a C/A code, P code or a linear FM signal.

12. The authentication card according to claim 7, further comprising:

a connection portion that forms an electrical connection with the device as a result of being installed in the device, renders the level of a predetermined signal of the device a first level by forming the electrical connection and renders the level of the predetermined signal a second level as a result of being removed from the device and the electrical connection being broken,

wherein the device is put in an unusable state by the device as a result of the level of the predetermined signal being the second level.

13. The authentication card according to claim 7, wherein the unusable states of the device include states where the content of the memory of the apparatus is erased, the supply of power from the power supply of the device to the constituent elements of the device is turned off, or inputs to the device are not accepted.

14. The authentication card according to claim 7, wherein the authentication card is a memory stick, SD memory card, or multimedia card.

15. A wireless authentication system comprising a first authentication card that is installed in a portable apparatus carried by an owner and a second authentication card that is installed in another device and in which the first and second authentication cards perform mutual authentication, wherein the first authentication card comprises:

a first storage portion for storing data of a call signal, a first identification code of the first authentication card and a second identification code of the second authentication card;

a first transmission portion for transmitting the call signal stored in the first storage portion or the call signal and first identification code stored in the storage portion by means of a wireless signal of a predetermined transmission level;

a first reception portion for receiving the identification code of the second authentication card transmitted by means of a wireless signal from the second authentication card in response to the transmission of the first transmission portion;

a first judgment portion for judging whether the reception level of the identification code received by the first reception portion is equal to or more than a predetermined value and for judging whether the identification code received by the first reception portion and the second identification code stored in the storage portion match; and

a warning portion for outputting a warning signal to the portable apparatus when, as a result of the judgment by the first judgment portion, the reception level of the identification code received by the first reception portion is smaller than the predetermined value or the identification code received by the first reception portion and the second identification code stored in the storage portion do not match,

wherein the second authentication card comprises;

a second storage portion for storing call signal data, the second identification code of the second authentication card, and the first identification code of the first authentication card;

a second reception portion for receiving a wireless signal from the first authentication card;

a second judgment portion for performing a first judgment to judge whether the second reception portion receives a wireless signal within a predetermined time, a second judgment to judge whether, when the second reception portion receives a wireless signal within the predetermined time, a signal matching the call signal stored in the second storage portion is contained in the wireless signal, and a third judgment to judge whether the reception level of the wireless signal is equal to or more than a predetermined level; and

a signal output portion for outputting, to the device, a signal to put the device in an unusable state when at least one of the first to third judgments is not established as a result of the judgment by the second judgment portion.