Storage device and method for protecting data stored therein

• US 20070067641A1
• Filed: 06/15/2006
• Published: 03/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Egis Technology Inc.
• Original Assignee: Lightuning Tech Incorporated
• Inventors: Chou, Bruce, Chang, Jer-Wei
• Granted Patent: US 7,519,829 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/186
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/79 in semiconductor storage media, e.g. directly-addressable memories

Abstract

A storage device to be connected to a terminal host includes a control module to be connected to the host, and a biometrics sensor and a storage unit both connected to the control module. The host runs a biometrics application program (AP) to inform the control module to control the sensor to read to-be-identified biometrics data of a user and to determine whether the to-be-identified biometrics data matches with biometrics template data stored in the storage device. When the two sets of data match with each other, the host runs a host-specific-code generating program to generate and transfer a host specific code to the control module. The control module generates a device specific code using a device-specific-code generating program stored therein, determines whether the codes match with each other, and enables the host to access a data protection unit of the storage device when the codes match with each other.

Claims

1. A storage device to be connected to a terminal host, which runs a biometrics application program and a host-specific-code generating program, the storage device comprising:

a host interface to be connected to the terminal host;

a control module, which is connected to the host interface and comprises a microprocessor, a random access memory (RAM) and a read only memory (ROM), wherein the RAM serves as a working memory for data processing, and the ROM stores firmware for enabling the storage device to work and a device-specific-code generating program;

a biometrics sensor, which is connected to the control module, for sensing to-be-identified biometrics data of a user;

a data protection unit, which is connected to the control module, for storing to-be-protected data; and

a storage unit, which is connected to the control module, for storing biometrics template data, wherein;

the biometrics template data is transferred to the terminal host through the microprocessor of the control module;

the control module controls the biometrics sensor to read the to-be-identified biometrics data of the user and to transfer the to-be-identified biometrics data to the terminal host according to the biometrics application program;

the terminal host executes the biometrics application program to process and determine whether the to-be-identified biometrics data matches with the biometrics template data, executes the host-specific-code generating program to generate a host specific code when the to-be-identified biometrics data matches with the biometrics template data, and transfers the host specific code back to the microprocessor; and

the microprocessor utilizes the device-specific-code generating program to generate a device specific code, determines whether the device specific code matches with the host specific code, and enables the data protection unit to be accessed when the codes substantially match with each other, or otherwise disables the data protection unit from being accessed by the terminal host.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the data protection unit is a private block of the storage unit.

3. The device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a memory expansion slot electrically connected to the control module and to be electrically connected to an external memory to increase a memory capacity of the storage device, wherein the external memory is enable to be accessed by the terminal host when the device specific code substantially matches with the host specific code.

4. The device according to claim 3, wherein the control module formats the external memory into a single expansion private block for storing extra to-be-protected data after the external memory is inserted into the memory expansion slot.

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

a storage interface expansion slot for electrically connecting a large-capacity storage unit to the control module so as to provide a storage capacity for the storage device, wherein the large-capacity storage unit is enabled to be accessed by the terminal host when the device specific code and the host specific code substantially match with each other.

6. The device according to claim 5, wherein the large-capacity storage unit is a magnetic hard drive or an optical disk device.

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein the data protection unit is an external memory connected to the control module through a memory expansion slot.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein the control module formats the external memory into a single expansion private block for storing the to-be-protected data after the external memory is inserted into the memory expansion slot.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein the data protection unit is a large-capacity storage unit, which is connected to the control module through a storage interface expansion slot.

10. The device according to claim 9, wherein the large-capacity storage unit is further connected to the control module through an encrypting/decrypting chip for encrypting/decrypting data inputted into or outputted from the large-capacity storage unit.

11. The device according to claim 9, wherein the large-capacity storage unit is a magnetic hard drive or an optical disk device.

12. The device according to claim 1, wherein the biometrics application program and the host-specific-code generating program are stored in an application program block of the storage unit.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein the application program block is designed as an optical drive storage device to enable the terminal host connected to the storage device to automatically run the biometrics application program and the host-specific-code generating program.

14. The device according to claim 1, wherein the host-specific-code generating program and the device-specific-code generating program have the same program logic.

15. A method of protecting data stored in a storage device, the method comprising the steps of:

connecting the storage device to a terminal host;

running a biometrics application program in the terminal host;

transferring biometrics template data stored in the storage device to the terminal host;

guiding a user to use a biometrics sensor of the storage device, enabling the biometrics sensor to capture to-be-identified biometrics data of the user, and transferring the to-be-identified biometrics data to the terminal host;

utilizing the biometrics application program to process and determine whether the to-be-identified biometrics data matches with the biometrics template data, generating a host specific code using a host-specific-code generating program when the to-be-identified biometrics data substantially matches with the biometrics template data, and transferring the host specific code back to the storage device; and

generating a device specific code using a device-specific-code generating program in the storage device, and enabling a data protection unit of the storage device to be accessed by the terminal host when a microprocessor of the storage device has determined that the device specific code substantially matches with the host specific code, or otherwise disables the data protection unit from being accessed by the terminal host.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the data protection unit is an external memory connected to a control module of the storage device through a memory expansion slot, and the control module enables the data protection unit.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the control module formats the external memory into a single expansion private block for storing extra to-be-protected data after the external memory is inserted into the memory expansion slot.

18. The method according to claim 15, wherein the data protection unit is a large-capacity storage unit connected to a control module of the storage device through a storage interface expansion slot, the control module enables the data protection unit, the large-capacity storage unit is a magnetic hard drive or an optical disk device.

19. The method according to claim 15, wherein an application program block of a storage unit of the storage device is designed as an optical drive storage device for storing the biometrics application program and the host-specific-code generating program so as to enable the terminal host connected to the storage device to automatically run the biometrics application program and the host-specific-code generating program.

20. The method according to claim 15, wherein the host-specific-code generating program and the device-specific-code generating program have the same program logic.