Method for Implementing Grouping Devices and Interacting Among Grouped Devices

• US 20070223398A1
• Filed: 01/21/2005
• Published: 09/27/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo (Beijing) Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo (Beijing) Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Liu, Yang, Luo, Yujin, Guo, Mingliang
• Granted Patent: US 7,987,360 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/062 applying encryption of the keys cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key distribution using key encryption key H04L9/0822
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0807 using tickets, e.g. Kerberos cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using tickets or tokens H04L9/3213
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1046 Joining mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/50 Secure pairing of devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/186 Processing of subscriber group data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

The present invention discloses a method for implementing device grouping and interactions between grouped devices. In a network, a device creating a device group sends an advertisement message carrying identification information of a device group to which it belongs, to the network. After receiving the advertisement message, a network device which wants to join in the corresponding device group joins in the device group identified by the corresponding advertisement message. When two network devices interact with each other, the method further comprises: sending by an initiating device, an access request to an accessed device; judging by the device receiving the access request, whether the device sending the request is a trusted device thereof or not, if so, interacting by both parties with each other; otherwise, denying the access request, or determining a common trusted third party together with the initiating device; acquiring by the initiating device, key information of the accessed device from the common trusted third party, and interacting with the accessed device by using the acquired key information. The method can support one and the same device to join in deferent groups while facilitating the device management, and can achieve secure authentication based communication interactions between any devices.

Claims

1. A method for implementing device grouping and interactions between grouped devices, wherein in a network, a device creating a device group sends an advertisement message carrying identification information of a device group to which it belongs, to the network;

and after receiving the advertisement message, a network device which wants to join in the corresponding device group joins in the device group identified by the corresponding advertisement message, when two network devices interact with each other, the method further comprising;

sending by an initiating device, an access request to an accessed device;

judging by the device receiving the access request, whether the device sending the request is a trusted device thereof or not, if so, interacting by both parties with each other;

otherwise, denying the access request, or determining a common trusted third party together with the initiating device;

acquiring by the initiating device, key information of the accessed device from the common trusted third party, and interacting with the accessed device by using the acquired key information.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said device group is a peer-to-peer device group, and joining in the device group identified by the advertisement message comprises:

adding by the network device requesting to join in the device group, the device group identification carried by the advertisement message into its own device group identification.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said device group is a master-slave device group, and joining in the device group identified by the advertisement message comprises:

sending by the network device requesting to join in the device group, a join-in request to a master device in the device group to be joined in;

determining by the master device, based on preset information, whether the device initiating the current request is allowed to join in, and returning a response message carrying an authorization result to the device initiating the current request.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein if the authorization result in the response message is “

deny to join-in”

, then the message further carries information on deny reasons.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein said accessed device belongs to a mater-slave device group, and determining by the initiating device and the accessed device, a common trusted third party comprises:

judging by the initiating device, whether it belongs to one and the same master-slave device group as the accessed device, if so, using a master device as the common trusted third party;

otherwise, joining by the initiating device, as a slave device, in a master-slave device group to which the accessed device belongs, and then using a master device of the master-slave device group in which it joins as the common trusted third party.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein said initiating device belongs to a master-slave device group, said accessed device belongs to a peer-to-peer device group, and determining by the initiating device and the accessed device, a common trusted third party comprises:

joining by the accessed device, as a slave device, in a master-slave device group to which the initiating device belongs, and then using a master device of the master-slave device group in which it joins as the common trusted third party.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, wherein prior to joining by the initiating device or the accessed device in the new master-slave device group, it further comprises:

acquiring by the initiating device or the accessed device, description information of the opposite device from the opposite device.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein said initiating device and accessed device both belong to a peer-to-peer device group, and determining by the initiating device and the accessed device, a common trusted third party comprises:

informing by the initiating device, all trusted third parties thereof to the accessed device;

judging by the accessed device, whether there are any same trusted third parties as its own in all the trusted third parties of the initiating device;

if so, selecting one of the same ones as the common trusted third party.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

after acquiring the key information of the accessed device, sending by the initiating device, the key information to the accessed device.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the initiating device acquires both an encryption key encrypted by a key shared between the common trusted third patty and the initiating device and an encryption key encrypted by a key shared between the common trusted third party and the accessed device, and then sends the encryption key encrypted by the key shared between the common trusted third party and the accessed device to the accessed device.

11. The method according to claim 6, wherein prior to joining by the initiating device or the accessed device in the new master-slave device group, it further comprises:

acquiring by the initiating device or the accessed device, description information of the opposite device from the opposite device.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein the initiating device acquires both an encryption key encrypted by a key shared between the common trusted third patty and the initiating device and an encryption key encrypted by a key shared between the common trusted third party and the accessed device, and then sends the encryption key encrypted by the key shared between the common trusted third party and the accessed device to the accessed device.