SECURE MODULE RECORDER SYSTEM AND METHOD

• US 20090027795A1
• Filed: 07/25/2007
• Published: 01/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sekai Electronics, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Sekai Electronics, Inc.
• Inventors: Nilsson, Mattias E., Sekine, Masakazu, Klementowski, Lawrence J., Dye, Timothy A., Yamaguchi, Toshimitsu
• Granted Patent: US 7,970,975 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 360/5
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/09 Digital recording

Abstract

Embodiments of a secure module recorder system and method for securing recording and storing of information is provided. The system may include at least one secure module and a docking station having at least one receptacle for holding one of the secure modules. The secure module may include a tamper-resistant case, an input port for receiving an analog signal, a recording circuit for converting the analog signal into digitally formatted data, a memory device for storing the digitally formatted data, a playback circuit for reading the digitally formatted data from the memory device and converting the digitally formatted data into an analog playback signal, and an output port for transmitting the analog playback signal. The docking station may further include a first interface for receiving the analog signal from an external device and a second interface disposed within the receptacle for interfacing with the input port of the secure module.

Claims

1. A secure module for storing of information, comprising:

a tamper-resistant case;

an input port for receiving an analog signal within the case;

a recording circuit disposed within the case for converting the analog signal into digitally formatted data;

a memory disposed within the case for storing the digitally formatted data;

a playback circuit disposed within the case for converting the digitally formatted data into an analog playback signal; and

an output port for transmitting the analog playback signal outside the case.

2. The secure module according to claim 1, wherein the tamper-resistant case includes a tamper evident seal.

3. The secure module according to claim 1, wherein the recording circuit includes an analog-to-digital converter.

4. The secure module according to claim 1, wherein the playback circuit includes a digit-to-analog converter.

5. The secure module according to claim 1, wherein the case is suitable for use in a harsh environment.

6. The secure module according to claim 1, further including a input/output circuit for receiving the analog signal from the input port and transmitting the playback analog signal to the output port.

7. The secure module according to claim 1, wherein the input port and the output port are included on a single input/output connector.

8. The secure module according to claim 7, further including a playback accessory for assisting the playback of the playback of the playback analog signal.

9. The secure module according to claim 8, wherein the playback accessory includes a first connector adapted to be connected to the input/output connector of the secure module.

10. The secure module according to claim 9, wherein the playback accessory further includes a second connector for connecting to a playback device.

11. The secure module according to claim 9, wherein the playback accessory further includes a second connector for connecting to a power source.

12. The secure module according to claim 8, wherein the playback accessory includes a remote control device for controlling the playback of the playback analog signal.

13. A system for securely storing information, comprising:

at least one secure module including

a tamper-resistant case,

an input port for receiving an analog signal within the case,

a recording circuit disposed within the case for converting the analog signal into digitally formatted data,

a memory device disposed within the case for storing the digitally formatted data,

a playback circuit disposed within the case for reading the digitally formatted data from the memory device and converting the digitally formatted data into an analog playback signal, and

an output port for transmitting the analog playback signal outside the case; and

a docking station having at least one receptacle for holding one of the secure modules and further including

a first interface for receiving the analog signal from an external device; and

a second interface disposed within the receptacle for interfacing with the input port of the secure module.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the tamper-resistant case includes a tamper evident seal and a rivet.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein the recording circuit includes an analog-to-digital converter.

16. The system according to claim 13, wherein the playback circuit includes a digit-to-analog converter.

17. The system according to claim 13, wherein the case is suitable for use in a harsh environment.

18. The system according to claim 13, wherein the secure module further includes a input/output circuit for receiving the analog signal from the input port and transmitting the playback analog signal to the output port.

19. The system according to claim 13, wherein the input port and the output port are included on a single input/output connector for the secure module.

20. The system according to claim 19, wherein the input/output connector for the secure module is adapted to connect with the second interface of the docking station.

21. The system according to claim 13, wherein the docking station includes an audio/video distribution module.

22. The system according to claim 13, wherein the docking station includes a secure module allocation module.

23. The system according to claim 13, wherein the docking station includes a power loss detector module.

24. The system according to claim 13, wherein the docking station includes a voltage converter and regulator module.

25. A method of securely storing and playing back information, comprising:

receiving an analog signal containing the information within a tamper-resistant module;

converting the analog signal to digitally formatted data within the module;

storing the digitally formatted data in a memory device within the module;

reading the digitally formatted data from the memory device within the module;

converting the digitally formatted data to a playback analog signal within the module; and

transmitting the playback analog signal outside the module to a display device.

26. The method according to claim 25, further including adding a time stamp to the analog signal.

27. The method according to claim 25, further including adding a time stamp to the digitally formatted data.

28. The method according to claim 25, further including adding a digital watermark to the digitally formatted data.

29. The method according to claim 25, wherein the secure module is connected to a docking station.

30. The method according to claim 29, further including disconnecting the secure module from the docking station.

31. The method according to claim 30, further including connecting the secure module to a playback accessory for playing of the playback analog signal.