SECURE AUTHENTICATION

• US 20090096580A1
• Filed: 10/11/2007
• Published: 04/16/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/11/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Paananen, Heikki
• Application Number:
  US11/870,864
• Publication Number:
  US 20090096580A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/35 communicating wirelessly
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13095 PIN / Access code, authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications

Abstract

A system for automatic identification and/or authentication through a multi-tag communication system. The system may include a plurality of tags which may include devices such as wireless transponders and/or emulated tag devices. Each of the plurality of tags may transmit a portion of identification and/or authentication information to a reader. Each tag alone may transmit insufficient information to identify and/or authenticate a user. The plurality of tags may transmit their respective information in a synchronized fashion to the reader, which may read and process the information to determine whether to grant a user access to a particular secure system or area.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

transmitting a synchronization sequence from a reader to a plurality of tags;

receiving a data signal in the reader from each of the plurality of tags in accordance with the synchronization sequence; and

interpreting the combined data signals in the reader as identification information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the received data signal is a load modulated signal.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the tags is emulated by at least one of software or hardware embedded in, or coupled, to the reader device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data signal from each of the plurality of tags is masked before transmitting.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the synchronized transmission of masked content yields the originally unmasked content information when read by the reader.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the collective transmission of data signals from the plurality of tags yields complete identification information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said synchronization sequence is transmitted as a portion of a wireless interrogation signal.

8. A method, comprising:

transmitting a signal from a reader to a plurality of tags, the signal triggering a tag to transmit a synchronization sequence to at least one secondary tag;

receiving a data signal in the reader from each of the plurality of tags in accordance with the synchronization sequence; and

interpreting the combined data signals in the reader as identification information.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the data signal from each of the plurality of transponders is masked before transmitting.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the synchronized transmission of the masked content yields the originally unmasked content information when read by the reader.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the collective transmission of data signals from the plurality of tags yields complete identification information.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein said synchronization sequence is transmitted in response to a wireless interrogation signal.

13. A system, comprising:

a plurality of tags configured to transmit data signals according to a synchronization sequence, and

a reader in communication with the plurality of tags configured for reading the synchronized transmission of data signals and interpreting the data signals as identification information.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a data processing system in communication with the reader, configured for processing the identification information received by the reader from the plurality of tags.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the reader is configured for collectively reading the data signals sent by the plurality of tags as identification information.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein at least one of the tags is emulated by at least one of software or hardware embedded in, or coupled, to the reader.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the reader is configured for transmitting the synchronization sequence.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein one of the plurality of tags is configured for transmitting the synchronization sequence.

19. A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied in said medium, comprising:

a computer readable program code configured to transmit a synchronization sequence from a reader to a plurality of tags;

a computer readable program code configured to receive a data signal in the reader from each of the plurality of tags in accordance with the synchronization sequence; and

a computer readable program code configured to interpret the combined data signals in the reader as identification information.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein at least one of the tags is emulated by at least one of software or hardware embedded in, or coupled, to the reader device.

21. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein the data signal from each of the plurality of tags is masked before transmitting.

22. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein said synchronization sequence is transmitted as a portion of a wireless interrogation signal.

23. An apparatus comprising:

at least one reader; and

a processor coupled to the reader, the processor further configured to;

transmit a synchronization sequence from the reader to a plurality of tags;

receive a data signal in the reader from each of the plurality of tags in accordance with the synchronization sequence; and

interpret the combined data signals in the reader as identification information.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein at least one of the tags is emulated by at least one of software or hardware embedded in, or coupled, to the reader device.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein said synchronization sequence is transmitted as a portion of a wireless interrogation signal.