OBJECT AUTHENTICATION

• US 20090125724A1
• Filed: 11/23/2008
• Published: 05/14/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia, Lapstun, Paul
• Application Number:
  US12/276,394
• Publication Number:
  US 20090125724A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/176
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/367 involving electronic purses or money safes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3674 involving authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/018 Certifying business or products
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0185 Product, service or business identity fraud
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/004 using digital security elements, e.g. information coded on a magnetic thread or strip
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/20 Manipulating the length of blocks of bits, e.g. padding or block truncation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/805 Lightweight hardware, e.g. radio-frequency identification [RFID] or sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 90/10 Information and communication technologies [ICT] supporting adaptation to climate change, e.g. for weather forecasting or climate simulation

Abstract

An apparatus for authenticating an object is disclosed. The apparatus receives from a sensing device indicating data. The indicating data is formed by the sensing device in response to sensing a plurality of coded data portions on a surface of the object. Each coded data portion encodes a position of coded data portion on the surface, an identity associated with the object and a signature fragment, the signature fragment being a fragment of a digital signature of at least part of the identity associated with the object. A processor then determines from the indicating data the identity associated with the object, a plurality of signature fragments encoded in respective coded data portions, and the position of respective coded data portions, determines a signature fragment identifier for respective signature fragments from the respective positions, determines a determined signature by arranging the plurality of signature fragments according to their respective signature fragment identifiers, decrypts the determined signature to obtain a determined identity, compares the identity to the determined identity, and then authenticates the object using the result of the comparison.

Claims

1. Apparatus for authenticating an object, the apparatus including:

means for receiving from a sensing device indicating data, the indicating data being formed by the sensing device in response to sensing a plurality of coded data portions on a surface of the object, each coded data portion encoding a position of coded data portion on the surface, an identity associated with the object and a signature fragment, the signature fragment being a fragment of a digital signature of at least part of the identity associated with the object;

means for determining from the indicating data the identity associated with the object, a plurality of signature fragments encoded in respective coded data portions, and the position of respective coded data portions;

means for determining a signature fragment identifier for respective signature fragments from the respective positions;

means for determining a determined signature by arranging the plurality of signature fragments according to their respective signature fragment identifiers;

means for decrypting the determined signature to obtain a determined identity;

means for comparing the identity to the determined identity; and

means for authenticating the object using the result of the comparison.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the signature is further a digital signature of padding, the padding being generated from the identity associated with the object, and the means for decrypting decrypts the determined signature to obtain the determined identity and a determined padding.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 further including:

means for generating authentication data indicative of success or failure of the authentication; and

means for transferring the authentication data to a user.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the digital signature is generated from at least part of the identity by encrypting at least part of the identity using a private key, and the decryption uses a public key complimentary to the private key to obtain the determined identity.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the private and public keys are stored and retrieved by indexing the keys by the identity.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the means for receiving includes one or more of:

a communications network;

the Internet;

a mobile phone network; and

,

a wireless connection.

7. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the coded data is provided substantially coincident with visible human-readable information.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the coded data is arranged in accordance with at least one layout having n-fold rotational symmetry, where n is at least two, the layout including n identical sub-layouts rotated 1/n revolutions apart about a centre of rotation, at least one sub-layout including rotation-indicating data that distinguishes that sub-layout from each other sub-layout.

9. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the coded data is arranged in accordance with at least one layout having n-fold rotational symmetry, where n is at least two, the layout encoding orientation-indicating data comprising a sequence of an integer multiple m of n symbols, where m is one or more, each encoded symbol being distributed at n locations about a centre of rotational symmetry of the layout such that decoding the symbols at each of the n orientations of the layout produces n representations of the orientation-indicating data, each representation comprising a different cyclic shift of the orientation-indicating data and being indicative of the degree of rotation of the layout.