Method for pairing and authenticating one or more medical devices and one or more remote electronic devices

• US 20100115279A1
• Filed: 12/07/2009
• Published: 05/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Roche Diabetes Care Inc. (Roche Holding AG)
• Original Assignee: Roche Diagnostics International AG (Roche Holding AG)
• Inventors: Frey, Christian, Frikart, Philippe, Ehrsam, Matthias, Frikart, Marcel, Jungen, Markus, Strickland, Raymond, Oberli, Markus
• Granted Patent: US 8,533,475 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/171
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/061 for key exchange, e.g. in peer-to-peer networks cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key agreement H04L9/0838
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0869 for achieving mutual authentication cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for mutual authentication H04L9/3273
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/50 Secure pairing of devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

A method for authenticating a medical device and a remote electronic device may include generating a PIN code by one device, capturing the generated PIN code with the other device, checking authentication of the PIN code, which is based at least in part on the captured PIN code, by the one device, generating a strong key by the one device, sending the strong key encrypted to the other device, checking authentication of the sent strong key by the one device, and upon successful authentication, storing the strong key in a memory of the one device and the other device. The roles of the medical device and the remote electronic device may be reversed in the authenticating method. The authenticating method may be preceded by a pairing process and/or followed by a binding process.

Claims

1. A method for authenticating a medical device and a remote electronic device that are placed in communication range relative to each other, the method comprising:

generating at least a portion of a PIN code by one of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

capturing the at least a portion of the generated PIN code with the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

checking authentication of the PIN code, which is based at least in part on the captured at least a portion of the generated PIN code, by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

generating at least one strong key by one of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

sending the at least one strong key encrypted to the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

checking authentication of the sent at least one strong key by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device; and

upon successful authentication of the PIN code and the at least one strong key, storing the at least one strong key in a memory of the medical device and in a memory of the remote electronic device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein generating at least a portion of a PIN code comprises generating a complete PIN code by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device,

and wherein capturing the at least a portion of the generated PIN code comprises capturing the complete PIN code with the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device,

and wherein checking authentication of the PIN code comprises checking authentication of the captured complete PIN code by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising,

generating at least another portion of the PIN code by the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

and

forming by the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device a complete PIN code based on the at least a portion of the PIN code and the at least another portion of the PIN code,

wherein checking authentication of the PIN code comprises checking authentication of the complete PIN code by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein capturing the at least a portion of the generated PIN code comprises,

displaying the at least a portion of the generated PIN code by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

and

instructing via a display of the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device manual input of the at least a portion of the generated PIN code into the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein capturing the at least a portion of the generated PIN code comprises one of sending the at least a portion of the generated PIN code by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device to the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device and retrieving the at least a portion of the generated PIN code by the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device from the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising exchanging respective device identification codes between the medical device and the remote electronic device.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein upon non-successful authentication of either of the PIN code and the at least one strong key the method returns to the step of generating at least a portion of a PIN code by one of the medical device and the remote electronic device.

8. The method of claim 4 wherein upon non-successful authentication of either of the PIN code and the at least one strong key a message is displayed on at least one of the medical device and the remote electronic device indicating that the authentication was not successful, and wherein the method returns to the step of displaying the at least a portion of the generated PIN code by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising performing a pairing phase prior to executing any of the steps of the method for authenticating, the pairing phase comprising:

setting the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device in a pairable mode in order to be discoverable by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

setting the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device in a pairing mode;

performing a device discovery inquiry by the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

displaying discovered devices resulting from the device discovery inquiry;

upon user selection from the displayed discovered devices of the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device, pairing the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device with the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

upon successful pairing generating a link key on the medical device and on the remote electronic device;

storing the link key and a virtual address of the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device in a memory of the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device, and storing the link key and a virtual address of the one of the medical device and the remote electronic device in a memory of the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device; and

connecting the medical device and the remote electronic device together.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising performing a binding phase after executing all of the steps of the method for authenticating, the binding phase comprising,

sending service versions of all operating modes of the remote electronic device by one of the medical device and the remote electronic device to the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device;

upon a determination by the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device that the sent service versions are compatible with corresponding service versions stored in the memory of the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device, storing a pass flag in a memory of the medical device and in a memory of the remote electronic device, and

upon a determination by the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device that at least one of the sent service versions is not compatible with a corresponding one of the service versions stored in the memory of the other of the medical device and the remote electronic device, removing the at least one strong key from the memory of the medical device and from the memory of the remote electronic device.