NEAR-FIELD COMMUNICATION (NFC) SYSTEM PROVIDING NFC TAG GEOGRAPHIC POSITION AUTHENTICATION AND RELATED METHODS

• US 20120094596A1
• Filed: 10/14/2010
• Published: 04/19/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: TYSOWSKI, Piotr
• Application Number:
  US12/904,336
• Publication Number:
  US 20120094596A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3224 Transactions dependent on location of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/10 Integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/47 using near field communication [NFC] or radio frequency identification [RFID] modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/185 by embedding added-value information into content, e.g. geo-tagging
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A near-field communication (NFC) system may include an NFC tag comprising a memory configured to store geo-position data corresponding to a geographic position of the NFC tag, and a first NFC sensor coupled to the memory and configured to initiate a transaction based upon NFC communications. The NFC system may further include a mobile wireless communications device comprising a second NFC sensor and a controller coupled thereto. The controller may be configured to establish NFC communications with the first NFC sensor when in proximity thereto and retrieve the geo-position data therefrom, authenticate a geographic position of the NFC tag based upon the retrieved geo-position data, and perform the transaction with the NFC tag if the geographic position of the NFC tag is authenticated.

Claims

1. A near-field communication (NFC) system comprising:

a NFC tag comprising

a memory configured to store geo-position data corresponding to a geographic position of said NFC tag, and

a first NFC sensor coupled to said memory and configured to initiate a transaction based upon NFC communications; and

a mobile wireless communications device comprising a second NFC sensor and a controller coupled thereto, the controller being configured to

cause said second NFC sensor to establish NFC communications with said first NFC sensor when in proximity thereto and retrieve the geo-position data therefrom,

authenticate a geographic position of said NFC tag based upon the retrieved geo-position data, and

perform the transaction with said NFC tag if the geographic position of said NFC tag is authenticated.

2. The NFC system of claim 1 wherein said mobile wireless communications device further comprises a position determining device coupled to said controller;

and wherein said controller is configured to authenticate the geographic position of said NFC tag based upon said position determining device.

3. The NFC system of claim 2 wherein said position determining device comprises a global positioning system (GPS) device.

4. The NFC system of claim 1 wherein said mobile wireless communications device further comprises a wireless transceiver coupled to said controller;

and wherein said controller is further configured to communicate with an authentication server via said wireless transceiver and a wireless communications network to authenticate the geographic position of said NFC tag.

5. The NFC system of claim 4 wherein said wireless transceiver comprises a cellular transceiver.

6. The NFC system of claim 4 wherein said wireless transceiver comprises a wireless local area network (WLAN) transceiver.

7. The NFC system of claim 1 wherein the transaction comprises an electronic commerce transaction.

8. The NFC system of claim 1 wherein the geo-position data is stored in an NFC record type definition (RTD) field in an NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF).

9. The NFC system of claim 1 wherein the geo-position data comprises at least one position coordinate.

10. The NFC system of claim 1 wherein the geo-position data comprises a unique identification (ID) associated with a geographic position.

11. A mobile wireless communications device comprising:

a near field communications (NFC) device; and

a controller coupled with the NFC device, the controller being configured to

cause the NFC device to establish NFC communications with a NFC tag when in proximity thereto and retrieve geo-position data therefrom,

authenticate a geographic position of the NFC tag based upon the retrieved geo-position data, and

perform a transaction with the NFC tag if the geographic position of the NFC tag is authenticated.

12. The mobile wireless communications device of claim 11 further comprising a position determining device coupled to said controller;

and wherein said controller is configured to authenticate the geographic position of the NFC tag based upon said position determining device.

13. The mobile wireless communications device of claim 12 wherein said position determining device comprises a global positioning system (GPS) device.

14. The mobile wireless communications device of claim 11 further comprising a wireless transceiver coupled to said controller;

and wherein said controller is further configured to communicate with an authentication server via said wireless transceiver and a wireless communications network to authenticate the geographic position of the NFC tag.

15. The mobile wireless communications device of claim 14 wherein said wireless transceiver comprises a cellular transceiver.

16. The mobile wireless communications device of claim 11 wherein the transaction comprises an electronic commerce transaction.

17. A near-field communication (NFC) method comprising:

establishing NFC communications between a first NFC sensor of a NFC tag and a second NFC sensor of a mobile wireless communications device when in proximity with one another to retrieve geo-position data from a memory of the NFC tag to the mobile wireless communications device;

authenticating a geographic position of the NFC tag based upon the retrieved geo-position data at the mobile wireless communications device; and

performing a transaction between the mobile wireless communications device and the NFC tag if the geographic position of the NFC tag is authenticated.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the mobile wireless communications device further comprises a position determining device coupled to the controller;

and wherein authenticating comprises authenticating the geographic position of the NFC tag based upon the position determining device.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the position determining device comprises a global positioning system (GPS) device.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the mobile wireless communications device further comprises a wireless transceiver;

and wherein authentication comprises communicating with an authentication server via the wireless transceiver and a wireless communications network to authenticate the geographic position of the NFC tag.