SINGLE NFC DEVICE IDENTITY SELECTION ON A MULTIPLE-IDENTITY SUPPORTED DEVICE

• US 20130084798A1
• Filed: 09/29/2011
• Published: 04/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies General IP PTE Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Faithorn, Nick
• Application Number:
  US13/248,863
• Publication Number:
  US 20130084798A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup

Abstract

An apparatus and method are disclosed for selecting a single device identity on near field communications (NFC) devices that emulate multiple identities. A first NFC device sends a polling command and a second NFC device receives the polling command. The second NFC device, which emulates multiple identities, is configured to extract any identifying characteristics from the polling command and search a list it maintains of all the emulated identities. The second NFC device is also configured to select the first emulated identity that matches the characteristics including in the polling command. A link is then established between the first NFC device and the second NFC device which emulates the target specified in the polling command.

Claims

1. A Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled device comprising:

a demodulator configured to extract a polling command from a polling signal received from a NFC device, the polling command including a characteristic;

a memory configured to store a list of a plurality of NFC targets; and

a processor configured to search the list to select a first NFC target from among the plurality of NFC targets that matches a characteristic included in the polling command.

2. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of NFC targets comprises an electronic ticket, a credit card, or identification.

3. The NFC-enabled device of claim 2, wherein:

the electronic ticket comprises a bus ticket, an airplane ticket, a mass transit ticket, or a parking ticket;

the credit card comprises a card issued by a merchant, bank, or credit agency; and

the identification comprises a government-issued identification.

4. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is a format of the polling command.

5. The NFC-enabled device of claim 4, wherein the format of the polling command complies with a Type A NFC standard;

a Type B NFC standard, wherein the polling command comprises an application family identifier that indicates the characteristic that the NFC device targets;

a Type F NFC standard, wherein the polling command comprises a system code that indicates the characteristic that the NFC device targets;

or

a Vicinity standard, wherein the polling command comprises an application family identifier that indicates the characteristic that the NFC device targets.

6. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is an electronic ticket, wherein the electronic ticket comprises a bus ticket, an airplane ticket, a mass transit ticket, or a parking ticket.

7. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is a credit card, wherein the credit card comprises a card issued by a merchant, bank, or credit agency.

8. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is a loyalty card, wherein the loyalty card comprises a card issued by a merchant.

9. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is an identity restriction, wherein the identity restriction comprises a restriction on which emulated target may be selected depending on a time of day, or a restriction on which emulated target may be selected depending on a Global Positioning System (GPS) location.

10. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is a financial restriction, wherein the financial restriction comprises a restriction on which emulated target may be selected for a financial transaction above or below a user-defined amount.

11. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic is an identification, wherein the identification comprises a government-issued identification.

12. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to select a NFC target that matches a plurality of characteristics included in the polling command.

13. The NFC-enabled device of claim 1, wherein the NFC-enabled device is a mobile device such as a mobile phone, tablet computer, or laptop computer.

14. A method for selecting a Near Field Communication (NFC) target, comprising:

emulating a plurality of NFC targets on a first NFC device;

receiving a polling command from a second NFC device;

searching a list of the plurality of NFC targets on the first NFC device for a NFC target that matches a characteristic of the polling command; and

selecting the NFC target in the list that first matches the characteristic.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

extracting the characteristic that is encoded in the polling command that identifies a type of NFC target requested by the second NFC device; and

sending a response to the second NFC device that identifies the first NFC device as the NFC target selected from the list that first matches the characteristic.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the characteristic is a format of the polling command.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the format of the polling command complies with a Type A NFC standard;

a Type B NFC standard, wherein the polling command comprises an application family identifier that indicates the characteristic that the NFC device targets;

a Type F NFC standard, wherein the polling command comprises a system code that indicates the characteristic that the NFC device targets;

or

a Vicinity standard, wherein the polling command comprises an application family identifier that indicates the characteristic that the NFC device targets.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the characteristic is an identity restriction that comprises a restriction on which NFC target may be selected depending on a time of day, or a restriction on which NFC target may be selected depending on a Global Positioning System (GPS) location.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the characteristic is a financial restriction that comprises a restriction on which NFC target may be selected for a financial transaction above or below a user-defined amount.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the first NFC device is a mobile device such as a mobile phone, tablet computer, or laptop computer.