TAG AUTHENTICATION AND LOCATION VERIFICATION SERVICE

• US 20140136652A1
• Filed: 01/10/2013
• Published: 05/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Narayanaswami, Chandrasekhar, Topkara, Umut
• Granted Patent: US 9,729,604 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/10 Integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/77 Graphical identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• 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

Verifying a location of a tag is provided. A request for content associated with the tag is received from a client device that scanned the tag. It is determined whether location data was received from the client device. In response to determining that the location data was received from the client device, it is determined whether a current location of the tag is a predefined location for the tag based on the location data received from the client device. In responsive to determining that the current location of the tag is the predefined location for the tag based on the location data received from the client device, the content associated with the tag is sent to the client device.

Claims

1. A data processing system for verifying a location of a tag, the data processing system comprising:

a bus system;

a storage device connected to the bus system, wherein the storage device stores computer readable program code; and

a processor unit connected to the bus system, wherein the processor unit executes the computer readable program code to receive a request for content associated with the tag from a client device that scanned the tag;

determine whether location data was received from the client device;

determine whether a current location of the tag is a predefined location for the tag based on the location data received from the client device in response to determining that the location data was received from the client device; and

send the content associated with the tag to the client device in response to determining that the current location of the tag is the predefined location for the tag based on the location data received from the client device.

2. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein the processor unit further executes the computer readable program code to send information identifying the predefined location for the tag to the client device in response to determining that the location data was not received from the client device.

3. The data processing system of claim 2, wherein the information identifying the predefined location for the tag is human-interpretable information regarding the predefined location for the tag.

4. The data processing system of claim 3, wherein the data processing system generates the human-interpretable information regarding the predefined location for the tag from machine-readable representations of the predefined location for the tag.

5. The data processing system of claim 3, wherein the human-interpretable information regarding the predefined location for the tag is at least one of a textual description of where the tag should be located, a verbal description of where the tag should be located, a graphical depiction of where the tag should be located, a picture of where the tag should be located, or a video of where the tag should be located.

6. The data processing system of claim 2, wherein the processor unit further executes the computer readable program code to determine whether a confirmation was received from the client device that the tag is located in the predefined location for the tag, wherein the confirmation is based on the information identifying the predefined location for the tag sent to the client device.

7. The data processing system of claim 6, wherein the processor unit further executes the computer readable program code to send an alert message to personnel associated with the predefined location for the tag indicating that the tag is misplaced in response to determining that a confirmation was not received from the client device that the tag is located in the predefined location for the tag.

8. A computer program product stored on a computer readable storage device having computer readable program code encoded thereon that is executable by a data processing system for verifying a location of a tag, the computer program product comprising:

computer readable program code for receiving a request for content associated with the tag from a client device that scanned the tag;

computer readable program code for determining whether location data was received from the client device;

computer readable program code for determining whether a current location of the tag is a predefined location for the tag based on the location data received from the client device in response to determining that the location data was received from the client device; and

computer readable program code for sending the content associated with the tag to the client device in response to determining that the current location of the tag is the predefined location for the tag based on the location data received from the client device.

9. The computer program product of claim 8 further comprising:

computer readable program code for sending information identifying the predefined location for the tag to the client device in response to determining that the location data was not received from the client device.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the information identifying the predefined location for the tag is human-interpretable information regarding the predefined location for the tag.

11. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the data processing system generates the human-interpretable information regarding the predefined location for the tag from machine-readable representations of the predefined location for the tag.

12. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the human-interpretable information regarding the predefined location for the tag is at least one of a textual description of where the tag should be located, a verbal description of where the tag should be located, a graphical depiction of where the tag should be located, a picture of where the tag should be located, or a video of where the tag should be located.

13. The computer program product of claim 9 further comprising:

computer readable program code for determining whether a confirmation was received from the client device that the tag is located in the predefined location for the tag, wherein the confirmation is based on the information identifying the predefined location for the tag sent to the client device.

14. The computer program product of claim 13 further comprising:

computer readable program code for sending an alert message to personnel associated with the predefined location for the tag indicating that the tag is misplaced in response to determining that a confirmation was not received from the client device that the tag is located in the predefined location for the tag.

15. The computer program product of claim 8 further comprising:

computer readable program code for determining whether a current date is greater than or equal to an expiration date associated with the tag;

computer readable program code for sending an alert message to personnel associated with the predefined location for the tag indicating that the tag is expired in response to determining that the current date is greater than or equal to the expiration date associated with the tag; and

computer readable program code for sending the content associated with the tag to the client device in response to determining that the current date is not greater than or equal to the expiration date associated with the tag.

16. The computer program product of claim 8 further comprising:

computer readable program code for determining that the client device read an embedded watermark within the tag.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the embedded watermark includes supplemental data in addition to a payload of the tag.

18. A data processing system for verifying a location of a tag, the data processing system comprising:

a bus system;

a display device connected to the bus system;

a storage device connected to the bus system, wherein the storage device stores computer readable program code; and

a processor unit connected to the bus system, wherein the processor unit executes the computer readable program code to display human-interpretable location information associated with the tag;

determine that a confirmation was received indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag matches an observed location of the tag;

send the confirmation to a server device indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag matches an observed location of the tag; and

request content associated with the tag from the server device.

19. The data processing system of claim 18, wherein the processor unit further executes the computer readable program code to determine that a confirmation was not received indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag matches the observed location of the tag;

and send a message to the server device indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag does not match the observed location of the tag.

20. The data processing system of claim 18, wherein the processor unit further executes the computer readable program code to extract a predefined location for the tag from an embedded watermark contained within the tag;

compare the predefined location for the tag extracted from the embedded watermark with location data corresponding to a current location of the data processing system; and

send a confirmation to the server device indicating that the predefined location for the tag extracted from the embedded watermark does match the location data corresponding to the current location of the data processing system in response to determining that the predefined location for the tag extracted from the embedded watermark matches the location data corresponding to the current location of the data processing system.

21. The data processing system of claim 20, wherein the location data corresponding to the current location of the data processing system is global positioning system coordinates of the data processing system obtained from a global positioning system unit located in the data processing system, and wherein the data processing system generates the human-interpretable location information associated with the tag from a machine-readable representation of a predefined location for the tag.

22. A computer program product stored on a computer readable storage device having computer readable program code encoded thereon that is executable by a data processing system for verifying a location of a tag, the computer program product comprising:

computer readable program code for displaying human-interpretable location information associated with the tag;

computer readable program code for determining that a confirmation was received indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag matches an observed location of the tag;

computer readable program code for sending the confirmation to a server device indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag matches an observed location of the tag; and

computer readable program code for requesting content associated with the tag from the server device.

23. The computer program product of claim 22 further comprising:

computer readable program code for determining that a confirmation was not received indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag matches the observed location of the tag; and

computer readable program code for sending a message to the server device indicating that the displayed human-interpretable location information associated with the tag does not match the observed location of the tag.

24. The computer program product of claim 22 further comprising:

computer readable program code for extracting a predefined location for the tag from an embedded watermark contained within the tag;

computer readable program code for comparing the predefined location for the tag extracted from the embedded watermark with location data corresponding to a current location of the data processing system; and

computer readable program code for sending a confirmation to the server device indicating that the predefined location for the tag extracted from the embedded watermark does match the location data corresponding to the current location of the data processing system in response to determining that the predefined location for the tag extracted from the embedded watermark matches the location data corresponding to the current location of the data processing system.

25. The computer program product of claim 24, wherein the location data corresponding to the current location of the data processing system is global positioning system coordinates of the data processing system obtained from a global positioning system unit located in the data processing system, and wherein the data processing system generates the human-interpretable location information associated with the tag from a machine-readable representation of a predefined location for the tag.