METHOD AND OPPORTUNISTIC SENSING

• US 20150295900A1
• Filed: 12/05/2013
• Published: 10/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Oce NV (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Bjrkengren, Ulf, Anyuru, Andreas, Prscke, Benn, Ryd, Patrik, Fagerstrm, Mats, Bergstrm, Mats
• Granted Patent: US 9,525,669 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/24 Key scheduling, i.e. generating round keys or sub-keys for block encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0421 Anonymous communication, i.e. the party's identifiers are hidden from the other party or parties, e.g. using an anonymizer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/062 for key distribution, e.g. centrally by trusted party cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key distribution involving a central third party H04L9/0819
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3242 involving keyed hash functions, e.g. message authentication codes [MACs], CBC-MAC or HMAC

Abstract

A method in a first device for anonymously delivering data to a part that has initiated a task is provided. The first device and the part initiating a task are participants in opportunistic sensing. The method comprises creating a data sample and encrypting the data sample with a public key of the task initiating part. After communicating the protected sample toone or more intermediate devices, one of the one or more intermediate devices delivers the protected sample to the task initiating part, such that the task initiating part does not know the identity of the first device. The task initiating device only know the identity of the one of the one or more intermediate devices that delivered the protected sample to the task initiating part, wherein the intermediate devices are participants in the opportunistic sensing.

Claims

1. A method in a group of devices for anonymously delivering data from a sampling device to a task initiator, the group of devices being participants in opportunistic sensing,

wherein the group comprises:

at least one device of the group acting as the sampling device, and

one or more devices of the group acting as intermediate devices,

the method comprising;

the task initiator initiating a task,

the sampling device creating a data sample related to the initiated task,

encrypting the created data sample with a public key of the task initiator,

whereby a protected sample is obtained, and communicating the protected sample to one of the one or more intermediate devices,

one of the one or more intermediate devices delivering the protected sample to the task initiator,

such that the task initiator does not know the identity of the sampling device, and

only the identity of said one of the one or more intermediate devices that delivered the protected sample to the task initiator.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the communicating comprises exchanging the protected sample one or more times.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein, the one or more intermediate devices to communicate the protected sample to are selected from a First In First Out, FIFO, list kept in the sampling device.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the devices to participate in the task accepts the task by that the task initiator in advance publishes information about the task, and that a device accept terms for the task by producing a “

dummy”

sample containing no sensor data that is exchanged, and received by the task initiator.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the communicating comprises an exchange of at least one recipient address.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the encrypting further comprises encrypting a hash and device secret for the sample with a public key of the sampling device.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising proving the identity of the sampling device creating the sample by decrypting the hash and device secret with a private key of the sampling device.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the encrypting further comprises encrypting the data sample together with an anonymous device identity with the public key of the part initiating a task.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the encrypting further comprises encrypting the data sample together with a sequence number with the public key of the part initiating a task.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising adding to the data sample a hop counter.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising adding to the data sample a Task Initiator URL to where the data finally will be delivered.

15. A computer program product for compiling code for a multi-processor system, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therein, the computer readable program code being configured to carry out one or more of the methods according to claim 1.

12. A device adapted to anonymously delivering data to a part that has initiated a task,

which device and said part initiating a task are participants in opportunistic sensing,

wherein the device, in a first role, is adapted to act as a sampling device, and,

in a second role, is adapted to act as an intermediate device and, in a third role, is adapted to act as a delivering device,

the device comprising:

a creating unit adapted to create a data sample when the device acts as the sampling device,

an encryption unit adapted to encrypt the data sample with a public key of the task initiating part when the device acts as the sampling device,

the device, when acting as the sampling device, is further adapted to communicate a protected data sample to one of one or more devices acting as intermediate devices, the device, when acting as the intermediate device is adapted to deliver a protected data sample to another intermediate device; and

the device, when acting as the delivering device is adapted to deliver a protected data sample to the task initiating part without revealing the identity of a device acting as the sampling device.

13. The device according to claim 12, comprising a First In First Out, FIFO, list from which list the one or more intermediate devices are selected from.

14. A system adapted to anonymously deliver data from a sampling device to a task initiator,

the system comprising a task initiator initiating a task, and

a group of devices being participants in opportunistic sensing,

wherein the group comprises:

at least one device acting as the sampling device, and

one or more devices acting as intermediate devices,

the device comprising;

a creating unit adapted to create a data sample when the device acts as the sampling device, and

an encryption unit adapted to encrypt the data sample with a public key of the task initiating part when the device acts as the sampling device,

the device when acting as the sampling device, is further adapted to communicate the protected sample to one or more devices acting as intermediate devices,

the device, when acting as the delivering device is adapted to deliver the protected sample to the task initiating part, whereby the task initiating part does not know the identity of the sampling device, only the identity of the device acting as delivering device delivering the protected sample to the task initiating part, wherein the devices are participants in the opportunistic sensing.