DATA ACCESS IN A MOBILE DEVICE WITH NFC

• US 20160156386A1
• Filed: 09/30/2015
• Published: 06/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: STMicroelectronics International N.V. (STMicroelectronics NV)
• Original Assignee: Proton World International N.V. (STMicroelectronics NV), STMicroelectronics SAS (STMicroelectronics NV)
• Inventors: Van Nieuwenhuyze, Olivier, Charles, Alexandre
• Granted Patent: US 9,628,146 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10237 the reader and the record carrier being capable of selectively switching between reader and record carrier appearance, e.g. in near field communication [NFC] devices where the NFC device may function as an RFID reader or as an RFID tag
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• 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

The disclosure concerns an NFC (near field communications) device having an NFC router. The NFC router includes a memory adapted to store data to be shared with an external device and an NFC antenna circuit. The NFC router is capable of operating in a card emulation mode in which the shared data stored by the memory is accessible via the NFC antenna circuit.

Claims

1. A near field communications (NFC) device, comprising:

an NFC router having a memory adapted to store data to be shared with an external device;

an NFC antenna circuit, wherein the NFC router is capable of operating in a card emulation mode in which the shared data stored by the memory is accessible via the NFC antenna circuit; and

a processor coupled to the NFC router and capable of accessing the shared data in the memory, wherein the NFC router is adapted to detect whether a device requesting access to the shared data is the processor or the external device, and to selectively verify, based on whether the requesting device is detected as being the processor or the external device, one or more first access conditions prior to permitting access to the shared data.

2. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the NFC router is adapted to verify, in response to a request from an external device to access the shared data, the one or more first access conditions before transmitting the shared data to the external device via the NFC antenna circuit.

3. The NFC device of claim 2, wherein the NFC router is adapted to verify a first of the one or more first access conditions by verifying a digital signature associated with the request.

4. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the processor is adapted to provide the shared data to be stored in said memory.

5. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the NFC router is adapted to apply the one or more first access conditions upon detecting that the device requesting access to the shared data is the external device.

6. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the NFC device is capable of operating in an NFC-disabled mode in which transmission of NFC communications via the NFC antenna circuit are disabled, wherein if the external device requests access to the shared data while the NFC router is in the NFC-disabled mode, the NFC router is adapted to verify a first of the one or more first access conditions by verifying a charge state of a battery of the NFC device.

7. The NFC device of claim 6, wherein the NFC router is further adapted to re-enable transmission of NFC communications and permit access to the shared data by the external device only if the charge state of the battery is below a threshold level.

8. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the NFC router is adapted to:

apply the one more first access conditions upon detecting that the device requesting access to the shared data is the external device; and

apply one or more second access conditions, at least one of which is different from the one or more first access conditions, upon detecting that the device requesting access to the shared data is the processor.

9. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the one or more first access conditions to be applied are selected based further on one or more of:

an ON/OFF state of the NFC device;

a charge state of a battery of the NFC device; and

whether the requested access to the shared data is a read or write request.

10. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the shared data stored by the memory includes first data and second data, and wherein the NFC router is adapted to permit access to the first data by the external device without any access condition and to prevent access to the second data by the external device until the one or more first access conditions are satisfied.

11. The NFC device of claim 1, further comprising:

one or more sensors to detect one or more environmental parameters, wherein the NFC router is adapted to store the shared data in said memory if a reading from at least one of the one or more sensors exceeds a threshold.

12. The NFC device of claim 11, wherein said one or more sensors comprise at least one of:

a humidity sensor;

an accelerometer;

a positioning device; and

a temperature sensor.

13. A method, comprising:

storing, in a memory of a near field communications (NFC) router of an NFC device, data to be shared with an external device;

during a card emulation mode, providing by the NFC router to the external device access to the shared data via an NFC antenna circuit;

detecting, by the NFC router, whether a device requesting to access the shared data is a processor of the NFC device or the external device; and

selectively verifying, based on whether the requesting device is detected as being the processor or the external device, one or more first access conditions prior to permitting access to the shared data.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

transmitting the shared data to the external device if the one or more first access conditions are satisfied.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein verifying a first of the one or more first access conditions includes verifying, by the NFC router, a digital signature associated with the request.

16. The method of claim 13, comprising:

verifying, by the NFC router, the one or more first access conditions upon detecting that the device requesting access to the shared data is the external device.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the NFC device is capable of operating in an NFC-disabled mode in which transmission of NFC communications via the NFC antenna circuit are disabled, further comprising:

if the external device requests access to the shared data while the NFC router is in the NFC-disabled mode, applying a first of the one or more first access conditions, wherein the applying includes verifying, by the NFC router, a charge state of a battery of the NFC device.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

re-enabling transmission of NFC communications; and

permitting access to the shared data by the external device only if the charge state of the battery is below a threshold level.

19. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

detecting, via one or more sensors, one or more environmental parameters, wherein the storing of the data in the memory is triggered by a reading from at least one of the sensors exceeding a threshold.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said one or more environmental parameters comprise at least one of:

a humidity level;

an acceleration reading;

a geographic position of the NFC device; and

a temperature level.

21. A mobile device, comprising:

a processor arranged to direct operations of the mobile device;

a near field communications (NFC) router, the NFC router coupled to the processor and configured to operate in a card emulation mode;

an NFC antenna circuit coupled to the NFC router; and

a memory integrated with the NFC router, the memory arranged to store shared data, wherein the shared data stored in the memory is accessible by the mobile device and wherein the shared data stored in the memory is accessible to the external device via the NFC antenna circuit when the NFC router is operating in the card emulation mode.

22. The mobile device of claim 21, further comprising:

a sensor input coupled to the processor and coupled to at least one of a humidity sensor, an accelerometer, a positioning device, and a temperature sensor, wherein the processor is configured to direct the NFC router to store the shared data in the memory when a reading passed via the sensor input exceeds a threshold.

23. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the NFC router comprises:

an NFC processing device, the NFC processing device arranged to prevent access to the shared data via the NFC antenna circuit until at least one access condition is verified, the at least one access condition including verification of an ON/OFF state of the mobile device, verification of a charge state of a battery coupled to the mobile device, verification of a request to read from the memory, and verification of a request to write to the memory.

24. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the at least one access condition includes a first access condition associated with a request to access the shared data from the processor and a second access condition associated with a request to access the shared data from the external device.

25. The mobile device of claim 21, further comprising:

a secure element, the secure element arranged to store a digital signature, wherein access to the shared data is granted to the external device via the NFC antenna circuit after the NFC router verifies that data in an access request from the external device corresponds to the digital signature.