Message receiving apparatus and message transmitting apparatus

• US 6,496,930 B1
• Filed: 12/18/1998
• Issued: 12/17/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Harada, Syunji, Ono, Takatoshi, Tatebayashi, Makoto, Saijo, Takeshi, Okumura, Yasuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Peeso, Thomas R.
• Application Number:
  US09/215,533
• Time in Patent Office: 1,460 Days
• Field of Search: 713/168, 713/170, 713/176-180, 713/181, 713/182
• US Class Current: 713/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/606 by securing the transmission between two devices or processes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/123 received data contents, e.g. message integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/168 above the transport layer

Abstract

A message receiving apparatus for receiving messages from a message transmitting apparatus generates first data for producing a display which urges a user of the message transmitting apparatus to input a message, and generates second data within the first data for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message. The message receiving apparatus sends the first data including the second data to the message transmitting apparatus and subsequently receives the message from the message transmitting apparatus. The message transmitting apparatus for transmitting messages to the message receiving apparatus receives the first data for producing the display and the accompanying second data for specifying the conversion type and produces the display according to the first data. On receiving the message inputted by the user in response to the display, the message transmitting apparatus converts the input message according to the second data and transmits the converted message to the message receiving apparatus.

Claims

1. A message receiving apparatus for receiving messages from a message transmitting apparatus, comprising:

first receiving means for receiving first data concerning a use condition of the message transmitting apparatus from the message transmitting apparatus;

first generating means for generating second data for producing a display which urges a user of the message transmitting apparatus to input a message;

second generating means for generating third data for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message according to the received first data;

transmitting means for transmitting the second data and the third data to the message transmitting apparatus; and

second receiving means for receiving the message from the message transmitting apparatus after the second data and the third data have been transmitted to the message transmitting apparatus,

wherein the second data is written in a document description language format, and the third data is written within the second data using tags that extend the document description language format.

2. The message receiving apparatus of claim 1, further comprising

associating means for associating the first data with conversion type information that indicates whether to perform encryption, which encryption method should be used if performing the encryption, whether to perform digital signature, and which digital signature method should be used if performing the digital signature,

wherein the use condition of the message transmitting apparatus shown by the first data corresponds to an attribute of the user of the message transmitting apparatus, and

wherein the second generating means generates the third data according to the conversion type information associated with the first data.

3. The message receiving apparatus of claim 2, further comprising

storing means for storing fourth data showing key information necessary for the message transmitting apparatus to perform the encryption,

wherein the transmitting means transmits the second data, the third data, and the fourth data to the message transmitting apparatus.

4. The message receiving apparatus of claim 1, further comprising

reconverting means for reconverting the message received by the second receiving means.

5. The message receiving apparatus of claim 1, wherein the conversion type specified in the third data indicates whether to perform encryption and, if the encryption is to be performed, indicates one of encryption methods set in advance in the message transmitting apparatus.

6. The message receiving apparatus of claim 1, wherein the conversion type specified in the third data indicates whether to perform digital signature and, if the digital signature is to be performed, indicates one of digital signature methods set in advance in the message transmitting apparatus.

7. A message transmitting apparatus for transmitting messages to a message receiving apparatus, comprising:

acquiring means for acquiring first data concerning a use condition of the message transmitting apparatus;

first transmitting means for transmitting the first data to the message receiving apparatus;

receiving means for receiving, from the message receiving apparatus, second data for producing a display which urges a user to input a message and third data, generated according to the first data, for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message;

displaying means for producing the display according to the second data;

inputting means for receiving the message inputted by the user in response to the display;

converting means for converting the input message according to the third data; and

second transmitting means for transmitting the converted message to the message receiving apparatus,

wherein the second data is written in a document description language format, and the third data is written within the second data using tags that extend the document description language format.

8. The message transmitting apparatus of claim 7, further comprising

associating means for associating the third data with conversion type information that indicates whether to perform encryption, which encryption method should be used if performing the encryption, whether to perform digital signature, and which digital signature method should be used if performing the digital signature,

wherein the converting means converts the input message according to the conversion type information associated with the third data.

9. The message transmitting apparatus of claim 8, further comprising:

preventing means for preventing the third data written using the tags from being displayed.

10. The message transmitting apparatus of claim 8,

wherein the receiving means receives fourth data showing key information necessary for performing the encryption from the message receiving apparatus together with the second data and the third data, and

wherein the converting means converts the input message according to the third data and the fourth data.

11. The message transmitting apparatus of claim 7,

wherein the conversion type specified in the third data indicates whether to perform encryption and, if the encryption is to be performed, indicates one of encryption methods set in advance in the message transmitting apparatus.

12. The message transmitting apparatus of claim 7,

wherein the conversion type specified in the third data indicates whether to perform digital signature and, if the digital signature is to be performed, indicates one of digital signature methods set in advance in the message transmitting apparatus.

13. A message communicating method for communicating messages between a message transmitting apparatus and a message receiving apparatus, comprising:

an acquiring step for acquiring first data concerning a use condition of the message transmitting apparatus in the message transmitting apparatus;

a first communicating step for transmitting the first data from the message transmitting apparatus to the message receiving apparatus;

a first generating step for generating, in the message receiving apparatus, second data for producing a display which urges a user of the message transmitting apparatus to input a message;

a second generating step for generating third data in the message receiving apparatus for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message according to the first data;

a second communication step for transmitting the second data and the third data from the message receiving apparatus to the message transmitting apparatus;

a displaying step for producing the display in the message transmitting apparatus according to the second data;

an inputting step for receiving the message inputted by the user in response to the display in the message transmitting apparatus;

,

a converting step for converting the input message in the message transmitting apparatus according to the third data; and

a third communicating step for transmitting the converted message from the message transmitting apparatus to the message receiving apparatus,

wherein the second data is written in a document description language format, and the third data is written within the second data using tags that extend the document description language format.

14. A message receiving method for receiving messages from a message transmitting apparatus, comprising:

a first receiving step for receiving first data concerning a use condition of the message transmitting apparatus from the message transmitting apparatus;

a first generating step for generating second data for producing a display which urges a user of the message transmitting apparatus to input a message;

a second generating step for generating third data for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message according to the received first data;

a transmitting step for transmitting the second data and the third data to the message transmitting apparatus; and

a second receiving step for receiving the message from the message transmitting apparatus after the second data and the third data have been transmitted to the message transmitting apparatus,

wherein the second data is written in a document description language format, and the third data is written within the second data using tags that extend the document description language format.

15. A message transmitting method for transmitting messages to a message receiving apparatus, comprising:

an acquiring step for acquiring first data concerning a use condition of the message transmitting apparatus;

a first transmitting step for transmitting the first data to the message receiving apparatus;

a receiving step for receiving, from the message receiving apparatus, second data for producing a display which urges a user to input a message and third data, generated according to the first data, for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message;

a displaying step for producing the display according to the second data;

an inputting step for receiving the message inputted by the user in response to the display;

a converting step for converting the input message according to the third data; and

a second transmitting step for transmitting the converted message to the message receiving apparatus,

wherein the second data is written in a document description language format, and the third data is written within the second data using tags that extend the document description language format.

16. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program that when implemented on a computer will realize a message receiving apparatus for receiving messages from a message transmitting apparatus, the program comprising:

a first receiving step for receiving first data concerning a use condition of the message transmitting apparatus from the message transmitting apparatus;

a first generating step for generating second data for producing a display which urges a user of the message transmitting apparatus to input a message;

a second generating step for generating third data for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message according to the received first data;

a transmitting step for transmitting the second data and the third data to the message transmitting apparatus; and

a second receiving step for receiving the message from the message transmitting apparatus after the second data and the third data have been transmitted to the message transmitting apparatus,

wherein the second data is written in a document description language format, and the third data is written within the second data using tags that extend the document description language format.

17. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program that when implemented on a computer will realize a message transmitting apparatus for transmitting messages to a message receiving apparatus, the program comprising:

an acquiring step for acquiring first data concerning a use condition of the message transmitting apparatus;

a first transmitting step for transmitting the first data to the message receiving apparatus;

a receiving step for receiving, from the message receiving apparatus, second data for producing a display which urges a user to input a message and third data, generated according to the first data, for specifying a conversion type for secret communication of the message;

a displaying step for producing the display according to the second data;

an inputting step for receiving the message inputted by the user in response to the display;

a converting step for converting the input message according to the third data; and

a second transmitting step for transmitting the converted message to the message receiving apparatus,

wherein the second data is written in a document description language format, and the third data is written within the second data using tags that extend the document description language format.