Method for administering certification data

• US 6,850,913 B2
• Filed: 08/30/2001
• Issued: 02/01/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TÜV Rheinland AG
• Original Assignee: TUV Rheinland Holding AG
• Inventors: Feik, Ulrich
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHEUNG, MARY DA ZHI WANG
• Application Number:
  US09/941,549
• Publication Number:
  US 20020112034A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,251 Days
• Field of Search: 705 51- 59, 705/405, 707 1- 6, 707 9- 10, 707100-104, 380201-202, 713/165, 713/156, 382/180
• US Class Current: 705/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/12 Applying verification of the received information cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for data integrity or data verification H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access

Abstract

The invention permits requests for certification information for a certification that has been performed for a product, a service, a system, an organizational process, etc. For this purpose, an Internet address and an identification number appear in a check region of a certification symbol issued by the testing institute. With the identification number, a data record associated with the certification can be accessed from a database that is accessible via the Internet.

Claims

1. A method for permitting a person to request certification information with the aid of a certification symbol that has been allocated to a resource by a certifying organization, the certification symbol having a check region, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) using a web browser of an Internet access device, together with a web address specified in an address field of the check region of the certification symbol, to access a web-server arrangement of the certifying organization over the Internet, and to enter a specific identification number that appears in an ID field of the check region into an input box on a web page received from the web-server arrangement, the Internet access device being operated by the person requesting certification information;

(b) transmitting the identification number to the web-server arrangement over the Internet;

(c) formulating a database search request based on the identification number and transmitting the database search request to a database that is coupled to the web-server arrangement, the database search request being formulated by the web-server arrangement;

(d) reading certification information associated with the identification number out of the database; and

(e) transmitting the certification information over the Internet from the web-server arrangement to the Internet access device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmission of the identification number in step (b) and the transmission of the certification information in step (e) are effected using Hypertext Transfer Protocol.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the web-server arrangement includes HTTP servers and web application servers.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the web page in step (a) is created in accordance with at least one standard selected from the group consisting of HTML, DHTML, XML, and JSP.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein steps (c) and (d) comprise using Java beans in the transmission of the database search request and the reading out of the certification information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the certification symbol is depicted on a product or packaging for the product.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the certification symbol is depicted in literature selected from the group consisting of a catalog, a document, operating instructions, and an advertisement.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the certification symbol is disposed adjacent an auxiliary information block that indicates PQS (Product Safety Quality) certification.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the certification symbol is disposed adjacent an auxiliary information block that indicates TQM (Total Quality Management) certification.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein step (e) further comprises using a digital watermark to assure the authenticity of the certification information transmitted to the Internet access device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the person requesting certification is a member of an “

end consumers”

user group for which registration is not required.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the person requesting certification information is a member of a defined user group for which registration is required, and further comprising authenticating the person requesting certification information, and granting at least one of expanded access rights and improved search functionality to the person requesting certification information after the person has been authenticated.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the defined user group is a “

retailers”

user group that is provided with product-related search functions.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the defined user group is a “

manufacturers”

user group that is granted the right to overwrite certain product information in the database.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the certification information that is read out of the database, and further information, are displayed to the person requesting certification information in accordance with a personalized data model of the person requesting certification information after the person requesting certification information has been authenticated.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the database is a web database that receives certification information that is intended for members of a user group for which registration is not required from a master database that stores comprehensive certification information, some of which is not intended for members of the user group for which registration is not required.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the master database is coupled to an administration server that is not accessible via the Internet.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising decoupling the web application server from the Internet during a data transfer from the master database to the web database.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the administration server is coupled in an intranet, and further comprising modifying certification information stored in the master database or adding new certification information to the master database via the intranet.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising notifying an authorized certifying agent in the event that the certification information stored in the master database is more current than the certification information stored in the web database.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the notification of the authorized certifying agent establishes a time limit for updating the certification information in the web database.

22. The method of claim 1, further comprising assigning a session ID each time the person requesting certification information accesses the web-server arrangement of the certifying organization, and stopping or slowing responses to queries by the person requesting certification information if a predetermined access frequency or duration is exceeded.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmissions in steps (b) and (d) comprise radio communication using Wireless Access Protocol.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein the resource is one of a product, a system, a service, and a process.

25. A system for fulfilling a request by a person for certification information about a certification symbol that has been allocated to a resource by a certifying organization, the certification symbol having a check region and the request being communicated over the Internet, said system comprising:

a web-server arrangement that stores a predetermined web page with an input region for the person to input an identification number that appears in an ID field of the check region of the certification symbol, the predetermined web page having a web address that is specified in an address field of the check region or being one of a plurality of linked-together web pages stored by the web-server arrangement, with one of the linked-together web pages having the web address that is specified in the address field of the check region; and

a web database server having a database in which certification information relating to a plurality of different identification numbers is stored, the web database server receiving a database search request that has been formulated by the web-server arrangement on the basis of the identification number input by the person, and returning certification information corresponding to the input identification number to the web-server arrangement for transfer over the Internet to the person.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the web-server arrangement comprises at least one HTTP server and at least one web application server.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the web-server arrangement comprises a plurality of servers disposed in clusters.

28. The system of claim 25, the identification number that appears in the check region and that is input by the person is transmitted to the web-server arrangement using the HTTP protocol, and the certification information corresponding to the input identification number is transmitted to the person using the HTTP protocol.

29. The system of claim 25, wherein the predetermined web page is created in accordance with at least one standard selected from the group consisting of HTML, DHTML, XML, and JSP.

30. The system of claim 25, wherein Java beans are employed to transmit the database search request from the web-server arrangement to the web database server and to read out the certification information corresponding to the input identification number from the web database server.

31. The system of claim 25, further comprising means for updating the database stored in the web database server, the means for updating including an administration server that can be coupled to the web-server arrangement, and a master database storing certification information that is more comprehensive than the certification information stored by the web database server and that includes data not accessible to the general public, the master database being coupled to the administration server.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the administration server is not accessable via the Internet.

35. The system of claim 25, wherein the resource is one of a product, a system, a service, and a process.

33. The system of claim 33, wherein the web-server arrangement comprises a web application server that is decoupled from the Internet when the database stored in the web database server is being updated.

34. The system of claim 33, wherein the administration sever is coupled in an intrantet, with the certification information stored in the master database being modified or supplemented via the intranet.