Data receiving method and data receiving unit therefor

• US 7,082,198 B1
• Filed: 10/26/2000
• Issued: 07/25/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: KEIO University, Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: KEIO University, Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Ishii, Makoto
• Primary Examiner(s): Arani, Taghi T.
• Application Number:
  US09/697,110
• Time in Patent Office: 2,098 Days
• Field of Search: 380/239, 380/240, 380/241, 380/235, 705/51, 713/162, 713/187, 725/1, 725/25, 725/32
• US Class Current: 380/239
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/15 on receiving information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/16 on playing information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/23 using cryptography, e.g. encryption, authentication, key distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43853 involving multiplex stream decryption arrangements using cryptography for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/23
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4425 Monitoring of client processing errors or hardware failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58

Abstract

A data receiving method and unit extracts required data from among received digital signal data, and uses a predetermined decoding key to decode the extracted data. In the method and unit, it is determined whether the decoded data is normal. If it is determined that decoding has not been normally performed, corresponding data is deleted.

Claims

1. A data receiving method, comprising the steps of:

extracting required data from among received digital signal data to form extracted data, wherein the received digital signal data includes a program for execution by a computer;

decoding the extracted required data using a predetermined decoding key to form decoded data;

using a receiver terminal self-diagnosis function to determine whether the decoded data meets a predetermined standard including a matching of a decoding diagnostic code added to the required data during transmission and encrypted using the predetermined decoding key with a predetermined constant; and

deleting the decoded data when it is determined that the decoded data does not meet the predetermined standard, wherein the decoded data that is not deleted is supplied to the computer.

2. The data receiving method according to claim 1, wherein the step of decoding includes decoding in real time for each packet of the extracted data.

3. The data receiving method according to claim 2, wherein the step of using includes determining whether decoding has been performed meeting the predetermined standard in real time for each packet of the extracted data.

4. The data receiving method according to claim 3, wherein in the step of deleting, data which has not been decoded to meet the predetermined standard in real time is deleted in real time.

5. The data receiving method according to claim 1, comprising the further step of determining that address data included in said received digital signal data is directed to a receiving side at which the data receiving method is used, before performing the step of decoding.

6. The data receiving method according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined decoding key is set by an external input.

7. The data receiving method according to claim 1, wherein when said predetermined decoding key does not exist upon decoding a packet of the extracted data, the packet is deleted.

8. The data receiving method according to claim 1, wherein a key identical to a key used at a transmitting side for transmitting the digital signal data is used as said predetermined decoding key.

9. The data receiving method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of outputting only data treated as having been decoded to meet the predetermined standard.

10. A data receiving unit, comprising:

receiving means for receiving signals;

converting means for converting signals received by said receiving means into digital signal data;

data extracting means for extracting required data from among said digital signal data obtained by said converting means to form extracted data, wherein said digital signal data includes a program for execution by a computer;

decoding-key-setting means for setting a decoding key required for decoding the extracted data;

decoding means for decoding the extracted data by using the decoding key set by said decoding-key-setting means to form decoded data;

a receiver terminal employing a self-diagnosis function for examining the decoded data decoded by said decoding means based on a predetermined standard including a matching of a decoding diagnostic code added to the required data during transmission and encrypted using the decoding key with a predetermined constant; and

deletion means for deleting data determined by said receiver terminal as having not been decoded to meet the predetermined standard, wherein the decoded data that is not deleted is supplied to the computer.

11. The data receiving unit according to claim 10, wherein said decoding means decodes each packet of the extracted data in real time.

12. The data receiving unit according to claim 10, wherein said receiver terminal examines whether each packet of the extracted data has been decoded to meet the predetermined standard.

13. The data receiving unit according to claim 12, wherein said deletion means deletes, in real time, data which has not been decoded according to the predetermined standard in real time.

14. The data receiving unit according to claim 10, wherein when said decoding means determines that address data included in the converted data from said converting means is directed to said data receiving unit, said decoding means performs decoding.

15. The data receiving unit according to claim 10, wherein said decoding-key-setting means sets the decoding key based on an external input.

16. The data receiving unit according to claim 10, wherein when the decoding key for decoding a packet of the extracted data does not exist, said deletion means deletes the packet.

17. The data receiving unit according to claim 10, wherein a key identical to a key used at a transmitting side for transmitting said signals received at said receiving means is used as the decoding key set by said decoding-key-setting means.

18. The data receiving unit according to claim 10, further comprising output means for outputting only data treated by said receiver terminal as having been decoded to meet the predetermined standard.