System and method for delivering and examining digital tickets
First Claim
1. A computerized method for delivering a digital ticket from a ticket provider to a ticket consumer across a communications channel, the method comprising:
- first communicating, across a communications channel from a computer of a ticket provider to a computer of the ticket consumer, first digital data D1 in respect of an occurrence relating to the ticket; and
second communicating, across the communications channel from the computer of the ticket consumer to the computer of the ticket provider, second digital data D2 relating to purchase of the ticket; and
calculating in the computer of the ticket provider by use of a private key s a digital signature of third digital data D3, which third digital data D3 is in respect of one or both of the first digital data D1 and the second digital data D2, and which digital signature of the digital data D3 is as well, being a proof both (i) that a private signature key s was used by the computer of the ticket provider in generation of the digital signature and (ii) that one or both of the digital data D1, D2 was used in respect of its generation, (iii) suitably stored in a transportable storage medium; and
wherein the digital data D1, D2 in respect of which the digital signature of digital data D3 was generated becomes a memorialization of a particular provision by the ticket provider of the particular digital ticket for the particular occurrence to the ticket consumer who is particularly identified at least as a party at the other end of the communicating transpiring across the communications channel; and
third communicating, across the communications channel from the computer of the ticket provider to the computer of the ticket consumer, at least the signed digital data D3; and
first storing with the computer of the ticket consumer in the transportable storage medium at least the signed digital data D3, thus turning the transportable storage medium into a digital ticket; and
physically transporting the digital ticket in the form of the transportable storage medium so containing at least the signed digital data D3, to a specific place for the occurrence relating to the ticket; and
tendering the digital ticket for redemption to a ticket taker at the specific place; and
reading into a computer of the ticket taker at least the signed digital data D3; and
recovering in the computer of the ticket taker, with a digital verification key v corresponding to the signature key s of the ticket provider and from the signed digital data D3, the digital data D3; and
determining in the computer of the ticket taker IF the digital data D3 was recoverable by verification key v AND, having been so recovered, the digital data D3 correctly memorializes the particular provision by the ticket provider of the particular third digital data D3 for the particular occurrence to the particular ticket consumer who at one time communicated across the communications channel THEN the digital ticket is valid, ELSE IF the digital data D3 was recovered by use of the verification key v BUT the digital data D3 recovered incorrectly memorializes the particular provision by the ticket provider of the particular third digital data D3 for the particular occurrence to the particular ticket consumer who at one time communicated across the communications channel THEN the digital ticket is invalid;
wherein the second communicating is of second digital data D2 including a one-way function hash (R) of a number R which number R is uniquely known to the computer of the ticket consumer and not to the computer of the ticket provider.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A digital ticket is procured by a client ticket consumer upon, preferably, the Internet from and by staged interaction with a ticket provider server. The digital ticket becomes embodied in a tangible transportable data storage medium, normally a 2-D bar code printed on paper by the consumer, or on the consumer'"'"'s flexible disk or smart card, containing Sign(s,I||hash(R))||R where (1) R is a number having its origin in the computer of the ticket consumer, which number R is appended to (2) a number Sign(s,I||hash(R)). This number Sign(s,I||hash(R)) was earlier computed in the computer of the ticket provider as a digital signature using signature key s of a number hash(R) combined with event information I, and was subsequently communicated across the communications network to the computer of the ticket consumer. The number hash(R) was itself even earlier computed in the computer of the ticket consumer as a one-way function of random number R, which computed one-way function was subsequently communicated to the computer of the ticket provider. The number R is private to the ticket consumer and not public; the digital signature key s is private to the ticket provider.
The digital ticket is redeemed by (1) transporting the transportable storage medium within which the Sign(s,I||hash(R))||R is written to the particular selected event; (2) tendering the digital ticket for verification and for admission; (3) reading the Sign(s,I||hash(R))||R to an event computer and extracting the number R; (4) decrypting the remaining Sign(s, I||hash(R)) with verification key v of the ticket producer to get hash(R) and I; (5) re-calculating from R, with the same one-way function previously used, a re-calculated hash(R); then, having this recalculated hash(R) to hand; (6) comparing the re-calculated hash(R) to the extracted hash(R). The (4) decrypting will work, producing a proper I for the selected event, and the (6) comparing will be equal, only for a legitimate ticket.
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Citations
47 Claims
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1. A computerized method for delivering a digital ticket from a ticket provider to a ticket consumer across a communications channel, the method comprising:
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first communicating, across a communications channel from a computer of a ticket provider to a computer of the ticket consumer, first digital data D1 in respect of an occurrence relating to the ticket; and second communicating, across the communications channel from the computer of the ticket consumer to the computer of the ticket provider, second digital data D2 relating to purchase of the ticket; and calculating in the computer of the ticket provider by use of a private key s a digital signature of third digital data D3, which third digital data D3 is in respect of one or both of the first digital data D1 and the second digital data D2, and which digital signature of the digital data D3 is as well, being a proof both (i) that a private signature key s was used by the computer of the ticket provider in generation of the digital signature and (ii) that one or both of the digital data D1, D2 was used in respect of its generation, (iii) suitably stored in a transportable storage medium; and wherein the digital data D1, D2 in respect of which the digital signature of digital data D3 was generated becomes a memorialization of a particular provision by the ticket provider of the particular digital ticket for the particular occurrence to the ticket consumer who is particularly identified at least as a party at the other end of the communicating transpiring across the communications channel; and third communicating, across the communications channel from the computer of the ticket provider to the computer of the ticket consumer, at least the signed digital data D3; and first storing with the computer of the ticket consumer in the transportable storage medium at least the signed digital data D3, thus turning the transportable storage medium into a digital ticket; and physically transporting the digital ticket in the form of the transportable storage medium so containing at least the signed digital data D3, to a specific place for the occurrence relating to the ticket; and tendering the digital ticket for redemption to a ticket taker at the specific place; and reading into a computer of the ticket taker at least the signed digital data D3; and recovering in the computer of the ticket taker, with a digital verification key v corresponding to the signature key s of the ticket provider and from the signed digital data D3, the digital data D3; and determining in the computer of the ticket taker IF the digital data D3 was recoverable by verification key v AND, having been so recovered, the digital data D3 correctly memorializes the particular provision by the ticket provider of the particular third digital data D3 for the particular occurrence to the particular ticket consumer who at one time communicated across the communications channel THEN the digital ticket is valid, ELSE IF the digital data D3 was recovered by use of the verification key v BUT the digital data D3 recovered incorrectly memorializes the particular provision by the ticket provider of the particular third digital data D3 for the particular occurrence to the particular ticket consumer who at one time communicated across the communications channel THEN the digital ticket is invalid;
wherein the second communicating is of second digital data D2 including a one-way function hash (R) of a number R which number R is uniquely known to the computer of the ticket consumer and not to the computer of the ticket provider. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A computerized method for delivery of a ticket from a ticket provider to a ticket consumer across a communications channel, the method comprising:
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first transmitting, across a communications channel from a computer of a ticket provider to a computer of a ticket consumer, data regarding an event relating to the ticket;
first calculating in the computer of the ticket consumer a number R;
thensecond calculating in the computer of the ticket consumer a one-way function of the number R as hash (R); second transmitting, across the communications channel from the computer of the ticket consumer to the computer of the ticket provider, at least the hash (R) as ticket order data; third calculating in the computer of the ticket provider in respect of signature key s a digital signature of hash (R) appended to information I regarding the event as Sign (s, I||hash (R)), this Sign (s, I||hash (R)) constituting a digital ticket precursor;
thenthird transmitting, across the communications channel from the computer of the ticket provider to the computer of the ticket consumer, the digital ticket precursor Sign (s, I||hash (R)); fourth calculating, in the computer of the ticket consumer as an appending of R to the digital ticket precursor Sign (s, I||hash (R)), Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R, as a digital ticket; first storing the digital ticket Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R from the computer of the ticket consumer to a transportable storage medium. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A system for delivering a digital ticket upon a communications network comprising:
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a ticket consumer'"'"'s computer, connected to the communications network, the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer comprising means for first transmitting ticket order data upon the communications network to a ticket provider'"'"'s computer, means for first receiving upon the communications network from the ticket provider'"'"'s computer a digitally signed ticket data, and means for storing the digitally signed ticket data in a transportable storage medium; a ticket provider'"'"'s computer, connected to the communications network, the ticket provider'"'"'s computer comprising means for second receiving from the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer upon the communications network the first-transmitted ticket order data, means for digitally signing the ticket data, and means for second transmitting the digitally signed ticket data upon the communications network to the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer; and a communications network, the communications network comprising means for communicating at a first time the first-transmitting of the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer to the second-receiving of the ticket provider'"'"'s computer, and means for communicating at a second time the second-transmitting of the ticket provider'"'"'s computer to the first-receiving of the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer; wherein the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer further comprises means for first calculating a number R, and means for second calculating a one way function of R to produce hash (R) as ticket data, wherein the first transmitting is of the second-calculated hash (R) as the ticket data, wherein the first receiving is of hash (R) and additional information I digitally signed with signature key s as Sign (s, I||hash (R)), wherein the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer further comprises means for third calculating an appending of R to the digital ticket precursor Sign (s, I||hash (R)), giving Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R as a digital ticket and wherein the storing is of the third-calculated digital ticket Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R; wherein the second receiving comprises receiving the first-transmitted hash (R) ticket order data, wherein the ticket provider'"'"'s computer further comprises means for calculating a digital signature in respect of the ticket data and additional information I, in respect of signature key s as Sign (s, I||hash (R)), and wherein the second transmitting comprises transmitting the calculated Sign (s, I||hash (R)). - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27)
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28. A system for delivering a digital ticket upon a communications network comprising:
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a ticket consumer'"'"'s computer, connected to the communications network, the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer comprising means for first calculating a number R, means for second calculating a one way function of R to produce hash (R) as ticket data, means for first transmitting the second-calculated hash (R) ticket data upon the communications network to a ticket provider'"'"'s computer as a ticket data for a particular selected event, means for first receiving upon the communications network a digitally signed data in respect of signature key s of hash (R) and additional information I as Sign (s, I||hash (R)), means for third calculating an appending of R to the digital ticket precursor Sign (s, I||hash (R)) so as to give Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R in a digital ticket, and means for first storing the third-calculated digital ticket Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R in a transportable storage medium; a ticket provider'"'"'s computer, connected to the communications network, the ticket provider'"'"'s computer comprising means for second receiving from the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer upon the communications network the first-transmitted hash (R) ticket data, means for fourth calculating digitally signed data in respect of signature key s of second-received hash R and of information I as Sign (s, I||hash (R)), and means for second transmitting the fourth-calculated Sign (s, I hash (R)) upon the communications network to the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer; and a communications network, the communications network comprising means for communicating at a first time the first-transmitting of the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer to the second-receiving of the ticket provider'"'"'s computer, and means for communicating at a second time the fourth-transmitting of the ticket provider'"'"'s computer to the first-receiving of the ticket consumer'"'"'s computer.
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29. A digital ticket procured by a ticket consumer upon a communication network from and by interaction with a ticket provider, the digital ticket comprising:
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a tangible transportable data storage medium containing Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R where (1) R is a number having its origin in a computer of the ticket consumer, which number R is appended to (2) a number Sign (s, I||hash (R)) that was computed in a computer of the ticket provider as a digitally signature signed data in respect of a signature key s of a number hash (R) appended to information I, thus Sign (s, I||hash (R)), and subsequently communicated across the communications network to the computer of the ticket consumer, which number hash (R) was itself computed in the computer of the ticket consumer as a one way function of R, thus hash (R), and subsequently communicated to the computer of the ticket provider; wherein number R, having its origin in a computer of the ticket consumer, is private to the ticket consumer and is not public, and wherein the digital signature key s of the computer of the ticket provider is private to the ticket provider and is not public.
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30. A digital ticket comprising:
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a tangible transportable digital data storage medium containing first-type data, originally known both to a buyer and to a seller of a ticket and meaningful to at least the seller of the ticket to identify, at least relatively, a particular event for which the ticket was sold, and second-type data including a signed digital representation of a particular parameter that was originally computer-generated in a sequence first by the buyer of the ticket as a non-invertible function of a random number called a “
first-time-made non-invertible function”
, wherein the non-invertible function is a one-way hash function, and wherein the random number is uniquely known to the buyer and not to the seller, and thensecond by the seller of the ticket as a digital signature of the first-time-made non-invertible function, and then third by the buyer of the ticket to attach the selfsame random number; wherein, to validate the digital ticket upon attempted redemption of the ticket, the random number is detached, and then the signed first-time-made non-invertible function is interpreted, recovering this first-time-made non-invertible function, and then the non-invertible function of that selfsame random number just detached is newly made all over again, which newly made non-invertible function is called the “
second-time-made non-invertible function”
;wherein the second-time-made non-invertible function EITHER equals the first-time-made non-invertible function IN WHICH CASE the ticket is not invalid OR ELSE the second-time-made non-invertible function does not equal the first-time-made non-invertible functional thus making the digital ticket is invalid for at least the particular event. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33)
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34. A system for delivering a digital ticket from a ticket seller to a ticket buyer, the system comprising:
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a communication channel comprising means for, at a first time, sending from a ticket seller to a ticket buyer data regarding events for which tickets may be had, means for, at a second time, sending from the ticket buyer to the ticket seller data representative of a non-invertible transformation of a number determined by the ticket buyer only, and means for, at a third time, sending from the ticket seller to the ticket buyer a digital signature of the non-invertible transformation, wherein the received digital signature of the non-invertible transformation is combined with the number to produce a digital ticket; a ticket buyer'"'"'s computer, communicatively connected to the communications channel, the ticket buyer'"'"'s computer comprising means for determining the number, means for computing the non-invertible transformation, and means for combining the digital signature of the non-invertible transformation with the number to produce a digital ticket; a ticket seller'"'"'s computer, communicatively connected to the communications channel, the ticket seller'"'"'s computer comprising means for computing, in respect of the non-invertible transformation received from the ticket buyer, the digital signature of the non-invertible transformation; and a tangible portable medium of digital data storage connected to the buyer'"'"'s computer and storing the digital ticket; wherein the communication channel is sending at the second time a random number. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A printed ticket bearing indicia CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the indicia includes a 2-D bar code containing a one-way function of a number provided by a holder of the ticket, the one-way function being digitally signed by a provider of the ticket;
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FURTHER CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the 2-D bar coded indicia contains Sign (s, I||hash (R))||R where (1) R is a number having its origin in a computer of a consumer of the ticket, which number R is appended to (2) a number Sign (s I||hash (R)) that was computed in a computer of a Provider of the ticket as a digital signature in respect of digital signature key s of the number hash (R) in combination with information I, subsequently communicated across the communications network to the computer of the ticket consumer, which number hash (R) was itself computed in the computer of the ticket provider as a one way function of R and subsequently communicated to the computer of the ticket provider; wherein number R, having its origin in a computer of the ticket consumer, is private to the ticket consumer and is not public; and wherein the digital signature key s of the computer of the ticket provider is private to the ticket provider and is not public.
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41. A communications system for selling and delivering a digital ticket comprising:
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a ticket buyer computer (i) sending at a first time a one-way transformation of a private number to a seller computer, (ii) receiving at a third time signed information from the ticket seller computer, and (iii) storing at a fourth time within a digital store the received encrypted signed information plus the private number; a ticket seller computer (i) receiving at the first time the one-way transformation of the private number from the seller computer, (ii) signing at a second time this one-way transformation and additional information, and (iii) sending at the third time the signed first transformation and additional information to the ticket buyer computer as signed information; and a digital store storing at the fourth time the signed information plus the private number as a digital ticket; wherein upon (i) a reading of the signed information, (ii) a decrypting of the signed information to recover the one-way transformation of the private number, (iii) a reproducing with the same secure first transformation that the ticket seller used the secure first transformation of the number all over again, and (iv) a comparing of the decrypted recovered one-way transformation to the reproduced first transformation, validity of the digital ticket is assessable; wherein the second communicating is of second digital data D2 including a one-way function hash (R) of a number R which number R is uniquely known to the computer of the ticket buyer and not to the computer of the ticket seller.
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42. A method for selling and delivering a digital ticket comprising:
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first-sending at a first time a one-way transformation of a private number from a ticket buyer computer to a ticket seller computer, wherein the private number is a random number;
first-receiving at the first time the one-way transformation of the private number in the ticket seller computer;signing at a second time the one-way transformation and additional information in the ticket seller computer; second-sending at a third time the signed first transformation and additional information as signed information from the ticket seller computer to the ticket buyer computer; second-receiving at the third time the signed information in the ticket buyer computer; storing with the ticket buyer computer at a fourth time both (i) the received signed information plus (ii) the private number within a digital memory store; storing within the digital memory store at the fourth time the signed information plus the private number as s digital ticket; wherein upon (i) a reading of the signed information, (ii) a decrypting of the signed information to recover the one-way transformation of the private number, (iii) a reproducing, with the same secure first transformation that the ticket seller used, the secure first transformation of the number all over again, and (iii) a comparing of the decrypted recovered one-way transformation to the reproduced first transformation, validity of the digital ticket is assessable.
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43. In a communications system having a computer of a ticket buyer bi-directionally communicating across an insecure digital communications network to the secure computer of a ticket seller, a method for selling and for delivering a digital ticket from a ticket seller to a ticket buyer, the method comprising:
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at a first time first-sending from the computer of the ticket seller across the communications network to the computer of the ticket buyer first data regarding events for which tickets may be had;
then at a second timesecond-sending from the computer of the ticket buyer across the communications network to the computer of the ticket seller second data identifying and event for which a ticket is desired, the second data accompanied by a secure first transformation of a number that is determined by the ticket buyer only and unknown to others including the ticket seller;
then at a third timethird-sending from the computer of the ticket seller across the communications network to the computer of the ticket buyer third data confirming ticketing to the event for which the ticket was desired, the third data accompanied by a secure second transformation of the secure first transformation; and
thenstoring, with the computer of the ticket buyer within a tangible portable medium of digital data storage, (i) the number in accompaniment to (ii) the secure second transformation; wherein upon (i) transportation of the digital data storage medium to a physical site of the event, (ii) reading of the number to a computer, and, by use of the same secure first transformation that the buyer did use, reproduction of the secure first transformation of the number all over again, plus (iii) reversing of the secure second transformation by an event computer privileged to knowledge of said second transformation, then a (ii) read and reproduced first transformation is comparable to a (iii) first transformation recovered from reversing the second transformation in order to assess validity of the digital ticket; wherein the communication channel is sending at the second time a random number. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47)
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Specification