Multi-interface compact personal token apparatus and methods of use

• US 7,213,766 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2004
• Issued: 05/08/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: DPD Patent Trust Limited
• Original Assignee: DPD Patent Trust Limited
• Inventors: Finn, David, Comiskey, Patrick R., Knapich, Norbert, Ryan, Dennis J.
• Primary Examiner(s): LE, UYEN CHAU N
• Application Number:
  US10/990,296
• Publication Number:
  US 20050109841A1
• Time in Patent Office: 903 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380, 235/375, 235/492, 705/41, 705/44, 713/172, 713/200, 713/201
• US Class Current: 235/492
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/385 for adaptation of a particular data processing system to different peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/425 using two different networks, one for transaction and one for security confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 31/06 Intermediate parts for linking two coupling parts, e.g. adapter with a holder adapted for supporting apparatus to which its counterpart is attached H01R33/94

Abstract

A compact personal token apparatus (100,120,140,200,220,300,320,500), resembling a conventional USB memory fob in size, shape, and form which can be plugged into a PC and interfaced with the virtual world of the Internet. The apparatus is capable of loading and storing information from the Internet, via the PC to its flash memory (410) or EEPROM and then using the stored information or value via its contactless interface (108,128,148,508) in the real world. The apparatus is capable of implementing an auto-run application, when inserted into a personal computer. The apparatus is capable of exchanging information with other devices having compatible interfaces. The apparatus can also function as a firewall (400) when plugged between an Internet connection and a PC.

Claims

1. A compact personal token apparatus, comprising:

a connection module;

a translation module;

a processor module;

an input/output module; and

a contactless interface;

wherein;

the connection module is for interfacing the personal token apparatus with an Internet-capable appliance; and

the translation module moves signals between the connection module and the contactless interface;

wherein;

the contactless interface is an RFID interface;

further comprising a wireless interface;

wherein the translation module moves data or signals from a USB interface to the RFID interface and to the wireless interface with storage of data in a flash memory or EEPROM of the processor module (dual interface chip), and data can reside temporarily at one of the interfaces.

2. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the Internet-capable appliance comprises a device selected from the group consisting of personal computer (PC), laptop, PDA, MP3 player cellphone, and similar Internet-capable devices; and

the interface with the Internet-capable appliance is selected from the group consisting of USB, FireWire, IR, Bluetooth, standard serial port, and WLAN.

3. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the interface with the Internet-capable appliance comprises a USB connection.

4. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the contactless interface comprises a smart card interface.

5. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 4, wherein:

the smart card interface is selected from the group consisting of ISO 14443, ISO 15693, and NFC.

6. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the processor module comprises a dual interface (DI) chip.

7. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the processor module incorporates the translation module.

8. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the output module comprises an RF antenna and a modulator.

9. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

flash memory.

10. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the translation module is incorporated in the processor module so that the personal token apparatus can go directly from USB to contactless without being limited by smart card software architecture limitations.

11. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the connection, translation, processor and input/output modules are embodied in a form of an apparatus having a general physical configuration of a conventional USB memory fob.

12. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 11, wherein the fob comprises;

a first physical module containing the connection module and the translation module; and

a second physical module containing the processor module and the output module.

13. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the output module comprises contacts for interfacing with a smart card.

14. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the fob is configured for interfacing with the Internet and emulating a smart card.

15. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the connection module is for interfacing the personal token apparatus with an Internet-capable appliance; and

the personal token apparatus incorporates firewall functionality to protect the Internet-capable appliance.

16. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

interfaces for ISO contact, contactless, USB and DSL.

17. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an LCD screen.

18. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

at least one switch.

19. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

at least one LED.

20. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a standard-compliant contact based interface, the contact based interface complying to at least one standard interface selected from the group consisting of USB, IEEE 1394, PCMCIA, Compact Flash, Multi Media, Memory Stick, Smart Media, Secure Digital, mini SD, and IBM Micro Drive.

21. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 20, further comprising:

a standard-compliant interface releaseably coupleable to a host processing device, this being under a command of an operating system;

an interface module providing translation of standard-compliant contact based interface messages to ISO 7816 compliant messages and providing the translation of ISO 7816 compliant messages to standard-compliant contact based interface messages;

a dual interface processor having an ISO 7816 compliant interface communicating through the interface module with the host processing device, the dual interface processor communicating through the contactless interface and connected to an inductive antenna.

22. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 21, wherein:

the contactless interface is releaseably coupleable from the interface module.

23. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 21, wherein:

the dual interface processor is mounted in a dual interface card complying to ISO 7810 or a 7816 compliant SIM module and connected norms;

the compact personal token apparatus provides physical contacts for the dual interface card, or a 7816 compliant form factor; and

when connected, the dual interface or SIM card can communicate with the host processing device through the interface module inside the personal token apparatus and, once the communication is done, the card can be released from the personal token apparatus and can be used then in the real world.

24. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 21, wherein:

the dual interface chip (processor) inside the personal token apparatus can be directly programmed by a software running on the host system using the interface processor without the need for an external contact based dual interface read/write device.

25. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 24, wherein:

the software is web based, allowing for downloading information from the web directly into the dual interface processor memory, thus linking the virtual world to the real world.

26. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 25, wherein:

the downloaded information can be used in the real world by using the contactless interface.

27. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 26, wherein:

the information stored in the personal token apparatus via the standard contact based interface is used for personal identification, secure network logon, access control, e-ticketing, or e-payment applications using either the standard compliant interface or the RFID-compliant interface.

28. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 26, wherein:

information received through the contactless interface can be stored in the memory of the personal token apparatus and can then be provided to the host processing device via the standard interface, thus allowing a complete information exchange between the virtual world and the real world.

29. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 24, wherein:

the information stored in the personal token apparatus via the standard contact based interface is used for personal identification, secure network logon, access control, e-ticketing, or e-payment applications using either the standard compliant interface or the RFID-compliant interface.

30. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 24, wherein:

information received through the contactless interface can be stored in the memory of the personal token apparatus and can then be provided to the host processing device via the standard interface, thus allowing a complete information exchange between the virtual world and the real world.

31. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 24, further comprising:

additional memory selected from the group consisting of flash memory and EEPROM device powered and addressed by the processor module;

wherein the additional memory can be used for user authentication and to run applications.

32. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 21, further comprising:

a standard-compliant interface releaseably coupleable to a host processing device, this being under a command of an operating system;

an interface module providing translation of standard-compliant contact based interface messages via a memory chip to Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device compatible compliant messages, and providing the translation of Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device compliant messages via a memory chip to standard-compliant contact based interface messages; and

a Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device having a Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 compliant interface communicating through the interface module with the host processing device via a memory chip;

the same Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device communicating through its Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 compatible interface.

33. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 20, further comprising:

a processor module; and

additional memory selected from the group consisting of flash memory and EEPROM device powered and addressed by the processor module;

wherein the additional memory can be used for user authentication and to run applications.

34. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 20, further comprising:

a standard-compliant smart card contact interface complying to ISO 7816.

35. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 20, further comprising:

a connection module, connecting the personal token apparatus to a host device including PC, PDA, or smart cellular phone, either directly or with the help of a standard reader device such as a memory card reader.

36. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 20, further comprising:

a standard-compliant interface releaseably coupleable to a host processing device, this being under a command of an operating system; and

a translation module, translating messages incoming from the contact based interface, and translating messages to the host device from the personal token apparatus.

37. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 20, further comprising:

a triple interface processor including contact, contactless, USB.

38. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a standard-compliant wireless interface selected from the group consisting of Bluetooth compatible interface, WLAN 802.11, and UWB.

39. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 38, further comprising:

a standard-compliant interface releaseably coupleable to a host processing device, this being under a command of an operating system;

an interface module providing translation of standard-compliant contact based interface messages via a memory chip to Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device compatible compliant messages, and providing the translation of Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device compliant messages via a memory chip to standard-compliant contact based interface messages; and

a Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device having a Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 compliant interface communicating through the interface module with the host processing device via a memory chip;

the same Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 device communicating through a Bluetooth/WLAN 802.11 compatible interface.

40. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 39, wherein:

the contactless/wireless interface is releaseably coupleable from the interface module.

41. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 38, further comprising:

a processor module; and

additional memory selected from the group consisting of flash memory and EEPROM device powered and addressed by the processor module;

wherein the additional memory can be used for user authentication and to run applications.

42. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 38, further comprising:

a standard-compliant smart card contact interface complying to ISO 7816.

43. The compact personal token apparatus of claim 38, further comprising:

the processor module prepares messages to be sent by the contactless and wireless interfaces, and interprets messages received via the contactless and wireless interfaces.

44. Method of interacting wirelessly, comprising:

providing a device;

interfacing the device with an Internet-capable appliance; and

providing a contactless interface in the device selected from the group consisting of ISO 14443 and ISO 15693;

wherein the contactless interface is an RFID interface;

further comprising providing a wireless interface;

wherein the translation module moves data or signals from a USB interface to the RFID interface and to the wireless interface with storage of data in a flash memory or EEPROM of the processor module (dual interface chip), and data can reside temporarily at one of the interfaces.

45. Method, according to claim 44, wherein:

the interface with the Internet-capable appliance is selected from the group consisting of USB, FireWire, IR, Bluetooth, standard serial port, WLAN.

46. Method, according to claim 44, wherein:

the Internet-capable appliance comprises a device selected from the group consisting of personal computer (PC), laptop, PDA, MP3 player and cell phone.

47. Method, according to claim 44, wherein:

the device is modular in construction.

48. Method, according to claim 44, wherein:

the device performs a firewall functionality to protect the Internet-capable appliance.

49. Method, according to claim 44, wherein:

the device incorporates interfaces for ISO contact, contactless, USB and DSL.

50. A compact personal token apparatus, comprising:

a connection module for interfacing the personal token apparatus with an Internet-capable appliance;

a contactless interface; and

a translation module for moving signals between the connection module and the contactless interface;

wherein the contactless interface is an RFID interface;

further comprising a wireless interface;

wherein the translation module moves data or signals from a USB interface to the RFID interface and to the wireless interface with storage of data in a flash memory or EEPROM of the processor module (dual interface chip), and data can reside temporarily at one of the interfaces.

51. The apparatus of claim 50 wherein the connection module is selected from the group consisting of USB, FireWire, IR, Bluetooth, standard serial port, and WLAN, interfaces capable of interfacing with the Internet-capable appliance.

52. The apparatus of claim 50 wherein the Internet-capable appliance is selected from the group consisting of personal computer (PC), laptop, PDA, MP3 player, and cellphone.

53. The apparatus of claim 50 wherein the contactless interface is selected from the group consisting of ISO 14443, ISO 15693, and NFC contactless interfaces.

54. The apparatus of claim 50, further comprising:

a wireless interface.

55. The apparatus of claim 50, further comprising:

an RFID or NFC antenna.

56. Method of linking the virtual world of the Internet with the real world of contactless transactions, comprising:

providing a compact personal token apparatus, comprising;

a connection module for interfacing the personal token apparatus with an Internet-capable appliance;

a contactless RFID interface; and

means for moving signals between the connection module and the contactless interface;

interacting in the virtual world when connected with the Internet-capable appliance; and

interacting in the real world after interacting in the virtual world;

further comprising providing a wireless interface;

wherein the translation module moves data or signals from a USB interface to the RFID interface and to the wireless interface with storage of data in a flash memory or EEPROM of the processor module (dual interface chip), and data can reside temporarily at one of the interfaces.

57. The method of claim 56, wherein interacting in the real world comprises an activity selected from the group consisting of personal identification, secure network logon, access control, e-ticketing and e-payment applications.