Authentication receipt

• US 7,353,393 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2002
• Issued: 04/01/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Anoto Group AB
• Original Assignee: Anoto Group AB
• Inventors: Romedahl, Lars, Hansen, Mads Dore, Thuvesholmen, Mikael
• Primary Examiner(s): Barrón, Jr.; Gilberto
• Assistant Examiner(s): Homayounmehr; Farid
• Application Number:
  US10/235,537
• Publication Number:
  US 20030074562A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,034 Days
• Field of Search: 713/170, 726/1, 726/2, 726/10
• US Class Current: 713/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2115 Third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2129 Authenticate client device independently of the user
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/80 Wireless network architectures or network communication protocols for wireless network security H04W12/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method, a system and a computer-readable medium storing computer-executable components for authenticating a digital pen. The invention is based on the idea that a paper look-up server issues an authentication receipt used by a service handler to authenticate a digital pen. The authentication receipt comprises such information that the service handler can use it to authenticate the digital pen without having to communicate with the paper look-up server.

Claims

1. A method for authenticating a digital pen at a service handler in a system including at least one paper look-up server, at least one digital pen and at least one service handler, the method including the steps of:

sending encrypted data and a digital pen identifier from said digital pen to said paper look-up server, said encrypted data including position data obtained by using said digital pen to read a position code from a surface of a position-coded product;

identifying at said paper look-up server, based on said position data, a service handler that provides a service associated with said position-coded product;

authenticating said digital pen and creating an authentication receipt at said paper look-up server;

sending an indication of the identified service handler and said authentication receipt from said paper look-up server to said digital pen;

sending said authentication receipt from said digital pen to said identified service handler; and

authenticating said digital pen at said identified service handler based on the received authentication receipt thereby allowing said identified service handler to provide a service associated with said position-coded product.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the encryption of data is performed with a symmetric key at said digital pen.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said encrypted data includes a digital signature created by said digital pen.

4. The method according to claim 1, including providing, at the paper look-up server, the authentication receipt with a first digital signature created by the paper look-up server.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the step of authenticating said digital pen at said service handler includes authenticating said authentication receipt by means of said first digital signature created by the paper look-up server.

6. The method according to claim 4, including creating a second digital signature at the paper look-up server.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the step of sending said authentication receipt from said paper look-up server to said digital pen includes sending said second digital signature.

8. The method according to claim 7, including authenticating said paper look-up server at said digital pen by means of said second digital signature before sending the authentication receipt to the service handler.

9. The method according to claim 1, including providing, at the paper look-up server, the authentication receipt with a unique identifier.

10. The method according to claim 9, including encrypting said unique identifier.

11. The method according to claim 1, including providing, at the paper look-up server, the authentication receipt with a timestamp.

12. The method according to claim 11, including providing, at the paper look-up server, the timestamp with a predetermined lifetime.

13. The method according to claim 11, including encrypting said timestamp.

14. The method according to claim 1, including providing, at the paper look-up server, the authentication receipt with the digital pen identifier.

15. The method according to claim 14, including encrypting said digital pen identifier.

16. The method according to claim 1, including providing, at the paper look-up server, the authentication receipt with a paper look-up server key identifier.

17. The method according to claim 10, wherein said encryption is performed with a symmetric key.

18. The method according to claim 1 including encrypting said authentication receipt at said paper look-up server.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein said encryption of said authentication receipt is performed with a symmetric key.

20. The method according to claim 18, including the steps of:

decrypting said authentication receipt at the digital pen; and

encrypting the decrypted authentication receipt at the digital pen.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein said encryption of said authentication receipt is performed with a symmetric key.

43. A computer-readable medium storing computer-executable components for causing a unit to perform the steps recited in claim 1 when the computer-executable components are run on microprocessor included by the unit.

22. A system for authentication including:

at least one digital pen;

at least one paper look-up server; and

at least one service handler, wherein

said digital pen is arranged to send encrypted data, including position data obtained by using said digital pen to read a position code from a surface of a position-coded product, and a digital pen identifier to said paper look-up server, receive an authentication receipt from said paper look-up server and send said authentication receipt to said service handler;

said paper look-up server is arranged to authenticate said digital pen, create said authentication receipt, identify, based on said position data, a service handler that provides a service associated with said position-coded product, and send an indication of the identified service handler and said authentication receipt to said digital pen; and

said identified service handler is arranged to authenticate said digital pen based on the received authentication receipt thereby allowing said identified service handler to provide a service associated with said position-coded product.

23. The system according to claim 22, wherein said digital pen is arranged to perform the encryption of data with a symmetric key.

24. The system according to claim 22, wherein said digital pen is arranged to create a digital signature and include said digital signature in the encrypted data.

25. The system according to claim 22, wherein said paper look-up server is arranged to provide the authentication receipt with a first digital signature created by the paper look-up server.

26. The system according to claim 25, wherein said service handler is arranged to authenticate said digital pen by authenticating said authentication receipt by means of said first digital signature created by the paper look-up server.

27. The system according to claim 25, wherein said paper look-up server is arranged to create a second digital signature.

28. The system according to claim 27, wherein said paper look-up server is arranged to send said second digital signature to the digital pen.

29. The system according to claim 28, wherein said digital pen is arranged to authenticate said paper look-up server by means of said second digital signature before sending said authentication receipt to said service handler.

30. The system according to claim 22, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to provide the authentication receipt with a unique identifier.

31. The system according to claim 30, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to encrypt said unique identifier.

32. The system according to claim 22, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to provide the authentication receipt with a timestamp.

33. The system according to claim 32, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to provide the timestamp with a predetermined lifetime.

34. The system according to claim 32, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to encrypt said timestamp.

35. The system according to claim 22, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to provide the authentication receipt with the digital pen identifier.

36. The system according to claim 35, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to encrypt said digital pen identifier.

37. The system according to claim 22, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to provide the authentication receipt with a paper look-up server key identifier.

38. The system according to claim 31, wherein the paper look-up server is arranged to perform said encryption with a symmetric key.

39. The system according to claim 22, wherein said paper look-up server is arranged to encrypt said authentication receipt.

40. The system according to claim 39, wherein said paper look-up server is arranged to encrypt said authentication receipt with a symmetric key.

41. The system according to claim 39, wherein

said digital pen is arranged to decrypt said authentication receipt;

and

said digital pen is arranged to encrypt the decrypted authentication receipt.

42. The system according to claim 41, wherein said digital pen is arranged to encrypt said authentication receipt with a symmetric key.