Security system for access control using smart cards

• US 7,475,812 B1
• Filed: 12/09/2005
• Issued: 01/13/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: UTC Fire & Security Americas Corporation, Inc. (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lenel Systems International Incorporated (Raytheon Technologies Corporation d/b/a RTX)
• Inventors: Regelski, Michael, Novozhenets, Yuri
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim; Ahshik
• Application Number:
  US11/298,885
• Time in Patent Office: 1,131 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380, 235/382, 235/492, 707/9, 707/10
• US Class Current: 235/382
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/21 having a variable access code
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence

Abstract

An improved security system for access control using smart card badges and readers, and one or more access controllers coupled to the readers. Each access controller has a database storing for each badge at least a Credential Identifier and an encrypted Authorization Code as badge number and issue code, respectively, and access privileges data for the cardholder. Each badge has memory storing a Credential Identifier and unique Smart Card Serial Number. The Authorization Code is encrypted using a badge'"'"'s Credential Identifier and unique Smart Card Serial Number using a Site Secret Key. Each reader can read a badge'"'"'s Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number and generate an encrypted Authorization Code using the read Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number, and the Site Secret Key. The access controller receives from the reader a request having at least the read Credential Identifier and generated Authorization Code as a badge number and issue code, respectively, and uses such in determining whether the cardholder has access at the reader.

Claims

1. A security system for access control using smart card badges each having a unique Smart Card Serial Number onto which is stored a unique Credential Identifier, in which said security system has a Site Secret Key, said system comprising:

at least one access controller having a database storing for each one of a plurality of smart card badges at least a Credential Identifier and an encrypted Authorization Code as a badge number and an issue code, respectively, for the smart card badge, and access privilege data;

one or more readers in which each of said readers when presented with one smart card badge of said plurality of smart card badges reads the Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number from said one smart card badge, generates an encrypted Authorization Code based on the read Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number, and a Site Secret Key stored in the reader, and sends a request to the access controller with at least the read Credential Identifier and generated Authorization Code; and

said access controller receives the Credential Identifier and the Authorization Code of the request as the badge number and the issue code for said one smart card badge, respectively, and makes access decision as to whether the badge number and the issue code for said one smart card badge matches one of the badge number and issue code for one of the plurality of smart card badges stored in the database of the access controller, and whether said one smart card badge has access privileges at the reader which sent said request in accordance with said access privileges data for said one smart card badge in said database of the access controller.

2. The system according to claim 1 wherein said access controller provides a message to said reader which send the request with said access decision, and said reader grants access to area controlled by said reader in accordance with said message.

3. The system according to claim 1 further comprising a badging workstation having a smart card reader/writer for generating new ones of said smart card badges by determining a unique Credential Identifier for the new smart card badge, reading the Smart Card Serial Number from the new smart card badge, generating an encrypted Authorization Code based on the determined Credential Identifier and read Smart Card Serial Number for the new smart card badge, and the Site Secret Key, in which said determined Credential Identifier and encrypted Authorization Code are downloaded to the access controller as the badge number and issue code along with access privilege data.

4. The system according to claim 3 further comprising a computer server for enabling said download to the access controller of the Credential Identifier and encrypted Authorization Code as the badge number and issue code along with access privilege data.

5. The system according to claim 1 further comprising a configuration smart card storing said Site Secret Key, and wherein said reader when presented with the configuration card reads the Site Secret Key from the configuration card and stores the read Site Secret Key in memory of the reader.

6. The system according to claim 1 wherein at least one of said reader is coupled to an information system to enable access to said information system in accordance with at least said reader generated encrypted Authorization Code and read Credential Identifier matching a valid Authorization Code and Credential Identifier for one of said plurality of smart cards.

7. A method for access control in a system using smart card badges having at least one access controller and one or more readers coupled to said access controller, said method comprising the steps of:

storing in a database of the access controller for each of the smart card badges at least a Credential Identifier and an encrypted Authorization Code as badge number and issue code, respectively, and access privilege data for the smart card badge;

presenting one of the smart card badges to a reader;

reading at the reader the Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number from the smart card badge;

generating at the reader an encrypted Authorization Code based on the read Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number, and a Site Secret Key;

sending a request to the access controller with the read Credential Identifier and generated Authorization Code;

receiving at the access controller the request in which the access controller construes the Credential Identifier and the Authorization Code as a badge number and issue code, respectively;

comparing at the access controller the badge number and issue code with the badge number and issue code for the smart card badges stored in the database of the access controller; and

granting access at the reader when the badge number and issue code matches that store in the database of the access controller and the smart card badge has access privileges at the reader sending the request.

8. The method according to claim 7 further comprising the steps of:

providing a badging workstation having a smart card reader/writer for generating new smart card badge;

determining at said badging station a unique Credential Identifier for the new badge;

reading the Smart Card Serial Number from the new smart card badge;

generating an encrypted Authorization Code based on the determined Credential Identifier and read Smart Card Serial Number for the new badge, and the Site Secret Key; and

downloading to the access controller said determined Credential Identifier and encrypted Authorization Code as the badge number and issue code along with access privilege data.

9. The method according to claim 7 further comprising the steps of:

reading at the reader the Site Secret Key from a configuration card; and

storing in said reader the read Site Secret Key.

10. A reader for smart card badges in a security system for controlling access to an area or locked door in a facility comprising:

means for reading memory from a smart card having at least a Credential Identifier and a Smart Card Serial Number;

means for generating an encrypted Authorization Code based on the read Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number, and a Site Secret Key stored in said card reader;

means for sending a request to the access controller with the read Credential Identifier and generated Authorization Code;

means for receiving a response from the access controller; and

means for granting access based on said response.

11. The reader according to claim 10 further comprising a keypad for entry of a pin number, and sending said pin number in said request to said access controller.

12. The reader according to claim 10 further comprising one or more biometric input means, and sending data representative of said biometric input in said request to said access controller.

13. The reader according to claim 10 wherein a configuration smart card stores said Site Secret Key, and said reader further comprises means responsive to said configuration card for reading said Site Secret Key and storing said Site Secret Key in memory of the reader for use by said generating means.

14. A badging workstation for a security system using smart card badges comprising:

computer system having memory storing at least a Site Secret Key;

a smart card reader/writer coupled to said computer system for reading a Smart Card Serial Number from a smart card badge; and

said computer system determines a unique Credential Identifier for the smart card badge, generates an encrypted Authorization Code based on the Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number, and the Site Secret Key, and provides to another computer system said Credential Identifier and encrypted Authorization Code as the badge number and issue code for download to one or more access controller.

15. A security system for access control using smart card badges each having a unique Smart Card Serial Number onto which is stored a unique Credential Identifier, in which said security system has a Site Secret Key, said system comprising:

one or more access controllers each having a database storing for a plurality of smart card badges at least a Credential Identifier and an encrypted Authorization Code as a badge number and an issue code, respectively, for the smart card badges;

one or more readers, each of said readers when presented with one of said smart card badges reads the Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number from the smart card badge, generates an encrypted Authorization Code based on the read Credential Identifier and Smart Card Serial Number, and a Site Secret Key stored in the reader, and sends a request to one of said access controllers associated with the reader for receiving said request in which said request has at least the read Credential Identifier and generated Authorization Code; and

each of said access controllers in response to receiving one of said request from one of the readers operates upon the Credential Identifier and the Authorization Code of the request as a badge number and a issue code, respectively, and makes an access decision in accordance the Credential Identifier and the Authorization Code of the request matching one of the badge number and issue code, respectively, for one of the plurality of smart card badges stored in the database of the access controller, and sends a message to the reader which sent said request with said access decision.

16. The system according to claim 15 wherein at least one of said reader is coupled to an information system to enable access to said information system in accordance with at least said reader generated encrypted Authorization Code and read Credential Identifier matching a valid Authorization Code and Credential Identifier for one of said plurality of smart cards.

17. The system according to claim 15 wherein said database for each of said access controllers further stores access privileges data for said smart card badges, and each of said access controllers further in response to receiving a request further makes said access decision in accordance with said access privileges data associated with at least the badge number that matched to the badge number of one of said plurality of smart card badges in the database of the access controller.