Virtual communication channel and virtual private community, and agent collaboration system and agent collaboration method for controlling the same

• US 7,581,012 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2002
• Issued: 08/25/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Yamasaki, Shigeichiro, Nishigaya, Takashi, Shiouchi, Masatoshi, Fukuta, Shigeki, Okada, Makoto, Mohri, Takao, Wada, Yuji, Iwao, Tadashige
• Primary Examiner(s): Walsh; John B.
• Application Number:
  US10/230,164
• Publication Number:
  US 20030018792A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,553 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 709/229
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management

Abstract

A policy that relates attributes of an agent to a role is distributed to each agent on a network. A field connector generates an internal field in accordance with an instruction of a security manager. A ROLE manager uses attribute information from an attribute manager, and assigns each agent a ROLE in accordance with the attributes of each agent, and installs a ROLE method table and a ROLE execution part. When receiving a message from an external network, each agent searches for a corresponding ROLE by referring to the ROLE method table, and executes the ROLE. Thus, collaboration among agents is realized through a virtual communication channel based on the exchange of a message.

Claims

1. A method for controlling virtual communication channels for using a production data, comprising:

storing on a computer readable recording medium a policy that is a collection of rules containing a rule representing a relationship between an attribute of an agent and a role assigned in accordance with the attribute, and assigning a role in accordance with attributes of each agent based on the policy, the policy being used to define a virtual communication channel;

allowing agents to communicate with other agents through the virtual communication channel defined based on the policy;

authenticating access rights of each agent to the virtual communication channel and contents of a role;

issuing a policy certification for certifying that a policy is authentic based on an electronic signature provided to data describing the policy;

issuing an attribute certification for certifying the attributes of each agent;

issuing a public key certification for certifying that an agent on a network has been authenticated, each agent including a trust engine for interpreting the policy certification and the attribute certification;

generating a production distribution virtual communication channel based on a policy of distributing production data from a production distribution agent to a user agent qualified to receive distribution of the production data on an agent collaboration system;

obtaining the production data and an auxiliary policy that defines a production use virtual communication channel handling the production data, using the user agent, from the production distribution agent on the agent collaboration system through the production distribution virtual communication channel; and

dynamically generating the production use virtual communication channel responsive to receipt of the auxiliary policy using the user agent, thereby enabling use of the production data only via a communication entity implemented by said production use virtual communication channel.

2. The method according to claim 1, comprising:

eliminating the production use virtual communication channel based on the auxiliary policy subsequent to use of the production data.

3. An agent collaboration system for connecting agents to each other through a virtual communication channel, each agent on the virtual communication channel comprising:

a policy storing part storing on a computer readable recording medium;

a policy that is a collection of rules containing a rule representing a relationship between an attribute of an agent and a role assigned in accordance with the attribute, the policy being used to define the virtual communication channel;

a role assignment part having a policy storing part for providing a role in accordance with attributes of each agent based on the policy;

a role-execution condition storing part for storing the role assigned by the role assignment part and conditions for executing contents of the role; and

a processing execution part for executing corresponding contents of a role in a case where the execution conditions for the contents of the role are satisfied, and

wherein a production distribution virtual communication channel is generated based on a policy of distributing production data from a production distribution agent to a user agent qualified to receive distribution of the production data on an agent collaboration system,

the user agent obtains the production data and an auxiliary policy that defines a production use virtual communication channel handling the production data, from the production distribution agent on the agent collaboration system through the production distribution virtual communication channel,

the user agent dynamically generates the production use virtual communication channel responsive to receipt of the auxiliary policy, thereby enabling a use of the production data only via a communication entity implemented by said production use virtual communication channel, and

the agent communicates with other agents through the virtual communication channel defined based on the policy; and

an authentication entity is provided on the virtual communication channel adapted to authenticate access rights of each agent to the virtual communication channel and contents of a role held by the role-execution condition storing part of each agent, said authentication entity being divided into;

a policy approving authority issuing a policy certification for certifying that a policy is authentic based on an electronic signature provide to data describing the policy;

an attribute authority issuing an attribute certification for certifying attributes of each agent; and

a certification authority issuing a public key certification for certifying that an agent on the network has been authenticated, each agent including a trust engine for interpreting the policy certification and the attribute certification.

4. A virtual communication method controlling virtual communication channels, comprising:

creating a first virtual communication channel based on a policy for distributing production data and transmitting the production data of a production distribution agent to a user agent based on the policy, the policy defining a relationship between attributes of each agent and a role assigned in accordance with the attributes; and

dynamically creating a second virtual communication channel for using the production data responsive to receipt of an auxiliary policy attached to the production data in said first virtual communication channel;

executing a policy certification determining authenticity of the auxiliary policy based on an electronic signature provided to data describing the auxiliary policy and issuing an attribute certification for certifying attributes of user agent;

issuing a public key certification for certifying that the user agent on a network has been authenticated, each agent including a trust engine for interpreting the policy certification and the attribute certification;

enabling use of the production data by the user agent and other agents only via a communication entity implemented by said second virtual communication channel based on said auxiliary policy wherein a computer readable recording medium of a computer device stores the agents.

5. An agent collaboration method for connecting agents through a virtual communication channel, comprising:

a computer readable recording medium of a computer device storing the agents;

generating a first communication channel for agents having attributes indicating permission to receive production data, said first communication channel being defined based on a policy indicating a relationship between said attributes and roles assigned to the agents in accordance with the attributes;

dynamically integrating the first communication channel with a second communication channel responsive to receipt of an auxiliary policy via said first communication channel;

issuing a policy certification for certifying that the auxiliary policy is authentic based on an electronic signature provided to data describing the auxiliary policy and issuing an attribute certification for certifying the attributes of the agents;

issuing a public key certification for certifying that an agent has been authenticated, each agent including a trust engine for interpreting the policy certification and the attribute certification and

exchanging the production data among agents executing corresponding roles assigned by the auxiliary policy via said second communication channel.