Join key provisioning of wireless devices

• US 8,369,880 B2
• Filed: 02/27/2009
• Issued: 02/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Citrano, Joseph III, Freeman, Murray Frederic, Potter, Jeffrey Dale, Carlson, Daniel Clifford, Karschnia, Robert John
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, HAI V
• Application Number:
  US12/394,394
• Publication Number:
  US 20090296601A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,439 Days
• Field of Search: 455/507, 370/254
• US Class Current: 455/507
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25428 Field device
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/062 for key distribution, e.g. centrally by trusted party cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key distribution involving a central third party H04L9/0819
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/041 Key generation or derivation

Abstract

Wireless devices are provisioned to join a wireless mesh network by writing an individual or common join key and network identification information to the wireless device, and creating an association of the wireless device with a gateway of the network by providing the gateway with a unique device identifier for the wireless device. The writing of the join key to the wireless device is achieved without revealing the join key to a user.

Claims

1. A method of provisioning a wireless device to join a wireless mesh network, the method comprising:

creating an association of a device ID that uniquely identifies the wireless device with a network manager of the wireless mesh network;

generating a join key, and storing the join key and a network ID on a handheld device without revealing the join key to a human user; and

providing the join key and the network ID from the handheld device to the wireless device through a secure data communication, without revealing the join key to a human user;

wherein the human user at no point has access to the join key.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein creating an association comprises:

connecting the wireless device to the handheld device;

transferring the device ID from the wireless device to the handheld device;

connecting the wireless device to the network manager;

transferring the device ID from the handheld device to the network manager; and

selecting a network manager, gateway, or wireless network with which the device ID of the wireless device is associated.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein creating an association comprises

connecting the wireless device to the handheld device;

transferring the device ID from the wireless devices to the handheld device; and

selecting through the handheld communicator a network manager, gateway, or wireless network with which the device ID of the wireless device is associated.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the handheld communicator automatically retrieves or generates the join key, and provides the join key and network ID to the wireless device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the join key is a common join key received by the handheld communicator from the network manager associated with the network manager, gateway, or wireless network selected.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the join key is an individual join key received by the handheld communicator from the network manager associated with the network manager, gateway, or wireless network selected.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the join key is an individual join key randomly generated by the handheld communicator.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the join key is a temporary join key received by the handheld communicator from the network manager associated with the network manager, gateway, or wireless network selected.

9. The method of claim 4 and further comprising:

communicating the device ID of the wireless device and the join key provided to the wireless device from the handheld communicator to the network manager.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the network manager resides on a gateway device of the wireless mesh network.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein generating a join key comprises randomly generating a join key at the handheld device, and further comprising transmitting the join key from the handheld device to the network server without revealing the join key to a human user.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein generating a join key comprises generating a join key at the network server, and storing the join key on the handheld device comprises transmitting the join key from the network server to the handheld device via secure data communication, and loading the join key in memory on the handheld device.

11. A method of provisioning a wireless device to join a wireless network, the method comprising:

querying the wireless device for a device ID that uniquely identifies the wireless device, and storing the device ID on a handheld device;

selecting at the handheld device a gateway of the wireless network that the wireless device is to join;

automatically retrieving or generating a network ID and randomly generating a join key at the handheld device without revealing the join key to a human user;

providing the join key and the network ID from the handheld device to the wireless device by secure data communication, without revealing the join key to a human user;

associating the device ID with the join key provided; and

communicating the device ID and associated join key from the handheld device to the gateway selected.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the join key comprises one of a common join key, an individual join key, and a temporary join key.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the human user at no point has access to the join key.

14. The method of claim 11 and further comprising:

connecting the wireless device to a network computer in communication with the gateway.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the network computer obtains the device ID and the join key from the handheld device.

16. A method of provisioning a wireless device to join a wireless mesh network, the method comprising:

loading a network ID onto a handheld device;

generating a join key, and storing the join key on the handheld device without revealing the join key to a human user;

querying the wireless device for a device ID with the handheld device, and storing the device ID on the handheld device;

transmitting the network ID and the join key from the handheld device to the wireless device via secure data communication, without revealing the join key to a human user; and

transmitting the device ID from the handheld device to a network server;

wherein the human user at no point has access to the join key.