Data encryption device

• US 8,683,229 B2
• Filed: 03/25/2009
• Issued: 03/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yokota, Kaoru, Nonaka, Masao, Futa, Yuichi, Matsuzaki, Natsume
• Primary Examiner(s): Chea, Philip
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TRONG H
• Application Number:
  US12/933,437
• Publication Number:
  US 20110022851A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,826 Days
• Field of Search: 726 26- 30, 380/270, 380277-286, 380 44- 47, 380 28- 30, 713/1, 713/171, 713193-194, 713/300, 713/310, 713/320
• US Class Current: 713/193
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0002 Remote monitoring of patients using telemetry, e.g. transmission of vital signals via a communication network A61B5/07 takes precedence; transmission systems for measured values G08C; transmission H04B; transmission of digital information H04L; wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/805 Lightweight hardware, e.g. radio-frequency identification [RFID] or sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0894 Escrow, recovery or storing of secret information, e.g. secret key escrow or cryptographic key storage

Abstract

A portable data sensor tag includes a memory, a data communication circuit which receives a wireless activation signal from an external terminal, and, in an operation using electromotive force generated by the received activation signal, receives an encryption key from the external terminal and stores the received encryption key in the memory. A power source supplies power, an insulator which switches a power supply from the power source from off to on, and a sensor circuit reads the encryption key from the memory, encrypts measured data using the read encryption key, and stores the encrypted measurement data in the memory. The sensor circuit operates using the power supplied from the power source after the power supply from the power source is switched on.

Claims

1. A portable data encryption device, comprising:

a storage;

a primary cell including a power supply that is off in an initial state and that supplies power when switched on;

a wireless communication circuit which receives a wireless activation signal from an external terminal, and, in an operation using electromotive force generated by the received activation signal when the power supply from the primary cell is off, receives an encryption key from the external terminal and stores the received encryption key in the storage;

a switch which switches the power supply of the primary cell from off to on after the encryption key is stored in the storage by the wireless communication circuit;

an encryption circuit which reads the encryption key from the storage, encrypts data using the read encryption key, and stores the encrypted data in the storage, the encryption circuit operating using the power supplied from the primary cell after the power supply from the primary cell is switched on; and

a storage control unit configured to control access by the wireless communication circuit to the storage and access by the encryption circuit to the storage,

wherein the storage control unit prohibits the wireless communication circuit from writing the encryption key in the storage, when the encryption circuit operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, and

the switch switches the power supply from the primary cell one way from off to on.

2. The data encryption device according to claim 1,

wherein the encryption circuit, which is a sensor circuit, measures biological data of a user of the data encryption device, reads the encryption key from the storage, encrypts the biological data using the read encryption key, and stores encrypted biological data in the storage.

3. The data encryption device according to claim 1, further comprising

an input unit configured to receive, as an input, biological data of a user from an external measuring device which measures the biological data,

wherein the encryption circuit encrypts the biological data as the data, and stores the encrypted biological data in the storage.

4. The data encryption device according to claim 1,

wherein, when the power supply from the primary cell is switched on and the encryption circuit operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, with the encryption key not being stored in the storage, the encryption circuit stores the data in the storage without encryption.

5. The data encryption device according to claim 1,

wherein, when the power supply from the primary cell is switched on and the encryption circuit operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, with the encryption key not being stored in the storage, the encryption circuit discards the data, and does not store the data in the storage.

6. The data encryption device according to claim 1,

wherein the primary cell and the encryption circuit are urged toward each other, and

the switch is an insulator interposed between the urged primary cell and the urged encryption circuit.

7. The data encryption device according to claim 1,

wherein the data is personal information of a user of the data encryption device.

8. The data encryption device according to claim 1,

wherein the encryption circuit is a sensor circuit which measures environment information around an item to which the data encryption device is attached, reads the encryption key from the storage, encrypts the environment information using the read encryption key, and stores the encrypted environment information in the storage.

9. The data encryption device according to claim 1,

wherein the wireless communication circuit is a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) communication circuit.

10. The data encryption device according to claim 1, further comprising

an indicator configured to display an indication that the encryption key is stored in the storage.

11. The data encryption device according to claim 1, further comprising

a storage control unit configured to control an access by the wireless communication circuit to the storage and an access by the encryption circuit to the storage,

wherein, when the encryption circuit operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, the storage control unit is configured to allow the encryption circuit to write data in the storage, and to prohibit the wireless communication circuit from writing data in the storage,

the encryption circuit is a sensor circuit, and measures biological data of a user of the data encryption device, reads the encryption key from the storage, encrypts the biological data using the read encryption key, and stores encrypted biological data in the storage,

the storage control unit is configured to prohibit the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage when a request for obtaining the encrypted data stored in the storage is received from the wireless communication circuit, and

the wireless communication circuit transmits the encrypted data stored in the storage to a predetermined destination, after the storage control unit prohibits the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage.

12. The data encryption device according to claim 11,

wherein, when the request for obtaining the encrypted data stored in the storage is received from the wireless communication circuit, the storage control unit is configured to determine whether or not the encryption circuit has written the data in the storage within a predetermined period, and to prohibit the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage when it is determined that the encryption circuit has not written the data in the storage in the predetermined period.

13. The data encryption device according to claim 12,

wherein, when the request for obtaining the encrypted data stored in the storage is received from the wireless communication circuit, the storage control unit is configured to determine whether or not the encryption circuit has written the data in the storage within a predetermined period, and when it is determined that the encryption circuit has written the data in the storage within the predetermined period, the storage control unit is configured to allow the encryption circuit to write the data in the storage, and to maintain the prohibition against writing the data in the storage by the wireless communication circuit.

14. The data encryption device according to claim 12,

wherein, when the request for obtaining the encrypted data stored in the storage is received from the wireless communication circuit, the storage control unit is configured to output, to the encryption circuit, a predetermined signal for confirming that the encryption circuit is in operation, and determines whether or not the encryption circuit has responded within a predetermined period, and the storage control unit prohibits the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage when it is determined that the response has not received within the predetermined period.

15. The data encryption device according to claim 14,

wherein, when the request for obtaining the encrypted data stored in the storage is received from the wireless communication circuit, the storage control unit is configured to output, to the encryption circuit, a predetermined signal for confirming that the encryption circuit is in operation, and determines whether or not the encryption circuit has responded within a predetermined period, and when it is determined that the response has received within the predetermined period, the storage control unit is configured to allow the encryption circuit to write the data in the storage, and to maintain the prohibition against writing the data in the storage by the wireless communication circuit.

16. The data encryption device according to claim 1, further comprising

a storage control unit configured to control an access by the wireless communication circuit to the storage and an access by the encryption circuit to the storage,

wherein, when the encryption circuit operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, the storage control unit is configured to allow the encryption circuit to write data in the storage, and to prohibit the wireless communication circuit from writing data in the storage,

the encryption circuit is a sensor circuit which measures biological data of a user of the data encryption device, reads the encryption key from the storage, encrypts the biological data using the read encryption key, stores encrypted biological data in the storage, and when the biological data is measured for a predetermined number of times, notifies of the storage control unit that the biological data has been measured for the predetermined number of times,

the storage control unit is configured to prohibit the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage when the notification that the biological data has been measured for the predetermined number of times is received, and

the wireless communication circuit transmits the encrypted data stored in the storage to a predetermined destination, after the storage control unit prohibits the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage.

17. The data encryption device according to claim 1, further comprising

a storage control unit configured to control an access by the wireless communication circuit to the storage and an access by the encryption circuit to the storage,

wherein, when the encryption circuit operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, the storage control unit is configured to allow the encryption circuit to write data in the storage, and to prohibit the wireless communication circuit from writing data in the storage,

the encryption circuit is a sensor circuit, and measures biological data of a user of the data encryption device, reads the encryption key from the storage, encrypts the biological data using the read encryption key, and stores encrypted biological data in the storage,

the storage control unit is configured to prohibit the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage after a predetermined time has passed since the power supply from the primary cell has switched on, and

the wireless communication circuit transmits the encrypted data stored in the storage to a predetermined destination, after the storage control unit prohibits the encryption circuit from writing the data in the storage.

18. A control method for a portable data encryption device, the control method comprising:

receiving a wireless activation signal from an external terminal by a wireless communication circuit of the portable data encryption device, the wireless communication circuit operating using electromotive force generated by the received activation signal when a power supply of a primary cell of the portable data encryption device is off;

receiving an encryption key from the external terminal by the wireless communication circuit and storing the received encryption key by the wireless communication circuit in a storage of the portable data encryption device, when the power supply from the primary cell is off;

switching the power supply from the primary cell from off to on by a switch of the portable data encryption device after the encryption key is stored in the storage by the wireless communication circuit, the power supply supplying power when switched on from an initial off state; and

prohibiting the wireless communication circuit from writing the encryption key in the storage when an encryption circuit of the portable data encryption device operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, reading the encryption key by the encryption circuit from the storage after the power supplied from the primary cell is switched on from off by the switch, encrypting data by the encryption circuit, and storing the encrypted data by the encryption circuit in the storage,

wherein the switch switches the power supply from the primary cell one way from off to on.

19. A portable integrated circuit, comprising:

a storage;

a primary cell including a power supply that is off in an initial state and that supplies power when switched to an on state;

a wireless communication circuit which receives a wireless activation signal from an external terminal, and, in an operation using electromotive force generated by the received activation signal when the power supply from the primary cell is off, receives an encryption key from the external terminal and stores the received encryption key in the storage;

a switch which switches the power supply from the primary cell from off to on after the encryption key is stored in the storage by the wireless communication circuit;

an encryption circuit which reads the encryption key from the storage, encrypts data using the read encryption key, and stores the encrypted data in the storage, the encryption circuit operating using the power supplied from the primary cell after the power supply from the primary cell is switched on; and

a storage control unit configured to control access by the wireless communication circuit to the storage and access by the encryption circuit to the storage,

wherein the storage control unit prohibits the wireless communication circuit from writing the encryption key in the storage, when the encryption circuit operates using the power supplied from the primary cell, and

the switch switches the power supply from the primary cell one way from off to on.