Wearable device, authentication method, and recording medium

• US 9,112,701 B2
• Filed: 02/11/2008
• Issued: 08/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Sano, Akane, Tsuruta, Masaaki, Ozaki, Nozomu, Asukai, Masamichi, Ito, Taiji, Sugino, Akinobu, Sekizawa, Hidehiko, Sako, Yoichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Khoshnoodi, Nadia
• Application Number:
  US12/069,501
• Publication Number:
  US 20080216171A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,745 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/32 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voiceprints
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/629 to features or functions of an application
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2149 Restricted operating environment
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/10 Human or animal bodies, e.g. vehicle occupants or pedestrians; Body parts, e.g. hands
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/60 Digital content management, e.g. content distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/805 Lightweight hardware, e.g. radio-frequency identification [RFID] or sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0861 using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/32 including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system or for message authentication, e.g. authorization, entity authentication, data integrity or data verification, non-repudiation, key authentication or verification of credentials
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3231 Biological data, e.g. fingerprint, voice or retina network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using biometrical features in a packet data network H04L63/0861
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/082 using revocation of authorisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/33 using wearable devices, e.g. using a smartwatch or smart-glasses
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent

Abstract

A wearable device is provided that is used while being worn on a body of a user. The wearable device includes a biometric-information authentication portion that acquires biometric information from the user for biometric authentication. The wearable device acquires biometric information from a portion in contact with or in the vicinity of the user'"'"'s body to perform the biometric authentication without requesting the user to operate for the biometric authentication.

Claims

1. A wearable device configured to be used while being worn on a body of a current user, the wearable device comprising:

a storage device configured;

to store first profile data for a first existing user comprising first biometric information for the first existing user and first function information for enabling a supply of power to a first subset of a plurality of functions available on the wearable device and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions for the first existing user, and second profile data for a second existing user comprising second biometric information for the second existing user and second function information for enabling a supply of power to a second subset of the plurality of functions and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions for the second existing user, the second subset of the plurality of functions being different than the first subset of the plurality of functions; and

to store default function information for enabling a supply of power to a third subset of the plurality of functions and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions, wherein the third subset of the plurality of functions is different than each of the first subset of the plurality of functions and the second subset of the plurality of functions, and wherein the default function information is added to a new user profile when the new user profile is created;

a biometric-information authentication portion configured;

to acquire the biometric information from the current user and perform biometric authentication according to the biometric information acquired from the body of the current user and the first profile data and the second profile data stored in the storage device;

if during the biometric authentication the biometric information acquired from the current user matches the biometric information for a matching user of the first and second existing users stored in the storage device, to identify the current user as the matching user; and

if during the biometric authentication the biometric information acquired from the current user does not match the biometric information of either of the first and second existing users stored in the storage device, to add new profile data for the current user to the storage device by storing the biometric information acquired from the body of the current user and function information for enabling or disabling the supply of power to each of the plurality of functions for the current user, wherein the added function information is the default functions information; and

a function portion configured to control execution of the plurality of functions using the function information of the profile data to determine whether the supply of power to each of the plurality of functions is to be enabled or disabled for the current user.

2. The wearable device according to claim 1, further comprising a device-wear detection portion configured to detect whether the wearable device is worn or not, and wherein the biometric-information authentication portion is further configured:

to perform the biometric authentication when the device-wear detection portion detects the wearable device is worn; and

to perform no biometric authentication when the device-wear detection portion detects the wearable device is not worn.

3. The wearable device according to claim 1, wherein:

the biometric authentication portion is further configured to perform the biometric authentication again after a predetermined amount of time has passed since the biometric-information authentication portion last performed biometric authentication of the current user.

4. The wearable device according to claim 1, further comprising:

an operation portion configured to perform an operation to the function portion; and

wherein;

the biometric-information authentication portion is further configured to perform the biometric authentication when the operation portion performs the operation.

5. The wearable device according to claim 4, wherein the operation portion is selected from the group consisting of a button, a direction key, a rotation sensor, and a microphone.

6. The wearable device according to claim 1, wherein:

the storage device is further configured to store a plurality of sets of content data performed by the function portion and associated with the plurality of functions;

the profile data further comprises content-data authority information associated with execution of the content data; and

the function portion is configured to use the content-data authority information to enable or disable the plurality of functions for each set of content data and for each function.

7. The wearable device according to claim 1, wherein:

the storage device is further configured to store a plurality of sets of content data performed by the function portion;

each set of content data includes user information that defines which of the first and second existing users is performed to use the content data; and

the function portion is further configured to enable or disable the plurality of functions for each set of content data and for each information according to the profile data and the user information.

8. The wearable device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a communication portion configured to communicate with at least one external device; and

wherein;

the profile data further comprises communication information that defines a particular external device for communication; and

the communication portion is further configured to communicate with the particular external device according to the communication information of the profile data.

9. The wearable device according to claim 8, wherein:

the communication portion is further configured such that, when the biometric-information authentication portion performs the biometric authentication, the communication portion communicates with the particular external device to notify the particular external device of the biometric authentication that has been performed.

10. The wearable device according to claim 1, wherein the biometric information for the current user is selected from the group consisting of a vein pattern, a fingerprint and a walking pattern.

11. The wearable device according to claim 1, wherein the function portion is configured such that, if the biometric-information authentication portion determines that the current user is not authorized, the function portion allows the current user limited access to one or more of the plurality of functions.

12. An authentication method in a wearable device, the wearable device being used while being worn on a body of a current user, the method comprising acts of:

storing first and second profile data on a storage device, the first profile data comprising first biometric information for a first existing user and first function information for enabling a supply of power to a first subset of a plurality of functions available on the device and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions for the first existing user, and the second profile data comprising second biometric information for a second existing user and second function information for enabling a supply of power to a second subset of the plurality of functions and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions for the second existing user, the second subset of the plurality of functions being different than the first subset of the plurality of functions; and

storing default function information for enabling a supply of power to a third subset of the plurality of functions and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions, wherein the third subset of the plurality of functions is different than each of the first subset of the plurality of functions and the second subset of the plurality of functions, and wherein the default function information is added to a new user profile when the new user profile is created;

detecting whether the wearable device is worn or not;

acquiring biometric information from the current user for biometric authentication when the wearable device is detected as being worn, and acquiring no biometric information from the user when the wearable device is detected as not being worn;

comparing the biometric information acquired from the current user with the biometric data for the first and second existing users;

if the biometric information acquired from the current user matches the biometric data for a matching user of the first and second existing users, then identifying the current user as the matching user;

if the biometric information acquired from the current user does not match the biometric data for the first or second existing users, storing new profile data for the current user on the storage device, the new profile data comprising the biometric information acquired from the current user and function information for enabling or disabling the supply of power to each of the plurality of functions for the current user, wherein the additional function information is the default function information; and

executing, on at least one microprocessor, the plurality of functions using the function information of the profile data to determine whether the supply of power to each of the plurality of functions is to be enabled or disabled for the current user.

13. The authentication method of claim 12, wherein the biometric information for the current user is selected from the group consisting of a vein pattern, a fingerprint and a walking pattern.

14. The authentication method of claim 12, further comprising an act of:

if the biometric-information authentication determines that the current user is not authorized, allowing the current user limited access to one or more of the plurality of functions.

15. A recording device configured to record a program for use in a wearable device to be worn on a body of a current user, the recording device being configured to record the program to allow a computer to function as means comprising:

first storing means for;

storing first profile data for a first existing user comprising first biometric information for the first existing user and first function information for enabling a supply of power to a first subset of a plurality of functions available on the wearable device and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions for the first existing user, and second profile data for a second existing user comprising second biometric information for the second existing user and second function information for enabling a supply of power to a second subset of the plurality of functions and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions for the second existing user, the second subset of the plurality of functions being different than the first subset of the plurality of functions; and

storing default function information for enabling a supply of power to a third subset of the plurality of functions and for disabling a supply of power to a remainder of the plurality of functions, wherein the third subset of the plurality of functions is different than each of the first subset of the plurality of functions and the second subset of the plurality of functions, and wherein the default function information is added to a new user profile when the new user profile is created;

detection means for detecting whether the wearable device is worn or not;

acquiring means for acquiring biometric information from the current user for biometric authentication when the detection means detects the wearable device is worn, and for acquiring no biometric information from the current user when the detection means detects the wearable device is not worn;

comparing means for comparing biometric information acquired from the current user with the biometric data for the first and second existing users;

identifying means for identifying the current user as a matching user of the first and second existing users when the biometric information acquired from the current user matches the biometric data for the matching user;

second storing means for storing new profile data for the current user when the biometric information acquired from the current user does not match the biometric data for the first or second existing users, the new profile data comprising the biometric information acquired from the current user and function information for enabling or disabling a supply of power to each of the plurality of functions for the current user, wherein the additional function information is the default function information; and

executing means for executing the plurality of functions using the function information of the profile data to determine whether the supply of power to each of the plurality of functions is to be enabled or disabled for the current user.

16. The recording device according to claim 15, wherein the biometric information acquired from the current user is selected from the group consisting of a vein pattern, a fingerprint and a walking pattern.

17. The recording device according to claim 15, wherein the executing means is configured such that, if the biometric-information authentication determines that the current user is not authorized, the executing means allows the current user limited access to one or more of the plurality of functions.