Encrypting communications

• US 9,319,098 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2012
• Issued: 04/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm technologies international, ltd. (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm technologies international, ltd. (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hiscock, Paul Dominic
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoffman, Brandon
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRUONG, THONG P
• Application Number:
  US13/451,512
• Publication Number:
  US 20120269343A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,461 Days
• Field of Search: 380/255
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/713 using frequency hopping
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/10 Frequency-modulated carrier systems, i.e. using frequency-shift keying H04L27/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/103 Chirp modulation for spread spectrum techniques H04B1/69

Abstract

A method of securely communicating a data chirp signal from a transmitter to a receiver, the chirp signal comprising at least one symbol, each symbol comprising one or more identical chirps, each chirp encoding a symbol value, the method comprising: negotiating between the transmitter and the receiver encryption parameters of the chirp signal, the encryption parameters defining at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal; at the transmitter, encrypting the chirp signal as negotiated; at the transmitter, encoding data in the chirp signal via the symbol value of each chirp; and transmitting the encrypted and encoded chirp signal from the transmitter to the receiver.

Claims

1. A method of securely communicating a data chirp signal from a transmitter to a receiver, the chirp signal comprising at least one symbol, each symbol comprising one or more identical chirps, each chirp encoding a symbol value, the method comprising:

negotiating between the transmitter and the receiver encryption parameters of the chirp signal, the encryption parameters defining at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal;

at the transmitter, encrypting the chirp signal according to the encryption parameters by generating each symbol of the chirp signal using the at least one property defined by the negotiated encryption parameters;

at the transmitter, encoding data in the chirp signal via the symbol value of each chirp; and

transmitting the encrypted and encoded chirp signal from the transmitter to the receiver.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the encryption parameters are negotiated such that the at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal is different for contiguous symbols in the chirp signal.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the gradient of the symbol.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the centre frequency of the symbol.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes a value of N, wherein N is a number of samples in each symbol.

6. A method of securely communicating a data chirp signal from a transmitter to a receiver, the chirp signal comprising at least one symbol, each symbol comprising one or more identical chirps, each chirp encoding a symbol value, the method comprising:

negotiating between the transmitter and the receiver encryption parameters of the chirp signal, the encryption parameters defining at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal;

at the transmitter, encrypting the chirp signal as negotiated;

at the transmitter, encoding data in the chirp signal via the symbol value of each chirp;

transmitting the encrypted and encoded chirp signal from the transmitter to the receiver and

re-negotiating encryption parameters periodically such that further data chirp signals are encrypted with re-negotiated encryption parameters that are different to the encryption parameters of the data chirp signal.

7. A transmitter configured to securely communicate a data chirp signal to a receiver, the chirp signal comprising at least one symbol, each symbol comprising one or more identical chirps, each chirp encoding a symbol value, the transmitter comprising:

a processor configured to negotiate with the receiver encryption parameters of the chirp signal, the encryption parameters defining at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal;

an encryption module configured to encrypt the chirp signal according to the encryption parameters by generating each symbol of the chirp signal using the at least one property defined by the negotiated encryption parameters;

an encoding module configured to encode data in the chirp signal via the symbol value of each chirp; and

a transmitting module configured to transmit the encrypted and encoded chirp signal from the transmitter to the receiver.

8. A transmitter as claimed in claim 7, wherein the processor is configured to negotiate the encryption parameters such that the at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal is different for contiguous symbols in the chirp signal.

9. A transmitter as claimed in claim 7, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the gradient of the symbol.

10. A transmitter as claimed in claim 7, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the centre frequency of the symbol.

11. A transmitter as claimed in claim 7, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes a value of N, wherein N is a number of samples in each symbol.

12. A transmitter as claimed in claim 7, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the bandwidth of the symbol.

13. A transmitter configured to securely communicate a data chirp signal to a receiver, the chirp signal comprising at least one symbol, each symbol comprising one or more identical chirps, each chirp encoding a symbol value, the transmitter comprising:

a processor configured to negotiate with the receiver encryption parameters of the chirp signal, the encryption parameters defining at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal;

an encryption module configured to encrypt the chirp signal as negotiated;

an encoding module configured to encode data in the chirp signal via the symbol value of each chirp; and

a transmitting module configured to transmit the encrypted and encoded chirp signal from the transmitter to the receiver; and

wherein the processor is further configured to-renegotiate encryption parameters periodically such that further data chirp signals are encrypted with re-negotiated encryption parameters that are different to the encryption parameters of the data chirp signal.

14. A receiver configured to securely receive a data chirp signal from a transmitter, the chirp signal comprising at least one symbol, each symbol comprising one or more identical chirps, each chirp encoding a symbol value, the receiver comprising:

a processor configured to negotiate with the transmitter encryption parameters of the chirp signal, the encryption parameters defining at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal;

a receiving module configured to receive an encrypted and encoded chirp signal from the transmitter, wherein each symbol of the encrypted and encoded chirp signal was generated using the at least one property defined by the negotiated encryption parameters;

a decrypting module configured to decrypt each symbol of the chirp signal using the at least one property defined by the negotiated encryption parameters; and

a decoding module configured to decode data in the chirp signal via the symbol value of each chirp.

15. A receiver as claimed in claim 14, wherein the processor is configured to negotiate the encryption parameters such that the at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal is different for contiguous symbols in the chirp signal.

16. A receiver as claimed in claim 14, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the gradient of the symbol.

17. A receiver as claimed in claim 14, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the centre frequency of the symbol.

18. A receiver as claimed in claim 14, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes a value of N, wherein N is a number of samples in each symbol.

19. A receiver as claimed in claim 14, wherein the at least one property of each symbol includes the bandwidth of the symbol.

20. A receiver configured to securely receive a data chirp signal from a transmitter, the chirp signal comprising at least one symbol, each symbol comprising one or more identical chirps, each chirp encoding a symbol value, the receiver comprising:

a processor configured to negotiate with the transmitter encryption parameters of the chirp signal, the encryption parameters defining at least one property of each symbol of the chirp signal;

a receiving module configured to receive an encrypted and encoded chirp signal from the transmitter;

a decrypting module configured to decrypt the chirp signal as negotiated; and

a decoding module configured to decode data in the chirp signal via the symbol value of each chirp,

wherein the processor is further configured to renegotiate encryption parameters periodically such that further data chirp signals are encrypted with re-negotiated encryption parameters that are different to the encryption parameters of the data chirp signal.