Providing power control to an electronic device using authentication
First Claim
1. A method of operating an electronic device, the method comprising:
- receiving, by the electronic device, a “
turn off”
command from a user of the electronic device, the “
turn off”
command directing the electronic device to turn off;
in response to the “
turn off”
command, invoking, by the electronic device, an authentication operation to authenticate the user, the authentication operation providing an electronic power control authentication result indicating whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; and
performing, by the electronic device, a power control operation in response to the electronic power control authentication result, the power control operation (i) powering down location identification circuitry of the electronic device when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device, and (ii) maintaining power to the location identification circuitry of the electronic device when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user not to be an authorized operator of the electronic device;
wherein invoking the authentication operation to authenticate the user includes;
in response to the “
turn off”
command, prompting the user to input a user credential,after prompting the user, receiving the user credential from the user and performing an evaluation operation on the user credential to determine whether the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, andoutputting the electronic power control authentication result based on the evaluation operation to indicate whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device;
the method further comprising;
incrementing a counter which stores a current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts in response to each determination that the user is not an authorized operator of the electronic device,resetting the counter in response to a determination that the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, andperforming a remedial operation when the current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts stored by the counter reaches a predefined threshold;
wherein the electronic device includes memory which stores firmware; and
wherein performing the remedial operation includes;
disabling the electronic device from performing an upgrade to the firmware until the electronic device receives a “
proper reset”
command.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A technique provides power control for an electronic device. The technique involves receiving a “turn off” command from a user of the electronic device, the “turn off” command directing the electronic device to turn off. The technique further involves, in response to the “turn off” command, invoking an authentication operation to authenticate the user, the authentication operation providing an authentication result indicating whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device. The technique further involves performing a power control operation in response to the authentication result, the power control operation (i) powering down location identification circuitry when the authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator, and (ii) maintaining power to the location identification circuitry when the authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user not to be an authorized operator.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A method of operating an electronic device, the method comprising:
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receiving, by the electronic device, a “
turn off”
command from a user of the electronic device, the “
turn off”
command directing the electronic device to turn off;in response to the “
turn off”
command, invoking, by the electronic device, an authentication operation to authenticate the user, the authentication operation providing an electronic power control authentication result indicating whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; andperforming, by the electronic device, a power control operation in response to the electronic power control authentication result, the power control operation (i) powering down location identification circuitry of the electronic device when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device, and (ii) maintaining power to the location identification circuitry of the electronic device when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user not to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; wherein invoking the authentication operation to authenticate the user includes; in response to the “
turn off”
command, prompting the user to input a user credential,after prompting the user, receiving the user credential from the user and performing an evaluation operation on the user credential to determine whether the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, and outputting the electronic power control authentication result based on the evaluation operation to indicate whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; the method further comprising; incrementing a counter which stores a current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts in response to each determination that the user is not an authorized operator of the electronic device, resetting the counter in response to a determination that the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, and performing a remedial operation when the current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts stored by the counter reaches a predefined threshold; wherein the electronic device includes memory which stores firmware; and wherein performing the remedial operation includes; disabling the electronic device from performing an upgrade to the firmware until the electronic device receives a “
proper reset”
command. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. An electronic device, comprising:
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location identification circuitry; memory; and control circuitry coupled to the location identification circuitry and the memory, the memory storing instructions which, when carried out by the control circuitry, cause the control circuitry to; receive a “
turn off”
command from a user of the electronic device, the “
turn off”
command directing the electronic device to turn off,in response to the “
turn off”
command, invoke an authentication operation to authenticate the user, the authentication operation providing an electronic power control authentication result indicating whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device, andperform a power control operation in response to the electronic power control authentication result, the power control operation (i) powering down the location identification circuitry when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device, and (ii) maintaining power to the location identification circuitry when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user not to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; wherein the control circuitry, when invoking the authentication operation, is constructed and arranged to; in response to the “
turn off”
command, prompt the user to input a user credential,after prompting the user, receive the user credential from the user and perform an evaluation operation on the user credential to determine whether the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, and output the electronic power control authentication result based on the evaluation operation to indicate whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; wherein the instructions further cause the control circuitry to; increment a counter which stores a current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts in response to each determination that the user is not an authorized operator of the electronic device, reset the counter in response to a determination that the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, and perform a remedial operation when the current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts stored by the counter reaches a predefined threshold; wherein the memory of the electronic device stores firmware; and wherein the control circuitry, when performing the remedial operation, is constructed and arranged to; disable the electronic device from performing an upgrade to the firmware until the electronic device receives a “
proper reset”
command.
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19. A computer program product having a non-transitory computer readable medium which stores a set of instructions to operate an electronic device, the set of instructions, when carried out by the electronic device, causing the electronic device to perform a method of:
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receiving a “
turn off”
command from a user of the electronic device, the “
turn off”
command directing the electronic device to turn off;in response to the “
turn off”
command, invoking an authentication operation to authenticate the user, the authentication operation providing an electronic power control authentication result indicating whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; andperforming a power control operation in response to the electronic power control authentication result, the power control operation (i) powering down location identification circuitry of the electronic device when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device, and (ii) maintaining power to the location identification circuitry of the electronic device when the electronic power control authentication result indicates that the electronic device considers the user not to be an authorized operator of the electronic device, wherein invoking the authentication operation to authenticate the user includes; in response to the “
turn off”
command, prompting the user to input a user credential,after prompting the user, receiving the user credential from the user and performing an evaluation operation on the user credential to determine whether the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, and outputting the electronic power control authentication result based on the evaluation operation to indicate whether the electronic device considers the user to be an authorized operator of the electronic device; the method further comprising; incrementing a counter which stores a current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts in response to each determination that the user is not an authorized operator of the electronic device, resetting the counter in response to a determination that the user is an authorized operator of the electronic device, and performing a remedial operation when the current count of unsuccessful authentication attempts stored by the counter reaches a predefined threshold; and wherein performing the remedial operation includes; disabling the electronic device from performing an upgrade to the set of instructions in the non-transitory computer readable medium until the electronic device receives a “
proper reset”
command.
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Specification