DATA PROTECTION SYSTEM

• US 20020101989A1
• Filed: 06/02/1998
• Published: 08/01/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: CAMMACK, WILLIAM E., EDENSON, ROY I., MARKANDEY, VISHAL, SHIPLEY, FRED J., MIDDLETON, RYAN R., WETZEL, ALAN T.
• Granted Patent: US 6,526,144 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 380/210
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91364 the video signal being scrambled
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43632 involving a wired protocol, e.g. IEEE 1394 high-speed IEEE 1394 serial bus H04L12/40052
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4367 Establishing a secure communication between the client and a peripheral device or smart card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 for scrambling ; for copy protection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58

Abstract

A method of communicating from a transmitter to a receiver over a communications medium. For the transmitter, the method includes the step of formatting data into a data stream to be communicated across the communications medium. This data stream comprises a plurality of headers (PACK HEADER). Moreover, for each of the plurality of headers, the method performs two steps. First, the method modifies information encoded by the header by performing a bitwise logical operation between selected bits of the header (B) with a predetermined bit pattern (A). Second, the method transmits the plurality of headers on to the communications medium. For the receiver, the method includes the step of receiving the plurality of headers from the communications medium. Additionally, for each of the received headers, the receiver recovers the information encoded by the header.

In another embodiment, there is provided an information package medium (DVD). The package medium comprises means for storing a plurality of data quantities. Each of the plurality of data quantities comprises a set of bits. The package medium further comprises a plurality of machine-readable scramble codes (Scramble_Pattern_IDs), and each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes corresponds to one of the plurality of data quantities and indicates a manner of descrambling the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities.

Claims

1. A method of communicating from a transmitter to a receiver over a communications medium, comprising the steps of:

in the transmitter, the steps of;

formatting data into a data stream to be communicated across the communications medium, the data stream comprising a plurality of headers;

for each of the plurality of headers, the steps of;

first, modifying information encoded by the header by performing a bitwise logical operation between selected bits of the header with a predetermined bit pattern; and

second, transmitting the plurality of headers on to the communications medium;

in the receiver, the steps of;

receiving the plurality of headers from the communications medium; and

for each of the received headers, recovering the information encoded by the header.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of performing a bitwise logical operation comprises performing a bitwise exclusive OR operation between information encoded by the header and the predetermined bit pattern.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the step of recovering the information encoded by the header comprises performing a bitwise exclusive OR operation between the predetermined bit pattern and each header as received from the communications medium.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of recovering the information encoded by the header comprises performing a bitwise exclusive OR operation between the predetermined bit pattern and each header as received from the communications medium.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the communications medium comprises a 1394 communications medium.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the predetermined bit pattern comprises a clock count.

7. The method of claim 6:

wherein the communications medium is coupled to a plurality of nodes;

wherein each of the nodes comprises;

a first clock register for storing an initial clock value provided from a master clock, wherein the initial clock value is thereafter changed as a function of time; and

a second clock register for storing the initial clock value, wherein the initial clock value is the clock count.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the clock count is a 32 bit pattern.

9. The method of claim 7:

wherein the initial clock value stored in the first clock register for each of the nodes is incremented by a system clock; and

wherein the initial clock value stored in the second clock register is not incremented by the system clock.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein the initial clock value stored in the second clock register is inaccessible by a register read from the communications medium.

11. The method of claim 7:

wherein the second clock register is formed on an integrated circuit chip; and

wherein the initial clock value stored in the second clock register is inaccessible by a read submitted from outside the integrated circuit chip.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the data stream comprises a 1394 program data stream.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the data stream comprises a 1394 transport data stream.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the data comprises compressed data.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the compressed data comprises MPEG compressed data.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the compressed data comprises DVD compressed data.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein the compressed data comprises digital video broadcast compressed data.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein the compressed data comprises digital television compressed data.

19. The method of claim 1:

wherein the step of performing a bitwise logical operation comprises performing a bitwise exclusive OR operation between information encoded by the header and the predetermined bit pattern

wherein the step of recovering the information encoded by the header comprises performing a bitwise exclusive OR operation between the predetermined bit pattern and each header as received from the communications medium;

wherein the communications medium is coupled to a plurality of nodes; and

wherein each of the nodes comprises;

a first clock register for storing an initial clock value provided from a master clock, wherein the initial clock value is thereafter changed as a function of time; and

a second clock register for storing the initial clock value, wherein the initial clock value is the clock count.

20. An information package medium, comprising:

means for storing a plurality of data quantities, wherein each of the plurality of data quantities comprises a set of bits; and

a plurality of machine-readable scramble codes, wherein each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes corresponds to one of the plurality of data quantities and indicates a manner of descrambling the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities.

21. The information package medium of claim 20 wherein each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes indicates a manner of descrambling the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities by indicating a pattern for reordering the set of bits in the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities.

22. The information package medium of claim 20 and further comprising a transponder for transmitting a signal indicating the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes.

23. The information package medium of claim 22 wherein each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes indicates a manner of descrambling the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities by indicating a pattern for reordering the set of bits in the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities.

24. The information package medium of claim 22 wherein the transponder is for transmitting the signal indicating the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes in response to an interrogation signal.

25. The information package medium of claim 20:

wherein the plurality of data quantities comprises a first plurality of data quantities;

and further comprising means for storing a second plurality of data quantities, wherein each of the second plurality of data quantities comprises a set of bits; and

wherein each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes further corresponds to each of one of the first plurality of data quantities and one of the second plurality of data quantities and indicates a same manner of descrambling both the corresponding one of the first plurality of data quantities and the corresponding one of the second plurality of data quantities.

26. The information package medium of claim 20 wherein the plurality of data quantities represent DVD data.

27. The information package medium of claim 20 wherein the plurality of data quantities represent D-VCR data.

29. The method of claim 28 and further comprising the step of descrambling the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities in response to the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes.

30. The method of claim 29:

and further comprising the step of, in the receiver, receiving the data stream; and

wherein the receiver performs the descrambling step.

31. The method of claim 29 wherein the formatting step comprises including the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes into the data stream.

32. The method of claim 31 wherein the receiver performs the descrambling step in response to the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes in the data stream.

33. The method of claim 29 wherein each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes indicates a manner of descrambling the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities by indicating a pattern for reordering the set of bits in the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities.

34. The method of claim 29:

wherein the information package medium further comprises a transponder;

and further comprising the step of in the transmitter, sending an interrogation signal to the transponder; and

wherein the step of reading the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes comprises receiving the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes in response to the interrogation signal.

35. The method of claim 34 wherein the step of receiving the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes comprises receiving an RF signal representing the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes.

36. The method of claim 34 and further comprising, responsive to the interrogation signal, transmitting a signal with the transponder indicating the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes.

37. The method of claim 34:

and further comprising, responsive to the interrogation signal, transmitting an RF signal with the transponder representing the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes; and

wherein the step of receiving the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes comprises receiving the RF signal representing the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes.

38. The method of claim 29:

wherein the plurality of data quantities comprises a first plurality of data quantities;

wherein the data stream comprises a first data stream; and

further comprising, in the transmitter, the steps of;

reading a second plurality of data quantities from the information package medium, wherein each of the second plurality of data quantities comprises a set of bits;

formatting the second plurality of data quantities into a second data stream to be communicated across the communications medium; and

transmitting the second data stream on to the communications medium.

39. The method of claim 38 wherein each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes further corresponds to each of one of the first plurality of data quantities and one of the second plurality of data quantities and indicates a same manner of descrambling both the corresponding one of the first plurality of data quantities and the corresponding one of the second plurality of data quantities.

40. The method of claim 39 and further comprising the step of descrambling the corresponding one of the second plurality of data quantities in response to the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes.

41. The method of claim 29 wherein the plurality of data quantities represent DVD data.

42. The method of claim 41 wherein the step of reading a plurality of machine-readable scramble codes from the information package medium comprises reading the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes from a DVD storing the DVD data no later than during spinup.

43. The method of claim 29 wherein the plurality of data quantities represent D-VDR data.

44. The method of claim 28 and further comprising the steps of:

determining whether the information package is currently located in the transmitter; and

responsive to determining that the information package has been removed from the transmitter, prohibiting the data quantities from being written from the transmitter on to the communications medium.

45. The method of claim 44 wherein the determining step occurs in response to attaching a node to the communications medium.

46. The method of claim 45 wherein the communications medium is a 1394 communications medium.

47. The method of claim 28 wherein the communications medium is a 1394 communications medium.

28. A method of communicating from a transmitter to a receiver over a communications medium, comprising the steps of:

in the transmitter, the steps of;

reading a plurality of data quantities from an information package medium, wherein each of the plurality of data quantities comprises a set of bits;

reading a plurality of machine-readable scramble codes from the information package medium, wherein each of the plurality of machine-readable scramble codes corresponds to one of the plurality of data quantities and indicates a manner of descrambling the corresponding one of the plurality of data quantities;

formatting the plurality of data quantities into a data stream to be communicated across the communications medium; and

transmitting the data stream on to the communications medium.