Certificate issuance server and certification system for certifying operating environment

• US 20070118739A1
• Filed: 12/22/2004
• Published: 05/24/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Inventors: Togashi, Masataka, Nakajima, Tsutomu, Ono, Tsugihiko
• Application Number:
  US10/580,952
• Publication Number:
  US 20070118739A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/158
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• 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 9/3263 involving certificates, e.g. public key certificate [PKC] or attribute certificate [AC]; Public key infrastructure [PKI] arrangements network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using certificates in a packet data network H04L63/0823
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3297 involving time stamps, e.g. generation of time stamps

Abstract

It is an object to provide a certification system designed for security patrol, for example, that certifies a patrolled time and a patrolled site in security patrol rounds. It is another object to certify the time when an image was taken and the site where the image was taken, for example, by attaching information about certified time and certified site to the image. The certification system includes a GPS satellite 10 that supplies location information on the earth, a weather satellite 20 that supplies weather information on the earth, information processing equipment 30 that is carried in security patrol rounds, a certificate issuing server 40 that certifies time information and location information, an information storage server 50 that stores certified time information and certified location information as well as an image with the certified time information and certified location information attached thereto, a verification unit 60 that verifies the time when the image was taken and the site where the image was taken, and a network 70 that interconnects the information processing equipment 30, the certificate issuing server 40, the information storage server 50, and the verification unit 60.

Claims

1. A certification system, comprising:

information processing equipment that processes information;

a certificate issuing server that issues an electronic certificate to certify an operating environment of the information processing equipment; and

an information storage server that stores information in a storage memory section,

wherein the information processing equipment transmits a certification request of the operating environment of the information processing equipment to the certificate issuing server,

wherein the certificate issuing server issues the electronic certificate to certify the operating environment of the information processing equipment based on the certification request of the operating environment transmitted from the information processing equipment,

wherein the information processing equipment receives the electronic certificate issued by the certificate issuing server, generates certified information based on the electronic certificate and processed information and identification information to identify the certified information, and transmits the certified information and the identification information to the information storage server, and

wherein the information storage server receives the certified information and the identification information from the information processing equipment and stores the certified information and the identification information in the storage memory section; and

also receives the identification information, retrieves the certified information stored in the storage memory section, and outputs the certified information retrieved.

2. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the certificate issuing server certifies time when the information processing equipment operates as the operating environment.

3. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the certificate issuing server certifies location where the information processing equipment operates as the operating environment.

4. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the information processing equipment acquires time information indicating a current time, and transmits the time information acquired to the certificate issuing server, and

wherein the certificate issuing server receives the time information from the information processing equipment, attaches unique data available at no other time than a specific time indicated by the time information to the time information, and thereby issues the electronic certificate to certify the specific time.

5. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the information processing equipment acquires location information indicating a location of the information processing equipment, and transmits the location information acquired to the certificate issuing server, and

wherein the certificate issuing server receives the location information from the information processing equipment, attaches unique data available at no other location than a specific location indicated by the location information to the location information, and thereby issues the electronic certificate to certify the specific location.

6. The certification system of claim 5, wherein the certificate issuing server attaches compensation information to compensate the specific location indicated by the location information to the location information, and thereby issues the electronic certificate.

7. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the information processing equipment generates composite information that is made up of the electronic certificate and the processed information, and transmits the composite information to the information storage server as the certified information, and

wherein the information storage server receives the composite information and the identification information from the information processing equipment and stores the composite information and the identification information in the storage memory section;

and also receives a query including the identification information, retrieves the composite information stored in the storage memory section, and outputs the composite information retrieved.

8. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the information processing equipment generates composite information that is made up of the electronic certificate and the processed information, calculates a hash value of the composite information, and transmits the hash value to the information storage server as the certified information, and

wherein the information storage server receives the hash value and the identification information from the information processing equipment and stores the hash value and the identification information in the storage memory section;

also receives the composite information, compares the composite information using the hash value, and stores in the storage memory section the composite information compared; and

also receives a query including the identification information, retrieves the composite information stored in the storage memory section, and outputs the composite information retrieved.

9. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the certificate issuing server and the information storage server are one unit.

16. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the information processing equipment transmits to the information storage server authentication information to access the information storage server together with the certified information and the identification information, and

wherein the information storage server receives the certified information, the identification information, and the authentication information from the information processing equipment, and stores the certified information and the identification information received in the storage memory section if the authentication information is valid.

17. The certification system of claim 1, further comprising a verification unit equipped with a verification memory section that verifies the operating environment of the information processing equipment,

wherein the information storage server transmits part of the certified information and part of the identification information stored in the storage memory section to the verification unit, and

wherein the verification unit receives the certified information and the identification information transmitted by the information processing equipment and stores the certified information and the identification information in the verification memory section;

and also receives a query including the identification information, retrieves the certified information stored in the verification memory section, and verifies the operating environment of the information processing equipment with reference to the certified information retrieved.

21. The certification system of claim 1, wherein the certificate issuing server attaches unique information available at no other time than a current time to time information based on the certification request of the operating environment transmitted from the information processing equipment, and thereby issues the electronic certificate to certify the current time.

10. A certificate issuing server, which issues an electronic certificate to information processing equipment, comprising:

a certification request receiving section that receives a certification request of an operating environment of the information processing equipment;

a certificate issuing section that issues an electronic certificate to certify the operating environment of the information processing equipment based on the certification request received by the certification request receiving section; and

a certificate transmitting section that transmits the electronic certificate issued by the certificate issuing section to the information processing equipment.

11. The certificate issuing server of claim 10, wherein the certificate issuing server certifies at least one of time when the information processing equipment operates as the operating environment and location where the information processing equipment operates as the operating environment.

12. Information processing equipment, which processes information, comprising:

an information processing section that processes information and stores the information as processed information;

a certification requesting section that transmits a certification request of an operating environment of the information processing equipment to a certificate authority serer that issues an electronic certificate that certifies the operating environment of the information processing section; and

an information outputting section that receives the electronic certificate issued by the certificate issuing server in reply to the certification request transmitted by the certification request section, generates certified information based on the electronic certificate and the processed information as well as identification information to identify the certified information, and outputs the certified information and the identification information.

13. The information processing equipment of claim 12, wherein the information processing equipment is a mobile security gadget that acquires information about a security target.

19. The information processing equipment of claim 12, wherein the information processing section photographs an image and stores the image as the processed information.

20. The information processing equipment of claim 12, wherein the information processing section weighs an object and stores a weight result as the processed information.

14. An information storage server, comprising:

an information receiving section that receives from information processing equipment certified information to certify an operating environment of the information processing equipment and identification information to identify the certified information;

a storage memory section that stores the certified information and the identification information received by the information receiving section; and

a certification outputting section that receives a query including the identification information, retrieves the certified information stored in the storage memory section, outputs the certified information retrieved, and thereby certifies the operating environment of the information processing equipment.

15. The information storage server of claim 14, wherein the storage memory section further stores an order of reception of the certified information and the identification information received by the information receiving section.

18. A verification unit, comprising:

a verification receiving section that receives certified information and identification information from an information storage server;

a verification memory section that stores the certified information and the identification information received by the verification receiving section; and

a verifying section that receives a query including the identification information, retrieves the certified information stored in the verification memory section, and verifies an operating environment of information processing equipment with reference to the certified information retrieved.

22. A certification system, comprising:

information processing equipment that processes information;

a certificate issuing server that issues an electronic certificate to certify an operating environment of the information processing equipment; and

an information storage server that stores information in a storage memory section,

wherein the information processing equipment transmits a certification request of the operating environment of the information processing equipment to the certificate issuing server,

wherein the certificate issuing server issues the electronic certificate to certify the operating environment of the information processing equipment based on the certification request of the operating environment transmitted from the information processing equipment,

wherein the information processing equipment receives the electronic certificate issued by the certificate issuing server, generates certified information based on the electronic certificate and processed information, and transmits the certified information to the information storage server, and

wherein the information storage server receives the certified information from the information processing equipment and stores the certified information in the storage memory section; and

also receives identification information to identify the certified information, retrieves the certified information stored in the storage memory section based on the identification information received, and outputs the certified information retrieved.

23. Information processing equipment, which processes information, comprising:

an information processing section that processes information and stores the information as processed information;

a certification requesting section that transmits a certification request of an operating environment of the information processing equipment to a certificate authority serer that issues an electronic certificate that certifies the operating environment of the information processing section; and

an information outputting section that receives the electronic certificate issued by the certificate issuing server in reply to the certification request transmitted by the certification requesting section, generates certified information based on the electronic certificate and the processed information, and outputs the certified information generated.

24. An information storage server, comprising:

an information receiving section that receives certified information to certify an operating environment of the information processing equipment from information processing equipment;

a storage memory section that stores the certified information received by the information receiving section; and

a certification outputting section that receives a query including identification information to identify the certified information, retrieves the certified information stored in the storage memory section, outputs the certified information retrieved, and thereby certifies the operating environment of the information processing equipment.