Group Proving Method and Radio Frequency Identification Reader and Tags using Thereof

• US 20110128130A1
• Filed: 08/18/2010
• Published: 06/02/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Inventors: Ting, Wei-Chih
• Granted Patent: US 8,446,260 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.42
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07309 Means for preventing undesired reading or writing from or onto record carriers

Abstract

A group proving method includes the following steps. First, a query command is broadcasted to radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, each of which responds the query command with tag identification data. Next, a first round parameter is generated and broadcasted according to the tag identification data, and each RFID tag responds the first round parameter with a first response parameter. Then, a second round parameter is generated and broadcasted according to the first response parameter, and each RFID tag determines whether the second round parameter is received in a predetermined period after the first round parameter was received and whether the first and second round parameters correspond to each other. If so, each RFID tag updates its tag key according to a random number parameter and outputs a second response parameter. Thereafter, group proving data are generated according to the above-mentioned data.

Claims

1. A group proving method applied to a plurality of radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to perform a group proving operation together with a RFID reader, the group proving method comprising the steps of:

generating a random number parameter in response to a first round parameter provided by the RFID reader, wherein the first round parameter relates to tag identification data of each of the RFID tags;

generating a first response parameter according to the first round parameter, the random number parameter and a tag key;

determining whether each of the RFID tags receives a second round parameter provided by the RFID reader in a predetermined period after an initial time point of receiving the first round parameter, wherein the second round parameter relates to the first response parameter of the RFID tags;

determining whether the first and second round parameters correspond to each other;

updating the tag key according to the random number parameter when the first and second round parameters correspond to each other and the second round parameter is received in the predetermined period after the initial time point; and

generating and outputting a second response parameter according to the second round parameter, the random number parameter and the updated tag key.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, after the step of determining whether each of the RFID tags receives the second round parameter in the predetermined period after the initial time point, the step of:

triggering an ending event through each of the RFID tags when the second round parameter is not received in the predetermined period after the initial time point.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, after the step of determining whether the first and second round parameters correspond to each other, the step of:

triggering an ending event through each of the RFID tags when it is determined that the second round parameter does not correspond to the first round parameter.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, after the step of generating the first response parameter according to the first round parameter, the random number parameter and the tag key, the steps of:

calculating a first operation parameter according to the first round parameter and the random number parameter; and

encrypting the first operation parameter to generate the first response parameter according to the tag key.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of generating and outputting the second response parameter according to the second round parameter, the random number parameter and the updated tag key comprises:

calculating a second operation parameter according to the second round parameter and the random number parameter; and

encrypting the second operation parameter to generate and output the second response parameter according to the updated tag key.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

initializing the RFID tags to make each of the RFID tags have the tag identification data and the tag key; and

providing the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags to the RFID reader in response to a query command provided by the RFID reader;

wherein the RFID reader determines a tag set and generates the first round parameter according to the received tag identification data.

7. A group proving method applied to a radio frequency identification (RFID) reader to perform a group proving operation together with a plurality of RFID tags, the group proving method comprising the steps of:

broadcasting a query command, wherein each of the RFID tags responds the query command with tag identification data;

determining a tag set according to the received tag identification data, and generating and broadcasting a first round parameter, wherein each of the RFID tags responds the first round parameter with a first response parameter, and the first response parameter relates to the first round parameter, a tag key of each of the RFID tags and a random number parameter generated by each of the RFID tags;

generating and broadcasting a second round parameter according to the first response parameter corresponding to each of the RFID tags, wherein each of the RFID tags determines whether the second round parameter is received in a predetermined period after an initial time point of receiving the first round parameter and whether the first and second round parameters correspond to each other, and each of the RFID tags updates the tag key according to the random number parameter, and generates and outputs a second response parameter according to the second round parameter, the random number parameter and the updated tag key if the second round parameter is received in the predetermined period after the initial time point and the first and second round parameters correspond to each other; and

generating group proving data according to a reader key, the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags, and the first and second response parameters.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising the step of:

initializing the RFID reader to make the RFID reader have the reader key.

9. The method according to claim 7, further comprising the step of:

determining whether the RFID reader is connected to a verification server through a communication link;

determining whether the RFID reader has the group proving data; and

transmitting the group proving data to the verification server when the RFID reader is connected to the verification server through the communication link and the RFID reader has the group proving data;

wherein the verification server decrypts the group proving data according to the pre-stored reader key, the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags and the tag key of each of the RFID tags to audit the group proving data.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein the step of generating and broadcasting the first round parameter according to the tag identification data corresponding to each of the RFID tags comprises:

hashing the tag identification data of the RFID tags to find the first round parameter.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein the step of generating and broadcasting the second round parameter according to the first response parameter corresponding to each of the RFID tags comprises:

hashing the first response parameter of the RFID tags to find the second round parameter.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein the step of generating the group proving data according to the reader key, the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags, and the first and second response parameters comprises:

encrypting the tag identification data, the first response parameter and the second response parameter, responded by each of the RFID tags, according to the reader key to generate and store the group proving data.

13. A group proving method applied between a radio frequency identification (RFID) reader and a plurality of RFID tags, the group proving method comprising the steps of:

broadcasting a query command through the RFID reader;

responding the query command with tag identification data to the RFID reader through each of the RFID tags;

determining a tag set through the RFID reader according to the received tag identification data, and generating and broadcasting a first round parameter;

storing the first round parameter through each of the RFID tags, generating a random number parameter, and generating a first response parameter according to the first round parameter, the random number parameter and a tag key;

generating and broadcasting a second round parameter through the RFID reader according to the first response parameter corresponding to each of the RFID tags;

determining whether each of the RFID tags receives the second round parameter, provided by the RFID reader, in a predetermined period after an initial time point of receiving the first round parameter through each of the RFID tags, and determining whether the second round parameter corresponds to the first round parameter;

updating the tag key through each of the RFID tags according to the random number parameter, and generating and outputting a second response parameter according to the second round parameter, the random number parameter and the updated tag key when the first and second round parameters correspond to each other and the second round parameter is received in the predetermined period after the initial time point; and

generating group proving data through the RFID reader according to a reader key, the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags, and the first and second response parameters.

14. The method according to claim 13, further comprising the steps of:

initializing the RFID tags to make each of the RFID tags have the tag identification data and the tag key; and

initializing the RFID reader to make the RFID reader have the reader key.

15. The method according to claim 13, further comprising, after the step of determining whether each of the RFID tags receives the second round parameter in the predetermined period after the initial time point, the step of:

triggering an ending event through each of the RFID tags when the second round parameter is not received in the predetermined period after the initial time point.

16. The method according to claim 13, further comprising, after the step of determining whether the first and second round parameters correspond to each other, the step of:

triggering an ending event through each of the RFID tags when it is determined that the second round parameter does not correspond to the first round parameter.

17. The method according to claim 13, further comprising the steps of:

determining whether the RFID reader is connected to a verification server through a communication link;

determining whether the RFID reader has the group proving data; and

transmitting the group proving data to the verification server when the RFID reader is connected to the verification server through the communication link and the RFID reader has the group proving data;

wherein the verification server decrypts the group proving data according to the pre-stored reader key, the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags and the tag key of each of the RFID tags to audit the group proving data.

18. A radio frequency identification (RFID) tag group, comprising a plurality of RFID tags so that a group proving operation between the RFID tags and a RFID reader is performed, each of the RFID tags comprising:

a random number generator;

a memory for storing a program code and storing tag identification data and a tag key in response to an initialization operation;

an encrypting module; and

a controller for performing a group proving method according to the program code, the group proving method comprising the steps of;

storing a first round parameter provided by the RFID reader and generating a random number parameter, wherein the first round parameter relates to the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags;

driving the encrypting module to generate a first response parameter according to the first round parameter, the random number parameter and the tag key;

determining whether each of the RFID tags receives a second round parameter, provided by the RFID reader, in a predetermined period after an initial time point of receiving the first round parameter, wherein the second round parameter relates to the first response parameter of the RFID tags;

determining whether the first and second round parameters correspond to each other;

receiving the second round parameter and updating the tag key according to the random number parameter when the first and second round parameters correspond to each other and the second round parameter is received in the predetermined period after the initial time point; and

driving the encrypting module to generate and output a second response parameter according to the second round parameter, the random number parameter and the updated tag key.

19. A radio frequency identification (RFID) reader for performing a group proving operation with a plurality of RFID tags, the RFID reader comprising:

a plurality of antennas;

a memory for storing a program code and storing a reader key in response to an initialization operation; and

a processor for performing a group proving method according to the program code, the group proving method comprising the steps of;

broadcasting a query command, wherein each of the RFID tags responds the query command with tag identification data;

determining a tag set according to the received tag identification data and generating and broadcasting a first round parameter, wherein each of the RFID tags responds the first round parameter with a first response parameter, wherein the first response parameter relates to the first round parameter, a tag key of each of the RFID tags and a random number parameter generated by each of the RFID tags;

generating and broadcasting a second round parameter according to the first response parameter corresponding to each of the RFID tags, wherein each of the RFID tags determines whether the second round parameter is received in a predetermined period after an initial time point of receiving the first round parameter and whether the first and second round parameters correspond to each other, wherein if the second round parameter is received in the predetermined period after the initial time point and the first and second round parameters correspond to each other, each of the RFID tags updates the tag key according to the random number parameter, and generates and outputs a second response parameter according to the second round parameter, the random number parameter and the updated tag key; and

generating group proving data according to the reader key, the tag identification data of each of the RFID tags and the first and second response parameters.