Security Tokens for Automated Test Equipment Feature Allocation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing automated test equipment (ATE) security systems are inflexible, tying specific test features to particular hardware components and chips, limiting scalability and user flexibility in enabling features.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a system where security tokens grant rights to use common test features on user-selected hardware components without specifying the component, allowing for scalable and flexible feature enablement through program code that accesses and manages these tokens.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If security tokens are tied to specific hardware components, then hardware security control is improved, but user flexibility and scalability are reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvehardware security controlVSAvoiduser flexibility

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces security tokens as an intermediary layer between hardware components and feature enablement. Instead of directly tying features to specific hardware, the tokens act as mediators that can be allocated to different hardware components, providing both security control and user flexibility in feature allocation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If security tokens are tied to specific hardware components, then hardware-specific security is improved, but scalability and reconfigurability are reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvehardware-specific securityVSAvoidscalability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The security tokens are designed to be universal rather than hardware-specific. Each token can enable features on any compatible hardware component, allowing the same token to serve multiple hardware instances and enabling scalable deployment across different system configurations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Reliability

If features are enabled through hardware-specific chips or codes, then security control is improved, but device complexity and cost are reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesecurity controlVSAvoidfeature enablement complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of using unique hardware-specific chips or codes for each feature enablement, the system uses replicable security tokens that can be copied and distributed. Multiple instances of the same token can enable the same features on different hardware components, reducing the need for complex unique identification and authorization mechanisms

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Data Source

PatentUS7519827B2Provisioning and use of security tokens to enable automated test equipment

Publication Date: 2009.04.14 ADVANTEST CORP

AI summary

Automated test equipment (ATE) is provided with a plurality of hardware components, at least two of which provide a common test feature. The ATE is also provided with program code to access a number of security tokens, each token of which grants rights to use one or more test features without specifying a particular hardware component on which the test features are to be enabled. If a number of security tokens granting rights to use the common test feature are available, the program code enables the common test feature on user-selected ones of the hardware components that provide the common test feature, as permitted by the number of security tokens. Methods for provisioning and using the security tokens to enable the ATE are also disclosed.