Biometric Chip Card Reader with One-Way Identifier Derivation

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Solution Overview

Problem

The existing systems for chip card user authentication, particularly in scenarios like the electronic health card, face challenges due to users forgetting their PINs, leading to significant financial and logistical efforts for replacement, especially among older patients, and raise data protection concerns with proposed convenience PIN methods.

Innovation Solution

A reader device that combines biometric user verification with PIN-based systems by deriving an identifier from biometric data using one-way functions, allowing secure activation of chip card functions without storing user-specific data, and enabling remote verification protocols to manage chip card status transitions from first-use to used status.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If biometric data is captured and stored for authentication, then user verification reliability is improved, but data protection risks and device complexity increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser verification reliabilityVSAvoiddata protection risks
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts and removes biometric template data after authentication verification is complete. The system captures biometric data, uses it for verification against stored templates, then deletes the captured data immediately. This extraction principle ensures biometric data never persists in the device memory, eliminating data protection risks while maintaining authentication reliability through temporary comparison-only storage

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intermediary verification process where biometric data is compared against cryptographic templates without storing the original biometric information. The intermediary step involves converting biometric data into cryptographic representations for comparison, ensuring that even during processing, the system works with transformed data rather than raw biometric information, thus reducing data protection risks

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Ease of operation

If biometric authentication system is implemented, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of operationVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements self-service functionality where the system automatically captures biometric data, performs verification against stored templates, and manages the authentication process without user intervention beyond providing the biometric sample. The device handles template generation, data capture, comparison, and deletion automatically, improving ease of operation while the complexity is contained within the automated processes

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent performs preliminary actions by pre-storing cryptographic templates during card personalization before actual authentication is needed. This preliminary template generation and storage simplifies the authentication process, as only biometric capture and comparison are needed during use, reducing the complexity of real-time operations while maintaining system functionality

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Ease of operation

If PIN-based authentication is used, then ease of operation is maintained, but reliability decreases when users forget their PIN

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of operationVSAvoidauthentication reliability
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the authentication parameter from memorized PIN codes to biometric characteristics that users cannot forget. By transitioning from artificial memory-dependent authentication to biological feature-based authentication, the system maintains ease of operation (users simply present their biometric trait) while dramatically improving reliability by eliminating the human error of forgetting credentials

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentEP3252641B1Reading device for a chip card and computer system
Publication Date: 2023.10.25 BUNDESDRUCKEREI GMBH
  • EP3252641B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3252641B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3252641B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Chip card reader with acquisition means (122) for acquiring biometric data (126) from a user, derivation means (128, 130) for deriving an identifier (104) from the biometric data, activation means (120, 128, 136) for activating a chip card function (116) with the identifier, communication means (120, 144) for enabling communication between a computer (146) and the chip card for the computer to use the chip card function.