Conference Roster Authentication for Secure Room Access

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

In publicly accessible meeting rooms, it is difficult to ensure that only invited participants can join and present content during conference events, as existing systems cannot distinguish between invited and uninvited participants, leading to security and authentication issues.

Innovation Solution

A conference event environment system that prompts participants to provide authentication credentials to join the event, inherits their permissions, and displays a roster to identify authenticated participants, ensuring only authorized individuals can access and present content.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If the meeting room is made publicly accessible without restriction, then ease of operation is improved, but security and participant verification are worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaccessibility of meeting roomVSAvoidparticipant verification
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system introduces a conference event roster as an intermediary data structure that mediates between the publicly accessible meeting room and the conference event participation. The roster stores authentication credentials and permission information, acting as a verification layer that allows easy room access while maintaining participant verification security.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary authentication by checking against the conference event roster before allowing participation. The roster is pre-populated with authenticated participant information, so verification happens in advance rather than in real-time, maintaining both accessibility and security.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Device complexity

If the system cannot distinguish between invited and uninvited participants, then device complexity is reduced, but harmful factors increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesystem complexityVSAvoidunauthorized access
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The conference event roster serves as an intermediary that stores authentication credentials and permission levels. Instead of complex real-time verification systems, the roster provides a simple lookup mechanism that distinguishes authorized from unauthorized participants while keeping system complexity low.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a copy of participant authentication information in the conference event roster. This copy contains the essential verification data needed to distinguish invited participants from uninvited ones, simplifying the verification process without requiring complex identification systems.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

3Reliability

If authentication credentials are required to join the conference event, then security is improved, but ease of operation is worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovesecurityVSAvoidjoining process
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements self-service authentication where participants automatically present their credentials (such as email addresses or organizational identifiers) when joining, and the system autonomously verifies them against the conference event roster. This reduces manual intervention while maintaining security.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

Authentication credentials are verified in advance against the conference event roster before the participant is allowed to join the conference event. This preliminary verification step ensures security is maintained while the actual joining process remains simple and streamlined.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP2807795B1Participant authentication and authorization for joining a private conference event via a conference event environment system
Publication Date: 2020.02.12 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC
  • EP2807795B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2807795B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2807795B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Concepts and technologies are described herein for a mechanism by which participants who have been invited to attend a conference event and who are physically present within a conference event environment, such as a meeting room, can provide authentication credentials to join the conference event via a conference event environment system. When an individual attempts to join a conference event via a conference event environment system, the individual is prompted to provide his or her authentication credentials to join the conference event via the conference event environment system to participate in the conference event. The conference event environment system may inherit the individual's permissions, such as in regards to whether or not the individual has been permitted to present content during the conference event. A conference event roster may be used to indicate that the individual has joined the conference via the conference event environment system.