Decentralized Authentication for Autonomous Vehicles

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Solution Overview

Problem

Autonomous vehicles face challenges in authenticating riders without human intervention, as existing methods using biometric data are susceptible to hacking and cybersecurity threats, risking unauthorized access and incorrect vehicle entry.

Innovation Solution

A decentralized cloud-based authentication system using multiple discrete servers to separate and securely manage biometric and personal data, where biometric data is processed and matched against templates on one server, and personal information is stored on another, ensuring that even if one server is breached, the other remains secure, and access tokens are generated only upon successful authentication.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If biometric data is stored centrally for authentication, then authentication accuracy is improved, but security against hacking is worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveauthentication accuracyVSAvoidcybersecurity threats
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system divides the authentication process into two separate servers: a first server that stores and verifies biometric templates, and a second server that stores personal information and generates access tokens. This segmentation ensures that no single server contains both biometric data and personally identifiable information, reducing the impact of potential security breaches while maintaining authentication accuracy through coordinated verification between servers.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Reliability

If multiple servers are used to separate data, then security is improved, but system complexity is worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovesecurityVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system uses an authentication identifier as an intermediary element that connects the biometric verification process on the first server with the personal information retrieval on the second server. This intermediary simplifies the interaction between servers by providing a standardized communication protocol, reducing system complexity while maintaining the security benefits of data separation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Object-affected harmful factors

If biometric data is encrypted and separated, then security against hacking is improved, but data access speed is worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvehacking protectionVSAvoiddata access speed
Core Design Contradiction:
Object-affected harmful factorsVSSpeed

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by pre-processing biometric data into templates during enrollment and pre-establishing the relationship between authentication identifiers and personal information on the second server. This preliminary preparation enables faster verification during authentication, as the system only needs to compare the presented biometric data against pre-existing templates and retrieve personal information using pre-linked authentication identifiers, rather than processing raw biometric data in real-time.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS10576934B2Decentralized cloud-based authentication for autonomous vehicles
Publication Date: 2020.03.03 FORD GLOBAL TECH LLC
  • US10576934B2 patent drawing
  • US10576934B2 patent drawing
  • US10576934B2 patent drawing

AI summary

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are disclosed for decentralized authentication for autonomous vehicles. Example autonomous vehicles may include at least one memory storing computer-executable instructions, and one or more computer processors coupled to the at least one memory. The one or more computer processors may be configured to execute the computer-executable instructions to receive biometric data of a user, determine extracted feature data using the biometric data, send the extracted feature data to a first server, and receive an access token from a second server. The access token may indicate the extracted feature data matched stored data associated with a user account of the user.