Digital Credential Badging for Verifiable Skill Authentication

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Solution Overview

Problem

Traditional training and certification processes face challenges in authenticating specialized knowledge and skills, as they often lack reliable means for practitioners to communicate their qualifications, and it is difficult to determine the authenticity or value of certifications without direct access to experts.

Innovation Solution

A digital credential platform that allows users to select and complete program tasks, earn badges, and generate sharable webpages to verify their credentials, providing a transparent and verifiable method for communicating their expertise.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If traditional certificates are used to indicate specialized training, then practitioners can communicate their qualifications, but it is difficult to authenticate the authenticity and value of these certificates without direct access to experts

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveauthentication of credentialsVSAvoidverification process
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a digital credential platform as an intermediary between practitioners and verification stakeholders. This platform issues, stores, and verifies digital credentials through a standardized system, eliminating the need for direct expert verification while ensuring authenticity through cryptographic methods and standardized metadata.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates digital copies of traditional certificates in the form of structured data objects with standardized metadata. These digital credentials can be replicated, shared, and verified without requiring access to the original physical certificate or direct expert verification, thus improving reliability while reducing verification complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

2Reliability

If digital credential platforms are implemented, then authentication becomes more reliable, but the system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecredential verificationVSAvoidplatform infrastructure
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent designs a universal digital credential platform that handles multiple functions: credential issuance, storage, verification, and sharing. By consolidating these functions into a single standardized system, the platform reduces overall system complexity compared to having separate systems for each function while maintaining high reliability through comprehensive coverage of the credential lifecycle.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent transforms credentials from physical or informal documentation into structured digital objects with standardized metadata parameters. This parameterization enables automated verification, searchability, and interoperability across different systems, improving reliability while the standardization actually reduces complexity by providing clear rules and formats.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

3Measurement precision

If comprehensive credential tracking is implemented, then authentication accuracy improves, but data management complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecredential tracking accuracyVSAvoiddata management system
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments credential data into standardized metadata fields and structured components. This segmentation allows for precise tracking and verification of specific credential attributes while simplifying data management through organized, modular data structures that can be independently validated and processed.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentUS20260073029A1Method of Digital Badging and Micro Credentialing
Publication Date: 2026.03.12 LINCOLN MEMORIAL UNIV
  • US20260073029A1 patent drawing
  • US20260073029A1 patent drawing

AI summary

A method of operating a digital credential platform includes prompting a user to select a credential program including one or more program tasks to be completed by the user for earning a credential and providing an interface for the user to interact with the digital credential platform in order to complete a corresponding one of the program tasks or to submit evidence to the digital credential platform regarding the completion of one of the program tasks by the user. The method further includes awarding a digital credential badge to the user, generating a webpage associated with the awarded digital credential badge and including the display of information relating to the credential earned by the user with respect to the selected credential program, and providing a sharable link to the user that is configured to redirect a third party to the webpage associated with the awarded digital credential badge.