Digital Content Manifests for Secure IoT Updates

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Solution Overview

Problem

In the IoT environment, there are challenges in ensuring the trustworthiness and secure distribution of digital content to data processing devices, including accidental misconfiguration and the risk of malicious activity, as devices interact and update their configurations across various sources.

Innovation Solution

A method and component for controlling digital content processing from multiple sources involve receiving digital content manifests and payloads, performing atomic actions only when all necessary manifests are available, ensuring timely and trustworthy updates by using control commands and cryptographic validation, and routing updates to specific recipient devices.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If digital content is distributed from multiple sources to IoT devices, then the adaptability and versatility of the system is improved, but the risk of malicious activity and trustworthiness issues worsens

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontent distribution capabilityVSAvoidmalicious activity risk

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces manifest files as intermediary components that mediate between multiple content sources and the IoT device. These manifests contain metadata, timestamps, and cryptographic signatures that verify the authenticity and integrity of digital content before it is applied, acting as a trusted intermediary that enables multi-source distribution while preventing malicious content from being executed

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Productivity

If digital content updates are applied continuously to keep devices current, then the productivity is improved, but the risk of accidental misconfiguration worsens

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveupdate frequencyVSAvoidconfiguration accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements preliminary validation actions through manifest verification before content is applied to the device. The system checks cryptographic signatures, validates timestamps, and verifies content integrity in advance, ensuring that only authenticated and authorized updates are applied, thus preventing misconfiguration while maintaining continuous update capability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs feedback mechanisms where the system monitors the application status of digital content and verifies successful updates. If validation fails or updates are incomplete, the system can rollback changes or prevent further updates, providing feedback control that maintains reliability during continuous update operations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Reliability

If cryptographic validation and atomic actions are implemented for secure content processing, then the trustworthiness and security are improved, but the device complexity worsens

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontent processing securityVSAvoidprocessing mechanism complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the content processing system into distinct functional components: manifest parsing, cryptographic validation, atomic action execution, and rollback mechanisms. This segmentation allows each component to be independently implemented and optimized, managing complexity while maintaining security through a structured, modular approach

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentUS10459716B2Processing digital content

Publication Date: 2019.10.29 ARM IP

AI summary

A machine-implemented method or data processing component for controlling the processing of digital content from plural sources by at least one data processing device comprises receiving at least two digital content manifests at the data processing device; receiving at least one digital content payload at the data processing device; and responsive to the at least two digital content manifests, performing an atomic action using the at least one digital content payload.