Distributed Ledger Trust Management via Segmented Smart Contracts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current distributed ledger systems face challenges in managing trust levels and privileges in a decentralized manner, particularly when transitioning from public to private blockchain environments, as they often require centralized control for specific actions, which contradicts the decentralized trust ethos.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a system that utilizes smart contracts, such as asset contracts and control contracts, to manage user trust levels and privileges on both public and private blockchains, allowing for decentralized trust in transactional changes while enabling centralized management of specific actions like certification and revocation, using Ethereum JSON-RPC-2.0 protocol for communication and Ethereum wallets for transactional changes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If decentralized trust mechanisms are used in public distributed ledgers, then reliability and security are improved, but centralized control for specific actions (like certification and revocation) cannot be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments trust management into two distinct layers: a public distributed ledger for immutable transactional records and a private centralized system for authenticated actions. This allows transactional changes to remain decentralized and reliable while enabling centralized control for specific operations like certification and revocation that require authentication.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism where authenticated actions on the private ledger trigger corresponding transactions on the public ledger. This intermediary layer allows centralized authentication to operate alongside decentralized trust, with the private ledger acting as a mediator that bridges the two systems.
2Ease of operation
If private distributed ledgers are used for testing smart contracts, then ease of operation and centralized control are improved, but reliability and decentralized trust are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates testing and production environments into distinct ledgers: a private distributed ledger for testing with centralized control for ease of operation, and a public distributed ledger for production with decentralized trust. Both ledgers use the same smart contract framework, allowing seamless transition while maintaining the benefits of each environment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic configuration where smart contracts can be deployed on different types of ledgers (private or public) based on the operational context. The system adapts its behavior dynamically, allowing the same contract to function in different trust models depending on whether it's being tested or executed in production.
3Reliability
If smart contracts require Ether transfer for state changes, then prevention of resource abuse is improved, but ease of operation for testing and development is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different quality characteristics to different parts of the system: the public ledger enforces strict Ether transfer requirements for state changes to prevent resource abuse, while the private testing ledger uses relaxed or no Ether requirements to facilitate ease of operation during development and testing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the economic parameters (Ether requirements) based on the operational context. In production environments, Ether transfers are mandatory to prevent resource abuse, while in testing environments, this parameter can be modified or disabled to improve ease of operation and facilitate rapid development.
Data Source
AI summary
A data processing system is disclosed that includes an application server and a wallet application provided by the application server. The application server is in communication with a plurality of computing nodes hosting a distributed ledger. The distributed ledger includes a plurality of user accounts and a plurality of asset contracts. The wallet application provides a wallet associated with a first user account. The wallet application is adapted to transfer a cryptocurreny from the wallet to a first asset contract.