Vehicle ECU Key Verification Using an External Distributed Ledger
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicles equipped with electronic control units are vulnerable to cyber attacks that can falsify encryption keys, compromising the security of communications between these units, which is critical for driving assistance and automated driving control.
Innovation Solution
An electronic control unit that verifies encryption keys with key information stored in a distributed ledger outside the vehicle at predetermined intervals, using a verification unit to ensure the integrity of the keys.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If encryption keys are managed only within the vehicle, then key management is simple, but the keys can be falsified by cyber attacks
Solution Approach 1:
A distributed ledger placed outside the vehicle serves as an intermediary to store key information and provide verification. The electronic control unit verifies encryption keys by comparing them with key information stored in the distributed ledger, preventing key falsification while maintaining relatively simple in-vehicle key management
Solution Approach 2:
Key information is pre-stored in the distributed ledger before being used for verification. By having the key information ready in advance in the external distributed ledger, the system can quickly verify keys without complex real-time generation or distribution mechanisms
2Reliability
If keys are verified frequently, then key security is improved, but communication load increases
Solution Approach 1:
The electronic control unit verifies the encryption key with key information from the distributed ledger at predetermined time intervals. This periodic verification approach ensures key security while avoiding excessive communication frequency that would reduce system productivity
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic control unit, a key verification method, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a key verification program, an electronic control system or a key management system stores a key, and verifies, for each predetermined time, the key with key information that is information related to the key and is stored in a distributed ledger placed outside a vehicle.