Hardware Protocol Engine Reduces Power and Memory in Secure Communications
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing communication systems consume excessive power and require significant memory to perform handshake and encryption protocols, making them undesirable for resource-constrained applications.
Innovation Solution
A client system with a hashing circuit, memory circuit, fixed-logic protocol controller, and cryptographic accelerator is used to execute a handshake protocol, employing a SHA2-256 hash function and elliptic curve cryptography, which reduces memory requirements and power consumption by discarding messages after hash generation and using a clock gate to conserve power.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a microprocessor executes handshake and encryption protocols using stored instructions, then protocol functionality is achieved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the software-based microprocessor instruction execution with a dedicated hardware protocol engine that uses fixed logic circuits and hardware accelerators. This substitution of the computational mechanism directly reduces power consumption while maintaining protocol functionality through dedicated hardware pathways for handshake and encryption operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The protocol engine divides the handshake and encryption functions into separate dedicated hardware modules, including a fixed-logic protocol controller, cryptographic accelerator, and hashing circuit. This segmentation allows each component to operate independently and efficiently, reducing overall power consumption compared to a monolithic microprocessor approach.
2Reliability
If all messages are stored in memory during handshake for hash generation, then protocol integrity is maintained, but memory requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential hash state information from the full message history and stores only this condensed representation in memory. The hashing circuit processes messages and maintains only the current hash state, eliminating the need to store all historical messages while preserving the integrity information needed for protocol verification.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the storage parameter from storing complete messages to storing hash state values. This parameter transformation reduces memory requirements significantly while maintaining protocol integrity, as the hash state captures the essential cryptographic information needed for verification without retaining full message data.
3Use of energy by moving object
If a dedicated protocol engine with fixed logic is used, then power consumption is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The protocol engine is designed with multi-functional hardware components that can perform multiple operations. The fixed-logic protocol controller manages both handshake protocol execution and encryption coordination, while the cryptographic accelerator handles various cryptographic operations. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated circuits for each function, thereby managing complexity while maintaining low power consumption.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for implementing confidential communications between nodes of a network provide reduced power consumption, require less memory, and provide improved security, relative to previously-known systems and method. Preferred embodiments implement protocol functions in hardware, as opposed to software, to yield some or all of the foregoing improvements. Some embodiments use a hashing circuit for multiple purposes, while maintaining its ability to compute successive intermediate hash values. Some embodiments improve security of systems using circuits configured to leverage a favorable data format.