Multi-User Mobile Authentication via Biometric and Wearable Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional mobile computing devices lack the ability to securely authenticate multiple users, leading to indiscriminate data and application access, which is undesirable especially in shared environments like healthcare settings where sensitive data is handled.
Innovation Solution
A mobile computing device uses a combination of biometric authentication and a wearable device with a short-range communication component to uniquely identify and authenticate users, creating user profiles for tailored access permissions and security.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If biometric authentication is used to authenticate multiple users, then user authentication capability is improved, but the ability to distinguish and identify individual users is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The authentication system is segmented into two independent components: biometric authentication (fingerprint) and wearable device identification (Bluetooth/NFC). The biometric component verifies 'is this a legitimate user?' while the wearable component identifies 'which specific user?', thereby resolving the information loss problem while maintaining authentication capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The wearable device acts as an intermediary between the user and the authentication system. It carries unique identifying information (Bluetooth address, NFC ID) that bridges the gap between the biometric verification and the user identity, enabling the system to distinguish between multiple users with the same biometric traits.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple fingerprints are registered for different users, then multi-user access is enabled, but data security and privacy are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
User identification is segmented into two layers: access control layer (biometric verification) and user distinction layer (wearable device ID). This segmentation allows the system to maintain separate user contexts and data spaces, preventing data mixing while enabling multi-user access.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies local quality by associating different data sets and access permissions with different wearable devices. Each user's data is locally tied to their specific wearable device identifier, creating isolated data spaces that prevent unauthorized access and data sharing between users.
3Loss of information
If traditional username and password authentication is used, then user identification is maintained, but ease of operation and convenience are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service authentication where the wearable device automatically presents its unique identifier to the mobile device during authentication. The user simply needs to provide their biometric (fingerprint), and the system automatically combines this with the wearable's ID to identify the user, eliminating the need for manual username/password entry while maintaining identification accuracy.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enables secure authentication of multiple users without traditional username and password methods, ensuring appropriate data access and enhancing security in shared computing environments.
Implementation Method 1
a short-range communication component that detects an identifier for the wearable device that is emitted from the wearable device
Data Source
AI summary
A system for supporting multiple users of a mobile computing device is disclosed herein. The mobile computing device receives a biometric identifier for a user by way of a biometric input component of the mobile computing device. Responsive to receiving the biometric identifier, the mobile computing device causes the biometric identifier to be received by a biometrics subsystem of an operating system of the mobile computing device. The biometrics subsystem authenticates the user based upon the biometric identifier. The mobile computing device then scans for an identifier for a wearable device worn by the user that is emitted from the wearable device. Responsive to detecting the identifier for the wearable device, the mobile computing device authenticates the user based upon the identifier for the wearable device. The mobile computing device then executes a mobile application loaded in memory of the mobile computing device.