Multi-Signature Distributed Consensus for Blockchain Performance
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Solution Overview
Problem
The Practical Byzantine-Fault-Tolerant (PBFT) protocol's performance decreases significantly in large-scale permissionless blockchain systems due to high message complexity and increased computing resources required for digital signature validation, leading to consensus delay and transaction processing degradation.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method for distributed consensus using multi-signature, which involves sending Pre-Prepare and Prepare messages, generating and verifying multi-signature values using message authentication codes and private keys, and broadcasting A-Commit messages to reduce the number of nodes involved in consensus, thereby minimizing delay and improving performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If all nodes participate in consensus using PBFT protocol, then consensus security is improved, but message complexity increases to O(N2) and performance decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the node population into two distinct groups: committee nodes (Nc) that participate in consensus and general nodes (Ng) that do not. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by limiting the consensus process to a small subset of nodes, reducing message complexity from O(N2) to O(Nc2), while maintaining consensus security through the committee's representative role.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces committee nodes as intermediaries between general nodes and the consensus process. General nodes submit transactions to committee nodes, which then process consensus on their behalf. This intermediary mechanism allows security to be maintained through the committee while preventing general nodes from directly participating in consensus, thus avoiding the O(N2) message complexity.
2Reliability
If the number of committee nodes increases, then consensus representativeness is improved, but digital signature validation time and computing resources increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple digital signatures from committee nodes into a single multi-signature. Instead of requiring general nodes to validate Nc individual signatures, the system combines them into one aggregated signature that provides the same security guarantee. This merging reduces validation time from O(Nc) to O(1), while maintaining consensus representativeness through the multi-signature's cryptographic proof of collective approval.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses multi-signature technology as a composite cryptographic mechanism that combines multiple individual signatures into a unified signature structure. This composite approach allows the system to maintain the security properties of multiple signatures while presenting a single validation target, thereby reducing computing resources and time required for verification.
3Adaptability or versatility
If more nodes are involved in consensus, then network decentralization is improved, but network latency increases and consensus delay time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the network into committee nodes that handle consensus operations and general nodes that handle transaction submission and validation. This segmentation allows the system to maintain decentralization across all nodes while concentrating consensus operations in a smaller subset, thereby reducing network latency and consensus delay time without sacrificing overall network decentralization.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are an apparatus and method for distributed consensus using multi-signature. The apparatus includes one or more processors and executable memory for storing at least one program executed by the one or more processors. The at least one program may send a Pre-Prepare message for processing distributed consensus on a transaction to nodes participating in the distributed consensus in a blockchain network, verify the nodes using message authentication code values included in Prepare messages received from the nodes, send the nodes an A-Prepare message for announcing that the Prepare messages are received from a number of verified nodes equal to or greater than a quorum required for the distributed consensus, generate a multi-signature value using multi-signature fragment values included in Commit messages received from the nodes, and send an A-Commit message including the multi-signature value to the nodes, thereby processing consensus on the transaction.