Progressive Identifier Encoding for Stage-Based Access Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing identifier systems lack efficient mechanisms to track the progression of items through various stages, such as a supply chain or workflow, and fail to securely manage access rights based on the stage of progression.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of progressive identifiers, which modify their structure at each stage by changing the number or percentage of encoded bits, allowing for stage identification and access rights management without reading the encoded information, using a combination of empty and encoded spaces in binary or non-binary systems, and employing printers or algorithms to modify the identifiers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional static identifiers are used, then identification is simple, but tracking progression through stages and managing access rights is inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The identifier evolves dynamically from a static code to a progressive identifier that changes its encoded information content at each stage. The identifier starts with a certain number of encoded bits and progressively reveals more information as items move through stages, enabling automatic stage detection and access control without additional tracking infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the encoding parameters of the identifier at each stage. Specifically, the number of encoded bits or the percentage of encoded space in the identifier changes progressively, allowing the system to encode stage information within the identifier structure itself rather than requiring separate tracking mechanisms.
2Reliability
If all encoded information is revealed at once, then complete information is available, but security and controlled access are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The identifier's information content is segmented into multiple portions or bits that are revealed progressively. Instead of encoding all information at once, the identifier is divided such that only certain portions are encoded at each stage, allowing controlled information release while maintaining security for higher-level information.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary encoding of only the necessary information for current and future stages, leaving higher-level information unencoded or partially encoded until the appropriate stage is reached. This preliminary action ensures that information is available when needed but remains secure from unauthorized access.
3Ease of operation
If the identifier structure is modified at each stage, then stage tracking is enabled, but reading and processing becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The identifier structure is designed to be self-descriptive, where the pattern of encoded and unencoded spaces automatically indicates the stage. The identifier reads itself by having its own structure reveal the stage information, eliminating the need for complex external reading or processing systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses variations in encoding presence (analogous to color changes) to indicate different stages. The proportion of encoded versus unencoded spaces in the identifier changes at each stage, creating a visual or structural pattern that is easy to detect and interpret for stage identification.
4Reliability
If access rights are restricted to specific stages, then security is enhanced, but system adaptability to different users and stages is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The progressive identifier system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it identifies the item, tracks the stage of progression, and controls access rights. A single identifier structure accomplishes all these functions by encoding information progressively, making the system universally applicable to different items, stages, and user权限 levels without requiring separate systems.
Data Source
AI summary
An example system includes a stage identification portion to determine a stage in a progression of a progressive identifier, and an identifier encoding portion to encode or read the progressive identifier. A number or percentage of bits of the progressive identifier encoded, or read as encoded, by the identifier encoding portion is uniquely associated with the stage in the progression.