Hybrid RFID Ballot Sheet for Secure Voting Verification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Paper-based voting procedures are slow, prone to jamming, and result in contested elections, while electronic voting machines are susceptible to fraud and lack verification, leading to frequent election annulments, especially in close contests.
Innovation Solution
A voting device and method that combines a terminal for selecting candidates with a unique code generation system, printing voter choices on ballot sheets, and using RFID tags for verification, ensuring anonymity and allowing for immediate and verifiable results.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If paper-based voting procedures are used, then vote anonymity is maintained and verification is possible, but the voting process is slow and prone to jamming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines paper ballot sheets with electronic components (RFID tags, memory chips, or barcode readers) to create a hybrid voting system. This merging allows the system to maintain the anonymity and verification benefits of paper ballots while incorporating the speed and automation advantages of electronic systems, resolving the contradiction between reliability and productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces electronic intermediaries (such as RFID tags or memory chips) that act as mediators between the physical ballot sheet and the counting system. These intermediaries enable automated reading and processing of votes, increasing voting speed without compromising the physical ballot's anonymity and verification capabilities.
2Productivity
If electronic voting machines are used, then voting speed is improved, but the system becomes susceptible to electronic fraud and lacks verification
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a physical copy (paper ballot sheet with printed choice) alongside the electronic record. This copying ensures that there is a tangible, verifiable record of each vote that can be independently inspected, preventing electronic fraud while maintaining voting speed through automated electronic processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses physical intermediaries (paper ballots with printed choices, RFID tags, or memory chips) as mediators between the voter's choice and the electronic counting system. These intermediaries provide a verifiable physical record that prevents electronic fraud while enabling automated, high-speed processing.
3Device complexity
If sequential ballot numbers are used, then ballot tracking is simplified, but vote anonymity is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different quality characteristics to different parts of the ballot system: the external identifier (ballot number) is simple and sequential for easy tracking, while the internal identifier (stored in memory or RFID tag) is random and complex for anonymity protection. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction between tracking simplicity and anonymity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent moves the anonymity-critical information to a different dimension (internal electronic memory or RFID tag) separate from the external sequential numbering system. This dimensional separation allows sequential numbers for easy tracking while random internal codes protect anonymity, as the two dimensions serve different functions independently.
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
The solution enables voters to verify their choices, ensures immediate result availability, and maintains anonymity, preventing fraud by using unique codes and RFID tags, allowing for secure and transparent counting processes.
Implementation Method 1
each ballot sheet comprises an electronic tag using the RFID (acronym for 'Radio Frequency Identification') protocol
Data Source
AI summary
The voting method (30) comprises:a step (32) of a voter selecting a candidate or a proposition put to a vote, using an interface of a terminal (11);a step (34) of the terminal writing information representative of the choice made by the voter to the memory (25) of a ballot sheet,a step (35) of printing (22) the choice made by the voter on the surface of the ballot sheet,a step (36) of dispensing the printed ballot sheet (20) to be slid into a ballot box (15),a step (38, 39) of inserting the ballot sheet into the ballot box,a step (40) of the ballot box (15) reading the memory of the ballot sheet,a step (42) of storing the numbers of ballots expressing the various possible choices,a step (33) of the terminal determining a unique code, unique for at least the ongoing ballot, independent of the identity of the voter, of the order of arrival of the voter or of any document that may have been issued prior to the time when the ballot sheet was issued, anda step (34) of writing the indeterminable code to the memory of the ballot sheet.