Secure Appliance Mode Control via Authenticated Energy Saving Device
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current smart grid systems face challenges in enforcing energy-saving measures, as users can tamper with or block control messages, leading to inefficiencies and scalability issues, and existing technologies do not effectively prevent fraudulent acknowledgments or ensure secure communication.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize an energy-saving device connected to a management center to automatically control consumption appliances between power-limited and free modes, requiring authentic and encrypted messages to change modes, with a counter mechanism to enforce default mode if no valid message is received, ensuring secure and efficient energy management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If automatic control messages are sent to appliances to limit power consumption, then energy saving is improved, but users can tamper with or block these messages leading to system reliability deterioration
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary authentication of control messages before they are executed by the appliance. The management center signs control messages with its private key, and the energy-saving device verifies these signatures using the management center's public key stored in its certificate authority module. This preliminary verification ensures that only authentic messages from the management center can change appliance operating modes, preventing tampering and blocking attempts.
2Reliability
If acknowledgment messages are required from appliances, then message authenticity is improved, but network complexity and server handling burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces a certificate authority module as an intermediary that stores the management center's public key and certificate information. This intermediary enables the energy-saving device to independently verify control message authenticity without requiring complex server-side acknowledgment handling. The certificate authority acts as a trusted mediator that simplifies the authentication process by providing pre-stored verification credentials.
3Reliability
If cryptographic verification is implemented for each control message, then security against fraudulent messages is improved, but processing time and computational overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The energy-saving device performs preliminary setup by storing the management center's public key and certificate information in its certificate authority module during initialization. This preliminary action allows the device to quickly verify control message signatures using the pre-stored public key without requiring time-consuming key exchange or complex verification procedures for each message, thus reducing processing time while maintaining security.
Data Source
AI summary
A method is disclosed for controlling the operating of a consumption appliance by way of a selector switch controlled by an energy saving device connected to a management center. The consumption appliance is kept in its default power mode, until receiving, by the energy saving device, an authentic secured control message sent by the management center. This message includes a command onto the mode in which the consumption appliance has to be switched. A counter is initialized with an initialization value before to be triggered. The consumption appliance is switched in the mode indicated by the command, either until the counter has reached a threshold value, or until receiving another authentic control message. If the counter has reached the threshold value, then the consumption appliance is switched in its default power mode. If another authentic secured control message has been received, then returning to the step of initializing the counter.