Secure Element Battery Subsystem for Contactless Payment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mobile devices with embedded secure elements for payment and ticketing applications face challenges in power management and secure transaction functionality, particularly in disabling payment functions without risking software errors and in efficiently managing battery power for secure operations.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a secure element into the mobile device battery, with a short-range wireless chip set that initiates bootup upon proximity to a point of sales terminal and powers only the Trusted Execution Environment, allowing for secure transactions without activating non-essential device components, and implementing a power management module to conserve battery power by disabling unnecessary elements when reserves are low.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the mobile device boots up completely when approaching a point of sales terminal, then all device functions are available for the transaction, but power consumption increases and non-essential components waste battery resources
Solution Approach 1:
The device is segmented into essential trusted execution environment components (secure element, wireless chip set, bootloader) and non-essential components (operating system, user applications). Only the essential segments are activated during secure transactions, while non-essential segments remain dormant, resolving the contradiction between maintaining security functionality and conserving battery power.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts its operational state based on the transaction context. Upon detecting proximity to a point of sales terminal, the device transitions from a low-power dormant state to an active trusted execution environment state, and back to dormant after the transaction. This dynamic state change allows the device to maintain security capabilities when needed while minimizing power consumption during idle periods.
2Use of energy by moving object
If the mobile device disables payment functions to conserve power, then battery life is extended, but the risk of software errors increases
Solution Approach 1:
The payment and ticketing applications are extracted from the main operating system and placed in a separate, dedicated secure element within the battery subsystem. This extraction isolates the payment functions from the rest of the device's software, allowing the secure element to operate independently with minimal software complexity, thereby reducing software error risks while enabling power conservation.
Solution Approach 2:
The secure element is designed as a self-contained unit with its own processing capabilities, memory, and security functions. It can autonomously perform authentication and transaction operations without requiring extensive software support from the main device, reducing the software footprint and minimizing potential software errors while maintaining secure payment functionality.
3Ease of manufacture
If the secure element is integrated into the battery subsystem, then certification is simplified as a unified unit, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The secure element, wireless chip set, and battery are merged into a single integrated battery subsystem. This consolidation simplifies certification by treating the entire subsystem as one unified unit with coordinated security and power management, while the integration is achieved through modular design principles that manage complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated battery subsystem serves multiple functions: it provides power to the device, houses the secure element for payment and ticketing applications, and contains the wireless chip set for short-range communication. This multi-functionality consolidates several separate components into one unified subsystem, simplifying certification while the modular architecture manages the inherent structural complexity.
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 a standalone secure transaction capability within mobile devices, conserves battery power by limiting power to only essential components during transactions, and simplifies certification by treating the battery subsystem as a unified unit, enhancing secure payment functionality while reducing the risk of software errors.
Implementation Method 1
contactless close-to-touch connectivity technologies which involve electromagnetic and/or electrostatic coupling
Implementation Method 2
A mobile device may include a battery, a short-range wireless chip set, a secure element incorporated into the battery
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4a~6
AI summary
In accordance with an example embodiment of the present invention, mobile device comprises a battery, a short-range wireless communication (SRW) chip set (114), a secure element (100) incorporated into the battery, and a bootloader, wherein the SRW chip set is configured to sense proximity to a point of sales terminal and, in response, initiate bootup of the mobile device, and wherein the bootloader is configured to determine that bootup was initiated by the SRW chip set and, in response, power up only the SRW chip set and the secure element (100).