Shortcut Certificate System for Authentication Bottlenecks

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

The existing authentication methods for user digital certificates in hierarchical certification authority systems are time-consuming and computationally intensive, particularly in large organizations, and can be fragile due to reliance on centralized verification and connectivity, leading to burdensome processes and potential outages.

Innovation Solution

The implementation of a shortcut certificate system that creates a cached, signed entry of authentication for the issuing certification authority, allowing trusted nodes to bypass the hierarchical certificate chain verification process, reducing the need for repeated authentication checks across multiple devices in a network.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If hierarchical certificate chain verification is used for authentication, then security and trust are established between devices, but authentication becomes time-consuming and computationally intensive

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveauthentication securityVSAvoidauthentication time

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs certificate chain verification in advance during device provisioning or initial connection, storing the verification results and trusted authority information locally. When authentication is needed, the pre-verified certificate information is used directly without repeating the full chain verification, thus maintaining security while reducing authentication time

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts and separates the certificate verification process into two phases: a comprehensive verification phase that establishes trust (performed once or periodically), and a lightweight authentication phase that uses the pre-established trust (performed frequently). This extraction allows the time-consuming verification to be done beforehand, making subsequent authentications fast

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Device complexity

If centralized verification is used for certificate authentication, then trust management is simplified, but the system becomes fragile and prone to outages due to connectivity dependencies

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetrust management complexityVSAvoidsystem resilience

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system enables each device to store locally the trusted authority certificates and verification results obtained during initial provisioning. Devices can perform self-contained authentication using local resources without requiring continuous connectivity to centralized verification servers, thus improving resilience while maintaining trust management through local caching of authoritative information

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an offline verification mechanism where trusted authority information acts as an intermediary that bridges the centralized trust model and distributed operation. Devices can verify certificates against locally stored trusted authority data, serving as a mediator that allows centralized trust management to function in decentralized, offline scenarios

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Measurement precision

If full certificate chain verification is performed for each authentication request, then authentication accuracy is maintained, but processing overhead increases significantly across multiple devices

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveauthentication accuracyVSAvoidauthentication throughput

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs partial verification by checking only the critical elements of the certificate chain (such as signature validation against trusted roots) rather than complete chain traversal for every authentication. This partial action maintains sufficient authentication accuracy while dramatically reducing processing overhead and enabling higher throughput across multiple devices

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS10530586B2Method, hardware and digital certificate for authentication of connected devices

Publication Date: 2020.01.07 ARM IP

AI summary

A method of generating a shortcut certificate for authenticating a user digital certificate generated by an issuing certification authority; the method comprising: authenticating the digital certificate of the issuing certification authority; creating the shortcut certificate for the digital certificate of the issuing certification authority when the digital certificate of the issuing certification authority is authenticated; wherein the shortcut certificate comprises a signed entry of an authentication of the issuing certification authority.