Smart Contract Invocation via External Data Digest Verification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional smart contract invocation processes in blockchain systems are limited by a 'closed data use loop' where data content stored externally cannot be referenced, leading to data storage redundancy as original content is synchronized across all node devices.
Innovation Solution
A blockchain-based method that interconnects with a third-party storage system, allowing data digests of unchangeable data content to be used in transactions to query and verify data, enabling smart contract computation without synchronizing original content across all nodes, thus breaking the 'closed data use loop'.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If original content is synchronized across all node devices, then data accessibility is improved, but data storage redundancy increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential identification element (data digest) from the complete data content and stores it in the blockchain, while the full data content is stored externally in a file system. This extraction principle resolves the contradiction by removing unnecessary data duplication across nodes while maintaining data accessibility through the digest-based reference mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a data digest (hash value) as an intermediary between the blockchain and external data storage. This intermediary enables nodes to verify and access external data without storing the actual data content, thus resolving the contradiction between data accessibility and storage redundancy by mediating the relationship between on-chain and off-chain data.
2Reliability
If data content is stored in blockchain, then data integrity is improved, but storage efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments data into two parts: the data digest (stored in blockchain) and the actual data content (stored externally). This segmentation allows the blockchain to maintain data integrity through cryptographic verification of the digest while improving storage efficiency by excluding redundant full data copies from each node's storage.
3Reliability
If all nodes store complete data, then data verification is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses cryptographic copying through hash functions to create a unique data digest that represents the entire data content. This digital copy enables verification of data integrity without requiring nodes to store or process the complete original data, thus maintaining verification capability while reducing system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for invocating a smart contract are described. One example method includes receiving a target transaction that is used to initiate an invocation of a smart contract, wherein the target transaction comprises invocation data, and wherein the invocation data comprises a data digest associated with target data stored in a third-party storage system interconnected with a blockchain; querying the target data from the third-party storage system; receiving a query result returned by the third-party storage system, wherein the query result comprises the target data; performing a content verification on the target data; determining that the content verification on the target data succeeds; invoking the smart contract to perform a smart contract computation on the invocation data included in the target transaction; and storing a computation result from the smart contract computation in a distributed database associated with the blockchain after the smart contract computation is completed.