Vehicle Diagnostic Temporary Keys for Secure ECU Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
The current vehicle diagnostic systems rely on long-term keys for operations, which can lead to security risks such as unauthorized access and privacy data leakage, compromising driving security.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle diagnostic system that generates temporary keys for diagnostics, independent of long-term keys, ensuring secure interactions between diagnostic devices and vehicle units through a key management system, using cryptographic methods to manage key validity and authentication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If long-term keys are used for vehicle diagnostics, then diagnostic operations can be performed, but security risks such as unauthorized access and privacy data leakage increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the key management by introducing temporary keys specific to each diagnostic session, separate from the long-term keys stored in the vehicle. This segmentation ensures that diagnostic operations can proceed while the long-term keys remain secure and isolated from potential breaches during diagnostics.
Solution Approach 2:
The key management system acts as an intermediary that generates temporary keys for diagnostic sessions. These temporary keys serve as a mediator between the diagnostic device and the vehicle's long-term keys, enabling secure communication without exposing the long-term keys to unauthorized access.
2Reliability
If temporary keys are generated for each diagnostic session, then security is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The key management system performs self-service by automatically generating temporary keys for each diagnostic session without requiring manual intervention. The system manages its own key generation, distribution, and expiration, reducing the operational burden while maintaining security.
Solution Approach 2:
The key management system prepares temporary keys in advance before diagnostic sessions begin. By pre-generating and distributing these keys, the system ensures that security measures are already in place before any diagnostic operations start, avoiding the need for complex real-time key management during diagnostics.
3Reliability
If long-term keys are stored in the vehicle, then authentication can be performed, but the risk of key leakage and unauthorized control increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the authentication function from the long-term keys by introducing temporary keys that are generated specifically for each diagnostic session. This extraction allows authentication to occur without relying on the permanent storage of long-term keys in the vehicle, thereby reducing the impact of potential key leakage.
Solution Approach 2:
The system prepares temporary keys as a protective measure before any diagnostic operations occur. These temporary keys act as a cushion against potential attacks on the long-term keys, ensuring that even if long-term keys are compromised, the temporary keys provide an additional layer of security for ongoing and future diagnostic sessions.
Data Source
AI summary
The vehicle diagnostic system includes a key management system and a to-be-diagnosed unit. The key management system receives a key authorization request sent by a diagnostic device, generates a temporary key based on the key authorization request, and sends a key authorization response to the diagnostic device. The key authorization response carries the temporary key. The key management system configures the temporary key for the to-be-diagnosed unit, so that the diagnostic device and the to-be-diagnosed unit complete a diagnostic based on the temporary key and obtain a diagnostic result. The temporary key is independent of a long-term key in a vehicle. The temporary key is configured to complete the vehicle diagnostic, so that the diagnostic device can be prevented from accessing the long-term key in the vehicle as much as possible.