KR20080040859A - User authentication system using human body communication - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a user authentication system using human body communication.

The present invention performs authentication of a corresponding user using a database storing user authentication information, a human body communication device receiving user information provided from a user via a human body, and a user authentication information database according to the received user information. A user authentication system comprising a control device; A user authentication information processing device including a storage device for storing user authentication information, and a human body communication device for providing the user information stored in the storage device with the human body as a medium to the user authentication system; Characterized in that comprises a.

Description

USER AUTHENTICATION SYSTEM USING HUMAN BODY COMMUNICATION}

1 is a block diagram of a user authentication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a view showing a user identification information processing method in a user authentication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a diagram showing an example of a data format in processing a user identification number in a user authentication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 illustrates a user authentication method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 illustrates an example of a data format in a user authentication method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a user authentication system using human body communication.

There are a variety of methods for authenticating users based on telecommunication systems. In a system that controls access to a specific place, a user may be authenticated using biometric information such as a fingerprint or an iris, or a user may be authenticated using a smart card type of identification card. In addition, the user authentication process is required even when accessing a specific web site or logging into a PC through a network such as the Internet.

In general, a user must enter user identification information (ID) and password to be authenticated by the system. This process is not only cumbersome, but also poses a security problem because it may easily expose information such as ID and password to others. In addition, when a user is authenticated by multiple systems, the identification information and password of each system must be memorized at all times, and the user's identification information and password must be entered every time each system is accessed. Weighted.

An object of the present invention is to provide a human body communication based user authentication system for authenticating a user using human body communication.

Another object of the present invention is to receive and store information related to user authentication from a system by using human body communication, and to transmit a user's identification information to the system using a human body as a medium to access a specific system. An object of the present invention is to provide a user authentication system based on human communication.

Still another object of the present invention is to receive and store information related to user authentication from a system, and to access a specific system. To provide a user authentication system based.

Still another object of the present invention is to receive and manage each piece of information related to user authentication from a plurality of different systems using human body communication, and to identify a user for the system using the human body as a medium when accessing a specific system. It is to provide a human body communication-based user authentication system that is automatically authenticated as a legitimate user by transmitting information related to the system to the system.

Still another object of the present invention is to receive and manage each piece of information related to user authentication from a plurality of different systems, and to automatically access information related to user identification for a given system using the human body as a medium when accessing a specific system. It is to provide a human body communication-based user authentication system that is transmitted to the system to be authenticated as a legitimate user of the system.

The human body communication-based user authentication system according to the present invention for achieving the above object comprises a human body communication module for transmitting and / or receiving an electrical signal through the human body, and a device for storing information for user authentication It is characterized by.

The apparatus for processing human authentication based user authentication information according to the present invention includes a storage device for storing user authentication information, and a human communication device for providing the user information stored in the storage device to a system using a human body as a medium. It is done.

The human body communication-based user authentication system according to the present invention includes a database storing user authentication information, a human body communication device for receiving user information provided from a user through a human body, and a user authentication information database according to the received user information. It characterized in that it comprises a control device for performing the authentication of the user by using.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a user authentication system using human body communication according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram of a user authentication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The first device 100 is connected to the system and the second device 200 stores information related to authentication of a user who will access the system through the first device 100, for example, user identification information (ID) and password. Doing. The first device 100 and the second device 200 communicate the human body 300 as a medium for information transmission.

The first device 100 includes a processor 110 for controlling reception and processing of user authentication information and a human body channel 300 under the control of the processor 110. It includes a human body communication module 120 for receiving user authentication information. The human body communication module 120 includes an electrode 121, a human body communication receiver 122, and a data receiver 123.

The second device 200 uses a processor 210 for controlling transmission of user authentication information and processing thereof, and a human body channel 300 under the control of the processor 210 as a medium. It includes a human body communication module 220 for transmitting user authentication information, and a user data storage 230 for information for user authentication. The human body communication module 220 includes a data transmitter 221, a human body communication communication transmitter 222, and an electrode 223. The second device 200 equipped with a processor, a storage device, and a human body communication module may be implemented in a form of a wrist watch type that is carried by a user or embedded in a mobile communication terminal device. When the user is carrying a wristwatch type, the electrode unit is exposed to a part in contact with the skin to form a structure in contact with the human body, thereby allowing the second device 200 to authenticate the user with the first device 100 based on the human body. To communicate. When embedded in a mobile communication terminal such as a mobile phone, it is possible to perform communication for user authentication based on a human body by simply holding the mobile communication terminal with a hand. In such a case, it is sufficient to form a structure in which the electrode portion is disposed at an appropriate position where it can be in contact with the hand.

An example of the usage method of the user authentication system shown in FIG. 1 is demonstrated. The first device 100 is connected to a system requiring user authentication, and the second device 200 is carried by the user. A user possessing the second device 200 accesses the system through the first device 100 from the second device 200 using the human body 300 as a medium. In order to access the system, information related to user authentication is transmitted from the second device 200 to the first device 100 through the human body 300, and the first device 100 uses the human body 300 as a medium to access the second device. Information related to user authentication transmitted from the device 200 is transmitted to the system. The system connected to the first device 200 compares the received user authentication information with previously registered user authentication information and determines whether the corresponding user accesses the system, thereby allowing or denying system access.

Looking at these operations in more detail as follows.

Under the control of the processor 210 of the second device 200, the human body communication module 220 uses the human body 300 as a medium for electrical signal transmission, and user information related to user authentication, that is, user identification information ( User ID) and password are transmitted to the first device 100. Information related to user authentication, such as user identification information and password, is stored in the storage device 230. The user contacts the electrode unit 223 of the second device 200 and also the electrode unit 121 of the first device 100 to transmit an electrical signal, in this case, user authentication information, to the human body 300. It will be used as a medium. The electrode unit transmits a signal output from the human body communication module as a medium in direct contact with the human body skin or in contact with the human body with a covering therebetween.

The user identification information and the password stored in the storage device 230 are composed of data of a predetermined format in the data transmission unit 221 of the human body communication module 220, and the data of the predetermined format is transmitted to the human body in the human communication transmission unit 222. The signal is converted into an electrical signal in a form capable of transmitting information using the 300 as a medium, and is transmitted to the human body 300 through the electrode unit 223.

The user identification information and the password transmitted to the first apparatus 100 using the human body 300 as a medium are received by the human body communication receiving unit 122 through the electrode unit 121. User authentication information such as user identification information and password received by the human body communication receiver 122 is received by the data receiver 123, and the received user identification information and password are controlled by the processor 110. ) To the system. Information related to user authentication such as user identification information and password transmitted to the system is compared with the information registered in the user database inside the system to determine whether to allow the system access, and to allow or deny the system access.

In FIG. 1, an example in which the first device 100 receives information related to user authentication and the second device 200 transmits information related to user authentication is described and described. However, the first device 100 and the second device 200 may also be applied to an embodiment in which bidirectional communication is performed. For example, in the human body communication module 120 of the first device 100, the human body communication receiver 122 is implemented as a human body communication transceiver by including a transmission function, and the data receiver 123 includes a transmission function, thereby transmitting and receiving data. It can be implemented as a negative. In addition, corresponding to this, the data transmission unit 221 is implemented as a data transmission / reception unit by including a reception function in the human body communication module 220 of the second apparatus 200, and the human body communication unit 222 includes a reception function by It may be implemented as a transceiver.

In this case, the user 300 transmits user authentication information from the first device 100 to the second device 200 using the human body 300 as a medium for electrical signal transmission, and registers the corresponding user, and the second device 200. In this case, the user registration process for storing the received user authentication information, that is, user identification information (ID) and password, etc. in the storage device 230 may be achieved using the human body 300 as a medium. In addition, a plurality of systems using not only one authentication information for one system but also information (system ID) identifying the system for each of several different systems, and user identification information and password for the system as a pair of data. It is also possible to store the user authentication related information about the data in the storage device 220 of the second device 200.

A user authentication method in an embodiment in which bidirectional communication is possible using the human body 300 as a medium and is operated with a plurality of system-specific user authentication information will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5.

2 is a diagram illustrating a method for processing user identification information in a user authentication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and illustrates a process of receiving and processing registration and authentication information of user authentication information from the system.

The first device 100 is connected with the system. In this case, the system authentication DB (storage device) 400 storing user authentication information (user ID, password, etc.) to determine whether the user is a user authorized to access the system. ) Shows the connection of The second device 200 is usually carried by the user. Although the storage device 230 storing the user identification information and the password is separately represented, the storage device 230 may be mounted on the second device 200 or connected to the second device 200 in the form of an external memory. have.

It shows a series of processes that a user registers in a specific system and stores or deletes information related to his authentication (ID, password, etc.).

The first step (S110) and the second step (S120) is a process of storing user authentication information for the system, and the third step (S130) and the fourth step (S140) is a process of deleting user authentication information for the system to be.

In a first step (S110), the first device 100 requests the second device 200 to store user authentication information for a new system using the human body 300 as a medium (Info add request). Based on the request for storing the user authentication information, the user authentication related information about the corresponding system is transferred from the first device 100 to the second device 200, and the information is stored in the storage device 230.

In a second step (S120), the second device 200 performs a response for notifying the storage result of the first device 100 using the human body 300 as a medium (Info add response). In this case, the result of the response may include a storage success or a storage failure, and in the case of the storage failure, the response may be transmitted including the reason for the failure.

The storage of such user authentication information and the data format used in the response thereof will be described later in detail with reference to FIG. 3.

In a third step (S130), the first device 100 requests the second device 200 to delete user authentication information about the system using the human body 300 as a medium (Info remove request). Based on the request for deleting the user authentication information, the second device 200 deletes information related to user authentication of the corresponding system stored in the storage device 230.

In a fourth step (S140), the second device 200 performs a response informing the first device 100 of the deletion result by using the human body 300 as a medium (Info remove response). In this case, the result of the response may include deletion success or deletion failure, and in case of deletion failure, the response may be transmitted including the reason for failure.

The deletion of the user authentication information and the data format used in response thereof will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 3.

The embodiment of FIG. 2 has described a case in which user ID and password set for each system are stored or deleted in a second device based on human communication. However, in another embodiment, the user authentication information is recorded or deleted by directly inputting the user identification information and the password to the second device 200 using the key input device and storing them in the storage device. An example is possible. That is, the second device may have a key input device or connect a key input device through an interface, and the processor may store a user ID and password inputted from the key input device in a storage device. If a delete command promised from the device is input, the processor may delete the user authentication related information from the storage device.

3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a transmission data format of user authentication information according to an embodiment of the present invention. The transmission data format shown in Fig. 3 is just one example, and the present invention is not limited by this embodiment.

In FIG. 3, (a) shows an example of a data format at the time of user information storage request (Info add request). An operation code representing that the data to be transmitted is an Info add request comes at the head. Herein, the operation code value representing the data transmission request may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, and therefore, the value thereof will not be specified. The operation code includes system identification information (System ID) and information representing the length (System ID Length). That is, when user authentication information is managed for a plurality of systems, it includes information representing a system (system identifier) and information representing a length thereof. The specific value of the system identification information (System ID) recorded therein can be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, and therefore, the value thereof will not be specified here.

A source ID is intervened following an operation code representing a request for storing user authentication information. The source ID is information for identifying a user (User ID) and includes information (User ID Length) representing the length of the user identification information. Since the specific value of the source ID recorded here can be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified here.

Following the source ID, information representing the second identification information to be provided along with the identification information of the user is included. For example, it may be a password set by the user and includes information representing the length of the password.

Therefore, in the first step S110 of FIG. 2, if data of a format such as (a) of FIG. 3 is transmitted through the human body, the data is a user authentication information storage request (Info add Request). Whether the corresponding user authentication information may be expressed, and the information may be stored in the storage device 230.

4 (b) shows an example of a data format associated with a response to a request for storing user authentication information. An operation code that indicates that the data to be transmitted is an Info add Response comes first. In this case, since the operation code value representing the response may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified. Subsequent to the operation code representing the response, information (Success or Fail) representing whether the storage of the user authentication information was successful or failed is transmitted. In the case of failure, it further includes information recording the reason for the failure. Specific values for the information representing the success or failure recorded here and the information representing the reason for the failure may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, and therefore, the value thereof will not be specifically described.

Therefore, if data of the format as shown in FIG. 3 (b) is transmitted through the human body as a medium, this data is an Info add response, and whether the storage of the user authentication information succeeds or fails. It can be known from the device side.

In FIG. 3, (c) shows an example of a data format at the time of removing a user authentication information (Info remove request). An operation code that indicates that the data to be transmitted is an Info remove request (Info remove request) comes first. In this case, since the operation code value representing the data transmission request can be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified here. The source ID is followed by an operation code that represents the request for deleting the user authentication information. The source ID is information for identifying a user (User ID). Following the source ID, information representing the second identification information to be provided along with the identification information of the user is included. For example, it may be a password set by the user and includes information representing the length of the password. Subsequently, information representing the length of the system identification information (System ID Length) and system identification information (System ID) are recorded and transmitted.

Therefore, in the third step S130 of FIG. 2, if data of a format such as (c) of FIG. 3 is transmitted through the human body, the data is an user information removal request (Info remove Request). It may be expressed whether the corresponding user authentication information should be deleted, and the information may be deleted from the storage device 230.

4 (d) shows an example of a data format associated with a response to a user authentication information deletion request. The operation code that indicates that the data to be transmitted is an Info remove Response comes first. In this case, since the operation code value representing the response may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified. Subsequent to the operation code representing the response, information (Success or Fail) representing whether the deletion of the user authentication information was successful or failed is transmitted. In the case of failure, it further includes information recording the reason for the failure. Specific values for the information representing the success or failure recorded here and the information representing the reason for the failure may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, and therefore, the value thereof will not be specifically described.

Therefore, if data of the format as shown in FIG. 3 (d) is transmitted through the human body as a medium, this data is an Info remoe response, and whether the deletion of the user authentication information succeeds or fails. It can be known from the device side.

The data format shown in FIG. 3A is used in the user authentication information storage request step S110 as shown in FIG. 2, and the data format shown in FIG. 3B is a response step as shown in FIG. The data format shown in (c) of FIG. 3 is used in the user authentication information deletion request step (S130) as shown in FIG. 2, and the data format shown in (d) of FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the user authentication information is used in response to the request for deleting the user authentication information (S140).

4 is a diagram illustrating a user authentication method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and illustrates a process of receiving and processing user authentication information and authentication results using the human body 300 as a medium to the system.

In a first step (S210), the first device 100 requests the system information to be authenticated by the second device 200 using the human body 300 as a medium, and receives information indicating that the first device 100 is to be authenticated using human body communication. Pass (System info request). That is, assuming that the storage device 230 stores user identification information and passwords for each system, the system requests the user identification information to the system to be accessed and authenticates that the user is a legitimate user using the human body communication. It will announce that you will receive.

In a second step S220, the second device 200 performs a system info response to the request to the first device 100 using the human body 300 as a medium. That is, whether to allow authentication using human body communication and, if allowed, transmits system identification information (system identifier). In this case, the result of the response may be Accept or Reject, and in the case of Reject, may be transmitted including the reason for the rejection.

The third step S330 is performed when the system allows authentication through human body communication. In a third step (S330), the second device 200 retrieves the system identification information transmitted from the first device 100 from the storage device 230 using the human body 300 as a medium, and is set for the corresponding system. The user authentication information (user ID and password, etc.) is retrieved and transmitted to the first device 100 using the human body 300 as a medium (Authentication request).

Accordingly, the first device 100 compares the user authentication related information transmitted from the human body 300 to the medium with the authentication information stored in the system-database 400 to determine whether to allow access to the system. If the user identification information and password transmitted from the second apparatus 200 of the user to the medium are not matched with the user identification information and password registered in the database 400, the system access is denied and matched. If so, then allow access to the system.

The fourth step (S240) is a response process of transmitting the authentication result from the first device 100 to the second device 200 using the human body 300 as a medium (Authentication response).

A data format used when performing the user authentication procedure will be described with reference to FIG. 5. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a transmission data format of user authentication information according to an embodiment of the present invention. The transmission data format shown in Fig. 5 is just one example, and the present invention is not limited by this embodiment.

In FIG. 5, (a) shows an example of a data format used in step S210 of attempting user authentication to a system based on human body communication. An operation code that represents that the data to be transmitted is a system info request for authentication using human body communication (Operation Code) comes first. Here, since the operation code value can be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified here. Following the operation code, a Source ID is involved. The source ID is identification information of the second device 200, and then records and transmits information (Destination ID) representing content for requesting user authentication using human communication to the first device 100. Since specific values of the information (Source ID, Destination ID) recorded therein can be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specifically described.

Therefore, if the data of the format as shown in FIG. 5 (a) is transmitted through the human body as a medium in the first step (S210) of FIG. 4, the data is authenticated using human body communication along with a request for system information to be authenticated. It will be able to inform the first device 100 from the second device 200 to receive.

5B shows an example of a data format associated with a response to the request of the first step S210. At the head is an Operation Code that indicates that the data being transmitted is a System info response. In this case, since the operation code value representing the response may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified. Following the operation code representing the response, information indicating whether to accept or reject the user authentication using the human body communication is transmitted. Reject may further include information that records the reason for the rejection. The specific values for the information expressing the permission or the rejection and the information expressing the reason recorded therein can be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, and therefore, the value thereof will not be specified. In case of permission, System ID is transmitted.

Therefore, if data of a format such as (b) of FIG. 5 is transmitted through the human body, the data is a system info response, and a message indicating that the system permits or rejects user authentication using the human body communication is provided. 2 may be delivered to the device 200.

In FIG. 5, (c) transmits the user identification information and the password corresponding to the third step S230 in FIG. 4 from the second device 200 to the first device 100 by using the human body 300 as a medium. An example data format is shown. The operation code that indicates that the data to be transmitted is a user authentication request (Authentication request) comes first. Here, since the operation code value may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified here. Following the operation code, user ID information retrieved from the storage device 230 of the second device 200 corresponding to the system is interposed with information representing the length of the identification information. It also intervenes with a user password and information representing the length of the password.

Therefore, if the data of the format as shown in (c) of FIG. 4 is transmitted through the human body as a medium in the third step S230 of FIG. 4, it can be expressed that the data is information related to user authentication, and transfer this information. The received first device 100 may determine whether the corresponding user is authenticated using the user authentication related information of the system-database 400.

5 (d) shows an example of a data format related to a response to a user authentication request. At the head is an Operation Code that indicates that the data to be transmitted is an Authentication response. In this case, since the operation code value representing the response may be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, the value thereof will not be specified. The operation code indicating the response is followed by information indicating whether to allow or reject the system access. Reject may further include information that records the reason for the rejection. The specific values for the information expressing the permission or the rejection and the information expressing the reason recorded therein can be variously determined according to the embodiment of the present invention, and therefore, the value thereof will not be specified.

Therefore, if data of a format such as (d) of FIG. 5 is transmitted through the human body, the data is an authentication response, and the second device 200 sends an authentication result related to whether to allow or deny system access. To be delivered.

The data formats shown in Figs. 5A to 5D and 5A to 5D are configured in the data transmission unit under the control of a processor mounted in each device, and also the interpretation and recognition of the data. Is done in processor 110 or 210, respectively. It is a matter of course that the interpretation and recognition of the data can be easily performed based on the promised code values.

In the present invention, the system may be a PC or a network based server, and may be a server of a security device. When the user logs in to a PC or logs in to a web page, the user's body is inputted to the first device by using the second device according to the present invention, identification information of the corresponding system, user identification information (user ID) and password for the system. It can be done simply by touching.

According to the human body communication-based user authentication system of the present invention, since the user only needs to contact two human body communication devices when authenticating the system, the authentication procedure can be performed simply and quickly. In addition, even if a user sets different identification information (user ID) and password for each system, the system identification information and authentication information for the system are automatically recognized without the need to memorize such information. It is convenient because you can search and use. In addition, it is possible to eliminate the risk of keyboard hacking when the user ID and password are input by using a keyboard for authentication on a PC, and the security can be improved by minimizing the exposure of authentication-related information.

Claims (9)

A human body communication-based user authentication information processing apparatus comprising a storage device for storing user authentication information, and a human body communication device for providing the user information stored in the storage device to the system as a medium. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the user authentication information is received from a system using a human body communication device and stored in the storage device. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the storage device is mounted in the user authentication information processing device or comprises a mobile storage device. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the user authentication information stored in the storage device is information stored corresponding to each of a plurality of systems. A database storing user authentication information, a human body communication device for receiving user information provided from a user via a human body, and a control device for authenticating a corresponding user using a user authentication information database according to the received user information. A user authentication system comprising a; A user authentication information processing device including a storage device for storing user authentication information, and a human body communication device for providing the user information stored in the storage device with the human body as a medium to the user authentication system; Human communication based user authentication system, characterized in that comprises a. The method according to claim 5, wherein the user authentication information processing apparatus and the user authentication system perform mutual human data communication based on a request for transmitting information for performing user authentication using a human body communication and a response thereof. Human body communication based user authentication system. 6. The system of claim 5, wherein the data transmitted between the user authentication system and the user authentication information processing device is information representing a request and a response, information representing the content of the request or response, and a system and the authentication information processing device. Human body communication based user authentication system comprising at least one of the information for. The system of claim 5, wherein the user authentication information stored in the storage device is information stored corresponding to each of a plurality of systems. The system of claim 5, wherein the user authentication system is a device selected from a web server, a security system, and a PC login system.

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