WO2011088579A1

WO2011088579A1 - Apparatus and method for maintaining security and privacy on hand held devices

Info

Publication number: WO2011088579A1
Application number: PCT/CA2011/050039
Authority: WO
Inventors: Paramjit Gill
Original assignee: Paramjit Gill
Priority date: 2010-01-21
Filing date: 2011-01-21
Publication date: 2011-07-28

Abstract

A handheld device with motion gesture recognition based locking is provided. The handheld device includes a motion gesture recognition module for detecting motion of the handheld device. The motion gesture recognition module comprises at least one sensor and a locking module configured to store a locking program. The locking program includes instructions for restricting access to predefined content stored on the handheld device or functions upon receipt of a lock activating signal; wherein said lock activating signal is a defined motion.

Description

APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MAINTAINING SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON HAND HELD DEVICES

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[001] The present invention relates to the field of handheld device usage and the maintenance of security and privacy on and/or of those devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to a handheld device having methods and systems for controlling access to user-defined content and features, to maintain the expectation of security and privacy in using handheld devices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[002] Handheld devices have become an integral part of millions of people's daily life. People use them in a variety of ways and as a result they store significant amounts of personal information including contact information, emails, photos, and the like on such devices. The capability of handheld devices will increase as technology improves and those devices incorporate features that will allow them to act as sensors providing information about the user's surroundings. (Neil Reid, Wireless Mobility: The Why of Wireless, McGraw Hill Professional, 2010, 9780071628624)

[003] The ubiquitous use of handheld devices has created data security and privacy problems for the user. Data security is the problem of determining who can access the features and data on a mobile device. Data privacy is the problem of controlling the dissemination of information from those devices arising from their use.

[004] To solve the problem of security, prior art applies the standard security measures such as a user identification and password based on alpha numeric characters to ensure that an authorize user is accessing the appropriate device or service. For most hand held devices, once this security challenge has been passed, the user of the device will have unrestricted access to all the service and data within the device. In the past, this solution was effective because those devices were used mainly for one function. For example, as a communication device. As the capability of those devices increases, simple alphanumeric challenges are no longer enough.

[005] A related issue to security is the problem of privacy. In the past, because of limited capability of mobile devices, those devices were assumed to be used only by the owner of the device. However, as the capability of the devices improves, such devices may be used by one or more users. This give rise to privacy issues involving mobile devices when the mobile device is passed, with or without permission, from one user to another.

[006] New methods and systems are introduced to solve the security and privacy requirements of hand held devices. New security systems that augment and replace the use of simple passwords to prevent access to selected components within a mobile device. In addition, the new methods and system allow a user to protect a portion of the data available on the portable device.

[007] This background information is provided for the purpose of making known information believed by the applicant to be of possible relevance to the present invention. No admission is necessarily intended, nor should be construed, that any of the preceding information constitutes prior art against the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[008] An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for controlling access to user-defined content and features on a handheld.

[009] In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a handheld device with the following components: one or more sensors, a motion gesture recognition module, and a locking module. Sensors are devices that measure a physical quantity such as acceleration, movement, temperature, geographical location or biometric information and convert it into a signal which can be read by the handheld device. The motion gesture recognition module is used to combine the information from one or more sensors into a set of information defined as a gesture. For example, a sequence of pressure sensor can be interpreted as a series of tapping motions on the handheld device by the motion gesture recognition module. The locking module is configured to store a locking program; said locking program comprising instructions for restricting or permitting access to predefined content or services stored on said electronic handheld device or functions upon receipt of a lock activating signal; wherein said lock activating signal is a defined as one or more criteria such as a motion, a gesture, a conditional time based event, or a specified input from one or more sensors or a series of alpha numeric inputs.

[010] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for restricting access to information stored on a handheld device, the method comprising receiving input identifying information to be locked or unlocked and one or more criteria that activates or deactivates a lock activating signal. The activating criteria are a series of defined inputs from the user or from the sensor. The lock activating signal then instructs the locking module to prevent or allow access to the identified information.

[011 J In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for locking of a handheld device comprising the steps of identifying or programming features or content to be locked, identifying or programming user defined lock activating signal; wherein said lock activating signal is a defined motion or attitude change or a set of predefined criteria, inputting lock activating signal thereby locking said handheld device.

[012] In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there is provided, a handheld device with motion gesture recognition based locking, the handheld device comprising a plurality of motion sensors providing sensed data based on movement of the handheld device in space, the motion sensors providing multi-axis motion sensing and including at least one rotational motion sensor and at least one accelerometer; and one or more central processors, wherein at least one of the central processors receives motion data derived from the sensed data provided by the plurality of motion sensors; compares said motion data with locking motion data; wherein if said motion data is substantially similar to said locking motion, data access to predetermined handheld device features is restricted until unlocked.

[013] In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there is provided, a handheld device that has one or more functions that enables the device to measure and transmit information about the environment of the handheld device. Examples of environmental information are location, temperature, humidity, acceleration or the status of the user holding the device such as the pulse rate, body temperature or action or biometric information such as a finger print or a retina scan.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[014] These and other features of the invention will become more apparent in the following detailed description in which reference is made to the appended drawings.

[015] Figure 1 illustrates the relationship between the data available on a hand held device and examples of the functions that the user can apply permission to, or lock, in order to access those data.

[016] Figure 2 illustrates the lock-activating or deactivating parameters which can be received by the handheld device and which will, subsequently, trigger the information identified by the user to be restricted.

[017] Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating one embodiment of the method of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[018] Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinarily skilled in the art to which this invention belongs.

[019] The term "handheld device" as referred to herein includes personal portable electronics, including, but not limited to, cell phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), media players of various formats such as digital music players (e.g., CD, MP3, AC-3, .wma, etc.), video players (e.g., DVD, MPEG, .wmv, etc.), picture players (e.g., JPEG, etc.), electronic organizers, smart phones and the like. The common feature of handheld devices are their ability to perform various functions such as; being used as a phone, to access e-mail or the Internet, view videos, send short messages (SMS) or take pictures like a camera. Another feature for the hand held device is their ability to accept and then manipulate data. Examples of data include local data (data that is stored on the device), environmental data (information obtained through environmental sensors), third party data (data not related to the network supplier), and network data (data supplied by the network).

[020] The term "environmental sensor" as referred to herein include any feature within the handheld device that can provide information external to the device. Examples of information that are external to the device include motion of the device, geographical data, temperature, hand gestures, biometric information of the user or an external signal such as information from a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, or a data network.

[021] The system and method requires the creation of a functional layer or module between the incoming data and the functions of the handheld device. This new layer or module, termed, "Hand held device lock or Permission" represents a series of computer codes that check whether the incoming data has the appropriate permissions to access the features on the mobile device.

[022] Figure 1 is a summary of the interactions between data and various functions on a hand held device. In Figure 1 , data from various sources (10) passes through a software function denoted as the "Hand Held Device Lock / Permissions" (20) before being able to access various hand held device functions (30).

[023] Hand held device parameters to activate or deactivate hand held device functions can be one or more parameters chosen from the category of device controls, environmental variables or biometric information. Figure 2 represents a summary of the categories and examples of the information that can be used as locking or de-locking parameters. Example of device control includes any form of mechanical action (a rotation of the device, a rhythmic disturbance, etc.) or pre-defined signals such as information contained in a RFID tag. Example of environmental variables includes geographic location range and time. Example of biometric information includes a fingerprint, a voice print, a DNA profile or information from a facial or retinal recognition software.

[024] In order to ensure that the system is secure and the device user's privacy is protected. The invention is comprised of the following steps as summarized in Figure 3. The user of the hand held device identifies the type of data to be locked (100). For example, key board inputs to a particular function (such as e-mail or text) in the hand held device. The User then sets the activation parameter to associate access with this data (1 10). For example, if the activation parameter is a combination of specific inputs from one or move device controls, environment variables or biometric information then data can only access a particular function if those activation parameters are met.

[025] During normal usage, the hand held device receives some form of input data (200). The data is processed through the Permission module to check whether the data lock is in effect. If the data is not locked, then the data is sent to the particular device function (220). If the data is locked or the data represents activation parameters, the Permission module checks whether it is the incorrect activation parameter (230), if the activation parameters is correct, then the data is allowed to access the device function (220). If the input data represents an incorrect activation parameter, the User has a choice of restarting the process again (240) or stop acquiring new data.

[026] In one embodiment, the permission module contains a locking function which "locks- out" or restricts access to user-defined functions and/or information as a result of the user shaking the handheld device or changing the position or attitude of the handheld device in a defined manner.

[027] The handheld device comprises an environment determination module for detecting motion of or an attitude change of the handheld device. The motion gesture recognition module comprises one or more sensor(s) for detecting motion and/or attitude and/or rotation of the device and communicates either directly or via an interface with the locking module.

[028] Appropriate sensors are known in the art and may be any type of motion and/or attitude and/or rotation sensors for detecting motion and/or attitude and/or rotation of the device and producing a corresponding output. The sensors may be simple mechanical devices, analog devices, digital devices, or formed from a conventional microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) device. In one embodiment, the motion sensor may be an accelerometer (e.g., single-axis or multiple-axis) which senses the acceleration of the device. Alternatively, the motion sensor may be a simple mechanical device such as a mercury switch or pendulum type apparatus for sensing movement of the device. In one embodiment, the sensor is a gyroscope. [029] The locking module stores a locking program and is configured to receive input from motion gesture recognition module and output at least one command to the control system upon receipt of appropriate input (lock activating signal) from the motion gesture recognition module. The lock activating signal may be pre-set by the manufacturer / supplier of the device or may be user-defined. User-defined lock activating signals may optionally be selected from a predefined set of lock activating signals. The lock activating signal is a defined motion gesture and can include a shake gesture, a rotational gesture, a tap gesture, a flip gesture, and so on.

[030] Optionally, the lock-activating signal selected by the user may be varied.

[031] In another embodiment, there is two or more lock activating signals, wherein each lock activating signal of the two or more lock activating signals restricts access to unique content or functions.

[032] Optionally, the lock activating signal(s) can be user defined. In selecting the lock- activating signal, the user can identify a different lock activating signal based on the information the user specified to be restricted.

[033] The locking module signals the control system to unlock the device upon receipt of an access code or unlock signal.

[034] Upon receipt of the lock-activating signal the handheld device restricts access to the user's specified information.

[035] Access to various information or functions can be locked. Content and functions to be locked can optionally be user defined. Information users could identify and input include, but are not limited to fax, e-mail, Internet, camera, telephone, music, videos, applications, and text messaging. Optionally, the user can select any number and any arrangement of the information to be restricted. The user may modify the restricted information.

[036] In one embodiment, a user may select e-mail and fax to be restricted, whereas in a second embodiment, a user may restrict access to applications, videos and music.

Claims

We claim:

1. A handheld device with motion gesture recognition based locking comprising a motion gesture recognition module for detecting motion of the handheld device and comprising at least one sensor and a locking module configured to store a locking program; said locking program comprising instructions for restricting access to predefined content stored on said handheld device or functions upon receipt of a lock activating signal; wherein said lock activating signal is a defined motion.

2. A method for restricting access to information stored on a handheld device, the method comprising:

- receiving an input identifying information to be locked and a lock activating signal, inputting the lock activating signal such that access to the identified information is restricted.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the lock activating signal is an inputted code.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the lock activating signal is pre-determined movement of the handheld device.

5. A method for locking of a handheld device comprising the steps of:

- (i) identifying or programming features or content to be locked,

- (ii) identifying or programming user defined lock activating signal,

- (iii) inputting lock activating signal thereby locking handheld device, wherein said lock activating signal is a specific motion.

6. A handheld device with motion gesture recognition based locking, the handheld device comprising a plurality of motion sensors providing sensed data based on movement of the handheld device in space, the motion sensors providing multi-axis motion sensing and including at least one rotational motion sensor and at least one accelerometer; and one or more central processors, wherein at least one of the central processors receives motion data derived from the sensed data provided by the plurality of motion sensors; compares said motion data with locking motion data; wherein if said motion data is substantially similar to

8

RECTIFIED SHEET (RULE 91.1) said locking motion data access to predetermined handheld device features is restricted until unlocked.

7. The handheld device of claim 6, wherein said predetermined handheld device features are user-defined features.

9

RECTIFIED SHEET (RULE 91.1)