GB2387075A - Method of registering devices in a network - Google Patents

Method of registering devices in a network Download PDF

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Publication number
GB2387075A
GB2387075A GB0304046A GB0304046A GB2387075A GB 2387075 A GB2387075 A GB 2387075A GB 0304046 A GB0304046 A GB 0304046A GB 0304046 A GB0304046 A GB 0304046A GB 2387075 A GB2387075 A GB 2387075A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
network
registration
item
communication range
range
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
GB0304046A
Other versions
GB0304046D0 (en
Inventor
Amir Nooralahiyan
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Arris Global Ltd
Original Assignee
Pace Micro Technology PLC
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Pace Micro Technology PLC filed Critical Pace Micro Technology PLC
Publication of GB0304046D0 publication Critical patent/GB0304046D0/en
Publication of GB2387075A publication Critical patent/GB2387075A/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W12/00—Security arrangements; Authentication; Protecting privacy or anonymity
    • H04W12/06—Authentication
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L12/00—Data switching networks
    • H04L12/28—Data switching networks characterised by path configuration, e.g. LAN [Local Area Networks] or WAN [Wide Area Networks]
    • H04L12/2803—Home automation networks
    • H04L12/2807—Exchanging configuration information on appliance services in a home automation network
    • H04L12/2809—Exchanging configuration information on appliance services in a home automation network indicating that an appliance service is present in a home automation network
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L63/00—Network architectures or network communication protocols for network security
    • H04L63/04—Network architectures or network communication protocols for network security for providing a confidential data exchange among entities communicating through data packet networks
    • H04L63/0428—Network architectures or network communication protocols for network security for providing a confidential data exchange among entities communicating through data packet networks wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
    • H04L63/0492—Network architectures or network communication protocols for network security for providing a confidential data exchange among entities communicating through data packet networks wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload by using a location-limited connection, e.g. near-field communication or limited proximity of entities
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L63/00—Network architectures or network communication protocols for network security
    • H04L63/08—Network architectures or network communication protocols for network security for authentication of entities
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W12/00—Security arrangements; Authentication; Protecting privacy or anonymity
    • H04W12/50—Secure pairing of devices
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04B—TRANSMISSION
    • H04B1/00—Details of transmission systems, not covered by a single one of groups H04B3/00 - H04B13/00; Details of transmission systems not characterised by the medium used for transmission
    • H04B1/06—Receivers
    • H04B1/16—Circuits
    • H04B1/20—Circuits for coupling gramophone pick-up, recorder output, or microphone to receiver
    • H04B1/205—Circuits for coupling gramophone pick-up, recorder output, or microphone to receiver with control bus for exchanging commands between units
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04B—TRANSMISSION
    • H04B17/00—Monitoring; Testing
    • H04B17/20—Monitoring; Testing of receivers
    • H04B17/27—Monitoring; Testing of receivers for locating or positioning the transmitter
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
    • H04M1/60—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers including speech amplifiers
    • H04M1/6033—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers including speech amplifiers for providing handsfree use or a loudspeaker mode in telephone sets
    • H04M1/6041—Portable telephones adapted for handsfree use
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
    • H04M1/72—Mobile telephones; Cordless telephones, i.e. devices for establishing wireless links to base stations without route selection
    • H04M1/725—Cordless telephones
    • H04M1/727—Identification code transfer arrangements
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W12/00—Security arrangements; Authentication; Protecting privacy or anonymity
    • H04W12/30—Security of mobile devices; Security of mobile applications
    • H04W12/33—Security of mobile devices; Security of mobile applications using wearable devices, e.g. using a smartwatch or smart-glasses
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W12/00—Security arrangements; Authentication; Protecting privacy or anonymity
    • H04W12/60—Context-dependent security
    • H04W12/63—Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W60/00—Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration

Abstract

A method of registering a device 10 in a network is provided. The network includes one or more items of electrical apparatus 6. The network is opened for registration by actuating a registration mode in one of the electrical items 6 which results in the electrical item 6 providing a pre-determined communication range for a pre-determined period of time. The device 10 to be registered is moved within the pre-determined communication range of the electrical item 6, preferably within a pre-determined time period, thereby allowing electrical item 6 and the in-range device 10 to communicate registration data therebetween.

Description

Method of Registering Devices in a Network This invention relates to a
method of registering devices in a network, and particularly but not exclusively, for registration of devices in a home network.
It is known to network complex devices in a home, such as televisions, videos and personal computers (PCs). In order to allow a device to operate in the network, the device has to first be registered therewith to allow communication between the device and other apparatus in the network. A conventional method for registering a device involves the input of a PIN number or password directly into the device or via host apparatus in the network for which the device is to be registered. The input PIN number is recognised by the host apparatus, thereby allowing registration of the device. For example, a DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Technology) telephone handset requires the input of an eight- digit number therein for actuating registration of the handset with a home network. IEEE802. 11 WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) client devices (i.e. those requiring a PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) card) require the input of a password into a host personal computer device for actuation of registration.
Registration of one or more devices in a network in the above described manner is possible because there are control keys provided on the device or host apparatus via which the necessary data can be input. However, simpler devices such as wireless speakers, wireless headphones, security cameras and/or the like, which also require to be networked in order to provide a fully networked environment, are not typically provided with control keys or means for inputting registration data therein (i.e. there is no interface for data entry). The provision of control À. .
means in such devices to allow data entry is likely to be prohibitively expensive.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method of secure registration of devices without the requirement for data entry in the abovementioned conventional manner. According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of registering a device in a network, said network including one or more items of apparatus, said method including the steps of opening the network for registration by actuating a registration mode in at least one of the items of apparatus, the actuation of the registration mode resulting in the at least one item of apparatus having a pre-determined communication range, locating the device to be registered within said pre-determined communication range of said at least one item of apparatus, and said at least one item of apparatus and ......
said n-range device communicating registration data therebetween to allow the registration of the device in the network. Preferably the at least one item of apparatus is provided with the pre-determined communication range for a pre-determined time period. The device is required to be located in range of the apparatus within the pre-determined time period to allow registration to take place.
The pre-determined communication range is typically a reduced or more limited communication range compared to a normal operating communication range of the apparatus.
Preferably actuation of the registration mode in the item or items of apparatus moves said item(s) to a low power mode, 1; ..
thereby restricting the communication range over which the apparatus normally operates to a smaller pre-determined communication range.
In one embodiment, actuation of a registration mode in the one or more items of apparatus is via depression or actuation of a pre-designated button or key on the apparatus or on a remote control handset controlling one or more operations/functions of the apparatus.
Preferably the device to be registered includes any device which does not have data input means or a data entry interface, such as wireless headphone registration, wireless speaker registration, security camera registration, meter reading transceiver registration and/or the like. However, devices having data input means can also be registered with a network according to the method of the present invention.
Preferably the item of apparatus moved into the low power mode is the base station or master apparatus of the network system. However, both the host apparatus and the device to be registered can be moved into a low power mode if required. The devices and/or apparatus are typically moved into a low power mode on depression of a pre-designated registration button or key. In one embodiment proxy or intermediate apparatus is used to register a device with a network. For example, if it is inconvenient to move the device to be registered to an item of apparatus acting as the base station of the network, the proxy apparatus can be used to register the device in the abovementioned manner. The proxy apparatus communicates registration data between the device and the item or items of .. .:.
. . at.,. .. A; _,, L ',
apparatus acting as a base station or base stations of the network. Preferably the proxy apparatus is an easily transportable device such as a mobile telephone, lap top computer, palm pilot and/or the like to allow the proxy apparatus to be moved between the base station and the device to the registered.
Further preferably the keypad or data entry means on said proxy apparatus allows the apparatus to be moved from a normal operating mode to a network registration mode. The data entry means on the proxy apparatus can be used to transmit registration data in a conventional manner between itself and host apparatus and then the proxy apparatus can communicate with the device to be registered in accordance with the present invention. The networked items of apparatus and/or the device are typically items of electrical apparatus.
Preferably the base station of the network is a broadcast data receiver (BDR). The BDR recognises the in-range device and can distinguish the device over existing devices in the network from unique identification (ID) means or serial numbers stored in each device. In registration mode the in-range device sends a registration request to the BDR, together with its ID.
Preferably the host apparatus of the network is capable of silencing', switching off, restricting communication or moving to a standby condition other items of apparatus within the network during the registration process, thereby reducing noise which might interfere with the registration process.
Preferably de-registration of a device from a network can take place in a similar manner to registration of the device in the network but instead of a subscribe step or registration taking place an unsubscribe or registration cancellation step takes place. Preferably the network is a wireless network. The term wireless is used to described apparatus which can communicate by wireless means, such as a number of remote devices capable of communicating with each other, in addition to or as an alternative to cable or wired connection means.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a network, said network including one or more items of apparatus, said device having means via which at least one item of apparatus within the network can be moved to a registration mode to provide said at least one item of apparatus with a pre-determined communication range, such that when said device is located within said pre-determined communication range of said apparatus, said apparatus and said in-range device communicate registration data therebetween to allow registration of the device with the network.
According to a yet further aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of registering a device in a network, said network including one or more items of apparatus, said method including the steps of opening the network for registration by actuating a registration mode in one of said items of apparatus, the actuation of said registration mode resulting in said item(s) of apparatus having a pre-determined communication range for a pre-determined period of time, locating the device to be registered within said pre-determined communication range of said item(s) of apparatus within said pre-determined time period, said item(s) of apparatus and said in-range device . c. O,..
communicating registration data therebetween to allow the registration of the device in the network via said item(s) of apparatus in said network.
Once the device has been registered with the network, the device can be moved to any required position relative to the other items of apparatus in the network, such as out of said pre-
determined communication range.
In one embodiment the network system includes a proxy device via which the registration of the device to be registered can take place. The proxy device is then able to transmit the registration data to an item of apparatus acting as the base station of the network. An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying figures wherein: Figure 1 illustrates an example of a home network system according to the present invention.
Referring to figure 1, there is illustrated a home network system 2 comprising a plurality of items of electrical apparatus including a television set 4, a broadcast data receiver (BDR) 6, speakers 8. The BDR receives digital data from a broadcaster at a remote location and processes and decodes said data to provide video, audio and/or auxiliary data for display on the television set 4 and/or for listening to via speakers 8. The television set 4, BDR 6 and speakers 8 can communicate with each other via wireless and/or wired means.
Wireless headphones 10 are required to be registered for operation with the home network system 2. The headphones do .
not have data input means via which they can be registered with the network using conventional methods.
In accordance with the present invention, the headphones 10 are registered by opening a residential gateway or access point in the network. In this described embodiment the access point is opened by depressing a registration button 12 on the broadcast data receiver (BDR) 6. This moNres the BDR6 from a normal operating mode to a registration or low power operating mode.
In the low power mode, the communication range of the BDRis reduced to a pre-determined distance, such that only devices positioned within the predetermined distance range to the BDR can communicate therewith. For example' moving the BDR into a low power mode reduces its range of communication by radio frequency (RF) to one metro. The BDRis only in this lower power mode for a pre-determined period of time' i.e., one minute. Therefore, within this time period, the headphones 10 are moved to a position less than one metre in distance from the BDR 6.
The BDR communicates with the headphones 10 via transceiver 14 on the BDR and transceiver 16 on the headphones 10 and initiates the registration process. The registration process terminates on completion of the communication process.
Registration data in the form of an ID number is communicated from the headphones 10 to BDR 6. The BDR in turn communicates an activation or registration signal to the headphones to allow the headphones to function in the network.
The low power mode makes the registration secure as the BDR and headphones must be in the same locality to communicate with each other.
Thus the present invention provides a cost effective and easy means of registering a device within a network by controlling the power of a host device and without the requirement for data input means being provided in the device.
, ... ,.

Claims (16)

Claims:
1. A method of registering a device in a network, said network including one or more items of apparatus, said method including the steps of opening the network for registration by actuating a registration mode in at least one of the items of apparatus, the actuation of the registration mode resulting in the at least one item of apparatus providing a predetermined communication range, locating the device to be registered within the pre-determined communication range of said at least one item of apparatus, and said at least one item of apparatus and said in-range device communicating registration data therebetween to allow the registration of the device in the network.
2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one item of apparatus has a pre-determined communication range for a pre-determined period of time and said device must be located in said range of the apparatus within said pre-determined time period to allow registration to take place.
3. A method according to claim 1 wherein the pre-determined communication range of the apparatus is a more limiting range than the normal communication range of said apparatus.
4. A method according to claim 1 wherein actuation of the registration mode in the at least one item of apparatus moves the item to a low power mode.
5. A method according to claim 1 wherein actuation of the registration mode in the at least one item of apparatus .. .:, i,, c .
requires the actuation or depression of a pre-designated button on the apparatus or on a remote control handset controlling one or more functions of said apparatus.
G. A method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one item of apparatus is a base station or master apparatus of the network system.
7. A method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one item of apparatus is a broadcast data receiver.
8. A method according to claim 1 wherein intermediate apparatus is used to register the device within the network, the intermediate device communicating registration data between the device and the at least one item of apparatus.
9. A method according to claim 8 wherein the intermediate apparatus is easily transportable.
10. A method according to claim 8 wherein the intermediate apparatus is any of a mobile telephone, a palm pilot or a lap top computer.
11. A method according to claim 1 wherein each device registered in the network is provided with unique identification means which is communicated to said at least one item of apparatus.
12. A method according to claim 1 wherein the device sends a registration request to the at least one item of apparatus to initiate registration.
13. A method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one item of apparatus is capable of restricting
communication with other items of apparatus in the network during the registration process.
14. A method according to claim 1 wherein cancellation of registration of a device in a network occurs in the same manner to registration of the device.
15. A method according to claim 1 wherein the network is a wireless network.
16. A network, said network including one or more items of apparatus, said device having means via which at least one item of apparatus within the network can be moved to a registration mode to provide said at least one item of apparatus with a pre-determined communication range, such that when said device is located within said pre-
determined communication range of said apparatus, said apparatus and said in-range device communicate registration data therebetween to allow registration of the device with the network.
...CLME:
GB0304046A 2002-03-02 2003-02-24 Method of registering devices in a network Withdrawn GB2387075A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB0204943.5A GB0204943D0 (en) 2002-03-02 2002-03-02 Method of registering devices in a wireless network

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB0304046D0 GB0304046D0 (en) 2003-03-26
GB2387075A true GB2387075A (en) 2003-10-01

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GBGB0204943.5A Ceased GB0204943D0 (en) 2002-03-02 2002-03-02 Method of registering devices in a wireless network
GB0304046A Withdrawn GB2387075A (en) 2002-03-02 2003-02-24 Method of registering devices in a network

Family Applications Before (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GBGB0204943.5A Ceased GB0204943D0 (en) 2002-03-02 2002-03-02 Method of registering devices in a wireless network

Country Status (1)

Country Link
GB (2) GB0204943D0 (en)

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2342010A (en) * 1998-06-30 2000-03-29 Motorola Inc Reducing transmission power to provide secure registration within an in-home wireless netwrok
WO2002062024A2 (en) * 2001-01-30 2002-08-08 Broadcom Corporation Method for adding a new device to a wireless network

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2342010A (en) * 1998-06-30 2000-03-29 Motorola Inc Reducing transmission power to provide secure registration within an in-home wireless netwrok
WO2002062024A2 (en) * 2001-01-30 2002-08-08 Broadcom Corporation Method for adding a new device to a wireless network

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB0304046D0 (en) 2003-03-26
GB0204943D0 (en) 2002-04-17

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WAP Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1)