JP2006013685A - Mobile terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mobile terminal with a security system against illegitimate use of the mobile terminal by other people without the need for troublesome operations and without cost increase. <P>SOLUTION: The mobile terminal includes at least: a current position particularizing means; a positional range storage means for storing settings of a particular positional range; a charging control means for controlling charging of a power supply; a secondary battery as the power supply; and a charging means for charging the secondary battery, and the mobile terminal disables charging at positions other than the positional range stored in the positional range storage means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&amp;NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for preventing unauthorized use of a portable terminal such as a cellular phone, a portable information terminal, or a wristwatch.

  In recent years, mobile phone devices are not only used for calls but also store important information that requires security, such as phone books, emails, and schedules. Also, important information is stored inside a portable information terminal or a portable terminal such as a wristwatch. When such a portable terminal is stolen or lost, there is a problem that data stored inside may be used illegally. Even if the data is not stored, if the stolen or lost mobile terminal is a mobile phone, if it is used by another person, it is necessary to pay the usage fee.

  As a method for preventing unauthorized use by others as described above, a lock function using a password and a password is widely implemented. In the lock function using a personal identification number and password, when the portable terminal is not used, the state of the portable terminal is set to the locked state, and when the portable terminal is used, the personal identification number and password known only to the owner are input and the lock is released. It can also be set to automatically lock when the power is turned on.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a personal authentication system that balances simplification of operation and security strength by simultaneously using position information of a portable terminal for a lock function using a password and a password. According to Patent Document 1, user location information is acquired using the GPS function of a mobile terminal carried by the user, and the location information is stored in a database. Then, when the user accesses the server or the like from the portable terminal, the positional information at the time of access is compared with the history of the positional information, and the possibility that the user is at that position is determined. When the location at the time of access is often found in the accumulated location information history, the user is authenticated by a simple authentication method that is easy to use for the user, such as a short password, and the accumulated location information history is not often seen. In the case of access from a location that is not possible, personal authentication is performed by a complicated authentication method with high security strength such as a long password.

  Although the content described in Patent Document 1 balances the security function and the usability of the user using the position information, it is based on the premise that the code number and the lock using the password are used. Their properties are different.

Another method for preventing unauthorized use is to use biometric information such as fingerprints. As a method using a fingerprint, a fingerprint detection unit is provided in a portable terminal, the fingerprint of the finger applied to the fingerprint detection unit is read, collated with a pre-registered person's fingerprint, and the read fingerprint is registered in advance. There is a method of releasing the lock state when it matches. Such an example is disclosed in Patent Document 2, for example.
JP 2004-118456 A JP 2002-034075 A

  However, there were problems in all of the above illegal use prevention methods. In the case of a lock function based on a personal identification number and a password, an operation for performing the lock is necessary in advance, and the lock release operation must be performed after the power is turned on or when the lock is released for the operation. In addition, when the operation is completed, an operation for re-locking is required, and it takes time and effort even when a proper owner operates. For this reason, even if the mobile terminal has a built-in lock function, it is often not used. Also, if you try all possible combinations of passwords and passwords, you can always unlock them.

  Also, when using biometric information such as fingerprints, the operation is not time-consuming, but it is necessary to separately provide a collation device in the mobile terminal, and there is a problem that the cost of the mobile terminal increases and an obstacle to miniaturization. is there.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and provides a portable terminal having a security system that does not require a troublesome operation and prevents an increase in cost for unauthorized use by another person of the portable terminal. For the purpose.

  A portable terminal according to the present invention includes at least a current position specifying unit, a position range storing unit that stores setting of a specific position range, a charging control unit that controls charging of a power source, a secondary battery that is a power source, Charging means for charging the secondary battery, and charging is impossible outside the position range stored in the position range storage means. With such a configuration, it is possible to provide a mobile terminal having a security system that does not require a troublesome operation and is not expensive for unauthorized use by another person of the mobile terminal.

  The current position specifying means may be GPS (satellite-based positioning system). As a result, a more detailed position range can be specified.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a portable terminal having a security system that does not require a troublesome operation against unauthorized use by another person of the portable terminal and does not increase costs.

  Hereinafter, embodiments to which the present invention can be applied will be described. The following description is to describe the embodiment of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment. For the sake of clarity, the following description is omitted and simplified as appropriate. Moreover, those skilled in the art can easily change, add, and convert each element of the following embodiments within the scope of the present invention.

Embodiment 1
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a mobile phone 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. According to the figure, a mobile phone 100 includes a mobile phone call unit 1 comprising at least a microphone, a speaker, a CODEC, etc., a mobile phone communication unit 2 that performs communication with a mobile phone, and a mobile phone antenna unit that transmits and receives radio waves with a base station. 3. A position range where charging can be performed in advance, a charging control unit 4 that determines whether or not to charge according to the contents, a position information receiving unit 5 that acquires position information of the mobile phone device from the mobile phone communication unit, The charging unit 6 charges the secondary battery, and the secondary battery 7 supplies power to the mobile phone 100.

  Here, the chargeable position range set in advance should be limited to places where the mobile phone is mainly charged, such as at home or work. Furthermore, the security strength is highest when only the charger of the owner of the mobile phone 100 is specified. This is because if the chargeable position range is wide or large, there is a high probability that the third party who acquired the mobile phone will be able to charge the battery when the other person's hand is stolen or lost. Therefore, it is preferable that the position range where charging is possible is limited to a narrow range as much as possible mainly for charging the mobile phone, and the range is not excessively widened. In addition, the balance between security strength and flexibility during use can be adjusted by the wide range of positions where charging is possible.

  The operation as a mobile phone is the same as that of a conventional mobile phone. When making a call, the mobile phone call unit 1 performs voice input / output and decoding, and the mobile phone communication unit 2 performs mobile phone communication. The mobile phone antenna unit 3 transmits and receives radio waves. Further, power is supplied from the secondary battery 7. When the secondary battery 7 is charged by the charging unit 6 under the control of the charging control unit 4, control based on position information is performed. When the charging control unit 4 detects a charging start operation from the charging unit 6 to the secondary battery 7 by, for example, the mobile phone 100 being inserted into a charging plug, the location information of the mobile phone 100 is received from the location information receiving unit 5. . In the case of a mobile phone, the ID of a base station that performs communication can be used as position information. In addition, when information other than the base station ID can be used, the information may be used as position information.

  The charging control unit 4 compares the position information received from the position information receiving unit 5 with information on a position range that can be charged in advance. The preset position range may be a set of base station IDs or a position and range. As a result of the comparison, if the current position is within a preset chargeable position range, the charging control unit 4 permits charging from the charging unit 6 to the secondary battery 7. If the current position is out of the chargeable position range, the charging control unit 4 does not permit charging from the charging unit 6 to the secondary battery 7.

  FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of the operation when charging the mobile phone 100. When the charging control unit 4 senses charging from the charging unit 6 to the secondary battery 7, the charging control unit 4 receives the current position information of the mobile phone 100 from the position information receiving unit 5 (S101). At this time, power is not yet supplied from the charging unit 6 to the secondary battery 7. Next, information on a chargeable range that is set in advance and stored in the charging control unit 4 is compared with the current position information received from the position information receiving unit 5 (S102). If the current position is within the chargeable range, the charging control unit 4 permits charging, and power is supplied from the charging unit 6 to the secondary battery 7 (S103). If the current position is outside the chargeable range, the charging control unit 4 does not permit charging, and power is not supplied from the charging unit 6 to the secondary battery 7 (S104).

  As described above, if the mobile phone 100 according to the present invention is used to limit the rechargeable position range to a limited range such as home or work, the mobile phone 100 may be stolen or lost. Even in this case, since the third party who acquired the mobile phone 100 cannot charge the acquired mobile phone 100, the power is turned off after a certain period of time and the mobile phone 100 becomes unusable. With such a configuration, in order to prevent unauthorized use of the mobile phone by others, repeated troublesome operations such as unlocking by entering a personal identification number at power-on and use and lock setting at the end of use are repeated. You do n’t have to. Further, it is not necessary to provide expensive hardware such as fingerprint collation.

Embodiment 2
Next, a portable information terminal according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a portable information terminal 200 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. According to the figure, the portable information terminal 200 includes at least a charging control unit 9, a position information receiving unit 10, a GOS antenna unit 11, a charging unit 12 and a secondary battery 13 in addition to the portable information terminal unit 8. The portable information terminal unit 8 is a main part of the portable information terminal 200, and all the main functions of the portable information terminal 200 are included here.

  The charging control unit 9 includes at least means for setting and storing a position range where charging can be performed in advance, and means for controlling charging from the charging unit 12 to the secondary battery 13. The charging control unit 9 receives the current position from the position information receiving unit 10, compares the pre-set and stored chargeable position range with the current position, and from the charging unit 12 to the secondary battery 13 according to the result. Control charging.

  Here, the chargeable position range set in advance should be limited to places where the portable information terminal 200 is mainly charged, such as at home or work. Furthermore, the security strength is the highest when only the charger of the owner of the portable information terminal 200 is designated. This is because if the chargeable position range is wide or large, the probability that the third party who acquired the portable information terminal 200 will be able to charge becomes higher when it reaches the other person's hand due to theft or loss. Therefore, it is preferable that the position range in which charging is possible is limited to a narrow range as much as possible mainly for charging the portable information terminal 200, and the range is not excessively widened. In addition, the balance of security strength and flexibility during use can be adjusted by the wide range of positions where charging is possible.

  The position information receiving unit 10 has means for acquiring the current position information of the portable information terminal 200 from the GPS antenna unit 11 and means for outputting the acquired current position information to the charging control unit 9. The GPS antenna unit 11 is an antenna that receives current position information of the portable information terminal 200. The charging unit 12 charges the secondary battery 13. The secondary battery 13 supplies power to the portable information terminal 200 and is charged by the charging unit 12.

  Next, a specific operation when charging portable information terminal 200 will be described using the flowchart shown in FIG. When the charging control unit 9 senses charging from the charging unit 12 to the secondary battery 13, the charging control unit 9 receives the current position information of the portable information terminal 200 from the position information receiving unit 10 (S201). At this time, power is not yet supplied from the charging unit 12 to the secondary battery 13. Next, the information of the chargeable range that is set in advance and stored in the charging control unit 9 is compared with the current position information received from the position information receiving unit 10 (S202). If the current position is within the chargeable range, the charging control unit 9 permits charging, and power is supplied from the charging unit 12 to the secondary battery 13 (S203). If the current position is outside the chargeable range, the charging control unit 9 does not permit charging, and power is not supplied from the charging unit 12 to the secondary battery 13 (S204).

  As described above, if the portable information terminal 200 according to the present invention is used to limit the rechargeable position range to a limited range such as a home or work place, the portable information terminal 200 may be stolen or lost. Even if it exists, since the third party who acquired it cannot charge the acquired portable information terminal 200, the power is turned off after a certain period of time and becomes unusable. With such a configuration, in order to prevent unauthorized use of the mobile phone by others, repeated troublesome operations such as unlocking by entering a personal identification number at power-on and use and lock setting at the end of use are repeated. You do n’t have to. Further, it is not necessary to provide expensive hardware such as fingerprint collation.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the mobile telephone concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the mobile telephone concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the portable information terminal concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the portable information terminal concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 mobile phone call part, 2 mobile phone communication part, 3 mobile phone antenna part,
4 charging control unit, 5 position information receiving unit, 6 charging unit, 7 secondary battery,
8 mobile information terminal unit, 9 charging control unit, 10 position information receiving unit,
11 antenna unit, 12 charging unit, 13, secondary battery, 100 mobile phone,
200 Personal digital assistant

Claims (7)

Position information acquisition means for acquiring position information for specifying the current position of the mobile terminal;
Charging means for charging a secondary battery as a power source of the mobile terminal;
A portable terminal comprising charging control means for controlling charging by the charging means,
The charge control means includes
A portable terminal that prohibits charging by the charging means when the current position of the portable terminal specified by the position information acquired by the position information acquiring means is other than a preset charging permission position.   2. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the position information acquisition means is means for acquiring identification information of a base station with which the mobile terminal communicates.   2. The portable terminal according to claim 1, wherein the position information acquisition means is means for acquiring position information using a GPS (satellite-based positioning system). A method to prevent unauthorized use of mobile devices,
Sensing charging of the mobile terminal;
Obtaining location information identifying the current location of the mobile device;
Determining whether the current position of the mobile terminal specified by the position information is a preset charging permission position;
A method for preventing unauthorized use of a mobile terminal, comprising: prohibiting charging of the mobile terminal when the current position of the mobile terminal is other than the charging permission position.   5. The method of preventing unauthorized use of a mobile terminal according to claim 4, wherein the location information of the mobile terminal is identification information of a base station with which the mobile terminal communicates.   5. The method for preventing unauthorized use of a portable terminal according to claim 4, wherein the position information of the portable terminal is position information transmitted by a GPS (satellite-based positioning system). A charging control circuit comprising charging control means for controlling charging of the mobile terminal,
Charge control that acquires position information specifying the current position of the mobile terminal and prohibits charging of the mobile terminal when the current position of the mobile terminal specified by the position information is other than a preset charge-permitted position circuit.

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