JPH1185924A - Non-contact medium and non-contact medium system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the data of a medium from being read or writer while an owner is not aware, and to improve the security of stored data by enabling the owner to intentionally switch the inhibition or permission of the reading of data stored in a storage part or the writing of data in the storage part. SOLUTION: In this non-contact card 1, a communicating part 4 is disconnected from an antenna 7 when a permission switch 6 provided at a main body side face is not pushed. Thus, a request for the reading of data stored in a storage part 3 or a request for the writing of data in the storage part 3 is transmitted to the non-contact card 1, any request is not transmitted to a control part 2, and then any processing is not executed in response to those requests by the non-contact card 1. Therefore, the reading or writing of data can be prevented from being operated while an owner does not know it, and the security of data stored in a non-contact medium can be improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a non-contact medium for reading and writing data in a non-contact manner, and a non-contact medium system using the non-contact medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A contactless card is a card in which reading of data stored in a storage unit (memory) provided therein and writing of data to the storage unit are performed in a noncontact manner. A conventional contactless card is configured to output a data stored in a storage unit in response to a read request or a write request of data transmitted from a card processing device by a wireless signal in response to the request. And a writing process for writing data transmitted to the storage unit.

[0003]

However, the non-contact card having the above structure always executes a read process or a write process when receiving a data read request or a data write request. Since the reading and writing of data is performed in a non-contact manner, there is a high risk that data in the storage unit will be read or rewritten without the knowledge of the card owner, and the security of the stored data will be high. There was a problem that was not secured.

In particular, recently, non-contact cards have begun to be used for hospital consultation tickets, credit cards, and the like. For example, when a non-contact card is used as a hospital consultation ticket, a storage unit in the non-contact card is used. The medical condition of the owner, the progress of the medical examination, and the like are stored in advance, and at the time of medical examination, a doctor reads out the stored data and performs medical examination. For this reason, if the information stored in the non-contact card is rewritten without the owner's knowledge, a problem arises that the doctor performs an incorrect diagnosis or treatment. When a contactless card is used as a credit card, the credit information used for credit transactions, such as the owner's card number and credit limit, is stored in the storage unit of the contactless card. When the credit information is read without permission,
There is a problem that an unauthorized credit transaction using this credit information is performed.

[0005] For these reasons, it is necessary to improve the security of the data stored in the contactless card.

An object of the present invention is to allow the owner to consciously switch the reading or writing of data stored in the storage unit or the writing or writing of data into the storage unit. Provided is a non-contact medium that prevents data from being read or written without the owner's knowledge and improves the security of stored data, and a non-contact medium system to which the non-contact medium is applied. It is in.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, a request for reading or writing data transmitted by a radio signal is provided.
In a non-contact medium that performs an output process of reading and outputting data stored in a storage unit and a writing process of writing data transmitted to the storage unit, the output process for the read request or the write request may be performed. Switching means for switching whether to prohibit the writing process is provided.

In this configuration, the switching unit can switch between prohibition and permission of the output process and the write process of the data stored in the storage unit, so that the reading of the data stored in the storage unit and the storage unit can be performed. The owner can consciously prohibit the writing of data into the file. For this reason, data can be prevented from being read or rewritten without the knowledge of the owner, and data security can be improved.

Further, the switching means is means for permitting output processing and writing processing of the data when a predetermined switch is pressed.

[0010] In this configuration, when a predetermined switch is pressed, the output processing and the writing processing of the data stored in the storage section are permitted, so that when the owner is in a pocket or the like, Since the data output process and the write process are prohibited, it is possible to prevent the possession of the non-contact medium while the data output process and the write process are erroneously permitted. No data is read or rewritten in between.

Further, the switching means has the same effect as described above as a means for permitting output processing and writing processing of the data when a part of a human body is in contact with a predetermined part. .

Further, since the display means for displaying whether the output process or the write process is being executed is provided, it is possible to visually confirm that the data output process or the write process is being executed. it can.

Further, any one of the above non-contact media,
A non-contact medium processing device for transmitting a data read request or a write request by a wireless signal to the non-contact medium, and a non-contact medium system having high security of data stored in the non-contact medium. Can be obtained.

[0014]

FIG. 1 is a view showing the appearance of a non-contact card (non-contact medium referred to in the present invention) according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the structure of the non-contact card. It is. The contactless card 1 includes a control unit 2 for performing operation control, a storage unit 3 for storing data, a communication unit 4 for controlling data communication by wireless signals, and a request to read or write data from a card processing device. A display unit 5 for displaying whether a process (output process or write process) for the request is being executed, a permission switch 6 for permitting or prohibiting a process for a data read request or a data write request from the card processing device; It has. Reference numeral 7 denotes an antenna for transmitting and receiving a radio signal. The permission switch 6
As shown in FIG. 1, the communication unit 4 is provided on a side surface of the contactless card 1. The communication unit 4 and the antenna 7 are connected when pressed in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure, and the communication unit 4 when not pressed. And a switch for disconnecting the antenna 7. Also,
An LED 5 a is provided on the surface of the non-contact card 1, and during the execution of an output process for outputting data stored in the storage unit 3 or a writing process for writing data in the storage unit 3,
The ED 5a is turned on, and turned off when these processes are not being executed. The lighting of the LED 5 a is controlled by the display unit 5.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing processing of the contactless card 1 of this embodiment. When the contactless card 1 of this embodiment receives a request to read data stored in the storage unit 3 or a request to write data to the storage unit 3 (n1), it turns on the LED 5a (n2). Control unit 2
Performs reading of data from the storage unit 3 or writing of data to the storage unit 3 in response to the read request or the write request received at n1 (n3). Subsequent to this processing, response data indicating response to the read request or the write request received from the antenna 7 at n1 is transmitted as a wireless signal (n
4) Turn off the LED 5a (n5). When the read request is received at n1, the response data output at n4 includes the data read from the storage unit 3.

As described above, when the contactless card 1 of this embodiment receives a read request or a write request by a radio signal, the data stored in the storage unit 3 based on the received read request or the write request. And writing data to the storage unit 3. If the permission switch 6 is not depressed, the antenna 7 and the communication unit 4 are disconnected, so that the communication unit 4 does not receive a data read request or a write request. Is not executed. That is, the permission switch 6
By not pressing, the execution of the reading process and the writing process can be prohibited. Moreover, since the permission switch 6 is consciously pressed by the owner of the non-contact card 1, the permission switch 6 is n2 in the non-contact card 1 while the owner does not know.
It is possible to reliably prevent the data stored in the storage unit 3 from being read and the data from being written into the storage unit 3 by performing the subsequent processing. Security of stored data can be improved. In the contactless card 1, an output process for outputting data stored in the storage unit 3,
Since the LED 5a is lit when the writing process of writing data to the storage unit 3 is being executed, the owner can confirm from the state of the LED 5a that the output process and the writing process are being executed.

Next, a contactless card according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the contactless card according to this embodiment. The non-contact card 1 of this embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the non-contact card of the above embodiment. However, in the above embodiment, the communication unit 4 and the antenna 7 are connected when the permission switch 6 is not pressed. In this embodiment, the control unit 2 and the communication unit 4 are disconnected when the permission switch 6 is not pressed, and the control unit 2 and the communication unit 4 are connected when the permission switch 6 is pressed. I made it. In this figure, the same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The non-contact card 1 of this embodiment also executes the processing shown in FIG. 3 described above. If the owner of the non-contact medium 1 does not consciously press the permission switch 6, the control unit 2 Since the communication unit 4 cannot detect that the read request or the write request has been received, execution of the processing after n2 can be prohibited. Therefore, the non-contact card 1 of this embodiment also has the same effect as the non-contact card of the above-described embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 5, the permission switch 6
The control unit 2 and the storage unit 3 may be disconnected when the button is not pressed, and the control unit 2 and the storage unit 3 may be connected when the button is pressed. In this configuration, even if the permission switch 6 is not pressed, the control unit 2 can detect that the read request or the write request has been received by the communication unit 4, but the storage unit may perform the processing after n2. 3 cannot be accessed, so that error processing is executed instead of the above-mentioned processing after n2. For this reason,
It is possible to prevent data stored in the storage unit 3 from being read out or written into the storage unit 3 without the knowledge of the owner.

Further, a non-contact card according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the appearance of the contactless card of this embodiment, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the configuration of the contactless card of this embodiment. The non-contact card 1 of this embodiment is different from the above embodiment in that a contact detection unit 8 for detecting whether or not a part of a human body is in contact is provided instead of the permission switch 6 of the above-described embodiment. As shown in FIG.
Is provided with a contact portion 8a for contacting a part of the human body as shown in FIG.
It is determined whether or not a part of the human body is in contact. In this embodiment, the contact portion 8a is provided at a position where the thumb can easily contact when the owner holds the non-contact card 1 in his hand.

The operation of the contactless card 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the processing of the contactless card. Contactless card 1
Receives a request to read data stored in the storage unit 3 or a request to write data to the storage unit 3 (n1
1) It is determined whether or not a part of the human body is in contact with the contact portion 8a (n12). Here, unless a part of the human body is in contact with the contact portion 8a, the read request or the write request received in n11 is ignored. On the other hand, a part of the human body
If the contact is made, the same processing as the processing after n2 described in the above embodiment is performed (n13 to n16).

As described above, in the non-contact card 1 of this embodiment, if the owner does not intentionally bring a part of the human body into contact with the contact portion 8a, the process of reading the data stored in the storage unit 3 or It is possible to prohibit the execution of the data writing process to the storage unit 3, and the data stored in the storage unit 3 is not read or rewritten without the knowledge of the owner, and the contactless The security of data stored in the card 1 can be improved.

The contactless card 1 may be of a type that obtains operating power from electromagnetic waves output from a contactless card processing device that transmits a read request or a write request, or may have an internal power supply. It may be of a type in which a battery is provided and operation power is obtained from the battery.

Next, a contactless card processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Any of the contactless cards 1 described in the above embodiment is applied to the contactless card processing system of this embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration of a contactless card processing device according to this embodiment. The card processing device 11 includes a control unit 12 for controlling operation of the main body, a memory 13 used as a working area or the like during operation, an input unit 14 for performing an input operation,
A display unit 15 that displays input data input from the input unit 14, processing results, and the like, a communication unit 16 that controls communication with the contactless card 1, and an antenna 17 that transmits and receives wireless signals ing. If the non-contact card processing device 11 is, for example, a transaction processing device for processing a transaction, the non-contact card processing device 11 registers the product based on the product identification code or the like of the product input from the input unit 14 and communicates with the non-contact card 1. Performs the settlement process of the product registered by. The contactless card processing device 11 is not limited to the transaction processing device described above, and may be another type of device.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a communication process with the contactless card in the contactless card processing device. The card processing device 11 outputs a data read request to the contactless card 1 by a wireless signal (n21), and determines whether or not there is a response from the contactless card 1 to the request (n22). If there is no response from contactless card 1,
It recognizes that there is no contactless card within the communication range,
Returning to step 21, a data read request is made again. Even if the contactless card 1 is within the communication range, the owner of the contactless card 1 does not press the permission switch 6 (or a part of the human body is brought into contact with the contact portion 8a). If no response is received from the contactless card 1, the contactless card processing device 11 returns to n21 and makes a data read request again.

When there is a response from the non-contact card 1, the non-contact card processing device 11 determines whether or not this response is a normal response (n23). The non-contact card 1 reads the data corresponding to the read request from the storage unit 3 and transmits the read data. When the data requested in n21 is transmitted, the card processing device 11 determines that the response is normal. If it is not the data requested in n21, it is determined that the response is not a normal response. If it is determined in step n23 that the response is not a normal response, the process proceeds to step n27, where error processing is performed, and this processing ends. If it is determined in step n23 that the response is normal, the transmitted data is processed (n24), and a request to write data to the contactless card 1 is issued (n25). If there is a normal response from the non-contact card to this write request, this process ends (n26), and if there is no normal response, n27.
To perform error processing and end the present processing.

As described above, in the contactless card processing system of this embodiment, the contactless card processing device 11 issues a data read request or a write request to the contactless card 1 so that the contactless card 1 The non-contact card 1 reads out data stored in the storage unit 3 and writes data in the storage unit 3. If there is no response from the non-contact card 1 to the read request, the non-contact card 1 falls within a communication range. Since it is only necessary to have a function of determining that there is no contactless card processing device, the conventional contactless card processing device 11 can be applied. Therefore, in the existing non-contact medium processing system, by changing the non-contact card 1 to one of the above-described embodiments (without changing the non-contact card processing device 11),
A contactless card processing system in which the security of data stored in the contactless card 1 is improved can be configured.

[0028]

As described above, according to the present invention, the output process and the write process of the data stored in the storage unit can be switched between prohibition and permission, so that the data stored in the storage unit is stored. The owner can intentionally prohibit the reading of data and the writing of data into the storage unit.
For this reason, data can be prevented from being read or rewritten without the knowledge of the owner, and data security can be improved.

Further, when a specific part is depressed or a part of the human body is in contact with the specific part, output processing and writing processing of data stored in the storage unit are permitted. Therefore, when the owner is in a pocket or the like, the data output process and the write process are prohibited, and the non-contact medium is erroneously permitted to permit the data output process and the write process. Can be prevented, so that data is not read or rewritten without the knowledge of the owner.

Further, since it is displayed whether or not the output process or the write process is being executed, it can be visually confirmed that the data output process or the write process is being executed.

Further, any one of the above non-contact media,
A non-contact medium processing device for transmitting a data read request or a write request by a wireless signal to the non-contact medium, and a non-contact medium system having high security of data stored in the non-contact medium. Can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an appearance of a non-contact card according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a contactless card according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing processing of a contactless card according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration of a contactless card according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a non-contact card according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an appearance of a non-contact card according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration of a non-contact card according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing processing of a contactless card according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration of a contactless card processing device in the contactless card system according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a communication process with a contactless card in the contactless card processing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1-Non-contact card 2-Control unit 3-Storage unit 4-Communication unit 5-Display unit 5a-LED 6-Enable switch 7-Antenna 8-Contact detection unit 8a-Contact unit 11-Non-contact card processing device

Claims (5)

[Claims] An output process for reading and outputting data stored in a storage unit and writing data transmitted to the storage unit in response to a read request or a write request for data transmitted by a wireless signal. A non-contact medium for performing a writing process, comprising: a switching unit that switches whether to prohibit the output process or the writing process in response to the read request or the write request. 2. The non-contact medium according to claim 1, wherein said switching means is means for permitting output processing and writing processing of said data when a predetermined switch is pressed. 3. The data processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said switching means is means for permitting output processing and writing processing of said data when a part of a human body is in contact with a predetermined part. Non-contact medium. 4. The non-contact medium according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit for displaying whether the output processing or the writing processing is being performed. 5. A non-contact medium according to claim 1, further comprising: a non-contact medium processing device for transmitting said read request and said write request by a radio signal to said non-contact medium. , A non-contact medium system.