Patent Issued for Short-Range Cross-Device Authorization (USPTO 10,602,359)

2020 APR 02 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- From Alexandria, Virginia, NewsRx journalists report that a patent by the inventors Kotara, Brandon Scott (San Antonio, TX); Spratt, Cale Riley (Plano, TX); Borunda, Adrian (Celina, TX); Szcinski, Jeffrey Joseph (Frisco, TX); Tanner, Richard (McKinney, TX), filed on June 20, 2019, was published online on April 6, 2020.

The patent’s assignee for patent number 10,602,359 is United Services Automobile Association (San Antonio, Texas, United States).

News editors obtained the following quote from the background information supplied by the inventors: “With the increasing number and variety of Internet-of-Things (IoT) computing devices, such as home entertainment systems, smart appliances, and so forth, a growing number of services are being provided through applications (e.g., apps) that are designed to execute on such computing devices. Such applications may allow users to view information, access account data, communicate with other users, play games, make travel arrangements, shop online, consume audio, image, or video content, share content with others, and so forth. In many instances, applications designed to execute on more traditional computing devices, such as desktop computers, may be difficult to use on IoT devices that have a limited display size or limited interface functionality. Also, given the limited interface capabilities of some IoT devices, it may be difficult for users to enter authentication credentials on such device(s). Accordingly, traditional techniques for user authentication and authorization may be difficult to implement on IoT devices.”

As a supplement to the background information on this patent, NewsRx correspondents also obtained the inventors’ summary information for this patent: “Implementations of the present disclosure are generally directed to determining authorization of a computing device, an application executing on a computing device, and/or a user of a computing device. More specifically, implementations are directed to techniques for cross-device authorization to controlling access to a service, in which an authorization token is provided to a computing device to be used for accessing the service, the token being is associated with another computing device that is authorized to access the service.

“In general, innovative aspects of the subject matter described in this specification can be embodied in methods that include actions of: receiving one or more identification (ID) signals transmitted from one or more second computing devices over a wireless network, each of the one or more ID signals identifying a respective second computing device that is authorized to access a remote service; presenting a user interface (UI) that identifies the one or more second computing devices transmitting the one or more ID signals; receiving a selection of a second computing device through the UI and, in response to the selection, transmitting a request for an authorization token, the request transmitted from the first computing device to the second computing device over the wireless network; receiving the authorization token; and transmitting the authorization token to the remote service to indicate that the first computing device is authorized to access the remote service.

“Implementations can optionally include one or more of the following features: the authorization token is received from the second computing device over the wireless network; the authorization token is received from a server computing device based on permission granted from the second computing device; the one or more second computing devices include at least one portable computing device; the one or more ID signals are transmitted from the one or more second computing devices through a background process executing on the one or more second computing devices; the remote service determines that the application is authorized to access the remote service by verifying that the authorization token is associated with a user that is authorized to access the remote service; the remote service determines that the application is authorized to access the remote service by verifying that the authorization token is associated with the second computing device that is authorized to access the remote service; the authorization token is arranged according to a version of Open Authorization (OAuth) standard; and/or the wireless network is a wireless personal area network.

“Other implementations of any of the above aspects include corresponding systems, apparatus, and computer programs that are configured to perform the actions of the methods, encoded on computer storage devices. The present disclosure also provides a computer-readable storage medium coupled to one or more processors and having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations in accordance with implementations of the methods provided herein. The present disclosure further provides a system for implementing the methods provided herein. The system includes one or more processors, and a computer-readable storage medium coupled to the one or more processors having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations in accordance with implementations of the methods provided herein.

“Implementations of the present disclosure provide one or more of the following technical advantages and improvements over traditional systems. Implementations enable a user and/or application executing on a computing device to readily obtain authorization to access a secure (e.g., remote) service without requiring the user to provide credentials (e.g., login, password, PIN, etc.) that may be difficult to enter on a computing device with limited display and/or interface functionality such as an IoT device. Authorization is determined through use of a token that is provided to the device from a smartphone or other computing device that is also associated with the user and that has been previously authorized to access the service. Moreover, traditional authorization techniques may be particularly prone to errors in the entry of credentials when attempted on a computing device with limited interface capabilities, such as IoT devices. Recovering from such errors may consume processing power, active memory, storage space, and/or network capacity by requiring the user to re-enter incorrect credentials, communicating the re-entered credentials over network(s), analyzing the re-entered credentials to verify the user’s identity, and/or performing other operations. Accordingly, by providing a more reliable technique for authorization, implementations consume less computing resources compared to traditional systems.

“It is appreciated that aspects and features in accordance with the present disclosure can include any combination of the aspects and features described herein. That is, aspects and features in accordance with the present disclosure are not limited to the combinations of aspects and features specifically described herein, but also include any combination of the aspects and features provided.

“The details of one or more implementations of the present disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.”

The claims supplied by the inventors are:

“What is claimed is:

“1. A computer-implemented method performed by a first computing device, the method comprising: receiving, by the first computing device, an authorization token request that is transmitted by a second computing device over a wireless network, the authorization token request transmitted by the second computing device responsive to a selection of the first computing device in a selection user interface (UI) that is presented on the second computing device and that identifies the first computing device as satisfying one or more selection criteria, wherein the one or more selection criteria comprises a requirement that a distance between the first computing device and the second computing device be within a threshold distance, wherein the threshold distance corresponds to a range within which an identification (ID) signal that is transmitted from the first computing device is receivable by the second computing device, and wherein the ID signal identifies the first computing device as authorized to access the remote service; responsive to receiving the authorization token request, presenting on the first computing device a confirmation UI to request confirmation that the second computing device is to be granted authorization to access the remote service; and responsive to the confirmation, provided through the confirmation UI, that the second computing device is to be granted authorization to access the remote service, transmitting a token permission message to a third computing device to cause the third computing device to generate and transmit an authorization token to the second computing device to provide the second computing device access the remote service.

“2. The method of claim 1, wherein the third computing device is configured to provide the remote service.

“3. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“4. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that an application instance of the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“5. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that an a user associated with the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“6. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more selection criteria comprises a requirement that first computing device is authorized to access the remote service.

“7. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless network is a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) network.

“8. A system, comprising: at least one processor of a first computing device; and one or more non-transitory storage media communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, the one or more non-transitory storage media storing instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform operations comprising: receiving, by a first computing device, an authorization token request that is transmitted by a second computing device over a wireless network, the authorization token request transmitted by the second computing device responsive to a selection of the first computing device in a selection user interface (UI) that is presented on the second computing device and that identifies the first computing device as satisfying one or more selection criteria, wherein the one or more selection criteria comprises a requirement that a distance between the first computing device and the second computing device be within a threshold distance, wherein the threshold distance corresponds to a range within which an identification (ID) signal that is transmitted from the first computing device is receivable by the second computing device, and wherein the ID signal identifies the first computing device as authorized to access the remote service; responsive to receiving the authorization token request, presenting on the first computing device a confirmation UI to request confirmation that the second computing device is to be granted authorization to access the remote service; and responsive to the confirmation, provided through the confirmation UI, that the second computing device is to be granted authorization to access the remote service, transmitting a token permission message to a third computing device to cause the third computing device to generate and transmit an authorization token to the second computing device to provide the second computing device access the remote service.

“9. The system of claim 8, wherein the third computing device is configured to provide the remote service.

“10. The system of claim 8, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“11. The system of claim 8, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that an application instance of the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“12. The system of claim 8, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that an a user associated with the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“13. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more selection criteria comprises a requirement that first computing device is authorized to access the remote service.

“14. The system of claim 8, wherein the wireless network is a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) network.

“15. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of a first computing device, cause the at least one processor to perform operations comprising: receiving, by the first computing device, an authorization token request that is transmitted by a second computing device over a wireless network, the authorization token request transmitted by the second computing device responsive to a selection of the first computing device in a selection user interface (UI) that is presented on the second computing device and that identifies the first computing device as satisfying one or more selection criteria, wherein the one or more selection criteria comprises a requirement that a distance between the first computing device and the second computing device be within a threshold distance, wherein the threshold distance corresponds to a range within which an identification (ID) signal that is transmitted from the first computing device is receivable by the second computing device, and wherein the ID signal identifies the first computing device as authorized to access the remote service; responsive to receiving the authorization token request, presenting on the first computing device a confirmation UI to request confirmation that the second computing device is to be granted authorization to access the remote service; and responsive to the confirmation, provided through the confirmation UI, that the second computing device is to be granted authorization to access the remote service, transmitting a token permission message to a third computing device to cause the third computing device to generate and transmit an authorization token to the second computing device to provide the second computing device access the remote service.

“16. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the third computing device is configured to provide the remote service.

“17. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“18. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that an application instance of the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“19. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the authorization token is generated and transmitted responsive to: receiving the token permission message, and determining that an a user associated with the first computing device is authorized to cause the authorization token to be generated and transmitted to the second computing device.

“20. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the one or more selection criteria comprises a requirement that first computing device is authorized to access the remote service.

“21. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the wireless network is a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) network.”

For additional information on this patent, see: Kotara, Brandon Scott; Spratt, Cale Riley; Borunda, Adrian; Szcinski, Jeffrey Joseph; Tanner, Richard. Short-Range Cross-Device Authorization. U.S. Patent Number 10,602,359, filed June 20, 2019, and published online on April 6, 2020. Patent URL: http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=10,602,359.PN.&OS=PN/10,602,359RS=PN/10,602,359

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