Physically unclonable function pattern matching for device identification

US9489504B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• QUALCOMM Incorporated · US

Inventors

• Yafei Yang · Lo Wu, CN
• Xu Guo · Nanhu, CN
• David M. Jacobson · San Diego, US
• Brian M. Rosenberg · San Diego, US
• Adam J. Drew · Oceanside, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Oct 3, 2013
• Grant date: Nov 8, 2016
• Expiry date: Feb 22, 2034

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H04L9/3278
• WIPO field: Control
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A method is provided for using obtaining a reproducible device identifier from a physically unclonable function. An authentication device may receive a first physically unclonable function (PUF) dataset from the electronic device, the first PUF dataset including characteristic information generated from a physically unclonable function in the electronic device. The authentication device may then identify a pre-stored PUF dataset corresponding to the electronic device. Authentication of the electronic device may be performed by correlating the pre-stored PUF dataset and the first PUF dataset for the electronic device, wherein such correlation is based on a pattern or distribution correlation the pre-stored PUF dataset and the first PUF dataset. Because such correlation is performed on datasets, and not individual points, systematic variations can be recognized by the correlation operation leading to higher correlation than point-by-point comparisons.