This invention relates generally to blockchain implementations and technologies. The invention is particularly suited, but not limited to, use with the Bitcoin Blockchain and for applications such as device/system control, process control, distributed computing and storage. In particular, the invention relates to a technical solution for managing a voting, counting, selection and/or decision making process. The invention is not limited to use in political voting applications or scenarios.
In this document we use the term ‘blockchain’ to include all forms of consensus-based electronic, computer-based, distributed ledgers. These include, but are not limited to blockchain and transaction-chain technologies, permissioned and un-permissioned ledgers, shared ledgers and variations thereof. The most widely known application of blockchain technology is the Bitcoin ledger, although other blockchain implementations have been proposed and developed. While Bitcoin may be referred to herein for the purpose of convenience and illustration, it should be noted that the invention is not limited to use with the Bitcoin blockchain and alternative blockchain implementations and protocols fall within the scope of the present invention.
A blockchain is a consensus-based, electronic ledger which is implemented as a computer-based decentralised, distributed system made up of blocks which in turn are made up of transactions. Each transaction is a data structure that encodes the transfer of control of a digital asset between participants in the blockchain system, and includes at least one input and at least one output. Each block contains a hash of the previous block to that blocks become chained together to create a permanent, unalterable record of all transactions which have been written to the blockchain since its inception. Transactions contain small programs known as scripts embedded into their inputs and outputs, which specify how and by whom the outputs of the transactions can be accessed. On the Bitcoin platform, these scripts are written using a stack-based scripting language.
In order for a transaction to be written to the blockchain, it must be “validated”. Network nodes (miners) perform work to ensure that each transaction is valid, with invalid transactions rejected from the network. Software clients installed on the nodes perform this validation work on an unspent transaction (UTXO) by executing its locking and unlocking scripts. If execution of the locking and unlocking scripts evaluate to TRUE, the transaction is valid and the transaction is written to the blockchain. Thus, in order for a transaction to be written to the blockchain, it must be i) validated by the first node that receives the transaction—if the transaction is validated, the node relays it to the other nodes in the network; and ii) added to a new block built by a miner; and iii) mined, i.e. added to the public ledger of past transactions.
Although blockchain technology is most widely known for the use of cryptocurrency implementation, digital entrepreneurs have begun exploring the use of both the cryptographic security system Bitcoin is based on and the data that can be stored on the Blockchain to implement new systems. These include but are not limited to:
It would be highly advantageous if the blockchain could be used for automated tasks and processes which are not limited to the realm of cryptocurrency. Such solutions would be able to harness the benefits of the blockchain (e.g. a permanent, tamper proof records of events, distributed processing, cryptographic security features etc) while being more versatile in their applications.
One area of current interest within the blockchain community is Turing Completeness, and specifically how to facilitate Turing Complete behaviour into blockchain technologies, which have been designed to restrict functionality for security reasons.
It is disputed whether Bitcoin scripting language is Turing complete because it does not natively support complex flow control functionality, for example, loops to occur. One advantage of this restriction is that the programs have predictable execution times.
Another significant advantage of limiting the Bitcoin scripts to linear or tree-like decision tasks is that this avoids infinite loops, which can be used as a means of launching exploits such as a denial of service (DoS or DDoS) attack. As a result of this limitation, Bitcoin scripts are often limited to being used for linear tasks rather than more complex applications such as the control of automated tasks, device management etc.
The Ethereum blockchain platform approaches this issue by incorporating a “built in” Turing complete language called Solidity. This language is native to the Ethereum platform so that scripts written in Solidity can include control flow mechanisms such as loops. However, Ethereum has suffered from several attacks and exploits.
There also remains a desire within a significant portion of the blockchain community to preserve the use of these limited scripting languages in relation to blockchain technologies due to the security concerns mentioned above, and because of the widespread use and familiarity of the Script language used by Bitcoin.
Thus, it is desirable to provide a solution which facilitates Turing-complete functionality such as looping mechanisms and other complex control structures to be integrated or combined with blockchain scripts, while avoiding the damaging effects of potential security weaknesses such as infinite loops. Such a solution would provide numerous benefits including:
Such an improved solution has now been devised. The present invention provides a solution which comprises the novel combination of a blockchain coupled with a parallel computing resource which enables the emulation, simulation and/or incorporation of loops and other Turing-complete functionality outside the typical blockchain script. In turn, this facilitates numerous applications for automated tasks relating to, for example, distributed data storage, distributed computing and the control of drones, or any IoT (Internet of Things) devices. Such applications may include using the blockchain for metadata storage, managing digital tokens and establishing contracts. Another useful application is the automation of a vote or selection-counting process.
The following provide background material to the technical field of the present invention: US2016/027229 A; WO2016/022864 A and U.S. Pat. No. 6,061,449 A. The following on-line resources, also available at the time of filing, provide technical background:
https://nxt.org/what-is-nxt/voting/
http://bitcoin-development.narkive.com/uRciVtAQ/standard-bip-draft-turing-pseudocompleteness
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7287155
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11372455
http://cryptonomics.org/2014/02/01/ethereum-turing-complete
Thus, in accordance with the present invention there is provided a solution as defined in the appended claims. In accordance with the invention there may be provided a (process) control method and corresponding system. The invention may be referred to as a blockchain-implemented control method/system. It may control an automated task or process.
The invention may be arranged to use a blockchain to emulate/simulate Turing completeness. Additionally or alternatively, the invention may enable applications which involve Turing complete control mechanisms to be executed on a blockchain platform.
Additionally or alternatively, the invention may be described as a method or system arranged to use a blockchain and/or one or more blockchain transactions to control a process executing on an off-block computing resource. Thus, the invention comprises an arrangement wherein distinct computing components, which are functionally and architectural different from each other, are arranged to interact so as to provide a novel technical result. The interaction of the different computing systems (computing resource and blockchain) results in a highly powerful control solution.
From the perspective of the computing resource, the invention provides the advantage of a permanent, tamper-proof record of the execution of the program. From the blockchain perspective, the invention provides an improved blockchain implementation because it enables Turing-complete behaviour to be at least partially simulated via use of the blockchain, which in turn enables more functionally complex blockchain-based applications to be deployed. This is all achieved while maintaining the use of the limited scripting language for the blockchain transactions. The scripting language may be limited (restricted) in that its design or implementation prevents or at least does not natively support the incorporation of complex control flow mechanisms such as loops into code written in that language. The instructions set of the language i.e. the “commands” or “op-codes” that the programmer can use, may be arranged such that it does not include commands for complex flow control mechanisms.
The blockchain may be associated with, or used with, a blockchain protocol which comprises a limited language. This may be a scripting language. The invention may extend the functionality of a limited scripting language for the execution of tasks using the blockchain.
The invention may use the state of the blockchain to execute a loop-based process. The loop-based process may be performed on a computing resource operating in parallel to the blockchain network. The computing resource may be distinct from (not part of) the blockchain network. The computing resource may be referred to as an “oracle” or a “bot”.
This enables the blockchain protocol to utilise a functionally limited scripting language while allowing control flow mechanisms such as looping mechanisms to be implemented off the blockchain. This novel combination enhances the versatility of blockchain technology while preserving security.
In accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention there may be provided a computer-implemented event handling, monitoring, detecting and/or counting process and corresponding system. Embodiments of the invention may be arranged to respond to events which are generated by an entity. The invention may monitor/detect and/or count votes, selections or decision or other types of events. For the sake of convenience herein, the terms “vote” or “decision” may be used to refer to the event which is monitored, counted, recorded and/or detected etc by the invention.
One or more embodiments of the invention may be described as a control method and corresponding system. It may be described as a blockchain implemented method/system. The invention may be arranged to control a process. The process may be an industrial or non-industrial process. The event eg decision may be made by a machine, electronic/software-based entity, natural person(s), legal entity or other. One or more embodiments of the invention may comprise a method/system for counting, monitoring, recording, detecting and/or otherwise handling events. The events may be decisions or selections eg votes made by entities within an application area. It is not restricted to counting politically-oriented votes or events in a political context, although it could be used for this purpose. It may be used, for example, to record how many times a machine makes a certain selection, or how many times a cell mutates etc. The decision may be a binary or non-binary decision. It may count or record how many times an event occurs/does not occur.
The method may comprise the steps:
The invention may provide a computer-implemented vote or decision counting process, comprising the steps:
The cryptographic key pair may be referred to as a “blockchain public and private key pair”. It may be arranged for use with a blockchain platform, and for secure transfer of value between blockchain transaction inputs and outputs, as is known in the art. A key may function as a blockchain address.
The invention may provide a computer-implemented vote or decision counting method comprising the steps:
distributing or allocating at least one token to at least one predetermined entity, wherein the at least one token is represented by a blockchain public key and private key pair; and executing a loop on a computing resource, the loop being implemented using a script, to maintain a count of one or more votes or decisions generated by or associated with the at least one entity; and generating a cryptographic hash of the script.
The invention may provide a computer-implemented vote or decision counting method comprising the steps:
distributing or allocating at least one token to at least one predetermined entity, wherein the at least one token is represented by a blockchain public key and private key pair; and
executing a loop on a computing resource to maintain a count of one or more votes or decisions made by the at least one entity
wherein information relating to at least one iteration of the loop is stored in a transaction on the blockchain.
The invention may provide a computer-implemented vote or decision counting method comprising the steps:
distributing or allocating at least one token to at least one predetermined entity, wherein the at least one token is represented by a blockchain public key and private key pair;
executing a loop on a computing resource to maintain a count of one or more votes or decisions made by the at least one entity; and
generating a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop;
and preferably comprising the step of storing the cryptographic hash within a transaction on the blockchain.
The invention may provide a computer-implemented vote or decision counting method comprising the steps:
distributing or allocating at least one token to at least one predetermined entity, wherein the at least one token is represented by a blockchain public key and private key pair; and
executing a loop on a computing resource to maintain a count of one or more votes or decisions made by the at least one entity
wherein the computing resource is arranged to monitor the state of the blockchain for a transaction comprising a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop.
The at least one predetermined/preselected entity may be a machine, electronic/software-based entity. In other embodiments, the entity may be a natural person(s), legal entity or other. The blockchain may be the Bitcoin Blockchain or some other blockchain platform. Distribution may be performed by broadcasting to the blockchain network. There may be a plurality of entities (e.g. voters or decision makers). At least one token may be distributed and/or allocated to each of the respective entities within the plurality.
The count of one or more votes or decisions may be stored in the blockchain (e.g. in a transaction) and/or the alternate stack of the blockchain.
The method may comprise the step of implementing the loop using a script. The script may be written in a scripting language. It may be based on the Forth scripting language. The language may be non-Turing complete. It may be a stack-based language. The scripting language may be limited (restricted) in that its design or implementation prevents or at least does not natively support the incorporation of complex control flow mechanisms such as loops into code written in that language. The instructions set of the language i.e. the “commands” or “op-codes” that the programmer can use, may be arranged such that it does not include commands for complex flow control mechanisms
The method may further comprise the step of generating a cryptographic hash of the script or a portion thereof.
The method may further comprise the step of using a secret exchange protocol to distribute and/or allocate the at least one token to the at least one entity.
The method may further comprise the step of loading each public key and address with an item representative of one or more choices, preferably wherein the item is an amount of currency. The currency may be Bitcoin-related.
The method may further comprise the step of maintaining, on or in association with the computing resource, a list of public keys associated with each authorized entity and/or token. The method may further comprise the step of destroying (and/or never storing) the list of private keys and a mapping/association between the identity of the entity and their allocated token.
The method may further comprise the step of maintaining a list of addresses. The list may be an empty list or comprise one or more addresses. At least one address may be associated with the least one entity. Preferably, at least part of the list is specified, represented or defined in a blockchain script.
The method may further comprise the step of transferring the list of addresses to the (blockchain) alternate stack for storage; preferably wherein an address is removed from the alternate stack once a vote for that address (or other condition) has been counted, detected and/or otherwise handled.
The method may further comprise the step of executing the loop until the list of addresses becomes empty.
The method may comprise the steps of:
The computing resource may be any processor-based device or system. It may, for example, be a server or plurality of servers. It may be a standalone or a distributed resource. The blockchain may be the Bitcoin blockchain or any other blockchain-related platform. The blockchain may be a consensus-based electronic ledger.
Information relating to at least one iteration of the loop may be stored in a transaction on the blockchain. The information may be stored as metadata in the transaction. The loop may contain a “If condition then action” (ICTA) instruction.
The method may further comprise the step of generating a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop and, preferably, storing the cryptographic hash within a transaction on the blockchain. The code may be a code block containing a control flow statement, such as an “If condition then action” statement.
The computing resource may be arranged to monitor the state of the blockchain for a transaction comprising a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop.
The method may further comprise the steps:
for each iteration of the loop:
evaluating a condition and performing at least one action based on the outcome of the evaluation, wherein the at least one action comprises:
The condition may be used to monitor any value, signal or input, regardless of where, how or by whom it is generated, either on or off the blockchain. The condition may relate to data received, detected or generated by the computing resource; and/or the state of the blockchain. The condition may be described as a “trigger”. It may be or relate to a particular state of the blockchain, or an event detected off-block (e.g. a date or temperature reading, etc.), or a combination of both.
The Action may include sending a signal to cause an event off clock, or broadcasting a new transaction, or a combination of both. The index may be maintained (i) off block within the Manager or may be (ii) a value stored within a transaction that is then broadcast. (i) and (ii) represent two alternative ways to maintain the control data.
The computing resource may be arranged to monitor:
The method may comprise the steps of:
i) using the blockchain as a storage component for data, instructions or a pointer to data and/or instructions; and
ii) using a computing resource as a control flow management component for a Turing complete process, the computing resource being arranged to execute a looping mechanism.
Thus, the blockchain may serve as the non-erasable tape of a Turing machine. The computing resource may serve to control the flow of execution of the process, implementing a loop and extending the functionality of the scripting language.
The method may further comprise the step of restarting (respawning) the loop at a specified iteration. The loop may be restarted if the computing resource finds a predetermined hash of a portion of code in a transaction within the blockchain. The portion of code may relate to the body of the loop. It may comprise an ICTA statement.
The computing resource may respawn the loop at each iteration. This may be performed in a variety of ways. For example, a code block for the loop may be:
hard-coded into the computing resource itself;
stored in a private or publicly available file;
stored as an entry on a private or public hash table file;
or a combination of the above.
The code block may be static with hard-coded variables or may be static but contain parameter(s) that can be populated. The parameters may be single values of any data format, or could be small chunks of code, or combinations of the above. The parameters may be populated by retrieving them directly from metadata in a transaction (e.g. bitcoin transaction) or from an external source such as an internal database or a private/public file or hash table or any combination of the above. Pointers to the external source of parameter values may be stored in metadata in a transaction.
The information relating to the iteration may be specified using metadata provided within, or in association with, the transaction.
The computing resource may comprise or be in communication with a registry which enables the computing resource to access a pre-stored version of the subroutine. The registry may alternatively be described as a database, repository or other form of storage facility. The registry may store:
i) a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop; and
ii) information indicative of a location where a copy of the code can be accessed from.
The method may further comprise the step of using a blockchain transaction to update code for the loop so that the existing code is replaced with new code. Preferably, the transaction is a multi-signature P2SH transaction. A hash of the existing code and a hash of the new code may be stored.
The invention also provides a system for implementing any embodiment of the method described above.
The invention may provide a computer-based system. It may be described as a computer-implemented event counting, monitoring, detecting and/or handling system. The event may be a vote, decision, selection or any other type of event. It may be arranged to simulate or emulate Turing completeness. The system may comprise:
Information relating to at least one iteration of the loop is stored in a transaction on the blockchain. Preferably, the information is stored as metadata in the transaction.
Preferably, the computing resource is arranged to generate a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop. Preferably, the cryptographic hash is stored within a transaction on the blockchain. Additionally or alternatively, the computing resource is arranged to monitor the state of the blockchain for a transaction comprising a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop.
Preferably, for each iteration of the loop: a condition is evaluated and at least one action is performed based on the outcome of the evaluation; the at least one action comprising:
The condition may relate to data received, detected or generated by the computing resource; or the state of the blockchain.
The computing resource may be arranged to monitor:
The blockchain may serve as a storage component for data, instructions or a pointer to data and/or instructions. The computing resource may serve as a control flow management component for a Turing complete process, the computing resource being arranged to execute a looping mechanism.
The loop may be restarted at a specified iteration if the computing resource finds a predetermined hash of a portion of code in a transaction within the blockchain. The information relating to the iteration may be specified using metadata provided within, or in association with, the transaction.
The computing resource may comprise or be in communication with a storage facility which may be referred to as a registry, database or repository, and which enables the computing resource to access a pre-stored version of the subroutine. The registry may store:
i) a cryptographic hash of code relating to the loop; and
ii) information indicative of a location where a copy of the code can be accessed from.
The system may be configured to use a blockchain transaction to update code for the loop so that the existing code is replaced with new code. Preferably, the transaction is a multi-signature P2SH transaction. Preferably, the system is arranged to store a hash of the existing code and a hash of the new code.
Any feature described in relation to one aspect or embodiment of the invention may also be applicable in respect of any other aspect or embodiment. For example, any feature described in relation to the method may also be used in relation to the system, and vice versa.
These and other aspects of the present invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to, the embodiment described herein. An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompany drawings, in which:
The following describes an illustrative embodiment which uses the Bitcoin Blockchain. However, other blockchain protocols and implementations may be used. The invention is not limited in this regard.
The present invention addresses the problem of how to facilitate Turing Completeness on an operationally limited blockchain platform (ie one which uses a scripting language that does not support complex control mechanisms), and therefore extend the uses or applications to which the blockchain can be put. Marvin Minsky (Minksy et al., Computation: Finite and Infinite Machines, Prentice Hall, Inc, 1967) described how a non-erasable tape can be used to implement a machine that is Turing complete, and is able to execute any algorithm that can also be executed on a Universal Turing machine.
The present invention comprises a computing resource which operates in conjunction with the blockchain, using it as the non-erasable tape in the implementation of a Turing machine. This computing resource runs in parallel with the blockchain network, overseeing and handling the execution of a looping process. The looping process is designed to perform a given task such as, for example, the automation of a process or control of a device or system. This parallel resource monitors the state of the blockchain and can cause transactions to be written to the blockchain. Therefore, it may be referred to herein as “the Manager’ for convenience of reference.
Features and advantages of the invention include:
With reference to
An important function of the Manager is to act as an agent that monitors the current state of the Blockchain. It can also receive a signal or input from any off-block source.
Depending on the Blockchain state and/or a received input, the Manager may perform certain actions. The manager decides which action(s) are to be performed. These may or may not involve actions in the ‘real world’ (i.e. off block) and/or actions on the Blockchain (such as creating and broadcasting new transactions). The action that the Manager takes may be triggered by the Blockchain state. The Manager may also decide on the next set of transactions to be broadcast to the Bitcoin network, and subsequently written to the Blockchain.
The Manager's action(s) run in parallel and simultaneously to the Bitcoin network. In a sense, this extends the function of the behaviourly-restricted Bitcoin script. This continuous monitoring implements the ‘loop’ control-flow constructs making the combined Manager and Blockchain system Turing Complete.
The Manager as the Turing Machine's Instruction Table
In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the Turing Machine includes two stacks:
The separation of the control stack from the data stack provides the advantage of preventing infinite loops from occurring within the Bitcoin core. This in turn mitigates denial-of-service attacks on the Bitcoin system.
The Manager manages and runs subroutines that are able to loop via any type of loop construct (e.g. FOR-NEXT; REPEAT UNTIL; etc). An illustrative embodiment described herein includes a process using one example of the ‘repeat’ construct (see
For each iteration:
The body of the loop includes a code block. Each code block contains a “If condition then action” (ICTA) statement (see
The ICTA statement enables the Manager to decide on the next transaction to make, based on the current state of the blockchain. Making the next transaction involves broadcasting the transaction onto the Bitcoin network, and writing the new transaction onto the Blockchain. This acts as a record that this iteration has been executed. Once the transaction has been written onto the Blockchain, the Manager will subsequently find that the previous iteration has been executed and written onto the Blockchain, and will execute the next iteration. The latter continues until the repeat loop exits when the index (i) reaches the limit (J) specified in the code block.
Each transaction is saved in the blockchain in a way that can be reused. In a Bitcoin implementation, each signature in a transaction is appended with a SIGHASH flag. This flag can take on different values, each indicating whether other parts of the transaction can be amended without involvement of the owner of this signature. A reusable transaction has the SIGHASH flag ‘SigHash_AnyoneCanPay’ in one of the transaction inputs. This permits anyone to contribute to the inputs of the transaction. This parameter enables the Manager's ICTA function to be executed and repeated multiple times and with different inputs. Use of the function can be restricted to authorised parties—for example, via copyright of the reusable transaction.
The ‘If condition’ section of the ICTA code block can monitor any type of condition. This is similar to other programming languages (e.g. C, C++, Java) and not limited to information stored on the Blockchain. Some example conditions are listed below:
The ‘Then action’ section of the ICTA code block can execute a number of actions. The invention is not limited with regard to the number or type of actions that can be taken. The action is not limited to a transaction on the Blockchain, although a transaction containing metadata related to the action may be written on the Blockchain.
The metadata can be of any form specified by the Manager. However, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, the metadata may store a hyperlink to a file containing more data or instructions relating to the action. The metadata may store both a hyperlink to a hash table containing more data or instructions relating to the action along with a hash of the action that acts as the loop-up key for the hash table. An embodiment may use a link similar in style to the BitTorrent's magnet URL format.
A list of example actions is listed below.
As the invention is not limited in respect of the nature, type or number of actions performed, it provides a highly versatile solution which may be applied to great advantage over a wide range of applications.
The Manager's control stack can be implemented in a number of ways that are specific to the needs of each user. For example, the repeat loop of the control stack can be based on any Turing Complete language. One possible choice of language is the Forth style stack-based language. An advantage of using this language is that it keeps the control stack consistent in programming style with the Bitcoin scripts which are already known and in wide usage.
Using the Bitcoin Script's Alternate Stack as a Data Storage Space
The Bitcoin script contains commands, also called op codes, which enable users to move data onto an alternative stack, known as the ‘alt stack’.
The op codes are:
This enables data from intermediate steps of calculations to be stored in the alt stack, similar to the ‘memory’ function which allows data to be stored on the calculator. In accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the invention, the alt stack is used for configuring bitcoin scripts to solve small computation tasks and returning the results in the computation.
Using a Code Register to Manage the Manager
The Manager also manages a registry of all the codes that it owns and runs. This registry is structured like a lookup table or dictionary that maps a specific key to a specific value (see
The implementation of the code registry can vary. For example, the lookup table can be implemented using a locally managed list, or a P2P distributed hash table. The source code can be stored locally, remotely, or using a decentralized file storage system. This could be implemented with a magnet URI format or any link format that uses shared zero knowledge encryption.
Transaction Metadata of the Manager's Code, and Re-Spawning of the Loop
Information required to respawn the Manager's loop at a particular iteration is stored as metadata in the transaction recorded on the Blockchain (see
In this way, a transaction on the blockchain stores or provides access to information about a given iteration of the loop which is being executed on the Manager. This information can include the values of any variables associated with the loop, such as index i, and any other necessary information such as values for parameters used in the code block or location-related data specifying where further required information can be accessed.
The metadata itself is stored as part of a multi-signature pay-to-script-hash script (P2SH) in the transaction. See
There are several ways in which the Manager could respawn the repeat loop code block at each iteration. The code block might be hard-coded into the Manager itself, or could be stored in a private or publicly available file, or stored as an entry on a private or public hash table file, or a combination of the above. The code block could be static with hard-coded variables or could be static but contain parameter(s) that can be populated. The parameters could be single values of any data format, or could be small chunks of code, or be combinations of the above. The parameters could be populated by retrieving them directly from metadata in a transaction (e.g. bitcoin transaction) or from an external source such as an internal database or a private/public file or hash table or any combination of the above. Pointers to the external source of parameter values might be stored in metadata in a transaction.
The following steps provide one example of how the Manager can respawn a repeat loop code block at the ith iteration. In this example, the code registry is a hash table whereby the hash values act as look-up keys for the table and are stored in metadata on transactions.
Multiple signatures may be required to unlock the transaction (e.g. the User, the Operating System, the Software Developer and the Software Vendor). This enables a digital rights management (DRM) system for managing the rights to operate the codes by all parties involved in the P2SH transaction.
Updating the Manager's Code
Software updates and patches for code blocks that relate to the Manager are securely authorized using a multi-signature P2SH transaction (see
In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, multiple signatures are required to unlock the transaction (e.g. the User, the Operating System, the Software Developer and the Software Vendor). This provides a DRM system for managing software updates and patches for codes that are used by the Manager.
Unlike most software, which does not allow software to be updated while it is running, an advantage of the present invention is that software updates can occur in the middle of executing a loop. This provides a dynamic and responsive solution which can be reconfigured in real-time and with minimal disruption to the process which is being controlled by the invention.
The information captured on the Blockchain (see
The Vote Counting Invention
The current Bitcoin scripting language does not allow loops to take place. This prevents using Bitcoin payments from triggering continuous and automated actions unless there is external intervention. However, as the Manager continuously monitors information on the Blockchain, this allows automated actions to be performed based on up-to-date information on the Blockchain.
The following illustrates how the Manager's control stack can be used to automate processes involving an automated and online vote counting bot.
The vote counting bot of the present invention is designed to facilitate fair and pseudo-anonymous voting, with the Blockchain recording a secure and immutable audit trail of the vote counting process. The vote counting bot is automated using the Manager's control stack and repeat loop (see
Let us assume that there are 100 voters. If 57 unique “Yes” votes are received before 1 Jan. 2016, payments will be released to the Chair, Jason. The voting process is divided into two parts:
For the token distribution, 100 voting tokens are distributed, one to each authorized voter. Each token is represented by a (e.g.) Bitcoin public key and private key pair. This is distributed to each voter using a secret exchange protocol. Key exchange protocols are known in the art. Each Bitcoin public key and address is loaded (associated) with a small amount of Bitcoin representing one vote. The bot keeps the list of public keys associated with each authorized token and makes this list public before voting begins. To ensure voting cannot be rigged and that voting is anonymised, the list of private keys and the mapping between the voter's identity and their token is destroyed (i.e. never stored).
Having an anonymized and pre-authorized list of addresses provides other important benefits. It ensures that only those who are authorized can cast a valid vote. It can also facilitate the exclusion of any unwanted votes that originate from particular addresses (e.g. spammers, disqualified voters) without compromising the identity of the voters. To implement the counting process, the Manager runs a repeat loop. The list of addresses are be kept in the bitcoin script, and transferred to the alternate stack for storage of data. Once an address has been counted, it is removed from the alternate stack and no longer added to the next transaction. The repeat loop stops when the list of addresses becomes empty.
Instead of using the integer index i to keep track of where the loop is currently at, the vote bot Manager uses it to store the intermediate value of the vote count. This ensures that the intermediate value of vote count is stored in the Blockchain. This provides an audit trail, and shows that the vote counting process is fair.
If the amount of unique “Yes” votes received reaches 57, the agreed amount of Bitcoins will be paid to Jason's account. The cryptographic hash of the vote counting script, and the IPv6 address of where this script is stored, are released to the public. This means that the public has enough information to perform a recount, and ensure the vote counting process is fair and correct.
It should be noted that the above-mentioned embodiments illustrate rather than limit the invention, and that those skilled in the art will be capable of designing many alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. In the claims, any reference signs placed in parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the claims. The word “comprising” and “comprises”, and the like, does not exclude the presence of elements or steps other than those listed in any claim or the specification as a whole. In the present specification, “comprises” means “includes or consists of” and “comprising” means “including or consisting of”. The singular reference of an element does not exclude the plural reference of such elements and vice-versa. The invention may be implemented by means of hardware comprising several distinct elements, and by means of a suitably programmed computer. In a device claim enumerating several means, several of these means may be embodied by one and the same item of hardware. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
1603112 | Feb 2016 | GB | national |
1603114 | Feb 2016 | GB | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/IB2017/050820 | 2/14/2017 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2017/145005 | 8/31/2017 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
5600725 | Rueppel et al. | Feb 1997 | A |
5761305 | Vanstone et al. | Jun 1998 | A |
5867578 | Brickell et al. | Feb 1999 | A |
5889865 | Vanstone et al. | Mar 1999 | A |
5896455 | Vanstone et al. | Apr 1999 | A |
5933504 | Vanstone et al. | Aug 1999 | A |
6061449 | Candelore et al. | May 2000 | A |
6078667 | Johnson | Jun 2000 | A |
6118874 | Okamoto et al. | Sep 2000 | A |
6122736 | Vanstone et al. | Sep 2000 | A |
6141420 | Vanstone et al. | Oct 2000 | A |
6520855 | DeMar et al. | Feb 2003 | B2 |
6618483 | Vanstone et al. | Sep 2003 | B1 |
6662299 | Price, III | Dec 2003 | B1 |
6704870 | Vanstone et al. | Mar 2004 | B2 |
6785813 | Vanstone et al. | Aug 2004 | B1 |
6792530 | Qu et al. | Sep 2004 | B1 |
7006633 | Reece | Feb 2006 | B1 |
7095851 | Scheidt | Aug 2006 | B1 |
8522011 | Spalka et al. | Aug 2013 | B2 |
8855318 | Patnala et al. | Oct 2014 | B1 |
9209980 | Bowman et al. | Dec 2015 | B2 |
9258130 | Hwang et al. | Feb 2016 | B2 |
9298806 | Vessenes et al. | Mar 2016 | B1 |
9673975 | Machani | Jun 2017 | B1 |
10050779 | Alness et al. | Aug 2018 | B2 |
10068228 | Winklevoss et al. | Sep 2018 | B1 |
10510053 | Armstrong | Dec 2019 | B2 |
10516527 | Machani et al. | Dec 2019 | B1 |
10659223 | Wright et al. | May 2020 | B2 |
10719816 | Kurani | Jul 2020 | B1 |
11115196 | Triandopoulos et al. | Sep 2021 | B1 |
20010050990 | Sudia | Dec 2001 | A1 |
20020112171 | Ginter et al. | Aug 2002 | A1 |
20020198791 | Perkowski | Dec 2002 | A1 |
20030026432 | Woodward | Feb 2003 | A1 |
20030046202 | Knapp | Mar 2003 | A1 |
20030048906 | Vora et al. | Mar 2003 | A1 |
20030188153 | Demoff et al. | Oct 2003 | A1 |
20040030932 | Juels et al. | Feb 2004 | A1 |
20040049687 | Orsini et al. | Mar 2004 | A1 |
20040078775 | Chow et al. | Apr 2004 | A1 |
20040111484 | Young et al. | Jun 2004 | A1 |
20040193890 | Girault | Sep 2004 | A1 |
20050071283 | Randle et al. | Mar 2005 | A1 |
20050138374 | Zheng et al. | Jun 2005 | A1 |
20060023887 | Agrawal et al. | Feb 2006 | A1 |
20060153365 | Beeson | Jul 2006 | A1 |
20060153368 | Beeson | Jul 2006 | A1 |
20060156013 | Beeson | Jul 2006 | A1 |
20060161485 | Meldahl | Jul 2006 | A1 |
20060179319 | Krawczyk | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20060248114 | Anderson et al. | Nov 2006 | A1 |
20070055880 | Lauter et al. | Mar 2007 | A1 |
20070192842 | Beaulieu et al. | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070223706 | Gantman et al. | Sep 2007 | A1 |
20070265978 | Kahn et al. | Nov 2007 | A1 |
20070269040 | Yuval et al. | Nov 2007 | A1 |
20070276836 | Chatterjee et al. | Nov 2007 | A1 |
20080082817 | Takahashi et al. | Apr 2008 | A1 |
20080101596 | Cerruti et al. | May 2008 | A1 |
20080137857 | Bellare et al. | Jun 2008 | A1 |
20080144836 | Sanders et al. | Jun 2008 | A1 |
20080285759 | Shaw | Nov 2008 | A1 |
20080288773 | Nguyen et al. | Nov 2008 | A1 |
20090048979 | Al-Herz et al. | Feb 2009 | A1 |
20090161876 | Sherkin | Jun 2009 | A1 |
20100005302 | Vishnu et al. | Jan 2010 | A1 |
20100023771 | Struik | Jan 2010 | A1 |
20100031369 | Grummt | Feb 2010 | A1 |
20100054458 | Schneider | Mar 2010 | A1 |
20100054480 | Schneider | Mar 2010 | A1 |
20100131752 | Flegel | May 2010 | A1 |
20100131755 | Zhu et al. | May 2010 | A1 |
20100134848 | Lynggaard et al. | Jun 2010 | A1 |
20100150341 | Dodgson et al. | Jun 2010 | A1 |
20100172501 | Tian et al. | Jul 2010 | A1 |
20100199095 | Ho | Aug 2010 | A1 |
20100217986 | Schneider | Aug 2010 | A1 |
20100228973 | Dancer et al. | Sep 2010 | A1 |
20100241848 | Smith et al. | Sep 2010 | A1 |
20110016510 | Matsuda et al. | Jan 2011 | A1 |
20110022854 | Macchetti et al. | Jan 2011 | A1 |
20110202773 | Ghouti et al. | Aug 2011 | A1 |
20110246766 | Orsini et al. | Oct 2011 | A1 |
20110307698 | Vanstone | Dec 2011 | A1 |
20110311051 | Resch et al. | Dec 2011 | A1 |
20120011362 | Lambert | Jan 2012 | A1 |
20120039474 | Ho | Feb 2012 | A1 |
20120100833 | Gao | Apr 2012 | A1 |
20120214441 | Raleigh | Aug 2012 | A1 |
20120233674 | Gladstone et al. | Sep 2012 | A1 |
20120243687 | Li et al. | Sep 2012 | A1 |
20120284794 | Trent et al. | Nov 2012 | A1 |
20120290830 | Resch et al. | Nov 2012 | A1 |
20120331287 | Bowman et al. | Dec 2012 | A1 |
20130051552 | Handschuh et al. | Feb 2013 | A1 |
20130061049 | Irvine | Mar 2013 | A1 |
20130077783 | Anshel et al. | Mar 2013 | A1 |
20130103945 | Cannon et al. | Apr 2013 | A1 |
20130177157 | Li et al. | Jul 2013 | A1 |
20130191632 | Spector et al. | Jul 2013 | A1 |
20130304642 | Campos | Nov 2013 | A1 |
20130305057 | Greco et al. | Nov 2013 | A1 |
20140012751 | Kuhn et al. | Jan 2014 | A1 |
20140068246 | Hartley et al. | Mar 2014 | A1 |
20140082358 | Nakhjir et al. | Mar 2014 | A1 |
20140129844 | Johnson et al. | May 2014 | A1 |
20140223580 | Neivanov et al. | Aug 2014 | A1 |
20140250006 | Makhotin et al. | Sep 2014 | A1 |
20150039470 | Crites | Feb 2015 | A1 |
20150052369 | Koning et al. | Feb 2015 | A1 |
20150066748 | Winslow et al. | Mar 2015 | A1 |
20150086020 | Harjula et al. | Mar 2015 | A1 |
20150095648 | Nix | Apr 2015 | A1 |
20150120567 | Van Rooyen | Apr 2015 | A1 |
20150154562 | Emmerson | Jun 2015 | A1 |
20150188698 | Tsai | Jul 2015 | A1 |
20150188700 | Ben Saied et al. | Jul 2015 | A1 |
20150205929 | Brama | Jul 2015 | A1 |
20150206106 | Yago | Jul 2015 | A1 |
20150213433 | Khan | Jul 2015 | A1 |
20150244690 | Mossbarger | Aug 2015 | A1 |
20150254463 | Ryhorchuk et al. | Sep 2015 | A1 |
20150256347 | Tseng et al. | Sep 2015 | A1 |
20150262139 | Shtylman | Sep 2015 | A1 |
20150262140 | Armstrong | Sep 2015 | A1 |
20150269570 | Phan et al. | Sep 2015 | A1 |
20150294425 | Benson | Oct 2015 | A1 |
20150302401 | Metral | Oct 2015 | A1 |
20150304302 | Zhang | Oct 2015 | A1 |
20150310497 | Valin et al. | Oct 2015 | A1 |
20150324764 | Van Rooyen et al. | Nov 2015 | A1 |
20150324789 | Dvorak et al. | Nov 2015 | A1 |
20150332224 | Melika et al. | Nov 2015 | A1 |
20150332395 | Walker et al. | Nov 2015 | A1 |
20150348017 | Allmen | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150349958 | Lindell | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150350171 | Brumley | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150356523 | Madden | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150363768 | Melika et al. | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150363770 | Ronca et al. | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150363773 | Ronca et al. | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150363777 | Ronca et al. | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150379510 | Smith | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20150381729 | Manohar et al. | Dec 2015 | A1 |
20160027229 | Spanos | Jan 2016 | A1 |
20160028552 | Spanos et al. | Jan 2016 | A1 |
20160071108 | Caldera et al. | Mar 2016 | A1 |
20160085955 | Lerner | Mar 2016 | A1 |
20160086175 | Finlow-Bates et al. | Mar 2016 | A1 |
20160092988 | Letourneau | Mar 2016 | A1 |
20160098723 | Feeney | Apr 2016 | A1 |
20160132684 | Barbas et al. | May 2016 | A1 |
20160140335 | Proulx et al. | May 2016 | A1 |
20160149878 | Pogorelik et al. | May 2016 | A1 |
20160162897 | Feeney | Jun 2016 | A1 |
20160203522 | Shiffert et al. | Jul 2016 | A1 |
20160203572 | McConaghy et al. | Jul 2016 | A1 |
20160234026 | Wilkins et al. | Aug 2016 | A1 |
20160260171 | Ford et al. | Sep 2016 | A1 |
20160261408 | Peddada et al. | Sep 2016 | A1 |
20160261565 | Lorenz et al. | Sep 2016 | A1 |
20160261690 | Ford | Sep 2016 | A1 |
20160269182 | Sriram et al. | Sep 2016 | A1 |
20160283941 | Andrade | Sep 2016 | A1 |
20160292672 | Fay et al. | Oct 2016 | A1 |
20160294562 | Oberheide et al. | Oct 2016 | A1 |
20160321434 | McCoy et al. | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160335924 | Ikarashi et al. | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160337119 | Hosaka et al. | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160337124 | Rozman | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160342977 | Lam | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160342994 | Davis | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160344543 | Alness et al. | Nov 2016 | A1 |
20160350749 | Wilkins et al. | Dec 2016 | A1 |
20160352518 | Ford et al. | Dec 2016 | A1 |
20160379208 | Deliwala et al. | Dec 2016 | A1 |
20170005804 | Zinder | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170011394 | Kumar et al. | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170012948 | Peeters et al. | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170017936 | Bisikalo et al. | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170024817 | Wager et al. | Jan 2017 | A1 |
20170046664 | Haldenby et al. | Feb 2017 | A1 |
20170046698 | Haldenby et al. | Feb 2017 | A1 |
20170046792 | Haldenby et al. | Feb 2017 | A1 |
20170075877 | Lepeltier | Mar 2017 | A1 |
20170083910 | Kraemer et al. | Mar 2017 | A1 |
20170091148 | Takahashi | Mar 2017 | A1 |
20170091750 | Maim | Mar 2017 | A1 |
20170103385 | Wilson, Jr. et al. | Apr 2017 | A1 |
20170124348 | Pourzandi et al. | May 2017 | A1 |
20170132621 | Miller et al. | May 2017 | A1 |
20170148016 | Davis | May 2017 | A1 |
20170154331 | Voorhees | Jun 2017 | A1 |
20170178237 | Wong | Jun 2017 | A1 |
20170178263 | Kraemer et al. | Jun 2017 | A1 |
20170187535 | Middleton et al. | Jun 2017 | A1 |
20170200137 | Vilmont | Jul 2017 | A1 |
20170228547 | Smith et al. | Aug 2017 | A1 |
20170243193 | Manian et al. | Aug 2017 | A1 |
20170250801 | Chen et al. | Aug 2017 | A1 |
20170300877 | Mann et al. | Oct 2017 | A1 |
20170316390 | Smith et al. | Nov 2017 | A1 |
20170324715 | Frincu et al. | Nov 2017 | A1 |
20180025670 | Ikarashi et al. | Jan 2018 | A1 |
20180034810 | Pe'Er et al. | Feb 2018 | A1 |
20180109377 | Fu | Apr 2018 | A1 |
20180123780 | Ikarashi | May 2018 | A1 |
20180146367 | Altin et al. | May 2018 | A1 |
20180176017 | Rodriguez et al. | Jun 2018 | A1 |
20180176222 | Bhaskar et al. | Jun 2018 | A1 |
20180225431 | Ikarashi et al. | Aug 2018 | A1 |
20180240107 | Andrade | Aug 2018 | A1 |
20180247191 | Katz et al. | Aug 2018 | A1 |
20180341648 | Kakavand et al. | Nov 2018 | A1 |
20180349572 | Chen et al. | Dec 2018 | A1 |
20180367298 | Wright et al. | Dec 2018 | A1 |
20180376318 | Wang et al. | Dec 2018 | A1 |
20190014094 | Le Saint | Jan 2019 | A1 |
20190034936 | Nolan | Jan 2019 | A1 |
20190080321 | Mundis et al. | Mar 2019 | A1 |
20190080404 | Molinari | Mar 2019 | A1 |
20190080406 | Molinari | Mar 2019 | A1 |
20190130368 | Li | May 2019 | A1 |
20190149337 | Savanah et al. | May 2019 | A1 |
20190158470 | Wright et al. | May 2019 | A1 |
20190188793 | Molinari | Jun 2019 | A1 |
20190199531 | Staples | Jun 2019 | A1 |
20190220859 | Weight et al. | Jul 2019 | A1 |
20190229911 | Allen | Jul 2019 | A1 |
20190238334 | Nakamura | Aug 2019 | A1 |
20190340352 | Peeters et al. | Nov 2019 | A1 |
20190349733 | Nolan et al. | Nov 2019 | A1 |
20190392118 | Elden et al. | Dec 2019 | A1 |
20190392536 | Rice | Dec 2019 | A1 |
20200026785 | Patangia et al. | Jan 2020 | A1 |
20200285935 | Song et al. | Sep 2020 | A1 |
20210056070 | Kakavand et al. | Feb 2021 | A1 |
20210194677 | Pourzandi et al. | Jun 2021 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
2016100059 | Mar 2016 | AU |
2867765 | Apr 2016 | CA |
101447980 | Jun 2009 | CN |
102144371 | Aug 2011 | CN |
103440209 | Dec 2013 | CN |
103927656 | Jul 2014 | CN |
104320262 | Jan 2015 | CN |
105204802 | Dec 2015 | CN |
102010002241 | Mar 2012 | DE |
1477882 | Nov 2004 | EP |
2538606 | Dec 2012 | EP |
2975570 | Jan 2016 | EP |
3010176 | Apr 2016 | EP |
3018370 | Sep 2015 | FR |
3018377 | Sep 2015 | FR |
3018378 | Sep 2015 | FR |
3018379 | Sep 2015 | FR |
H11239124 | Aug 1999 | JP |
H11289324 | Oct 1999 | JP |
2000502553 | Feb 2000 | JP |
2001195479 | Jul 2001 | JP |
2002026895 | Jan 2002 | JP |
2006293764 | Oct 2006 | JP |
2007242221 | Sep 2007 | JP |
2008146601 | Jun 2008 | JP |
2009105824 | May 2009 | JP |
2009526411 | Jul 2009 | JP |
2010503320 | Jan 2010 | JP |
2010219912 | Sep 2010 | JP |
2011082662 | Apr 2011 | JP |
2011211461 | Oct 2011 | JP |
2012-515393 | Jul 2012 | JP |
2014068140 | Apr 2014 | JP |
2015536617 | Dec 2015 | JP |
5858506 | Feb 2016 | JP |
2015108134 | Oct 2016 | RU |
2015109271 | Oct 2016 | RU |
201202975 | Jan 2012 | TW |
2005096542 | Oct 2005 | WO |
2005107141 | Nov 2005 | WO |
2007113040 | Oct 2007 | WO |
2012039474 | Mar 2012 | WO |
2012054785 | Apr 2012 | WO |
2013053058 | Apr 2013 | WO |
2015127789 | Sep 2015 | WO |
2015142765 | Sep 2015 | WO |
2015171580 | Nov 2015 | WO |
2015175854 | Nov 2015 | WO |
2015188151 | Dec 2015 | WO |
2016022864 | Feb 2016 | WO |
2016137360 | Sep 2016 | WO |
2016161073 | Oct 2016 | WO |
2017112664 | Jun 2017 | WO |
Entry |
---|
Menezes et al., “Handbook of Applied Cryptography: pp. 33, 38,” CRC Press, Oct. 16, 1996, 3 p. |
Mezzomix et al., “Angebot: BTC (2-aus-3) Multisig Escrow (Treuhandabwicklung),” Bitcoin Forum, Feb. 9, 2014, https://bitcointalk org/index.php?topic=456563 0, 7 pages. |
Michalko et al., “Decent Whitepaper,” retrieved from http://forklog.net/decent-finalizes-its-decentralized-content-distribution-platform/, Nov. 2015, 20 pages. |
Michalko, “Decent Finalizes its Decentralized Content Distribution Platform,” retrieved from http://forklog.net/iecent-finalizes-its-decentralized-content-distnbution-platform/, Dec. 14, 2016, 2 pages. |
Mike et al., “Contract,” Bitcoin Wiki, Oct. 22, 2015 version (first disclosed May 22, 2011) [retrieved May 12, 2020], https://en.bitcoin.it/w/index.php?title=Contract&oldid=59172,11 pages. |
Minsky et al., “Computation: Finite and Infinite Machines Chapter 14: Very Simple Bases for Computability,” Prentice Hall, Inc, 1967,29 pages. |
Mrbandrews, “Bitcoin Core 0.11 (ch 2): Data Storage,” Bitcoin Wiki, Jan. 13, 2016 (last revision Jan. 21, 2016) [retrieved May 8, 2020], https://en.bitcoin.it/w/index.php?title=Bitcoin_Core_0.11_(ch_2) _Data_storage&oldid=60024, 10 pages. |
Mulli, “A Decentralized Bitcoin Exchange with Bitsquare - Attack Scenarios and Countermeasures,” University of Zurich Department of Informatics Communication Systems Group Master Thesis, Jul. 30, 2015, 61 pages. |
Nakamoto, “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” Bitcoin, Oct. 31, 2008, https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin. 3df, 9 pages. |
Noizat et al., “Blockchain Electronic Vote,” retrieved from https://www.weusecoins.com/assets/pdf/library/blockchain-alectronic-vote.pdf, Apr. 29, 2015, 9 pages. |
Noizat, “Handbook of Digital Currency Chapter 22: Blockchain Electronic Vote,” Elsevier Inc., David Lee Kuo Chuen (ed.), May 2015, 9 pages. |
Openchain, “Home Page,” openchain.org, Dec. 22, 2015 [retrieved May 8, 2020], https://web.archive.org/web/20151222083734/https://www.openchain org/, 18 pages. |
OpenSSL Wiki, “Elliptic Curve Diffie Hellman,” OpenSSL, https://wiki.openssl.org/index.php/Elliptic_Curve_Diffie_Hellman, Mar. 10, 2014 [retrieved Dec. 10, 2018], 5 pages. |
OpenSSL Wiki, “Evp Key Agreement,” OpenSSL, https://wiki.openssl.org/index.php/EVP_Key_Agreement, Apr. 28, 2017 [retrieved Dec. 10, 2018], 2 pages. |
Perry, “Tapeke: Bitcoin Accounting for Non-Accountants,” http://codinginmysleep.com/tapeke-bitcoin-accounting-for-non-accountants/, Jan. 21, 2015, 1 page. |
Poon et al., “The Bitcoin Lightning Network: Scalable Off-Chain Instant Payments,” https://www.bitcoinlightning.com/vp-content/uploads/2018/03/lightning-network-paper.pdf, Jan. 14, 2016 [retrieved Dec. 10, 2018], 59 pages. |
Pornin, “Deterministic Usage of the Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA) and Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA),” Request for Comments: 6979, Independent Submission, Aug. 2013, 79 pages. |
Pour, “Bitcoin multisig the hard way: Understanding raw P2SH multisig transactions,” Dec. 20, 2014, https://vww.soroushjp.com/2014/12/20/bitcoin-multisig-the-hard-way-understanding-raw-multisignature-bitcoin-transactions/, 19 pages. |
Reddit, “Could Microsoft use the blockchain as a license key for it's software?,” r/Bitcoin, Sep. 7, 2015 [retrieved May 8, 2020], https://www.reddit.eom/r/Bitcoin/comments/3jz09c/Dould_microsoft_use_the_blockchain_as_a_license/?st=iw26pndq&sh=b862bf7d, 2 pages. |
Reiner et al., “Bitcoin Wallet Identity Verification Specification,” diyhpluswiki, http://diyhpl.US/-bryan/papers2/bitcoin/armory-verisign -bitcoin-wallet-identityspecification.pdf, Feb. 27, 2015 (retrieved Jan. 27, 2016), 24 pages. |
Rockwell, “BitCongress—Process For Blockchain Voting & Law,” retrieved from http://generalbitcoin.com/BitCongress_Whitepaper.pdf, Feb. 12, 2016, 8 pages. |
Ryepdx et al., “Answer to What is the Global Registrar?',” Ethereum Stack Exchange, Feb. 26, 2016 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], http://ethereum.stackexchange.com/questions/1610/what-is-the-global-registrar, 3 pages. |
Sams, “Ethereum: Turing-complete, programmable money,” Cryptonomics, Feb. 1, 2014, https://cryptonomics. 3rg/2014/02/01/ethereum-turing-complete-programmable-money, 4 pages. |
Sanchez,“ Marketplaces,” GitHub, Jun. 10, 2015 [retrieved May 12, 2020], https://github.com/drwasho/openbazaar-1ocumentation/blob/master/04%20Marketplaces.md, 37 pages. |
Sanchez, “Protocol,” Github, https://github.com/drwasho/openbazaar-documentation/blob/master/03%20Protocol. md, Jun. 15, 2015, 53 pages. |
Sanchez, “Ricardian Contracts in OpenBazaar,” Github, https://gist.github.com/drwasho/a5380544c170bdbbbad8, Jan. 2016, 12 pages. |
Sardesai, “Coinffeine: A P2P Alternative to Centralised Bitcoin Exchanges,” Cryptocoins News, Mar. 2, 2014 [etrieved Feb. 14, 2017], https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/coinffeine-p2p-alternative-centralised-bitcoin-exchanges/, 5 pages. |
Satoshi et al., “Connection Limits,” Bitcoin Forum, Aug. 9, 2010, https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=741.0 3rev_next=prev, 2 pages. |
Scott, “Counterparty to Create First Peer-to-Peer Digital Asset Exchange Platform,” Cointelegraph, https://Dointelegraph.com/news/counterparty_to_create_first_peer_to_peer_digital_asset_exchange_platform, Apr. 10, 2014 [retrieved Dec. 12, 2018], 2 pages. |
Sevareid et al., “Use Case Asset Depository,” Github.com, Jan. 11, 2016 version (last edited May 5, 2016) [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], https://github.com/hyperledger/hyperledger/wiki/Use-Case-Asset-Depository, 4 pages. |
Snow et al., “Factom: Business Processes Secured by Immutable Audit Trails on the Blockchain Version 1.2,” factom.com, Apr. 25, 2018, 38 pages. |
Stampery, “Features: Blockchain-based data certification at your fingertips,” Stampery.com, https://stampery.com/features/, archived Mar. 5, 2016 [retrieved Nov. 3, 2016], 4 pages. |
Sullivan et al., “Peer-to-peer Affine Commitment using Bitcoin,” Carnegie Mellon University, Jun. 17, 2015, 54 pages. |
Swan, “Blockchain: Blueprint for a New Economy,” O'Reilly, Feb. 2015, 149 pages. |
Swanson, “Great Chain of Nos. Chapter 3: Next Generation Platforms,” Great Wall of Nos. Mar. 4, 2014 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], http://www.ofnumbers.com/2014/03/04/chapter-3-next-generation-platforms/, 25 pages. |
Taiwanese Office Action dated Apr. 12, 2021, Patent Application No. 109142412, 5 pages. |
Taiwanese Office Action dated Jul. 28, 2020, Patent Application No. 106105709, 9 pages. |
Taiwanese Office Action dated Oct. 7, 2020, Patent Application No. 106105713,4 pages. |
Tasca et al., “Digital Currencies: Principles, Trends, Opportunities, and Risks,” ECUREX Research Working Paper, Sep. 7, 2015 (Oct. 2015 version), 110 pages. |
Third-Party Submission Under 37 CFR 1.290 mailed Jun. 12, 2019, U.S. Appl. No. 16/078,605, filed Aug. 21, 2018, 31 pages. |
Third-Party Submission Under 37 CFR 1.290 mailed Jun. 12, 2019, U.S. Appl. No. 16/079,089, filed Aug. 22, 2018, 19 pages. |
Timeisnow77724 et al., “Help understanding counterparty, thanks in advance!,” Reddit r/counterparty_xcp, https://vww.reddit.eom/r/counterparty_xcp/comments/2qntze/help_understanding_counterparty_thanks_in_advance/, Dec. 28, 2014 [retrieved Dec. 11, 2018], 4 pages. |
Toomim, “P2pool as prior art for nChain's Turing Complete Transactions patent—or, how to patent all blockchain apps without anybody noticing,” Medium, Sep. 3, 2018, https://medium.com/@j_73307/p2pool-as-prior-art-for-nchains-turing-complete-transactions-patent-or-how-to-patent-all-40f3d429eaa4, 13 pages. |
Tuesta et al., “Smart contracts: the ultimate automation of trust?,” BBVA Research Financial Inclusion Unit, Oct. 2015, 5 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Apr. 25, 2016, Patent Application No. 11603117.1, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 11 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Feb. 17, 2017, Patent Application No. 1604493.5, 8 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jan. 13, 2017, Patent Application No. 1604498.4, 8 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 14, 2016, Patent Application No. 1607249.8, 4 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 27, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603123.9, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 11 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 27, 2016, Patent Application No. GB 1603125.4,11 pages. |
Fuchita, “Special Topic: Innovation and Finance, Blockchain and Financial Transaction Innovation,” Nomura Capital Market Quarterly 19-2(74): 11-35, Nov. 1, 2015. |
Fujimura et al., “Bright: A Concept for a Decentralized Rights Management System Based on Blockchain,” 2015 EEE 5th International Conference on Consumer Electronics-Berlin (ICCE-Berlin), Septembers, 2015, 2 pages. |
Gautham, “Bitwage Makes Bitcoin Payroll Easier with New Features,” NewsBTC, Mar. 9, 2016 (retrieved Jun. 16, 2020), https://www.newsbtc.com/2016/03/09/bitwage-makes-bitcoin-payroll-easier-new-features/, 4 pages. |
Gennaro et al., “Threshold-Optimal DSA/ECDSA Signatures and an Application to Bitcoin Wallet Security,” International Conference on Applied Cryptography and Network Security, Jun. 9, 2016, 42 pages. |
Gitbook, “Ethereum Frontier Guide,” Gitbook (Legacy), Feb. 4, 2016, 293 pages. |
Goldfeder et al., “Securing Bitcoin Wallets via a New DSA/ECDSA threshold signature scheme,” manuscript, https://www.cs.princeton.edu/˜stevenag/threshold_sigs.pdf, 2015 [retrieved Jun. 21, 2018], 26 pages. |
Goldfeder et al., “Securing Bitcoin wallets via threshold signatures” Princeton's Center for Information Technology Policy, Mar. 28, 2014, 11 pages. |
Goldfeder et al., “Threshold signatures and Bitcoin wallet security: A menu of options,” Freedom to Tinker, May 23, 2014 [retrieved Nov. 16, 2020], https://freedom-to-tinker.com/2014/05/23/threshold-signatures-and-bitcoin-wallet-security-a-menu-of-options/, 3 pages. |
Gutoski et al., “Hierarchical deterministic Bitcoin wallets that tolerate key leakage (Short paper),” Financial Cryptography and Data Security: 19th International Conference, FC 2015, Revised Selected Papers, Jan. 26, 2015, 9 pages. |
Hacker News, “Cryptocontracts Will Turn Contract Law into a Programming Language,” retrieved from https://news. ycombinator.com/item?id=7287155, Feb. 23, 2014, 12 pages. |
Hao, “On Robust Key Agreement Based on Public Key Authentication,” International Conference on Financial Cryptography and Data Security, Jan. 25, 2010, 12 pages. |
Harayama et al., “Key escrow method of personal decryptographic key by using elliptic curve calculation,” Institute ol Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers (IEICE) Technical Report 109(85):91-96, Jun. 11, 2009. |
Hearn, “Distributed markets,” Bitcoin Wiki, https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Distributed_markets, Jul. 11, 2015 [retrieved Sep. 20, 2016], 5 pages. |
Herbert et al., “A Novel Method for Decentralised Peer-to-Peer Software License Validation Using Cryptocurrency Blockchain Technology,” Proceedings of the 38th Australasian Computer Science Conference, Jan. 27, 2015, 9 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Apr. 10, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050861, 11 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Apr. 12, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050829, 9 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Apr. 12, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050866, 10 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Apr. 21, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050820, 12 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Apr. 26, 2017, International Patent Application No. PCT/B2017/050865, filed Feb. 16, 2017, 9 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Apr. 3, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050824, filed Feb. 14, 2017, 13 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Apr. 3, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050827, 10 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Mar. 29, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050821, 10 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Mar. 30, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050819, 13 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Mar. 30, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050825, 9 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated May 29, 2017, International Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050815, filed Feb. 14, 2017, 10 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated May 31, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050856, filed Feb. 16, 2017, 11 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated May 31, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050867, 11 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated May 31, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050979, filed Feb. 21, 2017, 11 pages. |
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated May 31, 2017, Patent Application No. PCT/IB2017/050980, 12 pages. |
Japanese Notice of Reason(s) for Rejection dated Mar. 30, 2021, Patent Application No. 2018-539890, 8 pages. |
Japanese Notice of Reason(s) for Rejection dated Mar. 30, 2021, Patent Application No. 2018-539893, 6 pages. |
Japanese Office Action dated Feb. 16, 2021, Patent Application No. 2018-539331, 7 pages. |
Japanese Office Action dated Jan. 22, 2019, Patent Application No. 2018-516682, filed Feb. 16, 2017, 14 pages. |
Japanese Office Action dated Oct. 6, 2020, Patent Application No. 2018-539865, 14 pages. |
Japanese Office Action dated Oct. 8, 2019, Patent Application No. 2018-539895, 9 pages. |
Jesionek et al., “BIP0032: Hierarchical Deterministic Wallets,” GitHub, https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/master/bip-0032.mediawiki, Jan. 2014, 9 pages. |
I2012 et al., “MinAddress : Now remember your addresses easily,” BitCoinTalk, Sep. 16, 2014 (retrieved Jun. 16, 2020), https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=774741.150;wap2, 3 pages. |
Ken K., “Tutorial 1: Your first contract,” Ethereum.org, Dec. 2014, https://web.archive.org/save/_embed/https7/brum.ethereum.org/discussion/1634/tutorial-1-your-first-contract/p1,22 pages. |
Kens et al., “Cryptocontracts Will Turn Contract Law Into a Programming Language ,” Hacker News, Feb. 23, 2014, https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7287155,12 pages. |
Killerstorm et al., “Transcript for #bitcoin-dev 2012/09/03,” BitcoinStats, http://www.bitcoinstats.com/irc/bitcoin-dev/logs/201 Feb. 9, 03, Sep. 3, 2012 [retrieved Dec. 21, 2018], 14 pages. |
Koblitz et al., “Cryptocash, Cryptocurrencies, and Cryptocontracts,” Designs, Codes and Cryptography, 78(1):87-102, publication available online Oct. 1, 2015, print publication Jan. 2016. |
Kosba et al., “Hawk: The Blockchain Model of Cryptography and Privacy-Preserving Smart Contracts,” IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy, May 22, 2016, 31 pages. |
Kravchenko, “Distributed multi-ledger model for financial industry,” Github.com, Oct. 21, 2015 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], https://github.com/WebOfTrustinfo/rebooting-the-web-of-trust/blob/master/topics-andadvance-Yeadings/DistributedMulti-ledgerModelForFinanciallndustry.md, 2 pages. |
Krawczyk, “HMQV: A High-Performance Secure Diffie-Hellman Protocol,” Annual International Cryptology Conference 2005, Aug. 14, 2005, first disclosed online Jul. 5, 2005, 66 pages. |
Krellenstein, “The Counterparty Protocol,” GitHub, https://github.com/jsimnz/Counterparty/blob/master/README.md, Jan. 8, 2014 [Dec. 12, 2018], 4 pages. |
Lebeau, “An Ethereum Journey to Decentralize All Things,” retrieved from https://medium.com/@SingularDTV/an-athereum-journey-to-decentralize-all-things- 8d62b02e232b#.r6n9w8kqh, Jul. 11, 2016, 10 pages. |
Luu et al., “Demystifying Incentives in the Consensus Computer,” ISBN, Oct. 2015, 14 pages. |
Mainelli, “Blockchain: why smart contracts need shrewder people,” Banking Technology, Apr. 4, 2016 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], http://www.bankingtech.com/461572/blockchain-why-smart-contracts-need-shrewderpeople/, 3 pages. |
Maxwell et al., “Deterministic wallets,” Bitcoin Forum, https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=19137.0;all, Jun. 18, 2011 [retrieved Dec. 10, 2018], 104 pages. |
McCorry et al., “Authenticated Key Exchange over Bitcoin,” International Conference on Research in Security Standardisation 2015, Dec. 15, 2015, 18 pages. |
Zyskind et al., “Enigma: Decentralized Computation Platform with Guaranteed Privacy,” Jun. 10, 2015, 14 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 27, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603125.4, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 11 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 28, 2016, Patent Application No. GB 1603122.1, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 12 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 6, 2016, Patent Application No. 1604497.6, filed Mar. 16, 2016, 6 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 9, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603117.1, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 12 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated May 16, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603125.4, 8 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated May 20, 2016, Patent Application No. 1605026.2, 4 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated May 24, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1605571.7, filed Apr. 1, 2016, 3 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated May 9, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603112.2, 6 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated May 9, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603114.8, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 2 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Nov. 14, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1607063.3, 8 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Nov. 30, 2016, Patent Application No. 1607058.3, filed Apr. 22, 2016, 7 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Oct. 10, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1607484.1, filed Apr. 29, 2016, 5 pages. |
UK Commercial Search Report dated Sep. 30, 2016, Patent Application No. 1606630.0, filed Apr. 15, 2016, 7 pages. |
UK Expanded Commercial Search Report dated Jun. 15, 2016, Patent Application No. 1605026.2, 5 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Dec. 12, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1606630.0, filed Apr. 15, 2016, 4 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Dec. 15, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1607063.3, 6 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Dec. 21, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1607058.3, filed Apr. 22, 2016, 3 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Dec. 28, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1604497.6, filed Mar. 16, 2016, 4 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Dec. 5, 2016, Patent Application No. 1607249.8, 4 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Dec. 6, 2016, Patent Application No. 1604493.5, 6 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Dec. 6, 2016, Patent Application No. 1607482.5, 5 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Jan. 25, 2017, Patent Application No. 1605026.2, 3 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Jan. 3, 2017, Patent Application No. 1604498.4, 4 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Jul. 26, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603114.8, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 5 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Jul. 4, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603125.4, 6 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Jul. 4, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603125.4, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 6 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Jul. 5, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603123.9, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 5 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Oct. 17, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603117.1, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 5 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Oct. 21, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603112.2, 4 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Oct. 26, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1603122.1, filed Feb. 23, 2016, 4 pages. |
UK IPO Search Report dated Sep. 9, 2016, Patent Application No. GB1605571.7, filed Apr. 1, 2016, 5 pages. |
Vayngrib, “DHT hardening,” GitHub, https://github.com/tradle/about/wiki/DHT-hardening, Feb. 2, 2015 (last updated May 21, 2015) [retrieved Dec. 13, 2018], 5 pages. |
Vayngrib, “Future, operating business on chain,” Github.com, May 4, 2015 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], fittps://github.com/tradle/about/wiki/Future,-operating-business-on-chain, 9 pages. |
Vietnamese Office Action mailed Sep. 27, 2018, Patent Application No. 1-2018-03358, filed Feb. 16, 2017, 2 pages. |
Nalport et al., “Distributed Ledger Technology: beyond block chain - A report by the UK Government Chief Scientific Adviser,” United Kingdom Government Office for Science, Dec. 2015, 88 pages. |
Watanabe et al., “Blockchain contract: A complete consensus using blockchain,” IEEE 4th Global Conference on Consumer Electronics, Oct. 27, 2015, 3 pages. |
Weller et al., “CounterpartyXCP/Documentation: Protocol Specification,” Github.com, Jan. 25, 2015 (last edited Jun. 17, 2019) [retrieved Jan. 13, 2020], https://github.com/CounterpartyXCP/Documentation/blob/master/Developers/protocol_specification.md, 10 pages. |
White, “How Computers Work,” Que Publishing 7th Edition, Oct. 15, 2003, 44 pages. |
Whitequark, “#bitcoin-wizards on 2015-07-30 - ire logs atwhitequark.org,” whitequark.org, https://irclog.whitequark. 3rg/bitcoin-wizards/2015-07-30, Jul. 30, 2015 [retrieved Dec. 12, 2018], 8 pages. |
Wikipedia, “Counterparty (platform),” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, last edited Dec. 6, 2019 [retrieved Jan. 13, 2020], https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterparty_(platform), 2 pages. |
Wikipedia, “Shamir's Secret Sharing,” Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia, Jan. 20, 2017 version [retrieved on Jan. 9, 2019], https://en wikipedia.org/w/index php?title=Shamir's_Secret_Sharing&oldid=761082071, 6 pages. |
Wikipedia, “Shamir's Secret Sharing,” Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia, Mar. 6, 2016 version [retrieved on Jun. 24, 2019], https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shamir's_Secret_Sharing&oldid=708636892, 6 pages. |
Willett et al., “Omni Protocol Specification (formerly Mastercoin),” Github, Nov. 5, 2013 [retrieved May 12, 2020], https://github.com/OmniLayer/spec/blob/9978cc3984aeOb6e51216c4ae74042fc4097b993/README.md, 59 pages. |
Willoms et al., “Using blockchain to save and verify software licensing,” Bitcoin Forum, https://bitcointalk.org/index. ?hp?topic=671435.0, Jun. 30, 2014 [retrieved Dec. 13, 2018], 3 pages. |
Wood, “Ethereum: A Secure Decentralised Generalised Transaction Ledger: Final Draft - Under Review,” Etereum Project Yellow Paper, http://tech.lab.carl.pro/kb/ethereum/yellowpaper, Apr. 2014, 32 pages. |
Wright, “Registry and Automated Management Method for Blockchain Enforced Smart Contracts,” U.S. Appl. No. 15/138,717, filed Apr. 26, 2016. |
Wuille, “Hierarchical Deterministic Wallets,” Github, https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/ab90b5289f0356282397fa9b8aa47d2238a7b380/bip-0032.mediawiki, Feb. 12, 2016 (retrieved Mar. 23,2017), 9 pages. |
Yaokai et al., “Experimental evaluation of the next-generation cryptocurrency platform Ethereum,” CSS2015 Computer Security Symposium 2015 Proceedings 2015(3):1151-1158, Oct. 14, 2015. |
Zhang et al., “AntShare Trading Platform,” Github.com, Jun. 3, 2016 (last edited Aug. 21, 2016) [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], https://github com/AntShares/AntShares/wiki/Whitepaper-1.1, 9 pages. |
Zyskind et al., “Decentralizing Privacy: Using a Blockchain to Protect Personal Data,” 2015 IEEE CS Security and Privacy Workshops, May 21, 2015, 5 pages. |
Abeikverdi et al., “Generating interactive, secure multiple ECC key pairs deterministically,” StackExchange, http://crypto.stackexchange.com/questions/25191/generating-interactivesecure-multiple-ecc-key-pairs-deterministically, Apr. 23, 2015 [retrieved Dec. 26, 2016], 2 pages. |
Akutsu et al., “Taking on the challenge of creating epoch-making services that impress users For services that can share the excitement of competitions around the world,” Ni I Technical Journal 27(5):10-14, May 1, 2015. |
Allison, “Symbiont's Adam Krellenstein: There's really only two smart contract systems—Ethereum's and ours,” International Business Times, https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/symbionts-adam-krellenstein-theres-really-only-two-smart-sontract-systems-ethereums-ours-1530490, Nov. 25, 2015 [retrieved Dec. 12, 2018], 4 pages. |
Alonso et al., “Digital Economy Outlook,” BBVA Research, Oct. 2015, https://www.bbvaresearch.com/wpcontent/uploads/2015/10/Digital_Economy_Outlook_Oct15_Cap1.pdf, 16 pages. |
Andersen, “Blockchain Technology: A game-changer in accounting?,” Deloitte & Touche GmbH Wirtschaftsprufungsgesellschaft, Mar. 2016, 5 pages. |
Andresen et al., “Relay OP_Return data TxOut as standard transaction type #2738,” Github, Jun. 4, 2013, ittps://github.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/pull/2738, 12 pages. |
Anonymous, “Bitcoin Developer Guide,” Bitcoin Project, https://web.archive.org/web/20160515171209/https7/5itcoin.org/en/developer-guide, May 15, 2016 [retrieved Mar. 13, 2019], 55 pages. |
Anonymous, “Bitsquare—The decentralised bitcoin exchange,” Bitsquare.io, Jan. 3, 2016, 14 pages. |
Anonymous, “Homepage,” website operational as of 2017 [retrieved Nov. 30, 2020], https://www.coinffeine. com/, 2 pages. |
Antonopoulos, “Mastering Bitcoin—Unlocking Digital Cryptocurrencies,” O'Reilly Media, Inc., Dec. 20, 2014, 282 pages. |
Australian Office Action for Application No. 2017223158, dated Jun. 22, 2021, 7 pages. |
Bitcoininvestor.Com, “All-Star Panel: Ed Moy, Joseph VaughnPerling, Trace Mayer, Nick Szabo, Dr. Craig Wright,” YouTube, https://youtu.be/LdvQTwjVmrE, Bitcoin Investor Conference, Oct. 29, 2015 [retrieved Dec. 12, 2018], 1 page. |
Bitcoininvestor.Com, “All-Star Panel: Ed Moy, Joseph VaughnPerling, Trace Mayer, Nick Szabo, Dr. Craig Wright,” YouTube, Nov. 12, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdvQTwjVmrE, 1 page. |
Bitfreak! et al., “Understanding Stealth Addresses/Payments,” Bitcoin Forum, Jun. 10, 2015 (retrieved Jun. 16, 2020), https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1086498.0, 8 pages. |
Bitfury Group, “Smart Contracts on Bitcoin Blockchain,” BitFury Group Limited, Aug. 13, 2015 (updated Sep. 4, 2015), http://bitfury.com/content/5-white-papers-research/contracts-1.11.pdf, 20 pages. |
Block Chan, “Tweet dated Nov. 7, 2018,” Twitter, Nov. 7, 2018, https://twitter.com/block chan/status/1060336404163584000, 1 page. |
Bluematt, http://bitcoinstats.com/irc/bitcoin-dev/logs/2015/03/16. |
Bradbury, “Developers Battle Over Bitcoin Block Chain,” Coindesk, http://www.coindesk.com/developers-battle-bitcoin-b lock-chain/, Mar. 25, 2014, 3 pages. |
Brown et al., “Standards for Efficient Cryptography 1: Elliptic Curve Cryptography Version 2.0,” Certicom Research, Way 21, 2009, 144 pages. |
Brown et al., “Standards for Efficient Cryptography 2: Recommended Elliptic Curve Domain Parameters Version 2.0,” Certicom Research, Jan. 27, 2010, 37 pages. |
Burgess et al., “The Promise of Bitcoin and the Blockchain,” Consumers' Research, Jul. 13, 2015, 97 pages. |
Buterin et al., “Ethereum Development Tutorial,” GitHub, Jul. 1, 2014 [retrieved Jul. 20, 2021], https://github.com/2thereum/wikiAviki/ethereum-development-tutorial/Oc1f501ea03a787910049b03723f1bfd7a14c9c6, 13 pages. |
Buterin, “Bitcoin Multisig Wallet: The Future Of Bitcoin,” Bitcoin Magazine, Mar. 13, 2014 [retrieved May 12, 2020], https://bitcoinmagazine com/articles/multisig-future-bitcoin-1394686504, 7 pages. |
Buterin, “Secret Sharing DAOs: The Other Crypto 2.0,” Ethereum Blog, Dec. 26, 2014 [retrieved Nov. 21, 2019], https://ethereum.github.io/blog/2014/12/26/secret-sharing-daos-crypto-2-0/, 10 pages. |
Campagna et al., “Standards for Efficient Cryptography 4: Elliptic Curve Qu-Vanstone Implicit Certificate Scheme ECQV) Version 1.0,” Certicom Research, Jan. 24, 2013, 32 pages. |
Charlon et al., “Open-Assests-Protocol,” Github.com, Nov. 17, 2015 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], https://github.com/OpenAssets/open-assets-protocol/blob/master/specification.mediawiki, 5 pages. |
Christidis et al., “Blockchains and Smart Contracts for the Internet of Things,” IEEE Access 4(1):2292-2303, Way 10, 2016. |
Coinprism, “80 bytes Op_Re I Urn explained,” Coinprism Blog, http://blog.coinprism.eom/2015/02/11/80-bytes-op-return/, Feb. 11, 2015 [retrieved Dec. 21, 2018], 8 pages. |
Corallo, “[Bitcoin-development] Relative CHECKLOCKTIMEVERIFY (was CLTV proposal),” Linux Foundation, https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/bitcoin-dev/2015-May 00 7858.html, May 4, 2015 [retrieved Dec. 12, 2018], 3 pages. |
Counterparty, “Home Page,” Counterparty, copyright 2018 [retrieved Jan. 13, 2020], counterparty.io, 3 pages. |
Danda et al., “hd-wallet-addrs,” GitHub, https://github.com/dan-da/hd-wallet-addrs, Dec. 30, 2015 [retrieved Mar. 11, 2016], 7 pages. |
Danda et al., “Is there any service/api for deriving HD wallet addresses from a master public key?,” StackExchange, http://bitcoin. stackexchange.com/questions/38887/is-there-any-service-api-for-deriving-hdwallet-addresses-from-a-master-public-k, Jul. 30, 2015, 2 pages. |
Danda, “Help / FAQ,” MyBitPrices, https://mybitprices.info/hd-wallet-addrs.html, Jan. 1, 2016 [retrieved Mar. 11, 2016], 4 pages. |
Das, “As Exchanges Pause Withdrawals, Chinese Bitcoin Investors Switch to P2P Trading,” CCN, Feb. 13, 2017 [retrieved May 12, 2020], https://www.ccn.com/chinese-bitcoin-investors-switch-p2p-trading-exchanges-pause-withdrawals/, 4 pages. |
Dash et al., “bips/bip-0047.mediawiki,” Github, Feb. 24, 2016 (retrieved Jun. 16, 2020), https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/15c0b250cb5b77eba3ea709b082d7da6a310d991/bip.0047.mediawiki, 16 pages. |
Decker, “[BIP] Normalized transaction IDs,” Bitcoin-Dev, https://bitcoin-development.narkive.com/DjOYjEig/bip-normalized-transaction-ids, Oct. 19, 2015 [retrieved Dec. 12, 2018], 16 pages. |
Dixon, “True peer-to-peer currency exchange?,” DGC Magazine, Jul. 2, 2013 [retrieved May 12, 2020], http://igcmagazine.com/true-peer-to-peer-currency-exchange/, 6 pages. |
Dorier, “Colored Coins and Ricardian Contracts,” Coinprism Blog, Dec. 10, 2014 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], fittp://blog.coinprism.com/2014/12/10/colored-coins-and-ricardian-contracts/, 9 pages. |
DRCODE,“New Kid on the Blockchain,” Hacker News, https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11372455, Mar. 28, 2016 [Dec. 12, 2018], 32 pages. |
Durback, “Standard BIP Draft: Turing Pseudo-Completeness,” Bitcoin-Dev, Dec. 10, 2015, https://bitcoin-ievelopment.narkive.com/uRciVtAQ/standard-bip-draft-turing-pseudo-completeness, 11 pages. |
Eragmus et al., “Time to lobby Bitcoin's core devs: ”SF Bitcoin Devs Seminar - Scalability to billions of transactions per day, satoshi-level Micropayments, near-zero risk of custodial theft, & Instant transactions“... but only w/ a malleability-fixing soft fork,” Reddit r/bitcoin, https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/2z2191/time_to_lobby_bitcoins_core_devs_sf_bitcoin_devs/, Mar. 14, 2015 [Dec. 12, 2018], 21 pages. |
European Communication pursuant to Article 94(3) EPC dated Jan. 2, 2020, Patent Application No. 18166910.2-1218, filed Feb. 16, 2017, 4 pages. |
European Communication pursuant to Article 94(3) EPC dated Jul. 1, 2019, Application No. 17707121.4-1218, filed Feb. 14, 2017, 6 pages. |
Extended European Search Report mailed Jul. 18, 2018, Patent Application No. 18166910.2-1218, filed Feb. 16, 2017, 8 pages. |
Familiar et al., “Transcript for #bitcoin-dev Mar. 27, 2015,” BitcoinStats, http://bitcoinstats.com/irc/bitcoin-dev/ogs/2015/03/27, Mar. 27, 2015 [archived version Jun. 27, 2016], 11 pages. |
Fimkrypto, “Fimk 0.6.4 RELEASED,” Github.com, Feb. 11, 2016 [retrieved Jan. 30, 2017], https://github. com/fimkrypto/fimk/releases, 17 pages. |
Flood et al., “Contract as Automaton: The Computational Representation of Financial Agreements,” Office of Financial Research Working Paper No. 15-04, Mar. 26, 2015, 25 pages. |
Fotiou et al., “Decentralized Name-based Security for Content Distribution using Blockchains,” retrieved from, Mobile Multimedia Laboratory, Department of Informatics, Apr. 14, 2016, 6 pages. |
Friedenbach et al., “Freimarkets: extending bitcoin protocol with user-specified bearer instruments, peer-to-peer exchange, off-chain accounting, auctions, derivatives and transitive transactions,” Version v0.01, http://freico.in/docs/freimarkets-v0.0.1.pdf, Aug. 24, 2013 [retrieved Dec. 12, 2018], 25 pages. |
Friedenbach, “[Bitcoin-development] New Output Script Type,” Linux Foundation, Sep. 14, 2013, https://lists. inuxfoundation.org/pipermail/bitcoin-dev/2013-September/003256.html, 2 pages. |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20190058592 A1 | Feb 2019 | US |