1. Field
This disclosure relates to an apparatus to detect hardware intrusion into a protected enclosure without requiring electrical power.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are numerous applications where it is desirable to be able to detect intrusion into a protected enclosure. The “intrusion” could be unauthorized opening, disassembly, or other attempt to gain access to the protected enclosure. The protected enclosure could contain, for example, proprietary hardware, security equipment, or fee collection or metering equipment. To provide protection to portable equipment or equipment without applied power (such as during storage or shipment), the intrusion detection means must also operate without electrical power. Thus there is a need for a cost-effective, reliable, digitally-compatible, non-reversible sensor that can detect intrusion without the need for battery or other electrical power. This invention satisfies all of these requirements.
A first embodiment of the invention consists of an array of at least two magnetic memory elements, each of which has two electronically-readable stable states in the presence of a bias magnetic field, and a means for providing the required bias magnetic field. The term “bias magnetic field” is intended to describe a magnetic field having a strength and direction within predetermined limits that will sustain the states of the magnetic memory elements. The predetermined limits on field strength may be centered about some finite value or may be centered about zero. In the latter case, the magnetic memory elements are configured to maintain two stable states in the absence of an applied magnetic field, and to change states if the applied magnetic field exceeds some threshold value.
The magnetic memory elements and the means for providing the bias magnetic field are both located within a protected electronics enclosure and disposed such that any attempt to disassemble the enclosure will cause a change in the bias magnetic field and resultant permanent change to the content stored in the magnetic memory.
Intrusion detection functionality is initialized by electronically writing a binary code into the magnetic memory after the protected volume is completely assembled. Subsequent disassembly will automatically cause the initialization code to erase. Attempted intrusion can be detected by comparing the memory content with the known value of the code at initialization. The reaction to the detected intrusion may be an alarm or alert, or a reaction (such as erasing data or software) causing the protected equipment to lose functionality.
In a preferred embodiment, the binary code stored in the magnetic memory at initialization is used as the key to encrypt or decrypt stored data or communications. In this case, loss of the encryption code due to attempted intrusion is sufficient to cause the protected equipment to lose functionality.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the magnetic memory is an array of spin-valve magnetoresistive sensor elements. Spin-valve sensors are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,513 and have been extensively developed for use in read heads for magnetic disc memory devices
In the case where a finite bias magnetic field is required to maintain the memory states, the means for providing the bias magnetic field will preferably be a small permanent magnet. The magnetic memory and the magnet must be mounted within the protected enclosure such that they physically move with respect to each other (in any direction) if the enclosure is non-destructively disassembled
In the case where the magnetic memory is configured to maintain stable states in the absence of an applied magnetic field (i.e., the bias field strength limits are centered on zero), the protected enclosure is designed to shield the magnetic memory array from external or ambient magnetic fields. Disassembly causes the magnetic memory to be exposed to magnetic fields (e.g., the earth's magnetic field), resulting in changes to the memory content.
Description of Apparatus
It must be understood that the device illustrated in
The effect of the antiferromagnetic layer 140 is to “pin” the adjacent magnetic layer 130 such that the magnetization of layer 130 does not change in the presence of magnetic field (up to very high levels; thousands of Gauss), but instead always points in one direction along the long axis of the spin-valve device
The other magnetic layer 120, called the “free” layer, is not pinned, and the direction of magnetization of layer 120 can vary in the presence of a magnetic field. However, layer 120 will exhibit a natural tendency to become magnetized in either of two stable states with the direction of magnetization either parallel to and antiparallel to that of the “pinned” layer 130.
The relative magnetization of the two magnetic layers 120, 130 with respect to each other determines the resistance of the nonmagnetic layer 110. When the magnetization of the free layer 120 points in the same direction as that of the pinned layer 130, the electrical resistance of layer 110 is reduced. Conversely, when the magnetization of layers 120, 130 are pointing in opposite directions, the electrical resistance of layer 110 is increased. Thus, in general, two stable resistance states are possible.
The degree of resistance change between states depends on the type of magnetic sensor and design parameters such as layer thicknesses. Spin-valve sensor devices typically exhibit a resistance change of approximately 5%, measured along the long axis of the nonmagnetic film 110. Spin-tunneling devices are reported to exhibit resistance changes greater than 40%, measured across the thickness of the nonmagnetic film 110
The invention leverages the magnetic memory element's hysteretic behavior. The interrelationship between a magnetic memory element's magnetic field surroundings (external magnetic field parameters at any given moment in time) and its electrical resistance (and the number of resistance values possible) is illustrated in
In essence, the magnetic memory element's hysteresis notionally divides the magnetic field range into three zones: two single-state conditions 610, 620 and one “bistable” zone 600. The suitable zone represents the design level for the bias magnetic field plus margin for magnetic variations; two stable binary resistance values are possible in this zone. The field strength in the “bistable” zone may be centered about zero, or may be centered on a predetermined non-zero value. The single-state zones represent the external magnetic field direction and strength caused by intrusion events; one and only one resistance value is possible in each of these zones.
In practice, an intrusion detection sensor will contain a minimum of two magnetic memory elements. Upon hardware initialization, predetermined resistance values can be written to individual spin valves to store a binary resistance security code or encryption key. In the case where the memory has only two elements and can only store two binary bits, the possible useful security code values are 01 and 10 (either the high or low resistance states can be arbitrarily defined as binary 0). This code will persist if, and only if, the applied magnetic field for all spin valves is maintained in the bistable zone. If at any time the applied magnetic field changes into either of the single-state zones, the security code is erased (either all “0s” or all “1s” depending on which of the two intrusion zones was applied last). The change in the stored security code will occur whether or not power is applied.
In
In
In
It should be understood that
While read circuitry 740 will most likely be located in the immediate proximity of magnetic memory array 710, the other elements shown in
Description of Processes
Closing Comments
Throughout this description, the embodiments and examples shown should be considered as exemplars, rather than limitations on the apparatus and procedures disclosed or claimed. Although many of the examples presented herein involve specific combinations of method acts or system elements, it should be understood that those acts and those elements may be combined in other ways to accomplish the same objectives. With regard to flowcharts, additional and fewer steps may be taken, and the steps as shown may be combined or further refined to achieve the methods described herein. Acts, elements and features discussed only in connection with one embodiment are not intended to be excluded from a similar role in other embodiments.
For means-plus-function limitations recited in the claims, the means are not intended to be limited to the means disclosed herein for performing the recited function, but are intended to cover in scope any means, known now or later developed, for performing the recited function.
As used herein, “plurality” means two or more.
As used herein, a “set” of items may include one or more of such items.
As used herein, whether in the written description or the claims, the terms “comprising”, “including”, “carrying”, “having”, “containing”, “involving”, and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limited to. Only the transitional phrases “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of”, respectively, are closed or semi-closed transitional phrases with respect to claims.
Use of ordinal terms such as “first”, “second”, “third”, etc., in the claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed, but are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term) to distinguish the claim elements.
As used herein, “and/or” means that the listed items are alternatives, but the alternatives also include any combination of the listed items.
This application is a division of application Ser. No. 11/446,534, entitled “Intrusion Detection Apparatus and Method”, filed Jun. 2, 2006.
This invention was made with government support. The government has certain rights in this invention.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11446534 | Jun 2006 | US |
Child | 12136634 | US |