Patent ID: 6508400
Filing Date: 2003-01-21
Classification: G06Q,G07C,G07F

Abstract:
An automatic identification equipment comprising at least two types of interrogators and at least one IC card, whereina storage device in said each IC card stores authentication keys, the number of which is equal to the number of the types of said interrogators, and has a memory space partitioned into a plurality of areas, each of said plurality of areas including a read permission flag for specifying a type of interrogator which is permitted to read data stored in said area, and a write permission flag for specifying a type of interrogator which is permitted to write data to said area; each of said read permission flags is composed of one bit, is assigned in correspondence to the type of interrogator, and indicates whether or not the corresponding type of interrogator is permitted to read data from said area; each of said write permission flags is composed of one bit, is assigned in correspondence to the type of interrogator, and indicates whether or not the corresponding type of interrogator is permitted to write data into said area; said IC card compares an authentication key transmitted from one interrogator of said interrogators with the authentication key stored in said storage device; and when said transmitted authentication key and said stored authentication key are identical, said IC card determines an access right of said one interrogator for accessing an area in accordance with the value of the read permission flag or the write permission flag associated with the type of said one interrogator provided for said area accessed by said one interrogator.