Patent GB-1120032-A (GB)
Title: Cryptographic device provided with at least one key element
IPC: H04L9/22
Filed: 1963-05-17
Abstract: 1,120,032. Random number generators; ciphering. PHILIPS USFA N.V. 17 May, 1963 [18 May, 1962], No. 19835/63. Headings G4D and G5X. A cryptographic device provided with at least one key element, which element can cyclically run through a series of conditions of predetermined length to regain an arbitrary starting position and which is provided with a driving means for the cyclic stepping from one condition to the next and with a reading device, is characterized in that the element is a feedback shift register, the sections of which, when the register is driven, run through a series of conditions and at least one section of which is used as a reading point for the reading device. A device with three feed-back shift registers 1, 2 and 3 is shown in Fig. 1, each having five sections a, b, c, d, e; f, g, h, i, j; and k, l, m, n, o respectively. Each register 1, 2 and 3 is provided with a driving means 9, 10 and 11 and a reading device 16, 17 and 18. Control pulses are fed from a driving mechanism 15 to the driving means 9 of the register 1 and at each pulse, the contents (i.e. " ones " and " zeroes ") present in the sections a to e are shifted to the right by one section and at the same time the signals from the sections c and e are added byamodulotwo circuit 4 and the result shifted into the section a. The contents present in the sections a to e repeat themselves after each set of 31 pulses. The condition of the section e is read by the device 16, the latter being a modulotwo circuit the other input of which is connected to a signal source 19 which emits either a " zero " or a " one." The output from the device 16 is passed on to an " AND " gate 20 and to a modulo-two circuit 17 and if this output is a " one," the gate 20 which is connected to the driving mechanism 15 will open and the register 2 will be shifted. The reading device 17 reads the condition of the section i and controls an " AND " gate 21 connected to the driving mechanism 15 and a reading device 18. The blocks 22, 23 and 24 framed in broken lines in Fig. 1, represent units by which the device can be extended at will. It should be noted that different feed-backs are employed in each of the units, the shift registers therefore generating series of different patterns. The signal appearing at the terminal 25 can be used as a key for ciphering or deciphering. It may be of advantage to provide the units with a separate reading device for the generation of a random sequence of " ones " and " zeroes." For this purpose, the condition read by a reading device 35 at section b of register 1 is added modulo-two to the condition of a signal source 38. The output of the device 35 after being added modulo-two to the condition read by a device 36 at section h of register 2 is supplied to a device 37. Eventually on a terminal 39 there appears a signal resulting from the modulo-two addition of the conditions of the registers to the condition of the signal source 38. A unit for-which the reading place may be varied is described (Fig. 2, not shown). Instead of connecting the registers one after the other, as is shown for the registers of Fig. 1, the registers may be combined to form a multiple shift register, as is described with reference to Fig. 3 (not shown), for the case of two registers, which enables a large number of short series of " ones " and " zeroes " to be generated instead of a single series of extensive length.