Abstract:
In one embodiment a controller comprises logic to receive a request for a credential to authenticate a user for a transaction, in response to a determination that a credential which satisfies the request resides on a memory module, execute an authentication routine to authenticate a user of the controller, in response to a successful authentication, retrieve the credential from the memory module, and provide a token to certify the credential in response to the request. Other embodiments may be described.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    None. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    The subject matter described herein relates generally to the field of electronic devices and more particularly to a system and method to implement client hardware authenticated transactions using electronic devices. 
         [0003]    In a typical electronic commerce transaction the merchant (and underlying ecosystem), is not certain that the individual conducting the transaction is the authorized person. When fraudulent transactions are accepted by the online ecosystem there is an underlying fraud cost that is generally borne by the relying party, in this example the merchant, or by the defrauded individual. 
         [0004]    Another weakness in the online space is the ever-present threat of system malware, which is often used to steal personal information, including payment credentials, for use by unauthorized individuals. This threat has an effect on a certain percentage of the population who will not conduct online activity due to fear of having their information compromised. This reduces efficiencies that can be gained through online commerce and limits the amount of goods and services purchased by concerned individuals, limiting the growth of online commerce. 
         [0005]    Existing solutions to these problems are limited in their usefulness and/or security due to the fact that they are hosted inside the PC operating system, which is always a point of vulnerability, or require external, attached hardware devices, which limit consumer ease-of-use factors. Accordingly systems and techniques to provide a secure computing environment for electronic commerce may find utility. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]    The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. 
           [0007]      FIG. 1  is a schematic illustration of an exemplary electronic device which may be adapted to include infrastructure for client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a high-level schematic illustration of an exemplary architecture for client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is a schematic illustration of an exemplary architecture for client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is a flowchart illustrating operations in a method to implement client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  is a schematic illustration of an electronic device which may be adapted to implement client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0012]    Described herein are exemplary systems and methods to implement a client hardware authenticated transactions (CHAT) in electronic devices. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of various embodiments. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the various embodiments may be practiced without the specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, and circuits have not been illustrated or described in detail so as not to obscure the particular embodiments. 
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is a schematic illustration of an exemplary system  100  which may be adapted to implement client hardware authenticated transactions in accordance with some embodiments. In one embodiment, system  100  includes an electronic device  108  and one or more accompanying input/output devices including a display  102  having a screen  104 , one or more speakers  106 , a keyboard  110 , one or more other I/O device(s)  112 , and a mouse  114 . The other I/O device(s)  112  may include a touch screen, a voice-activated input device, a track ball, a geolocation device, an accelerometer/gyroscope, biometric feature input devices, and any other device that allows the system  100  to receive input from a user. 
         [0014]    In various embodiments, the electronic device  108  may be embodied as a personal computer, a laptop computer, a personal digital assistant, a mobile telephone, an entertainment device, or another computing device. The electronic device  108  includes system hardware  120  and memory  130 , which may be implemented as random access memory and/or read-only memory. A file store  180  may be communicatively coupled to computing device  108 . File store  180  may be internal to computing device  108  such as, e.g., one or more hard drives, CD-ROM drives, DVD-ROM drives, or other types of storage devices. File store  180  may also be external to computer  108  such as, e.g., one or more external hard drives, network attached storage, or a separate storage network. 
         [0015]    System hardware  120  may include one or more processors  122 , graphics processors  124 , network interfaces  126 , and bus structures  128 . In one embodiment, processor  122  may be embodied as an Intel® Core2 Duo® processor available from Intel Corporation, Santa Clara, Calif., USA. As used herein, the term “processor” means any type of computational element, such as but not limited to, a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a complex instruction set computing (CISC) microprocessor, a reduced instruction set (RISC) microprocessor, a very long instruction word (VLIW) microprocessor, or any other type of processor or processing circuit. 
         [0016]    Graphics processor(s)  124  may function as adjunct processor that manages graphics and/or video operations. Graphics processor(s)  124  may be integrated onto the motherboard of computing system  100  or may be coupled via an expansion slot on the motherboard. 
         [0017]    In one embodiment, network interface  126  could be a wired interface such as an Ethernet interface (see, e.g., Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers/IEEE 802.3-2002) or a wireless interface such as an IEEE 802.11a, b or g-compliant interface (see, e.g., IEEE Standard for IT-Telecommunications and information exchange between systems LAN/MAN—Part II: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) specifications Amendment 4: Further Higher Data Rate Extension in the 2.4 GHz Band, 802.11G-2003). Another example of a wireless interface would be a general packet radio service (GPRS) interface (see, e.g., Guidelines on GPRS Handset Requirements, Global System for Mobile Communications/GSM Association, Ver. 3.0.1, December 2002). 
         [0018]    Bus structures  128  connect various components of system hardware  128 . In one embodiment, bus structures  128  may be one or more of several types of bus structure(s) including a memory bus, a peripheral bus or external bus, and/or a local bus using any variety of available bus architectures including, but not limited to, 11-bit bus, Industrial Standard Architecture (ISA), Micro-Channel Architecture (MSA), Extended ISA (EISA), Intelligent Drive Electronics (IDE), VESA Local Bus (VLB), Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI), Universal Serial Bus (USB), Advanced Graphics Port (AGP), Personal Computer Memory Card International Association bus (PCMCIA), and Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI). 
         [0019]    Memory  130  may include an operating system  140  for managing operations of computing device  108 . In one embodiment, operating system  140  includes a hardware interface module  154  that provides an interface to system hardware  120 . In addition, operating system  140  may include a file system  150  that manages files used in the operation of computing device  108  and a process control subsystem  152  that manages processes executing on computing device  108 . 
         [0020]    Operating system  140  may include (or manage) one or more communication interfaces that may operate in conjunction with system hardware  120  to transceive data packets and/or data streams from a remote source. Operating system  140  may further include a system call interface module  142  that provides an interface between the operating system  140  and one or more application modules resident in memory  130 . Operating system  140  may be embodied as a UNIX operating system or any derivative thereof (e.g., Linux, Solaris, etc.) or as a Windows® brand operating system, or other operating systems. 
         [0021]    In some embodiments system  100  may comprise a low-power embedded processor, referred to herein as a trusted execution engine  170 . The trusted execution engine  170  may be implemented as an independent integrated circuit located on the motherboard of the system  100 . In the embodiment depicted in  FIG. 1  the trusted execution engine  170  comprises a processor  172 , a memory module  174 , an authentication module  176 , and an I/O module  178 . In some embodiments the memory module  164  may comprise a persistent flash memory module and the authentication module  174  may be implemented as logic instructions encoded in the persistent memory module, e.g., firmware or software. The I/O module  178  may comprise a serial I/O module or a parallel I/O module. Because the trusted execution engine  170  is physically separate from the main processor(s)  122  and operating system  140 , the trusted execution engine  170  may be made secure, i.e., inaccessible to hackers such that it cannot be tampered with. 
         [0022]    In some embodiments the trusted execution engine may be used to define a trusted domain in a host electronic device in which authentication procedures may be implemented.  FIG. 2  is a high-level schematic illustration of an exemplary architecture for client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. Referring to  FIG. 2 , a host device  210  may be characterized as having an untrusted domain and a trusted domain. When the host device  210  is embodied as a system  100  the trusted domain may be implemented by the trusted execution engine  170 , while the untrusted domain may be implemented by the main processors(s)  122  and operating system  140  of the system  100 . As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , remote entities that issue credentials, identified as issuers  230  in  FIG. 2 , supply credentials, which are stored in the trusted domain of the host device  210 . In use, the issued credentials and one or more user credentials  224  may be provided as inputs to one or more authentication algorithms  222 , which process the credentials and generate a token, which may be provided to one or more relying parties  240 . Integrity of the trusted domain may be maintained through exclusive, cryptographically-protected, relationships between a trusted domain and entities that are allowed to issue credentials into  220  or lifecycle manage  235  the contents and algorithms  222  of the trusted domain. 
         [0023]      FIG. 3  is a schematic illustration in greater detail of an exemplary architecture for client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. In the embodiment depicted in  FIG. 3 , the trusted execution layer comprises a provisioning and life cycle management module  310 , a platform sensor credentials module  320 , and a set of credential repositories  340 . A token access manager module  352  accepts as inputs one or more token access methods and rules  350  stored in the trusted execution layer. 
         [0024]    In the embodiment depicted in  FIG. 3  the platform sensor credential may comprise one or more of a secured keyboard input path credential  322 , a GPS location credential, a biometric credential  326 , an accelerometer or gyroscope credential  328 , or a malware-interception-resistant secure screen input mechanism credential  330 . The credential repositories  340  may comprise a NFC input device  342 , one or more secure elements  344 , and a cloud credential store access mechanism  346 . 
         [0025]    The untrusted execution layer (i.e., the Host Operating System layer) implements a series of proxies to facilitate communication with the trusted execution layer components. Thus, the untrusted execution layer maintains a life cycle management proxy  360  to facilitate communicate between the provisioning and life cycle management module  310  and remote issuers  230  of credentials, and entities delegated to securely manage  235  the trusted execution layer. Similarly, a host proxy  362  facilitates communication between one or more client applications  380  which execute in the untrusted execution layer and the token access manager  352 . A persistence proxy  364  provides a communication link between the token access manager  352  and a platform data store  366 . A cloud proxy  370  provides a communication link between cloud credential stores  250  and the cloud store access mechanism  346 . 
         [0026]    Having described various structures of a system for client hardware authenticated transactions, operating aspects of a system will be explained with reference to  FIG. 4 , which is a flowchart illustrating operations in a method to implement client hardware authenticated transactions accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments the operations depicted in the flowchart of FIG.  4  may be implemented by the authentication module(s)  176  of the trusted execution engine  170 . 
         [0027]    In use, the system my obtain credentials from a variety of sources. For example, issuers  230  may issue credentials to the system via the LCM proxy  360 . Issued credentials may include dynamic cryptogram (OTP) generation seeds, user certificates (e.g., x509 certificates with public/private key pairs), financial information (e.g., credit card information), bank card information, or the like. Issued credentials may be stored in one or more of the credential repositories  340 . By contrast, the platform sensor credentials  320  may be obtained from the user in response to requests from a relying party, either in real time during an authentication process or in advance. One skilled in the art will recognize that platform sensor credentials may be requested indirectly as the result of the relying party asking for other credential, as described below, or even directly by a relying party. By way of example, biometric signatures may be cataloged for users, allowing a centrally-run authentication verification system. Using embodiments described herein, a relying party could ask the platform for a fingerprint credential. The platform would obtain this credential using its fingerprint acquisition hardware, and would return this information to the requesting/relying party. 
         [0028]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , at operation  410  a system receives a request for one or more credentials. By way of example, the request may be initiated by a remote entity such as an online shopping entity or a banking entity. At operation  415  it is determined whether a credential corresponding to the requested credential exists. By way of example, the credential repositories  340  may be searched for one or more credentials corresponding to the requested credential(s). 
         [0029]    If, at operation  415 , the requested credential(s) do not exist then control passes to operation  430  and the request is deemed a failure. In this circumstance a failure indictor may be presented on a user interface of the system  100 . By way of example a failure message may be presented on the display  104  of the device or an audible failure indicator may be presented on the speaker  106 . 
         [0030]    By contrast, if at operation  415  the requested credential(s) exist then control passes to operation  420 , where it is determined whether authentication methods exists. If no authentication methods exist for the requested credential(s) then again control passes to operation  430  and the request is deemed a failure and a failure indicator may be presented. However, if at operation  420  one or more authentication methods exist for the requested credential the control passes to operation  425  and an authentication method is selected, and at operation  440  the selected authentication method is executed. 
         [0031]    The particular authentication method(s) may be established by the token access methods and rules module  350 . By way of example, the user may be asked to enter a particular character string on a keyboard, which may be intercepted by a trusted keyboard input system  322 . Alternatively, a geolocation system such as the global positioning system (GPS) may be used to establish a GPS location credential  324  (i.e., where the device is located). A biometric sensor such as a fingerprint scanner may be used to establish a biometric credential  326 . An accelerometer and/or gyroscope may be used to establish a motion-based credential. For example, a user may be requested to rotate the system  100  in a particular orientation. 
         [0032]    If, at operation  445 , the authentication method is unsuccessful and authentication cannot be confirmed, then again control passes to operation  430  and the request is deemed a failure and a failure indicator may be presented. By contrast if authentication is confirmed then control passes to operation  450 , where it is determined whether the authentication process is complete. Authentication methods may be combined to provide a stronger, multi-factor authentication. In such cases some credentials may require multiple levels of authentication. If further authentication is required then control passes to operation  455  where the next authentication method is selected, and to operation  440 , where the authentication method is executed. Operations  440 - 455  thus form a loop pursuant to which multiple authentication methods may be required. 
         [0033]    If, at operation  450 , the authentication process completes successfully then control passes to operation  460  and a token is retuned from the token access manager  352 . The token may be returned in response to the request for the credential received in operation  410 . In some circumstances the retrieved token may not be sufficient to satisfy a credential request  410 . In such cases one or more post-processing operations provide for processing to complete a credential request  410 . By way of example, a digital signature algorithm may be applied to a returned financial token. The digital signature would assert to the relying party that the token was being returned by the consent of a specific individual or computer platform. The relying party  420  may use the token to determine whether to grant the user of the system  100  access to a resource such as a banking transaction or a commercial exchange transaction. 
         [0034]    Thus, if at operation  465 , a post-processing operation is useful for the token, then control passes to operation  470  and a post processing algorithm is implemented. By way of example, in the case of a one-time-password, the retrieved credential at  460  may be a static, cryptographic secret that is known only to the CHAT system and the person who issued the secret. To turn the secret into a one-time-password requires that the seed be combined with other information (e.g., a random number and a counter), and then run through some post-processing algorithm such as a SHA-1 hash generator. The result of this post-processing is a one-time-password that is returned to the relying party at operation  475 . 
         [0035]    In other embodiments the token retrieved in  460  may be a credit card number which may be accompanied by a digital signature attesting to a user confirmation (i.e., digital signature algorithms involve cryptographic operations executed using a secret, private key owned by the user). The operation that generates the digital signature and appends it to the credit card at operation  470 . At this point the composite ‘token’ can be returned to the relying party at operation  475 . 
         [0036]    As described above, in some embodiments the electronic device may be embodied as a computer system.  FIG. 5  is a schematic illustration of a computer system  500  in accordance with some embodiments. The computer system  500  includes a computing device  502  and a power adapter  504  (e.g., to supply electrical power to the computing device  502 ). The computing device  502  may be any suitable computing device such as a laptop (or notebook) computer, a personal digital assistant, a smart phone, a desktop computing device (e.g., a workstation or a desktop computer), a rack-mounted computing device, and the like. 
         [0037]    Electrical power may be provided to various components of the computing device  502  (e.g., through a computing device power supply  506 ) from one or more of the following sources: one or more battery packs, an alternating current (AC) outlet (e.g., through a transformer and/or adaptor such as a power adapter  504 ), automotive power supplies, airplane power supplies, and the like. In some embodiments, the power adapter  504  may transform the power supply source output (e.g., the AC outlet voltage of about 110 VAC to 240 VAC) to a direct current (DC) voltage ranging between about 7 VDC to 12.6 VDC. Accordingly, the power adapter  504  may be an AC/DC adapter. 
         [0038]    The computing device  502  may also include one or more central processing unit(s) (CPUs)  508 . In some embodiments, the CPU  508  may be one or more processors in the Pentium® family of processors including the Pentium® II processor family, Pentium® III processors, Pentium® IV , CORE2 Duo processors, or Atom processors available from Intel® Corporation of Santa Clara, Calif. Alternatively, other CPUs may be used, such as Intel&#39;s Itanium®, XEON™, and Celeron® processors. Also, one or more processors from other manufactures may be utilized. Moreover, the processors may have a single or multi core design. 
         [0039]    A chipset  512  may be coupled to, or integrated with, CPU  508 . The chipset  512  may include a memory control hub (MCH)  514 . The MCH  514  may include a memory controller  516  that is coupled to a main system memory  518 . The main system memory  518  stores data and sequences of instructions that are executed by the CPU  508 , or any other device included in the system  500 . In some embodiments, the main system memory  518  includes random access memory (RAM); however, the main system memory  518  may be implemented using other memory types such as dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), and the like. Additional devices may also be coupled to the bus  510 , such as multiple CPUs and/or multiple system memories. 
         [0040]    The MCH  514  may also include a graphics interface  520  coupled to a graphics accelerator  522 . In some embodiments, the graphics interface  520  is coupled to the graphics accelerator  522  via an accelerated graphics port (AGP). In some embodiments, a display (such as a flat panel display)  540  may be coupled to the graphics interface  520  through, for example, a signal converter that translates a digital representation of an image stored in a storage device such as video memory or system memory into display signals that are interpreted and displayed by the display. The display  540  signals produced by the display device may pass through various control devices before being interpreted by and subsequently displayed on the display. 
         [0041]    A hub interface  524  couples the MCH  514  to an platform control hub (PCH)  526 . The PCH  526  provides an interface to input/output (I/O) devices coupled to the computer system  500 . The PCH  526  may be coupled to a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus. Hence, the PCH  526  includes a PCI bridge  528  that provides an interface to a PCI bus  530 . The PCI bridge  528  provides a data path between the CPU  508  and peripheral devices. Additionally, other types of I/O interconnect topologies may be utilized such as the PCI Express™ architecture, available through Intel® Corporation of Santa Clara, Calif. 
         [0042]    The PCI bus  530  may be coupled to an audio device  532  and one or more disk drive(s)  534 . Other devices may be coupled to the PCI bus  530 . In addition, the CPU  508  and the MCH  514  may be combined to form a single chip. Furthermore, the graphics accelerator  522  may be included within the MCH  514  in other embodiments. 
         [0043]    Additionally, other peripherals coupled to the PCH  526  may include, in various embodiments, integrated drive electronics (IDE) or small computer system interface (SCSI) hard drive(s), universal serial bus (USB) port(s), a keyboard, a mouse, parallel port(s), serial port(s), floppy disk drive(s), digital output support (e.g., digital video interface (DVI)), and the like. Hence, the computing device  502  may include volatile and/or nonvolatile memory. 
         [0044]    Thus, there is described herein an architecture and associated methods to implement client hardware authenticated transactions in electronic devices. In some embodiments the architecture uses hardware capabilities embedded in an electronic device platform to provide assurances to transaction-authorizing parties that a transaction is being made by an authorized individual. In the embodiments described herein authentication and persistence are based processing that occurs within a trusted environment, separate from the host operating system. The execution environment may be implemented in a trusted execution engine, which obtains and verifies user identity, then provides proof of identity verification, and may provide other elements required to satisfy transaction requirements. The result is a platform-issued token that represents fulfillment of these required elements to relying parties. In some embodiments the trusted execution engine may be implemented in a remote or attachable device, e.g., a dongle, 
         [0045]    The architecture utilizes on hardware-based capabilities to acquire user authentication credentials to provide assurances that the credentials are being provided by authorizing individuals. These credentials take on the form of accepted authentication factors. Example factors include protected inputs (i.e., what you know), biometric inputs (i.e., who you are), one-time passwords (i.e., what you have), location information (i.e., where you are), and accelerometer/gyroscope information (i.e., what you do). The hardware has secure capabilities to store and/or acquire issued credentials granted by appropriate authorities, which serve to provide required information to relying parties. Examples of issued credentials include (but are not limited to dynamic cryptogram (OTP) generation seeds, user certificates (e.g. x509 with public/private key pair), financial information (e.g. credit card information), and bank cards (not stored on platform, but information acquired via secure hardware such as  342 ). 
         [0046]    The algorithms and rules managed by the token access method and rules module  350  executing in the trusted execution layer pairs of these classes of credentials and factors (and resulting tokens). Because the algorithms executed in a trusted execution layer the opportunity for malware to insert itself in spoofing or man-in-the-browser authentication attacks is virtually eliminated. Where direct linkage is not possible the linkage between systems is provided using cryptographic techniques (e.g. using functions inherent in  352 ,  364  and  366 ), effectively neutralizing threats due to data interception and replay. 
         [0047]    The architecture also enables multi-factor authentication factors via factor serialization. Again, because these compounding processes execute in a trusted environment they too are protected from malware or tampering. 
         [0048]    In one embodiment the trusted execution engine  170  displays a randomized numeric pad and then uses the guest operating system  140  and secure screen input  330  to acquire mouse clicks that represent digits that correspond to an assigned credential passcode. Upon verification of the passcode the trusted execution engine  170  generates a dynamic cryptogram that asserts to a relying party  240  that: a) the user has entered the required “what you know” parameter, and that b) the user is initiating the online transaction on a platform trusted by the relying party. The cryptogram, unique due to a specific seed provisioned by an assigned issuer, provides a qualified, “what you have” factor. 
         [0049]    By way of example, the architecture may be used to implement a dynamic card-verification value (CVV) for credit card issuers. Users may implement the methods above to obtain a dynamic cryptogram (i.e., a one-time-password), which may be coupled with a registered credit card account and sent to the card issuer for validation. Once validated the card issuer returns a dynamic card-verification-value (CVV) as a substitute for the static CVV printed on the back of a credit card. This CVV is compatible with existing eCommerce checkout pages, and is validated by the payment ecosystem as being legitimate, and derived from a pre-authenticated transaction. One skilled in the art will recognize that information other than the CVV could be returned by the card issuer as long as the transaction can still be processed by the payment ecosystem. A dynamic CVV lowers the risk rating of the transaction since the probability of fraud for a transaction has been reduced. 
         [0050]    Thus, the architecture described herein securely integrates the processes of credential storage, solicitation and authentication within a trusted execution environment that can be adapted to serve various credential acquisition requirements. Rules serve to govern token access so that authentication methods can vary provided the required authentication level of a given credential can be met. For example, assume that for release of a stored credit card credential the issuer access rules state that either a user-entered PIN or matching biometric pattern must be entered. Assuming that both types of authentication methods/sensors are available on the platform, entry of either qualifying authentication credential will result in release of the requested financial credential according to the general algorithm illustrated in  FIG. 4 . 
         [0051]    For a given credential acquirer or relying party, rules can also state that cryptographic operations must be applied to a credential prior to it being released from the trusted execution environment. This provides additional levels of security in that even when released to the relatively hostile O/S environment, that it is still protected from data-in-motion compromise. 
         [0052]    The architecture also provides an open issuer environment capable of integrating a wide variety of credentials issued from a wide variety of entities. Thus, many issuers can participate and issue credentials into the system. This open issuer feature is represented by the Issuer  230  element of  FIG. 3 . 
         [0053]    The terms “logic instructions” as referred to herein relates to expressions which may be understood by one or more machines for performing one or more logical operations. For example, logic instructions may comprise instructions which are interpretable by a processor compiler for executing one or more operations on one or more data objects. However, this is merely an example of machine-readable instructions and embodiments are not limited in this respect. 
         [0054]    The terms “computer readable medium” as referred to herein relates to media capable of maintaining expressions which are perceivable by one or more machines For example, a computer readable medium may comprise one or more storage devices for storing computer readable instructions or data. Such storage devices may comprise storage media such as, for example, optical, magnetic or semiconductor storage media. However, this is merely an example of a computer readable medium and embodiments are not limited in this respect. 
         [0055]    The term “logic” as referred to herein relates to structure for performing one or more logical operations. For example, logic may comprise circuitry which provides one or more output signals based upon one or more input signals. Such circuitry may comprise a finite state machine which receives a digital input and provides a digital output, or circuitry which provides one or more analog output signals in response to one or more analog input signals. Such circuitry may be provided in an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or field programmable gate array (FPGA). Also, logic may comprise machine-readable instructions stored in a memory in combination with processing circuitry to execute such machine-readable instructions. However, these are merely examples of structures which may provide logic and embodiments are not limited in this respect. 
         [0056]    Some of the methods described herein may be embodied as logic instructions on a computer-readable medium. When executed on a processor, the logic instructions cause a processor to be programmed as a special-purpose machine that implements the described methods. The processor, when configured by the logic instructions to execute the methods described herein, constitutes structure for performing the described methods. Alternatively, the methods described herein may be reduced to logic on, e.g., a field programmable gate array (FPGA), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or the like. 
         [0057]    In the description and claims, the terms coupled and connected, along with their derivatives, may be used. In particular embodiments, connected may be used to indicate that two or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contact with each other. Coupled may mean that two or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contact. However, coupled may also mean that two or more elements may not be in direct contact with each other, but yet may still cooperate or interact with each other. 
         [0058]    Reference in the specification to “one embodiment” or “some embodiments” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least an implementation. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification may or may not be all referring to the same embodiment. 
         [0059]    Although embodiments have been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that claimed subject matter may not be limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as sample forms of implementing the claimed subject matter.