Patent ID: 12248475

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all, embodiments of the disclosure are shown. Indeed, the disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legal requirements. Where possible, any terms expressed in the singular form herein are meant to also include the plural form and vice versa, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Also, as used herein, the term “a” and/or “an” shall mean “one or more,” even though the phrase “one or more” is also used herein. Furthermore, when it is said herein that something is “based on” something else, it may be based on one or more other things as well. In other words, unless expressly indicated otherwise, as used herein “based on” means “based at least in part on” or “based at least partially on.” Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

As used herein, an “entity” may be any institution employing information technology resources and particularly technology infrastructure configured for processing large amounts of data. Typically, these data can be related to the people who work for the organization, its products or services, the customers or any other aspect of the operations of the organization. As such, the entity may be any institution, group, association, financial institution, establishment, company, union, authority or the like, employing information technology resources for processing large amounts of data.

As described herein, a “user” may be an individual associated with an entity. As such, in some embodiments, the user may be an individual having past relationships, current relationships or potential future relationships with an entity. In some embodiments, the user may be an employee (e.g., an associate, a project manager, an IT specialist, a manager, an administrator, an internal operations analyst, or the like) of the entity or enterprises affiliated with the entity.

As used herein, a “user interface” may be a point of human-computer interaction and communication in a device that allows a user to input information, such as commands or data, into a device, or that allows the device to output information to the user. For example, the user interface includes a graphical user interface (GUI) or an interface to input computer-executable instructions that direct a processor to carry out specific functions. The user interface typically employs certain input and output devices such as a display, mouse, keyboard, button, touchpad, touch screen, microphone, speaker, LED, light, joystick, switch, buzzer, bell, and/or other user input/output device for communicating with one or more users.

As used herein, “authentication credentials” may be any information that can be used to identify of a user. For example, a system may prompt a user to enter authentication information such as a username, a password, a personal identification number (PIN), a passcode, unique characteristic information (e.g., iris recognition, retina scans, fingerprints, finger veins, palm veins, palm prints, digital bone anatomy/structure and positioning (distal phalanges, intermediate phalanges, proximal phalanges, and the like), an answer to a security question, a unique intrinsic user activity, such as making a predefined motion with a user device. This authentication information may be used to authenticate the identity of the user (e.g., determine that the authentication information is associated with the account) and determine that the user has authority to access an account or system. In some embodiments, the system may be owned or operated by an entity. In such embodiments, the entity may employ additional computer systems, such as authentication servers, to validate and certify resources inputted by the plurality of users within the system. The system may further use its authentication servers to certify the identity of users of the system, such that other users may verify the identity of the certified users. In some embodiments, the entity may certify the identity of the users. Furthermore, authentication information or permission may be assigned to or required from a user, application, computing node, computing cluster, or the like to access stored data within at least a portion of the system.

It should also be understood that “operatively coupled,” as used herein, means that the components may be formed integrally with each other, or may be formed separately and coupled together. Furthermore, “operatively coupled” means that the components may be formed directly to each other, or to each other with one or more components located between the components that are operatively coupled together. Furthermore, “operatively coupled” may mean that the components are detachable from each other, or that they are permanently coupled together. Furthermore, operatively coupled components may mean that the components retain at least some freedom of movement in one or more directions or may be rotated about an axis (i.e., rotationally coupled, pivotally coupled). Furthermore, “operatively coupled” may mean that components may be electronically connected and/or in fluid communication with one another.

As used herein, an “interaction” may refer to any communication between one or more users, one or more entities or institutions, one or more devices, nodes, clusters, or systems within the distributed computing environment described herein. For example, an interaction may refer to a transfer of data between devices, an accessing of stored data by one or more nodes of a computing cluster, a transmission of a requested task, or the like.

It should be understood that the word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any implementation described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as advantageous over other implementations.

As used herein, “determining” may encompass a variety of actions. For example, “determining” may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, ascertaining, and/or the like. Furthermore, “determining” may also include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), and/or the like. Also, “determining” may include resolving, selecting, choosing, calculating, establishing, and/or the like. Determining may also include ascertaining that a parameter matches a predetermined criterion, including that a threshold has been met, passed, exceeded, and so on.

As used herein, “resource” may refer to a tangible or intangible object that may be used, consumed, maintained, acquired, exchanged, and/or the like by a system, entity, or user to accomplish certain objectives. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the resources may include computing resources such as processing power, memory space, network bandwidth, bus speeds, storage space, electricity, and/or the like. In other embodiments, the resources may include objects such as electronic data files or values, authentication keys (e.g., cryptographic keys), document files, funds, investment vehicles, cryptographic and/or digital currencies, and/or the like. In yet other embodiments, the resources may include real-world goods or commodities that may be acquired and/or exchanged by a user.

“Cryptographic hash function” or “hash algorithm” as used herein may refer to a set of logical and/or mathematical operations or processes that may be executed on a specified segment of data to produce a hash output. Given a specified data input, the hash algorithm may produce a cryptographic hash output value which is a fixed-length character string. Examples of such hash algorithms may include MD5, Secure Hash Algorithm/SHA, or the like. According, “hashing” or “hashed” as used herein may refer to the process of producing a hash output based on a data input into a hash algorithm.

“Public-key cryptography” or “asymmetric cryptography” may refer to a process for data encryption and/or verification by which a pair of asymmetric corresponding cryptographic keys are generated (e.g., a “key pair” comprising a “public key” intended to be distributed and a “private key” intended to be possessed by a single user or device). Data encrypted using a public key may be decrypted only by the possessor of the corresponding private key. Furthermore, data signed with a private key may be validated by the possessor of the corresponding public key to verify the identity of the signer (which may be referred to herein as “digital signing”).

Distributed registers (which may in some embodiments be blockchain ledgers) provide entities with a durable, decentralized platform on which to store data. In particular, the decentralized, consensus-based manner in which data is stored in the distributed register provides a degree of resistance to tampering of the data stored therein. Furthermore, the use of smart contracts may streamline and expedite the interactions between entities. That said, certain implementations of distributed registers may include inefficiencies in its data storage processes. For instance, in some cases, a distributed ledger technology (“DLT”) network may use miner nodes that compete with one another to compute a solution to a cryptographic puzzle. In such cases, the miner that first computes the solution and propagates its local version of the blockchain ledger to the other nodes in the DLT network (e.g., due to higher computing power, faster network connections, and/or the like) will add its mined block to the end of the blockchain ledger. Subsequent mined blocks by other miners, even if they may contain a valid solution, are discarded, such that the computing resources, time, and energy expended by a miner in generating the subsequent mined block may be wasted. Accordingly, there is a need for a more efficient way to add blocks or data records to the distributed register.

To address the above concerns among others, the system described herein provides a distributed register with a multi-linked data architecture. In particular, the distributed register may be a blockchain ledger comprising a plurality of blocks or data records, where each block comprises block data (which may comprise one or more transactions) and metadata, where the metadata comprises at least one link or reference to at least one previous block in the blockchain ledger. The link or reference may be, for instance, a hash value generated by inputting the data of the previous block into a hash algorithm (e.g., Secure Hash Algorithm, or the like). In some embodiments, the system may use a consensus algorithm that requires a miner node to compute a solution to a cryptographic puzzle to select the next block in the blockchain ledger. In some cases, multiple miner nodes may compute a valid solution, and thus the system may receive multiple blocks from the miner nodes to be added to the blockchain. In such a scenario, rather than accepting a single valid block and discarding the remainder, the current last or terminal block of the blockchain may serve as a “parent block” or “root block” to which each of the multiple valid blocks may refer (e.g., by containing a hash of the parent block).

For example, miner node A may submit a first proposed block containing a first transaction, and miner node B may submit a second proposed block containing a second transaction. In this example, both the first valid block and the second valid block may be appended to the parent block (e.g., the current terminal block in the blockchain) such that both the first proposed block and second proposed block each contain the hash of the parent block. In some embodiments, addition blocks mined by miner node A or miner node B may be appended to their respective ends of the chain (e.g., a third proposed block submitted by miner node A may be appended to the first proposed block submitted by miner node A, which is appended to the parent block). It should further be appreciated that additional proposed blocks may be submitted by other miner nodes at the same time, such that more than two proposed blocks are appended to the parent block (e.g., proposed blocks submitted by miner node C, miner node D, and the like).

Subsequently, the system (e.g., the nodes) may recognize the existence or presence of two versions or instances of the blockchain ledger (e.g., a first version containing the first proposed block submitted by miner node A as the terminal block, and a second version containing the second proposed block submitted by miner node B as the terminal block). In such embodiments, the next block that is appended to the blockchain ledger may comprise a “stack” or “hashmap” in the block metadata, where the stack may comprise multiple hashes of the previous blocks in the chain. Such a block may be referred to herein as a “stacked block.” Continuing the above example, the stack within the stacked block may comprise both a hash of the first proposed block submitted by miner node A (e.g., a “first” or “top” hash within the stack) and a hash of the second proposed block submitted by miner node B (e.g., a “second” hash within the stack). In this way, at the time the stacked block is appended to the blockchain ledger, the stacked block comprises a link or reference to all of the terminal blocks in the chain (e.g., the first proposed block and the second proposed block). Subsequent to the stacked block being added to the blockchain ledger, additional blocks may be appended to the stacked block in any of the manners described herein. In this way, the system may preserve multiple valid data records within the blockchain ledger while preserving a single version of the blockchain ledger (e.g., preventing forking).

The system may receive a query for a particular transaction or data record within the distributed register. Further, the query may be for a data record that is stored within a block that is linked (directly or indirectly) by a particular stack or hashmap. In such an embodiment, the system may first, in response to receiving the query, use a two-pointer algorithm to identify the parent block. The two-pointer algorithm may include a first pointer beginning with the first or top hash in the stack and a second pointer beginning with the second hash in the stack. The first pointer may traverse the distributed register two blocks at a time, while the second pointer may traverse the distributed register one block at a time, until the first pointer reaches the genesis block. It should be understood that in other embodiments, the second pointer may be the one that traverses two blocks at a time while the first pointer may be the one that traverses one block at a time.

Once the first pointer reaches the genesis block, the first pointer may reverse direction and traverse the distributed register one block at a time, whereas the second pointer may then begin traversing the distributed register two blocks at a time. When the first pointer and second pointer converge on the same block, the system may determine that the parent block (e.g., the block to which multiple blocks may be linked) has been found using the two pointer algorithm. Subsequently, the system may perform a linear search along each of the paths of each of the hashes within the stack, where each path terminates at the parent block identified using the two pointer algorithm. By limiting the parameters of linear search to the parent block, the system may increase the computing efficiency of the search by saving the computing resources that would have been expended in unnecessarily searching beyond the parent block all the way to the genesis block along each of the paths defined by the various hashes in the stack.

An exemplary embodiment is provided as follows for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the disclosure provided herein. In one embodiment, a first miner may submit a first block to be validated that contains first transaction and fourth transaction, and a second miner may submit a second block that contains a second transaction and third transaction (e.g., the first block and second block contain different transactions). The local distributed register of the first miner (e.g., a blockchain with the first block as the latest block) may be accepted by the remaining nodes first (e.g., because the first miner has superior computing power, faster network transfer speed, lower latency, and/or the like). In this way, the first block may be added to the parent block (e.g., the prior terminal block in the blockchain). Rather than discarding the second block, the system may allow the second block to be added to the parent block such that both the first block and second block are linked to the parent block. Subsequently, a stacked block may be added that may reference both the hash of the first block and the hash of the second block. In this way, the distributed register maintains a substantially linear data structure while preserving the data or transactions that would have otherwise been lost in conventional systems.

The system as described herein provides a number of technological benefits over conventional DLT systems. In particular, by allowing multiple blocks to reference the hash of a parent block, the system may prevent the waste of computing resources associated with otherwise valid blocks submitted after the first valid block that is accepted by the majority of the nodes. Furthermore, by using a two pointer search algorithm as described herein, the system may increase the efficiency of searches within the distributed register by preventing unnecessary searches beyond the parent block.

FIGS.1A-1Cillustrate technical components of an exemplary distributed computing environment100for the system for intelligent and integrated preservation of multiple electronic data records within a distributed electronic data register, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown inFIG.1A, the distributed computing environment100contemplated herein may include a system130, an end-point device(s)140, and a network110over which the system130and end-point device(s)140communicate therebetween.FIG.1Aillustrates only one example of an embodiment of the distributed computing environment100, and it will be appreciated that in other embodiments one or more of the systems, devices, and/or servers may be combined into a single system, device, or server, or be made up of multiple systems, devices, or servers. For instance, the functions of the system130and the endpoint devices140may be performed on the same device (e.g., the endpoint device140). Also, the distributed computing environment100may include multiple systems, same or similar to system130, with each system providing portions of the necessary operations (e.g., as a server bank, a group of blade servers, or a multi-processor system).

In some embodiments, the system130and the end-point device(s)140may have a client-server relationship in which the end-point device(s)140are remote devices that request and receive service from a centralized server, i.e., the system130. In some other embodiments, the system130and the end-point device(s)140may have a peer-to-peer relationship in which the system130and the end-point device(s)140are considered equal and all have the same abilities to use the resources available on the network110. Instead of having a central server (e.g., system130) which would act as the shared drive, each device that is connect to the network110would act as the server for the files stored on it. In some embodiments, the system130may provide an application programming interface (“API”) layer for communicating with the end-point device(s)140.

The system130may represent various forms of servers, such as web servers, database servers, file server, or the like, various forms of digital computing devices, such as laptops, desktops, video recorders, audio/video players, radios, workstations, or the like, or any other auxiliary network devices, such as wearable devices, Internet-of-things devices, electronic kiosk devices, mainframes, or the like, or any combination of the aforementioned.

The end-point device(s)140may represent various forms of electronic devices, including user input devices such as servers, networked storage drives, personal digital assistants, cellular telephones, smartphones, laptops, desktops, and/or the like, merchant input devices such as point-of-sale (POS) devices, electronic payment kiosks, and/or the like, electronic telecommunications device (e.g., automated teller machine (ATM)), and/or edge devices such as routers, routing switches, integrated access devices (IAD), and/or the like.

The network110may be a distributed network that is spread over different networks. This provides a single data communication network, which can be managed jointly or separately by each network. Besides shared communication within the network, the distributed network often also supports distributed processing. The network110may be a form of digital communication network such as a telecommunication network, a local area network (“LAN”), a wide area network (“WAN”), a global area network (“GAN”), the Internet, or any combination of the foregoing. The network110may be secure and/or unsecure and may also include wireless and/or wired and/or optical interconnection technology.

It is to be understood that the structure of the distributed computing environment and its components, connections and relationships, and their functions, are meant to be exemplary only, and are not meant to limit implementations of the inventions described and/or claimed in this document. In one example, the distributed computing environment100may include more, fewer, or different components. In another example, some or all of the portions of the distributed computing environment100may be combined into a single portion or all of the portions of the system130may be separated into two or more distinct portions.

FIG.1Billustrates an exemplary component-level structure of the system130, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. As shown inFIG.1B, the system130may include a processor102, memory104, input/output (I/O) device116, and a storage device110. The system130may also include a high-speed interface108connecting to the memory104, and a low-speed interface112connecting to low speed bus114and storage device110. Each of the components102,104,108,110, and112may be operatively coupled to one another using various buses and may be mounted on a common motherboard or in other manners as appropriate. As described herein, the processor102may include a number of subsystems to execute the portions of processes described herein. Each subsystem may be a self-contained component of a larger system (e.g., system130) and capable of being configured to execute specialized processes as part of the larger system.

The processor102can process instructions, such as instructions of an application that may perform the functions disclosed herein. These instructions may be stored in the memory104(e.g., non-transitory storage device) or on the storage device110, for execution within the system130using any subsystems described herein. It is to be understood that the system130may use, as appropriate, multiple processors, along with multiple memories, and/or I/O devices, to execute the processes described herein.

The memory104stores information within the system130. In one implementation, the memory104is a volatile memory unit or units, such as volatile random access memory (RAM) having a cache area for the temporary storage of information, such as a command, a current operating state of the distributed computing environment100, an intended operating state of the distributed computing environment100, instructions related to various methods and/or functionalities described herein, and/or the like. In another implementation, the memory104is a non-volatile memory unit or units. The memory104may also be another form of computer-readable medium, such as a magnetic or optical disk, which may be embedded and/or may be removable. The non-volatile memory may additionally or alternatively include an EEPROM, flash memory, and/or the like for storage of information such as instructions and/or data that may be read during execution of computer instructions. The memory104may store, recall, receive, transmit, and/or access various files and/or information used by the system130during operation.

The storage device106is capable of providing mass storage for the system130. In one aspect, the storage device106may be or contain a computer-readable medium, such as a floppy disk device, a hard disk device, an optical disk device, or a tape device, a flash memory or other similar solid state memory device, or an array of devices, including devices in a storage area network or other configurations. A computer program product can be tangibly embodied in an information carrier. The computer program product may also contain instructions that, when executed, perform one or more methods, such as those described above. The information carrier may be a non-transitory computer- or machine-readable storage medium, such as the memory104, the storage device104, or memory on processor102.

The high-speed interface108manages bandwidth-intensive operations for the system130, while the low speed controller112manages lower bandwidth-intensive operations. Such allocation of functions is exemplary only. In some embodiments, the high-speed interface108is coupled to memory104, input/output (I/O) device116(e.g., through a graphics processor or accelerator), and to high-speed expansion ports111, which may accept various expansion cards (not shown). In such an implementation, low-speed controller112is coupled to storage device106and low-speed expansion port114. The low-speed expansion port114, which may include various communication ports (e.g., USB, Bluetooth, Ethernet, wireless Ethernet), may be coupled to one or more input/output devices, such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a scanner, or a networking device such as a switch or router, e.g., through a network adapter.

The system130may be implemented in a number of different forms. For example, it may be implemented as a standard server, or multiple times in a group of such servers. Additionally, the system130may also be implemented as part of a rack server system or a personal computer such as a laptop computer. Alternatively, components from system130may be combined with one or more other same or similar systems and an entire system130may be made up of multiple computing devices communicating with each other.

FIG.1Cillustrates an exemplary component-level structure of the end-point device(s)140, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. As shown inFIG.1C, the end-point device(s)140includes a processor152, memory154, an input/output device such as a display156, a communication interface158, and a transceiver160, among other components. The end-point device(s)140may also be provided with a storage device, such as a microdrive or other device, to provide additional storage. Each of the components152,154,158, and160, are interconnected using various buses, and several of the components may be mounted on a common motherboard or in other manners as appropriate.

The processor152is configured to execute instructions within the end-point device(s)140, including instructions stored in the memory154, which in one embodiment includes the instructions of an application that may perform the functions disclosed herein, including certain logic, data processing, and data storing functions. The processor may be implemented as a chipset of chips that include separate and multiple analog and digital processors. The processor may be configured to provide, for example, for coordination of the other components of the end-point device(s)140, such as control of user interfaces, applications run by end-point device(s)140, and wireless communication by end-point device(s)140.

The processor152may be configured to communicate with the user through control interface164and display interface166coupled to a display156. The display156may be, for example, a TFT LCD (Thin-Film-Transistor Liquid Crystal Display) or an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display, or other appropriate display technology. The display interface156may comprise appropriate circuitry and configured for driving the display156to present graphical and other information to a user. The control interface164may receive commands from a user and convert them for submission to the processor152. In addition, an external interface168may be provided in communication with processor152, so as to enable near area communication of end-point device(s)140with other devices. External interface168may provide, for example, for wired communication in some implementations, or for wireless communication in other implementations, and multiple interfaces may also be used.

The memory154stores information within the end-point device(s)140. The memory154can be implemented as one or more of a computer-readable medium or media, a volatile memory unit or units, or a non-volatile memory unit or units. Expansion memory may also be provided and connected to end-point device(s)140through an expansion interface (not shown), which may include, for example, a SIMM (Single In Line Memory Module) card interface. Such expansion memory may provide extra storage space for end-point device(s)140or may also store applications or other information therein. In some embodiments, expansion memory may include instructions to carry out or supplement the processes described above and may include secure information also. For example, expansion memory may be provided as a security module for end-point device(s)140and may be programmed with instructions that permit secure use of end-point device(s)140. In addition, secure applications may be provided via the SIMM cards, along with additional information, such as placing identifying information on the SIMM card in a non-hackable manner.

The memory154may include, for example, flash memory and/or NVRAM memory. In one aspect, a computer program product is tangibly embodied in an information carrier. The computer program product contains instructions that, when executed, perform one or more methods, such as those described herein. The information carrier is a computer- or machine-readable medium, such as the memory154, expansion memory, memory on processor152, or a propagated signal that may be received, for example, over transceiver160or external interface168.

In some embodiments, the user may use the end-point device(s)140to transmit and/or receive information or commands to and from the system130via the network110. Any communication between the system130and the end-point device(s)140may be subject to an authentication protocol allowing the system130to maintain security by permitting only authenticated users (or processes) to access the protected resources of the system130, which may include servers, databases, applications, and/or any of the components described herein. To this end, the system130may trigger an authentication subsystem that may require the user (or process) to provide authentication credentials to determine whether the user (or process) is eligible to access the protected resources. Once the authentication credentials are validated and the user (or process) is authenticated, the authentication subsystem may provide the user (or process) with permissioned access to the protected resources. Similarly, the end-point device(s)140may provide the system130(or other client devices) permissioned access to the protected resources of the end-point device(s)140, which may include a GPS device, an image capturing component (e.g., camera), a microphone, and/or a speaker.

The end-point device(s)140may communicate with the system130through communication interface158, which may include digital signal processing circuitry where necessary. Communication interface158may provide for communications under various modes or protocols, such as the Internet Protocol (IP) suite (commonly known as TCP/IP). Protocols in the IP suite define end-to-end data handling methods for everything from packetizing, addressing and routing, to receiving. Broken down into layers, the IP suite includes the link layer, containing communication methods for data that remains within a single network segment (link); the Internet layer, providing internetworking between independent networks; the transport layer, handling host-to-host communication; and the application layer, providing process-to-process data exchange for applications. Each layer contains a stack of protocols used for communications. In addition, the communication interface158may provide for communications under various telecommunications standards (2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, and/or the like) using their respective layered protocol stacks. These communications may occur through a transceiver160, such as radio-frequency transceiver. In addition, short-range communication may occur, such as using a Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or other such transceiver (not shown). In addition, GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver module170may provide additional navigation- and location-related wireless data to end-point device(s)140, which may be used as appropriate by applications running thereon, and in some embodiments, one or more applications operating on the system130.

The end-point device(s)140may also communicate audibly using audio codec162, which may receive spoken information from a user and convert it to usable digital information. Audio codec162may likewise generate audible sound for a user, such as through a speaker, e.g., in a handset of end-point device(s)140. Such sound may include sound from voice telephone calls, may include recorded sound (e.g., voice messages, music files, etc.) and may also include sound generated by one or more applications operating on the end-point device(s)140, and in some embodiments, one or more applications operating on the system130.

Various implementations of the distributed computing environment100, including the system130and end-point device(s)140, and techniques described here can be realized in digital electronic circuitry, integrated circuitry, specially designed ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), computer hardware, firmware, software, and/or combinations thereof.

FIGS.2A-2Billustrate an exemplary distributed ledger technology (DLT) architecture, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. DLT may refer to the protocols and supporting infrastructure that allow computing devices (peers) in different locations to propose and validate transactions and update records in a synchronized way across a network. Accordingly, DLT is based on a decentralized model, in which these peers collaborate and build trust over the network. To this end, DLT may use a peer-to-peer protocol for a cryptographically secured distributed ledger of transactions represented as transaction objects (which may also be referred to herein as “data records” or “blocks”) that are linked. In some embodiments, the transaction objects or data records may contain state information about a resource that is tracked by the system. As transaction objects each contain information about the transaction object previous to it, they are linked with each additional transaction object, reinforcing the ones before it. Therefore, distributed ledgers are resistant to modification of their data because once recorded, the data in any given transaction object cannot be altered retroactively without altering all subsequent transaction objects.

To permit transactions and agreements to be carried out among various peers without the need for a central authority or external enforcement mechanism, DLT may use smart contracts. “Smart contracts” as used herein may refer to computer code that automatically executes all or parts of an agreement and is stored on a DLT platform. The code can either be the sole manifestation of the agreement between the parties or might complement a traditional text-based contract and execute certain provisions, such as transferring funds from Party A to Party B. The code itself is replicated across multiple nodes (peers) and, therefore, benefits from the security, permanence, and immutability that a distributed ledger offers. That replication also means that as each new transaction object is added to the distributed ledger, the code is, in effect, executed. If the parties have indicated, by initiating a transaction, that certain parameters have been met, the code will execute the step triggered by those parameters. If no such transaction has been initiated, the code will not take any steps.

Various other specific-purpose implementations of distributed ledgers have been developed. These include distributed domain name management, decentralized crowd-funding, synchronous/asynchronous communication, decentralized real-time ride sharing and even a general purpose deployment of decentralized applications. In some embodiments, a distributed ledger may be characterized as a public distributed ledger, a consortium distributed ledger, or a private distributed ledger. A “public distributed ledger” as referred to herein may refer to a distributed ledger that anyone in the world can read, anyone in the world can send transactions to and expect to see them included if they are valid, and anyone in the world can participate in the consensus process for determining which transaction objects get added to the distributed ledger and what the current state each transaction object is. A public distributed ledger is generally considered to be fully decentralized. On the other hand, a fully private distributed ledger may be a distributed ledger whereby permissions are kept centralized with one entity. The permissions may be public or restricted to an arbitrary extent. And lastly, a consortium distributed ledger may be a distributed ledger where the consensus process is controlled by a pre-selected set of nodes; for example, a distributed ledger may be associated with a number of member institutions (e.g., 15), each of which operate in such a way that the at least 10 members must sign every transaction object in order for the transaction object to be valid. The right to read such a distributed ledger may be public or restricted to the participants. These distributed ledgers may be considered partially decentralized.

As shown inFIG.2A, the exemplary DLT architecture200includes a distributed ledger204being maintained on multiple devices (nodes)202that are authorized to keep track of the distributed ledger204. For example, these nodes202may be computing devices such as system130and client device(s)140. One node202in the DLT architecture200may have a complete or partial copy of the entire distributed ledger204(which may also be referred to herein as the “distributed register”) or set of transactions and/or transaction objects204A on the distributed ledger204. Transactions are initiated at a node and communicated to the various nodes in the DLT architecture. Any of the nodes can validate a transaction, record the transaction to its copy of the distributed ledger, and/or broadcast the transaction, its validation (in the form of a transaction object) and/or other data to other nodes. The transaction objects204A may comprise an origin transaction object that may serve as the beginning of a chain of transaction objects, such that transaction objects204A are added to the end of the chain beginning from the origin transaction object.

As shown inFIG.2B, an exemplary transaction object204A may include a transaction header206and a transaction object data208. The transaction header206may include a cryptographic hash of the previous transaction object206A, a nonce206B-a randomly generated 32-bit whole number when the transaction object is created, cryptographic hash of the current transaction object206C wedded to the nonce206B, and a time stamp206D. The transaction object data208may include transaction information208A being recorded. Once the transaction object204A is generated, the transaction information208A is considered signed and forever tied to its nonce206B and hash206C. Once generated, the transaction object204A is then deployed on the distributed ledger204. At this time, a distributed ledger address is generated for the transaction object204A, i.e., an indication of where it is located on the distributed ledger204and captured for recording purposes. Once deployed, the transaction information208A is considered recorded in the distributed ledger204.

FIG.3Aillustrates an exemplary DLT architecture comprising a first multi-linked data structure300A, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure. The architecture may include a DLT ledger204comprising one or more transaction objects204A (which may also be referred to herein as “blocks”). The DLT ledger204may include a genesis block301which may serve as the first block within the blockchain data structure of the DLT ledger204. One or more intermediate blocks302may be appended to the DLT ledger204in the manner described above. In this regard, a first intermediate block may comprise a hash of the genesis block301, thereby linking the first intermediate block to the genesis block301, and a second intermediate block may comprise a hash of the first intermediate block, thereby linking the second intermediate block to the first intermediate block, and the like.

In one scenario, the system may detect that multiple blocks have been submitted by multiple nodes, where each of the multiple blocks were generated using a valid solution to the cryptographic puzzle or challenge posed by the DLT system (there are multiple “valid” blocks). At such a point in time, the terminal block within the DLT ledger204may be referred to as a parent block303. In one embodiment, the system may detect a first valid block310(e.g., a block submitted by a first miner) and a second valid block320(e.g., a block submitted by a second miner). Rather than accepting only a single block to be appended to the DLT ledger204(e.g., the first valid block310), the system may allow multiple valid blocks (e.g., the first valid block310and the second valid block320) to be appended to the parent block303. In such a scenario, both the first valid block310and the second valid block320may each comprise a hash of the parent block303such that both the first valid block310and the second valid block320are linked to the parent block303. At this stage, the DLT ledger204may temporarily have multiple terminal blocks (e.g., the first valid block310and the second valid block320).

Subsequently, the system may receive a request from a node to add another block to the DLT ledger204after the first valid block310and second valid block320have been appended to the parent block303. In such a scenario, the additional block may be added to the DLT ledger204as a stacked block380, where the stacked block380may be linked to multiple blocks in the DLT ledger204(e.g., the stacked block380may be linked to both the first valid block310and the second valid block320). Accordingly, the stacked block380may comprise a hash stack389that may comprise the hash values of each of the multiple blocks to which the stacked block380is linked. Additional blocks may be appended to the stacked block380in a linear manner, or a multi-layered manner, or any combination thereof as described above. The DLT ledger204may end in a terminal block390, which is shown inFIG.3Aas being appended to the stacked block380.

FIG.3Billustrates an exemplary DLT architecture comprising a second multi-linked data structure300B, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure. Similar to the DLT ledger204shown inFIG.3A, the DLT ledger204shown inFIG.3Bmay comprise a genesis block301, one or more intermediate blocks302, and a parent block303. Subsequently, the system may receive multiple valid blocks to be appended to the DLT ledger204. For instance, the system may receive a first valid block310from a first DLT node, then a second valid block320from a second DLT node, and a third valid block330from a third DLT node. In such an embodiment, all three blocks (the first valid block310, the second valid block320, and the third valid block330) may be appended to the parent block303. In this regard, the three blocks310,320,330may each comprise a hash of the parent block303, thereby creating multiple layers within the DLT ledger204.

In some embodiments, one or more blocks may be added to one of the individual layers created in the multi-layer stack. For instance, in one embodiment, a fourth valid block340may be appended to the first valid block310, but not to the other blocks (e.g., the second valid block320and/or the third valid block330). In such a scenario, the terminal blocks of the DLT ledger204may be the second valid block320, the third valid block330, and the fourth valid block340.

Subsequently, the system may receive a request to add another block to the DLT ledger204(e.g., the stacked block380). The stacked block380may be appended to each of the terminal blocks of the DLT ledger204at the time the stacked block380is added (e.g., the second valid block320, the third valid block330, and the fourth valid block340). Accordingly, the hash stack389of the stacked block380may comprise a second valid block hash382of the second valid block320, a third valid block hash383of the third valid block330, and a fourth valid block hash384of the fourth valid block340.

It should be appreciated that numerous other variations of DLT ledgers may exist within the scope of the disclosure provided herein. For instance, though a single stacked block and single parent block are shown inFIGS.3A and3B, it should be understood that the DLT ledger204may comprise multiple instances in which a plurality of blocks are appended to a parent block and subsequently linked to a stacked block in the manner described above.

FIG.4illustrates a method400for intelligent and integrated preservation of multiple electronic data records within a distributed electronic data register, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure. As seen in block402, the method includes receiving, from a first distributed register node, a first valid block to be appended to a distributed register. The first valid block may be, for instance, a block that may contain a first set of transaction data or block data and may be submitted by a first DLT node that complies with the requirements for a block to be added to the distributed register. For instance, in a DLT ledger with a proof-of-work consensus algorithm, the first valid block may include a valid solution to the cryptographic puzzle or challenge posed by the DLT system.

Next, as seen in block404, the method includes receiving, from a second distributed register node, a second valid block to be appended to the distributed register. The second valid block may be, for instance, a block that may contain a second set of transaction data or block data and may be submitted by a second DLT node that also, like the first valid block, complies with the requirements to be added to the distributed register, but is received by the system after the first valid block. Continuing the example, if the DLT system uses a proof-of-work consensus algorithm, the second valid block may also contain a valid solution to the cryptographic challenge posed by the DLT system.

It should be understood that while reference may be made to a first block being “appended” to a second block, it is not necessarily the case that the first block is directly appended to the second block with no intermediaries. Indeed, the first block may be considered appended to the second block in the scenario that the first block is appended to a third block, which is appended to a fourth block, which is appended to the second block, and/or the like (e.g., the first block is “indirectly” appended to the second block).

Next, as seen in block406, the method includes appending both the first valid block and the second valid block to a parent block in the distributed register, where both the first valid block and the second valid block comprise a hash of the parent block. Rather than discarding the second valid block, thereby losing the opportunity to add the second set of block data to the DLT ledger, the system may wait in order to add both the first valid block and the second valid block to the distributed register by appending both blocks to the terminal block of the DLT ledger. In such a configuration, the terminal block may be referred to as the “parent block.” In this way, multiple different paths or instances of the DLT ledger may be created (e.g., one pathway or instance that includes the first valid block, and another pathway or instance that includes the second valid block).

Next, as seen in block408, the method includes receiving a subsequent block after the first valid block and the second valid block have been appended to the parent block. The subsequent block may be received when the state of the distributed register includes an open-ended configuration that includes multiple pathways or instances. For instance, the DLT ledger may include a pathway in which the first valid block is the terminal block, and another in which the second valid block is the terminal block.

Next, as seen in block410, the method includes appending the subsequent block to the distributed register as a stacked block, wherein the stacked block comprises a hash stack, wherein the hash stack comprises a hash of the first valid block and a hash of the second valid block. In such a configuration, the subsequent block (or “stacked block”) may be linked to each of the terminal blocks of the various pathways or instances of the DLT ledger (e.g., the first valid block and the second valid block). By adding the stacked block to the distributed register in this way, the system may preserve all of the data within all of the different pathways of the distributed register while helping to prevent loss of consensus (e.g., forking) of the distributed register.

FIG.5illustrates a method500for locating a data record within the distributed electronic data register using a two pointer algorithm, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure. As seen in block502, the method includes receiving a query for a data record within the distributed register, wherein the data record is located within a hash stack. For instance, referring back toFIG.3B, the data record to be located may be stored within the third valid block330. Accordingly, the system may use a two pointer algorithm to quickly and efficiently locate the data record within the third valid block.

Next, as seen in block504, the method includes executing a search function of the distributed register using a two pointer algorithm. Referring once more toFIG.3B, the search function may include locating the parent block303that precedes the desired data record was added, and subsequently locating the desired data record based on the location of the parent block303. Accordingly, the search function may include the steps as described below in further detail.

Next, as seen in block506, executing the search function may include traversing the distributed register two blocks at a time with a first pointer beginning with a first hash within the hash stack, and traversing the distributed register one block at a time with a second pointer beginning with a second hash within the hash stack. Continuing the example, the first pointer may traverse the path that includes the first valid block310, and the second pointer may traverse the path that includes the second valid block320. In one embodiment, the first pointer may traverse the path two blocks at a time, whereas the second pointer may traverse the path one block at a time, where the system may be configured to track the hashes of the blocks discovered by each of the pointers. The system may continue the search in this manner until one of the pointers (e.g., first pointer) reaches the genesis block301.

Next, as seen in block508, executing the search function may further include, based on locating the genesis block of the distributed register using the first pointer, reversing a direction of the first pointer and traversing the distributed register one block at a time with the first pointer and traversing the distributed register two blocks at a time with the second pointer. Once the genesis block is reached, the first pointer may reverse its direction and traverse the blocks one at a time, whereas the second pointer may begin to traverse the blocks two at a time. In this way, the system may quickly and efficiently locate the parent block associated with the desired data record.

Next, as seen in block510, executing the search function may further include locating a parent block associated with the hash stack within the distributed register based on identifying a convergence point within the distributed register. Based on tracking the hashes detected from both of the pointers, the system may be able to identify the last block before the temporary divergence of the DLT ledger path into the separate pathways (e.g., the individual pathways defined by the first valid block310and the second valid block320). The last block may be considered by the system to be the parent block303. Once the parent block303is identified, the system may complete the search of the remaining pathways within the hash stack.

Next, as seen in block512, executing the search function may further include executing a linear search on each of one or more paths within the hash stack, wherein each linear search terminates at the parent block. Continuing the example, the system may traverse the various pathways one block at a time until the desired data record is located. Each of the linear searches may terminate at the parent block303such that the blocks prior to the parent block303(e.g., the genesis block301and the one or more intermediate blocks302) are not searched by the system. By searching through the pathways one at a time, the system may eventually locate the requested data record within the third valid block330.

The two pointer method described herein may save significant computing resources in providing search results in response to queries for data records, and such efficiency gains may compound as the distributed register becomes increasingly complex. For instance, in the scenario in which the desired data record is located within the twentieth pathway, and there are hundreds or thousands of intermediate blocks that precede the parent block303, terminating the linear searches at the parent block303may be substantially more efficient than conventional search methods by preventing computing resources from being expended by redundant searches of blocks.

As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, the present disclosure may be embodied as an apparatus (including, for example, a system, a machine, a device, a computer program product, and/or the like), as a method (including, for example, a business process, a computer-implemented process, and/or the like), as a computer program product (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, and the like), or as any combination of the foregoing. Many modifications and other embodiments of the present disclosure set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which these embodiments pertain having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Although the figures only show certain components of the methods and systems described herein, it is understood that various other components may also be part of the disclosures herein. In addition, the method described above may include fewer steps in some cases, while in other cases may include additional steps. Modifications to the steps of the method described above, in some cases, may be performed in any order and in any combination.

Therefore, it is to be understood that the present disclosure is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.