Patent ID: 7969285

Claim:
A method executed in a badge for having access to different zones with different security levels protected by badge readers, said method comprising: obtaining, from a badge reader located external to the badge, an invitation to request access to a zone Zout to which the badge reader is adapted to grant access, said badge including a current zone identifier Z which authorizes the badge to access the zone Z; responsive to said obtaining the invitation, ascertaining that the badge is authorized to access the zone Zout, said badge having a current badge identifier ID; responsive to said ascertaining, retrieving a zone-associated badge identifier IDout associated with the zone Zout; issuing to the badge reader, in response to the received invitation and to said ascertaining, a request for access to the zone Zout, said request comprising: the current badge identifier ID, the zone-associated badge identifier IDout, and a current badge key K or comparison with a badge key Kin associated with a zone Zin where the badge reader is located; and receiving, from the badge reader in response to the request for access, an authorization to access the zone Zout during a specified period of time Tout, wherein a badge key Kout for leaving the zone Zout is received by the badge in conjunction with said authorization; after said authorization has been received from the badge reader, replacing in the badge: the current badge key K with the received badge key Kout, the current badge identifier ID with the zone-associated badge identifier IDout, and the current zone identifier Z with the identifier of the zone Zout which authorizes the badge to access the zone Zout instead of the zone Z; wherein said obtaining, said ascertaining, said retrieving, said issuing, and said receiving the authorization are performed by a processor within the badge.