JP2006350566A - User authentication device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a user authentication device for improving the convenience of a user about the registering operation of an unregistered person. <P>SOLUTION: This user authentication device is provided with a normal user DB30 in which the personal information of a normal user is registered and a personal information comparison means 12 for comparing the personal information of a use client acquired by a personal information acquiring means 20 with the personal information of the normal user registered in the normal user DB30, and configured so that when the personal information of both of them is matched by the personal information comparing means 12, the use client is authenticated as a normal user, wherein a registration control means 16 for deciding whether or not the personal information of the use client should be registered in the normal user DB30 as the personal information of the normal user based on the congeniality of the use client and the normal user whose personal information is registered in the normal user DB 30, is included. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a user authentication device, and more particularly to a user authentication device that authenticates a user based on personal information of a regular user registered in advance.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an authorized user confirmation system is known in which only an authorized user of a device to be used such as a vehicle can unlock a vehicle door lock, start an engine, or the like (for example, a patent document). 1). This authorized user confirmation system determines whether or not the acquired image data (driver's license, fingerprint, face) matches the image data of the authorized user registered in advance. By using this determination result, only the authorized user registered in advance can unlock the vehicle door lock and start the engine.
JP 2003-27795 A

  By the way, in a technique for authenticating a regular user based on information registered in advance as in the above-described prior art and determining whether or not the user is permitted to use, when a person who is not registered as a regular user wants to be able to use it It is necessary to re-register the unregistered person. However, in order to prevent an unregistered person from performing registration work without permission, it is necessary for an authorized user to perform an authentication work for authenticating himself / herself and then perform an unregistered person's registration work. . Therefore, every time a regular user uses a device to be used such as a vehicle by a person who has not yet been registered as a regular user (for example, a friend or family member), the authorized user himself / herself must be authenticated. The user's registration work feels cumbersome and inconveniences the user.

  In this regard, according to the disclosure content of the above-described prior art, the above-described prior art obtains image data such as a driver's license at a place away from the vehicle, and uses the transmitter to obtain the obtained image data in the vehicle. By transmitting, image data can be acquired at a place preferred by the user.

  However, even if it becomes possible to register unregistered users at a place preferred by the user by using a transmitter in the same way as the above-mentioned technique, the act of registration work by a regular user is not eliminated. However, it is considered that the inconvenience for users has not been solved.

  In addition, since the registration work itself is not limited, for example, a malicious person establishes authentication against the intention of a regular user by intimidation or the like, and performs the work of registering the bad person as a regular user. If it is broken, it becomes possible for the Service-to-Self to use the device to be used.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a user authentication device that improves the convenience of the user for the registration work of an unregistered person.

In order to solve the above problems, according to one aspect of the present invention,
Storage means for registering personal information of authorized users;
Personal information comparing means for comparing the personal information of the input requesting user with the personal information of the authorized user registered in the storage means;
A user authentication device that authenticates the requester as a regular user when both personal information matches by the personal information comparison means,
Whether or not to register the personal information of the use requester in the storage means as the personal information of the regular user based on the closeness between the use requester and the regular user whose personal information is registered in the storage means. There is provided a user authentication device comprising registration control means for determining.

  According to this aspect, by providing the user authentication device with a registration control unit that determines whether or not to register based on the degree of closeness, for example, if the use requester is not closely related to the regular user, the use requester It is possible to perform control such that personal information is not registered as personal information of authorized users. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the operation of registering a use requester who is not familiar with a regular user as a regular user without being restricted. Furthermore, the use of the device to be used by the use requester who is not familiar with the regular user can be restricted.

  At this time, observation means for observing a predetermined state value expressing the closeness between the use requester and the regular user, and closeness determination means for determining the closeness based on an observation result by the observation means You may make it provide further. Providing such observation means and closeness determination means facilitates the derivation of closeness that serves as an index of whether or not to register.

  Here, particularly when used in a vehicle, it is preferable to determine the degree of familiarity based on the boarding frequency, the sitting position, the dialogue, and the biological information. Since these express well the closeness between the use requester and the regular user, it is possible to accurately determine the closeness.

  The registration control unit stores the personal information of the use requester as the personal information of the authorized user when the closeness determination unit determines that the closeness is higher than a predetermined first threshold. It is preferable to register with the means. Therefore, if it is determined that a certain degree of familiarity exists between the requesting user and the authorized user, the authorized user's personal information is stored in the authorized user's individual without performing the authentication process of the authorized user. Since it is registered as information, it is solved that the registration work of an unregistered person feels troublesome.

  In this aspect, the information processing apparatus includes an age determination unit that determines an age of the use requester, and the registration control unit stores the personal information of the use requester whose determined age does not satisfy a predetermined registrable condition. You may make it determine with not registering to the said memory | storage means as personal information of a regular user. Further, the information processing apparatus includes physical information measuring means for measuring the physical information of the use requester, wherein the registration control means is configured to authenticate the personal information of the use requester whose measured physical information does not satisfy a predetermined registrable condition. You may make it determine with not registering to the said memory | storage means as a user's personal information. Therefore, even if a regular user does not want to register as a regular user, it is automatically registered depending on the degree of familiarity. In the case of a requester who meets the age and physical information that does not satisfy the registrable conditions, it can be prevented from being registered.

  Furthermore, in this aspect, if used for a vehicle, if the use requester is authenticated, the use restriction control for canceling the use restriction applied to the vehicle device requested for use by the use requester. Preferably means are provided. Since the personal information of the use requester who has been authenticated is registered as the personal information of the authorized user, the use restriction of the vehicle device can be released if the authentication is established.

  At this time, when the closeness determining means determines that the closeness is higher than a second threshold smaller than the first threshold, the use restriction control means has registered personal information in the storage means It is preferable that the use restriction applied to the vehicle device is canceled on condition that a regular user rides. As a result, a user requester who is not familiar enough to be registered as a regular user (a user requester who is less than the closeness of the height of the first threshold) can use the vehicle device that is restricted in terms of use of the regular user. While use is possible, use requesters who are not familiar (use requesters who are less than the closeness of the second threshold height) remain restricted from using the vehicle device. For example, the degree of friendliness is low even if a regular user and a Service-to-Self ride together due to vehicle robbery, kidnapping, etc. while ensuring convenience such as temporarily using the vehicle without performing authentication work The use of the vehicular device by the Service-to-Self who will be determined as such remains restricted, and crime prevention can be ensured.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, a user's convenience can be improved about the registration work of an unregistered person.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle authentication system to which a user authentication device of the present invention is applied. The vehicle authentication system includes an authentication ECU (Electric Control Unit) 10 and a security ECU 40. Each ECU comprises a plurality of circuit elements such as a central processing unit (CPU), a ROM for storing programs, a RAM for temporarily storing data, an input interface, and an output interface as a unit. Also called a computer.

  The authentication ECU 10 collates personal information that can identify an individual input from the outside with personal information registered in advance, and if the input personal information is the same or substantially the same as the registered personal information, the input It is an authentication means for authenticating the individual of the information as an authorized user of the vehicle device.

  On the other hand, the security ECU 40 is use restriction control means for releasing the use restriction applied to the vehicle device based on the authentication establishment information from the authentication ECU 10 that has been authenticated as a regular user as described above.

  By using the authentication ECU 10 and the security ECU 40, the vehicle device can be used only by the authorized user, and the security effect such as the use restriction effect and theft can be enhanced. Restrictions on the use of vehicle equipment include, for example, engine start restrictions, opening / closing bodies (doors, trunks, engine hoods, sunroofs, etc.) unlock restrictions, steering wheel, air conditioner and audio operation restrictions, and other in-vehicle devices. Use restrictions are listed.

  The personal information of the use requester who requests the use of the vehicle device is acquired by the personal information acquisition means 20. The personal information acquisition means 20 includes, for example, a biosensor that acquires physical characteristics. Biosensors include reading devices such as fingerprints and veins. Note that any sensor that acquires a face, an iris, a voiceprint, or the like may be used as long as it can acquire a physical characteristic unique to an individual and distinguish it from others. Further, it may be a sensor that acquires personal behavior information such as handwriting, personal knowledge information such as a password, and personal property information such as a key or an ID card. Such personal information of the use requester acquired by the personal information acquisition means 20 is transmitted to the authentication ECU 10.

  The personal information comparison unit 12 of the authentication ECU 10 receives the personal information of the use requester from the personal information acquisition unit 20. The personal information comparison unit 12 compares the personal information of the requesting user from the personal information acquisition unit 20 with the personal information of the regular user registered in the regular user DB 30. In the authorized user DB 30, personal information of authorized users such as fingerprints and voiceprints exemplified above is registered in advance. When the personal information of the requester from the personal information acquisition unit 20 and the personal information of the authorized user registered in the authorized user DB 30 match or substantially match, the personal information comparison unit 12 Authentication is performed, and authentication establishment information is transmitted to the security ECU 40. The security ECU 40 receives the authentication establishment information from the personal information comparison means 12 and cancels the use restriction of the vehicle device (for example, permission to start the engine or permission to unlock the door).

  By the way, as described above, when authenticating an authorized user based on the registered personal information to determine whether to permit or not, the authorized user needs to be registered in advance. For example, when the vehicle is delivered at a vehicle dealer, the personal information of the owner and his / her family is initially registered as a regular user, and after that, door unlocking and engine starting by unregistered people whose personal information does not match will not be accepted Is desirable. Thereby, the effect which prevents the vehicle theft by key theft can be heightened compared with the conventional case where the door can be released and the engine can be started only by operating the key.

  However, since the ease of renting a vehicle with a key is impaired as it is, a function for additionally registering an unregistered person who may act as a vehicle for a family member or a friend is required. As an additional registration method, A person who has been registered as a regular user once performs authentication work, and then registers the personal information of the unregistered person to enable the engine to start. 2. A person who has been registered as a regular user once performs the authentication work, sets the expiration date (for example, time and number of times) to the key, and enables the engine to start only when the key is operated (vehicle at the hotel) Effective when renting a vehicle temporarily, such as moving). 3. In the presence of a person who has been registered as a regular user, the vehicle dealer performs the registration work for the unregistered person and enables the engine to start. 4). A certification body registered as a regular user once performs the authentication work, and then registers the personal information of the unregistered person so that the engine can be started. Etc.

  However, each time the authorized user uses the vehicle for a person who has not yet been registered as a authorized user, the authorized user needs to be authenticated, and the registration work for the unregistered person can be felt cumbersome. Inconvenience occurs. Therefore, the user authentication apparatus of the present invention improves this point by using the closeness between the regular user and the use requester. The vehicle authentication system of this embodiment includes an observing means 22 for observing a predetermined state value (hereinafter referred to as “closeness determination state value”) expressing the closeness between the use requester and the regular user; Closeness determination means 14 for determining the closeness between the use requester and the regular user based on the observation result of the observation means 22 is provided.

  The observation means 22 detects, for example, a boarding frequency measuring device that measures boarding frequency such as the riding distance, the number of boarding times, and the boarding time between the authorized user and the requesting user, and the seating positions of the authorized user and the requesting user. Seating position detection device, voice recognition device that recognizes dialogue between authorized user and requester, and biometric information such as voice color, facial expression, pulse, electrocardiogram, electroencephalogram, etc. A biological information detection device to detect is mentioned. Then, the closeness determination means 14 determines the closeness between the use requester and the regular user based on the state value for closeness determination such as the above-described boarding frequency observed by the observation means 22. In addition, even if there are a plurality of use requesters and regular users, it is possible to identify who the observation means 22 is observing based on the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition means 20, It is possible to prevent one person's closeness determination state value from being mistakenly observed as another person's closeness determination state value.

  The closeness determination state value to be observed by the observation means 22 represents the closeness between the regular user and the use requester. By measuring the boarding frequency, for example, when driving with a predetermined time or more (or a predetermined number of times or more, a predetermined distance or more), it can be considered that the degree of closeness is high (friendly). Further, by detecting the seating position, for example, it can be considered that the closeness is high if sitting in the front seat, and it is considered that the closeness is low (unfriendly) if it is an important customer if sitting in the backseat. In addition, by recognizing dialogue, for example, it recognizes differences in wording, and in the case of spoken words such as “~ Daiyo”, the ending is “~” and “~”. In the case of a polite expression such as "", it can be considered that the degree of familiarity is low. In addition, by detecting biometric information, for example, when positive emotions such as a happy state or a relaxed state continue for a predetermined time or more, it is considered that the degree of affinity is high, and conversely, negative emotions such as a tension state continue for a predetermined time or more. If you do, you can consider that the degree of familiarity is low.

  In order to calculate the cost when the degree of familiarity is finally determined, the evaluation score is given in advance to the state value for degree of familiarity that expresses the degree of familiarity. The evaluation score is, for example, 3 points when the requester and the regular user ride together 3 or more times, -2 points when a predetermined period of time has passed since the previous rider, and if you sit in the front seat 1 point, -1 point if sitting in the back seat, 2 points for spoken words such as "~ Dayo", -1 point for polite expression, if positive emotion continues for more than a predetermined time If the negative emotion is continued for a predetermined time for 3 points, -4 points are given. The closeness determination means 14 performs a comprehensive closeness determination by calculating a predetermined cost based on this evaluation score. For example, when the accumulated value of the evaluation scores is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, it is determined that the closeness is high. The cost may be calculated based on the evaluation score of the specific closeness determination state value selected from the boarding frequency, the seating position, the dialogue, and the biological information, and each closeness determination state value is weighted. You may perform cost calculation after doing.

  The closeness determination means 14 stores the closeness determination state value observed by the observation means 22 in the temporary user DB 32 for each use requester. This is because the degree of familiarity may be determined using a state value for determining degree of familiarity observed in the past such as the boarding frequency. The temporary user DB 32 also stores the degree of closeness and personal information of the use requester acquired by the personal information acquisition means 20 for each use requester. However, the degree of closeness determination means 14 stores the information of the person who is not a regular user such as the state value for closeness determination without limitation in the temporary user DB 32, so that the storage capacity is wasted. If the desired condition is satisfied, the state value for determining the degree of affinity that has been stored for a certain period of time after being stored, or the state value for determining the degree of affinity is constantly observed, and the degree of familiarity falls below a predetermined value, the person's Or delete information.

  When it is determined that the closeness between the use requester and the regular user is higher than a predetermined value, the personal information of the use requester is registered in the regular user DB 30. The registration control means 16 uses the personal information of the usage requester as the personal information of the regular user based on the closeness between the usage requester and the regular user whose personal information is registered in the regular user DB 30. It is determined whether or not to register. In other words, the registration control means 16 uses the usage information acquired by the personal information acquisition means 20 when it is determined by the cost calculation by the familiarity determination means 14 that the familiarity between the use requester and the regular user is higher than a predetermined value. The personal information of the requester is registered in the regular user DB 30 as the personal information of the regular user.

  Upon completion of registration in the authorized user DB 30 with the personal information of the use requester as the authorized user's personal information, the registration control means 16 performs the visual information by the audio output means 24 such as a speaker and the visual means by the display means 26 such as a display. This is notified to the user by the target information.

  FIG. 2 is an example of a flow for automatically registering personal information of unregistered persons. The closeness determination means 14 acquires the observed closeness determination state value from the observation means 22 (step 40), and performs closeness determination based on the closeness determination state value (step 42). In the case of the degree of closeness determination, when the past closeness determination state value observed by the observation unit 22 is also used, the past closeness determination state value is acquired from the temporary user DB 32. When it is determined that the closeness is high, the closeness determining unit 14 checks whether or not a registration restriction condition described later is not satisfied (step 44). If not, the closeness determination means 14 sends high closeness information indicating that the closeness is high to the registration control means 16. Upon receipt of the high affinity information, the registration control means 16 registers the personal information of the use requester in the regular user DB 30 (step 46). On the other hand, when the closeness determination means 14 determines that the closeness is low, the closeness determination means 14 sends low closeness information indicating that the closeness is low to the registration control means 16. The registration control means 16 that has received the low affinity information does not register the personal information of the use requester in the regular user DB 30.

  Note that the registration restriction condition in step 44 is for preventing a regular user from being automatically registered depending on the degree of closeness even if the user does not want to register as a regular user. For example, it is not preferable that the registered user is automatically registered as having a high degree of closeness between the authorized user and the child and the vehicle operation of the child becomes available. Therefore, automatic registration based on closeness can be restricted by image analysis using a camera or the like, body information such as weight and height measured using an occupant detection sensor, or age. In addition, information on persons who cannot be registered may be registered in advance as registration restriction conditions. Thereby, even if the closeness determination means 14 determines that the closeness is high, automatic registration is not performed if the registration restriction condition is satisfied.

  As described above, when the personal information of the use requester is registered in the authorized user DB 30, when the authentication by the personal information comparison unit 12 is performed, the use requester is authenticated as the authorized user. As a result, the security ECU 40 that has received the authentication establishment information of the use requester from the authentication ECU 10 permits engine start and door unlock. An exception condition may be set such that the engine start or the like is not permitted for a first-time passenger or a person who has only boarded within a predetermined time.

  Here, the personal information of the use requester determined to be a closeness that is not recognized as a regular user is not registered in the regular user DB 30, and the use requester cannot start the engine or the like. When the user is on board, there may be a case where the engine start or the like may be permitted even if the user is not registered as a regular user.

  FIG. 5 is an example of a flow for making it possible to use an engine start or the like of an unregistered use requester as a regular user on the condition that the regular user rides. The registration control unit 16 that has received the closeness information from the closeness determination unit 14 checks whether or not the closeness determined based on the closeness determination state value is equal to or greater than a threshold Th1 (predetermined first threshold). (Step 70). When the degree of closeness is equal to or greater than the threshold Th1, the personal information of the use requester is registered in the authorized user DB 30 (step 72), and the engine start or the like is permitted by the security ECU 40, as in the case described above. (Step 74).

  On the other hand, if the closeness is not greater than or equal to the threshold Th1, the registration control means 16 checks whether or not the closeness is greater than or equal to a threshold Th2 that is smaller than the threshold Th1 (second threshold that is smaller than the first threshold) (step 76). ). If the degree of closeness is equal to or greater than the threshold Th2, the registration control means 16 checks whether or not the regular user is on board (step 78), and if so, registers it in the regular user DB 72. The personal information comparison means 12 is notified of this without any change. As a result, the personal information comparison unit 12 authenticates the use requester as a quasi-regular user and transmits quasi-authentication establishment information to the security ECU 40. The security ECU 40 that has received the semi-authentication establishment information is in a state in which engine starting or the like is permitted (step 74).

  On the other hand, if the degree of closeness is not equal to or greater than the threshold Th2, or if a regular user is not on the vehicle, the personal information of the requester is not registered in the regular user DB 30, and authentication establishment information or semi-authentication Since the establishment information is not transmitted to the security ECU 40, engine starting or the like is not permitted (step 80).

  As a result, a requester who is not familiar enough to be registered as a regular user (a requester who is less than the degree of closeness of the threshold Th1) can start the engine or the like on the condition that the regular user rides. On the other hand, for the use requester who is not familiar (the requester who does not satisfy the closeness of the height of the threshold Th2), it is possible to leave the execution of the engine start and the like not permitted.

  By the way, in the above description, the vehicle authentication system side automatically determines whether or not to register as a regular user and determines whether or not to register, but when an unregistered person rides with a regular user, The necessity of registration work may be proposed from the vehicle authentication system side according to the degree of familiarity.

  FIG. 3 is an example of a flow for proposing additional registration of personal information of unregistered persons. The closeness determination means 14 acquires the observed closeness determination state value from the observation means 22 (step 50), and performs closeness determination based on the closeness determination state value (step 52). In the case of the degree of closeness determination, when the past closeness determination state value observed by the observation unit 22 is also used, the past closeness determination state value is acquired from the temporary user DB 32. When the closeness determination unit 14 determines that the closeness is high, the closeness determination unit 14 sends high closeness information indicating that the closeness is high to the registration control unit 16. The registration control means 16 that has received the high affinity information uses the voice output means 24 and the display means 26 to propose whether or not to register an unregistered person (step 54). If a response indicating that the registration is OK is obtained from the authorized user (for example, the content of the answer is determined by accepting an input operation by voice recognition or a switch), the personal information of the use requester is stored in the authorized user DB 30. Register (step 60). If an answer of NG is obtained from the regular user, the degree of closeness of the use requester is lowered by a predetermined value and registered in the temporary user DB 32 (step 58). That is, if the degree of closeness of a person who has been denied registration by a regular user is lowered to some extent, the degree of closeness determination in step 52 will be determined to be low.

  On the other hand, when the closeness determination means 14 determines that the closeness is low, the closeness determination means 14 sends low closeness information indicating that the closeness is low to the registration control means 16. Upon receipt of the low affinity information, the registration control means 16 does not register the personal information of the use requester in the regular user DB 30 in principle. However, it is desirable that a legitimate user can always perform an unregistered person's registration work at his / her own will. Therefore, when information indicating that the user has manually performed the registration operation is interrupted (step 62 and step 64; Yes), the registration control means 16 authenticates the personal information of the use requester according to the content of the registration operation. Register in the user DB 30 (step 60).

  By the way, as described above, if a function that enables registration by an intervention operation by a regular user is provided, it may be abused. For example, it is conceivable that a Service-to-Self gets on a vehicle, threatens a legitimate user and officially performs registration work, and then steals the vehicle. It is necessary to prevent such vehicle robbery.

  In addition to a normal manual registration mode for unregistered persons (hereinafter referred to as “normal additional registration mode”), a manual registration mode for burglary countermeasures (hereinafter referred to as “robbery countermeasure mode”) is set. When manual registration work is performed in the burglary countermeasure mode, information to that effect is transmitted to the security ECU 40, and a predetermined crime prevention function is activated.

  The transition from the normal additional registration mode to the burglary countermeasure mode is performed when a predetermined switch double-click or a predetermined password (that is, an operation different from an authorized one that the burglar cannot know) is input. At this time, since it is important not to give the robber a sense of incongruity, it is desirable to use a normally used switch instead of a specially provided switch. It is further desirable that the normally used switch is the same switch as that used in the normal additional registration mode, and does not give the burglar an uncomfortable feeling.

  In addition, the color of the registration work screen is changed in the anti-theft mode so that it can be confirmed whether or not the mode is changed to the anti-theft mode. The type of voice message (phrase, ending, etc.) may be changed. As a result, since only the regular user who normally uses the normal additional registration mode can determine the transition, there is little risk that the burglar will realize it.

  Furthermore, if the specification of the normal additional registration mode is fixed, there is a possibility that a burglar who is familiar with the authentication system knows that a legitimate user is performing registration work in the burglar countermeasure mode. Therefore, the specifications of the normal additional registration mode and the burglar countermeasure mode (for example, the operation screen state and the content of the voice guide) can be arbitrarily changed. As a result, for any third party other than the authorized user, it is impossible to determine whether the registration work is in the normal additional registration mode or the registration work in the burglary countermeasure mode.

  When the security ECU 40 receives information indicating that the registration work has been performed in the burglary countermeasure mode, the security ECU 40 activates a predetermined crime prevention function. At this time, it is desirable for the physical safety of the authorized user to activate the crime prevention function after the robber leaves around the authorized user. For this purpose, the vehicle interior is constantly monitored by a camera, a microphone, a biological sensor, etc., and the crime prevention function is activated after confirming the absence of the authorized user in the vehicle interior.

  FIG. 4 is an example of the overall flow when the above-described automatic registration or manual registration is applied to the vehicle authentication system. The observation means 22 always or periodically observes the state value for determining the degree of affinity (step 12), and the observed state value is registered in the temporary user DB 32 (step 14). If the SW (switch) operation (interrupt task) for user registration work does not occur, the process proceeds to step 20, and if an interrupt task occurs, the process proceeds to step 28. If no interruption task occurs, the personal information comparison means 12 confirms whether or not the requesting user is an authorized user, and if a predetermined automatic registration condition is met, automatic additional registration of unregistered persons as shown in FIG. (Step 24). If the automatic registration condition is not satisfied, an additional registration proposal as shown in FIG. 3 is executed (step 26). On the other hand, if the above interrupt task occurs, the registration control means 16 confirms whether or not it is a regular operation (step 28). If it is a regular operation, the normal additional registration mode is set (step 30). If the operation is different from the regular mode, the burglar countermeasure mode is set (step 32).

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Can be added.

  Moreover, although the above-mentioned content is an Example at the time of using the user authentication apparatus of this invention for vehicles, this invention is the degree of closeness of the regular user of a to-be-used apparatus, and the use requester of the apparatus. Since it relates to the user authentication device used, it can be applied particularly to uses other than for vehicles (for ships and houses).

It is the figure which showed an example of the structure of the authentication system for vehicles to which the user authentication apparatus of this invention is applied. It is an example of the flow which automatically registers the personal information of an unregistered person. It is an example of the flow which proposes additional registration of personal information of an unregistered person. It is a whole flow of registration operation of a certification system for vehicles. It is an example of the flow which makes it possible to use the engine start etc. of the use requester who is not registered as a regular user on condition that a regular user rides.

Explanation of symbols

10 Certified ECU
12 Personal information comparison means 14 Affinity determination means 16 Registration control means 20 Personal information acquisition means 22 Observation means 30 Regular user DB
32 Temporary user DB

Claims (11)

Storage means for registering personal information of authorized users;
Personal information comparing means for comparing the personal information of the input requesting user with the personal information of the authorized user registered in the storage means;
A user authentication device that authenticates the requester as a regular user when both personal information matches by the personal information comparison means,
Whether or not to register the personal information of the use requester in the storage means as the personal information of the regular user based on the closeness between the use requester and the regular user whose personal information is registered in the storage means. A user authentication device comprising registration control means for determining. The user authentication device according to claim 1,
An observation means for observing a predetermined state value expressing the closeness between the requesting user and the regular user;
A user authentication apparatus, further comprising: a closeness determination unit that determines the closeness based on a result of observation by the observation unit. The user authentication device according to claim 1 or 2, which is used for a vehicle.
The determination of the degree of closeness is a user authentication device that is performed based on the boarding frequency. The user authentication device according to claim 1 or 2, which is used for a vehicle.
The user authentication device, in which the determination of the closeness is performed based on a sitting position. The user authentication device according to claim 1 or 2, which is used for a vehicle.
The determination of the degree of closeness is a user authentication device that is performed by dialogue. The user authentication device according to claim 1 or 2, which is used for a vehicle.
The determination of the degree of closeness is a user authentication device that is performed based on biological information. The user authentication device according to claim 2,
The registration control means stores the personal information of the use requester in the storage means as the personal information of the authorized user when the closeness determination means determines that the closeness is higher than a predetermined first threshold. User authentication device to register. The user authentication device according to claim 1,
An age determination means for determining the age of the requester of use,
The user authentication apparatus, wherein the registration control unit determines that the personal information of the use requester whose determined age does not satisfy a predetermined registrable condition is not registered in the storage unit as personal information of a regular user . The user authentication device according to claim 1,
Comprising physical information measuring means for measuring physical information of the requester,
The registration control means determines that the personal information of the use requester whose measured physical information does not satisfy a predetermined registrable condition is not registered in the storage means as personal information of a regular user. apparatus. The user authentication device according to claim 7, which is used for a vehicle.
A user authentication device further comprising usage restriction control means for canceling the usage restriction applied to the vehicular device requested to be used by the usage requester when the usage requester is authenticated. The user authentication device according to claim 10, wherein
The usage restriction control means is a regular user whose personal information is registered in the storage means when the closeness determination means determines that the closeness is higher than a second threshold smaller than the first threshold. A user authentication device that cancels the use restriction imposed on the vehicle device on the condition that the vehicle rides.

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