Patents by Inventor David E. Huffman

David E. Huffman has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20240019834
    Abstract: A security device includes one or more processors and a memory that includes instructions, that when executed by the processors, cause the processors to perform operations. The operations include monitoring data traffic between industrial automation devices in an industrial system and one or more devices in an external network, determining that a first industrial automation device does not include native security features for receiving secure data from the devices in the external network or transmitting secure data to the devices in the external network, and implementing one or more security techniques in response to determining that the first industrial automation device does not include the native security features.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 13, 2022
    Publication date: January 18, 2024
    Inventors: Jack M. Visoky, Taryl J. Jasper, Kyle E. Neet, Jessica E. Forguites, William J. Petro, David E. Huffman
  • Publication number: 20230136308
    Abstract: A model-based industrial security policy configuration system implements a plant-wide industrial asset security policy in accordance with security policy definitions provided by a user. The configuration system models the collection of industrial assets for which diverse security policies are to be implemented. An interface allows the user to define zone-specific security configuration and event management policies for a plant environment at a high-level based on a security model that groups the industrial assets into security zones. Based on the model and these policy definitions, the system generates asset-level security setting instructions configured to set appropriate device settings on one or more of the industrial assets to implement the security event management policies, and deploys these instructions to the appropriate assets in order to implement the defined policies.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 3, 2023
    Publication date: May 4, 2023
    Inventors: David E Huffman, Taryl Jasper, Jack Visoky
  • Patent number: 11588856
    Abstract: A model-based industrial security policy configuration system implements a plant-wide industrial asset security policy in accordance with security policy definitions provided by a user. The configuration system models the collection of industrial assets for which diverse security policies are to be implemented. An interface allows the user to define zone-specific security configuration and event management policies for a plant environment at a high-level based on a security model that groups the industrial assets into security zones. When new industrial devices are subsequently installed on the plant floor, the system determines whether a security policy defined by the model is applicable to the new device and commissions the new device to comply with any relevant security policies. This mitigates the necessity for a system administrator to manually configure individual devices to comply with plant-wide security policies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2023
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: David E Huffman, Taryl Jasper, Jack Visoky
  • Patent number: 11575571
    Abstract: A model-based industrial security policy configuration system implements a plant-wide industrial asset security policy in accordance with security policy definitions provided by a user. The configuration system models the collection of industrial assets for which diverse security policies are to be implemented. An interface allows the user to define zone-specific security configuration and event management policies for a plant environment at a high-level based on a security model that groups the industrial assets into security zones. Based on the model and these policy definitions, the system generates asset-level security setting instructions configured to set appropriate device settings on one or more of the industrial assets to implement the security event management policies, and deploys these instructions to the appropriate assets in order to implement the defined policies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2023
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: David E Huffman, Taryl Jasper, Jack Visoky
  • Patent number: 11271974
    Abstract: A device may include a communication component that may communicatively couple to a first network. The device may also include a processor that may transmit a first signal via the communication component to a network address translation (NAT) system, the first signal including a first request to discover a server device. The NAT system may communicatively couple to the first network and a second network, such that the first network is inaccessible to the second network. The processor may then receive location data associated with the server device and transmit a second signal addressed to the server device based on the location data. The second signal is transmitted to the NAT system, such that the second signal may include a second request for a security policy from the server device. The processor may then receive the security policy via the NAT system and adjust one or more communication operations based on the security policy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2022
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Jack M. Visoky, David E. Huffman, Taryl J. Jasper
  • Publication number: 20210352110
    Abstract: A model-based industrial security policy configuration system implements a plant-wide industrial asset security policy in accordance with security policy definitions provided by a user. The configuration system models the collection of industrial assets for which diverse security policies are to be implemented. An interface allows the user to define zone-specific security configuration and event management policies for a plant environment at a high-level based on a security model that groups the industrial assets into security zones. When new industrial devices are subsequently installed on the plant floor, the system determines whether a security policy defined by the model is applicable to the new device and commissions the new device to comply with any relevant security policies. This mitigates the necessity for a system administrator to manually configure individual devices to comply with plant-wide security policies.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 8, 2020
    Publication date: November 11, 2021
    Inventors: David E Huffman, Taryl Jasper, Jack Visoky
  • Publication number: 20210351980
    Abstract: A model-based industrial security policy configuration system implements a plant-wide industrial asset security policy in accordance with security policy definitions provided by a user. The configuration system models the collection of industrial assets for which diverse security policies are to be implemented. An interface allows the user to define zone-specific security configuration and event management policies for a plant environment at a high-level based on a security model that groups the industrial assets into security zones. Based on the model and these policy definitions, the system generates asset-level security setting instructions configured to set appropriate device settings on one or more of the industrial assets to implement the security event management policies, and deploys these instructions to the appropriate assets in order to implement the defined policies.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 8, 2020
    Publication date: November 11, 2021
    Inventors: David E. Huffman, Taryl Jasper, Jack Visoky
  • Publication number: 20210344725
    Abstract: A device may include a communication component that may communicatively couple to a first network. The device may also include a processor that may transmit a first signal via the communication component to a network address translation (NAT) system, the first signal including a first request to discover a server device. The NAT system may communicatively couple to the first network and a second network, such that the first network is inaccessible to the second network. The processor may then receive location data associated with the server device and transmit a second signal addressed to the server device based on the location data. The second signal is transmitted to the NAT system, such that the second signal may include a second request for a security policy from the server device. The processor may then receive the security policy via the NAT system and adjust one or more communication operations based on the security policy.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2020
    Publication date: November 4, 2021
    Inventors: Jack M. Visoky, David E. Huffman, Taryl J. Jasper