Patents by Inventor Thomas R. Halford

Thomas R. Halford 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).

  • Patent number: 11929996
    Abstract: Cryptographically secure data communications between layered groups of devices in a wireless cooperative broadcast network encrypts datagrams twice prior to transmission by a source device, first using an inner layer key that is shared by a first group of devices, and second using an outer layer key that is shared by a second group of devices; the devices of the first group being members of the second group. Received datagrams are recovered by first decrypting with the outer layer key and second decrypting with the inner layer key.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2024
    Assignee: CALIOLA ENGINEERING, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas R. Halford
  • Publication number: 20230300172
    Abstract: A system and method for cryptographically securing data communications between a group of networked devices establishes and maintains an overlay network at the Application Layer, on top of a unicast routing service provided at the Internetworking Layer. The overlay network provides first, the routes that are used to deliver multicast datagrams and second, the cryptographic keys used to secure multicast datagrams. A common cryptographic key is established between all members of each group, and end-to-end encryption ensures that multicast datagrams can be accessed only by authorized group members. In other embodiments, keys are established between pairs of adjacent devices in the overlay network, and hop-by-hop encryption ensures that multicast datagrams can be accessed only by overlay network members.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 24, 2023
    Publication date: September 21, 2023
    Applicant: Caliola Engineering, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas R. Halford
  • Publication number: 20230198970
    Abstract: Cryptographically secure data communications between layered groups of devices in a wireless cooperative broadcast network encrypts datagrams twice prior to transmission by a source device, first using an inner layer key that is shared by a first group of devices, and second using an outer layer key that is shared by a second group of devices; the devices of the first group being members of the second group. Received datagrams are recovered by first decrypting with the outer layer key and second decrypting with the inner layer key.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 8, 2023
    Publication date: June 22, 2023
    Applicant: Caliola Engineering, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas R. Halford
  • Patent number: 11671452
    Abstract: A system and method for cryptographically securing data communications between a group of networked devices establishes and maintains an overlay network at the Application Layer, on top of a unicast routing service provided at the Internetworking Layer. The overlay network provides first, the routes that are used to deliver multicast datagrams and second, the cryptographic keys used to secure multicast datagrams. A common cryptographic key is established between all members of each group, and end-to-end encryption ensures that multicast datagrams can be accessed only by authorized group members. In other embodiments, keys are established between pairs of adjacent devices in the overlay network, and hop-by-hop encryption ensures that multicast datagrams can be accessed only by overlay network members.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2023
    Assignee: CALIOLA ENGINEERING, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas R. Halford
  • Patent number: 11606342
    Abstract: Cryptographically secure data communications between layered groups of devices in a wireless cooperative broadcast network encrypts datagrams twice prior to transmission by a source device, first using an inner layer key that is shared by a first group of devices, and second using an outer layer key that is shared by a second group of devices; the devices of the first group being members of the second group. Received datagrams are recovered by first decrypting with the outer layer key and second decrypting with the inner layer key.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2023
    Assignee: CALIOLA ENGINEERING, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas R. Halford
  • Publication number: 20210385202
    Abstract: Cryptographically secure data communications between layered groups of devices in a wireless cooperative broadcast network encrypts datagrams twice prior to transmission by a source device, first using an inner layer key that is shared by a first group of devices, and second using an outer layer key that is shared by a second group of devices; the devices of the first group being members of the second group. Received datagrams are recovered by first decrypting with the outer layer key and second decrypting with the inner layer key.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 21, 2021
    Publication date: December 9, 2021
    Applicant: Caliola Engineering, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas R. Halford
  • Publication number: 20210194928
    Abstract: A system and method for cryptographically securing data communications between a group of networked devices establishes and maintains an overlay network at the Application Layer, on top of a unicast routing service provided at the Internetworking Layer. The overlay network provides first, the routes that are used to deliver multicast datagrams and second, the cryptographic keys used to secure multicast datagrams. A common cryptographic key is established between all members of each group, and end-to-end encryption ensures that multicast datagrams can be accessed only by authorized group members. In other embodiments, keys are established between pairs of adjacent devices in the overlay network, and hop-by-hop encryption ensures that multicast datagrams can be accessed only by overlay network members.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2020
    Publication date: June 24, 2021
    Applicant: Caliola Engineering, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas R. Halford
  • Patent number: 9629063
    Abstract: Systems and methods are presented for topology discovery in a multi-hop ad hoc network. The method operates on two time and distance scales. Nodes periodically transmit messages to their immediate neighbors that enable the discovery of their two-hop network topologies (i.e., within two hops). Less frequently, nodes broadcast messages network-wide that enable the discovery of the global network topology at all nodes. In multi-hop ad hoc network architectures that are characterized by efficient broadcast protocols—e.g., Barrage Relay Networks—the proposed method provides a particularly efficacious means for global topology discovery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2017
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas A. Brown, Thomas R. Halford, Mark L. Johnson
  • Patent number: 9231647
    Abstract: An apparatus for joint analog and digital interference cancellation includes a receiver configured to receive an analog reference interfering signal on a reference path, and a sum of an analog interference signal and an analog signal of interest on an antenna path. An analog interference canceller may be configured to produce an analog partially interference-cancelled signal using the analog reference interfering signal and the sum of the analog interference signal and the analog signal of interest. A first analog-to-digital converter may be configured to digitize the analog reference interfering signal to produce a digital reference interfering signal. A second analog-to-digital converter may be configured to digitize the analog partially interference-cancelled signal to produce a digital partially interference-cancelled signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2016
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Andreas Polydoros, Mark Johnson, Thomas R. Halford, Michael P Fitz, Scott W Enserink
  • Patent number: 9172573
    Abstract: Systems and methods are presented for controlling the peak-to-average-power of a baseband orthogonal-frequency-domain multiplexing (OFDM) signal by designating a subset of the available subcarriers as information-bearing data-subcarriers, and loading remaining subcarriers by symbols that are a function of the symbols loading the data-subcarriers. At the receiver, the data-dependent subcarriers are optionally combined with data-subcarriers to increase error protection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 27, 2015
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Keith M. Chugg, Cenk Kose, Thomas R. Halford
  • Publication number: 20150270865
    Abstract: An apparatus for joint analog and digital interference cancellation includes a receiver configured to receive an analog reference interfering signal on a reference path, and a sum of an analog interference signal and an analog signal of interest on an antenna path. An analog interference canceller may be configured to produce an analog partially interference-cancelled signal using the analog reference interfering signal and the sum of the analog interference signal and the analog signal of interest. A first analog-to-digital converter may be configured to digitize the analog reference interfering signal to produce a digital reference interfering signal. A second analog-to-digital converter may be configured to digitize the analog partially interference-cancelled signal to produce a digital partially interference-cancelled signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 19, 2014
    Publication date: September 24, 2015
    Applicant: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Andreas Polydoros, Mark Johnson, Thomas R. Halford, Michael P. Fitz, Scott W. Enserink
  • Patent number: 9084112
    Abstract: A method for secure key agreement among a subset of a plurality of transceivers includes generating a first ordered subset of a plurality of keys k?j, where j=0 to S. Each of the subset of the plurality of transceivers may possess at least one of the plurality of keys k?j from the first ordered subset. Each of the subset of the plurality of transceivers possessing one or more keys k?i, i=1 to S, also possesses at least one key from a second ordered subset of the plurality of keys k?j, j=0 to i?1. A key with index ?0 is designated as a group key. A binary sum of the group key k?0 and a key k?j, where j?0, is transmitted from one or more of the subset of the plurality of transceivers that possesses the group key k?0.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas R. Halford, Thomas A. Courtade, Keith M. Chugg
  • Patent number: 9054822
    Abstract: Systems and methods are presented for establishing network-wide time synchronization in a time-slotted barrage relay network. In the first phase, nodes obtain coarse, slot-level time synchronization by estimating the time-of-arrival (TOA) of a message that rapidly floods the network via the barrage relay mechanism. In the second phase, fine time synchronization is achieved via a messaging protocol that exchanges TOA information between neighboring nodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2015
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas A. Brown, Thomas R. Halford, Mark L. Johnson
  • Publication number: 20150104017
    Abstract: A method for secure key agreement among a subset of a plurality of transceivers includes generating a first ordered subset of a plurality of keys k?j, where j=0 to S. Each of the subset of the plurality of transceivers may possess at least one of the plurality of keys k?j from the first ordered subset. Each of the subset of the plurality of transceivers possessing one or more keys k?i, i=1 to S, also possesses at least one key from a second ordered subset of the plurality of keys k?j, j=0 to i?1. A key with index ?0 is designated as a group key. A binary sum of the group key k?0 and a key k?j, where j?0, is transmitted from one or more of the subset of the plurality of transceivers that possesses the group key k?0.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 14, 2013
    Publication date: April 16, 2015
    Applicant: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas R. Halford, Thomas A. Courtade, Keith M. Chugg
  • Patent number: 8964773
    Abstract: A system and method is presented for establishing relayed communications involving (1) sending a request message from a source node to a destination node through a plurality of intermediate nodes, (2) receiving the request message at the destination node, and (3) sending an acceptance message from the destination node to the source node through at least a subset of the intermediate nodes, wherein an intermediate node relays the request or acceptance message by receiving the message and re-transmitting the message, and wherein the intermediate node is capable of receiving the message from more than one other intermediate node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas A. Brown, III, Adam M. Blair, Mark L. Johnson, Thomas R. Halford
  • Publication number: 20150010116
    Abstract: Systems and methods are presented for controlling the peak-to-average-power of a baseband orthogonal-frequency-domain multiplexing (OFDM) signal by designating a subset of the available subcarriers as information-bearing data-subcarriers, and loading remaining subcarriers by symbols that are a function of the symbols loading the data-subcarriers. At the receiver, the data-dependent subcarriers are optionally combined with data-subcarriers to increase error protection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 24, 2014
    Publication date: January 8, 2015
    Inventors: Keith M. Chugg, Cenk Kose, Thomas R. Halford
  • Patent number: 8897158
    Abstract: Methods and systems for on-demand adaptation of packet time-to-live in time-slotted barrage relay networks are disclosed. For example, one disclosed method includes: transmitting a first packet from a first node in a wireless ad hoc network to a second node in the wireless ad hoc network; determining a first path distance, in terms of number of hops, from the first node to the second node, based on the first packet transmission; transmitting a second packet from the second node to the first node, wherein the second packet includes content representing the first path distance; and determining a time-to-live value for subsequent transfers from the first node to the second node, by taking into account the first path distance, wherein the time-to-live value limits the number of hops each packet is allowed to take in subsequent transfers from the first node to the second node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2014
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas A Brown, Thomas R Halford, Mark L Johnson
  • Patent number: 8873391
    Abstract: Methods for coordinating access to a barrage relay networks are disclosed. For example, one disclosed method includes: receiving, by a first node, a first message from a second node on a network; suppressing transmission of messages by the first node; receiving, by the first node, a second message corresponding to the first message or waiting a sufficient amount of time without receipt of the second message; reactivating transmission of the messages by the first node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas A Brown, Thomas R Halford, Mark L Johnson
  • Publication number: 20140161015
    Abstract: A system and method is presented for establishing relayed communications involving (1) sending a request message from a source node to a destination node through a plurality of intermediate nodes, (2) receiving the request message at the destination node, and (3) sending an acceptance message from the destination node to the source node through at least a subset of the intermediate nodes, wherein an intermediate node relays the request or acceptance message by receiving the message and re-transmitting the message, and wherein the intermediate node is capable of receiving the message from more than one other intermediate node.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 17, 2013
    Publication date: June 12, 2014
    Applicant: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas A. Brown III, Adam M. Blair, Mark L. Johnson, Thomas R. Halford
  • Publication number: 20130315131
    Abstract: Methods for coordinating access to a barrage relay networks are disclosed. For example, one disclosed method includes: receiving, by a first node, a first message from a second node on a network; suppressing transmission of messages by the first node; receiving, by the first node, a second message corresponding to the first message or waiting a sufficient amount of time without receipt of the second message; reactivating transmission of the messages by the first node.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Publication date: November 28, 2013
    Applicant: TrellisWare Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas A. Brown, Thomas R. Halford, Mark L. Johnson