US 12,407,493 B2
Mapping keys to a blockchain overlay network
Jack Owen Davies, London (GB); and Craig Steven Wright, London (GB)
Assigned to nChain Licensing AG, Zug (CH)
Filed by nChain Licensing AG, Zug (CH)
Filed on Jun. 28, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/759,431.
Application 18/759,431 is a continuation of application No. 17/788,277, granted, now 12,052,342, previously published as PCT/IB2020/057894, filed on Aug. 24, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 1919295 (GB), filed on Dec. 24, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2024/0356733 A1, Oct. 24, 2024
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. H04L 9/08 (2006.01); H04L 9/00 (2022.01)
CPC H04L 9/0819 (2013.01) [H04L 9/0836 (2013.01); H04L 9/0869 (2013.01); H04L 9/50 (2022.05)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A computer program product for managing an overlay network overlaid on data-storage transactions of a blockchain, whereby data content of the overlay network is stored in payloads of the data-storage transactions and overlay-layer links are defined between the data-storage transactions; the computer program product comprising code embodied on non-transitory computer-readable storage media, wherein the code comprises a first software module configured so as when run on first computer equipment, the first computer equipment performs operations of:
identifying a graph structure of the overlay network, the graph structure comprising a plurality of nodes and edges between nodes, wherein each of the nodes corresponds to a different respective one of the data-storage transactions and each of the edges corresponds to a different respective one of the links, wherein and each node is associated with a respective first key configured for performing a first function, the first keys being generated from a first seed; and
using a child key derivation, CKD, function applied to a second seed in order to determine a set of second keys for at least part of the graph structure of the overlay network, each second key corresponding to a different respective one of the nodes in said part of the overlay network, wherein the second set of keys is a hierarchical set of keys having the same graph structure as said part of the overlay network, each second key corresponding to a different respective one of the nodes at a same position in the graph structure as the respective data-storage transaction, wherein the second keys are not configured to sign inputs of the data-storage transactions and are configured to enable a second function in addition to the first function.