US 12,445,220 B2
Obtaining secure time over a heterogeneous network
Kalvinder Pal Singh, Miami (AU); Zoltan Peter Kiss, Los Altos, CA (US); and Darin Byron Johnson, San Jose, CA (US)
Assigned to ITRON NETWORKED SOLUTIONS, INC., San Jose, CA (US)
Filed by Itron, Inc., Liberty Lake, WA (US)
Filed on Feb. 24, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/174,476.
Prior Publication US 2024/0291631 A1, Aug. 29, 2024
Int. Cl. H04J 3/06 (2006.01); H04L 7/00 (2006.01); H04L 9/32 (2006.01); H04L 9/40 (2022.01); H04W 12/069 (2021.01); H04W 56/00 (2009.01)
CPC H04J 3/0638 (2013.01) [H04J 3/0679 (2013.01); H04L 7/0008 (2013.01); H04L 9/3263 (2013.01); H04L 63/0823 (2013.01); H04W 12/069 (2021.01); H04W 56/001 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of securely providing a trusted time comprising:
receiving at a network interface controller (NIC) a neighbor list comprising a plurality of entries for a corresponding plurality of neighbor devices wherein each of the plurality of entries comprises:
a unique device identity of a time server which the plurality of neighbor devices has reached; and
an inception time of a time server certificate corresponding to the unique device identity;
sorting the plurality of entries within the neighbor list to obtain a sorted neighbor list; and
sending a time request to a first neighbor device of the plurality of neighbor devices based at least in part on the sorted neighbor list.