Dianne Elaine Richards

Title: Dianne Elaine Richards and Her Patent for Securing Computer-Executable Program Code.

Introduction

Dianne Elaine Richards is an inventor associated with Kasson, Minnesota, and International Business Machines Corporation. Her work includes an invention focused on protecting computer-executable program code through security checks embedded in a program’s execution.

Latest Patents

Richards is credited with 1 patent: “System and Method for Securing Computer-Executable Program Code.” The patent describes a system, method, and apparatus that use a security-related computer-executable module, preferably implemented as software, to secure application program code.

The invention places security-related information, called a “task gate,” at a location within a computer program. The task gate defines predetermined security conditions that must be met before execution can proceed. When the program reaches the gate, the system checks whether those conditions have been satisfied and allows further execution only if they have.

Career Highlights

Richards’s patent addresses a software security approach that can be applied to application code in different locations. By making security checks part of a program’s execution flow, the invention provides a mechanism for controlling whether a computer proceeds with a defined task.

Collaborations

Richards is associated with International Business Machines Corporation. Her listed coworker is Kenton J. Lynne.

Conclusion

Dianne Elaine Richards’s patent presents a task-gate approach to computer security, requiring specified conditions to be met before program execution continues.