International Business Machines Corporation

James D Randall

Donald B Johnson

Stephen M Matyas

An V Le

Michael James Kelly

John D Wilkins

Vincent N Kahwaty

Christopher J Holloway

Robert C Elander

Glen P Double

Paul G Lubold

Rostislaw Prymak, Deceased

Alphonse M Bracco

Bernard J Halter

Fritz M Reinhart

Michael J Kelly

A method and system are disclosed for the implementation of a weakened privacy channel. This is achieved through use of a weakened symmetric cryptographic algorithm called commercial data masking. The masked text is created from clear text at one system and may to transported electronically to another system where the masked text may be unmasked to produce the clear text. The reason to use the commercial data masking algorithm for data privacy is that it is exportable to organizations to which products which contain the Data Encryption Algorithm when used for data privacy are not exportable. In addition, a method and system is disclosed by which the key when used for commercial data masking may be transformed into a key that may be used with the Data Encryption Algorithm.

Commercial data masking

A method and system are disclosed for securely distributing a plurality of software files from a software distribution processor to a user processor, while selectively enabling the user processor to only use a subset of a lesser plurality of the software files. This is achieved by employing a customer key which includes a clear customer number and a derived portion derived from the customer number. The customer key is transformed into a second customer key which serves as a key expression for encrypting a file encryption key specifically intended for a respective one of the plurality of files. A plurality of software files can be stored together, for example on a CD-ROM, with each file encrypted under a corresponding file encryption key. The CD-ROM can be distributed to many user processors. When a specific user processor needs to run one of the software files, a request will be transmitted from the user processor to the software distribution processor. In response to that request, an encrypted file encryption key specific for the requested file, will be transmitted to the user processor. This will enable the user processor to decrypt only the requested file from the CD-ROM. All other files on the CD-ROM remain in their encrypted form and cannot be decrypted and used by the file encryption key received from the software distribution processor.

Method and system for multimedia access control enablement

A nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) magnet assembly includes two pole faces spaced to provide a gap in which is established a uniform magnetic field. The pole pieces have pole faces that are flat and parallel. The pole pieces are mounted on support plates one of which is fixed and the other of which is movable about a pivot point with two degrees of freedom of movement in response to adjustment of two adjustable mechanisms. Each adjustment mechanism includes a differential screw that produces a transverse movement and a longitudinally inclined pin or pins that translates such transverse movement into a much greatly reduced longitudinal movement. The combination of a differential screw and inclined pin provides a very fine adjustment of the parallelism of the pole faces. Each mechanism further includes means for providing a coarse adjustment.

NMR magnet assembly with pole face parallelism adjustment

Growing community of inventors

Herndon, VA, United States of America

James D Randall