Whiteboard2Boardroom presents innovations from regional universities, hospitals, research organizations to encourage commercialization.

1. High Security Circuit Boards
February 27, 2020

2. What is the problem?
• Preventing Counterfeiting
• Integrated circuits may have hidden
serial numbers or specially-shaped
electronic components identifying
the integrated circuits as authentic.
• Counterfeiters can discover these
identifying marks and incorporate
them into counterfeit circuits, thus
thwarting authentication efforts.
• The very presence of unique features
may also make an integrated circuit a
target for being counterfeited, since
more complicated circuits may be
perceived as more profitable and / or
important.
High Security Electric Circuit Board Options
Maintaining the integrity and authenticity of integrated circuits is valuable to
designers, manufacturers, and other customers along the electronics supply chain.
• Preventing Reverse Engineering
• Security of circuit board design is
important.
• Electronic circuits can be obscured by
the package of an integrated circuit
or the solid material of the printed
circuit board so that the circuits
cannot be seen and potentially
understood.
• It is possible to remove the package
of an integrated circuit and grind,
polish, or plane the top surface to
remove layers
• Careful deconstruction can lead to
reverse engineering of the underlying
electronic circuits and theft of
intellectual property.

3. How does product/service solve problem?
• Preventing Counterfeiting
• Use physically unclonable functions
(PUFs), formed by high energy ions
embedded within ICs as unique
identifiers
• Stimulate PUFs electrically or
optically
• Sense resulting signal and store in
database for future authentication
• Doesn’t complicate circuit board
design
• Preventing Reverse Engineering
• Computer generate random electrical
interconnects
• Multiple pathways and lengths can
exist and can be used
• Print within the board instead of
using discrete surfaces
• Utilize techniques like additive
manufacturing to make boards

4. What is the market use?
• Secure electronics
• Anti-counterfeiting technologies
• Protection of IC designs

5. What competition exists?
• Visible methods like serial numbers, images
• Covering, embedding, or encapsulating the circuit
board
• Memory-intensive or digital methods to create a
unique signature
• Complexity and obfuscation

6. What is the status of the intellectual property?
Honeywell FM&T
• US Patents
– 10,019,565
– 10,331,839
• US Patent Applications
– 2018/0040566
• Invention Disclosures
– Additional ID’s in similar
areas

7. What is the stage of development?
• TRLs 2 – 3
• Early in development,
but IP has been secured
• Continued development
underway

8. What is needed for further development?
• Reduce to practice
• Identify applications
• Develop database
system to store and
authenticate PUFs