US-12619976-B1 - Private vault managed using a non-fungible token

Abstract

Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to managing a metadata vault with a non-fungible token. Implementations can mint a non-fungible token (NFT) that corresponds to a tangible person or thing. A metadata vault can store metadata about the person or thing, and the NFT can secure access to the metadata vault. For example, the NFT can include a credential (e.g., public key) that comprises access permission for the private vault. In some implementations, a private key that corresponds to the public key can be provide a user, such as an authenticated user, additional access to the private vault. For example, the public key can provide a first level of access to the private vault (e.g., either read access or write access) and the private key can provide a second level of access to the private vault (e.g., both read access or write access).

Inventors

• Ravi Durairaj
• Salvador Adrian Bretado
• Hanna Elizabeth Rafferty
• Pradeep R. Mangalagiri
• Justin Royell Nash
• Marshall Hercules Felder
• Brian Tougas

Assignees

• UIPCO, LLC

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20230206

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A method for securing a metadata vault with a non-fungible token, the method comprising: storing, at a private vault, metadata for tangible property, wherein the private vault is secured by a private key and a non-fungible token comprising a public key, and wherein the public key permits write access to the private vault and the private key permits read access to the private vault; receiving a first request to write a metadata about the tangible property to the private vault, wherein the first request comprises a first credential; validating the first credential as the public key from the non-fungible token; permitting, in response to the validating the first credential as the public key, the first request to write the metadata about the tangible property to the private vault; receiving a second request to retrieve at least a portion of the metadata about the tangible property from the private vault, wherein the second request comprises a second credential; validating the second credential as the private key that secures read access for the private vault; retrieving, in response to the validating the second credential as the private key, one or more metadata elements about the tangible property from the private vault; and executing, in response to authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred from an owner to a new owner, one or more smart contracts that transfer the non-fungible token from a token wallet issued to the owner to a token wallet issued to the new owner, wherein the private key is transferred from the owner to the new owner based on the authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred.
2. 2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the non-fungible token corresponds to one or more of a vehicle, real-estate, a personal property item, or a combination thereof.
3. 3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the tangible property is a house, the non-fungible token corresponds to the house, and the metadata stored at the private vault comprise one or more of maintenance records, certifications, architecture records, title records, or any combination thereof, for the house.
4. 4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the tangible property is a motor vehicle, the non-fungible token corresponds to the motor vehicle, and the metadata stored at the private vault comprise one or more of maintenance, service, or repair records, certifications, title records, motor vehicle features, or any combination thereof for the motor vehicle.
5. 5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein, the non-fungible token is minted on a blockchain in response to authenticating a) an identity of a person; b) an owner of the tangible property; or c) any combination thereof.
6. 6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein, in response to the authenticating, the token wallet issued to the owner is generated, the minted non-fungible token is transferred to the token wallet issued to the owner, and a transaction is added on the blockchain that implements the non-fungible token transfer to the token wallet issued to the owner.
7. 7 . The method of claim 6 , wherein, in response to the authenticating, one or more smart contracts perform one or more of the non-fungible token minting, the generation of the token wallet issued to the owner, the non-fungible token transfer to the token wallet issued to the owner, the addition of the transaction to the blockchain, or any combination thereof.
8. 8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein, in response to authenticating that a title for the tangible property is transferred from the owner to the new owner, one or more smart contracts add a transaction to the blockchain that implements the non-fungible token transfer from the token wallet issued to the owner to the token wallet issued to the new owner.
9. 9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred comprises authenticating that the title for the tangible property is transferred from the owner to the new owner.
10. 10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein an access token is received along with the first request that identifies a requesting entity that issues the first request.
11. 11 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising: validating, using the access token, a) a group membership of the requesting entity; and b) that the group comprises access permissions to write metadata to the private vault, wherein the permitting the first request to write the metadata about the tangible property to the private vault is performed in response to the validating that the access token permits the requesting entity to write metadata to the private vault.
12. 12 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform a process for securing a metadata vault with a non-fungible token, the process comprising: storing, at a private vault, metadata for tangible property, wherein the private vault is secured by a private key and a non-fungible token comprising a public key, and wherein the public key permits write access to the private vault and the private key permits read access to the private vault; receiving a first request to write a metadata about the tangible property to the private vault, wherein the first request comprises a first credential; validating the first credential as the public key from the non-fungible token; permitting, in response to the validating the first credential as the public key, the first request to write the metadata about the tangible property to the private vault; receiving a second request to retrieve at least a portion of the metadata about the tangible property from the private vault, wherein the second request comprises a second credential; validating the second credential as the private key that secures read access for the private vault; transmitting, in response to the validating the second credential as the private key, one or more metadata elements about the tangible property from the private vault; and executing, in response to authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred from an owner to a new owner, one or more smart contracts that transfer the non-fungible token from a token wallet issued to the owner to a token wallet issued to the new owner, wherein the private key is transferred from the owner to the new owner based on the authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred.
13. 13 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the non-fungible token corresponds to one or more of a vehicle, real-estate, a personal property item, or a combination thereof.
14. 14 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the tangible property is a house, the non-fungible token corresponds to the house, and the metadata stored at the private vault comprise one or more of maintenance records, certifications, architecture records, title records, or any combination thereof, for the house.
15. 15 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein, the non-fungible token is minted on a blockchain in response to authenticating a) an identity of a person; b) an owner of the tangible property; or c) any combination thereof.
16. 16 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein, in response to authenticating that a title for the tangible property is transferred from the user to the new owner, one or more smart contracts add a transaction to the blockchain that implements the non-fungible token transfer from the token wallet issued to the user to the token wallet issued to the new owner.
17. 17 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein, authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred comprises authenticating that the title for the tangible personal property is transferred from the owner to the new owner.
18. 18 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein an access token is received along with the first request that identifies a requesting entity that issues the first request.
19. 19 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18 , wherein the process further comprises: validating, using the access token, a) a group membership of the requesting entity; and b) that the group comprises access permissions to write metadata to the private vault, wherein the permitting the first request to write the metadata about the tangible property to the private vault is performed in response to the validating that the access token permits the requesting entity to write metadata to the private vault.
20. 20 . A computing system for securing a metadata vault with a non-fungible token, the computing system comprising: one or more processors; and one or more memories storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing system to perform a process comprising: storing, at a private vault, metadata for tangible property, wherein the private vault is secured by a private key and a non-fungible token comprising a public key, and wherein the public key permits write access to the private vault and the private key permits read access to the private vault; receiving a first request to write a metadata about the tangible property, to the private vault, wherein the first request comprises a first credential; validating the first credential as the public key from the non-fungible token; permitting, in response to the validating the first credential as the public key, the first request to write the metadata about the tangible property to the private vault; receiving a second request to retrieve at least a portion of the metadata about the tangible property from the private vault, wherein the second request comprises a second credential; validating the second credential as the private key that secures read access for the private vault; transmitting, in response to the validating the second credential as the private key, one or more metadata elements about tangible property from the private vault; and executing, in response to authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred from an owner to a new owner, one or more smart contracts that transfer the non-fungible token from a token wallet issued to the owner to a token wallet issued to the new owner, wherein the private key is transferred from the owner to the new owner based on the authenticating that ownership of the tangible property is being transferred or has been transferred.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure is directed to managing a metadata vault with a non-fungible token. BACKGROUND A blockchain is a list of records, each called a block, which can be linked through cryptography. Each block includes a timestamp, a hash of the previous block, and transaction data. The timestamp proves that the transaction data was included when the block was added in order to get its hash. Because each block specifies the block previous to it, the set of blocks make a chain, with each new block reinforcing the set of blocks before it in the chain. Therefore, blockchains are very difficult to modify because data, once added to the blockchain, cannot be altered without altering all subsequent blocks. Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), are blockchain-backed identifiers specifying a unique (digital or real-world) item. Through a distributed ledger, the ownership of these tokens can be tracked and verified. Such tokens can link to a representation of the unique item, e.g., via a traditional URL or a distributed file system such as IPFS. While a variety of blockchain systems support NFTs, common platforms that supports NFT exchange allow for the creation of unique and indivisible NFT tokens. Traditionally, NFTs represent a way of being able to define ownership for practically anything that is digital. In other words, any material that can be digitized or which is already in a digital format can be the subject of an NFT. Some examples of NFT content can include digital photographs, video frames, social media interactions, and virtually all items that can be converted for receipt and processing by a computer (e.g., a scanned autograph). Asset ownership via digital items, such as NFTs, has grown in popularity. NFTs can include identifying information that identifies the asset tied to the NFT, such as unique identifying information, a web link, or other suitable identifying information. NFTs can be managed on a blockchain, thus providing transparency and reliability to the asset ownership. Conventional NFT are tied to digital assets, such as images, videos, digital collectibles, and the like. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an overview of devices on which some implementations can operate. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an overview of an environment in which some implementations can operate. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating components which, in some implementations, can be used in a system employing the disclosed technology. FIGS. 4A and 4B are conceptual diagrams of a non-fungible token service and a private vault manager. FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a process used in some implementations for authenticating a person or owner for issuance of a non-fungible token. FIG. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating a process used in some implementations for securing metadata vault write access with a non-fungible token and metadata vault read access with a private key. FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating a process used in some implementations for securing metadata vault read access with a non-fungible token and metadata vault write access with a private key. FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating a process used in some implementations for transferring ownership of a non-fungible token used to manage access to a private metadata vault. The techniques introduced here may be better understood by referring to the following Detailed Description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate identical or functionally similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to managing a metadata vault with a non-fungible token. Implementations can mint a non-fungible token (NFT) that corresponds to a tangible person or thing. A metadata vault can store metadata about the person or thing, and the NFT can secure access to the metadata vault. For example, the NFT can include a credential (e.g., public key) that comprises access permission for the private vault. In some implementations, a private key that corresponds to the public key can be provided to a user, such as an authenticated user (e.g., authenticated as the person or the owner of the thing that corresponds to the NFT). Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) are blockchain-backed identifiers specifying a unique item. Implementations of a blockchain service mint a NFT that correspond to a tangible person or thing. The NFT can include an identifier for the tangible person or thing, such as identifying information of a person (e.g., name, birthdate, hash of a PIN or portion of a social security number, etc.), personal property (e.g., vehicle identification number (VIN), identifier for real-estate plot, such as an address, etc.), and/or other suitable identifying information. The NFT can also include a credential that corresponds to the tangible person or thing, such as a public key that grants access to a private vault for the tangible person or thing