Customized smart devices and touchscreen devices and cleanspace manufacturing methods to make them

Abstract

The present invention provides various aspects for processing multiple types of substrates within cleanspace fabricators or for processing multiple or single types of substrates in multiple types of cleanspace environments. In some embodiments, a collocated composite cleanspace fabricator may be capable of processing semiconductor devices into integrated circuits and then performing assembly operations to result in product in packaged form. Customized smart devices, smart phones and touchscreen devices may be fabricated in examples of a cleanspace fabricator. In some examples integrated circuits with unique encryption keys may be formed where the encryption keys are stored in physical aspects of the integrated circuit.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of protecting a data communication of a smart device, the method comprising:
 assembling a unique integrated circuit into a smart device, the unique integrated circuit comprising:
 at least a portion of a unique encryption key is physically encoded into hardware of the unique integrated circuit during assembly of the unique integrated circuit, and 
 a processor of the unique integrated circuit operational to perform encryption processing upon data communicated into and out of the smart device routed through the unique integrated circuit; and 
   configuring the smart device to pass communications through the unique integrated circuit to be encrypted before transmission of the data.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the physical encoding involves processing a film to alter its resistance, wherein the resistance encodes a data value. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2  wherein the film comprises graphene. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein a uniqueness of the unique integrated circuit includes a presence of the encryption keys encoded into hardware of the integrated circuit. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  additionally comprising:
 manufacturing the unique integrated circuit in a cleanspace fabricator, wherein the cleanspace fabricator comprises a vertically deployed primary cleanspace contained within the cleanspace fabricator, wherein processing tools are vertically deployed, and wherein processing tools are accessible from a periphery of the cleanspace fabricator. 
 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5  additionally comprising:
 configuring the cleanspace fabricator at a point of sale of smart devices, wherein the smart device may be uniquely produced for a user at a point of sale. 
 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 5  additionally comprising:
 producing multiple copies of smart devices comprising unique integrated circuits wherein at least a portion of the physically encoded encryption keys of the multiple copies are matched to allow end to end encryption through the unique integrated circuits. 
 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 5  further comprising:
 producing at least a pair of devices comprising the unique integrated circuit wherein at least a portion of the physically encoded encryption keys of the multiple copies are matched; 
 wherein one of the at least a pair of devices is the smart device; and 
 wherein one of the at least a pair of devices is a network pluggable device. 
 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8  further comprising:
 installing the network pluggable device into a server. 
 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9  further comprising:
 routing a data communication between the smart device and the server through intermediate communication links, wherein the data communication is encrypted between the unique integrated circuit of the smart device and the unique integrated circuit of the network pluggable device. 
 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising:
 sending a signal to one or both of the unique integrated circuits of the smart device and the unique integrated circuits of the network pluggable device wherein the signal initiates a self-destruction, wherein the self-destruction alters the physically encoded encryption keys. 
 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10  wherein at least a portion of the data from the data communication is stored in memory in its encrypted form. 
     
     
         13 . A method of protecting a data communication of a smart device, the method comprising:
 assembling a unique integrated circuit into a smart device, the unique integrated circuit comprising:
 at least a portion of a unique encryption key is physically encoded into hardware of the unique integrated circuit during manufacture of the integrated circuit, 
 a processor of the unique integrated circuit operational to perform encryption processing upon data communicated into and out of the smart device routed through the unique integrated circuit; and 
   configuring the smart device to pass communications through the unique integrated circuit to be decrypted during a receipt of the data.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13  wherein a physical encoding involves processing a film to alter its resistance, wherein the resistance encodes a data value. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14  wherein the film comprises graphene. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 13  wherein a uniqueness of the unique integrated circuit includes a presence of the encryption keys encoded into hardware of the integrated circuit. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 13  additionally comprising:
 manufacturing the unique integrated circuit in a cleanspace fabricator, wherein the cleanspace fabricator comprises a vertically deployed primary cleanspace contained within the cleanspace fabricator, wherein processing tools are vertically deployed, and wherein processing tools are accessible from a periphery of the cleanspace fabricator. 
 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17  additionally comprising:
 configuring the cleanspace fabricator at a point of sale of smart devices, wherein the smart device may be uniquely produced for a user at a point of sale. 
 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17  additionally comprising:
 producing multiple copies of smart devices comprising unique integrated circuits wherein at least a portion of the physically encoded encryption keys of the multiple copies are matched to allow end to end encryption through the unique integrated circuits. 
 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 17  further comprising:
 producing at least a pair of devices comprising unique integrated circuits wherein at least a portion of the physically encoded encryption keys of the multiple copies are matched; 
 wherein one of the at least a pair of devices is the smart device; and 
 wherein one of the at least a pair of devices is a network pluggable device.