RESEARCH: OTTIUC

 OTTIUC HISTORY

When the TUI (Tarjeta Universitaria Inteligente/University Smart Card) was launched in 1995, developed by the University of Cantabria and the then Banco Santander, it was the first intelligent card in use in Spanish Universities. Since then, the model introduced in the University of Cantabria has become the standard for more than 140 universities in Spain, Portugal and Hispanamerica, which through collaboration agreements with the Banco Santander Central Hispano are able to use this card on their campuses.

In October 2000, this spirit of collaboration and innovation brought the same two institutions together in the creation of the OTTIUC (Observatorio Tecnológico de la Tarjeta Inteligente de la Universidad de Cantabria / Technological Observatory of the University of Cantabria Smart Card), whose purpose was to explore the possibilities of new multi-application cards.

The first task was the development of a WG10 applet over a Java Card platform which emulates the behaviour of the WG10 mono-application cards, which are now widely used. This enabled the introduction of a multi-application Java Card, without modifying the external applications, in those environments offering WG10-related services, such as the University of Cantabria. Thanks to the possibilities of Java Card, the OTTIUC is working in the search for synergies among diverse sectors such as banking, mobile telephone, electronic signature, health ..etc.

A great part of the success of the OTTIUC is due to the collaboration with market leaders such as Gemplus, smart card manufacturer, Europay Master Card and Sistema 4B, payment companies, and Amena, mobile communications operator.

 WHO ARE WE?

The OTTIUC is made up of a professional team including Telecommunications Engineers, Physicists and Mathematicians, who, along with the accumulated experience, the quality consciousness, the collaborative spirit and teamwork ethic, guarantee the success of our projects.

 SMART UNIVERSITY CARD

The T.U.I. (University Smart Card) was developed by the University of Cantabria in collaboration with the Banco Santander. Destined to teachers, students, researchers and administrative personnel, since 1995 it has been offering services of accreditation, book loans and access control to installations. Via the network of self-service terminals throughout the campus, it also permits the consultation of marks, administration of certificates, matriculation and consultation of electronic mail.

It was originally based on a Monoapplication WG10 Operating System card, that included an open electronic wallet, and optionally, 4B magnetic band. Despite being an innovation in 1995, it started to show some limitations in 2000. University Community started to demand new funcionalities and, therefore, the evolution towards Multi-application Smart Card became a necessity.

The new TUI Java Card is endowed with the Java Card technology, and contains the WG10 applet developed by the OTTIUC, so as all the applications that were formerly used by the previous card, could be seamlessly integrated in this one. Furthermore, it includes the M/Chip Lite applet , property of Europay, which implements the debit / credit EMV (Europay Mastercard Visa) bank standard. Presented in Santander in February 2001, it has become the first Multiapplication Card with EMV capacity.

An important part of nowadays OTTIUC efforts are focussed on TUI. In this sense, some new services have been recently developed such as the web-based reservation of computers in the information technology classrooms, digital signing of reports and reservation and payment of sports installations from the mobile phone.

 PROJECTS

Smart cards, given their capabilities to safely process and store limited quantities of information, all integrated in a reduced space, have become a key element in multiple applications. Java Card technology adds dynamism and versatility to these qualities and allows us to provide support for various applications with only one card. The projects carried out by the OTTIUC attempt to take advantage of these new possibilities offered by the Java Card.

• Development of Applet Java Card WG10. Emulation of the WG10 operating system over a multi-application Java Card platform.
• PC Access Control. Modification of the boot-up sequence of the PC enabling management of access through the smart card.
• Digital Signature of Records. Extending the functionality of the of the University of Cantabria incorporating digital signing of records with the smart card.
• SIM Browsing. Migration of services from the "Virtual Campus" to the mobile environment, through the use of latest generation technology, OTA (Over The Air) and S@T (Sim Application Toolkit Browsing ).
• Health Card. Cantabria Health Service card. The use of Java Card technology allows the same card multiple applications such as PC access control, access to installations and electronic signing, as well as containing the "Vital Information Report" with user's the most important clinical information.