Electronic system
In accordance with an embodiment, an electronic device includes a secure element configured to implement a plurality of operating systems; and a near field communication module coupled to the secure element by a volatile memory.
1. An electronic device comprising:
a secure element configured to implement a plurality of operating systems, wherein the plurality of operating systems are configured to simultaneously reside on the secure element; and
a near field communication module coupled to the secure element by a volatile memory; and
an abstraction layer configured to establish a relationship between each operating system of the plurality of operating systems and the volatile memory such that each operating system of the plurality of operating systems has no knowledge of other operating systems of the plurality of operating systems.
2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the volatile memory is coupled to the near field communication module by a first bus, and is coupled to the secure element by a second bus.
3. The device of claim 2 , wherein the volatile memory is directly connected to the near field communication module by the first bus, and is directly connected to the secure element by the second bus.
4. The device of claim 1 , wherein the volatile memory comprises a plurality of volatile memories or a plurality of volatile memory areas of a same volatile memory.
5. The device of claim 4 , wherein:
the plurality of volatile memories comprises a same number of volatile memories as a number of operating systems of the plurality of operating systems; or
the plurality of volatile memory areas comprises a same number of volatile memory areas as the number of operating systems of the plurality of operating systems.
6. The device of claim 4 , wherein the near field communication module is configured to route data towards one of the plurality of volatile memories or to one of the plurality of volatile memory areas, and the abstraction layer comprises an interface configured to associate each operating system of the plurality of operating systems with a corresponding one of the plurality of volatile memories or with a corresponding one of the plurality of volatile memory areas.
7. The device of claim 6 , wherein the interface uses a routing table as a link between an operating system and a bus.
8. The device of claim 1 , wherein the volatile memory comprises a single volatile memory.
9. The device of claim 8 , wherein the abstraction layer comprises a routing circuit coupled between the secure element and the near field communication module, wherein the routing circuit is configured to route data between the plurality of operating systems.
10. The device of claim 9 , wherein the routing circuit is a state machine.
11. The device of claim 10 , wherein the state machine is comprised by the secure element.
12. The device of claim 9 , wherein the routing circuit is a routing table.
13. The device of claim 12 , wherein the routing table is comprised by the near field communication module.
14. The device of claim 12 , wherein the routing circuit is configured to store parameters characterizing one of the operating systems of the plurality of operating systems.
15. The device of claim 1 , wherein one of the plurality of operating systems is an operating system of a SIM card, of a payment card, or of a public transport card.
16. A method of operating an electronic device comprising a secure element and a near field communication module coupled to the secure element by a single bus, the method comprising:
executing a plurality of operating systems on the secure element, wherein the plurality of operating systems simultaneously reside on the secure element;
exchanging, by a volatile memory, data between the plurality of operating systems being executed on the secure element and the near field communication module; and
using an abstraction layer, establishing a relationship between each operating system of the plurality of operating systems and the volatile memory such that each operating system of the plurality of operating systems has no knowledge of other operating systems of the plurality of operating systems.
17. The method of claim 16 , wherein exchanging data comprises:
exchanging data between the near field communication module and the volatile memory using a first bus; and
exchanging data between the volatile memory and the secure element using a second bus.
18. The method of claim 16 , wherein:
the volatile memory comprises a plurality of volatile memories; and
using the abstraction layer comprises using an interface to associate each operating system of the plurality of operating systems with a corresponding one of the plurality of volatile memories.
19. The method of claim 16 , wherein exchanging data comprises using a routing circuit comprising a state machine.
20. The method of claim 16 , exchanging data comprises using a routing circuit comprising routing table.
21. A cell phone comprising:
a secure element configured to execute a first operating system implementing a public transport card service and a second operating system implementing a payment card, wherein the first operating system and the second operating system are configured to simultaneously reside on the secure element;
a near field communication module; and
a volatile memory coupled between the secure element and the near field communication module, wherein the secure element comprises an abstraction layer configured to establish a relationship between the first operating system, the second operating system, and the volatile memory such that the first operating system and the second operating system have no knowledge of each other.