US Patent 7813510 Key management for group communications

A system for key management for a plurality of nodes includes: a first key generation device (130) for generating a first set of secret keys for secure communication between the plurality of nodes; a second key generation device (130) for generating a second set of secret keys that is different from the first set of secret keys for secure communication between the plurality of nodes; and key distribution apparatus (140) coupled to the first and second key generation devices for authenticating the plurality of nodes and selectively distributing the first and second sets of secret keys to the plurality of nodes.