(Alliance News) - Quantum Blockchain Technologies PLC on Monday said it has developed a new computational approach to bitcoin mining, and has applied to patent the procedure in the UK.
The London-headquartered developer of cryptocurrency mining software said its 'Message Scheduling For Cryptographic Hashing' procedure is "an innovative approach to SHA-256 optimised computation for bitcoin mining."
In light of MSFCH's perceived novelty, Quantum has filed a patent application for it at the UK Intellectual Property Office.
Currently, every time a miner is able to access a block and receive the Bitcoin reward, it can only start processing a new block once the previous block has been closed. Quantum said its MSFCH procedure removes this obstacle by allowing miners to asynchronously perform partial pre-computations of future blocks before closing the ones they are currently "hashing".
"While at this juncture we cannot go into the specific details of what we believe is an innovative solution [...] the new concept behind this idea disrupts, under special conditions, a fundamental BTC blockchain paradigm: computation for future blocks can take place before the previous block is mined," commented Chief Executive Officer and Chair Francesco Gardin.
"This is quite a radical change of the paradigm, and we believe it is well worth a patent application."
Quantum does not believe that applying MSFCH enhances the computational processing time of SHA-256. However, it said the procedure would help miners save hardware resources and by extension, save energy by "increasing the overall speed of the process."
The company added that MSFCH can be implemented with currently available technology, but is subject to technological limitations. Regardless, Quantum said it was "strategically important" to file a patent application "covering the novel approach" its use creates.
If the UK patent application is successful, Quantum intends to apply for the patent to be extended internationally.
Shares in Quantum Blockchain were up 8.6% at 1.58 pence in London on Monday afternoon.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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