TECHNICAL FIELD

The present application relates generally to systems and methods for distributed ledgers.

BACKGROUND

A distributed ledger, such as a blockchain, is a series of signed, hash-linked, append-only, timestamped blocks, each block containing arbitrary data. When viewed as a linked-list data structure, a blockchain is a limited data “stack” whose operations only allow users to “push” blocks onto the top. Users are not allowed to modify blocks or to “pull” blocks from the blockchain. Each new block that is added is appended to the topmost block in the stack. A new block links back to the former top-of-stack block by including a hash (e.g., a smaller mathematical representation) of the preceding block in the new block and binding this hash to the new block.

SUMMARY

One embodiment relates to a method of creating a repair token for a distributed ledger. The method includes identifying an error in the distributed ledger, the error associated with a first block on the distributed ledger, creating a repair token including content of the first block and a correction to the error, digitally signing and timestamping the repair token, and publishing the repair token to a repair token ledger.

Another embodiment relates to a system of creating a repair token for a distributed ledger. The system includes a processor and a non-transitory machine readable medium with instructions stored thereon. When executed by the processor, the instructions cause the system to identify an error in the distributed ledger, the error associated with a first block on the distributed ledger, create a repair token including content of the first block and a correction to the error, digitally sign and timestamp the repair token, and publish the repair token to a repair token ledger.

Another embodiment relates to a method of creating a repair token for a distributed ledger. The method includes identifying an erroneous transaction included in a first block on the distributed ledger and creating a repair token. The repair token includes content of the first block, a correction transaction correcting the erroneous transaction, a pointer to a second block preceding the first block on the distributed ledger so as to provide a backward link between the first block and the second block on the distributed ledger, a pointer to a third block following the first block on the distributed ledger so as to provide a forward link between the first block and the second block, and one or more digital signatures of one or more parties to the erroneous transaction, thereby confirming the correction transaction. The method further includes digitally signing an timestamping the repair token and publishing the repair token to a repair token ledger.

