JP2009276862A - Document management system, server device, client device, document management method, program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To manage the same document and a derived document as one document group. <P>SOLUTION: A document management system 100 is provided with a calculation means 48 for calculating a content identification value for identifying the content of a document; an acquisition means 46 for detecting the start and end of an operation to the document and for acquiring the time of detection, the content identification value of the document in detection and a user identification value for identifying the operator; document registration means (56, 58) for registering the time, the content identification value and the user identification value in association by using the start of the operation and the end of the operation as a pair; and document group registration means (60, 62, 64, 66) for integrating the pairs including the same content identification value by referring to the document registration means, and for registering it as the document group in which the plurality of content identification values are associated. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a document management technique, and more particularly to a document management system, a server device, a client device, a document management method, a program, and a recording medium for managing the same document and a derived document as a group of document sets.

  In recent years, with the development of information communication technology, enormous amounts of electronic documents have been distributed through networks. An electronic document may be stored in a file server or database on a network from the viewpoint of security and accessibility, but many electronic documents are locally stored in a hard disk of a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC). It is managed in the storage area.

  In terms of electronic document distribution, electronic documents are often exchanged between parties using an email attachment function, etc., and the exchanged electronic documents are individually stored in the local storage areas of the transmission source and the reception destination. Will be managed. Also, the electronic document managed in the local area is transmitted again to another destination by e-mail and copied, or another document is derived by editing. However, since information is not shared between local areas, for example, an electronic document created by a user is distributed or changed to the extent that the user's knowledge does not reach, and the creator does not intend There is also a probability of being used for the purpose.

  In order to deal with such problems, it is assumed that a document management infrastructure for managing everything from creation to distribution of documents is constructed, and all the documents to be created and distributed are managed on the file server or database. In order to realize this, it is necessary to manage all services for creating and distributing documents, so that the system becomes complicated and it is very difficult to realize.

  For example, secure PDF (Portable Document Format) is disclosed as a technique for restricting browsing of electronic documents that are distributed (Non-Patent Document 1). Secure PDF is a technique for requesting an authentication server arranged on a network to confirm browsing or printing authority in order to view or print a PDF file.

  For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-277037 (Patent Document 1) can be cited as a technique for coping with the overflow of the same document. Patent Document 1 adds a history management file in an electronic document management application, embeds an ID that can uniquely identify a document in an electronic document to be exported to the outside, and imports an archived electronic document from the outside to the document management application. In this case, a technique for determining the identity of a file by taking out an ID and comparing it with a history management file is disclosed.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2005-234655 (Patent Document 2) is a file management means for maintaining and managing file attribute information for each file for the purpose of notifying a user who has browsed the file in the past in a timely manner. A browsing history management unit that collects browsing history of each user who has browsed by detecting browsing of the file, and a notification destination and notification unit for a change notification for the user managed by the browsing history management unit. Notification destination management means for storing and managing each file, and when the attribute information for the file is updated, the browsing history management means identifies the user who has browsed the updated file, and the notification destination management is notified. A file distribution management apparatus is disclosed that includes a change notification means that is performed based on a notification destination and a notification method specified by the means.
JP 2006-277037 A JP 2005-234655 A "Ridoc Policy Base Pro", [online], November 26, 2007, Ricoh Co., Ltd., product information, software products, Ridoc Policy Base Pro, [searched April 14, 2008], Internet <URL; http: / /www.ricoh.co.jp/ridoc_ds/policybase/>

  However, the secure PDF disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1 is a technique limited to PDF data, and is a technique specialized in document browsing and printing, and is not sufficient from the viewpoint of the scope of application. It was.

  The technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 summarizes meta information of a document such as a target document, a derived document of the target document, and information for uniquely identifying the document as an archive, and manages it by a document management application. The target document and the derived document are specified to prevent the same document from being flooded.

  However, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, since a document management application is essential for accessing a file, the burden on the user is large, and a general electronic document in which the document is distributed by e-mail is used. It was not possible to use a proper distribution means, and it was not sufficient. Further, a document once exported from the document management application can be dealt with only when it is imported again, which is not sufficient from the viewpoint of preventing flooding of the same document and derived documents.

  Furthermore, in the technology disclosed in Patent Document 2, when attribute information for a file is updated, an update notification is issued to prompt a user who has been browsing the file registered in the download user list. It is intended to prevent flooding of the same document and derivative documents. Further, the present invention can be applied only to files managed by the file distribution management apparatus, and is not applicable to information managed individually in the local area.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and for electronic documents used on a file system accessible by individual information processing apparatuses, the same document and derived documents are managed as a group of document sets. An object of the present invention is to provide a document management system, a server device, a client device, a document management method, a program, and a recording medium that can easily grasp the distribution state of a document.

  In addition, the present invention detects a change in the distribution state of a document and publicizes the distribution state of the document, and suitably reduces the probability that the same document or a derived document will overflow against the intention of the document creator. An object of the present invention is to provide a document management system, a server device, a client device, a document management method, a program, and a recording medium that enable the above.

  In the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the start time of the operation on the document and the end of the operation are taken as one set, the start time of the operation, the content identification value for identifying the content of the document at the start of the operation, An end time, a content identification value for identifying the content of the document at the end, and a user identification value for identifying the actor of the operation are registered in association with each other. Furthermore, a set including the same content identification value is integrated, and a document set associated with a plurality of content identification values is registered.

  With the above configuration, the content identification values before and after the operation on the document are associated as a pair, and further, the sets including the same content identification value are integrated, so that the same document copied from the original document and the original document can be edited. The added and derived derivative documents are associated as a group of document collections, and further associated with an actor who operates the documents of the document collection. Accordingly, it is possible to track a user who has performed an operation on the same document or a derived document for a certain document, and the distribution state of the document can be grasped.

  Further, according to the present invention, the change of the content identification value constituting the document set is detected, and the change of the document set is notified to the contact associated with the user identification value related to the document set. it can. This makes it possible for the user related to the document set to grasp the distribution state. Further, according to the present invention, when a new user identification value is associated with a document set, the change of the document set can be notified. This makes it possible to newly detect a user who has performed an operation on a document, and thus suitably reduce the probability that the same document or a derived document will overflow against the intention of the document creator. Is also possible. In the present invention, the contact address associated with the user identification value can be an e-mail address, and the change of the document set can be notified in the e-mail transmission process.

  Further, according to the present invention, the storage position of the document currently being operated is acquired from the application for processing the document, and compared with the storage position of the document recorded as the operation started, the operation is determined based on the difference between them. It is possible to detect that the target document has been changed. Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to detect the change of the operation target, record the end of the operation recorded on the document recorded as the start of the operation, and record the start of the operation on the currently operated document. . Furthermore, in the present invention, it is possible to calculate the content identification value of the document content data or the metadata hash value including the bibliographic information of the document and the update date and time.

  Hereinafter, although it demonstrates using embodiment of this invention, embodiment of this invention is not limited to the following embodiment.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an embodiment of a document management system 100. A document management system 100 shown in FIG. 1 performs operations such as browsing, editing, and printing on an electronic document stored in a storage area accessible by the server 110 that manages the electronic document distributed in the system 100. For example, a local area network (hereinafter referred to as a LAN) based on Ethernet (registered trademark) and TCP / IP protocol. ) 130 is realized.

  The client 120 controls and uses access to an electronic document on a file system including a local storage area provided by its own hard disk (hereinafter referred to as HDD) and a storage area on a network accessible by itself. Provide an operating environment for viewing, editing, and printing electronic documents. Further, the client 120 detects that an operation has been performed on the electronic document by the user, and sends information related to the operation on the electronic document (hereinafter referred to as document operation information) to the server 110 that provides a server function for its own client function. Report as).

  On the other hand, the server 110 collects document operation information from each client 120 and associates and manages a group of document sets including a duplicated identical document and a derived document obtained by editing an electronic document. Details of the document operation information collected from each client 120 by the server 110 will be described later. Further, the server 110 changes the distribution state of the electronic document when a browsing user is newly detected or a derivative document is newly created by editing with respect to the electronic documents constituting a group of documents. Can be notified to the contact information of the user related to the document set.

  The document management system 100 is not limited to the above-described embodiment. The client 120 is configured by a wide area network (WAN) configured using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) gateway or a dedicated line (not shown). And the server 110 may be connected to each other, or the client 120 and the server 110 may be connected via a public communication line such as the Internet. Further, the number of clients 120 included in the document management system 100 is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and may be configured by one or three or more. In still another embodiment, the function of the server 110 for managing the electronic document and the function of the client 120 for performing operations on the electronic document can be realized by a single information processing apparatus.

  Hereinafter, the hardware configuration of the server 110 of this embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of the hardware configuration of the server 110. The server 110 includes a microprocessor unit (MPU) 12, a nonvolatile memory 14 that stores a BIOS (Basic Input Output System), and a memory 16 such as a RAM that provides an execution storage space that enables program processing by the MPU 12. It is configured to include. The MPU 12 reads the BIOS from the nonvolatile memory 14 at the time of startup, performs system diagnosis, and manages the input / output device 26.

  The storage control interface 18 is connected to the MPU 12 via the internal bus 22, and the storage device 20 including a HDD or the like executes data writing or reading in response to an input / output request from the MPU 12. ing. The storage device 20 of the present embodiment provides a storage area for a database that manages document operation information and a document set. As the storage control interface 18, an interface for managing input / output of the storage device 20 according to standards such as IDE (Integrated Device Electronics), ATA (AT Attachment), Serial ATA, and UltraATA can be used. Further, the MPU 12 controls a serial or parallel interface 24 such as a USB or IEEE 1164 via the internal bus 22 and communicates with an input / output device 26 such as a keyboard, a mouse, a printer, etc., and receives an input from a user. Provides output to the user via a printer or the like.

  The server 110 further includes a VRAM 28 and a graphic chip 30, processes video signals in response to commands from the MPU 12, and displays them on the display device 32. The MPU 12 communicates with a network interface card (NIC) 34 via the internal bus 22, and causes the server 110 to communicate with an external client 120 via the network 130.

  The server 110 reads out a program (not shown) stored in the nonvolatile memory 14, the storage device 20, and other storage devices such as an NV-RAM (not shown) and an SD card (not shown). Each function unit and each process to be described later are realized under an appropriate operating system (OS). In the present embodiment, even if the server 110 has an architecture such as UNIX (registered trademark), AIX, or LINUX (registered trademark), as long as each OS provides a similar function, the architecture of the computer is used. It is not limited. The client 120 that communicates with the server 110 can also have a hardware configuration similar to that shown in FIG.

  Hereinafter, a document management function realized in the document management system 100 of this embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration realized on the client 120 and the server 110 according to the present embodiment. The client 120 shown in FIG. 3 includes a client processing unit 40 that processes data communication with the server function on the server 110 side via the network 130. The client 120 includes a user information acquisition unit 42, and the user information acquisition unit 42 acquires a user name and password input from a user via a graphical user interface (hereinafter referred to as GUI). Then, the data is transmitted to the server 110 side via the client processing unit 40. After the authentication by the server 110 is completed, the client processing unit 40 communicates with the server 110 by including a cookie including authentication information in the message.

  FIG. 4A shows an example of a GUI screen displayed on the screen of the display device included in the client 120. The GUI screen 300 shown in FIG. 4A includes a message requesting input of a user name and password, a text box 302 for inputting the user name, and a text box 304 for inputting the password. . The GUI screen 300 further includes a transmission button 306 for instructing transmission of the user name and password input in the text boxes 302 and 304, and a cancel button 308 for canceling the authentication procedure. The user can use the GUI screen 300 to execute a user login process for making the document management system available.

  Referring back to FIG. 3, the client 120 further includes a document operation application 44. The document operation application 44 provides the user with an operation environment for the electronic document, and accepts various operations for the electronic document, such as new creation, browsing, editing, and printing of the electronic document. Electronic documents handled by the document operation application 44 include files of various document formats such as DOC, files of various image formats such as BMP, GIF, and TIFF, files such as PS and PDF, and other files of unique formats. it can. As the document operation application 44, when the OS is Windows (registered trademark), an application corresponding to a so-called automation function that can expose an internal object and a function to an external application or an external service is preferably employed. be able to. However, the document operation application is not particularly limited, and any application that can operate on an arbitrary OS and process an electronic document can be adopted.

  The client 120 further includes a document operation information acquisition unit 46 and a content identification value calculation unit 48. The document operation information acquisition unit 46 receives from the document operation application 44 a storage location such as the path or URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) of the electronic document currently being operated, bibliographic information such as the document title, update date and time, and other electronic documents. Get metadata containing information about the document. In addition, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 detects that the electronic document is focused in and becomes active in the document operation application 44, and sets the focus in to start the operation on the electronic document. Acquire the detected date and time as the start time. Further, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 detects that the electronic document has been focused out and the electronic document has become inactive in the document operation application 44, and the focus out is ended as an operation on the electronic document. Acquire the detected date and time as the end time.

  The content identification value calculation unit 48 identifies the content of the electronic document in order to track the update state of the content of the electronic document from the content data of the electronic document or metadata including the bibliographic information and update date / time of the electronic document. A content identification value is calculated. Here, the content data of an electronic document refers to data including content that can be viewed and edited by a user by expanding the electronic document on an application. For example, the entire electronic document file may be content data. it can. The document operation information acquisition unit 46 reads the electronic document file at the storage location, acquires the content data or metadata of the electronic document, and supplies the data to the content identification value calculation unit 48 to calculate the content identification value. Let and get. As the content identification value, a hash value calculated by inputting the content data or metadata into a message digest function such as MD5 (Message Digest Algorithm 5) or SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm) can be adopted.

  The client processing unit 40 operates as a document registration request unit, and performs the operation start time, the content identification value at the start of the operation, the end time of the operation, the content identification value at the end of the operation, and the operation. Document operation information in which metadata such as a user name of a user, a storage location of an electronic document such as a path and URI, and metadata such as a title of the electronic document are associated is transmitted to the server 110, and registration of the document operation information is requested. In the present embodiment, the document operation information is processed with a set of the start of operation by focus-in and the end of operation by focus-out as a set.

  On the other hand, the server 110 shown in FIG. 3 includes a server processing unit 50 that processes data communication with the client processing unit 40 on the client 120 side via the network 130. The server 110 further includes a user authentication unit 52 and a user information database (hereinafter referred to as a database) 54. The user information DB 54 stores a user name of a user of the document management system, a password, contact information such as an e-mail, and other information related to the user (hereinafter referred to as user information), and is referred to at the time of user authentication. Is done. The user authentication unit 52 collates the user name and password transmitted from the user information acquisition unit 42 of the client 120 with the user information stored in the user information DB 54, and returns a collation result. When the authentication is approved, the user authentication unit 52 returns a character string such as Cookie including the authentication session information as a collation result, and returns an empty character string as the collation result when the authentication fails. Can do.

  The client 120 that has received an empty character string displays the GUI screen 300 again as a result of authentication failure, and causes the user to try to log in again, while the client 120 has received the character string as session information. 120 will be transmitted including the character string in the subsequent communication message. After authentication, the server processing unit 50 manages a session with the client 120 using a cookie including authentication session information. The user information stored in the user information DB 54 can be generated by use registration processing of the document management system, but is not particularly limited.

  FIG. 4B shows an example of the data structure of the user information table stored and managed in the user information DB 54. In the user information table 200 shown in FIG. 4B, a field 200a for inputting a user ID uniquely assigned in the document management system, a field 200b for inputting a user name of a user, and a password are input. It includes a field 200c and a field 200d in which the contact information of the user such as an e-mail address is input. At the time of user authentication, a record that matches the user name and password sent from the client 120 is searched. In the user authentication, any user authentication method such as BASIC authentication, DIGEST authentication, Windows (registered trademark) authentication via a Windows (registered trademark) domain controller, LDAP authentication via an LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) server, or the like can be used. Can be adopted. Furthermore, instead of the user name and password input, biometric authentication (fingerprint authentication, vein authentication, etc.) or IC card authentication using a predetermined authentication device can be employed.

  Referring again to FIG. 3, the server 110 further includes a document operation information management unit 56 and a document operation information DB 58. The document operation information management unit 56 collects the document operation information transmitted from each of the clients 120a and 120b via the server processing unit 50 and stores it in the document operation information DB 58. The document operation information DB 58 stores the collected document operation information as an entry. Further, the document operation information management unit 56 extracts and formats the document operation information stored in the document operation information DB 58 in response to an acquisition request from the client processing unit 40 of the authenticated client 120 as necessary. Then, it can be provided to the client 120 via the server processing unit 50. In the present embodiment, the document operation information management unit 56 and the document operation information DB 58 operate as a document registration unit in an integrated manner.

  FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of the data structure of the document management table stored and managed in the document operation information DB 58. Each table illustrated in FIG. 5 illustrates an example acquired at the time [200x-x-01 22:00:00]. FIG. 5A shows an example of the data structure of the document operation information table 210 in which document operation information is entered. The document operation information table 210 shown in FIG. 5A includes a field 210a into which an ID is input, and a set of document operation information is registered as a record entry. FIG. 5B shows an example of the data structure of the content identification value table 220 into which content identification values are entered. The content identification value table 220 shown in FIG. 5B includes a field 220b in which a content identification value is input, a field 220a in which a content ID uniquely assigned to the content identification value is input, and a document set ID to be described later. And an input field 220c. The field 220c is empty before the document set described later is generated.

  FIG. 5C shows an example of the data structure of the document table 230 in which information related to the electronic document is entered. In the document table 230 shown in FIG. 5C, a field 230b in which the title of the electronic document is input, a field 230c in which the storage position of the electronic document is input, and a document ID uniquely assigned to the information are input. Field 230a. Note that the storage location input in the field 230c does not have to be a network global storage location information such as a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) or URN (Uniform Resource Name), and includes a local path in each client 120. May be.

  Referring to the document operation information table 210 again, the document operation information table 210 receives, for each record, a field 210c in which the date and time at the start of the operation is input and the content ID of the content identification value calculated at the start of the operation. Field 210d, a field 210e to which the date and time at the end of the operation are input, and a field 210f to which the content ID of the content identification value calculated at the end of the operation is input. A set is entered in the record. Each record of the document operation information table 210 further includes a field 210b in which the document ID of the electronic document in which the operation has been performed is input, and a field 210g in which the user ID of the person who performs the operation is input. Composed. The ID, content ID, document ID, and user ID are used as primary keys for uniquely identifying entries in each table of the database and referring to data in the database.

  Referring to FIG. 3 again, the server 110 further includes a document set management unit 60, a document set DB 62, a document set generation unit 64, and a document set update unit 66. The document set DB 62 registers a group of electronic documents including the same document and derived documents as a document set. In response to a given schedule, an external command from an administrator, a new accumulation amount in the document operation information DB 58, etc., the document set management unit 60 sends a document to the document set generation unit 64 and the document set update unit 66. It instructs the execution of new generation processing and update processing of a document set registered in the set DB 62. The document set management unit 60 also extracts and formats the document set information stored in the document set DB 62 in response to an acquisition request from the client processing unit 40 of the authenticated client 120 as necessary. Thus, it can be provided to the client 120 via the server processing unit 50.

  The document set generation unit 64 refers to an entry of unprocessed document operation information collected from each client 120 and accumulated in the document operation information DB 58, and first associates a set of content identification values included in the document operation information. A new document set is generated and registered in the document set DB 62. When there are a plurality of new document sets having the same content identification value in the generated new document set, the document set generation unit 64 integrates these new document sets to form a larger document set. Each new document set is assigned a unique document set ID. Further, the document set generation unit 64 adds up the number of content identification values of the document set, the number of users related to the document set, and the like for the newly generated document set, and generates management data. The document set generation unit 64 can also update the table that associates the user ID of the user associated with the content identification value constituting the new document set with respect to the new document set, and register the table in the document set DB 62.

  The document set update unit 66 refers to the document operation information DB 58 and the document set DB 62, searches for a plurality of document sets having the same content identification value for the entire document set, integrates these one document set, Reassign a document set ID to be identified for each document set to be organized. The document set update unit 66 further counts the number of users related to the document set and the number of content identification values (same as the version number described later) for the entire document set, and the number of users and the content identification value. Management data including the number of files, the date and time of last update, and the like are registered in the document set DB 62. The document set update unit 66 can also update a table associating user IDs of users associated with content identification values constituting the document set for the entire document set. In the present embodiment, the document set management unit 60, the document set DB 62, the document set generation unit 64, and the document set update unit 66 operate as a document set registration unit in an integrated manner.

  Hereinafter, processing for acquiring and transmitting document operation information on the client side will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing document operation information acquisition and transmission processing executed by the client. The process illustrated in FIG. 6 is started from step S100 in response to, for example, the client 120 being activated. Hereinafter, a case where Windows (registered trademark) is used as an OS will be described as an example, but it is needless to say that an equivalent process can be realized in another OS.

  In step S101, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 acquires the title and URI of the opened electronic document (hereinafter referred to as the active document) from the currently focused active window. In the acquisition process in step S101, first, a window handle is acquired using a GetActiveWindow () function which is one of API (Application Programming Interface). Subsequently, the acquired window handle is given to the GetWindowText () function to acquire the window title as the document title. Note that although an application name may be added to the window title depending on the application, in the present embodiment, the title of the document including the application name can be used. Subsequently, the obtained window handle is given to the GetWindowThreadProcessId () function to obtain the file name and path of the software module executing the active window, and the document operation application 44 displaying the active document is displayed. Identify. Then, according to the identified document operation application, an appropriate URI acquisition process is determined and selected, and the URI of the active document is acquired. In Windows (registered trademark), if the application is compatible with the automation function described above, the URI can be suitably acquired.

  In step S102, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 determines whether or not the active document has been changed since the last determination. In the determination process in step S102, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 refers to the same data as the document operation information table 210. In the present embodiment, the document operation information DB including entries related to the client 120 will be described as being held individually by the client 120 itself. However, in another embodiment, the document operation information DB 58 on the server 110 side may be directly referred to via the client processing unit 40. Further, the document operation information table 210 on the client 120 side does not have to be input with the primary key of each table such as the document ID and the user ID, and is transmitted to the server 110 and registered at the server 110 side. Each ID may be assigned.

  In the determination process in step S102, the document title and URI of the electronic document recorded in its own document operation information DB as the last operation started are acquired, and the document title and URI of the active document acquired in step S101 are compared. To determine whether the active document has been changed. FIG. 7A illustrates the document operation information table 210 at the time [200x-x-01 14:44:56]. As shown in FIG. 7A, at the date and time [200x-x-01 14:44:56], the record with ID [2] already contains the electronic document ID [2] as the document for which the operation has started. The document (progress report.ppt) has already been recorded, while the field corresponding to the end of operation of the record is empty. When the determination in step S102 is made at the date and time [200x-x-01 14:44:56], the information of the electronic document (business trip report.doc) with the document ID [1] acquired by the processing in step S101 is Since it is different from the URI and the document title of the current active document, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 determines that the active document has been changed.

  If it is determined in step S102 that the active document has not been changed (NO), the process branches to step S107. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S102 that the active document has been changed (YES), the process branches to step S103. In step S103, the focus-out process is executed to record the end of the operation for the record in which the operation start is recorded. In the focus-out process in step S103, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 acquires the date and time of determination as the operation end date and time, and acquires content data or metadata according to the URI of the electronic document acquired in step S102. The content identification value calculation unit 48 is provided to calculate the content identification value. Then, the obtained content identification value is registered in the document operation information table 210 together with the acquired date and time as the one at the end of the operation. In the example shown in FIG. 7A, the content identification value (a40041507) is calculated from the electronic document (progress report.ppt), and the newly assigned content ID [4] is the date [200x-x-01 14: 44:56] and is recorded in the record of the document operation information table 210. At the date and time [200x-x-01 14:44:56], since the content identification value is not registered in the table 220, the content ID [4] newly assigned to the content identification value (a40041507) is assigned. Will be.

  In step S104, the client processing unit 40 determines whether or not the transmission condition of the document operation information accumulated by the client 120 itself is satisfied. The transmission conditions include, for example, that a predetermined time elapses, that the number of accumulated untransmitted records exceeds a predetermined number, and that the amount of accumulated untransmitted data exceeds a predetermined amount. However, it is not particularly limited. If it is determined in step S104 that the transmission condition is not satisfied (NO), the process branches to step S106 and proceeds to the focus-in process. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S104 that the transmission condition is satisfied (YES), the process branches to step S105. In step S105, unsent document operation information is converted into an appropriate data format such as an XML (eXtensible Markup Language) format, transmitted to the server 110, and requested for registration. On the server 110 side, the document operation information management unit 56 receives the document operation information together with the registration request and registers it in the document operation information DB 58.

  In step S106, a focus-in process is executed on the assumption that an operation for the active document is started. In the focus-in process of step S106, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 acquires the date and time of determination as the operation start date and time, and acquires content data or metadata according to the URI of the active document acquired in step S101. The content identification value calculation unit 48 is provided to calculate the content identification value. Then, the obtained content identification value is registered in the document operation information table 210 together with the document ID of the active document, the user ID, and the acquired date / time as the value at the start of the operation.

  FIG. 7B illustrates the document operation information table 210 after the focus-out process at the date and time [200x-x-01 14:44:56]. As shown in FIG. 7B, a new record with ID [3] is added by the focus-in process, and the document ID [1] of the active document (business trip report.doc) and the acquired date [200x] -x-01 14:44:56] and the content ID [2] of the content identification value at the start newly calculated from the active document are recorded in the record. In the example shown in FIG. 7B, the content identification value [020e878ff4] calculated from the electronic document (business trip report.doc) is already registered in the content identification value table 220. An entry that matches the content identification value is found, and the content ID [2] is recorded in the record.

  In step S107, the client processing unit 40 determines whether the end condition is satisfied. As the termination condition, for example, a termination signal from a user or a system can be received, but the termination condition is not particularly limited. If it is determined in step S107 that the end condition is not satisfied (NO), the process loops to step S101, and the process is repeated until the end condition is satisfied. In addition, when repeating a process, it is good also as a structure which provides a predetermined standby | waiting time and reduces processing load. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S107 that the end condition is satisfied (YES), the process proceeds to step S108.

  In step S108, the focus out process similar to that in step S103 is executed assuming that the active document has been focused out. In the focus-out process in step S108, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 acquires the date and time when the end condition is satisfied as the end date and time, and finally the electronic document recorded in its own document operation information DB as having been started. Using the URI, the content identification value is calculated, acquired as the one at the end, and recorded in the document operation information table 210. In step S109, the client processing unit 40 transmits unsent document operation information to the server 110 and requests registration. In step S110, the client processing unit 40 deletes the document operation information temporarily stored for transmission, and ends the process in step S111.

  Hereinafter, the process of generating and updating the document set on the server side will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing document collection generation and update processing executed by the server. The process illustrated in FIG. 8 is started from step S200 in response to, for example, the server 110 being activated.

  In step S201, the document set management unit 60 determines whether a start condition is satisfied. As a starting condition, as described above, the time of a given schedule has arrived, an external command from an administrator or the like has been received, and the amount of new accumulation in the document operation information DB 58 has exceeded a predetermined amount. As a condition. If it is determined in step S201 that the start condition is not satisfied (NO), the process branches to step S206, waits for a predetermined time in step S206, and the process loops to step S201.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S201 that the start condition is satisfied (YES), the process branches to step S202. In step S202, the document set management unit 60 instructs the document set update unit 66 to execute update processing of the document set registered in the document set DB 62. Upon receiving the instruction, the document set update unit 66 refers to the document operation information DB 58 and the document set DB 62, and executes document set update processing to be described later for the entire document set. In step S203, the document set management unit 60 instructs the document set generation unit 64 to execute a document set generation process. In response to the instruction, the document set update unit 66 refers to the unprocessed entries stored in the document operation information DB 58 and executes a new document set generation process to be described later. From the viewpoint of improving processing efficiency, as shown in FIG. 8, it is preferable to execute a process for updating a previously accumulated document set and then perform a process for generating a new document set. However, after the document set generation process is executed, the document set update process may be executed including the old and new.

  In step S204, the document set management unit 60 determines whether an end condition is satisfied. As the termination condition, for example, a termination signal from a user or a system can be received, but the termination condition is not particularly limited. If it is determined in step S204 that the termination condition is not satisfied (NO), the process branches to step S206, waits for a predetermined time, and the process loops to step S201. On the other hand, if it is determined that the end condition is satisfied (YES), the process branches to step S205 and the process is ended.

  Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, the details of the document set generation processing will be described first. The document set generation unit 64 of this embodiment refers to the entry of the document operation information table 210 registered in the document operation information DB 58 and generates a document set according to the following rules. The generated document set conforms to the rules defined below: (Rule 1) The document set is a set having content identification values as elements; (Rule 2) A pair of content identification values at the start and end of the operation is (Rule 3) Document sets that match one or more elements are merged to form one larger document set; (Rule 4) A document set contains two or more contents It must contain an identification value or be associated with more than one user.

  The document set generated according to the rules 1 to 4 is a set of time-sequential update documents of one electronic document, unlike a set of similar documents configured by, for example, a document classification method. In the document set, a group of electronic documents including the same document copied from one electronic document and a derived document derived by editing and processing are associated.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically illustrating how a document set is generated. FIG. 9 illustrates document pairs 260a to 260e corresponding to the entries of each record in the document operation information table 210 illustrated in FIG. Each document pair 260 is a primary document set generated according to the rule 2. Focusing on the document pair 260a corresponding to the entry of ID [1] in the document operation information table 210, the content ID at the start of the operation is [1], and the content ID at the end of the operation is [2]. On the other hand, paying attention to the document pair 260c corresponding to the entry of ID [3] in the document operation information table 210, the content ID at the start of operation and at the end of operation is [2], and the same content as the document pair 206a. Contains an identification value. Therefore, the document pair 206a and the document pair 206c are integrated according to rule 3, and constitute one new document set. Similarly, the document pair 260e also has the content ID [2], and is integrated according to the rule 3 to form one new document set together with the document pairs 206a and 206b.

  That is, when the document operation information table 210 shown in FIG. 5A is given, {1, 2}, {3, 4}, {2, 2}, {5, 6}, {2, 2} Then, the first document pair is integrated according to rule 3, and a new document set of {1, 2}, {3, 4}, {5, 6} is formed. Here, {content ID, content ID ...} represents a document set. The document set generation unit 64 assigns a unique document set ID to each new document set, and is blank before the document set is generated in the content identification value table 220 shown in FIG. In the content identification value field 220c, the set ID of the document set to which each content identification value belongs is input.

  The document set generation unit 64 further counts the number of users related to the new document set and the number of content identification values constituting the new document set, and calculates the number of users, the number of content identification values, the last update date and time, and the like. Management data including it is generated and registered in the document set DB 62. FIG. 10 shows an embodiment of a data structure of a table stored and managed in the document set DB 62. Note that each table illustrated in FIG. 10 illustrates an example acquired at the time [200x-x-01 22:00:00]. FIG. 10A shows an example of the data structure of a join table that associates content identification values with user information. The join table 240 shown in FIG. 10A can be suitably generated in order to establish a habtm (has and belongs to many) relationship between the content identification value and the user information.

  FIG. 10B shows an example of the data structure of the document set table stored and managed in the document set DB 62. The document set table 250 shown in FIG. 10B includes a field 250a in which a document set ID is input, and information on the document set is registered as a record entry. In each record of the document set table 250, a field 250b in which the number of versions corresponding to the number of content identification values included in the document set is input, a field 250c in which the number of users associated with the document set is input, the document It includes a field 250d for inputting the content ID of the latest content identification value in the set, and a field 250e for inputting the last update date and time of the document set. When a document set is first generated, the generation date / time is input as the last update date / time.

  The version number can be obtained by counting the number of content identification values constituting a new document set, excluding duplication. For example, when the document operation information table 210 shown in FIG. 5A is given, the version number [2] is set for the document set {1, 2} having the content ID [2] as the latest content identification value. Calculated. Further, the number of users is obtained by extracting the user ID associated with the content ID from the combination table shown in FIG. 10A for each document set, and counting the number of user IDs without duplication. it can. For example, for the document set {1, 2} having the content ID [2] as the latest content identification value, the number of users [2] is calculated.

  Hereinafter, the document set update processing will be further described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12. The document set updating unit 66 according to the present embodiment refers to the document operation information DB 58 and the document set DB 62, organizes the document set according to the rules 1 to 4 for the entire document set, and sets the organized document sets. On the other hand, the document set ID uniquely identified is reassigned as appropriate.

  FIG. 11 illustrates the data structure of (A) document operation information table 410, (B) content identification value table 420, and (C) document table 430. FIG. 12 illustrates the data structure of (A) the join table 440 and (B) the document collection table 450. Each table shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 10 exemplifies a table acquired at the time [200x-x-01 22:00:00], whereas each table shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. The example acquired at the time [200x-x-02 11:00:00] after that is shown. In the following description, it is assumed that the document set is generated once at the time [200x-x-01 22:00:00] and the update is instructed at the time [200x-x-02 11:00:00].

  When the document operation information table 410 shown in FIG. 11A is given, a new document set {6, 65} is newly generated by the document set generation unit 64 according to rules 1 to 4. . Since the document set {1, 2}, {3,4}, {5, 6} is already registered in the document set DB 62, the document set update unit 66 sets the new document set {6, 65} as The documents are integrated into the document set {5, 6}, and updated to {1, 2}, {3,4}, {5, 6, 65}.

  Subsequently, the document set update unit 66 recalculates the version number and the number of users from the entire document set organized by update. For example, when the document operation information table 210 shown in FIG. 11A is given, the version number [3] is set for the document set {5, 6, 65} having the content ID [65] as the latest content identification value. ] Is calculated, and the number of users [4] is calculated. Then, for the updated document set {5, 6, 65}, the last update date and time is updated to the date and time [200x-x-02 11:00:00]. Further, the document set update unit 66 also finds out the relationship between each document set ID and the user ID and updates the connection table shown in FIG.

  As described above, in the client 120, first, the document operation information acquisition unit 46 detects the start and end of the operation on the electronic document, and the detected time, the content identification value for identifying the content of the electronic document at that time, A user ID for identifying the actor performing the operation is acquired. Subsequently, the client processing unit 40 requests the server 110 to register such information. In the server 110, in response to the registration request, the document operation information management unit 56 registers the date and time, the content identification value, and the user ID in the document operation information DB 58 in association with the start and end of the operation as one set. . Then, the document set management unit 60 instructs the document set update unit 66 and the document set generation unit 64 to update and generate the document set, and first forms a document set including content identification values at the start and end, Further, document sets having the same content identification value are integrated, and a final document set associated with a group of content identification values is registered in the document set DB 62.

  Through the above-described processing, a document set that associates electronic documents that each user individually operates on the file system in each client 120 is obtained. When an operation is performed on an electronic document by each user, content identification values before and after the operation are recorded and associated according to rule 2 above. Furthermore, according to the rule 3, document sets having the same content identification value are integrated, so that electronic documents distributed to a plurality of clients 120 by e-mail or the like are organized into a group of document sets. Furthermore, even if editing processing is applied to the electronic document at the distribution destination, since the content identification values before and after the editing processing are related, the edited electronic document is also integrated into the document set including the original electronic document. Will be managed.

  As described above, in each client 120, the same document and derived documents can be managed as a group of document sets for electronic documents that are individually operated, so that the distribution state of the electronic documents can be grasped. To what extent the electronic document distributed to other users is distributed, who edited the electronic document, who viewed the electronic document, and how long it took It becomes possible to grasp. Further, in the document management system 100 according to the present embodiment, when a browsing user is newly detected for a managed electronic document or a derivative document is newly created by editing, the distribution state of the electronic document is changed. The user can be notified of the change. Hereinafter, an update notification function using a document set will be described.

  FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration related to the update notification function implemented on the server 110. The server 110 shown in FIG. 13 further includes an update notification determination unit 70, an update notification information generation unit 72, and an update notification unit 74. The update notification determination unit 70 receives a notification that the registration state of the document set has been changed from the document set generation unit 64 or the document set update unit 66, and determines whether or not an update notification needs to be performed. . The update notification information generation unit 72 refers to the document set DB 62, the document operation information DB 58, and the user information DB 54, extracts information related to the document set whose registration status has been changed, generates notification contents, and lists of notification targets Is generated.

  FIG. 15 illustrates a template that can be used when generating the announcement content. The template shown in FIG. 15A can be used for a report when a browsing by a new user is detected. The template shown in FIG. 15B can be used when reporting a summary of the viewing state of the user.

  The update notification unit 74 refers to the user information DB 54, acquires contact information such as the user's e-mail address on the notification target list related to the document set whose registration status has been changed, and sends the contact information to the contact information. Then, a notification message including the notification content in the body is transmitted. When the contact is an electronic mail address, mail transmission processing is executed for a mail server connected via the network 130 according to a mail transmission protocol such as SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol). The notification method is not limited to e-mail using the e-mail distribution system, and an instant message can be transmitted as an update notification using an instant messenger. FIG. 16 shows, as an example, the text of a mail message generated using the template shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 16, it is possible to make the summary of the browsing state known to related users.

  Hereinafter, the update notification process executed by the server will be described with reference to flowcharts. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the update notification process executed by the server. The process shown in FIG. 14 is started from step S300 in response to the server 110 being started, for example.

  In step S301, the update notification determination unit 70 determines whether or not a start condition is satisfied. As the start condition, for example, the number of users of the document set can be changed and the version number of the document set can be changed by the update processing of the document set. If it is determined in step S301 that the start condition is not satisfied (NO), the process branches to step S306, waits for a predetermined time in step S306, and the process loops to step S301.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S301 that the start condition is satisfied (YES), the process branches to step S302. In step S302, the update notification information generation unit 72 refers to the document set DB 62, the document operation information DB 58, and the user information DB 54, and generates notification contents. In step S303, the update notification unit 74 acquires a contact address from the user information DB 54, and transmits a mail message including the generated notification content to the contact address. The notification target includes all users related to the document set for which the registration status change has been notified, the user before update related to the document set, or the oldest registration date of the document set. However, it is not particularly limited.

  In step S304, the update notification determination unit 70 determines whether or not an end condition is satisfied. As the termination condition, for example, a termination signal from a user or a system can be received, but the termination condition is not particularly limited. If it is determined in step S304 that the termination condition is not satisfied (NO), the process branches to step S306, waits for a predetermined time, and the process loops to step S301. On the other hand, when it is determined that the end condition is satisfied (YES), the process is branched to step S305 and the process is ended.

  By applying the above notification process, when a new user browses an electronic document, the information to that effect can be notified to the parties concerned. This can be detected, and the security in document management can be improved. Also, when meeting materials are distributed by e-mail, it is possible to know whether or not the user of the distribution destination has viewed it, that is, which user has not yet viewed it. It is also possible to determine whether or not prior knowledge is shared. Note that. Needless to say, the start conditions and the selection of contact information can be appropriately set according to the purpose of use of the document management system.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, for the electronic documents used on the file system accessible by each information processing apparatus, the same document and the derived document are managed as a group of document sets, and the document It is possible to provide a document management system, a server device, a client device, a document management method, a program, and a recording medium that make it possible to easily grasp the distribution state of the document. In addition, it is possible to detect a change in the distribution state of a document and to publicize the distribution state of the document, or to suitably reduce the probability that the same document or a derived document will overflow against the intention of the document creator. Document management system, server device, client device, document management method, program, and recording medium can be provided.

  The above functions can be realized by computer-executable programs written in legacy programming languages such as assembler, C, C ++, C #, Java (registered trademark), object-oriented programming languages, and the like, such as ROM, EEPROM, EPROM, It can be stored in a device-readable recording medium such as flash memory, flexible disk, CD-ROM, CD-RW, DVD, SD card, MO, and distributed.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described so far, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and those skilled in the art may conceive other embodiments, additions, modifications, deletions, and the like. It can be changed within the range that can be done, and any embodiment is included in the scope of the present invention as long as the effects of the present invention are exhibited.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a document management system. The figure which shows embodiment of the hardware constitutions of a server. The block diagram which shows the function structure implement | achieved on the client and server of this embodiment. (A) The figure which shows an example of the GUI screen displayed on the screen of a display apparatus, (B) The figure which shows the data structure of a user information table as an example. The figure which shows the 1st example of the data structure of (A) document operation information table, (B) content identification value table, and (C) document table. 6 is a flowchart showing document operation information acquisition and transmission processing according to the present embodiment. The figure which shows embodiment of the data structure of a document management table. 6 is a flowchart showing document set generation and update processing according to the embodiment. The figure which shows a mode that a document set is produced | generated typically. The figure which shows embodiment of the data structure of the table accumulate | stored and managed in document collection DB. The figure which shows the 2nd example of the data structure of (A) document operation information table, (B) content identification value table, and (C) document table. The figure which illustrates the data structure of (A) a joint table and (B) document collection table. The block diagram which shows the function structure relevant to the update notification function implement | achieved on the server of this embodiment. The flowchart which shows the update notification process of this embodiment. The figure which illustrates the template which can be used when producing | generating notification content. The figure which shows the text of a mail message as an example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 ... MPU, 14 ... Non-volatile memory, 16 ... Memory, 18 ... Storage control interface, 20 ... Storage device, 22 ... Internal bus, 24 ... Interface, 26 ... Input / output device, 28 ... VRAM, 30 ... Graphic chip , 32 ... Display device, 34 ... NIC, 40 ... Client processing unit, 42 ... User information acquisition unit, 44 ... Document operation application, 46 ... Document operation information acquisition unit, 48 ... Content identification value calculation unit, 50 ... Server processing unit 52 ... User authentication unit, 54 ... User information DB, 56 ... Document operation information management unit, 58 ... Document operation information DB, 60 ... Document set management unit, 62 ... Document set DB, 64 ... Document set generation unit, 66 ... Document set update unit, 70 ... update notification determination unit, 72 ... update notification information generation unit, 74 ... update notification unit, 100 ... document management system, 110 ... 120, client, 130, network, 200, user information table, 210, 410 ... document operation information table, 220, 420 ... content identification value table, 230, 430 ... document table, 240, 440 ... combined table, 250 , 450 ... Document collection table, 260 ... Document pair, 300 ... GUI screen, 302, 304 ... Text box, 306 ... Send button, 308 ... Cancel button

Claims (18)

A document management system,
A calculation means for calculating a content identification value for identifying the content of the document;
An acquisition means for detecting the start and end of an operation on a document, and acquiring the detection time, the content identification value of the document at the time of detection, and a user identification value for identifying an actor of the operation;
Document registration means for registering the time, the content identification value, and the user identification value in association with each other, with the start of the operation and the end of the operation as one set,
A document management system comprising: a document set registration unit that refers to the document registration unit, integrates a set including the same content identification value, and registers the set as a document set associated with a plurality of content identification values.   The document management system further comprises notification means for detecting a change in the configuration of the document set and notifying the contact associated with the user identification value associated with the document set of the change in the document set. The document management system according to claim 1, further comprising:   The acquisition means acquires the storage position of the document currently being operated from an application for processing the document, compares the stored position with the storage position of the document recorded as the operation started, and operates from the difference between them. The document management system according to claim 1, wherein the document management system detects that the target document has been changed.   The acquisition unit detects a change of the operation target, records the end of the operation recorded on the document recorded as the operation started, and records the start of the operation on the currently operated document. Item 4. The document management system according to Item 3. A client device that communicates with a server device that manages documents via a network,
A calculation means for calculating a content identification value for identifying the content of the document;
An acquisition means for detecting the start and end of an operation on a document, and acquiring the detection time, the content identification value of the document at the time of detection, and a user identification value for identifying an actor of the operation;
A client apparatus comprising: a registration request unit that requests the server apparatus to perform registration by associating the acquired time, the content identification value, and the user identification value, with the start of the operation and the end of the operation as one set .   The acquisition means acquires the storage position of the document currently being operated from an application for processing the document, compares the stored position with the storage position of the document recorded as the operation started, and operates from the difference between them. The client apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the client apparatus detects that a target document has been changed.   The acquisition unit detects a change of the operation target, records the end of the operation recorded on the document recorded as the operation started, and records the start of the operation on the currently operated document. Item 7. The client device according to Item 6.   The client device according to claim 5, wherein the calculation unit calculates a content value of a document or a hash value of metadata including bibliographic information and update date / time of the document as the content identification value. A document management server device that communicates with a client device via a network,
The start time, the content identification value for identifying the content of the document at the start time, and the end time, which are received together with the registration request from the client device as a set of the start and end of the operation on the document. Document registration means for registering the content identification value at the end and a user identification value for identifying the actor of the operation in association with each other;
A server apparatus comprising: a document set registration unit that refers to the document registration unit, integrates a set including the same content identification value, and registers the set as a document set associated with a plurality of content identification values.   The server device further includes notification means for detecting a change in the configuration of the document set and notifying the contact associated with the user identification value associated with the document set of the change in the document set. The server device according to claim 9, comprising:   The server device according to claim 10, wherein, when a new user identification value is associated with the document set, the notification unit notifies the change of the document set.   The server device according to claim 11, wherein the contact address associated with the user identification value is an e-mail address, and the notification unit notifies the change of the document set by an e-mail transmission process. A document management method executed between a client device and a server device connected via a network,
The client device detects the start and end of the operation on the document, and acquires the detection time, the content identification value for identifying the content of the document at the time of detection, and the user identification value for identifying the actor of the operation When,
A server device, registering the time, the content identification value, and the user identification value in association with each other, with the start of the operation and the end of the operation as one set;
A server device integrating the set including the same registered content identification value and registering it as a document set associated with a plurality of content identification values. A document management method executed by a client device that communicates with a server device that performs document management via a network, the client device comprising:
Detecting the start and end of an operation on a document, obtaining a detection time, a content identification value identifying the content of the document at the time of detection, and a user identification value identifying an actor of the operation;
The document management for executing the step of requesting registration to the server device by associating the acquired time, the content identification value and the user identification value, with the start of the operation and the end of the operation as one set Method. A document management method executed by a server device communicating with a client device via a network, wherein the server device
In response to a document registration request from the client device, the start time of the operation and the end of the operation as one set, the start time, a content identification value for identifying the content of the document at the start, Registering the end time, the content identification value at the end, and the user identification value identifying the actor of the operation in association with each other;
Integrating the registered sets including the same content identification values and registering them as a document set in which a plurality of content identification values are associated with each other.   A device-executable program for causing a client device to function as each unit according to any one of claims 5 to 8.   A device-executable program for causing a server device to function as each unit according to any one of claims 9 to 12.   A recording medium for storing the program according to claim 16 in a device-readable manner.

Images