JP2001184364A - System and method for input processing of information - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the operability of an information input processing system to be used for a sales activity supporting system or the like. SOLUTION: The plural versions of a schemer can be handled and further, required fields can be added when inputting data. Thus, a data entry person can prepare a field corresponding to a job to change contents with the passage of time.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information input processing system and an information input processing method used in a knowledge management system such as a sales activity support system and other information systems.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art First, prior art related to the present invention will be described. The relationship between the technology described here and the technology disclosed in the present invention is not a competitive relationship. The technology disclosed in the present invention has a relationship in which the technology described here is used as an element technology in order to solve a problem of an information system described later. A) Dedicated Applications Many conventional information systems have been built using this dedicated application technology. By creating an information input method suitable for a specific job,
Refers to the technology for building information input systems. The field names for input and display are designed in advance before the system is constructed, support the input operation by a dedicated input interface screen assuming the input operation, and have an output function of a form required for the operation.

[0003] For example, a technology in which a large computer vendor develops an application exclusively for the business of a large company class customer company and operates the system is applicable here. In another example, a technology for developing a form business common to many small and medium-sized businesses as package software is also applicable here. B) Form of WWW Page Realization of an information input interface using a form of a WWW page is widely used as one of recent Internet technologies. The logical component of the input screen is H
By specifying the form as a TML form, an actual input screen is realized on a WWW browser.

Although the development cost of the input interface is somewhat reduced and the versatility is improved, it is superior to the A method, but the other points as an information system (accumulation / search / print) are different from the A method. There is no. C) Metadata technology Metadata technology has been proposed for the purpose of improving the use efficiency of data overflowing on the Internet, and standards are currently being standardized by related organizations. RDF (Resou
rce Description Framework
k) defines the data model and the external representation for distributing it (XML is responsible for this), and provides a means to give a unified representation to data on the Internet.
The aim is to enable the effective use of data and the distribution of data between different organizations.

[0005] For example, an in-house dedicated system constructed by the A method or the B method cannot directly distribute and cooperate data across companies, but metadata technology provides a means for realizing it at a reasonable remodeling cost. Can be.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention aims to comprehensively solve the following problems in an information input system. (P-1) A problem that an inappropriate input schema is continuously used because the business content changes every moment. (P-2) The problem of high input cost. (P-3) The problem that appropriate data is not entered in the input field (the meaning of the field is misunderstood by the input person).

[0007] A system according to the prior art A system or B system,
In particular, in a system based on the A method, it is difficult to change the types and roles (schema) of items constituting data records handled in the information system. This is because it was developed assuming a specific task, so as to exhibit a predetermined performance in the task, and it is natural for the purpose.
However, competition between companies in recent economic activities is intense, and finding the information to collect, especially in a sales support system, is often the key to competition. In such operations where details change every moment,
If the schema is fixed, it will be different from the actual business situation, and there will be situations where it is necessary to make ad hoc operations such as temporarily using a certain field in another sense. This not only can cause various troubles, but also leads to a decrease in work efficiency. Therefore, the problem caused by the fixed schema is described as (p-1).

Although common to each of the prior arts A, B, and C, the interface for inputting information often has only a field name and a text box. This has the advantage of lower interface development costs. Further, there is an advantage that the versatility is high and the above-mentioned “ad-hoc operation” is easily performed. However, grasping the meaning of the field from the field name and converting an event to be input into appropriate text information requires a considerable cost. Then, the above-mentioned subject (p-2) was mentioned.

A particularly common interface in the prior art B scheme is a pull-down list. This is an interface in which when a certain part of a specific field is designated with a mouse or the like, candidates to be entered there appear as a list, and input can be performed by simply selecting an appropriate candidate. Pull-down lists reduce input costs, but increase the cost of preparing their contents. In particular, issues (p-
In connection with 1), this is a part created depending on the specific task, and in that sense, simultaneous solution of (p-1) and (p-2) is an issue.

In the information input interface using the field name and the text box described above, in addition to the task (p-2), the input person misunderstands data to be input in the field and inputs inappropriate data. Problems can arise. This problem does not become noticeable in jobs with little change, but changes in jobs, especially issues (p.
In a business or the like that performs “ad-hoc operation” related to -1), the drawback that the input data room is reduced becomes prominent. Then, the subject (p-3) was mentioned.

[0011]

The information input system according to the present invention is configured as shown in FIG.

A schema storage unit 1 and a data storage unit 2 are prepared as storage system components. The schema storage 1 stores logical design information (schema) of the information input interface, that is, a list of field names, types of each field, and the like. The schema storage 1 further stores a plurality of schemas by pairing the time and the schema so that the version management of the schemas becomes possible. At this time, the correspondence between fields of different versions of the schema is also stored. Also, a plurality of data to be input to the field are stored. The data storage 2 stores business data and the like input through the information input interface. The data of all fields is stored as a set with the version information of the schema used for input.

Although the external configuration shown in FIG. 1 is not different from the existing database system, the present invention is novel in that the schema storage 1 can store different versions of schema. The method of storing schema information excluding version control is RD
The expression method is given by F.

A schema management unit 3 and a data management unit 4 are prepared as system components for providing various management functions in addition to the storage unit. The schema management unit 3 provides management functions for the schema storage 1, such as changing / registering a schema and acquiring an arbitrary version of a schema using a time key. Further, a function for designating a relationship such as the same, part, or inclusion between fields of different versions of a schema, and data input to a specific field / data deemed to have been input (by interpreting the relationship) from the data storage 2. It provides a selection function and a function to reference and display the selected data for reference in schema design (such as inclusion in input candidates). The data management unit 4 acquires a valid schema from the schema storage unit 1 and provides a management function for the data storage unit 2 mainly with an information input function such as displaying the schema as an information input interface. Further, a function of updating a schema of the schema storage 1 by adding a missing field to the schema is provided.

The information input system according to the present invention, in addition to the above, satisfies the above configuration requirements, and furthermore, the data management unit 4
May be configured to have a function of selecting, from the data storage 2, data that can be regarded as being input into a specific field / (by interpreting the relationship).

The information input system of the present invention can handle a plurality of schema versions by the schema storage 1 and the schema management unit 3, and the data management unit 4 adds necessary fields at the time of data input. Is possible, the data input person can prepare a field corresponding to the business whose contents change every moment. This solves the problem (p-1) of continuing to use a schema that has become inappropriate due to a change in business content.

When the input user is given the authority to freely add fields as described above, generally, schema consistency (management of correspondence between fields in different schemas, completeness of field configuration in a certain schema) cannot be maintained. The problem occurs. The present invention provides two solutions.

1) The information input person who added the field can update the schema after a while from the time of the addition (for example, when a free time for business is created). Examples of the schema update include, for example, assignment of a correspondence with a field of a conventional schema, setting of a field input candidate, addition of a missing field, and deletion of an extra field.

2) The actually input data can be statistically processed to automatically assign a correspondence with a conventional schema. The schema designer or the information input user performs schema management with reference to the automatically given relationship.

Since the schema storage unit 1 can hold the input candidates of each field, the input cost can be reduced, and the problem (p-2) can be solved. In addition, the presence of additional information such as an input candidate list in addition to the field name prevents a situation in which the meaning of the field is misunderstood and inappropriate data is input.
Solve 3).

In order for the above input candidates to exhibit a better effect, it is necessary that high quality input candidates be constantly maintained. In this case, there arises a problem that a schema administrator generally needs a considerable amount of candidate setting costs. In order to solve this problem, the present invention provides the following solution. Data input to a certain field is selected and displayed, and data to be input candidates are selected and set from them. At the time of display, clustering can be performed so that data considered to be the same is not displayed repeatedly. As a result, it is possible to prepare a high input candidate at a low cost as compared with a case where no candidates are given from a state where nothing exists.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Schema storage 1 in FIG.
FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 11 show examples of the internal configurations of the data storage 2, the schema management unit 3, and the data management unit 4, respectively.

The schema storage 1 shown in FIG. 2 comprises a schema storage unit 10, a history unit 11, a relation unit 12, and a candidate unit 13. The schema storage unit 10 stores an element having a structure of (sid, schema). “Sid” means a schema identifier, and the schema means a structure including a field name and its additional information. FIG. 15 shows an example of the schema. FIG. 15 shows an example of a daily business report schema. The history unit 11 stores an element having a structure of (time, sid). The time means the time when the schema indicated by sid was registered and updated. The relation unit 12 ((sid1,
ld1, sid2, field2, type of relationship). The schemas sid1 and sid2 are different. "Field1", "field
2 "means one of the field names defined in the schemas sid1 and sid2, respectively.
1: means the relationship from field1 to sid2: field2, "identical", "part", "inclusion", "causal",
Has a value such as "Other". The candidate unit 13 determines (sid, f
field, candidate list).
The candidate list means a list of data to be input candidates for sid: field.

Schema storage 1 in schema storage 1
FIG. 16 shows an example of the storage of various types of information in 0, the history unit 11, the relation unit 12, and the candidate unit 13.

The data storage 2 shown in FIG. 3 comprises a field section 14 and a data section 15. Field part 14
Stores an element having a structure of (fid, side, field). "Fid" means a field identifier. “Sid” and “field” have the same meaning as in the schema storage 1. The data section 15 has (ri
d, fid, data). "
“rid” means a record identifier.
Means the data entered in the field.

FIG. 17 shows an example of storing various types of information in the field section 14 and the data section 15 in the data storage 2.

The schema management section 3 shown in FIG. 4 includes a schema search section 16, a schema registration section 17, a field relation registration section 18, a field candidate registration section 19, a data selection section 20,
It comprises a data clustering unit 21. FIG. 5 shows a processing flow of the schema search unit 16, FIG. 6 shows a processing flow of the schema registration unit 17, FIG. 7 shows a processing flow of the field relation registration unit 18, and FIG. 7 shows a processing flow of the field candidate registration unit 19. 8, the processing flow of the data selection unit 20 is shown in FIG. 9, and the processing flow of the data clustering unit 21 is shown in FIG. The detailed processing flow of each unit will be described below. [Schema Search Process in Schema Search Unit 16 (FIG. 5)] In step 1 (S1), a search query is received from outside. (Hereinafter, steps are described as S.) In S2, it is determined whether or not the question is at a designated time.

If it is the designated time, the sid is obtained by referring to the history section 11 of the schema storage in S3. further,
In S4, the schema is acquired with reference to the schema storage unit 10 of the schema storage.

If it is not the designated time in S2, it is determined in S5 whether the question is the designated sid. Specified sid
If so, the process proceeds to S4. [Schema Registration Process in Schema Registration Unit 17 (FIG. 6)] In S10, a schema search question is received from the outside.

In step S11, a schema search is performed.

In S12, it is determined whether or not the schema acquisition is successful.

If the schema acquisition is successful, the schema acquired by the search is displayed on the schema input screen in S13.

At S14, a schema is input from the schema input screen.

At S15, an unassigned sid is generated and registered in the schema storage unit 10 together with the input schema.
The history is registered in the history unit 11.

If the schema acquisition is not successful in S12, the process proceeds to S14 and S15. [Field Relationship Registration Processing in Field Relationship Registration Unit 18 (FIG. 7)] In S20, a schema search question 1 is received from outside.
Receive.

In step S21, a schema search is performed.

In S22, it is determined whether or not schema 1 has been successfully acquired.

When the acquisition of the schema 1 is successful, S23
Displays the schema 1 acquired by the search on the schema relation registration screen.

In step S24, a search query 2 is received from the outside.

In step S25, a schema search is performed.

In S26, it is determined whether or not the acquisition of the schema 2 has been successful.

If the acquisition of schema 2 is successful, S27
Displays the schema 2 obtained from the search on the schema relation registration screen.

In step S28, a field for registering a relationship through the schema relationship registration screen and a type of the relationship are received.

In S29, the related information is registered in the related section 12. [Field Candidate Registration Process in Field Candidate Registration Unit 19 (FIG. 8)] In S30, a schema search question is received from outside.

In step S31, a schema search is performed.

In S32, it is determined whether or not the schema acquisition has succeeded.

If the schema acquisition is successful, the acquired schema is displayed on the field candidate registration screen in S33.

In step S34, a field for field candidate registration is received through the field candidate registration screen.

At S35, data selection is performed.

In S36, data clustering is performed.

In step S37, the result data of the above process and the registered candidates are displayed on the field candidate registration screen.

At S38, field candidates are received through the field candidate registration screen.

In step S39, field candidates are registered in the candidate section 13. [Data sorting process in data sorting unit 20 (FIG. 9)]
In S40, sid and field are received from the outside.

In step S41, a related field is acquired as a list of tuples (sid, field) by referring to the relation unit 12.

In S42, F = first element of the tuple list D = Φ is set. (Note: Φ (phi) means “empty”.) In S43, the data stored in F is acquired by referring to the field part 14 and the data part 15 of the data storage, and D
Add to

In step S44, F = the next element of the tuple list is set.

In S45, it is determined whether or not F is empty. If F is not empty, the process proceeds to S43. If F is empty, D is returned and the processing ends. [Data Clustering Process in Data Clustering Unit 21 (FIG. 10)] In S50, data is received from the outside and is set to D.

At S51, any elements d1, d included in D
The degree of similarity sim (d1, d2) is defined for 2.

At S52, a divided structure of D is generated by the existing clustering method.

In S53, one representative data is determined for each division (= cluster) and set as a set T.

The data management section 4 shown in FIG. 11 comprises a data input section 22, a field addition section 23, and a data selection section 24. FIG. 12 shows a processing flow of the data input unit 22, FIG. 13 shows a processing flow of the field addition unit 23, and FIG. 14 shows a processing flow of the data selection unit 24. The detailed processing flow of each unit will be described below. [Data Input Processing in Data Input Unit 22 (FIG. 1)
2)] In S60, the sid of the latest schema is acquired from the history unit 11 of the schema storage.

In S61, a schema corresponding to sid is acquired from the schema storage unit 10 of the schema storage, and all the field names included in the schema are set to a set F.

In S62, candidates for each element of the set F are obtained from the candidate section 13 of the schema storage.

In S63, the field name, the input field,
The input candidates (if any) are displayed on the information input screen.

In S64, data is obtained through the information input screen.

In step S65, the field unit 14 of the data storage unit
Thus, for each element of the set F, (sid, fi
eld).

In S66, it is determined whether or not the acquisition of the fid is successful.

If the acquisition of the fid is successful, a record identifier rid which is not duplicated with the others is generated in S67, and (rid, fid, data) for each element of the set F is stored in the data section 15 of the data storage. register.

If the acquisition of fid is not successful in S66, S
The process proceeds to 67, where (sid, field) is registered in the field section 14 of the data storage together with the new fid. Thereafter, the flow shifts to S68. [Field Addition Process in Field Addition Unit 23 (FIG. 13)] In S70, the sid of the latest schema is acquired from the history unit 11 of the schema storage.

At S71, the schema is displayed on the field addition screen.

At S72, a field name to be added is obtained through the field addition screen.

At S73, a field name to be added and an input candidate (if any) are obtained through the field addition screen.

At S74, the schema storage unit 10, history unit 11, and candidate unit 13 of the schema storage are updated.

In S75, data is input. [Data sorting process in data sorting unit 24 (FIG. 1)
4)] Sid and field are received from outside in S80.

In step S81, a list of related fields and tuples (sid, field) is obtained by referring to the relation unit 12.

In S82, F = first element of tuple list D = Φ is set.

At S83, the field portion 14 of the data storage device
The data stored in F is acquired with reference to the data section 15 and added to D.

At S84, F is set to the next element of the tuple list.

In S85, it is determined whether or not F is empty. If F is not empty, the flow shifts to S83. If F is empty, return D and end.

Next, an example of storing various information in the schema storage 1 is shown in FIG. FIG. 16A shows the schema storage unit 1
3, FIG. 16B shows an example of storage in the history unit 11,
FIG. 16C shows an example of storage in the relation unit 12, and FIG. 16D shows an example of storage in the candidate unit 13.

FIG. 17 shows an example of storing various information in the data storage 2. FIG. 17A shows an example of storage in the field section 14, and FIG. 17B shows an example of storage in the data section 15.

Next, the schema management unit 3 and the data management unit 4
A specific operation example will be described.

FIG. 18 shows an operation example of the schema search unit 16 in the schema management unit 3. A) When the search question is time (1) A question "the latest schema as of 21:08 on September 7, 1999" is given.

(2) Referring to the history section 11 of the schema storage, “the schema of sid: 2 is updated at 8/26
4:32:00 PM latest data "is obtained.

(3) Schema storage unit 1 of schema storage
0.

(4) As return values, data of (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, purpose of visit, person in charge, delivery date, etc.) is obtained. B) When the search question is a schema ID (sid) (1) A question “sid: 1 schema” is given.

(2) Schema storage unit 1 of schema storage
0.

(3) As return values, data of (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, purpose of visit, person in charge, etc.) is obtained.

FIG. 19 shows an operation example of the schema registration unit 17 in the schema management unit 3. -When adding a field to the latest existing schema (1) The question "The latest schema as of 21:08 on September 7, 1999" is given.

(2) A schema is obtained by a schema search.

(3) Data of (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, purpose of visit, person in charge, delivery date, etc.) is obtained.

(4) Display a schema input screen using the above schema as default data.

(Input screen such as the table of the schema storage unit in FIG. 16A described above) (5) (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, visit purpose, person in charge, delivery date, notes, Other) data.

(6) Unassigned sid: 3 is assigned to the schema, and the schema storage unit 10 of the schema storage unit
To accumulate. Also, 19 in the history unit 11 of the schema storage
Sid: 3 is registered at 21:09 on September 7, 1999.

FIG. 20 shows an operation example of the field relationship registration unit 18 in the schema management unit 3. When registering the field relation of the sid: 3 schema added earlier (1) Question 1 is given, "The latest schema as of 21:08 on September 7, 1999".

(2) The schema (si
d: 2) is obtained.

(3) Data of (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, visit purpose, person in charge, delivery date, etc.) is obtained.

(4) The schema sid: 3 is displayed on the screen.

(5) The question 2 "Sid: 3 schema" is given.

(6) The schema (si
d: 3) is obtained.

(7) Data of (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, visit purpose, person in charge, delivery date, notes, etc.) can be obtained.

(8) The schema sid: 3 is displayed on the screen.

(9) A set of fields and a type of relation are input from the schema relation registration screen.

(Input on an input screen like the table of the related part in FIG. 16C) (10) (2, id, 3, id, same), (2, date,
3, date, same),. . . , (2, delivery date, 3, delivery date, same), (2, other 3, attention, derivation), (2, other 3, other, derivation) are input.

(11) Register in the related part 12 of the schema storage.

FIG. 21 shows an operation example of the field candidate registration unit 19 in the schema management unit 3. -When registering a field candidate with respect to an existing schema (1) A question "The latest schema at 14:33 on September 8, 1999" is given.

(2) Schema (si)
d: 3) is obtained.

(3) Data of (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, visit purpose, person in charge, delivery date, notes, etc.) is obtained.

(4) The schema sid: 3 is displayed on the screen.

(5) A field for inputting a candidate is input from the field candidate registration screen.

(6) Input notes.

(7) By data selection and data clustering, candidate values of field candidates are obtained.

(8) The data of "The delivery date is tight. Order early."

(9) Display the acquired values on the screen.

(10) A field candidate is input from the field candidate registration screen with reference to display information.

(11) Data of “There is a holiday before delivery date” is input.

(12) Register in the candidate section 13 of the schema storage section.

(13) (3, precautions, holiday before delivery date) are registered.

FIG. 22 shows an operation example of the data selection unit 20 in the schema management unit 3. -When performing data selection in FIG. 21 (1) As data selection conditions from outside, "sid: 3,
field: notes ".

(2) The related field is acquired from the related part 12 of the schema storage.

(3) ((2, other), (1, other)) is obtained.

(4) Initialize variables. Here F =
(2, other), D = Φ.

(5) Field section 14 of data storage,
Data is acquired with reference to the data section 15.

(6) D = ("", "", "", "", "
Public holiday notice ").

(7) F = (1, other) is set.

(8) The field part 14,
Data is acquired with reference to the data section 15.

(9) D = ("", "", "", "", "
Holiday notices ","","","",""," Delivery time is tight. Order early. ”).

(10) F = 0 is set.

Since F is empty, D is returned.

(11) ("", "", "", "", "attention of holiday", "", "", "", "", "Delivery time is tight.
Order early. ") Data is returned.

FIG. 23 shows an operation example of the data clustering unit 21 in the schema management unit 3. -When performing data clustering in FIG. 21 (1) As input data, D = ("", "", "", "", "attention of holiday", "", "", "", "", "delivery date Is tight. Order early. ") Is entered.

(It is assumed that the implementation takes the number of matching characters as the similarity sim (d1, d2).) (2) D is divided using the defined similarity and using the existing clustering method.

(There are many specific methods and the procedure is complicated, so the description is omitted.) (3) As an example, (｛””, “”, “”, “”, “”, “”, “”, ""
｝, ｛“Notes on holidays”｝, ｛“Delivery time is tight. Order early.”｝) Divided structure is obtained.

(4) Representative data is determined for each division and stored in the set T.

(5) T = (“Holiday attention”, “delivery time is tight. Order early”) is obtained.

(Null characters are meaningless and are therefore excluded.) (6) Return T and terminate.

(7) The return value is ("Holiday notice", "Delivery time is tight. Order early.").

FIG. 24 shows an operation example of the data input section 22 in the data management section 4. -When adding records using the latest schema (1) Acquire sid: 3 of the latest schema from the history unit 11 of the schema storage. (September 8, 1999 15:
32) (2) Acquire the specified schema from the schema storage unit 10 of the schema storage.

(3) Data of (id, date, contents, negotiation name, customer name, visit purpose, person in charge, delivery date, notes, etc.) is obtained.

(4) Set all field names in the set F.

(5) Obtain candidates for each element of the set F from the candidate section 13 of the schema storage.

(6) At this time, the relevant part 1 of the schema storage
The related field is also acquired using the information of item 2.

(7) The acquired values are as follows, for example.

(｛｝, ｛｝, ｛｝ Product introduction, composition proposal, prototype introduction, improvement discussion, estimate submission｝, ｛｝, ｛SC
Co., Ltd., FJ Co., Ltd., FJ Lab. Co., Ltd., advertising, proposal, greeting, thanks, advice, explanation, Shakawa, Takamura, Nakayama,
Sekine, {1W, 2W, 3W, 1M, 2M, 3M},
休 日 Holiday before delivery date｝, ｛｝) (8) Configure the information input screen from the above information and acquire the data.

(9) Obtained values are omitted here. (Fi
It is assumed that all acquisitions have been successful. ) (10) New ri
At d: 11, the acquired data is registered in the data section 15 of the data storage.

FIG. 25 shows an operation example of the field adding section 23 in the data management section 4. In the case where a field equivalent to that in FIG. 19 is added (1) The question "the latest schema as of September 21, 1999 at 21:00" is input.

(2) Schema (si)
d: 2) is obtained.

The obtained values are (id, date, contents, negotiation name,
Customer name, visit purpose, person in charge, delivery date, etc.).

(3) The above schema is displayed on the field addition screen.

(4) From the screen, additional fields (and
If there is any, input).

"Caution" is an input value.

(5) Unassigned sid: 3 is assigned to the schema, and the schema storage unit 10 of the schema storage unit
To accumulate.

(6) 19 is stored in the history section 11 of the schema storage.
Sid: 3 is registered at 21:09 on September 7, 1999.

(7) When an input candidate is input, it is registered in the candidate section 13 of the schema storage.

FIG. 26 shows an example of the operation of the data selection unit 24 in the data management unit 4. When performing data selection as shown in FIG. 21 (1) As data selection conditions, “sid: 3, field
d: notes ".

(2) The related field is acquired from the related section 12 of the schema storage.

As the acquired values, ((2, other), (1,
Others)) are obtained.

(3) Initialize variables. F = (2, other) and D = Φ.

(4) Field section 14 of data storage,
Data is acquired with reference to the data section 15.

D = ("", "", "", "", "attention on holiday") is obtained.

(5) F = (1, other).

(6) Field section 14 of data storage,
Data is acquired with reference to the data section 15.

D = ("", "", "", "", "attention of holiday", "", "", "", "", "delivery time is tight. Order early.") .

(7) F = Φ is set.

Since F is empty, D is returned.

The return value is ("", "", "", "", "
Holiday notices ","","","",""," Delivery time is tight. Order early. [Type of User] There are two types of users in the information input system of the present invention (see FIG. 1). (A) Administrator user: A system administrator or the like resident in an office in the company (The user shown on the left side of FIG. 1) (b) End user: A user who conducts sales activities outside the company and accesses with a form terminal etc. (the user shown on the right side of FIG. 1) [Work of each user Types of Information Input System Providing Services Used in the above] Each of the above-mentioned users roughly performs the following tasks: ・ Administrator user's tasks: (a-1) System introduction task: Performs the processing from FIG. 19 to FIG. .

Consider what kind of information should be input, and design a specific schema.

(A-2) System maintenance work:
FIG. 18 → FIG. 19 → FIG. 20 (→ FIG. 22 → FIG. 23) → FIG.
Is performed.

After investigating the problems of the existing schema, the redesigned schema is input, and the relationship with the existing schema is specified. Observe recent input data and register frequent input items as candidates. -End user work: (b-1) Data input work: FIG. 18 → FIG. 24 (→ FIG. 2)
Step 5) is performed.

A data input operation is performed in a short time outside the company. Add fields as needed.

(B-2) Information reference business: FIG. 18 → FIG.
6 is performed.

The input data is referred to.

(B-3) Maintenance work: FIG. 18 →
The processing from FIG. 20 to FIG. 21 is performed.

When the field extension is performed in the above (b-1), the relation with the existing schema is specified in the office after returning to the office. Register candidates that you frequently enter.

The overall flow of each task of the above-mentioned administrator user and end user will be described with reference to FIGS.

In the overall flow (1) of FIG. 27, if the user is an administrator user (S101), the entire flow (2) (FIG. 28) is processed in S102. If the user is an end user (S103), the entire flow (3) (FIG. 29) is processed in S104.

In the overall flow (2) of FIG. 28 (the flow of the administrator user), the system introduction work is performed (S
201), the entire flow (4) (FIG. 30) is processed in S202. When performing system maintenance work (S20
3) In S204, the entire flow (5) (FIG. 31) is processed.

In the overall flow (3) of FIG. 29 (end user flow), a case where a data entry operation is performed (S3
01), the entire flow (6) (FIG. 32) is processed in S302. When performing an information reference task (S303), S304
Processes the entire flow (7) (FIG. 33). When the maintenance work is performed (S305), the entire flow (8) (FIG. 34) is processed in S306.

In the overall flow (4) shown in FIG. 30, a schema registration process (flow in FIG. 6) is executed in S401. In S402, a field candidate registration process (flow in FIG. 8) is executed.

In the overall flow (5) shown in FIG. 31, a schema search process (flow in FIG. 5) is executed in S501. Schema registration processing in S502 (flow in FIG. 6)
Execute In step S503, a field relation registration process (FIG. 7)
Flow). If it is determined in step S504 that a process for investigating recently input data is to be performed, a data selection process (flow in FIG. 9) is performed in step S505. In S506, a data clustering process (flow in FIG. 10) is executed.
In step S507, a field candidate registration process (flow in FIG. 8) is executed. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S504 that the recently input data is not to be checked, the process proceeds to step S507.

In the overall flow (6) shown in FIG. 32, a schema search process (flow in FIG. 5) is executed in S601. Data input processing in S602 (flow in FIG. 12)
Execute If there is a necessary input field in S603, the process is terminated. If there is no necessary input field, a field adding process (flow in FIG. 13) is executed in S604.

In the overall flow (7) shown in FIG. 33, a schema search process (flow in FIG. 5) is executed in S701. Data sorting process in S702 (flow in FIG. 14)
Execute

In the overall flow (8) shown in FIG. 34, a schema search process (flow in FIG. 5) is executed in S801. In step S802, a field relationship registration process (flow in FIG. 7) is executed. In step S803, a field candidate registration process (flow in FIG. 8) is executed.

The information input system thus configured is
For example, as shown in the illustration at the bottom of FIG.
Is mounted on the portable electronic terminal device. The data management unit 4 on the portable terminal device needs to access the schema storage device 1 and the data storage device 2 even when carrying the mobile terminal device. This is based on a general-purpose network access technology based on communication using a mobile phone or the like. It is realized using.

As yet another embodiment, when the processing capability of the portable terminal device is not high, the data management unit 4 is also mounted on the computer at the office, and the portable terminal device has a simple input / output interface. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which only parts are mounted.

[0186]

For example, in a business with a large change in contents, such as in a business support system, it is indispensable to update the field configuration of the information input and the input candidate item set in a complicated manner. At this time, the person who inputs information on the site most accurately knows how to update the information (in the case of a sales support system, a salesperson who enters a daily report while going around). However, various operations are required to change the schema while maintaining a practically operable information system, and in the existing technology, a system administrator who can pay the cost collectively has been in charge of updating.

Therefore, the present invention provides a data management unit with a function for adding a field,
On-site entrants with good update knowledge can now enter that knowledge with minimal cost.

Conventionally, high-quality knowledge is not always input and utilized in the system, and this is one of the problems well recognized in general knowledge management systems. The present invention, although limited in its field of application, provides one solution to that problem.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an overall configuration of an information input system.

FIG. 2 shows a configuration of a schema storage.

FIG. 3 shows a configuration of a data storage.

FIG. 4 shows the relationship between the configuration of a schema management unit and a schema / data storage.

FIG. 5 shows a processing flow of a schema search unit in the schema management unit.

FIG. 6 shows a processing flow of a schema registration unit in the schema management unit.

FIG. 7 shows a processing flow of a field relation registration unit in the schema management unit.

FIG. 8 shows a processing flow of a field candidate registration unit in the schema management unit.

FIG. 9 shows a processing flow of a data selection unit in the schema management unit.

FIG. 10 shows a processing flow of a data clustering unit in the schema management unit.

FIG. 11 shows the relationship between the configuration of a data management unit and a schema / data storage.

FIG. 12 shows a processing flow of a data input unit in the data management unit.

FIG. 13 shows a processing flow of a field addition unit in the data management unit.

FIG. 14 shows a processing flow of a data selection unit in the data management unit.

FIG. 15 shows an example of a schema.

FIG. 16 shows an example of storing various information in a schema storage.

FIG. 17 shows an example of storing various information in a data storage.

FIG. 18 illustrates a schema search example in a schema management unit.

FIG. 19 shows an example of schema registration in the schema management unit.

FIG. 20 shows an example of field relationship registration in a schema management unit.

FIG. 21 shows an example of field candidate registration in a schema management unit.

FIG. 22 shows an example of data selection in the schema management unit.

FIG. 23 shows an example of data clustering in the schema management unit.

FIG. 24 shows an example of data input in the data management unit.

FIG. 25 shows an example of adding a field in the data management unit.

FIG. 26 shows an example of data selection in the data management unit.

FIG. 27 shows an overall flow (1).

FIG. 28 shows an overall flow (2).

FIG. 29 shows an overall flow (3).

FIG. 30 shows an overall flow (4).

FIG. 31 shows an overall flow (5).

FIG. 32 shows an overall flow (6).

FIG. 33 shows an overall flow (7).

FIG. 34 shows an overall flow (8).

[Description of Signs] 1 Schema storage unit 2 Data storage unit 3 Schema management unit 4 Data management unit

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A schema storing means for storing a schema, a data storing means for storing data, a schema managing means for managing storage, display and update of the schema, and managing data storage, display and update Data management means, further comprising: schema specification means for specifying a schema; means for selecting data related to the specified schema; and means for displaying data. An information input system comprising: means for referring to a schema; means for displaying a schema for data entry; and means for updating the schema. 2. A schema storing means for storing a schema, a data storing means for storing data, a schema managing means for managing storing, displaying and updating of the schema, and a managing means for storing, displaying and updating of data. Data managing means, further comprising: a schema searching means; a schema registering means; a field relationship registering means; a field candidate registering means; and a data selecting means. And a means for clustering data, wherein the data management means comprises means for adding a field, means for inputting data, and means for selecting data. 3. A schema specifying step of specifying a schema, a step of selecting data related to the specified schema, a step of displaying data, a step of referring to the schema, and a step of displaying the schema for data input. And a step of updating the schema, wherein storage, display and update of the schema and data are managed. 4. A step of searching for a schema, a step of registering a schema, a step of registering a field relationship, a step of registering a field candidate, a step of selecting data, a step of clustering data, An information input processing method, comprising the steps of: adding data, inputting data, and selecting data; and managing storage, display, and update of a schema and data. 5. A storage medium used in an information input processing system for managing storage, display, and update of a schema and data, the schema specifying step of specifying a schema, and the step of selecting data related to the specified schema. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute: a step of displaying data; a step of referring to a schema; a step of displaying a schema for data input; and a step of updating the schema. 6. A storage medium used in an information input processing system for managing storage, display and update of a schema and data, wherein a step of searching for a schema, a step of registering a schema, and a step of registering a field relationship are performed. And a program for causing a computer to execute a step of registering field candidates, a step of selecting data, a step of clustering data, a step of adding fields, a step of inputting data, and a step of selecting data A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer.