JP2005141423A - Electronic form provision system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system providing an electronic form to be used commonly by a plurality of members, constituted of necessary items only according to the role or the property of each member. <P>SOLUTION: A form provision system provides a business form suitable for users by referring to definition information defining non-display item, display-only item and writable item, by configuring the business form based on an access attribute for each item according to the role or the property of the person who handles the form. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic form providing system that electronically provides an input form to a user through a network.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a company organization or the like, an information system has been constructed and used in order to improve the efficiency of paperwork within the organization, share information, and reduce the cost required for them. In recent years, with the spread of the Internet, individuals or corporations have been required to register necessary information such as personal information, inquire about products and services, place orders, and pay by electronic procedures. In these in-house business activities or wide-ranging general economic activities, there is an increasing opportunity for electronic forms to be used instead of the roles previously performed on paper forms.

  Under such circumstances, the importance of a mechanism for handling electronic forms that are closely related to the role that information systems should play is increasing. Therefore, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a data transmission / reception method and a form provision system provided with a form provision server as a mechanism in which an information system manages a large number of data items in an easy-to-understand manner and shares information among users of the information system. It is disclosed.

That is, in Patent Document 1, a form database in which one or a plurality of forms each having a plurality of fields each holding data of predetermined items and style data designating a display arrangement relationship of each of these fields is registered; A data transmission method for transmitting information to a destination using one or a plurality of item-specific databases in which data of each item related to the field name of the form is registered,
A form specifying step for specifying a form registered in the form database for transmission, a form displaying step for displaying the form specified in the form specifying step according to the style data, and a form specifying step A field data extraction step of extracting data of an item related to the field name among the fields of the form from the item-specific database and storing the extracted data in the field, and after the data is stored in each field There is disclosed a data transmission method comprising an access permission step for permitting access to a destination of the form as a group of information of each field data of the form.

In Patent Document 1, an electronic form is positioned as a means for transmitting data from a sender to a receiver. An electronic form is a container for sending and receiving a group of information, and what kind of information can be sent by a sender using an electronic form that mimics the layout (style) of a conventional paper form. The idea of being able to tell the recipient whether it has meaning in an easy-to-understand manner is the trigger for this invention. A feature is that the access right of the field data displayed on the electronic form at the receiver is collectively controlled by the entire use form.

JP 2002-117368 A

  As described in Patent Document 1, the significance of the electronic form is registered in a specific database as a form that is used more frequently rather than being positioned as a means for transmitting data from the sender to the receiver. When it is considered as a graphical user interface (hereinafter referred to as “GUI”) for input / output of a group of related data, the access right of the field data displayed on the electronic form used is limited. It is more convenient to set each field or item individually according to the attribute of the person who accesses, rather than collectively using the entire usage form.

  For example, in a document such as a draft proposal in a company, the person in charge of drafting, the manager of the drafting department, the person in charge of the drafting department, and the final decision maker are circulated. There are cases in which access authority should be controlled by items in one form, such as items that must not be entered, items that are entered by the approver, and items that the approver can view but cannot rewrite. In such a case, the conventional paper form format is digitized as it is, and a single form is defined. The form is composed only of items that can be input or rewritten according to the user who presents the form and items that can be viewed. Providing a customized form is definitely convenient for users because it allows workflow processing to be performed. However, such control cannot be performed by the system disclosed in Patent Document 1.

The present invention has been made in consideration of such problems, and regarding the form commonly used by a plurality of users for one workflow or a common purpose, the roles of those users or An object of the present invention is to provide a system that provides an electronic form composed of only necessary items according to attributes.

  The invention described in claim 1 for solving the problem includes an electronic form composed of a plurality of input items, items to be hidden, display only, depending on a form drafter and an approver. The form providing system is characterized in that a form form suitable for the writer is provided by distinguishing items to be written and items to be writable and forming a form form including only necessary items.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, in the form providing system according to the first aspect, for each input item constituting the electronic form, a distinction is made as to whether it is hidden, only referable, or writable. A form that consists of only necessary items by referring to the definition information determined according to the job tier or the approver's position hierarchy, and providing a form suitable for the user The form providing system according to claim 1, wherein: The definition information may be prepared as a definition file that defines an appropriate format for each type of form.

   The invention according to claim 3 is an item to be hidden, an item to be displayed only, according to a role or an attribute of a person who handles the electronic form for an electronic form composed of a plurality of input items, A form providing system characterized in that a form form suitable for a user can be provided by distinguishing the items to be writable and configuring a form form including only necessary items.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the form providing system according to the third aspect, for each input item constituting the electronic form, the form is distinguished from whether it is hidden, only referable, or writable. The form is composed of only necessary items with reference to the definition information determined according to the role or attribute of the person who handles the document, and provides a form suitable for the person who handles the document. It is a form providing system described. The definition information may be prepared as a definition file that defines an appropriate format for each type of form.

  The invention according to claim 5 is a computer in which a series of instructions for operating the computer as a server for providing an electronic form in the form providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is incorporated into the computer. It is a program.

The invention described in claim 6 is a computer in which a series of instructions for operating the computer as a server for providing an electronic form in the form providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is incorporated into the computer. A computer-readable recording medium on which a program is recorded.

According to the form providing system according to the present invention, in a form in which a single workflow is generated by defining a form approver, finalizer, etc. by creating a form, the drafter, the approver, etc. The format can be provided, and as a result, it is possible to prevent erroneous input and to provide the user with a form having the same format as the paper form.

  Hereinafter, the best embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram illustrating the configuration of a form providing system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 10 denotes a WWW (World Wide WEb) server. An HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) server 11 and a GUI providing unit 12 are provided. Reference numeral 20 denotes an application server. Form creation means 22 is provided. Further, the application server 20 holds form information 29 in which necessary information about the form provided by the system 1 is recorded. Reference numeral 30 denotes a database server. A document database 38, a department organization database 39, a workflow database 37, a database management unit 31, and a workflow management unit 32 are provided. The form system 1 has a configuration in which a WWW server 10, an application server 20, a database server 30, and a user client computer 40 are connected to a common IP (Internet Protocol) network 9.

  Form creation means 22 creates and provides a form to the user. When providing a form, the form used by the approver who is the superior is based on the document data registered by the subordinate person according to the existing workflow. May be configured and provided.

  The user accesses the WWW server 10 through the Internet or the intranet which is the IP network 9. In the following description, the computer used by the user is referred to as a computer 40. If there is no problem after performing necessary user authentication procedures such as displaying a login dialog on the computer 40 and inputting a user name and password, the HTTP server 11 is displayed, for example, as a top page of a business process menu. The HTML data is sent back to the computer 40. The GUI providing means 12 transfers the HTML data transmitted to the access source computer 40 through the HTTP server 11, the applet written in Java (registered trademark), and other access sources, and is processed by the access source WWW browser. Data and programs that provide a screen interface on the computer 40 are collectively referred to.

  The database server 30 holds and manages a workflow database 37, a document database 38, and a department organization database 39. For example, a draft document document and the like that are drafted are registered in the document database 38. When a new approval document is registered in the document database 38, a record for recording the progress of one workflow is generated in the workflow database 37 by the work of the workflow management means 32. The department organization database 38 provides information necessary for the workflow means 21 to actually handle the workflow. That is, information such as where the document creator is located in the departmental organization and who is the next person to circulate the document (an upper approver of the document creator) is provided. The database management unit 31 receives a request from an external computer and searches, references, registers, and updates information held in the databases 38 and 39. That is, other servers such as the application server 20 search, reference, register, and update information held in the databases 38 and 39 through the database management means 31.

  FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are diagrams for explaining a flow in which a necessary form is provided according to a user request and a workflow is developed by the system 1. In the following, the flow of work performed by a user who has logged into the system 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The top page of the business process menu is displayed on the screen of the computer 40 used by the user. It is assumed that buttons for selecting a business process such as “draft proposal drafting”, “small payment withdrawal”, “business trip expense settlement”, “monthly report creation”, “approval case” are displayed. The user selects a corresponding button, calls up and fills in a form necessary for each job, and one workflow is generated or proceeds.

  When, for example, the “proposed drafting” menu is selected from the top page of the business process menu, a message requesting the creation or progress of a new workflow for the drafting proposal is sent to the WWW server 10. When receiving this message, the HTTP server 11 calls the workflow means 21 provided in the application server 20 (FIG. 4 (1)).

  First, the form means 22 inquires of the database server 30 about the position hierarchy of the requester (FIG. 4 (2)). The form creation means 22 refers to the form information 29 of the form, creates an appropriate proposal drafting form according to the position hierarchy of the requester, and returns the form data to the request source through the HTTP server 11 (FIG. 4 (3 )).

  FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the contents of the form information 29 that defines the form used for each workflow. The form information 29 includes input information included in the form and style information (conceptually represented by 291 in FIG. 2) that defines the appearance of the form, and input item information for each user attribute of the person who handles the form. A user information definition file 292 defining access attributes is always included.

  The user information definition file 292 defines the access attributes of each item for each user attribute for the items constituting the form and the users who use the form. In FIG. 2, there are five items on the form from item a to item e, and the access attributes due to the difference in user attributes of these input items are indicated by symbols ◯, Δ, and X. In FIG. 2, the user attributes are a person in charge, a section manager, a manager, and a head manager. User attributes are generally distinguished by the role of the user who handles the form. The access attribute indicates that ○ can be input (rewritten), Δ can only be displayed, and × cannot be displayed. In FIG. 2, “The section manager can confirm the contents of item a but cannot change it. For item b, if necessary, the contents of the person in charge can be changed. Item c can be filled in. Items d and e are not displayed on the section manager's form. "

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a form provided to the user according to the user information definition file of FIG. (A) is for the person in charge, (B) is for the section manager, (C) is for the department manager, and (D) is the form presented for the department manager. In FIG. 3, an item having a thick input field frame can be input or rewritten, and an item having a thin input field frame is displayed and cannot be rewritten. Therefore, the form shown in FIG. 3A is provided when the drafter is a general employee lower than the section manager.

  Returning to the description of FIG. When the user completes the necessary items on the provided form, the user sends a message to the WWW server 10 to register the filing proposal form by pressing a registration button on the screen. Upon receiving this message, the HTTP server 11 calls the database management means 31 (FIG. 4 (4)). The database management means 31 registers the draft document drafted as a new record in the document database 38 (FIG. 4 (5)). At this time, a number (approval number) specifying the deliberation document is generated. Subsequently, the workflow management unit 32 operates, and a record for recording the workflow specified by the approval number is generated and registered in the workflow database 37. As a result, the approval number is entered in the unapproved list for the approver (section manager) positioned directly above the drafter (FIG. 4 (5) ′).

  Next, the flow in which the approver (section manager) approves the approval document will be described with reference to FIG. An approver (section manager) who accesses the WWW server 10 and logs in to the business processing system selects an inquiry for an unapproved item from the top menu of the business processing. When the HTTP server 11 receives the unapproved item inquiry message, it makes an inquiry to the database server 30 (FIG. 5 (6)). The workflow management means 32 searches and extracts the unapproved list data of the approver (section manager) from the workflow database 37, and responds (FIG. 5 (6) ′). This content is displayed on the computer screen of the approver (section manager). Next, the approver (section manager) selects one number from the list and issues an approval processing request. Upon receiving this request message, the HTTP server 11 calls the form creation means 22 (FIG. 5 (7)). The form creation means 22 requests the document data of the corresponding approval number from the server 30 (FIG. 5 (8)). The database management means 31 extracts corresponding document data from the document database 38 and provides it to the form creation means 22 (FIG. 5 (8) ′). The form creation means 22 refers to the obtained document data and the form information of the electronic form prepared for the approval process, creates a form suitable for the approver (section manager), and approvers through the HTTP server 11. Provide the created form to (section manager) (FIG. 5 (9)). The form shown in FIG. 3B is provided.

  The approver (section manager) requests the registration of the approval document by confirming the contents of the form displayed on the computer screen, filling in necessary items, and pressing the approval button. The HTTP server 11 that has received the approval document registration request requests the database server 30 to register the approval document (FIG. 5 (10)). The database management unit 31 registers the approval document in the document database 38. Subsequently, the workflow management unit 32 operates, and the record that records the workflow specified by the approval number of the approved document is updated in the workflow database 37. As a result, the approval number is entered in the unapproved list for the approver (director) positioned directly above the approver (section manager) (FIG. 5 (11) ′).

  In this way, the business process of approving the draft proposal proceeds. The same applies to the liquidation of small withdrawals and other business processes. The input form necessary for the progress of the work is provided to the worker with an appropriate item structure by referring to the form information 29 in which the form creation means 22 records the information necessary for the form each time.

  In the explanation so far, an approval document is taken up as a form, and an example in which the provided form changes depending on the originator and approver of the approval document in the company has been shown. More generally, when a single form is handled by a person with different attributes or different roles that handle it, the same applies when the form must be provided by changing the access attribute of the item according to the attribute or role of the person who handles it. It can be applied to.

For example, in a courier slip, a series of slips such as requester entry, requester copy, agent fill-in, agent copy, delivery company fill-in, delivery company copy, delivery pasting, destination copy, Used for several different types of users such as client, agent, delivery company receptionist, delivery company deliveryman, and delivery destination. Therefore, an electronic form corresponding to the role of the user can be provided by defining a series of these slips as one form and preparing a user information definition file as shown in FIG.

It is a whole lineblock diagram explaining the composition of form providing system 1 which is an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining the content of the form information which defines each form. It is the figure which illustrated the form provided to a user according to the user information definition file of FIG. It is a figure explaining the workflow at the time of using the form provision system 1. FIG. It is a figure explaining the workflow at the time of using the form provision system 1. FIG. It is another example of a user information definition file.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Form provision system 9 IP network 10 WWW server 11 HTTP server 12 GUI provision means 20 Application server 22 Form creation means 29 Form information 30 Database server 31 Database management means 32 Workflow management means 37 Workflow database 38 Document database 39 Department organization database

Claims (6)

   For electronic forms consisting of multiple input items, depending on the form creator and approver, the necessary items are distinguished from the items to be hidden, items to be displayed only, and items to be writable. Form providing system characterized by providing a form form suitable for the writer by configuring a form form consisting only of   For each input item that composes an electronic form, whether it is hidden, can only be referenced, or is writable is determined depending on whether it is the originator or approver, and the position hierarchy of the originator and approver The form providing system according to claim 1, wherein a form form including only necessary items is configured with reference to the defined definition information, and a form form suitable for a user is provided.    According to the role or attribute of the person who handles the electronic form, the electronic form composed of multiple input items is distinguished from the item to be hidden, the item to be displayed only, and the item to be writable, A form providing system characterized by providing a form suitable for a user by configuring a form consisting of only necessary items.   For each input item that constitutes an electronic form, it is necessary to distinguish whether it is hidden, only referable, or writable by referring to the definition information determined according to the role or attribute of the person handling the form. The form providing system according to claim 1, wherein a form suitable for a person who handles it is provided by forming a form including only simple items.   A computer program in which a series of instructions for operating a computer as a server for providing an electronic form in the form providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4 by being incorporated in the computer. 5. A computer-readable recording medium on which a computer program describing a series of instructions for operating the computer as a server for providing an electronic form in the form providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4 by being incorporated in the computer is recorded. .