JP2007133856A - Application information management system, method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an application information management system, its method and a program for facilitating the diversion of data between different matters. <P>SOLUTION: Information about a first application matter is extracted based on a table having matter identification information for identifying the first application matter, matter relationship identification information for identifying the relationship between the first application matter and a second application matter, and diversion relationship identification information for showing the relationship of information diverted between the first application matter and the second application matter, and a file of the second application matter is created. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an application information management system, an application information management method, and an application information management system for managing patent applications in patent offices and companies, academic institutions such as universities and public laboratories (hereinafter referred to as “offices”), and the like. Regarding the program.

An application information management system that manages information on patent applications is used (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
By the way, in the application information management system, a huge amount of data of several hundreds is used only for items. When inputting this data, input errors, input omissions, etc. may occur, which may affect the management of time limits. On the other hand, if input work is performed carefully in order to prevent input mistakes, work time is required.
JP 2003-76720 A

Here, there may be commonality between the information on the application cases (application case information) between different application cases. For example, information such as the original application date is the same in the divisional original application and the divisional application. In such a case, there is a possibility that data can be used between projects.
However, since the items that can be diverted differ depending on the case, it is not always easy to divert data between different cases. For example, it is necessary to call up all the information of a specified item and correct the data for each part that cannot be used.
In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide an application information management system, an application information management method, and a program thereof that facilitate the diversion of data between different projects.

  The application information management system according to the present invention inputs the case identification information for identifying the first application case and the case relation identification information for identifying the relationship between the first application case and the second application case. A table having a section, a case relationship identification information, a diversion relationship identification information representing a relationship of information diverted between the first application case and the second application case, and the input case identification information Based on the information acquisition unit for acquiring the information on the first application case, and on the basis of the table, the information on the acquired first application case is extracted, and the file for the second application case is generated. And a file generation unit.

The application information management method according to the present invention includes a step of inputting case identification information for identifying a first application case and case relationship identification information for identifying a relationship between the first application case and the second application case. And acquiring the information of the first application case based on the inputted case identification information, diverting the case relation identification information, the first application case and the second application case. Extracting information on the acquired first application case based on a table having diversion relation identification information representing information relations, and generating a file of the second application case. Features.
Along with these systems and methods, a program for realizing the application information management method is also a means for solving the problems.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an application information management system, an application information management method, and a program that facilitate the diversion of data between different projects.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an application information management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  Here, the application information refers to the information on the subject of the application pending at the JPO, for example, the state before the application such as a patent proposal, and the application is pending examination at the JPO, such as a rejection decision or a registration decision. It also includes information on objects that have been lost.

  The application information management system 100 is realized by operating a computer such as an EWS (Engineering Workstation) with software.

  The application information management system 100 includes a diversion instruction input unit 110, a diversion processing unit 120, an application matter database (DB) 131, a diversion condition table 132, and a diversion condition definition file 133.

  The diversion instruction input unit 110 is an input device for inputting diversion instruction information, such as a keyboard and a mouse.

  The diversion instruction input unit 110 functions as an input unit for inputting the case identification information and the case relation identification information.

  The diversion processing unit 120 performs diversion processing of data between applications, and includes a diversion data acquisition unit 121, a conversion processing unit 122, and an application file generation unit 123.

  The diversion data acquisition unit 121 is connected to the Japan Patent Office database (JPO-DB) 141, the European Patent Office database (EPO-DB) 142, the US Patent and Trademark Office database (USPTO-DB) 143 via the network 150, Application information can be acquired from JPO-DB 141 or the like.

  In addition, the diversion data acquisition unit 121 can also acquire application information of an application item from the application item DB 131. The diversion data acquisition unit 121 functions as an information acquisition unit that acquires information on an application case.

  The conversion processing unit 122 converts the acquired application data to facilitate data extraction.

  The application file generation unit 123 extracts data from the converted application data and generates an application file (application file), and functions as an application file generation unit that generates an application file.

  The application item DB 131 is a storage device such as a hard disk, and stores application item management information (application item information).

  The diversion condition table 132 is a table that indicates the data diversion type and the path of the diversion condition definition file (diversion rule definition file) 133 in association with each other. The diversion condition table 132 is also referred to as a diversion rule table.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the diversion condition table 132.
A rule identifier (ID), a diversion type name, and a diversion condition definition file (diversion rule definition file) 133 path are shown correspondingly.

  “Diversion type name” is the name of the data diversion type, and is a type of case relationship identification information for identifying the relationship between the diversion source application case and the diversion destination application case.

  The “simple diversion copy” represents a simple diversion, that is, a case where the contents of the application are similar (simple diversion of similar projects).

  “Copy for divisional application” represents a case where the diversion destination application case is a divisional application of the diversion source application case. The “continuation application copy” represents a case where the diversion destination application case is a continuation application of the diversion source application case.

  Note that the diversion condition definition file 133 is also individually assigned to other change applications, renewal registration applications, and right extension applications.

  The diversion condition definition file 133 is a file that represents the import destination from which the diversion source application data is imported, the data format of the import destination, and the like.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the diversion condition definition file 133.
The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of the data acquisition destination, items to be diverted, and the like are shown.

  The URL functions as acquisition destination identification information for identifying an acquisition destination of information on the application matter. In addition, the following can be illustrated as a data acquisition / diversion source.

-Data in the application information management system 100-Electronic documents filed / received using the electronic application with the JPO, packaging database and application information database (JPO-DB141) that JPO discloses and provides connections
-EP and USPTO databases and application information databases (EPO-DB142, USPTO-DB143) that disclose and provide connections
・ Other electronic gazette data

  Based on the diversion condition definition file 133, bibliographic management items to be diverted can be determined and imported. For example, items to be diverted can be individually set according to the type of application (patent, utility model, design, trademark), diversion type, and import destination.

  In addition, by rewriting the diversion condition definition file 133, the user can set whether or not import is possible for each item.

  As described above, the combination of the diversion condition table 132 and the diversion condition definition file 133 has the acquisition destination identification information, the case relationship identification information, and the diversion relationship identification information that represents the relationship between the diversion information. Acts as a table.

  4 and 5 summarize the diversion relationships represented in the diversion condition definition file 133. FIG. The relationship between the “diversion type name” and the item name to be diverted is represented in correspondence.

  4 and 5 respectively show items that are diverted by dividing the application information into basic information and information other than basic information. A column in which “V” is entered represents an item to be used.

  In FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, “Diversion type name” is divided into “At acceptance” and “At application”. This corresponds to the possibility that items that can be diverted will change at the time of acceptance and at the time of filing. It also deals with trademarks and other matters other than patent applications.

(Operation of Application Information Management System 100)
Hereinafter, the process flow of the diversion service by the application information management system 100 will be described.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the process flow of the diversion service by the application information management system 100.

  FIG. 7 is an activity diagram showing the flow of processing of the diversion service by the application information management system 100. 6 and 7 are substantially the same, and will be described collectively.

(1) Inputting a diversion instruction (step S1)
A diversion instruction is input. For example, the user sets a case number (a type of case identification information for identifying an application case) and a data diversion type (a type of case relationship identification information), and then presses a button, so that the diversion processing unit (reuse service) 120 Encourage execution of the process at.

(2) Reading diversion definition (diversion rule) (step S2)
The diversion processing unit (diversion service) 120 accesses the diversion condition table (diversion rule table) 132, acquires the path of the diversion condition definition file (diversion rule definition file) 133 from the data diversion type specified by the user, and diverts it. The condition definition file 133 is read.

(3) Acquisition of diversion data (step S3)
If the diversion source (data acquisition destination) described in the diversion condition definition file 133 is a service (for example, JPO-DB 141, EPO-DB 142, USPTO-DB 143) provided by the patent office of each country, the diversion processing unit 120. The diversion data acquisition unit 121 connects to these and takes in the data (information of the application project).

  In addition, if the diversion source (acquisition destination identification information) is a file stored in the application information management system 100 or data stored in the application case DB (case data table) 131, data (application case information) can be obtained from here. Capture.

(4) Conversion of diversion data (step S4)
Depending on the diversion source, the data (application information) taken in by the diversion data acquisition unit 121 has a different format.

  For this reason, the conversion processing unit 122 converts the data (application item information) acquired by the diversion data acquisition unit 121 into an intermediate data format that can be handled uniformly by the application information management system 100.

  That is, the conversion processing unit 122 performs conversion of the format or the like when importing according to the diversion source data, and generates intermediate data. This intermediate data has a structure according to a predetermined item name and data format.

8 and 9 are schematic views showing data before and after conversion, respectively.
The name of the item is read according to the format conversion rule of the diversion condition definition file 133, and the corresponding data is taken into the corresponding item.

  For example, from “Patent number” to “Patent number”, from “Publication date” to “Publication date”, from “Inventor” to “Inventor”, from “Applicant” to “Applicant”, from “Application number” to “ Data is inserted into substantially the same item from “application number” and from “Priority number (s)” to “priority”.

  Also, the item content expression format can be converted for items for which format conversion rules are set.

  This conversion can be easily executed by using a table representing the correspondence relationship between data before conversion, after conversion, and after capture.

  It is also possible to extract only a part of the captured data item and convert it into intermediate data. That is, steps S4 and S5 are not necessarily clearly divided.

(5) Extraction of diversion items (step S5)
The conversion processing unit 122 extracts diversion items from the converted intermediate data according to the diversion condition definition file 133.

  That is, the conversion processing unit 122 extracts data according to the conversion rule. At this time, if necessary, the diversion item is processed (a specific character string is added).

(6) Generation of item data (step S6)
According to the extracted diversion items, the case information is extracted from the application case DB 131, and the application case file is generated.

  That is, the application file generation unit 123 registers the data extracted from the application case DB 131 in accordance with the conversion rule as new case data.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a class structure of software for realizing the application information management system 100.

  FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process in which class instance groups cooperate with each other.

  The diversion service class receives a diversion process execution request from the user, and generates an instance of the diversion rule class and an instance of the diversion process class.

  Thereafter, the diversion service class delegates the process to the diversion processing class instance using the diversion rule instance as an argument.

  The diversion processing class acquires the implementation of the capture destination interface from the instance of the diversion rule, and delegates the data capture processing to the implementation of the capture destination interface.

  A data item is extracted from an instance of the pre-processing data class generated by the data fetching process according to the conversion rule held by the diversion rule class instance, and an instance of the matter data class is generated.

  Data is converted based on the conversion rule. The converted data is extracted and registered in new project data.

  In addition, an inventor or the like having information in the master is replaced with information held in the system, and then registered in the case data.

  The diversion rule class generates a diversion rule definition file class based on the diversion type specified by the user. After that, the import destination class described in the diversion rule definition file is instantiated.

  The diversion rule definition file class loads the diversion rule definition file and manages the contents as properties.

  The import destination interface defines various import destination interfaces. Classes that implement this interface include an EPO Web service class, an electronic document class, and an existing project class.

  Each implementation class accesses the import destination data, acquires the data item, and registers it in the generated pre-processing data class instance.

The pre-processing data class manages data items before conversion processing is performed.
The item data manages data items of items handled in the application information management system 100.

  As described above, in this embodiment, by selecting and instructing the diversion type from the diversion instruction input unit 110, the data source (data diversion source) is determined, and necessary items are acquired.

  Convert the acquired data and generate the data and reflect it in the matter file. For this reason, input errors and the like are reduced, and data accuracy and system reliability are improved.

  The diversion instruction input unit 110 can connect to the acquisition destination without being aware of the storage location (whether there is) of the data source. In addition, since the conversion is performed without being aware of the characteristics of the acquired data, the processing can be performed without specialized knowledge or business knowledge, and the working time can be shortened.

  In addition, by enabling user-specific settings, the operability and flexibility of the entire system are increased, and usage efficiency is improved.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, improvement in data accuracy, improvement in work efficiency, reduction in double work, and the like can be realized, and the effect can be optimized for each user.

(Second Embodiment)
In the application information management system of the above embodiment, when entering procedures such as division processing and merger processing, it is necessary to start a new input screen and enter the number and type of diversion source project on the new input screen When the diversion source project number is not known correctly, the instruction operation for diversion could not be performed. Therefore, in the second embodiment, an example in which the diversion instruction is easily performed will be described.

  FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an application information management system according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  Here, the application information refers to information on the subject including the state before the application, such as a patent proposal, and the case where the application is no longer pending examination at the JPO due to an refusal or registration decision. Shall.

  Note that in the second embodiment, the same components as those described in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the application information management system of the second embodiment includes a diversion instruction input unit 110, a diversion processing unit 120, and a display unit 112.

  The diversion instruction input unit 110 includes an input unit 111, a case search unit 113, a related case file generation unit 114, and a display screen generation unit 115.

  In addition to hardware input devices such as a keyboard and a mouse, the input unit 111 inputs text on a graphic user interface screen (hereinafter referred to as “GUI screen”) displayed on the display device 112 by executing the family display program. Includes fields and operation buttons.

  The input unit 111 functions as a reception unit that receives an input of a case number as case identification information and an instruction operation such as a case search. The family display program is stored in the hard disk device.

  The family display program is activated by the operation of an icon or a command input generated in advance on the screen of the display device 112, and is generated by a menu screen 31 (see FIG. 14) which is one of the GUI screens and a button operation on the menu screen 31. The family display screen (see FIG. 19) to be displayed is displayed.

  The instructions include, for example, instructions for selecting an application case and searching for and displaying an application case related to the selected application case (this is referred to as “related case”). That is, the input unit 111 functions as a case selection unit that selects an application case stored in the application case DB 131 that is an application case storage unit.

  The information input at this time includes, for example, item identification information of a selected item for identifying an application item to be selected, and related item search / display instruction information for instructing search and display of a related item.

  The display unit 112 is a display device such as a CRT or a liquid crystal display device, and displays the GUI screen.

  The case search unit 113 searches the application case DB 131 using the case identification information and the case relation identification information received by the input unit 111, and extracts related cases related to the selected case. That is, the item search unit 113 functions as a related item extraction unit that extracts related items related to the selected item.

  Further, the case search unit 113 functions as an extraction unit that extracts application case information and application case information related to this case from the application case DB 133 using the case identification information received by the input unit 111 as a keyword. .

  Here, the related item means an application item directly or indirectly related to the selected item. The relationship can include a parent-child relationship or a sibling relationship such as a priority claim application, a merged application, a change application, or a divisional application.

  That is, an application having a direct or indirect parent-child relationship or sibling relationship with a certain application is a related matter of the application, and a so-called “family” application is applicable.

  As described above, related applications include applications that are directly or indirectly connected by legal relationship such as priority claim.

  However, it is also possible to include, in the related applications, substantially related applications that have no legal relationship, for example, applications that are related to the content of the invention but have no legal relationship with each other.

  The related item file generation unit 114 generates a related item file (related item file) extracted by the item search unit 113.

  Further, the related item file generation unit 114 functions as a relevance calculation unit that calculates the relevance of the related item with respect to the selected item.

  The display screen generation unit 115 generates a family display screen 40 (FIG. 19 and the like), which is display data to be displayed on the display unit 112, based on the related item file generated by the related item file generation unit 114, and displays the display unit. 112.

  That is, the display screen generation unit 115 graphically displays the family display screen 40 on the display unit 112 by associating the application cases with each other according to the case relationship identification information included in the application case information extracted by the case search unit 113.

  The display screen generation unit 115 inputs the case relation identification information and the case identification information of the application case designated (selected) from the application cases of the family display screen 40 displayed on the display unit 112 to the case data acquisition unit 121. Functions as an information input unit.

  The application case DB 131 is a database constructed in a storage device such as a hard disk device, and stores information on application cases such as patent applications. Details of application information will be described later.

(Operation of Application Information Management System of Second Embodiment)
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of an outline operation procedure of the application information management system of the second embodiment.
(1) Request for related item search / display (step S11)
An application case is selected, and an application case (related case) related to the selected application case (selected case) is searched and displayed. This selection and request is performed by inputting information from the input unit 111.

FIG. 14 shows an example of a menu screen displayed on the display unit 112 at the time of input.
A menu screen 31 shown in FIG. 14 is provided with text input fields 32 and 33 for searching for a case number, a pull-down menu 34 for specifying a display target, a “display” button 35 as a display instruction button, and the like. It has been.

  The display target of the pull-down menu 34 includes items such as “family display”, for example. The text input field 32 is an input field for designating the application country. The text input field 33 is an input field for designating a case number.

  For example, by inputting “KR” in the text input field 32, “100001”, etc. in the text input field 33, the case number filed in Korea is designated.

  After entering text in each of the input fields, clicking the “display” button 35 with a mouse will instruct to search and display related items related to the selected item.

  If “KR” in this example is changed to a character indicating another country, for example, “JP”, “US”, etc., the application projects with the application countries of Japan and the US are searched and displayed.

(2) Extracting related items and generating related item files (step S12)
Based on the selected and instructed application case (selected case), the case search unit 113 searches the application case DB 131 and extracts information on the application case (related case) related to the selected case.

  When the related item information is extracted by the item search unit 113, the related item file generation unit 114 generates a related item file (related item file) using the related item information. Details of this will be described later.

(3) Determination of display state based on relevance (step S13)
The display screen generation unit 115 uses the related item file generated by the related item file generation unit 114 to generate display data for displaying the related item on the GUI screen. Details of this will be described later.

(4) Family display of related items (step S14)
The display screen generation unit 115 displays the family display screen 40 (see FIG. 119), which is a generated GUI screen, on the display unit 112.

(5) Diversion processing from family display screen (step S15)
The display screen generation unit 115 designates a diversion condition (a diversion target application case (hereinafter referred to as a “diversion source case”) among a plurality of related cases displayed on the family display screen 40, and displays a procedure classification button. When is pressed, a screen for designating the number of diversions (for example, in the case of a divisional application, a divisional application setting screen 46 (see FIG. 22) is displayed.

  When the number of divisional applications is specified on the divisional application setting screen 46, the display screen generation unit 115 obtains the case identification information of the diversion source case, the case relation identification information (procedure classification ("merger", "change", ))), Information on the diversion condition such as the number of diversions is input to the diversion data acquisition unit 121 of the diversion processing unit 120. When the procedure classification is “change”, the diversion number is necessarily “1”, and it is not necessary to input the diversion number.

  The case identification information is specifically a case number. The case relationship identification information is, for example, a data diversion type name or a rule ID (see FIG. 2), and is information indicating which rule associates the parent-child relationship or sibling relationship between the application case and another application case.

  The diversion data acquisition unit 121 stores the case identification information, the case relation identification information (procedure category (“Merger”, “Change”, “Division”)), the diversion number, etc. The diversion process is executed using the information. Details of this will be described later.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing details of the related item extraction / related item file generation process in step S12 of FIG.

(1) Extraction of related items (step S21)
The related item information of the selected item is extracted from the application item DB 131.

  FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an application item file stored in the application item DB 131. The application item file includes “basic information” and “priority information” of each item.

  The basic information is the basic information for each application case, including “reference number”, “four law categories”, “case number”, “application number”, “application country”, “institution”, “original application number”. "," Parent application number ".

  The “reference number” column is a number assigned to the application in the company or patent office (inside the office).

  The “four-law classification” column is a column indicating which jurisdiction of the patent, utility model, design, or trademark the application is for.

  The “application number” column is a column indicating the application number of the application case, and can be used as information for identifying the application case.

  The columns of “application country” and “institution” are fields indicating the application country of the application and the procedural institution (for example, receiving office), respectively. Depending on the contents of the fields of “application country” and “organization”, whether the application is a normal domestic application or a regional application (procedure with international organizations such as PCT, EP) It is possible to determine which of the engines is.

  Here, “application country” and “institution” are set as separate columns, but these two can be combined into one column. That is, “application country” and “institution” are treated as the same object, and for example, both a country code such as “KOR” and an organization code such as “PCT” and “EP” can be inserted.

  If a country code such as “KR” is inserted in this field, it is interpreted as a national application to “application country”, and if an organization code such as “PCT” or “EP” is inserted, an international “organization” To be interpreted as a regional application.

  The column “parent application number” is used when the application case is a divisional application, a change application, and a continuation application, and an application number for identifying the parent application that is the basis of the division of the application case is inserted. Divisional application / change application / continuation application, identified by the application type code in the “Four statutes” column.

  In the “original application number” column, an application number for identifying the original application of the application is inserted. The “original application” here refers to the basis of the parent application (if the parent application is a divisional application, etc.) Application).

  The “priority information” is information related to the priority claim (Paris priority / domestic priority) of each application, and includes “application country” and “application number”.

  “Application country” and “application number” represent the application country and application number of the basic application of the application. These “application country” and “application number” are not necessarily one set, and may be two, or three or more sets. It is possible to apply for priority based on multiple applications.

  Depending on the “original application number”, “parent application number”, “priority information” (“application country”, “application number”), and “four law classifications”, the jurisdiction of the application and the (broadly) parent application Identification and relationships are represented.

  In other words, depending on whether or not the application number information is inserted in the columns of “original application number”, “parent application number”, and “priority information”, the application matter is changed from the parent application / continuation application, divisional application, priority application It is possible to determine whether the application is a right claim. Further, the parent application can be identified by the inserted application number.

As can be seen from the above, information related to related matters includes "Four categories", "Original application number", "Parent application number", "Priority information"("Applicationcountry","Applicationnumber"). it can.
That is, the application case DB 131 is a case information storage unit that stores information on the application case specified by the case identification information and case relationship identification information indicating a parent-child relationship between the application case and another application case. .

Hereinafter, an operation of extracting related item information from the application item DB 131 using the application number of a specified item (hereinafter referred to as “selected item”) as a keyword will be described.
1) Search for a parent case A search for a related case that is directly related to the selected case, particularly, a related case (parent case) that is one level higher than the selected case will be described.

  A case in which the application number of the selected case and the “application number” in the “basic information” match is the case itself. In this case, the parent case of the selected case can be specified by “original application number”, “parent application number”, and “priority information”.

2) Retrieval of child cases A description will be given of retrieval of related matters directly related to the selected case, particularly related items (child cases) one level lower than the selected case.

  A case where the application number of the selected case matches any of “original application number”, “parent application number”, and “application number” (“priority information”) is a child case of the selected case. In this case, the selected case can be specified by the “application number” of the “basic information”.

3) Retrieval of related cases that are indirectly related to the selected case Further search for cases that are indirectly related to the selected case, that is, two or more of the selected cases, upper or lower cases (for example, grandchild cases) .

  This search is performed by searching for a parent case and a grandchild case of the related cases searched in 1) and 2). As a result, the parent case and grandchild case of the searched related case are searched. This search process is continued until there is no new related item to be searched.

  As described above, related items that are directly or indirectly related to the selected item are searched and extracted.

4) Retrieval of corresponding cases that share the selected case and the parent application A search for cases that share the selected case and the parent application, that is, the corresponding cases will be described.

  For example, each of the divisional applications when multiple divisional applications are filed from the parent application, and each priority when the priority of multiple countries is claimed for the parent application and applications are filed in these multiple countries. Refers to rights claim applications.

  Considering the example of priority applications to multiple countries based on Japanese applications, first check which country has claimed priority for each application in the corresponding country, and Search the base country and extract the priority application in Japan.

  Then, the priority claim applications to which the application numbers of the same Japanese application (that is, the parent application) are assigned are extracted as corresponding cases, sorted by the application numbers of the Japanese applications.

  Here, the priority claim applications are extracted, but similarly, the divisional applications, the changed applications, and the continuation applications can be extracted.

  In addition, when a parent application does not exist, such as when applying to multiple countries at the same time without a basic application, the case for which there is no parent application is based on basic information such as “reference number” in the company or patent office (inside the office) Extract and associate the relationship of each project.

(2) Generation of related matter file (step S22)
A related item file representing the extracted related item is generated. The related item file includes the selected item itself.

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a related item file.
The information of each related item is divided into the columns of “Country”, “Related Type”, “Level”, “Country Type”, “Search Key”, “Parent Item”, “Child Item 1” to “Child Item 3”. It is expressed as

  “Country” represents the country of application or procedural organization (international organization) of the selected item, and corresponds to “application country” and “organization” of the application item information.

  The “relevant type” represents a type related to the parent application, for example, a normal application, a change application, a continuation application, a divisional application, and a priority claim application.

  Here, the association relating to the information of each application item can be derived from the “association type” and the “parent application number” for the item of interest.

  For example, if the application number of application A is entered in the “parent application number” of application B and the “related type” of application B is a divisional application, application B can be said to be an application divided from application A. .

  If there is information in the “priority information” column, the application is “priority” on the “relevant type” and can be recognized as an application for which priority is claimed.

  “Level” is a type of relevance, and represents the degree of relevance by a numerical value. Here, the “level” of the selected item is set to “0”, and in the item one higher than that (parent item), 1 is subtracted from the value of “level” (−1), and the item one item lower than that ( In the (sub case), 1 is added to the value of “level” (+1).

  In the step S22, no information is written in the “level” column, but for convenience, the related case file in FIG. 17 represents a state in which “level” is written.

  That is, FIG. 17 shows a related matter file in a state where the process of step S24 is completed.

  The “country type” indicates whether the application corresponds to a national application (“normal”) or a wide area application (“institution”).

  “Search key” indicates whether or not the matter is a selected matter. That is, in FIG. 17, the application cases “KR”, “JP”, and “US” are the selected cases.

  “Parent case” represents the parent application (in a broad sense) of the case, and can be determined by “original application number”, “parent application number”, and “priority information” (“application country”, “application number”). .

  “Child Case 1” to “Child Case 3” represent the (broadly defined) child applications of the case, and “original application number”, “parent application number”, and “priority information” (“application country”, “ Application number ”) can be determined by“ application number ”of“ basic information ”of the case corresponding to the case.

(3) Setting the relevance of the selected case (step S23)
The related case file generation unit 115 sets the degree of relevance of the selected case. That is, a criterion for the degree of association is set for the selected case.

  For example, the relevance (level) of the selected case is set to “0”. That is, if the selected case is the Korean application “KR”, the degree of association is set to “0”.

(4) Setting of the degree of relevance of related cases (step S24)
The related matter file generation unit 115 sets the related degree of the related case based on the related degree of the selected case.

  1) It is possible to determine a selected item that has a direct relationship (parent-child relationship) with the selected item from the information of the “parent item” and “child item” of the selected item.

  Assign a higher relevance level than the relevance level of the selected item to the related item directly related to the selected item. For example, “level” -1 (= −1) of the selected case is set as the “level” of the selected case.

  Relevance lower than the relevance of the selected matter is assigned to the related matter that is a direct child of the selected matter. For example, “level” +1 (= 1) of the selected case is set as the “level” of the selected case.

  2) It is possible to determine a selected case that is indirectly related to the selected case (eg, grandchild relationship) from the information of the “parent case” and “child case” of the related case for which the degree of relevance is set.

  Assign a higher degree of relevance than the degree of relevance of the set related cases to the related cases of the direct parent of the related cases for which the relevance is set (set related cases). For example, “level” −1 (= −2) of a related case with “level” set to “−1” is set as the “level” of the selected case.

  Relevance lower than the relevance level of the set related matter is assigned to the direct related matter of the set related matter. The related matter file generation unit 115 sets, for example, “level” +1 (= 2) of the set related matter whose “level” is “1” as the “level” of the selected matter.

3) As described above, the degree of association is set for all of the selected selected cases.
In this way, as shown in FIG. 17, a related item file in a state where the degree of association is set for each related item is generated.

(5) Arrangement of related cases by relevance (step S25)
The related item file generation unit 115 arranges the related items in the generated related item file (FIG. 17) based on the degree of association. For example, the related matters are sorted in ascending order of the set “level”.

  By sorting, as shown in FIG. 18, related matter files in a state of being arranged based on “level” as the degree of relevance are generated.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an example of a family display screen that is a GUI screen of a related item displayed on the display unit 112.

  The family display screen 40 shown in FIG. 19 displays instruction buttons such as a merge button 41, a change button 42, and a division button 43, and a GUI that visually indicates the relationship between related cases.

  The family display screen 40 is described and generated in HTML (Hypertext Markup Language).

  That is, by HTLM, a cell part indicating a case number of each related case (a square frame enclosing “A001-01001PCT [Kuniyu]” etc.), a line part indicating the relevance of the related case (line connecting related cases: “-”, “└”, “├”) (related indices) are mapped to the corresponding location (for example, specified by coordinates) and displayed.

  The case number is underlined and linked to the corresponding data in the application case DB 131.

  In addition, a check box for designating a diversion target project is provided in a square frame: □. The check box is for designating a diversion target item.

  In addition to the check box, as a method to specify the diversion target case, drag and drop the square frame of the diversion target case: any desired instruction button (merger button 41, change button 42, division button 43, etc.) ) May be moved.

  In addition, frames surrounding “+” and “−” respectively indicate the expansion and non-expansion of the display contents. For example, the “+” at the left end of the family display screen 40 indicates that the parent application of the application “A001-01001 PCT [Kuniyu]” is not displayed on the screen.

  The “+” below the family display screen 40 indicates that the child application of the divisional application “(division) A001-01003JP [appraisal]” is not displayed on the screen.

  In this family display screen 40, the PCT application “A001-01001 PCT [Kuniyu]” is arranged in the horizontal direction (row direction) with respect to the parent application (non-display), and it is assumed that the parent application is a child application. It is shown that there is a parent-child relationship.

  Then, with respect to the PCT application “A001-01001 PCT [national superior]”, the divisional application “(division) A001-01002JP [appeal]” and the divisional application “(division) A001-01003JP [appeal]” are in the vertical direction ( Are arranged in the column direction) and have a sibling relationship.

  In addition, the PCT application “A001-01001 PCT [national superior]” is arranged in the horizontal direction (row direction) of the Korean application “(corresponding) A001-01001KR [rejection]” and has a parent-child relationship.

  Also, in the position below the Korean application “(corresponding) A001-01001KR [rejection]”, the US application “(corresponding) A001-01001US” connected with the PCT application “A001-01001PCT [national superior]” and “└”. [Registration] ”is arranged, and the Korean application“ (Correspondence) A001-01001KR [Rejection] ”is assumed to have a sibling relationship.

  As described above, by enclosing the case number of the application case with a frame and connecting the frame with a line (related index), the temporal context (parent-child relationship) between the related cases is expressed. In expressing the relationship, sibling relationships are expressed in the “column” direction.

  That is, in this example, a PCT application “A001-01001 PCT [Kokuyu]” claiming priority of a Japanese application (not shown) as a basic application is filed, and this PCT application “A001-01001 PCT [Kokuyu] As a domestic transitional application, the Korean application “(corresponding) A001-01001KR [refusal]” and the US application “(corresponding) A001-01001US (registered)” have been filed (more precisely, the national transition procedure).

  The Korean application “(corresponding) A001-01001KR [rejected]” has been rejected, and the US application “(responding) A001-01001US [registered]” is registered.

  In addition, two divisional applications of a divisional application “(division) A001-01002JP [appraisal]” and a divisional application “(division) A001-01003JP [appraisal]” with respect to a basic Japanese application (not shown). Has already been made and a request for examination has been made.

  In addition, a related item and its relationship may be expressed using character display. The character display is a display using a character code (for example, ASCII code) represented by 1-bit or multi-bit data.

  In the case of character display, the characters (“JP”, “PCT”, “KR”, “US”) representing the related cases, and the characters (“—”, “└”, “┬”, “├”) (related index) is displayed correspondingly.

  In the family display screen 40 shown in FIG. 19, in addition to the case identification information (for example, “(corresponding) A001-01001KR [rejection]” indicating the case itself in the cell part, the parent application and the sibling application are connected by line connection. The relationship and current status are displayed.

  For example, (corresponding) indicates that it is a `` corresponding application '' that shares the designated application with the parent application, and (changing) indicates that the application is a `` changed application '' as required by law. And (division) indicates that the application is a “division application”.

  There are (correspondence), (change), (division), etc. as the display showing the relationship with the parent application. In addition, as the display indicating the current state, there are [national superior], [appeal], [rejection], [registration], [application], and the like.

  [Application] indicates that the application is in the application state (unexamined), [Appeal] indicates the state requested for examination, [Register] indicates the registered state, [Rejection] ] Represents a rejected state. The difference between these states is identified by referring to the status information.

  In other words, on the family display screen 40, the legal relationship of the related case ("domestic priority claim", "merger", "change", "division", etc.), progress status ([application], [appeal], [ (Registration), [rejection, etc.) are also displayed, and the user can determine at a glance how much the application for the application he / she wants to examine is currently applied in what kind of parent-child relationship, and what the status of each application is. it can.

  In this embodiment, a related item (family item) can be extracted and displayed by associating a parent and child item for each item in the application item file.

  Relevance of related projects can be displayed by related indicators. In addition, sibling relationships can be expressed by arranging items in “columns”. In addition, related projects are displayed based on the selected project.

  As a result, various procedures for related projects can be quickly performed. In addition, in the display of related matters (for example, patent family display), it is easy to check not only the parent-child relationship but also the brother relationship.

  FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing details of the diversion processing from the family display screen in step S15 of FIG.

  On the family display screen 40, for example, as shown in FIG. 21, the check box 45 of the Korean application “(corresponding) A001-0100KR (rejection)” is checked, and the procedure division button, for example, the “divide” button 43 is pressed. By performing the operation (Yes in S31 in FIG. 20), the screen generation processing unit 115 determines the type of the procedure category, and when the procedure category is “divided” or “merged” (Yes in S32), it is shown in FIG. Such a divisional application setting screen 46 is displayed.

  The divisional application setting screen 46 is provided with an input box 47 for designating the number of divisional applications. When, for example, “2” is entered as the number of divisional applications in the input box 47 and the execution button is pressed (Yes in S33), the display screen generation unit 115 displays information on these diversion conditions (the case of the diversion source case). Identification information (A001-0100KR), item relation identification information (procedure division “division”, etc.), division number “2”, etc.) are received and passed to the diversion processing unit 120 (S34).

  In the diversion processing unit 120, when the diversion data acquisition unit 121 receives the diversion condition information, the diversion condition information is passed to the conversion processing unit 122.

  The conversion processing unit 122 accesses the diversion condition table (diversion rule table) 132 using the procedure category “division” included in the diversion condition information as a keyword, and uses the diversion condition definition file (diversion) from the procedure category “division”. Rule definition file) 133 is acquired, the corresponding diversion condition definition file 133 is specified, and the bibliographic information items to be copied are extracted from the diversion condition definition file 133 (S35). Note that a data diversion type name or rule ID may be input instead of the procedure division “division”.

  Subsequently, the conversion processing unit 122 extracts the copy target bibliographic information from the application case DB 133 according to the extracted bibliographic information item, and passes it to the application file generation unit 123.

  The application file generation unit 123 creates application case information for the number of divisions (for the number of diversions) specified by the diversion condition information acquired by the diversion data acquisition unit 121, and creates a new application case file for the divisional application. Registration is made in the application matter DB 133 (S36).

  Thereafter, the application file generation unit 123 registers the final disposal status and the disposal confirmation date in the information on the original application project in the application project DB 133 (S37).

  Then, the application file generation unit 123 instructs the diversion instruction input unit 110 to display the family again.

  In the diversion instruction input unit 110, the related case file generation unit 114 reads out the information on the target application case from the application case DB 133 in accordance with the family redisplay instruction, generates the family information file of the corresponding application case again (S38), and displays it. It is passed to the screen generator 115.

  The display screen generation unit 115 generates a family screen using the family information file passed from the related item file generation unit 114 (S40), and updates the family display screen of the display unit 112 (S41).

  As a result, as shown in FIG. 23, a family display screen 40 in which two item parts 49 of two divisional applications are newly added is displayed.

  As described above, according to the application information management system of the second embodiment, when examining a division source case in order to perform a procedure such as a divisional application, an approximate number of application cases that are considered to be specified from the menu screen 31 is specified. Then, display the family (parent-child relationship) related to the application project on the tree, check the desired project from the family, and press the button (division etc.) of the desired procedure to specify the number of divisions The application data file of the divisional application can be easily created by diverting from the division source project.

  In addition, the division of the application item selected by a simple operation such as selecting the check box of the desired application item from the families displayed on the family display screen 40 or dragging and dropping the icon of the application item to each processing box. By inputting diversion conditions such as processing and merger processing, it is possible to efficiently create a data file of a new case using the application data of the division source case, and it is possible to reduce mistakes with less key input.

  Since the bibliographic information of the split source case is copied and inserted into the corresponding item of the new case, it is not necessary to input the bibliographic information one by one, and the input work can be reduced.

  In addition, after the process of entering new matter data after splitting is completed normally, the status and each processing date are set for the diverted source matter, so that the input work for both the processing for the split source matter and the new split application matter is omitted. Can be eliminated so that there is no difference in relevance.

  In the above embodiment, since the division procedure is described as an example, it is referred to as a “division source case”. However, in the case of a merger procedure or the like, since it is a merger source case, these can be collectively referred to as a diversion source case.

  In addition, although one embodiment was described in order to implement | achieve this invention above, this invention is not limited only to the above-mentioned embodiment, In the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention, a various change can be added. I can. For example, it can be applied not only to the Patent Law but also to the Utility Model Law, the Design Law and the Trademark Law, as well as to each foreign application.

It is a block diagram showing the application information management system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram showing an example of a diversion condition table. It is a schematic diagram showing an example of a diversion condition definition file. This is a summary of the diversion relationships represented in the diversion condition definition file. This is a summary of the diversion relationships represented in the diversion condition definition file. It is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the diversion service by an application information management system. It is an activity diagram showing the flow of processing of the diversion service by the application information management system. It is a schematic diagram showing the data before conversion. It is a schematic diagram showing the data of a conversion word. It is a figure which shows the class structure for implement | achieving a system. It is a sequence diagram showing the process in which the instance group of a class mutually cooperates. It is a block diagram showing the application information management system of 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart showing an example of the outline | summary operation | movement procedure of the application information management system of 2nd Embodiment. It is an example of the menu screen displayed on a display part. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing details of a related item extraction / related item file generation process in the flowchart of FIG. 13. It is a schematic diagram showing an example of the application matter file memorize | stored in application case DB. It is a schematic diagram showing an example of the generated related matter file. It is a schematic diagram showing an example of the selected matter file in the state arranged by sorting. It is a figure which shows an example of a family display screen. It is a flowchart showing the detail of the diversion process from the family display screen in the flowchart of FIG. It is a figure when checking and specifying the item name to be diverted. It is a figure which shows an example of a divisional application setting screen. It is a figure which shows the family display screen to which the item of the divisional application was newly added.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Application information management system, 110 ... Diversion instruction input part, 111 ... Input part, 112 ... Display part, 113 ... Case search part, 114 ... Related matter file generation part, 115 ... Display screen generation part, 120 ... Diversion processing part 121 ... Diversion data acquisition unit, 122 ... Conversion processing unit, 123 ... Application file generation unit, 131 ... Application matter DB, 132 ... Diversion condition table, 133 ... Diversion condition definition file.

Claims (6)

An input unit for inputting case identification information for identifying the first application case, and case relation identification information for identifying the relationship between the first application case and the second application case;
A table having the case relation identification information, and diversion relation identification information representing a relation of information to be diverted between the first application case and the second application case;
Based on the input case identification information, an information acquisition unit for acquiring information on the first application case;
Based on the table, the information of the acquired first application case is extracted, and a case file generation unit that generates a file of the second application case,
An application information management system comprising: 2. The application information management system according to claim 1, wherein the second application case is any one of a divisional application, a continuation application, a change application, an update registration application, and a right extension application for the first application case. . The table further includes acquisition destination identification information for identifying an acquisition destination of information of the first application case,
The application information management system according to claim 1, wherein the information acquisition unit acquires information on the first application item based on the acquisition destination identification information. Inputting case identification information for identifying the first application case, and case relationship identification information for identifying the relationship between the first application case and the second application case;
Obtaining information on the first application case based on the input case identification information;
Based on the table having the case relationship identification information and the diversion relationship identification information indicating the relationship of the information diverted between the first application case and the second application case, the acquired first application case Extracting information and generating a file of the second application case;
An application information management method comprising: Inputting case identification information for identifying the first application case, and case relationship identification information for identifying the relationship between the first application case and the second application case;
Obtaining information on the first application case based on the input case identification information;
Based on the table having the case relationship identification information and the diversion relationship identification information indicating the relationship of the information diverted between the first application case and the second application case, the acquired first application case Extracting information and generating a file of the second application case;
A program for running a computer. An application matter storage unit that stores information including application matter information specified by the matter identification information and matter relation identification information indicating a parent-child relationship between the application matter and another application matter;
The input unit is
A reception unit for receiving the entered item identification information;
Using the case identification information received by the reception unit as a keyword, an extraction unit that extracts application case information and application case information related to the case from the application case storage unit,
In accordance with the case relationship identification information included in the information of the application case extracted by the extraction unit, a display unit that graphically displays the application cases in association with each other,
An information input unit for inputting the case relationship identification information and the case identification information of the application case designated from the application cases displayed graphically on the display unit to the information acquisition unit;
The application information management system according to claim 1, further comprising:

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