JP2015210691A - Intellectual property rights information management system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an intellectual property rights information management system that allows workflow processing to manage various works pertain to cases for each user corporation.SOLUTION: An intellectual property rights information management system comprises: a case DB27 that retains information on one or more cases pertain to intellectual rights owned by each organisational body, respectively; a route master DB28 that retains information on a route master serving as definition information on a workflow pertain to a legal term management in a procedure of acquiring intellectual property rights; a workflow processing unit 13 that controls a managing operation about each case in each organisational body by means of the workflow on the basis of a definition content of the route master; and a workflow DB29 that retains result information pertain to each workflow, in which the route master includes: a first route master defined by an operation operator of the intellectual property rights information management system 1; and a second route master defined based on the first route master for each organisational body or originally defined therefor.

Description

  The present invention relates to a technology for managing information related to intellectual property, and more particularly to a technology effective when applied to an intellectual property information management system that manages various operations related to matters such as invention by workflow processing.

  In companies, intellectual property such as inventions is created from business operations, and patent applications may be filed in order to appropriately protect them as intellectual property rights and utilize them in business. Here, as the scale of companies increases, the number of intellectual property such as inventions to be created, the number of patent applications, etc., and the number of intellectual property rights such as patents increases. Various management burdens such as management of the status of each item, management of access authority to information related to the matter, management of time limit, and the like increase. Therefore, it is considered to perform such management by an information processing system.

  For example, in Japanese Patent No. 5212514 (Patent Document 1), an intellectual property information management apparatus that centrally manages intellectual property information, a plurality of user terminals, an intellectual property information management apparatus, and use A computer network (intranet) that connects with a person's terminal, manages the expiration of intellectual property owned by itself and wraps the bag, and circulates and manages intellectual property operations of the invention department and intellectual property department. It describes an intellectual property information management system in which examination and approval are made into a workflow.

Japanese Patent No. 5212514

  By using technology such as that described in Patent Document 1, for example, while controlling the access rights to the project information for related departments, employees, affiliated companies, etc., for various operations related to projects such as inventions, It can be managed by workflow processing.

  However, in the technique as described in Patent Document 1, a single user company owns a management system, controls the access authority of users of affiliated companies and patent offices, and implements workflow processing. Is. In other words, it is assumed that the user company that creates and handles intellectual property itself owns and operates the system, and belongs to the employee of the user company, other affiliated companies that have business relations, patent offices, etc. For example, the system is operated by a service provider and the intellectual property information is managed as a service that can be shared and used independently for each of a plurality of different user companies. Application in a configuration that provides a function is not considered.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a management function of intellectual property information as a service that can be shared and used independently for each of a plurality of different user companies, in which the system is operated by a service provider. An object of the present invention is to provide an intellectual property information management system capable of managing various operations related to a matter by workflow processing for each user company.

  The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be apparent from the description of this specification and the accompanying drawings.

  Of the inventions disclosed in this application, the outline of typical ones will be briefly described as follows.

  An intellectual property information management system according to a representative embodiment of the present invention is managed by a service provider that provides an intellectual property management service to a plurality of organizations having a plurality of users. An intellectual property information management system that provides the intellectual property management service by being accessed from a user terminal used by a user belonging to an organization of the above, and has the following characteristics.

  That is, a case information holding unit that holds information on one or more cases relating to intellectual property held by each organization, and workflow definition information relating to statutory deadline management in an intellectual property right acquisition procedure A route master information holding unit that holds information of a route master, a workflow processing unit that controls a management operation for each case in each organization based on the definition content of the route master, and a workflow A workflow information holding unit that holds track record information, and the route master held in the route master information holding unit includes one or more first route masters defined by the service provider. One or more first or more defined by the organization based on the first root master or independently defined And route master, is intended to include.

  Among the inventions disclosed in the present application, effects obtained by typical ones will be briefly described as follows.

  In other words, according to a typical embodiment of the present invention, a system is operated by a service provider, and for each of a plurality of different user companies, intellectual property information In the configuration that provides the management function, it is possible to manage various tasks related to the matter for each user company by workflow processing.

It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the structural example of the intellectual property information management system which is one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example in the case of setting the access authority with respect to the item in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example in the case of changing the group which has access authority with the status of the case in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example in the case of setting the access authority with respect to each function and operation in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the management screen of the matter provided by the user interface part in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the screen which sets the route information of the workflow in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the screen which sets the content of the modifier in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the screen which changes the route | root of the workflow in execution in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the screen which changes the setting content of the modifier in the modifier master in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example in the case of starting a workflow from the detailed screen of the case in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example in the case of starting a workflow from the selection screen of the workflow in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the hierarchical structure of the route master in one embodiment of this invention. (A), (b) is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example in the case of managing the workflow in one embodiment of this invention as a bundle for every case. It is a figure explaining an outline about an example of flow control of a case concerning a bundle in one embodiment of the present invention. (A), (b) is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example in the case of adding a case later to the bundle | flux in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of bundle control at the time of changing the person in charge of the case in one embodiment of this invention. (A)-(c) is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the data structure of user DB in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the data structure of group DB in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the data structure of item control DB in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the data structure of role DB in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the data structure of function control DB in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the data structure of contract DB in one embodiment of this invention. (A), (b) is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of a data structure of case DB in one embodiment of this invention. (A), (b) is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of a data structure of route master DB in one embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary about the example of the data structure of workflow DB in one embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same function are denoted by the same reference symbols throughout the drawings for describing the embodiment, and the repetitive description thereof will be omitted.

  The intellectual property information management system according to an embodiment of the present invention is a status and information on the intellectual property such as the created invention (intellectual property subject to intellectual property rights) as a matter throughout its life cycle. It is an information processing system that provides a function and a service for performing management. The intellectual property information management system is operated by a business operator such as an IT vendor, for example, and is implemented so as to provide services to users via a network in the form of joint use by multiple companies as an ASP (Application Service Provider) Is done. As users, inventors who create intellectual property such as inventions in companies, users in related departments, intellectual property members, etc., and application procedures for obtaining intellectual property rights at the request of the companies etc. A user such as an agent of a patent office or an office worker who performs the operation is assumed.

  In the present embodiment, for example, a company or the like configures one or more groups for these users, and sets groups that can be accessed for each case. Enable access control according to the characteristics and circumstances of the project throughout the life cycle. Furthermore, by setting functions and operations that can be accessed for each user role for each item, it is possible to perform more flexible and detailed access control.

  In the present embodiment, in addition, for management work related to matters related to intellectual property, characteristics of intellectual property management such as the life cycle of one case can be as long as several years to several tens of years are considered. On the other hand, in a state where access control is performed between user companies, each company can independently create a workflow in a form corresponding to the actual situation of each company.

<System configuration>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a configuration example of an intellectual property information management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The intellectual property information management system 1 is an information processing system implemented by, for example, a virtual server constructed on a server device or a cloud computing service, and as described above, via the network 2 such as the Internet, A function / service for managing information related to intellectual property as an ASP is provided to users such as the company 3 and the patent office 4.

  The intellectual property information management system 1 includes, for example, an access control unit 11 implemented as a software program that operates on middleware such as an OS (Operating System), a DBMS (DataBase Management System), and a Web server program (not shown), a management function group 12, a workflow processing unit 13, a user interface unit 14, and the like. Each table includes a user database (DB) 21, a group DB 22, a case control DB 23, a role DB 24, a function control DB 25, a contract DB 26, a case DB 27, a route master DB 28, and a workflow DB 29 implemented by a database or the like.

  The access control unit 11 authenticates the user, and deals with the information on the case held by the intellectual property information management system 1 in the case DB 27 and the information such as various files (not shown) related to the case. It has a function of performing access control by the group to which the user belongs and access control by the role of the user. At this time, for example, each table such as the user DB 21, the group DB 22, the matter control DB 23, the role DB 24, the function control DB 25, and the contract DB 26 is referred to. The contents of access control will be described later.

  The management function group 12 is a module group that provides various functions for actually accessing the item information held in the item DB 27 and various information related to the item. The contents of access to a case include, for example, status, various related information, data management, time limit management, various searches, application procedures between the company 3 and the patent office 4 for a specific case. Includes functions such as instructions, various communications, acquisition of related intellectual property rights information, and watches. Furthermore, each of these functions and target information includes operations such as creation, display, update, deletion, execution, and approval according to the type and characteristics thereof.

  As management of information such as status related to each case, for example, an agent or administrative staff of the patent office 4 that is performing the application procedure accesses the management function group 12 via the user interface unit 14 described later, Changes in the status of individual applications can be ascertained by making it possible to input information related to documents sent / delivered by the JPO (for example, notification of reasons for refusal or assessment).

  On the other hand, it is also possible for the intellectual property information management system 1 to take in information acquired collectively from the JPO for a plurality of cases and reflect it in the case DB 27 in a batch process. In this case, there may be a case where the data captured in batch and the data manually input individually contradict each other. In such a case, the user is notified so that the data to be used is selected. May be. Thus, by making it possible to input information related to the case from two routes, it is possible to achieve both timely input and reduction of input load.

  In the present embodiment, as one of the management function groups 12, a workflow processing unit 13 having a workflow function is provided. For example, when a user logs in to the intellectual property information management system 1, control is performed so that processing, notifications, and the like assigned to the user are displayed. In addition to the general approval workflow, a workflow specific to intellectual property management, such as a person in charge of the intellectual property department inquiries to the invention department etc. and getting a response according to the status and content of the case Can also be implemented.

  As a specific process, for example, a token is issued and exchanged between users according to a predetermined route, and a certain process is assigned to the user having the token. When processing by the user is completed, control is performed so that a token is sent to the next target user on the route. Specifically, for example, a situation is assumed where the person in charge in the intellectual property department inquires the invention department about the necessity of application examination request, the necessity of pension payment for a registered patent, and the like to obtain an answer.

  In addition, in order to avoid the fact that nothing can be done unless the token is at hand, an authority control mechanism other than a bulletin board may be provided. Projects and bulletin boards are linked one-on-one, and those who have usage rights can freely write and transfer files outside the workflow management, regardless of where the tokens are. For example, it is effective when the draft specifications are exchanged asynchronously with the parties concerned. The contents of the workflow function will be described later.

  The user interface unit 14 has a function of providing a screen interface for the user using, for example, a web server program (not shown). For example, for each user who has performed login authentication, the access control unit 11 determines an accessible matter or management function, generates a screen that displays an accessible function according to the content, and responds to the user. In addition, by receiving an access request from the user via the screen and calling the corresponding management function group 12 and workflow processing unit 13, various functions and operations are executed on the matter, and a screen for displaying the result is generated. Respond to the user.

  A user such as an inventor, a related department, or an IP member in the company 3 uses a Web browser (not shown) on the company terminal 31 that is an information processing terminal such as a PC (Personal Computer) used by each user to 2, the user interface unit 14 of the intellectual property information management system 1 is accessed to execute various functions and operations on the case.

  Similarly, a user such as an agent or an office worker in the patent office 4 uses the Web browser or the like (not shown) on the office terminal 41 that is an information processing terminal such as a PC used by each user to use the network 2. The user interface unit 14 of the intellectual property information management system 1 is accessed via the interface, and various functions and operations are executed for the case. The company 3 and the patent office 4 can cooperate with each other via the intellectual property information management system 1. Therefore, it is also possible to realize a workflow across the company 3 and the patent office 4.

  In the present embodiment, a function for managing information related to intellectual property is provided by the ASP, and the management of the plurality of companies 3 can coexist and be shared. Of course, access control is performed between these companies so that information related to the project cannot be mutually referred to. In this embodiment, each company 3 concludes a contract with a business operator that operates the intellectual property information management system 1 and provides a service, and the information is held in the contract DB 26. The information on each item is associated with the contract, and is controlled by the access control unit 11 or the like so that the users who are subject to different contracts cannot share the information on the item.

  Specifically, for example, with respect to the user ID set for the user in each company 3, the upper several digits are fixed by the code value assigned for each contract, so that the relationship between the user ID and the contract is grasped, and the target contract Controls so that it is not possible to refer to items other than those related to. In order to enhance security, the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) provided by the user interface unit 14 is different for each contract and separated from the entrance, or domain authentication is performed based on the IP address of the user access source. Or may be controlled so that users outside the contract cannot access.

<Access control for matters within the same contract>
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an outline of an example in the case where the access authority for a matter is set in the same contract, that is, in a specific company 3. In the present embodiment, as described above, a group including one or more users is configured, and an access authority is set for each case by setting an accessible group for each case. For this setting, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, an access right (“◯” in the figure) is set for a matrix composed of each item (each column in the figure) and a group (each row in the figure). Done in the form.

  In principle, each user belongs to one or more groups, and a user who belongs to a group that is set to have an access right for each case can access the target case. As a group, for example, each business division such as “Intellectual Property Department”, “Accounting Department”, “Business Division A”, “Business Division B”, etc., may be involved in intellectual property management. Departments and organizations can be set. At this time, for example, by incorporating and reflecting personnel information data, user management data, and the like in the company 3, information such as the latest personnel changes and organizational changes can be reflected.

  In addition, not only in the department of company 3, but also in the patent office to which the agent and the administrative staff who act on behalf of the application, etc. upon request from the target company 3, such as “patent office a” and “patent office b” External organizations such as offices can be set as a group. The agent or the like may be set to belong to the group of the business division in charge of the project as a user instead of forming a unique group in this way. In addition, the organizational unit in the company 3 is not limited to a group, but for example, a “department A manager” or a “department B manager” has a static position (duty) in the target organization. It is good also as a unit of a subgroup.

  In this way, users such as agents and office workers in the patent office 4 are granted access authority to access the intellectual property information management system 1 as users of the company 3 by the company 3 that is the subject of each contract. Is set to Therefore, a representative of a patent office 4 (for example, “patent office a”) representing a plurality of companies 3 (for example, “company a” and “company b”) that are contractors of the intellectual property information management system 1 Since people and administrative staff access the intellectual property information management system 1 based on the access authority set for each company 3, security is ensured so that information is not confused across multiple companies 3. For example, it is not possible to list proxy cases that are represented on its own behalf.

  In other words, the agent and the administrative staff of “patent office a” cannot refer to the agent case of “company a” and the agent case of “company b” within the same access. In order to refer to the case of “Company a”, access is made with an access authorized for the user of “Company a”, and in order to refer to the case of “Company b”, It is necessary to make an access with the authorized authority for the user and to refer to the access with the authorized authority for the user of “company b”.

  When the unit of a group is an organizational component such as a department, organization, or position as described above, access rights to the case may be lost as a result of changes in users belonging to the target group due to personnel changes, etc. is there. In this embodiment, the access right is basically obeyed. However, for example, the inventor in the case may want to maintain the access right for the target case regardless of personnel changes or the like.

  In order to cope with such a situation, for example, a logical group for each item can be configured regardless of the organization configuration, such as a group of “inventor α” in the figure. In the case of the example in FIG. 2, a user who belongs to the “department B” group as the personnel organization has an access right to the “department B”. If you move, you lose access rights. However, when the user is an inventor and also belongs to the group of “inventor α”, the access right to “case B” can be maintained continuously even by personnel changes.

  In addition, for example, as shown in “User 1” in the figure, an individual user can be exceptionally directly assigned an access right to a matter, so that flexible support is possible (members can It may be treated as a group of only one person like other groups).

  The access right setting information shown in FIG. 2 is registered in the case control DB 23. The master information of each user is registered in the user DB 21, the master information of each group is registered in the group DB 22, and the information of each case is registered in the case DB 27. As described above, the information in the user DB 21 and the group DB 22 may be reflected by taking in, for example, personnel information data and user management data in the company 3.

  In this embodiment, the intellectual property information management system 1 is operated by an operator such as an IT vendor and is provided as an ASP service. However, setting and management of access authority as described above, registration of various data, etc. Is set by a person in charge or a manager of the company 3 or the like who uses the service by contract, and the business operator may not be aware of this.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an outline of an example in which a group having access authority is changed depending on the status of a case. For example, a case in which an intellectual property right such as an invention is created, an application procedure is carried out in order to obtain an intellectual property right, and a gazette such as a public gazette is issued by the Patent Office, and the patent right etc. In a typical life cycle, such as when an intellectual property right is established, a pension is paid and the intellectual property right is maintained, and when the lifetime expires, the intellectual property right disappears and becomes free technology Thus, the positioning can be changed in accordance with a change in status or the like.

  In the example of FIG. 3, as the status of a project, first, an intellectual property (for example, an invention) is created by the invention department, a project for this is formed, and how the invention is protected and utilized. The status becomes “under consideration” (S01a). In the figure, it is shown that “A (IP department)”, “B (invention department)”, and “Issuing (inventor)” are accessible as related parties at this time. The access right is set by, for example, registering the contents of the matrix as shown in FIG. 2 in the case control DB 23 described later.

  If, as a result of the examination, the application procedure for a patent application or the like is not performed, the status becomes “non-application” (S02) and is excluded from management. On the other hand, if the application procedure is to be performed with the status of “under consideration” (S01a), the status changes to the “application completed” (S03) status by creating a document such as a specification and performing the application procedure. To do.

  At this time, there are a case where the company 3 itself makes a document and makes an application, or a case where the application is entrusted to an agent such as the patent office 4 and the like. Whether the request is granted to the patent office 4 or not depends on whether the access right is granted to the patent office 4 even in the subsequent status of the case. In the present embodiment, an event of requesting the patent office 4 or the like is grasped as a status by separately holding it as flag information about the case. In the example of FIG. 3, when the application process is requested to the patent office 4 in the status of “under consideration” (S01a), “price (agent)” is newly added in the status of “under consideration” (S01b). It becomes possible to access.

  When the application procedure is performed, the status of the case becomes “Applied” (S03), indicating that “C (related department)” is newly accessible to the case. In this status, for example, when the request deadline has passed without performing the application examination request procedure, it is considered that the application has been withdrawn, and the status becomes “withdrawal” (S04) and is excluded from management. The On the other hand, if the application examination request procedure is performed, the examination will be conducted at the JPO and the status will be “Under examination” (S05a).

  When a public gazette is issued from the JPO with the status of “Applied” (S03) or “Under examination” (S05a), the invention relating to the case becomes publicly known, and its positioning changes greatly. However, there are cases where the patent decision or the rejection decision is finalized before the publication of the public gazette. In the present embodiment, an event that a public gazette is issued is grasped as a status by separately holding it as flag information about the case (indicated by the shaded status in the figure). In the example of FIG. 3, when a public gazette is issued in the status of “under review” (S05a), “all (all)” is accessible in the status of “under review” (S05b). .

  For example, when a notification of reasons for refusal is received with a status of “under review” (S05b), the status transitions to a status of “intermediate response” (S06), and when a rejection decision is finalized, the status becomes “rejected” (S07). Excluded from management. If a patent is granted with a status of “under examination” (S05b) or “intermediate response” (S06), the status becomes “registered” (S08). For the subsequent pension management, etc., “Inventor (inventor)”, “B (Invention department)”, “C (Related department)”, etc. are not involved in principle, so “A (IP department)” and “Fee ( (Representative) ”(only if the application process was requested by the patent office). Thereafter, when the patent right or the like is extinguished due to the expiration of the duration of the patent right or the like or non-payment of the pension, the status becomes “expired” (S09) and is excluded from management.

  In this way, the change in the status of the matter is tracked, and the setting of the accessible group is changed according to the status, that is, the correspondence information between the matter and the accessible group as shown in FIG. By allowing the item control DB 23 to be set for each item status, finer and more flexible access control can be realized.

  Here, from the viewpoint of access control to the information of the case and the confidential management of the information, the profit of the filing date was secured by carrying out the application procedure under the prior application principle in the Intellectual Property Law, and Two events, that is, a public gazette (or a registered gazette) is issued and the contents of the invention and the like are publicly known, have a great meaning. Therefore, in the present embodiment, at least “application procedure has been performed” (or transition to the status of “Applied” (S03)) and “Publication publication (or registration publication) issued” These two events and states are grasped, and based on this, control such as changing the setting of a group that can access the matter is performed.

  Note that the state transition shown in FIG. 3 is merely an example, and if it is possible to grasp at least the above two events and states, further details / simplification, management of other statuses, etc. Can be changed as appropriate.

<Access control for functions and operations within the same project>
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an outline of an example in which access authority for each function and operation of the management function group 12 of the intellectual property information management system 1 is set in the same case. In the present embodiment, as described above, by setting functions / operations and data that can be accessed for each user role for each item, more flexible and finer access control is possible. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the setting can be made by using an access right (“◯” in the figure) for a matrix composed of user roles (each column in the figure) and functions / operations (each row in the figure). Or “×” mark).

  As a rule, each user is assigned one or more roles, and a user who is assigned a role with access rights to each function / operation, etc., accesses the target function / operation, etc. Is possible. Functions and operations that do not have access rights may be hidden on the screen and may be displayed so that they cannot be used by shading, graying out, color coding, or the like.

  As the role, for example, a role or role such as “IP department manager”, “pension manager”, “researcher”, or “specification creator” can be set. At this time, if possible, the latest role information can be reflected by capturing and reflecting personnel information data, user management data, and the like in the company 3 as in the case of the group.

  For each of the above roles, information “C (Create :)”, “R (Display: Read)”, “U (Update: Update)”, “D (Delete: Delete) for each function / operation, etc., respectively. The authority for each operation such as "" can be set. In the example of FIG. 4, “◯” indicates permission, “×” indicates no authority, and “-” indicates that authority cannot be set. By setting such an access right, even among users who belong to a group that can access a certain matter, it is possible to control in detail functions and operations that can be accessed according to their roles. For example, even if the agent of the patent office 4 is set to belong to the same group as the user of the company 3 instead of an independent group, by limiting the role of the agent, It is also possible to perform access control such as prohibiting browsing of information.

  The functions / operations that can be accessed for each role may be set individually for each case. However, as shown in FIG. 2, a group that can access each case is set. The same access control can be easily realized by adjusting the combination of the group to which the group belongs and the assigned role. In addition to access control of functions and operations according to such roles, for example, functions and operations that can be accessed by a user who has a token in the above-described workflow function can be set uniquely. Also good. Thus, for example, the inventor cannot normally access, but it is also possible to perform access control so that a specific operation can be performed only when an inquiry is received from the IP department and confirmation or judgment is requested.

  In this embodiment, by determining the access control in units of groups for the case shown in FIG. 2 and the access control for the function / operation depending on the role of the user by AND conditions, Although access control is performed for functions, operations, and the like, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is also possible to perform access control by a combination including an OR condition and a NOT condition. For example, an item may be made accessible under a predetermined condition as long as it belongs to a group that can access the target item or has an access right for a specific function or operation. . Also, it is possible to perform control such that functions / operations accessible only to users who do not belong to a specific group are used.

<Matter management using workflow>
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of a case management screen provided by the user interface unit 14 of the intellectual property information management system 1 of the present embodiment. Here, the example of the screen which displays the detailed information about a specific case is shown. The panel on the left side of the screen displays basic information about the case, and the panel on the right side displays detailed information on the case divided into tabs. Note that the above-mentioned method is used for the access control that the target user can access which matter, which function / operation can be used, and which data can be referred to. It is determined by the group to which it belongs and the status of the project.

  One or more workflows can be generated for each case, and if there is a workflow to which the target user is currently assigned a step, that information is displayed in a list on the basic information panel (see figure). In the example of “5”, “Domestic application examination case 1” and “Domestic application examination case 2” are two cases).

  Here, when the target workflow is selected (in the example of FIG. 5, “domestic application study case 1”), for example, the user interface unit 14 uses the panel or tab (see FIG. In the example of FIG. 5, the display is automatically switched to the “invention information” tab), and items to be input are highlighted (in the example of FIG. 5, “acceptance date”, “foreign application examination”, etc.). Also, a navigation message (such as “There is an input error” in the example of FIG. 5) for the operation at the relevant step is displayed, and an action that can be taken next as a workflow process (screen in the example of FIG. 5) Change the contents of “Request for Response Plan Review” in the drop-down list at the bottom. The entire setting contents of the workflow (the flow of subsequent processes, the approver, the person in charge, etc.) may be confirmed.

  With such a guide function, for example, even a user who is not familiar with the details of management information related to intellectual property rights, such as the invention department, can access the intellectual property information management system 1 and independently perform workflow steps. It is possible to perform the process.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an overview of an example of a screen for setting workflow route information. The setting of the route master is performed by the service provider operating the intellectual property information management system 1 or the manager or person in charge of each company using the service by contract. The route master sets and defines assignment information regarding who (who is responsible) and what role in each step (detail) of the route. At this time, for example, it is possible to specify and assign a specific user by user ID or the like, but the invention department or related department may be different for each case, and even within the same case, a long life of intellectual property The person in charge often changes due to organizational changes or personnel changes between cycles.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, a person in charge of assigning a step is set by a variable (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a “qualifier”), and is dynamically converted into a person in charge at the time of execution of the step and assigned. Shall. In the example of FIG. 6, in the “person in charge” column in the “route details” table, “modification intellectual property person in charge” is used as a qualifier and a code (variable) indicating the person in charge of the intellectual property department of the case. And the character string “@CHIZA” is set.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of a screen for setting the content of a modifier. In the list of modifiers used in the route master displayed in the list, for example, for the modifier “Procedure intellectual property person in charge” (code is “@CHIZA”), the modifier is converted into a specific value. This indicates that 10 types of reference destination table and column information (“qualifier content” in the example of FIG. 7) are defined. The table here is, for example, an internal database related to human resources. Priorities are set in the definitions of the ten types of reference destinations. At the time of conversion, each table and column are sequentially referred to in descending order of priority, and modifiers are converted based on the first acquired value. In this way, by defining a plurality of reference destinations based on priorities, it is possible to prevent as much as possible the situation that there is no person in charge due to conversion to a blank value.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of a screen for changing the route of the workflow being executed. Here, the modifier set as the person in charge of each step in the setting of the route master shown in the example of FIG. 6 described above is based on the setting of the content of the modifier shown in the example of FIG. In the example of FIG. 8, the modifier code “@CHIZA” is converted to “_HOTANTOU” indicating a specific user of the intellectual property person in charge at the head office. Here, it is possible to change information on a group, a role, or a person in charge to which a step currently being executed or a step to be executed later is assigned.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of a screen for changing the setting contents of the modifier in the modifier master. Here, in order to convert the target modifier into a specific value, a conditional expression for extracting and applying a value to each of the reference destination table and column list shown in the example of FIG. 7 is shown in FIG. It can be set in advance by the screen shown. In the example of FIG. 9, for the modifier code “@CHIZA”, a conditional expression for extracting a value from the reference destination (table is “TBL_B”, column is “COL_A”) with the priority in the example of FIG. doing. Thus, a specific value of a person in charge can be dynamically set by extracting a value that matches the conditional expression from the target column of the target table and thereby converting the modifier.

  The modifier conversion method as described above is “indirect designation” in that a value is indirectly obtained and set from another table, but on the other hand, the modifier is in charge. It is also possible to use “direct designation” for directly setting the user ID and the like. For example, as a result of various organizational changes and personnel changes depending on the life cycle of the project, the person in charge and the approver may change, but in the case of intellectual property, the “inventor” remains unchanged regardless of personnel changes, etc. It is. However, since the “inventor” can change his / her organization due to personnel changes or the like, the “inventor” may not be properly extracted by “indirect designation” referring to a personnel-related internal database or the like. Therefore, a method of directly specifying a user or a department by “direct specification” is also provided.

  Also, although not shown, from the workflow setting function via the screen as described above, for example, in each step of the workflow, the address at the time of sending a notification mail such as a processing start instruction or a request to the next step , “Direct designation” or “indirect designation” can also be individually designated.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an outline of an example in which a workflow is started from the detail screen of a case. In the example of FIG. 10, for example, information on “Matter A” is displayed on the case details screen as illustrated in the example of FIG. 5, and the status is “Examination Requested”. In this state, when a request is newly made to start a workflow related to a case management task, for example, the workflow processing unit 13 refers to the route master DB 28, and a workflow route that can be started when the status is "examined". A master (route master in the “intermediate processing” category in the example of FIG. 10) is acquired and displayed as a list.

  As will be described later, in the route master DB 28, route master information is categorized and registered in accordance with the status of a matter that can be executed. In the present embodiment, at least the “application” category related to the application process that can be executed when the case is before the application, the “request for examination” category related to the application examination request process that can be executed before the application examination request, the rejection Four types: “Intermediate processing” category related to intermediate processing that can be executed when a reason notification or rejection decision has been received, and “Pension management” category related to pension management processing that can be executed after setting registration It shall have the category. The route masters classified into these categories are mainly related to management of legal deadlines in the procedures for acquiring and maintaining intellectual property rights.

  The user selects a route master to be processed from the route master of the “intermediate process” category displayed as a workflow that can be started, and instructs to start the workflow. In the following, this may be simply referred to as “workflow”). In this way, by setting the route master related to the necessary processing divided into categories in advance, it is possible to execute according to the status of the matter, or only the necessary route master is presented to the user and the convenience is improved. be able to.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an outline of an example in which a workflow is started from the workflow selection screen. In the example of FIG. 11, for example, when the user selects the start of a workflow from a main screen (not shown) or the like, the workflow processing unit 13 refers to the route master DB 28 and displays a list of all route masters by category. From there, when the route master related to the workflow that the user wants to start is selected (in the example of FIG. 11, the route master in the “intermediate processing” category is selected), the matter having a status that can start the workflow related to the route master is selected. Information is extracted from the case DB 27 (in the example of FIG. 11, the four cases “case A” to “case D” whose status is “examined for request”) are displayed in a list.

  The user can start the workflow related to the route master for the case by selecting the target case from these ("case C" in the example of FIG. 11) and instructing the start. As described above, it is also possible to select the target route master first from the categorized route masters, and to start the workflow for the matter corresponding to the status.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the hierarchical structure of the route master. The route master, which is workflow definition information, is registered in the route master DB 28 in a form having a hierarchical structure. The route master can be set and defined individually for each company 3 that has contracted the ASP service provided by the intellectual property information management system 1, but the load of setting and definition in each company 3 In consideration of the above, it is desirable to set and define a route master as a template in a service provider that provides an ASP service.

  In the example of FIG. 12, the service provider sets and defines a plurality of route master templates (only three of “route master A” to “route master C” are shown in the figure). Show. Here, for example, “contract company 1” is based on “route master A” and “route master B” defined by the service provider, and is customized for each company, and “route master A1” and “route master A1”. It shows that the route master B1 ″ is uniquely defined. “Contract company 1” can start “workflow A1” and “workflow A2” based on these route masters.

  Similarly, “Contract Company 2” is based on “Route Master B” defined by the service provider, and is customized for its own company in a form different from “Contract Company 1”. Indicates that it is defined. "Contract company 2" can start "Workflow B2" based on this route master. Note that the route master defined by the service provider may not be customized as necessary.

  Further, “contract company 3” indicates that “route master C” defined by the service provider is used as it is. Further, it is shown that the “route master D” is newly defined in-house without using the route master template defined by the service provider. “Contract company 3” can start “Workflow C” and “Workflow D” based on these route masters.

  As described above, the root master can be individually set and defined for each company 3 in a form having a hierarchical structure. In accordance with this, the above-described modifier master information is also set for each company 3. It can be set and defined individually.

  As described above, one or more workflows can be executed for each of a plurality of cases in the company 3, but these are searched by various users or managers according to their own access authority. be able to. For example, a search can be made based on the type of workflow, the current status, and the like. It is also possible to search by combining workflow information and item information. For example, a corresponding workflow can be extracted by a combination of the inventor of the case and an approver or an intellectual property person in charge of the workflow related to the case.

  Also, in order to be able to efficiently process a large number of workflows related to multiple items, multiple instances of the same type of workflow are grouped into “bundles” for each of one or more items, and the processes for these workflows are processed. It is also possible to carry out it collectively.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an outline of an example in which a workflow is managed as a bundle for each case. FIG. 13A is a diagram visually representing an example of a workflow. The role starts from the person in charge of “office work”, and the roles are “patent officer”, “approver”, and “invention department patent management”. It shows that the workflow is completed by the person in charge of “office work” through the processing of each person in charge of “person”.

  FIG. 13B shows an example of generating a bundle including a plurality of cases when generating a workflow related to the cases. Here, the workflow shown in the example of FIG. 13A indicates that seven cases 51 are included when a case is generated by the person in charge of “office work”. For example, in the setting screen in which the workflow is visually displayed as shown in FIG. 13A or the like, a candidate case is extracted by searching for a case, etc., and a case that the administrator or the like includes in the bundle You can choose.

  Here, in the present embodiment, the workflow processing unit 13 generates one bundle for each person in charge at the step where the person in charge in charge of processing becomes the largest when the plurality of cases 51 are collected into a bundle. In the example of FIG. 13B, the number of persons in charge is the largest in the steps performed by the “invention department patent manager”, and four persons in charge are scheduled to perform the process. Accordingly, the workflow processing unit 13 generates four bundles 50 (dotted line frames in the drawing) by collecting the respective cases scheduled to be processed by each person in charge of the “invention department patent manager”.

  The bundle 50 is generated when a workflow is generated. The number of cases 51 included in the generated bundle 50 is not particularly limited, and the breakdown of the cases 51 included in the bundle 50 does not change depending on the person in charge or the step. In the example of FIG. 13B, four bundles 50 are generated for each case that each person in charge of the “invention department patent manager” plans to process, but other “office work”, “patent person in charge”, etc. Each person in charge is assigned a case in units of bundle 50. Each person in charge can process matters in units of bundles 50 on the workflow, and can also process each individual matter.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining an outline of an example of flow control of a case relating to a bundle. Here, when the cases included in the bundle 50 are individually processed and there is a difference in their progress, it is not possible to proceed until all the cases to be processed by the person in charge are complete (can be processed) (processing) This is an example of the confluence control for controlling so that the control cannot be performed. In the figure, “person in charge A” who performs the steps after controlling the merging of bundles is currently assigned up to three of the four assigned cases, but the remaining one is still This is a state assigned to “person in charge D”. Therefore, “person in charge A” cannot start the processing related to the step. That is, it waits for the “person in charge D” to complete the case processing.

  On the other hand, the “person in charge B” can start the processing related to the step because one case assigned to him / her is already assigned. It is assumed that the merging control of the bundle 50 can be appropriately set at necessary steps.

  FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an outline of an example in which a case 51 is added to the bundle 50 later. As shown in FIG. 15A, when a new case 51 is added in a state where the two cases 51 in the bundle 50 are already assigned to the “person in charge B”, the case 51 starts from the beginning of the workflow. Done. That is, it is assigned to “person in charge A”. At this time, if the case 51 can be included in the existing bundle 50 based on the determination criteria shown in the example of FIG. Note that it is possible to separate and delete the case 51 from the bundle 50 in response to the addition of the case 51 to the bundle 50.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 15B, in the case where bundle merging control is set, at least a part of the case 51 has advanced to a step ahead of the merging point (assigned to the previous person in charge). In this case, since the merge control becomes complicated, it is assumed that a new case 51 cannot be added.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an outline of an example of control of the bundle 50 when the person in charge of the case 51 is changed. For example, if the person in charge is changed from “person B” to “person D” in one of the cases 51 in the bundle 50 assigned to “person B”, it is assigned to “person B”. The assigned case 51 is excluded from the bundle 50, and the bundle 50 is generated based on the case 51 newly assigned to the “person in charge D”. At this time, a new workflow with a different person in charge is generated for the newly generated bundle 50.

  For example, when the approver is changed, it may be controlled not to treat the person in charge as changed as described above and not to generate a new bundle 50. Also, when the setting of the workflow is changed so as to skip the task (step) instead of changing the person in charge, control is performed so that the person in charge is not changed and a new bundle 50 is not generated. To do. In addition, instead of changing the person in charge, it may be possible to set an agent / agent (the same person can be an agent / agent for multiple persons in charge). Control is performed so as not to generate a bundle 50.

  As described above, by managing a plurality of instances of the same type of workflow as a bundle 50 for each case 51, for example, processing (for example, changing a person in charge) for the workflow is performed collectively for these cases. And management can be made more efficient.

<Data structure>
Hereinafter, the data structure of each table for performing the above-described access control and workflow management will be described.

  FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the data configuration of the user DB 21. The user DB 21 is a table that holds master information of each user who can use the service provided by the intellectual property information management system 1. For example, the user DB 21 is a user master DB 21 a shown in FIG. The user group DB 21b shown in FIG. 17 and the user role DB 21c shown in FIG.

  The user master DB 21a in FIG. 17A is a table that holds user master information, and includes items such as a user ID, a contract ID, a user name, and a contact address. The item of user ID holds ID information for uniquely identifying each user. As described above, for example, by fixing the upper few digits with a code value assigned to each contract, the relationship between the user ID and the contract is grasped, and control is performed so that only matters related to the target contract can be referred to. The item of contract ID holds ID information for specifying a contract that is a basis for the target user to use the service. The ID information is defined in the contract DB 26 in FIG. Each item of the user name and the contact information holds information such as the name and name of the target user, and contact information such as an e-mail address and a telephone number.

  The user group DB 21b in FIG. 17B is a table that holds information on groups to which each user belongs, and includes items such as a user ID, a group ID, a group start, and a group end, for example. The item of user ID holds ID information for specifying the target user. The ID information is defined in the user master DB 21a. The belonging group ID item holds ID information for specifying a group to which the target user belongs. The ID information is defined in the group DB 22 of FIG. Each item of affiliation start and affiliation end holds information about the start and end of the time when the target user belongs to the target group (that is, organization or position). It is also possible to register future affiliation groups in advance. It is also possible to set to belong to a plurality of groups by registering a plurality of records for the same user.

  The user role DB 21c in FIG. 17C is a table that stores information on roles assigned to each user, and includes, for example, items of user ID, assigned role ID, assignment start, and assignment end. The item of user ID holds ID information for specifying the target user. The ID information is defined in the user master DB 21a. The assigned role ID item holds ID information for specifying a role assigned to the target user. The ID information is defined in the role DB 24 of FIG. Each item of assignment start and assignment end holds information on the start and end of assignment of the target role to the target user, respectively. It is also possible to register roles assigned in the future in advance. It is also possible to set so that a plurality of roles are assigned by registering a plurality of records for the same user.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the data configuration of the group DB 22. The group DB 22 is a table that holds master information of each group, and includes items such as a group ID, a group name, and a group classification. The group ID item holds ID information for uniquely identifying the target group. The group name item holds information on the display name of the target group. The item of group classification holds information such as a code value indicating the classification of the target group. The classification includes, for example, information for identifying whether the target group is a group based on an organization or a group based on a position.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the data configuration of the item control DB 23. The case control DB 23 is a table that holds information on the correspondence relationship between cases and accessible groups, and includes items such as a case ID, a case status, an accessible person ID, and a group / user classification.

  The item of item ID holds ID information for specifying a target item. The ID information is defined in the case DB 27 in FIG. The item status item holds information such as a code value that classifies the status of the target item. For example, a code value that can identify each status in the state transition as shown in FIG. 3 can be set. It may be separately held as a flag that an event such as a request from an agent of the patent office 4 or an event such as the publication of a public gazette has occurred. Thereby, the setting of the access right can be changed according to the status of the item.

  The accessible person ID and group / user classification items are ID information that identifies a group or user who has access rights to the subject matter, and a code value that classifies whether the ID information target is a group or a user. Etc. are retained. The ID information is defined in the group DB 22 in FIG. 18 or the user DB 21 in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2 described above, the access right to the case is set in units of groups in principle, but can be set directly for individual users as an exception.

  FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an overview of an example of the data configuration of the role DB 24. The role DB 24 is a table that holds master information of roles that can be assigned to each user, and includes items such as a role ID, a role name, a description, and a rank. The role ID item holds ID information for uniquely identifying each role. The role name item holds display name information of the target role. The explanation item holds information such as text explaining the meaning and content of the target role. The rank item holds information indicating the rank and level set for the target role. It is also possible to perform access control for functions / operations in more detail by classifying roles according to ranks and assigning corresponding roles according to, for example, the skill level of the user.

  FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the data configuration of the function control DB 25. The function control DB 25 is a table that holds information on the correspondence relationship between functions and operations provided by the management function group 12 of the intellectual property information management system 1 and accessible roles. Each item. The role ID item holds ID information for specifying the target role. The function code item holds information such as a code value for identifying a function / operation accessible by a user to whom the target role is assigned.

  FIG. 22 is a diagram showing an overview of an example of the data configuration of the contract DB 26. The contract DB 26 is a table that holds information on service use contracts concluded between the company 3 that operates the intellectual property information management system 1 and provides services, and each company 3. Each item includes an ID, a customer name, a contract category, a URL, a contract start date, and a contract end date.

  The item of contract ID holds ID information for uniquely identifying the target contract. The item “customer name” holds information on the display name of the customer (company 3 in FIG. 1) who has entered into a target contract with the business operator. The contract category item holds information such as a code value for specifying the type and category of the target contract. This is classification information for specifying a contract type or the like when there are a plurality of types of contracts depending on service provision contents, provision levels, options, and the like. The URL item holds URL information of the portal screen for access provided by the user interface unit 14 of the intellectual property information management system 1 assigned to the customer (company 3) of the target contract. Each item of the contract start date and contract end date holds information on the start date and end date of the target contract, respectively.

  FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the data configuration of the case DB 27, and includes, for example, tables of a case master DB 27a shown in FIG. 23A and a case status DB 27b shown in FIG.

  The case master DB 27a in FIG. 23 (a) is a table that holds master information of cases to be managed by the intellectual property information management system 1, and for example, case ID, contract ID, case manager, application number, original Each item includes a case ID, a case start date, and a case end date. The item of item ID holds ID information for uniquely identifying the target item. The item of contract ID holds ID information for specifying a contract with the company 3 that owns and manages the target case. The item of item manager holds ID information or the like for identifying the person in charge of the company 3 who is the manager of the target item.

  The application number item retains information on the application number when the application procedure is performed for the intellectual property right related to the subject matter. Information such as a publication number when a public gazette is issued and a registration number when a patent right is set and registered may be held together. If there is a parent case having a parent-child relationship with the target case, the item of the original case ID holds ID information for specifying the parent case. For example, a case relating to an original application for a divisional application or an overseas application may be grasped and managed as family information. Each item of the item start date and the item end date holds information on the start date and the end date of the target item, respectively. If it is outside the period specified by the start date and end date, the subject matter is not managed.

  The case status DB 27b in FIG. 23B is a table for managing information related to the status of each case, and includes items such as a case ID and a case status. The item of item ID holds ID information for uniquely specifying the target item. The ID information is defined in the case master DB 27a shown in FIG. The item status item holds information such as a code value that classifies the status of the target item. As described above, for example, a code value that can identify each status in the state transition as shown in FIG. 3 can be set. It may be separately held as a flag that an event such as a request from an agent of the patent office 4 or an event such as the publication of a public gazette has occurred.

  24 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the data configuration of the route master DB 28. For example, each table of the route master management DB 28a shown in FIG. 24A and the modifier master DB 28b shown in FIG. Consists of.

  The route master management DB 28a in FIG. 24A is a table that holds setting / definition information of a route master related to a workflow that can be executed by the user of each company 3 for a case. For example, the route master ID, Route category, route name, contract ID, parent route master ID, route detail ID, group, role, person in charge, work due date, initial display screen, required input items, navigation message, possible action, previous route detail ID, and next route It has each item such as details.

  The item of route master ID holds ID and sequence number information for uniquely identifying the target route master. The item of the route category holds information such as a code value for specifying the category into which the target route master is classified. The category includes, for example, “application”, “request for examination”, “intermediate processing”, “annuity management” and the like in the examples of FIGS. The route name item holds the display name and title information of the route related to the target route master.

  The contract ID item holds ID information for specifying a contract with the company 3 as information for specifying the company 3 when the target route master is created by customization by the company 3. To do. In addition, the parent route master ID item holds ID information for specifying the root master of the template that is the base when the target route master is customized and created by the company 3. Therefore, when the target route master is a template defined by the service provider operating the intellectual property information management system 1, no value is set in the items of the contract ID and the parent route master ID, or the unique A special value of is set.

  The item of the route detail ID holds information on an ID and a sequence number for uniquely identifying each step (detail) in the target route master. Each item after the route detail ID is held for each step constituting the target route master. It may be held in another table. Each item of group, role, and person in charge holds information specifying the group, role, and person in charge to which the target step is assigned. Here, it can designate as a variable using the modifier mentioned above. The work deadline item holds information on a start deadline and a completion deadline for executing the target step.

  The item of the initial display screen holds information for specifying an initial screen, a panel, a tab, or the like to be displayed by the user interface unit 14 when the user accesses the intellectual property information management system 1 in order to execute the target step. To do. The item of the essential input item holds information for specifying the essential item that the user must input as information related to the matter in the target step. The item is highlighted on the screen shown in the example of FIG. The navigation message item holds information on a navigation message that guides input items and processing contents in the target step. The message is displayed, for example, on the screen shown in the example of FIG.

  The possible action item holds information for specifying an action that can be executed as a process related to the progress of the workflow by the user in the target step. The content is displayed so that it can be selected on the screen shown in the example of FIG. Each item of the previous route specification ID and the next route specification holds ID information that identifies a step executed before the target step and a step executed after the target step, respectively. With this information, each step can be grasped as a continuous workflow.

  The modifier master DB 28b in FIG. 24B is a table that holds modifier setting / definition information that can be used when the user of each company 3 sets / defines a route master. , Modifier, modifier category, contract ID, reference destination table, reference destination column, designated category, designated content, and the like.

  The item of the modifier ID holds ID and sequence number information for uniquely identifying the target modifier. The modifier item holds information about the display name of the target modifier. The item of the modifier category holds information such as a code value for specifying the category of the target modifier. The classification includes, for example, a classification that classifies whether the modifier is a modifier that specifies a person in charge or a modifier that specifies a department. The item of contract ID holds ID information for specifying a contract with the company 3 as information for specifying the company 3 in which the target modifier is set / defined.

  Each item of the reference destination table and the reference destination column holds information for identifying the table and column of the database that is the reference destination of the data to which the modifier is converted when the target modifier is indirectly specified. . The item of the designation category holds information such as a code value for specifying whether the target modifier is direct designation or indirect designation. The item of the designated content holds the content of converting the target modifier and information on the conditional expression at the time of conversion. For example, if the target modifier is directly specified, the value to be converted is directly specified. If it is indirectly specified, the record for extracting the value to be converted is specified for the above referenced table and referenced column. A conditional expression is specified.

  FIG. 25 is a diagram showing an outline of an example of the data configuration of the workflow DB 29. The workflow DB 29 is a table that holds track record information related to a workflow executed by a user of each company 3 for a case. For example, a workflow ID, a route master ID, a contract ID, a case ID, a bundle ID, and a route specification Each item includes items such as ID, latest / actual person in charge, work start date, work end date, previous route details ID, and next route details.

  The item of workflow ID holds ID and sequence number information for uniquely identifying the target workflow. The item of the route master ID holds ID information that identifies the route master that is the source of the target workflow. The item of contract ID holds ID information for specifying a contract with the company 3 as information for specifying the company 3 executing the target workflow.

  The item of item ID holds ID information for specifying the item corresponding to the target workflow. As a result, the workflow and the case are associated with each other, and as described above, the search can be performed by combining the workflow information and the case information. The bundle ID item holds information on an ID and a sequence number for identifying a bundle including the target workflow. With this information, as described above, it is possible to process and manage the matters related to the workflow in a bundle.

  The item of the route detail ID holds information such as an ID for specifying a step (detail) being executed or executed in the target workflow. Each item after the route detail ID is held as performance information and history information for each step being executed or executed in the target workflow. It may be held in another table. The item of the latest / actual person in charge is an ID for identifying the person in charge when the modifier set on the route master in the target step is actually converted and assigned to the person in charge etc. The information of is retained. Each item of the work start date and work end date holds information on the actual start date and end date of the target step, respectively. Each item of the previous route detail ID and the next route detail holds ID information that identifies a step executed before the target step and a step executed after the target step, respectively.

  Note that the data configuration (items) of each table shown in FIGS. 17 to 25 is merely an example, and other table configurations and data configurations may be used as long as similar data can be held and managed. It may be.

  As described above, according to the intellectual property information management system according to an embodiment of the present invention, status and information are managed as matters over the life cycle of the intellectual property such as the created invention. Functions and services can be provided. For example, the intellectual property information management system is operated by a business operator such as an IT vendor, and is implemented so as to provide a service to a user via a network in the form of joint use by a plurality of companies based on a contract as an ASP. . Therefore, it is possible to control access so that information related to the matter is not shared between users of companies with different contracts.

  In addition, for example, companies can configure one or more groups for these users, and by setting groups that can be accessed for each project, it is possible to control access according to the characteristics and status of the project throughout its life cycle. It becomes. Furthermore, by setting functions / operations that can be accessed for each user role for each item, it is possible to perform more flexible and detailed access control in units of functions / operations.

  In addition, by managing the agent as one user and creating a group of external participants consisting of agents, patent office clerks, etc., or setting a predetermined role for the agent, the agent People can be treated like corporate users. This allows companies to manage and access project information appropriately even if there are multiple agents and patent offices, or conversely, agents are absent, undecided, or even before requesting or filing applications. Control can be performed.

  Furthermore, according to the intellectual property information management system according to one embodiment of the present invention, the life cycle of one case is a long one of several years to several tens of years for management work related to matters relating to intellectual property. Considering the characteristics of intellectual property management such as possible, each company can create its own workflow according to the actual situation of each company, with access control between user companies. It becomes.

  As mentioned above, the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Needless to say. For example, the above-described embodiment has been described in detail for easy understanding of the present invention, and is not necessarily limited to the one having all the configurations described. In addition, it is possible to add, delete, and replace other configurations for a part of the configuration of the above-described embodiment.

  The present invention can be used in an intellectual property information management system that manages various tasks related to matters such as inventions by workflow processing.

1 ... intellectual property information management system, 2 ... network, 3 ... company, 4 ... patent office,
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Access control part, 12 ... Management function group, 13 ... Workflow processing part, 14 ... User interface part,
21 ... User database (DB), 21a ... User master DB, 21b ... User group DB, 21c ... User role DB, 22 ... Group DB, 23 ... Matter control DB, 24 ... Role DB, 25 ... Function control DB, 26 ... Contract DB, 27 ... Project DB, 27a ... Project Master DB, 27b ... Project Status DB, 28 ... Route Master DB, 28a ... Route Master Management DB, 28b ... Modifier Master DB, 29 ... Workflow DB,
31 ... Corporate terminal, 41 ... Office terminal,
50 ... bundle, 51 ... project.

Claims (8)

Managed by a service provider providing an intellectual property management service to a plurality of organizations having a plurality of users, and accessed from a user terminal used by a user belonging to the plurality of organizations via a network An intellectual property information management system that provides intellectual property management services,
A case information holding unit for holding information of one or more cases relating to the intellectual property held by each organization;
A route master information holding unit that holds information of a route master that is definition information of a workflow related to statutory expiration management in an intellectual property right acquisition procedure;
A workflow processing unit that controls a management operation for each case in each organization based on the definition content of the route master by a workflow;
A workflow information holding unit that holds the record information related to each workflow,
The route master held in the route master information holding unit is based on one or more first route masters defined by the service provider and the first route master for each organizational unit. An intellectual property information management system including one or more second route masters defined or uniquely defined. In the intellectual property information management system according to claim 1,
The route master has at least an intellectual property right application process, an application examination request process, an intermediate process, and an annuity management process, respectively. . In the intellectual property information management system according to claim 1 or 2,
Furthermore, it has a modifier master holding unit for holding one or more modifiers and information on conditions for converting the modifiers into information on the person in charge,
The route master is designated by the modifier for a person who assigns execution of each step included in the route master,
The workflow processing unit, to the person in charge obtained by converting the modifier specified in the corresponding route master according to the condition, the execution of each step in the workflow being executed based on the route master An intellectual property information management system assigned to each other. In the intellectual property information management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Among the persons in charge of assigning the execution of each step included in the route master in the route master, for the inventor related to the intellectual property, the intellectual property directly designated by information identifying the inventor Information management system. In the intellectual property information management system according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
Holds information on a bundle of one or more cases related to the workflow of the same type,
An intellectual property information management system capable of collectively setting or changing information on the case in units of bundles based on an instruction from a user. In the intellectual property information management system according to claim 5,
In the bundle, it is possible to add another item or to separate any item included in the bundle even after the workflow related to any item included in the bundle is started. An intellectual property information management system. In the intellectual property information management system according to claim 5,
The workflow processing unit, for a predetermined step in the workflow, until all of the matters included in the bundle to be processed in the step are assigned to a person in charge of executing the step and can be processed. An intellectual property information management system that controls the person in charge so that the process of the step cannot be performed. In the intellectual property information management system according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
Holds information related to the association between each workflow and the matter,
An intellectual property information management system capable of searching for a case based on information related to the workflow specified by a user and information related to the case.