JP2023101763A - Data management system and data management method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a data management system and a data management method capable of storing input data including image data on a block chain and being excellent in authority of stored input data.SOLUTION: A data management system comprises: management instruction means for extracting text data from input data and storing it on a block chain; and determination means for determining whether or not the input data contains both of image data and text data. On the basis of the determination of the determination means, the data management system extracts the image data and stores it at a prescribed server, and stores related data relating to the storage of the image data in association with the text data on the black chain.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

The present invention relates to a data management system and data management method for storing input data in an analyzable manner.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, exchanges between service providers and service recipients in various types of businesses, for example, personal medical records in medical institutions, transaction records and transaction histories of customers in financial institutions, and judicial precedents in legal institutions have been managed. Such management materials are managed so that they can be referred to later, and are used for reference and comparison of histories on an individual basis or on a case basis, and are useful for subsequent examinations, transactions, trials, and the like. In recent years, these management materials are input by a computer or the like, converted into electronic data, and stored in a storage medium such as a server in a centralized management system.

In recent years, distributed data management systems, such as blockchain, have emerged that make it easy to prevent tampering with input data, which are transaction records. Input data other than cryptocurrency transaction records can also be stored on a blockchain with such a high tamper-proof function. For example, Patent Literature 1 proposes storing input data, which is a transaction record, on a blockchain.

JP 2018-515833 A (paragraph 0006, FIG. 1)

The data storage server of Patent Literature 1 can guarantee the credibility of the input data by storing the input data on the blockchain. However, Ethereum, which is widely used as a platform for handling blockchain, is a platform developed with the storage of text data in mind. For this reason, for example, for input data such as image data, which contains a large amount of data compared to text data, there are cases where an error is returned if the amount of data exceeds a prescribed amount. Even if the conversion is performed on a platform, it takes a long time to convert to a hash value, making it unsuitable for practical use and not suitable for storing input data containing such a large amount of data.

The present invention has been made with a focus on such problems, and an object thereof is to provide a data management system and a data management method that can store input data including image data on a blockchain and that has excellent credibility of the stored input data.

In order to solve the above problems, the data management system of the present invention includes:
A storage instruction means for extracting text data from input data and storing it on the blockchain;
determining means for determining whether the input data includes both image data and text data;
The image data is extracted and stored in a storage server based on the determination by the determination means, and related data related to storage of the image data and the text data are associated with each other and stored on the block chain.
According to this feature, when the input data received from the client-side terminal includes both text data and large-capacity image data, the data management system extracts the image data and stores it in the storage server, and associates only the related data related to the storage of the image data, such as a hash value, with the text data and stores it on the blockchain. Therefore, the large-capacity image data is not directly stored on the blockchain. According to this, even when using a platform developed with the storage of text data in mind, such as Ethereum, it is possible to store input data in which text data and image data are mixed on the blockchain, and the credibility of the input data is excellent.

The method is characterized in that data related to storage of the image data stored in the storage server is integrated with the text data, and the integrated data is stored on the block chain.
According to this feature, by integrating related data and text data related to storage of image data, they can be easily and reliably associated and stored on the blockchain. In addition, since the integrated data is stored as one block on the blockchain, it is not always necessary to prepare a table that associates the storage location of the image data with the storage location of the text data when decoding the stored input data.

The present invention is characterized by comprising an attachment means for attaching a predetermined tag to related data relating to storage of the image data integrated with the text data.
According to this feature, when referring to the input data stored on the blockchain, it is possible to determine that the input data includes a character string of related data related to storage of the image data, thereby improving the processing efficiency.

A service server on the Internet that provides a data management system is provided, and the service server is characterized by having an output means capable of extracting image data stored in the storage server from related data related to storage of image data stored in association with the text data on the block chain, and outputting together the related data related to storage of the image data stored on the block chain and the associated text data.
According to this feature, when the output of the input data is requested, the image data is extracted from the storage server, combined with the corresponding text data, decoded into the same contents as the input data received from the terminal on the client side, and can be output.

The service server integrates data related to storage of the image data stored in the storage server into the text data, and is characterized by being able to store a hash value converted when the integrated data is stored on the blockchain in association with user identification information.
According to this feature, the service server can output only the input data corresponding to the user identification information, so it is possible to prevent leakage of stored data.

The storage server stores image data using a distributed file system, and the related data is a hash value.
According to this feature, it is possible to use an existing open source distributed file system platform because a hash value may be used when image data is added as related data.

In order to solve the above problems, the data management method of the present invention comprises:
extracting text data from the input data and storing it on the blockchain;
determining whether the input data includes both image data and text data;
extracting the image data and storing it in a storage server;
a step of associating related data relating to storage of the image data with the text data and storing them on the blockchain;
A data management method comprising:
According to this feature, when the input data received from the client-side terminal includes both text data and large-capacity image data, the data management system extracts the image data and stores it in the storage server, and associates only the data related to the storage of the image data with the text data and stores it on the blockchain, so the large-capacity image data is not directly stored on the blockchain. According to this, even when using a platform developed with the storage of text data in mind, such as Ethereum, it is possible to store input data in which text data and image data are mixed on the blockchain, and the credibility of the input data is excellent.

1 is a conceptual diagram showing a data management system and a data management method in an embodiment of the invention; FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an initial screen provided by an API server and displayed on a personal computer; It is a figure which similarly shows a user page. It is a figure which similarly shows a data input page. It is a figure which shows the medical record before conversion. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an XML-format file to which tags have been added; FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing the flow up to storage of the data management system; It is a figure which shows the file of the XML form converted from the contract document. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a display screen on which encryption can be set for an arbitrary character string; It is a figure which shows the output input data. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an input screen displayed on a client-side personal computer when storing contract documents of an electronic contract, showing steps for prompting input of contractor information. It is a figure which similarly shows the step which prompts the input of contract content. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a step of prompting the input of an electronic signature and a seal as well. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a step of urging the selection of a lawyer as well.

Embodiments for implementing a data management system and a data management method according to the present invention will be described below based on embodiments.

A data management system and a data management method according to an embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 14. FIG.

A data management system is a system that digitizes data exchanges between service providers and service recipients in various business categories, such as individual medical records (medical records) in medical institutions, customer transaction histories in financial institutions, judicial precedents in legal institutions, electronic contract documents related to legal affairs such as wills and real estate transactions, etc., and manages them on a server so that they can be referred to later. In this embodiment, an example of managing medical care records on a hospital-by-hospital basis will be described.

FIG. 1 shows an overall system diagram for realizing an embodiment of the data management system of the present invention, wherein reference numeral 1 denotes a service server for providing a data management system by a management company (administrator), and reference numeral 2 denotes a client and a personal computer (hereinafter abbreviated as "personal computer") as output means, which are connected so as to be able to communicate with each other via the Internet. A scanner 3, a keyboard 4, a mouse 5 and the like are connected to the personal computer 2 as input means. In addition, a pen tablet, a stylus pen, etc. can be used as input means.

Each of the personal computers 2 is provided with an electronic processing section in addition to a recording means such as a hard disk (not shown), a RAM, and the like. In the management document of the paper medium imaged by the scanner 3, the character information described in the electronic processing unit is subjected to character recognition, and a document is generated in which the character information is converted into text. If the management documents include photographs, drawings, moving images, etc., these constitute documents together with text as image data such as PNG, JPEG, and AVI.

The service server 1 is composed of a plurality of computers (recording means) 6, an API (Application Program Interface) server (recording means) 7, a user management server (recording means) 8, and a processing server (recording means) 9, which are the operating environment of a blockchain platform and a distributed file system, which will be described later.

In the data management system of this embodiment, input data is stored using blockchain technology. A plurality of computers 6 that constitute the service server 1 are a plurality of nodes that generate blocks of a blockchain, and also serve as distributed servers that constitute a distributed file system.

The API server 7 is a server operated by a management company that provides a data management system, and is a server on the Internet that provides an API that allows even a client without knowledge of a blockchain or a distributed file system to easily use conversion of data necessary for storing input data received from a client-side personal computer 2 on a blockchain and attachment of tags, which will be described in detail later. The API implemented by the API server 7 operates on a web browser started by the personal computer 2 on the client side.

A user who uses the data management system registers a unique user ID (user identification information) and a password in advance on the homepage published by the management company of the data management system. The user management server 8 has a correspondence table that holds the correspondence between the user ID and password entered on the homepage and the link information to the block chain assigned to the user with the user ID.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing the flow from uploading of input data in the data management system to storage on the blockchain and distributed file system. Hereinafter, the numbers attached to the arrows in FIG. 7 may be used for explanation.

When a user inputs input data to the data management system, first, he/she accesses the home page published by the management company using a web browser started on the personal computer 2 . As shown in FIG. 2, a user ID input field 11, a password input field 12, and a login button 13 are displayed on an initial screen 10 of the home page, and a user accessing the website is requested to enter a user ID and a password.

The user enters the user ID input field 11 and password input field 12 and selects the login button 13 . When the login button 13 is selected, the entered user ID and password are sent to the user management server 8 (see FIG. 1), and the user page 14 shown in FIG.

A data input button 15 and a data reference button 16 are selectably displayed on the user page 14 . The user selects the data input button 15 when uploading a new medical care record document, and selects the data reference button 16 when referencing the electronic data of the medical care record already managed.

When the data entry button 15 is selected, the data entry page 17 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed. A file selection button 18 and an upload button 19 are displayed on the data input page 17 . When the user selects the file selection button 18, a window is displayed in which a document of the medical record stored in the storage medium of the personal computer 2 on the client side can be selected. By selecting the upload button 19 (see arrow 1 in FIG. 7), electronic data of the selected medical record is sent to the processing server 9 (see arrow 2 in FIG. 7).

In the processing server 9, first, by reading the judgment material based on the file format of the document of the medical care record and the content of the data, it is judged whether or not the document is a full text searchable text only file (judgment means). If it is a text-only file, the process proceeds to the step of adding tags (adding means). On the other hand, when data having a file size larger than text data such as image data is pasted in addition to the text, the document is divided into the data having the large file size and the text data before the step of attaching the tag. Data having a file size larger than text data will be described as a CT image 20 (image data, see FIG. 5) in this embodiment.

In the division processing, common metadata is added to the divided text data and image data, respectively, and held as a preparation state for subsequent processing.

The processing server 9 instructs the distributed file system operating on a plurality of computers 6 to store the image data extracted from the input data (see arrow 3 in FIG. 7). This distributed file system is an IPFS (Inter Planetary File System), and returns to the processing server 9 a hash value that refers to a node in which image data is stored on the network (see arrow 4 in FIG. 7).

The processing server 9, which receives the hash value of the image data from the distributed file system, performs a full-text search on the text data separated from the image data, finds character data such as nouns (for example, an item name, such as a medical history) from the text data under a preset given condition, and converts the character strings of these text data into XML format files with tags.

For example, if the character data of the word "previous history" indicating the item and the character data of the words "influenza" and "subdural hematoma" near the word "previous history" are found from the electronic data of the medical record of FIG. Then, in the XML format file of FIG. 6, character data of "influenza" and "subdural hematoma" are placed between <medical history> and </medical history>, respectively.

In this way, the recognition of words such as "previous history", "influenza", "subdural hematoma", and the fact that these "influenza" and "subdural hematoma" correspond to "previous history" are set in the processing server 9 in advance by the management company and the user as predetermined tag attachment conditions.

In addition, the API in the present embodiment also has, as tag attachment conditions, an attachment condition under which the character data "influenza" can be determined as a "respiratory" disease, and the character data "subdural hematoma" can be determined as a "brain" disease. Then, in the XML file, <respiratory> and </respiratory> tags are arranged so as to sandwich "influenza", and <brain> and </brain> tags are arranged so as to sandwich "subdural hematoma". In other words, the character data "influenza" is given the sub-tag <respiratory></respiratory> and the higher-level main tag <previous history></previous history>, and these multiple tags can be divided into hierarchies and can be determined. A plurality of tags may be attached to one character data. For example, two tags of "respiratory system" and "virus" may be attached to the character string "influenza".

Further, the processing server 9 writes the hash value (related data) returned from the distributed file system in the XML format file. Specifically, the hash value associated with the image data is written between tag information <img></img> indicating that the character string is the hash value of the image data. In addition, information such as tag information indicating position information of image data, image data arrangement and display size, etc. may be arranged in the XML format file.

The processing server 9 proceeds to a step (storage instruction means) of instructing the blockchain platform operating on a plurality of computers 6 to store the XML format file in which the hash value and text data related to the image data are integrated (see arrow 5 in FIG. 7). The blockchain platform is Ethereum, and the integrated XML format files are converted into hash values and stored on the blockchain.

That is, the XML format file is hashed (see arrow 6 in FIG. 7) along the format of the block chain by one of the computers 6 that make up the service server 1, and by using the link to the block chain that corresponds to the user ID referenced in the correspondence table described above, the corresponding block chain is specified from among a plurality of blockchains, and stored on the block chain that operates in the environment of the computers 6 that function as the plurality of nodes that make up the service server 1. In addition, the correspondence table of the user management server 8 holds the correspondence between hash values stored on the blockchain and user IDs (Fig. 1), and at the time of output, which will be described later, the user can select any one from a plurality of hash values displayed at the time of login, so that the content can be confirmed in units of input data. The processing server 9 notifies the personal computer 2 on the client side that the storage of the input data to the blockchain has been completed using the API display or the like (see arrows 7 and 8 in FIG. 7).

Also, as in the contract document shown in FIG. 8, highly confidential character strings such as credit card numbers may be written in XML format files. The data management system provided by the service server 1 has a function that allows the user to encrypt text data in an XML format file as required.

When the processing server 9 completes the tagging of the file in XML format, it performs an encryption processing step. Specifically, the API is used to display a display screen on which encryption can be set for an arbitrary character string as shown in FIG. By dragging (selecting) the character string using the mouse 5 or the like, the user can designate the part to be kept secret (FIG. 9 shows an example of designating two parts). The API recognizes the dragged character string, masks the character string on the display screen, and instructs the processing server 9 to encrypt the character string.

The processing server 9 converts (encrypts) the selected character string into a character string whose content cannot be determined at first glance using a variable. At this time, the processing server 9 associates the variable used for encryption with the user ID in the correspondence table (see FIG. 1) and saves it.

In addition, the processing server 9 adds a tag to the XML format file so that the encrypted portion can be identified. In FIG. 9, in order to encrypt a character string tagged with <credit card number></credit card number> and a character string tagged with <img></img>, that is, a character string of the hash value of the image data, tags <Enc></Enc> sandwich the tags <credit card number></credit card number> and <img></img> at the bottom.

In addition, the processing server 9 may have an assist function for showing the character string determined to be confidential based on the tag to the user by flickering, highlighting, or the like on a display screen on which encryption can be set.

In addition, the specification is not limited to encryption of character strings, and may be a specification in which each tag can be selected and the tag itself can be encrypted. According to this, it is possible to make it impossible to determine what the character string sandwiched between the tags corresponds to. It is also possible to encrypt both the tag and the character string sandwiched between the tags.

Also, the image data may be encrypted.

The processing server 9 has a function (output means) to refer to a plurality of input data stored on the blockchain. The user uses a web browser activated on the personal computer 2 to access the homepage published by the management company and log in.

The user selects the data reference button 16 on the user page 14 (see FIG. 3) displayed on the personal computer 2 on the client side after login. The processing server 9 starts the step of referring to the input data based on the selection of the data reference button 16 .

Specifically, the processing server 9 refers to the user ID received at the time of login by the user in the corresponding table, identifies the block chain in which the input data is stored using the link to the corresponding block chain, and transmits the hash value corresponding to the user ID to the block chain platform.

The blockchain platform then decrypts the hash value into an XML formatted file and returns the XML formatted file to the processing server 9 . Further, the processing server 9 reads the XML format file and determines whether or not there is a hash value related to the image data inside. When it is determined that there is a hash value associated with the image data, the processing server 9 uses the hash value in the distributed file system to download the image data corresponding to the hash value from the distributed file system.

Then, the processing server 9 uses the text data other than the hash value related to the image data in the XML format file and the downloaded image data to display an output screen on which the text data and image data in the XML format file can be simultaneously viewed on the display of the personal computer 2 on the client side, as shown in FIG.

At this time, the processing server 9 extracts a variable (decryption information) as a decryption key used for encryption from the correspondence table of the user management server 8, and uses the variable to decrypt and display the encrypted character string in the XML file.

In this way, by using texts extracted according to predetermined search conditions and tags attached to the texts, it is possible to use the texts for data analysis in order to obtain useful knowledge for business activities. For example, in the medical field, by analyzing the medical record input data of all patients in a single hospital, which is the user, it is possible to obtain knowledge useful for researching disease trends and effective treatment methods, etc. from the medical record input data of patients with similar medical histories.

As described above, in the data management system of the present invention, the processing server 9 judges the input data received from the personal computer 2 on the client side by the judging means, and when the text data and the image data of large capacity are mixed, the image data is extracted and stored in the distributed file system. Then, only the hash value, which is related data relating to storage of the image data returned from the distributed file system, is associated with the text data and stored on the blockchain. According to this, a large amount of image data is not stored directly on the blockchain, and even when using a platform such as Ethereum developed with the storage of text data in mind, input data containing a mixture of text data and image data can be stored on the blockchain, and the reliability of the input data is excellent.

In addition, the processing server 9 integrates the character string of the hash value of the image data and the text data, so that they can be easily and reliably associated and stored on the block chain. In addition, since the integrated data is stored as one block on the blockchain, it is not always necessary to prepare a table that associates the storage location of the image data with the storage location of the text data when decoding the stored input data.

Further, the processing server 9 has an adding means for adding a predetermined tag to the character string of the hash value of the image data integrated with the text data. According to this, when referring to the input data stored on the block chain, the processing server 9 can determine that the input data contains the character string of the hash value of the image data, and the processing efficiency at the time of output and reference can be improved. Furthermore, since the image data is stored using IPFS and searched using hash values, it is possible to search and refer to the image data faster than searching using URLs.

Further, when the processing server 9 is requested to output the input data, it extracts the image data from the distributed file system, combines it with the corresponding text data decrypted from the hash value stored on the block chain, and decrypts it to have the same content as the input data received from the terminal on the client side.

In addition, the service server 1 holds the hash value stored on the block chain in the user management server 8 and the user ID in association with each other, and outputs only the input data corresponding to the user ID, so that the stored data can be prevented from leaking.

Documents that can be managed by the data management system are not limited to the medical care records and contract documents described in the above embodiments, and may be documents that are not basically used for data utilization such as data analysis, for example, electronic contract documents related to legal affairs such as wills and real estate transactions. Storing such electronic contract documents such as wills on the blockchain requires the approval of a third party, such as a lawyer, who can publicly prove the legal validity of the will.

A case of providing a service for storing input data requiring the approval of an attorney will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 to 14. FIG. A service server that provides a data management system is equipped with an approval step for a lawyer who performs this approval work. Here, electronic contracts for real estate transactions will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 11, an input screen provided by the API for contract documents is displayed on the personal computer 2 on the client side, and the user can directly input the content from this input screen. In step 1 of the input screen, the user is requested to enter the title of the contract document and the contractor's name and address as contractor information. Next, as step 2, the user is presented with an entry field for entering the contract content (see FIG. 12), and when the entry of the content is completed, the user is prompted to upload an electronic signature using a mouse or the like and a seal (see FIG. 13). When the input of the contract document by the user is completed, a screen as shown in FIG. 14 is displayed on the personal computer 2 on the client side prompting the selection of the lawyer who requests approval of the input data of the contract document.

When the user selects a lawyer and operates the authentication request button, the service server 1 sends a message requesting confirmation of the input data to the selected lawyer whose contact information is registered in advance. The attorney uses a terminal such as a personal computer connected to the network to check the input data and sends a confirmation completion message to the service server 1 . This confirmation completion message may be, for example, an electronic signature by a lawyer.

The service server 1 determines that the approval work for the input data is completed based on the reception of this approval completion message, performs tasks such as adding tags and signatures to the input data as described above, extracts the image data of the seal, converts it to a hash value, etc., and gives an instruction to store it on the block chain.

In this way, only the input data that has been approved by the lawyer is stored on the block chain, so the user does not need to separately prepare an electronic certificate or the like, and can request the lawyer's approval from the homepage provided by the service server 1, thereby omitting troublesome procedures and managing highly credible electronic contracts.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and any changes or additions within the scope of the present invention are included in the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the service server 1 includes the API server 7, and by using the API, even users who do not have knowledge of blockchain technology can easily use the system through visually intuitive operations. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a program different from the API that operates on a web browser capable of transmitting instruction signals to the processing server 9 may be used.

In the above-described embodiment, the image data is stored using IPFS, which is a distributed file system. However, the image data is not limited to this. For example, in a storage environment other than a block chain for storing text data, a distributed file system may not be used, and the image data may be stored in a server, local server, or the like. In this case, the URL where the image data is stored, the local domain, etc. are stored in association with the text data as related data relating to storage of the image data.

In addition, the hash value returned from the distributed file system is not limited to being integrated with the text data. For example, the text data may be hashed separately from the hash value of the image data and stored as separate blocks on the block chain.

In the above embodiment, the variable used for encryption when concealing an arbitrary character string in an XML file is set and stored for each user ID.

Also, although the block chain in the above embodiment is explained as a so-called private chain that operates in an environment on a plurality of computers 6 that constitute the service server 1 provided by a management company, it may be a public chain specification. Similarly, the operating environment of the distributed file system may be either a private environment or a public environment.

Also, the API server 7 provided with APIs constituting the service server 1 provided by the management company, the user management server 8 provided with the correspondence table, and the processing server 9 may be configured by a single computer having the respective functions.

Also, the client-side terminal used by the user is not limited to a personal computer, and may be a tablet or a smartphone.

In the above embodiment, the data management system is provided by the service server 1. However, the configuration is not limited to this. For example, an application having the functions of the API server 7, the user management server 8 having the correspondence table, and the processing server 9 may be operated on the personal computer 2 on the client side. In this case, the personal computer 2 constitutes the data management system.

Further, hash values and links converted by blockchain may be directly transmitted to users without being managed in a correspondence table.

1 Service server 2 Personal computer 3 Scanner 4 Keyboard 5 Mouse 6 Computer (storage server)
7 API server 8 User management server 9 Processing server 10 Initial screen 14 User page 15 Data input button 16 Data reference button 17 Data input page 18 File selection button 19 Upload button 20 CT image (image data)

Claims (6)

A storage instruction means for extracting text data from input data and storing it on the blockchain;
determining means for determining whether the input data includes both image data and text data;
A data management system, wherein the image data is extracted and stored in a predetermined storage server based on the determination by the determination means, and related data related to storage of the image data and the text data are associated with each other and stored on the block chain. 2. The data management system according to claim 1, wherein data related to storage of said image data stored in said predetermined storage server is integrated with said text data, and said integrated data is stored on said block chain. 3. A data management system according to claim 2, further comprising an assigning means for assigning a predetermined tag to related data relating to storage of said image data integrated with said text data. 4. The data management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a service server on the Internet that provides a data management system, wherein the service server extracts the image data stored in the storage server from related data related to storage of the image data stored in association with the text data stored on the block chain, and has output means capable of outputting together the related information related to storage of the image data stored on the block chain and the associated text data. 5. The data management system according to claim 4, wherein the service server integrates data related to storage of the image data stored in the predetermined storage server into the text data, and stores a hash value converted when the integrated data is stored on the blockchain in association with user identification information. In order to solve the above problems, the data management method of the present invention includes:
extracting text data from the input data and storing it on the blockchain;
determining whether the input data includes both image data and text data;
a step of extracting the image data and storing it in a predetermined storage server;
a step of associating related data relating to storage of the image data with the text data and storing them on the blockchain;
A data management method comprising:

Images