JP6022121B1 - Approval server device, approval server program, and workflow system - Google Patents

Abstract

The application terminal device (110) transmits application data (131) including the content of the application of the applicant (101) to the approval server device (200). The approval server device receives the application data and transmits approval request data (132) including the contents of the application and a question asking for the details of the application to the approval terminal device (120). The approval terminal device displays an approval screen including the contents of the application and a question asking the contents of the application. The approver (102) approves the contents of the application after answering the question.

Description

  The present invention relates to a workflow system for an approver to approve an applicant's application.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a workflow system is known as a mechanism for efficiently performing a series of procedures involving a plurality of people, such as document circulation or approval request.
Patent Document 1 discloses a method for circulating electronic documents for grasping the circulation status of documents as a technique related to a workflow system.

In the workflow system, when an applicant who performs a procedure such as document circulation or settlement request starts a workflow, the workflow is sent to one or more approvers in accordance with a predetermined order or an order determined by the applicant. . When all the approvers confirm the contents of the document or the approval and approve the contents, a series of procedures is completed.
Such a workflow system is useful for realizing internal control in an organization.

In the conventional workflow system, the approver checks the application content by looking at the screen for approval displayed on his operation terminal. If there is no problem with the application content, the approval process is executed, and there is a problem with the application content. It is a mechanism for executing a denial process. Generally, the approval process is executed by pressing an approval button, and the denial process is executed by pressing a deny button.
However, depending on the approver, the approval process may be executed simply and without confirming the application contents.
In the conventional workflow system, such approval cannot be prevented.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 03-160540

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to prevent approval from being lost in a workflow system.

The authorization server device of the present invention is
An application receiving unit that receives application data including the contents of the application;
An approval request generator that generates approval request data including the contents of the application included in the received application data, and a question that causes an approver to approve the contents of the application,
An approval request transmitting unit that transmits the generated approval request data to an approval terminal device used by the approver.

  According to the present invention, the approval request data including the contents of the application and the question that the approver answers is transmitted to the approval terminal device. Thereby, in order to prevent the formation of approval, the approver who approves the contents of the application can be requested to answer the question. In other words, it becomes possible to prevent the formation of approval.

1 is a configuration diagram of a workflow system 100 according to Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of an application screen 140 in the first embodiment. The figure which shows the payment request document 149 which is an example of the application object file in Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of application data 131 in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of approval request data 132 in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of an approval screen 150 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of approval reply data 133 in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of approval result data 134 in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of an approval result screen 160 in the first embodiment. 1 is a configuration diagram of an approval server device 200 according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an approval management method according to the first embodiment. 5 is a flowchart of an approval management method according to the first embodiment. 5 is a flowchart of approval request generation processing (S106) in the first embodiment. The block diagram of the approval server apparatus 200 in Embodiment 2. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a password notification unit 221 according to the second embodiment. The block diagram of the approval screen 150 in Embodiment 2. FIG. The block diagram of the approval server apparatus 200 in Embodiment 3. FIG. The block diagram of the approval server apparatus 200 in Embodiment 4. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of an approval management method according to the fourth embodiment.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
A workflow system 100 that requests an approver who approves the content of an application to request an answer to a question in order to prevent the formation of approval will be described with reference to FIGS.

*** Explanation of configuration ***
The configuration of the workflow system 100 will be described with reference to FIG.
The workflow system 100 includes an application terminal device 110, an approval terminal device 120, and an approval server device 200.
The application terminal device 110, the approval terminal device 120, and the approval server device 200 are electronic computers such as personal computers or smartphones.
The application terminal device 110, the approval terminal device 120, and the approval server device 200 are connected to the network 103 and communicate via the network 103. The network 103 is a communication network such as a LAN or the Internet. LAN is an abbreviation for Local Area Network.
There may be a plurality of each of the application terminal device 110, the approval terminal device 120, and the approval server device 200. Further, there may be a plurality of applicants 101 and approvers 102.

The application terminal device 110 is a terminal device used by the applicant 101 to make various applications. The applicant 101 is a person who makes various applications.
The approval terminal device 120 is a terminal device used by the approver 102 to approve various applications. The approver 102 is a person who approves or rejects various applications.
The approval server device 200 is a server device that receives an application from the applicant 101, requests the approver 102 to approve the received application, and notifies the applicant 101 of the approval result.

  The application terminal device 110 displays an application screen 140 on which the application content is input, generates application data 131 including the application content input on the application screen 140, and uses the generated application data 131 to the approval server device 200. Send to.

The configuration of the application screen 140 will be described based on FIG.
The application screen 140 includes a check box 141, a text box 142, a list box 143, a text box 144, an execution button 145, and a cancel button 146.
The check box 141 is a user interface for selecting the type of application.
A text box 142 is a user interface for designating an application target file to be applied. The settlement request form 149 shown in FIG. 3 is an example of an application target file.
The list box 143 is a user interface for selecting the approver 102.
The text box 144 is a user interface for describing the comments of the applicant 101.
The execution button 145 is a user interface for executing an application.
The cancel button 146 is a user interface for canceling the application.

Based on FIG. 4, the structure of the application data 131 is demonstrated.
The application data 131 includes APPLICANT_ID, APPROVER_ID, REQUEST_TIME, REQUEST_TYPE, FILE_CONTENTS, and COMMENT.
APPLICANT_ID is an applicant identifier that identifies the applicant 101.
APPROVER_ID is an approver identifier that identifies the approver 102.
REQUEST_TIME is the application date and time. The application date is the date when the application was made. An example of the application date and time is the date and time when the execution button 145 of the application screen 140 is pressed.
REQUEST_TYPE is a type identifier that identifies the type of application. The type identifier identifies the type of application selected by the check box 141 on the application screen 140.
FILE_CONTENTS is data representing the contents of the application target file. The application target file is specified in the text box 142 on the application screen 140.
COMMENT is the comment of the applicant 101. The comment of the applicant 101 is described in a text box 144 on the application screen 140.

Returning to FIG. 1, the description of the workflow system 100 will be continued.
The approval server device 200 receives the application data 131, generates approval request data 132, and transmits the generated approval request data 132 to the approval terminal device 120.
The approval request data 132 includes the content of the application included in the application data 131 and a question that causes the approver 102 to approve the content of the application to answer.

The configuration of the approval request data 132 will be described based on FIG.
As with the application data 131, the approval request data 132 includes APPLICANT_ID, APPROVER_ID, REQUEST_TIME, REQUEST_TYPE, FILE_CONTENTS, and COMMENT.
The approval request data 132 further includes QUESTION, ANSWER01, ANSWER02, and ANSWER03.
QUESTION is a question that the approver 102 answers.
Answer01, annswer02, and annswer03 are answer options for the question. The number of options may be two or four or more.

Returning to FIG. 1, the description of the workflow system 100 will be continued.
The approval terminal device 120 receives the approval request data 132, displays an approval screen 150 for approving the contents of the application, generates approval response data 133, and transmits the generated approval result data 134 to the approval server device 200. To do.
The approval reply data 133 includes an approval result indicating whether or not the contents of the application are approved, and an answer to the question.

The configuration of the approval screen 150 will be described with reference to FIG.
The approval screen 150 includes a type column 151, an applicant column 152, a browsing interface 153, a comment column 154, a question column 155, a check box 156, an approval button 157, a denial button 158, and a cancel button 159. have.
The type column 151 is a part indicating the type of application.
The applicant field 152 is a part indicating information for identifying the applicant 101.
The browsing interface 153 is a user interface for browsing the application target file. An example of the browsing interface 153 includes a display button for instructing display of the application target file and a download button for instructing download of the application target file.
The comment column 154 is a part indicating the comment of the applicant 101.
The question column 155 is a column indicating a question.
The check box 156 is a user interface for answering questions. A check box 156 is prepared for each answer option for the question, and an option corresponding to the selected check box 156 becomes an answer to the question.
The approval button 157 is a user interface for approving the contents of the application.
The denial button 158 is a user interface for denying the contents of the application.
The cancel button 159 is a user interface for canceling an operation to approve or deny.

Based on FIG. 7, the structure of the approval reply data 133 is demonstrated.
Similar to the application data 131 and the approval request data 132, the approval response data 133 includes APPLICANT_ID, APPROVER_ID, REQUEST_TIME, and REQUEST_TYPE.
The approval response data 133 further includes RESPONSE_TIME, APPPROVE_TYPE, and ANSWER.
RESPONSE_TIME is an approval date and time. The date and time when the application was approved or rejected. An example of the approval date and time is the date and time when the approval button 157 or the denial button 158 on the approval screen 150 is pressed.
APPROVE_TYPE is an approval result. The approval result is information indicating whether or not the content of the application has been approved. When the approval button 157 on the approval screen 150 is pressed, the approval result indicates that the content of the application has been approved. When the denial button 158 on the approval screen 150 is pressed, the approval result indicates that the content of the application has been denied.
Answer is an answer to the question. The option selected in the check box 156 of the approval screen 150 is an answer to the question.

Returning to FIG. 1, the description of the workflow system 100 will be continued.
The approval server device 200 receives the approval response data 133, generates approval result data 134 including the approval result, and transmits the generated approval result data 134 to the application terminal device 110.

Based on FIG. 8, the structure of the approval result data 134 is demonstrated.
The approval result data 134 includes APPLICANT_ID, APPROVER_ID, REQUEST_TIME, REQUEST_TYPE, RESPONSE_TIME, APPROVE_TYPE, and ANSWER, as with the approval reply data 133.
The approval result data 134 further includes APPROVE_MESSAGE and ANSWER_RESULT.
APPROVE_MESSAGE is a message indicating the approval result.
ANSWER_RESULT is a response result. The answer result is information indicating whether the answer to the question is correct.

Returning to FIG. 1, the description of the workflow system 100 will be continued.
The application terminal device 110 receives the approval result data 134 and displays the approval result screen 160.

The configuration of the approval result screen 160 will be described based on FIG.
The approval result screen 160 includes an approval result field 161, an applicant field 162, an approver field 163, an approval date / time field 164, a confirmation button 165, and a cancel button 166.
The approval result column 161 is a part indicating the approval result.
The applicant field 162 is a part indicating information for identifying the applicant 101.
The approver field 163 is a part indicating information for identifying the approver 102.
The approval date / time column 164 is a part indicating the approval date / time.
The confirmation button 165 is a user interface for ending confirmation of the approval result.
The cancel button 166 is a user interface for canceling the operation for confirming the approval result.

The configuration of the approval server device 200 will be described based on FIG.
The approval server device 200 is a computer including hardware such as a processor 901, a memory 903, and a communication device 904.
The processor 901 is connected to the memory 903 and the communication device 904 via a signal line 910.

  The processor 901 is an IC (Integrated Circuit) that performs processing, and controls other hardware. Specifically, the processor 901 is a CPU, DSP, or GPU. CPU is an abbreviation for Central Processing Unit, DSP is an abbreviation for Digital Signal Processor, and GPU is an abbreviation for Graphics Processing Unit.

  The memory 903 stores data. Specifically, the memory 903 is a RAM (Random Access Memory).

The communication device 904 includes a receiver 9041 that receives data and a transmitter 9042 that transmits data. Specifically, the communication device 904 is a communication chip or a NIC. NIC is an abbreviation for Network Interface Card.
The receiver 9041 is a receiving device that functions as the application receiving unit 210 and the approval response receiving unit 240.
The transmitter 9042 is a transmission device that functions as the approval request transmission unit 230 and the approval result transmission unit 270.

The memory 903 is loaded with an OS (Operating System).
Further, the memory 903 is loaded with programs that realize the functions of “unit” such as the approval request generation unit 220, the answer determination unit 250, and the approval result generation unit 260.
The processor 901 executes a program that realizes the function of “unit” while executing the OS. That is, a program that realizes the function of “unit” is loaded into the memory 903 and executed by the processor 901. A program that realizes the function of “unit” can be stored in a storage medium.
The approval server device 200 may include a plurality of processors 901, and the plurality of processors 901 may execute a program that realizes the function of “unit” in cooperation with each other.

  Data, information, signal values, variable values, and the like indicating the result of the processing of “unit” are stored in at least one of the memory 903, a register in the processor 901, and a cache memory in the processor 901.

The “part” may be implemented as “circuitry”. “Part” may be read as “circuit”, “process”, “procedure”, or “process”.
“Circuit” and “circuitry” are concepts that include processing circuits such as the processor 901, logic IC, GA, ASIC, and FPGA. GA is an abbreviation for Gate Array, ASIC is an abbreviation for Application Specific Integrated Circuit, and FPGA is an abbreviation for Field-Programmable Gate Array.

  The application receiving unit 210 receives application data 131 including the contents of the application.

The approval request generation unit 220 generates approval request data 132 including the contents of the application included in the received application data 131 and a question that causes the approver 102 to approve the contents of the application to answer.
The question that the approver 102 answers is a question that asks the contents of the application.

The approval request transmission unit 230 transmits the generated approval request data 132 to the approval terminal device 120 used by the approver 102.
The approval terminal device 120 is a terminal device on which an approval screen 150 is displayed.
The approval screen 150 is a screen having an application content field indicating the content of an application, a question field 155 indicating a question, a user interface for answering the question, and a user interface for approving the content of the application. is there.
In the approval screen 150 of FIG. 6, the type column 151, the applicant column 152, and the comment column 154 correspond to the application content column. The screen accompanying the approval screen 150 also corresponds to the application content column. The screen accompanying the approval screen 150 is a screen on which the contents of the application target file downloaded using the browsing interface 153 are displayed.

  The approval response receiving unit 240 receives approval response data 133 including an approval result indicating whether the content of the application has been approved and an answer to the question.

  The answer determination unit 250 determines whether the answer included in the received approval answer data 133 is a correct answer to the question.

  If it is determined that the answer included in the approval answer data 133 is a correct answer to the question, the approval result generation unit 260 generates the approval result data 134 including the approval result.

  The approval result transmission unit 270 transmits the generated approval result data 134 to the application terminal device 110 used by the applicant 101.

  The approval request transmission unit 230 transmits the approval request data 132 again when it is determined that the answer included in the approval response data 133 is not a correct answer to the question.

  The memory 903 stores data used, generated or input / output by the approval server device 200.

*** Explanation of operation ***
The operation of the workflow system 100 and the operation of the approval server device 200 correspond to an approval management method. The approval management method corresponds to the processing procedure of the approval management program or the approval server program.

Based on FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the approval management method will be described.
S101 is an application screen display process.
In S101, the application terminal apparatus 110 displays an application screen 140 as shown in FIG. 2 as the application screen 140 in which the contents of the application are input.

S102 is an application input process.
In step S <b> 102, the applicant 101 inputs the application content on the application screen 140 using an input device such as a keyboard or a mouse.
That is, on the application screen 140, the applicant 101 selects the type of application in the check box 141, specifies the application target file in the text box 142, selects the approver 102 in the list box 143, and comments in the text box 144. Enter. Then, the applicant 101 presses the execution button 145.

S103 is an application generation process.
In S103, the application terminal apparatus 110 generates application data 131 as shown in FIG. 4 as application data 131 including the contents of the application input on the application screen 140.

S104 is an application transmission process.
In S <b> 104, the application terminal device 110 transmits the generated application data 131 to the approval server device 200.

S105 is an application reception process.
In S <b> 105, the application receiving unit 210 of the approval server device 200 receives the application data 131.

S106 is an approval request generation process.
In S106, the approval request generation unit 220 of the approval server device 200 generates a question that the approver 102 answers, and a correct answer to the question.
And the approval request production | generation part 220 produces | generates the approval request data 132 as shown in FIG. 5 as the approval request data 132 containing the content and question of an application using the application data 131. FIG.
Details of the approval request generation process (S106) will be described separately.

S107 is an approval request transmission process.
In S <b> 107, the approval request transmission unit 230 of the approval server device 200 transmits the approval request data 132 to the approval terminal device 120.

S108 is an approval request reception process.
In S <b> 108, the approval terminal apparatus 120 receives the approval request data 132.

S109 is an approval screen display process.
In S109, the approval terminal device 120 shows the content and question of the application included in the approval request data 132, and an approval screen 150 for inputting an answer to the question and an approval result for the content of the application is shown in FIG. The approval screen 150 is displayed.

S110 is an approval reply process.
In S110, the approver 102 inputs an answer to the question and an approval result for the contents of the application to the approval screen 150 using an input device such as a keyboard or a mouse.
That is, the approver 102 browses the contents of the application target file using the browsing interface 153 and refers to the comment described in the comment field 154.
Next, the approver 102 refers to the question shown in the question column 155 and selects the check box 156 corresponding to the answer to the question.
Then, the approver 102 presses the approval button 157 or the denial button 158.

S111 is an approval reply generation process.
In S111, the approval terminal device 120 generates approval response data 133 as shown in FIG. 7 as the approval response data 133 including the response input to the approval screen 150 and the approval result.

S112 is an approval reply transmission process.
In S <b> 112, the approval terminal device 120 transmits the generated approval response data 133 to the approval server device 200.

S113 is an approval reply reception process.
In S <b> 113, the approval reply receiving unit 240 of the approval server device 200 receives the approval reply data 133.

S114 is an answer determination process.
In S114, the answer determination unit 250 of the approval server device 200 compares the answer included in the received approval answer data 133 with the correct answer generated in S106.
Then, the answer determination unit 250 determines whether the answer included in the approval answer data 133 is correct based on the comparison result. The answer that matches the correct answer is correct.
If the answer is correct, the process proceeds to S115.
If the answer is not correct, the process returns to S107. And in order to make the approver 102 confirm the content of the application again, the approval request data 132 is transmitted again to the approval terminal device 120.

S115 is an approval result generation process.
In S115, the approval result generation unit 260 of the approval server device 200 generates approval result data 134 as shown in FIG. 8 as the approval result data 134 including the approval result, using the approval response data 133.
Specifically, the approval result generation unit 260 generates the approval result data 134 as follows. The approval result generation unit 260 copies the approval response data 133 as the approval result data 134. The approval result generation unit 260 generates an APPROVE_MESSAGE line and an ANSWER_RESULT line. Then, the approval result generating unit 260 sets the generated line of APPPROVE_MESSAGE and the line of ANSWER_RESULT in the approval result data 134. Thereby, the approval result data 134 is generated.

S116 is an approval result transmission process.
In S116, the approval result transmission unit 270 of the approval server device 200 transmits the generated approval result data 134.

S117 is an approval result reception process.
In S117, the application terminal apparatus 110 receives the approval result data 134.

S118 is a result screen display process.
In S118, the application terminal apparatus 110 displays an approval result screen 160 as shown in FIG. 9 as an approval result screen 160 indicating the approval result included in the approval result data 134.

Based on FIG. 13, the approval request generation process (S106) will be described.
In step S <b> 106-1, the approval request generation unit 220 reads the contents of the application from the application target file by analyzing the contents of the application target file included in the application data 131. An example of the analysis method is character string analysis and syntax analysis.
In the application data 131 of FIG. 4, FILE_CONTENTS is data representing the contents of the application target file.
When the application target file is the settlement request form 149 of FIG. 3, the approval request generation unit 220 settles the information of the target system, the information before the change, and the information after the change by character string analysis and syntax analysis. Read from request form 149.
The information on the target system is a character string “A project related ...” associated with the character string “target system”.
The information before the change is a character string “group B member” associated with the character string “before change”.
The information after the change is a character string “member of group C” associated with the character string “after change”.

  In S <b> 106-2, the approval request generation unit 220 generates a question asking about the contents of the application read from the application target file, options that are candidates for answers to the questions, and correct answers to the questions as follows.

When the keyword “change” is included in the content of the read application, the approval request generation unit 220 acquires the question associated with “change” from the question information database. An example of the question associated with “change” is the sentence “Which of the following is the applicant trying to change?”.
The question database is a file in which a question associated with a keyword and an option format are registered. The question information database may be stored in the memory 903 of the approval server device 200 or may be stored in an external database device.

If the read application includes the keywords “before change” and “after change”, the approval request generation unit 220 sets the format of the options associated with “before change” and “after change” to the question information. Get from database. An example of an option format is a sentence “change from“ before change ”to“ after change ””.
Then, the approval request generation unit 220 generates a correct option and an incorrect option using the option format.
If the change target of “Before Change” is “Group B Member” and the change target of “After Change” is “Group C Member”, the correct option is “from Group B Member to Group C Member”. "Change of". The wrong options are sentences such as “change from group A member to group B member” and “change from group C member to group D member”. When the change target is a group or member belonging to an organization, group name or member name candidates can be obtained from the organization information database.
The organization information database is a file in which a group name for each group and a member name for each member are registered. The organization information database may be stored in the memory 903 of the approval server device 200 or may be stored in an external database device.

The approval request generation unit 220 generates information specifying the option generated as the correct option as a correct answer.
If the correct option is the second option, the correct answer is number 2.

In S106-3, the approval request generation unit 220 generates approval request data 132 as shown in FIG. 5 using the generated question and option.
The generated correct answer is used in the answer determination process (S114).

*** Explanation of effects ***
According to the first embodiment, a question based on the contents of the application is asked to the approver 102. If the approver 102 cannot correctly answer the question, the approver 102 does not succeed in the approval. Therefore, when the approval is successful, it can be objectively confirmed that the approver 102 understands the contents of the application. Therefore, it is possible to obtain the effect of preventing the approval from becoming a skeleton.

*** Other configurations ***
The question may be generated based on information other than the application target file. That is, the question may be generated based on the type of application or the comment of the applicant 101.
Instead of the information specifying the application target file being input to the application screen 140, the contents of the application target file may be input to the application screen 140.
Instead of the approval screen 150 having a user interface for browsing the application target file, the contents of the application target file may be displayed on the approval screen 150.
When the workflow system 100 is a system that receives approval from a plurality of approvers 102, the approval request data 132 passes through the plurality of approval terminal devices 120 in order, and the approval response data 133 is approved from the last approval terminal device 120. It is transmitted to the server device 200.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
A form in which the question asking the password is changed to the approver 102 instead of the question asking the content of the application will be described with reference to FIG. However, the description which overlaps with Embodiment 1 is abbreviate | omitted.

*** Explanation of configuration ***
The configuration of the workflow system 100 is the same as that of the first embodiment.

Based on FIG. 14, the structure of the approval server apparatus 200 is demonstrated.
The processor 901 executes a program that realizes the function of “unit” as in the first embodiment. This “part” includes a password notification unit 221 in addition to the approval request generation unit 220, the answer determination unit 250, and the approval result generation unit 260 described in the first embodiment.
The password notification unit 221 generates a password and notifies the approver 102 of the generated password.

  The approval request generation unit 220 includes a question for asking for a password in the approval request data 132 as a question for the approver 102 to answer. The password included in the approval request data 132 is a password generated by the approval request generation unit 220, that is, a password notified to the approver 102.

*** Explanation of operation ***
The processing flow of the approval management method is the same as in the first embodiment.
However, a password generation process for generating a password to be notified to the approver 102 and a password notification process for notifying the password to the approver 102 are added.

Based on FIG. 15, the operation of the password notification unit 221 will be described.
S201 is a password generation process. The password generation process is executed before the approval request generation process (S106) is executed.
In S201, the password notification unit 221 randomly generates a password to be notified to the approver 102.

S202 and S203 are password notification processes. The password notification process is executed before the approval reply process (S110) is executed.
In the password notification process, the password notification unit 221 notifies the approver 102 of the password generated by the password generation process. Specifically, it is as follows.
In S202, the password notification unit 221 generates an e-mail in which a password is set using the e-mail address used by the approver 102 as a destination address. In step S203, the password notification unit 221 outputs the generated e-mail to the transmitter 9042. As a result, an e-mail for notifying the password is transmitted from the transmitter 9042 to the e-mail address of the approver 102.
The e-mail address used by the approver 102 is acquired from an address book that is data including e-mail addresses for each user. The address book may be stored in the memory 903 of the approval server device 200 or may be stored in an external address management device.

The approval request generation process (S106) will be described.
The approval request generation unit 220 randomly generates a password different from the password notified to the approver 102 by the password notification unit 221.
Then, the approval request generation unit 220 generates approval request data 132 including application contents, questions, and options. The application contents are the same as those in the first embodiment. A question is a fixed phrase that asks for a password. The choices are a notified password and a password different from the notified password.

The approval screen 150 will be described based on FIG.
As in the first embodiment, the approval screen 150 includes a question column 155 and a check box 156 for each option.
The question column 155 indicates a question asking for the notified password.
The check box 156 is associated with a notified password or a password different from the notified password.

  However, the approval screen 150 may have a text box for entering a password instead of the check box 156 for each option. In that case, a password option is not required.

*** Explanation of effects ***
The approval server device 200 can generate a question for the approver 102 without performing character string analysis and syntax analysis on the application target file.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
A mode in which the operation for asking the approver 102 is applied only to some applicants 101 will be described with reference to FIG. However, the description which overlaps with Embodiment 1 is abbreviate | omitted.

*** Explanation of configuration ***
The configuration of the workflow system 100 is the same as that of the first embodiment.

The configuration of the approval server device 200 will be described based on FIG.
The processor 901 executes a program that realizes the function of “unit” as in the first embodiment. The “part” includes an application determination unit 211 in addition to the approval request generation unit 220, the answer determination unit 250, and the approval result generation unit 260 described in the first embodiment.
The application determination unit 211 determines whether or not the applicant 101 is an applicator to which the operation for asking the approver 102 is applied, using the applicant identifier included in the application data 131.

  The approval request generation unit 220 includes a question in the approval request data 132 when it is determined that the applicant 101 is an applicator.

*** Explanation of operation ***
The processing flow of the approval management method is the same as in the first embodiment.
However, an application determination process is executed after the application reception process (S105) and before the approval request generation process (S106).
In the application execution process, the application determination unit 211 uses the applicant identifier included in the application data 131 to determine whether the applicant 101 is an applicator to which the operation for asking the approver 102 is applied. Judge as follows.

The application determination unit 211 acquires, from the application management file, application information that specifies whether or not the applicant 101 is an applicator using the applicant identifier.
The application management file is a file including application information associated with the applicant identifier. The application management file may be stored in the memory 903 of the approval server device 200 or may be stored in an external application management device.
An example of the application information is the reliability of the applicant 101.
The reliability of the applicant 101 is calculated by an arbitrary method. A specific example of the reliability of the applicant 101 is the difference between the number of approvals for which the application by the applicant 101 is approved and the number of rejections for which the application by the applicant 101 is denied.
The number of approvals and the number of rejections may be stored in the application management file instead of the reliability of the applicant 101. In this case, the reliability of the applicant 101 is calculated using the number of approvals and the number of rejections acquired from the application management file.

The application determination unit 211 determines whether or not the applicant 101 is an applicator based on the acquired information.
When the acquired information is the reliability of the applicant 101, the application determination unit 211 compares the acquired reliability with a reliability threshold and determines whether the applicant 101 is an applicator based on the comparison result. Judgment. If the reliability of the applicant 101 is lower than the reliability threshold, the applicant 101 is an applicator.

  When the reliability of the applicant 101 is low, if the application of the applicant 101 is approved without looking at the contents, there is a high possibility of a problem. Therefore, it is necessary to look at the contents of the application of the applicant 101 with low reliability. Therefore, when the reliability of the applicant 101 is low, it is necessary to generate the approval request data 132 including the question so that the approver 102 can firmly see the contents of the application.

In the approval request generation process (S106), the approval request generation unit 220 generates approval request data 132.
When it is determined that the applicant 101 is an applicator, the approval request generation unit 220 generates approval request data 132 including a question.
When it is determined that the applicant 101 is not an applicator, the approval request generation unit 220 generates approval request data 132 that does not include a question.

  When the approval request data 132 not including the question is generated, the processes after the approval request transmission process (S107) are the same as those in the conventional workflow system 100.

*** Explanation of effects ***
The operation of asking the approver 102 is applied only to some applicants 101. Thereby, the burden of the approver 102 can be prevented from becoming excessive without causing an excessive burden on the approver 102.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
Based on FIG. 18 and FIG. 19, a mode in which an approver who approves the contents of an application is randomly selected from a plurality of candidates in order to prevent formation of approval due to collusion between the applicant 101 and the approver 102. explain. However, the description which overlaps with Embodiment 1 is abbreviate | omitted.

*** Explanation of configuration ***
In the workflow system 100, a plurality of approvers 102 exist.
The configuration of the workflow system 100 is different from that of the first embodiment as follows.

In the application screen 140 of FIG. 2, instead of selecting the approver 102, the post of the approver 102 is selected.
The post identifier that identifies the post is an example of a candidate group identifier that identifies the candidate group. A candidate group is a group to which a plurality of candidates belong. The candidate is a person who becomes a candidate for the approver 102.
The application data 131 in FIG. 4 includes a post identifier instead of the approver identifier.

  In the approval request data 132 of FIG. 5, the question and the answer options for the question are unnecessary.

  In the approval screen 150 of FIG. 6, the question column 155 indicating a question and the check box 156 for answering the question are unnecessary.

  In the approval reply data 133 of FIG. 7, no answer to the question is necessary.

  In the approval result data 134 of FIG. 8, the answer to the question and the result of the answer to the question are unnecessary.

Based on FIG. 18, the structure of the approval server apparatus 200 is demonstrated.
The processor 901 executes a program that realizes the function of “unit” as in the first embodiment. This “part” includes an approver selection unit 212 instead of the answer determination unit 250 described in the first embodiment.
When the application data 131 is received, the approver selection unit 212 randomly selects an approver 102 that approves the content of the application included in the application data 131 from a plurality of candidates.

  The approval request transmission unit 230 transmits the generated approval request data 132 to the approval terminal device 120 used by the selected approver 102.

*** Explanation of operation ***
Based on FIG. 19, the approval management method will be described.
The processing flow from S101 to S105 is the same as that of the first embodiment described with reference to FIG.

S105-2 is an approver selection process.
In S105-2, the approver selection unit 212 selects the approver 102 as follows.

The approver selection unit 212 acquires the post identifier from the application data 131.
Next, the approver selection unit 212 acquires a plurality of candidate identifiers associated with the post identifier from the approver management file. If the post identifier is an identifier for identifying a group consisting of section managers belonging to the system department, the candidate for the approver 102 is a section manager belonging to the system department, and a plurality of section identifiers are acquired.
Then, the approver selecting unit 212 randomly selects at least one candidate identifier from the acquired plurality of candidate identifiers. The person identified by the selected candidate identifier becomes the approver 102.
The approver management file is a file including a plurality of candidate identifiers associated with job title identifiers. The post identifier is an example of a candidate group identifier.
The approver management file may be stored in the memory 903 of the approval server device 200 or may be stored in an external approver management device.

  In S <b> 106, the approval request generation unit 220 generates approval request data 132 including an approver identifier that identifies the approver 102.

  The processing flow from S107 to S109 is the same as that of the first embodiment described with reference to FIG.

  In S110-2, the approver 102 inputs the approval result to the approval screen 150 as in S110 described with reference to FIG. However, no answer to the question is required.

The processing flow from S111 to S113 is the same as that of the first embodiment described with reference to FIG.
After S113, the process proceeds to S115.

  The processes after S115 are the same as those in the first embodiment described with reference to FIG.

*** Explanation of effects ***
By randomly selecting the approver 102, the following effects can be obtained.
Since the applicant 101 cannot collaborate with the approver 102 in advance, the formation of approval due to the collusion between the applicant 101 and the approver 102 is prevented.
Since the approval work is not concentrated on the same approver 102, the approval process by the approver 102 on which the approval work is concentrated is prevented. That is, the load on each approver 102 is leveled, and each approver 102 can perform an appropriate approval operation.

Each embodiment is an example of a preferred embodiment and is not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention. Each embodiment may be implemented partially or in combination with other embodiments.
Specifically, in the fourth embodiment, as in the first to third embodiments, the approver 102 may be asked a question and an answer to the question may be requested from the approver 102. That is, in the fourth embodiment, the approval may be successful when the approver 102 can correctly answer the question.
The processing procedure described with reference to the flowcharts is an example of the processing procedure of the approval management method and the approval management program.

  100 Workflow System, 101 Applicant, 102 Approver, 103 Network, 110 Application Terminal Device, 120 Approval Terminal Device, 131 Application Data, 132 Approval Request Data, 133 Approval Response Data, 134 Approval Result Data, 140 Application Screen, 141 Check Box, 142 text box, 143 list box, 144 text box, 145 execute button, 146 cancel button, 149 settlement request form, 150 approval screen, 151 type field, 152 applicant field, 153 viewing interface, 154 comment field, 155 question Field, 156 check box, 157 approve button, 158 reject button, 159 cancel button, 160 approval result screen, 161 approval result field, 162 applicant field, 163 approver Field, 164 approval date / time field, 165 confirmation button, 166 cancel button, 200 approval server device, 210 application reception unit, 211 application determination unit, 212 approver selection unit, 220 approval request generation unit, 221 password notification unit, 230 approval request Transmission unit, 240 Approval response reception unit, 250 Response determination unit, 260 Approval result generation unit, 270 Approval result transmission unit, 901 Processor, 903 Memory, 904 Communication device, 9041 Receiver, 9042 Transmitter, 910 Signal line.

Claims (10)

An application receiving unit that receives application data including the contents of the application;
An approval request generator that generates approval request data including the contents of the application included in the received application data, and a question that causes an approver to approve the contents of the application,
An approval server device comprising: an approval request transmission unit that transmits the generated approval request data to an approval terminal device used by the approver. The approval terminal device is a terminal device on which an approval screen is displayed,
The approval screen includes an application content field indicating the content of the application, a question field indicating the question, a user interface for answering the question, and a user interface for approving the content of the application. The approval server device according to claim 1, wherein the approval server device has a screen. The approval server apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the approval request generation unit includes, in the approval request data, a question asking the approver to answer a question asking for details of the application. An approval response receiving unit that receives approval response data including an approval result indicating whether or not the content of the application has been approved, and an answer to the question;
An answer determination unit for determining whether an answer included in the received received answer data is a correct answer to the question;
When it is determined that the answer included in the approval answer data is a correct answer to the question, an approval result generation unit that generates approval result data including the approval result;
The approval server device according to claim 1, further comprising: an approval result transmitting unit that transmits the generated approval result data to an application terminal device used by the applicant. The approval server device according to claim 4, wherein the approval request transmission unit transmits the approval request data again when it is determined that an answer included in the approval answer data is not a correct answer to the question. The approval server device according to claim 1, wherein the approval request generation unit includes, in the approval request data, a question asking for a password as a question for causing the approver to answer. The approval server device according to claim 6, further comprising a password notification unit that generates the password and notifies the approver of the password. The application data includes an applicant identifier that identifies the applicant,
The approval server device includes an application determination unit that determines whether the applicant is an applicator to which an operation for asking the approver is applied, using an applicant identifier included in the application data;
The approval server device according to claim 1, wherein the approval request generation unit includes the question in the approval request data when the applicant is determined to be the applicator. An application reception process for receiving application data including the contents of the application,
An approval request generation process for generating approval request data including the content of the application included in the received application data, and a question that causes an approver to approve the content of the application,
An approval server program for causing a computer to execute an approval request transmission process of transmitting generated approval request data to an approval terminal device used by the approver. An application terminal device that transmits application data including the contents of the application;
An approval server device that receives the application data, generates approval request data including the contents of the application, and a question that causes an approver to approve the contents of the application, and transmits the generated approval request data; ,
A user for receiving the approval request data and indicating the content of the application, a question column indicating the question, a user interface for answering the question, and a user for approving the content of the application A workflow system including an approval terminal device that displays an approval screen having an interface.

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