Computer-implemented collaborative record-keeping system and method

• US 20020073113A1
• Filed: 10/12/2001
• Published: 06/13/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Corteva, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Corteva, Inc.)
• Inventors: Likhyani, Kewal Krishan, Subramanian, Rajeevi, Hornshuh, James Edward, Caraher, William Frederick Jr., Patterson, Roger Allen, Van Stone, Larry James, Elkins, Robert Alan
• Application Number:
  US09/975,894
• Publication Number:
  US 20020073113A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/500
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2308 Concurrency control transaction processing G06F9/466
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2322 using timestamps

Abstract

A computer-implemented system and method for collaborative record-keeping is characterized by an author signature string that is derived from a hashed combination of at least a portion of the record, a first date/time stamp provided by a server, and a data string representative of the identity of the author. A witness signature string derived from a hashed combination of a second date/time stamp provided by the server and a data string representative of the identity of the witness is also appended to the record. The signed and witnessed electronic record is stored in a write-protected and delete-protected manner.

Claims

1. A system for collaborative record-keeping comprising:

a server node having a memory therein, the memory having a user-accessible section and a repository section,

the user-accessible section having at least one personal scratch space, the personal scratch space being affiliated with a user and containing unsigned records created by that user acting as an author and a copy of records signed by that user acting as an author;

the repository section having at least one team library having at least one notebook therein, the notebook being affiliated with a user and containing records that have been signed by that user acting as an author and records that have been signed and witnessed, and

at least one user node connectible to the memory of the server, the user node being operable in either an author mode or a witness mode,

when operable in the author mode,

the user node being connectible to the personal scratch space of a user for retrieval of an unsigned record for editing or subsequent signing by that user acting as an author, and

the user node being connectible to both the personal scratch space of a user and a notebook of that user in the team library, for storage of a record signed by that user acting as an author in both the personal scratch space and in the notebook,

wherein the signed record includes an author signature string derived from a hashed combination of at least a portion of the record, a first date/time stamp provided by the server, and a data string representative of the identity of that user acting as an author; and

when operable in the witness mode,

the user node being connectible to the team library

for retrieval of a signed record from a notebook in the team library for review by a user acting as a witness, and,

after reviewing and witnessing the signed record, for storage of a signed and witnessed record in a notebook in the team library,

wherein the signed and witnessed record includes a witness signature string derived from a hashed combination of a second date/time stamp provided by the server node and a data string representative of the identity of a user acting as a witness.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the signed record is stored in a write-protected manner.

3. The system of claim 1, the server node of the system further comprising

a custodian module maintaining access control lists for allowing:

write access by a user acting as an author to unsigned records stored in the personal scratch space of that user;

read access by a user to signed records stored in the personal scratch space of that user;

read access by a user to signed records stored in any notebook in the team library; and

read access by a user acting as a witness to a signed record stored in a notebook in the team library.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the custodian module maintains an access control list for allowing read access by a second user to unsigned records stored in the personal scratch space of a first user.

5. A method for signing and authenticating a record using a computer network comprising a server node and at least one user node connected to the server, the method comprising the steps of:

a) at a user node occupied by an author, creating a record;

b) applying a signature string to the created record, the signature string being derived by hashing a combination of at least

a portion of the record,

a date/time stamp provided by the server, and

a data string representative of the identity of the author, thereby to create a signed record;

c) transmitting the signed record from the user node to the server; and

d) thereafter, storing the signed record in a memory in a write-protected manner.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the memory comprises a repository section and a user-accessible section, and

wherein, in step (d), the signed record is stored in both the repository section and the user-accessible section in a write-protected manner.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the repository section of the memory is also delete-protected.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the computer network comprises a plurality of user nodes, the method further comprising the steps of:

e) creating a list of users having authorized read-only access to a signed record;

f) upon request from a user for a copy of a signed record, verifying that the requesting user is authorized; and

g) after verification of the authorization, transmitting a copy of the signed record from the server node to a second user node different from the first user node.

9. The method of claim 5 further comprising the steps of, after step a):

a1) generating a request for a password;

a2) in response to the password request, entering a password representative of the author, the data string representative of the identity of the author being derived from the password.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising the steps of:

a3) after entry of a password, providing the date/time stamp from the server.

21. The method of claim 5, further comprising the steps of verifying the integrity of the stored record by:

e) retrieving the stored record;

f) creating a verification author signature string by hashing the combination of the same portion of the stored record, the first date/time stamp, and the data string representative of the identity of the author; and

g) comparing the verification author signature string with the author signature string to verify that no alterations have been made to the stored record.

11. A method for signing, witnessing and authenticating a record using a computer network comprising a server node and at least one user node connected to the server, the method comprising the steps of:

a) at a user node occupied by an author, creating a record;

b) applying an author signature string to the created record, the author signature string being derived by hashing a combination of at least

a portion of the record,

a first date/time stamp provided by the server, and

a data string representative of the identity of the author, thereby to create a signed record;

c) transmitting the signed record from the user node to the server;

d) thereafter, storing the signed record in a memory in a write-protected manner;

e) transmitting a copy of the signed record from the server node to a user node for witnessing by a witness;

f) appending to the signed and stored record a witness signature string derived by hashing a combination of

a second date/time stamp provided by the server, and

a data string representative of the identity of the witness;

thereby to create a witnessed record.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein, in step (f), the combination which is hashed to derive the witness signature string further includes the author signature string.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein, in step (f), the combination which is hashed to derive the witness signature string further includes a header field comprising a notebook identifier, a page identifier, a purpose statement, and a page-edit history of the page.

14. The method of claim 11 wherein the memory comprises a repository section and a user-accessible section, and

wherein, in step (f), the witnessed record is stored in both the repository section and the user-accessible section in a write-protected manner.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein the repository section of the memory is also delete-protected.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the computer network comprises a plurality of user nodes, the method further comprising the steps of:

g) creating a list of users having authorized read-only access to a witnessed record;

h) upon request from an authorized user, transmitting a copy of the witnessed record from the server node to a user node occupied by a user having authorized read-only access.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the appending of a witness signature string is conditioned upon the entire record being scrolled at the user node occupied by the witness.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein step (e) is conditioned upon a request from the author.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein prior to step (e) the author selects a witness from a predetermined list of witnesses maintained at the server, and wherein

in step (e), the signed record is transmitted from the server node to a user node occupied by the selected witness.

20. The method of claim 11 wherein step (e) itself comprises the steps of:

e1) generating a request for a password;

e2) in response to a password request, entering a password representative of the witness, the data string representative of the identity of the witness being derived from the password; and

e3) after entry of a password, providing the second date/time stamp from the server node.

22. The method of claim 11, further comprising the steps of verifying the integrity of the stored record by:

g) retrieving the stored record;

h) creating a verification witness signature string by hashing the combination of the second date/time stamp and the data string representative of the identity of the witness; and

i) comparing the verification witness signature with the witness signature string to verify that no alterations have been made to the stored record.

23. The method of claim 11 further comprising the steps of:

g) storing notebooks in an electronic archive for management by an information specialist;

h) retrieving information of interest by electronic searching of the pages within the notebooks, wherein retrieval is facilitated by at least one of the following;

i) providing a field in the page header of each page for author-generated indexing terms and a field for subsequently entered information specialist-generated indexing terms;

ii) providing a searching capability for searching by designated fields or free-text searching all fields within each page;

iii) providing a chemical structure searching capability;

iv) providing links between pages within a notebook and between pages between notebooks within a team library;

v) providing an interactive search engine for searching specified fields, free text, or chemical structures; and

vi) providing an interactive category engine, to permit browsing of content by a subject matter classification scheme.

24. The method of claim 11, wherein the transmitting step e) itself comprises the steps of:

i) creating a link to the signed record;

ii) transmitting this link to a candidate witness by electronic mail from the server node;

iii) linking the candidate witness to the signed record for review and witnessing by the witness.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein after step e), further comprising the steps of:

g) sending a reminder to the candidate witness at predetermined intervals until the signed record has been witnessed;

h) sending a status message to the author reporting all unwitnessed pages;

i) providing the author the capability to designate at least one alternate candidate witness; and

j) disabling any links to any candidate witness after the signed record has been witnessed.