Document processing method and system, and computer-readable recording medium having document processing program recorded therein

• US 6,349,302 B1
• Filed: 07/07/1998
• Issued: 02/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Takahashi, Toru, Aoyama, Yuki, Takita, Yukie, Hoshi, Yukio
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): FLEURANTIN, JEAN B
• Application Number:
  US09/110,674
• Time in Patent Office: 1,323 Days
• Field of Search: 707/100, 707/101, 707/102, 707/103, 707/104, 707/501-502, 717/3
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability

Abstract

A computer-implemented method and system for processing a document such as a structured document in which information such as a term, name and belonging department is used as shared information and word consistency or modification can be automatically and easily reflected on all documents. In the document processing method, a shared information editing program edits shared information shared information frequently described in a plurality of documents, a shared information storage program stores the edited shared information in a secondary memory, a shared information list-up program lists up the shared information for each information type, a structured document editing program edits a structured document to describe a link to the shared information selected from the edited shared information listed up, a structured document storage program stores the structured document in the secondary memory, and a structured document output program reads out the shared information and structured document from the secondary memory and embeds the contents of the shared information in the structured document for its display or printout.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for processing a document comprising the steps of:

generating a shared information block as a set of shared information appearing in a plurality of documents;

storing the generated shared information block in a first memory;

describing a link to the shared information in the documents;

storing the link-described documents in a second memory; and

reading out from said memories said generated shared information and described document, embedding the shared information in the link-described document according to the links described therein and said generated shared information, and generating and outputting information indicative of a document having the shared information embedded therein;

wherein said shared information block generating step generates as said shared information a term including an abbreviation or a coinage, or a term combination, or both an abbreviation or a coinage and a term combination and edits the shared information into structured documents depending on the types of the shared information.

2. A document processing method according to claim 1, further comprising a step of managing a change history of said shared information and document and a step of subjecting the shared information to a consistency processing operation to generate consistency-processed shared information already subjected to said consistency processing operation, and wherein said version management step stores in said memory said generated shared information and generated document as the document of a new version, creates version information for each of the shared information and document and stores the version information in said memory, said consistency processing step, when said shared information is generated and a character string or structure is already changed after editing of said document, maintains contents of said character string in its state after the change and returns the structure change to its state at the time of creating the document, generates shared information satisfying its consistency, and, when it is desired to display or print said document in said output step, embeds said consistency-satisfied shared information in the document.

3. A document processing method according to claim 1, further comprising a step of managing a change history of said shared information and document and a step of subjecting the shared information to a consistency processing operation to generate consistency-processed shared information already subjected to said consistency processing operation, and wherein said version management step stores in said memory said generated shared information and generated document as the document of a new version, creates version information for each of the shared information and document and stores the version information in said memory, said consistency processing step, when said shared information is generated and a character string or structure is already changed after editing of said structured document, acquires the latest shared information and the shared information at the time of creating the document to be displayed or printed, compares the acquired both shared information to extract a structure changed location, and, when the structure change is extracted, returns the changed structure to its state at the time of creating the document in the latest snared information to generate consistency-satisfied shared information, and, when it is desired to display or print said document in said output step, embeds said consistency-satisfied shared information in the document.

4. A document processing method according claim 3, wherein, in the case where the structure is changed in said consistency processing step, the structure is deleted from the latest shared information when contents of the change corresponds to insertion of the structure in the shared information at the document creation time, or, when the contents of the change corresponds to deletion of the structure from the shared information at the document creation time, the structure is inserted in the latest shared information, or, when the contents of the change corresponds to exchange of the structure of the shared information at the document creation time, the structure after the exchange is deleted from the latest shared information and the structure before the exchange is inserted to thereby generate said consistency-satisfied shared information.

5. A document processing method according to claim 1, wherein said shared information block generating step comprises assigning each term to a node of the structured document and assigning each term of the term combination to a sub-node of a node assigned to the term combination, and

said structured document editing step comprises describing a link for each term with an identifier of the node and describing a link of each term of the term combination with an identifier of the node of the term combination and a relative path from said node.

6. A document processing method according to claim 1, wherein said term combination includes a person'"'"'s name or a department to which the person belongs.

7. A system for processing a document including a processor, a memory and a terminal device, comprising:

means for generating a shared information block as a set of shared information appearing in a plurality of documents;

means for storing the generated shared information block in a first memory;

means for describing a link to the shared information in the documents;

means provided at the terminal device for storing the link-described documents in a second memory; and

means for reading out from said memories said generated shared information and described document, embedding the shared information in the link-described document according to the links described therein and said generated shared information, and generating and outputting information indicative of a document having the shared information embedded therein;

wherein said document is a structured document, said shared information block generating means generates as said shared information a term including an abbreviation or a coinage, or a term combination, or both an abbreviation or a coinage and a term combination, and edits the shared information into structure documents depending on the types of the shared information.

8. A document processing system according to claim 7, further comprising means for managing a change history of said shared information and structured document and means for subjecting the shared information to a consistency processing operation to generate consistency-processed shared information already subjected to said consistency processing operation, and wherein said version management means stores in said memory said generated shared information and generated structured document attached by information indicative of a new version, creates version information for each of the shared information and structured document and stores the version information in said memory, said consistency processing means, when said shared information is generated and a character string or structure is already changed after editing of said structured document, maintains contents of said character string in its state before the change and returns the structure change to its state at the time of creating the document, generates shared information satisfying its consistency, and, when it is desired for said output means to display or print said structured document, embeds said consistency-satisfied shared information in the structured document.

9. A document processing system according to claim 7, wherein said shared information block generating means assigns each term to a node of the structured document, assigns each term of the term combination to a sub-node of a node assigned to the term combination, describes a link for each term with an identifier of the node, and describes a link of each term of the term combination with an identifier of the node of the term combination and a relative path from said node.

10. A document processing system according to claim 7, wherein said term combination includes a person'"'"'s name or a department to which the person belongs.

11. A computer readable recording medium storing a document processing program implemented by a computer, said program executing the steps of:

generating as said shared information a term combination of such a term as abbreviation or coinage and such a term as person'"'"'s name or belonging department and edits the shared information into structured documents depending on the types of the information;

storing the generated shared information block in a first memory;

describing a link to the shared information in the documents;

storing the link-described documents in a second memory; and

reading out from said memories said generated shared information and described document, embedding the shared information in the link-described document according to the links described therein and said generated shared information, and generating and outputting information indicative of a document having the shared information embedded therein.

12. A computer readable recording medium according to claim 11, said program further executing the steps of:

storing in said memories said generated shared information and said generated document attached by information indicative of a new version, generating version information for each of the shared information and structured document, storing the version information in said memory, and managing a change history of said shared information and documents; and

when it is desired for the display or print means to display or print the structured document, selecting the shared information of the latest version created prior to a date and hour of creation of the structured document on the basis of said version information and embedding the selected shared information in said structured document.

13. A computer readable recording medium according to claim 11, said program further executing the steps of:

storing in said memories said generated shared information and said generated document attached by information indicative of a new version, generating version information for each of the shared information and structured document, storing the version information in said memory, and managing a change history of said shared information and documents;

when said shared information is generated and a character string or structure is already changed after editing of said structured document, maintaining contents of said character string in its state before the change, and returning the structure change to its state at the time of creating the document, to generate shared information satisfying its consistency; and

when it is desired to display or print said structured document in said output step, embedding said consistency-satisfied shared information in the structured document.

14. A computer readable recording medium according to claim 11, wherein said shared information block generating step comprises assigning each term to a node of the structured document and assigning each term of the term combination to a sub-node of a node assigned to the term combination, and

said structured document editing step comprises describing a link for each term with an identifier of the node and describing a link of each term of the term combination with an identifier of the node of the term combination and a relative path from said node.

15. A computer-implemented method for processing a structured document comprising the steps of:

generating as a shared information block information frequently appearing in a plurality of structured documents;

storing the generated shared information block in a first memory;

listing said stored shared information up depending upon the types of information;

editing said structured documents and describing a link to said shared information selected from said listed-up edited shared information, into said structured document;

storing the link-described structured documents in a second memory; and

reading out from said first and second memories said generated shared information and said link-described structured document, embedding the shared information in the link-described structured document according to the links described therein and said generated shared information, and generating and outputting information indicative of a structured document having the shared information embedded therein;

wherein said information block generating step generates as said shared information a term including an abbreviation or a coinage, or a term combination, or both an abbreviation or a coinage and a term combination, and edits the shared information into structure documents depending on the types of the shared information.

16. A document processing method according to claim 15, wherein said shared information block generating step comprises assigning each term to a node of the structured document and assigning each term of the term combination to a sub-node of a node assigned to the term combination, and

said structured document editing step comprises describing a link for each term with an identifier of the node and describing a link of each term of the term combination with an identifier of the node of the term combination and a relative path from said node.

17. A document processing method according to claim 15, wherein said term combination includes a person'"'"'s name or a department to which the person belongs.