Method for making contract and system for processing contract

• US 6,947,911 B1
• Filed: 11/16/2000
• Issued: 09/20/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Moritsu, Toshiyuki, Someya, Harushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Worjloh, Jalatee
• Application Number:
  US09/712,915
• Time in Patent Office: 1,769 Days
• Field of Search: 705/80, 705/37, 705/1, 713/176
• US Class Current: 705/80
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/188 Electronic negotiation

Abstract

A contracting method and system are arranged to obtain description data in which a description content presented by one of the concerned parties with a contract to the other is built or data for specifying the description content before the concerned parties make an electronic contract for provision of a commodity or service (contract data creation signing process), generate contract data containing the description data or the specifying data (contract data creation signing process), and writing an electronic signature of both or either of the concerned parties with the contract data (contract data creation singing process and contract data signing process).

Claims

1. A recording medium for recording a contract processing program for enabling a contract processing system to execute a contract process for processing a contract for provision of a commodity or service, wherein said contract process comprises:

a process for electronically creating contract data containing said contract content and a negotiating ID determined between concerned parties on said contract;

a process for electronically using said negotiating ID as a key, description data corresponding to said contract data from multiple description data containing a description content about said commodity or service having been transferred between the concerned parties about said contract before concluding said contract;

a process for electronically inserting a data string determined with regard to said retrieved description data in said contract data; and

a process for appending an electronic signature of at least of said concerned parties to said contract data containing said data string.

2. A recording medium as claimed in claim 1, wherein said process for inserting said data string is executed to insert said retrieved description data in said contract data as said data string.

3. A recording medium as claimed in claim 1, wherein said process for inserting said data string is executed to calculate a hash value of said retrieved description data and to insert the hash value of said description data in said contract data as said data string.

4. A recording medium as claimed in claim 1, wherein said contracting process includes a process for determining whether or not either of the electronic signatures of said concerned parties added to said description data is correct and a process for adding the electronic signature of the other concerned party to said description data if the electronic signature of one of said concerned parties added to said description data is determined to be correct.

5. A recording medium as claimed in claim 1, wherein said contracting process further includes a process for describing said contract content on an electronic contract document on said contract and a process for inserting a data string determined with regard to a describing program for executing said describing process in said contract data.

6. A recording medium as claimed in claim 1, wherein said contracting process further includes a process for inserting a contract content display template for creating from said contract content a contract content display data to be outputted to an output unit in said contract data.

7. A recording medium as claimed in claim 1, wherein said process for appending a signature on said contract data is executed to append said electronic signature on said contract data if a permission for appending said electronic signature to said contract data is received.

8. A method for processing a contract for provision of a commodity or service, comprising the steps of:

electronically creating contract data containing said contract content and a negotiating ID determined between concerned parties on said contract;

electronically retrieving, using said negotiating ID as a key, description data corresponding to said contract data form multiple description data containing a description content about said commodity or service having been transferred between the concerned parties about said contract before concluding said contract;

electronically inserting a data string determined with regard to said retrieved description data in said contract data; and

electronically appending an electronic signature of at least one of said concerned parties to said contract data containing said data string.

9. A method as claimed in claim 8, wherein said step of inserting said data string inserts said retrieved description data in said contract data as said data string.

10. A method as claims in claim 8, wherein said step of inserting said data string calculates a hash value of said retrieved description data and inserts the hash value of said description data in said contract data as said data string.

11. A method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising the step of determining whether or not either of the electronic signatures of said concerned parties appended to said description data is correct, and

wherein said step of appending an electronic signature appends the electronic signature of the other concerned party to said description data if the electronic signature of one of said concerned parties appended to said description data is determined to be correct.

12. A method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising the steps of:

describing said contract content on an electronic contract document on said contract; and

inserting a data string determined with regard to a describing program for executing said describing process in said contract data.

13. A method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising the step of inserting a contract content display template for creating from said contract content a contract content display data to be outputted to an output unit in said contract data.

14. A method as claimed in claim 8, wherein said step of appending a signature appends said electronic signature on said contract data if a permission for appending said electronic signature to said contract data is received.

15. A system for processing a contract for provision of a commodity or service, comprising:

a module for creating contract data containing said contract content and a negotiating ID determined between concerned parties on said contract;

a module for retrieving, using said negotiating ID as a key, description data corresponding to said contract data from multiple description data containing a description content about said commodity or service having been transferred between the concerned parties about said contract before concluding said contract;

a module for inserting a data string determined with regard to said retrieved description data in said contract data; and

a module for appending an electronic signature of at least one of said concerned parties to said contract data containing said data string.

16. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein said module for inserting said data string inserts said retrieved description data in said contract data as said data string.

17. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein said module for inserting said data string calculates a hash value of said retrieved description data and inserts the hash value of said description data in said contract data as said data string.

18. A system as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

a module for determining whether or not either of the electronic signatures of said concerned parties added to said description data is correct; and

a module for appending the electronic signature of the other concerned party to said description data if the electronic signature of one of said concerned parties appended to said description data is determined to be correct.

19. A system as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

a module for describing said contract content on an electronic contract document on said contract; and

a module for inserting a data string determined with regard to a describing program for executing said describing process in said contract data.

20. A system as claimed in claim 15, further comprising a module for inserting a contract content display template for creating from said contract content a contract content display data to be outputted to an output unit in said contract data.

21. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein said module for appending a signature on said contract data appends said electronic signature on said contract data if a permission for appending said electronic signature to said contract data is received.