JP2003233526A - Web DATABASE SYSTEM CAPABLE OF FREELY SETTING REGISTRATION FORMAT - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a Web database system enabling a user to change an entry form by himself/herself without depending on any programer and enabling management of a useful database by using data collected from participants of an event held on a Web page. <P>SOLUTION: The entry form can be formed in a question-and-answer method, and once the entry form is formed, the Web page having a data input part suitable for the entry form and a database structure matching the entry form are constructed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system for a company or the like to construct a database using various data obtained from a user who accesses a Web page operated by himself or herself.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art It is widely practiced to construct a database or change a database based on user data collected through a communication network.
For example: [1] When a company asks consumers for opinions on its products in a questionnaire format through its own website and organizes the results of this questionnaire to build a database that should be useful for product development. [2] When recruiting participants on various events held by companies for the purpose of containing consumers on the website and organizing the data of the consumers who applied for this to obtain useful marketing information. [3] When the number of examinees is estimated based on the entrance examination questionnaire obtained from the examinees by the university. [4] When building a database for personnel data and accounting data in a company.

The events developed on these nets are various, and the types of data collected there are not uniform. Therefore, the forms of databases constructed by collecting these data are also various. However,
On the other hand, they have a common point that information is collected through a communication network and that an entry sheet (registration sheet) is used when collecting data to facilitate the organization of collected data. Here, the concept of a communication network usually refers to the Internet, but it also includes a private communication network that is not connected to the Internet. An event is an event developed on a network by a corporate user, and examples thereof include present planning and various questionnaires.

[0004] For example, when a company conducts marketing to analyze consumer trends through its homepage as in [1], the information to be collected may vary depending on the product. For example, in the case of the A product, information about the family structure of the consumer is indispensable, but in the B product, it is unnecessary.

[0005]

Such changes in the content of data items and the number of items inevitably lead to changes in the form (form) of the entry sheet (registration sheet) for data collection. Changing the entry form (form of the entry sheet) not only requires modification of the database structure, but also modification of the data entry screen, which requires specialized knowledge, so Traditionally these have been the job of programmers. For this reason, companies that are engaged in activities to collect various data from general users such as consumers on homepages, etc., have to request a software development company to rewrite a part of the program each time the event changes. Instead, it cost a lot of money and a lot of time.

The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and it is possible to change an entry sheet by itself without depending on a programmer, and by not requiring specialized knowledge to execute it. An object of the present invention is to provide a Web database system that enables a user to freely plan various events in order to collect necessary data according to the purpose at that time.

[0007]

The present invention, which has solved the above-mentioned problems, has the following constitution.

[0008] That is, a public Web server that manages a public Web page of a corporate user who is an event organizer, and a general user who is an event participant who browses the public Web page, changes to the public Web page. A communication terminal device that performs an input operation on the provided entry sheet related to the event, and its address is set as a transfer destination of the data written by the general user on the public Web page, and the public Web server A database database for organizing and storing transfer data from the server is provided, and a database server for accepting remote operation of the database using the operation terminal from the corporate user is arranged on the communication network to construct a Web database system. In addition to these configurations, the following means are added. The means are the following three means. [1] Creation of an entry form by the corporate user of the entry sheet, which is required at the start of a new event,
Entry form providing means for providing an environment in which a corporate user uses a control terminal to perform a question and answer system. [2] Entry sheet reflecting means for reflecting the form information of the created entry form on the entry sheet of the public Web page managed by the public Web server. [3] Database structure reflecting means for reflecting the form information of the created entry form in the structure of the database managed by the database server.

According to the present invention, a general user such as a consumer browses a Web page hosted by a corporate user, and
When data is entered in the data entry field provided on the page, this data is transferred to the linked database server and stored in the database managed by this server. Then, the corporate user remotely operates the database server using the operation terminal to perform operations such as deletion, correction, and search of data registered in the database.

Further, when starting a new event, the corporate user needs to create an entry form to be used at the new event. This entry form is created by a so-called question and answer method called a wizard. Well, even if you don't have any specialized knowledge about the program, you can get the entry form that suits the event simply by answering the questions and completing the entries. When the entry form is created, the form information is reflected on the entry sheet of the public Web page, and at the same time, is reflected on the structure of the database managed by the database server.

It is preferable that the entry sheet reflecting means reflects the form information in the entry sheet format immediately and automatically. Further, it is preferable that the database structure reflecting means reflects the form information in the database structure immediately and automatically.

The transfer means for transferring the data written in the public web page to the database server is not limited, but the public web server is provided with the transfer means.
This transfer means preferably sends an electronic mail to the database server. In the case of electronic mail, it is easy to confirm the sender of the data, and therefore unnecessary data will not be accepted.

The database server includes database registration means for registering information to be sequentially written on a public web page by an ordinary user in the database using an entry sheet, and the database registration means stores information to be sequentially written on the web page. It is preferable to store the history information in the database over time and also store the history information in the database. With such history information, it is possible to deal with it by considering the past interactions of each general user.

The entry sheet reflecting means is
Along with the entry sheet for PCs, the entry sheet for mobile phones or the entry sheet for PDAs can be reflected to form the entry sheet not only for PCs but also for cell phones and PDAs. Information may be reflected.

It is also possible to give the entry sheet a colorful design of a plurality of colors. By making the design colorful, it is possible to entertain the event participants and verify the effect on the response due to the difference in the design of the entry sheet.

The database can also inherit the data accumulated in the past in the company. In this case, by providing an existing data transfer means for transferring the data to a computer that stores the data in the existing database,
Data of an existing database is transferred to the database server. As a result, the data accumulated in the past is not wasted.

As a means for a corporate user to operate the database server, it is preferable to use a browser installed in the computer. With a browser, you don't need to prepare a special application.

[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The details of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of this system. The present system is basically a public Web server 3 operated by a corporate user, a communication terminal device 4 operated by a general user, and a database server 5 operating a database. Is. The database server 5 is operated by a company other than the company that operates the public Web server 3, and this operation can be a commercial business as a service business.

The public Web server 3 manages Web pages including corporate home pages. The concept of a company here includes not only for-profit and non-profit companies but also hospitals and schools. It is preferable that the corporate user is provided with an operation terminal 3b for externally operating the database server 5 in addition to the public Web server 3, but if there is no problem in operation, the function of this operation terminal 3b should be provided. Public W
The eb server 3 may be responsible.

The communication terminal device 4 is a terminal device operated by a general user such as a consumer, and is connected to the Internet such as a personal computer, a mobile phone, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a mobile phone capable of browsing Web pages, and the like. Those that can be connected to the network are targeted. Here, the general user mainly refers to a consumer, but does not exclude anyone other than the consumer. For example, when the purpose of the system is not marketing or the like but hospital management or entrance examination management, it becomes a patient or applicant for entrance examination, and when it is personnel management, it becomes an employee.

The database server 5 is a server for lending a database function to corporate users, and constitutes a WWW server as a whole. The details are as shown in FIG. 3, the database main body 5a, PHP (Hypertext).
Preprocessor), CGI (Common Gateway Interfac
e), ASP (Active Server Page), and mail server are linked, and these are connected to the Internet through a firewall. Where CG
I launches an external program from HTML, and the result is a WWW client (here, an operation terminal 3b owned by a corporate user and a database 5a (see FIG. 3)).
It includes a mechanism for returning to
(Registered trademark of Sun Microsystems) and VISUAL BAS
It is a framework for operating script languages such as IC (registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation) and various components. These are combined to provide an operation screen when a corporate user controls the database server 5. In addition, the mail server uses a public web as shown in FIG.
This is for receiving and storing the electronic mail transferred from the server 3 and for transmitting the electronic mail.

The database 5a installed on the database server 5, the PHP, and the CG.
I, the ASP, the mail server, etc.
As shown in FIG. 5, the database server 5 creates and modifies the database structure based on the form information of the entry form, and stores the data according to this database structure. An entry form providing means 5b for creating an entry form by providing an environment in which a company user creates an entry form by a question and answer method using an operation terminal, and an entry created by the entry form providing means 5b. Entry sheet reflecting means 5 for reflecting the entry sheet of the public Web page 3a managed by the public Web server based on the form information of the form.
c, based on the form information of the entry form created by the entry form providing means 5b,
A database structure reflecting unit 5d for reflecting the database structure of the database 5a, and a database for registering (storing) the data input to the public Web page 3a in the database 5a in which the database structure is reflected by the database structure reflecting unit 5b. Registration means 5e, data content display means 5f for displaying graphs, lists, distributions on a map, etc. on the display of the computer used by the corporate user based on the data stored in the database 5a, and the data accumulated in the past. A database integrating means 5g for integrating with the database 5a is provided. In addition, the public Web server 3
Is the public web page 3a, the web page 3a
Transfer means 5 for transmitting the data written in the entry sheet of the above to the database registration means 5e by e-mail
b. The database 5a, the entry form providing means 5b, the entry sheet reflecting means 5c, the database structure reflecting means 5d, the database registering means 5e, the data content displaying means 5f, and the database integrating means 5g, The program (software) installed in the database server 5 and the hardware provided in the database server 5 are realized in cooperation with each other. Similarly, the public Web page 3a and the transfer unit 3c are realized by the program (software) installed in the public Web server 3 and the hardware included in the public Web server 3 in cooperation with each other. There is something.

The communication network 6 (see FIG. 1) may include the Internet open to the world, or may be a local network taken up within a company or other organization.

In this system having such a basic structure, the information flow is performed as follows.

First, the company user operates the operation terminal 3b.
By operating (see FIG. 1), the entry form providing means 5b creates an entry form. An entry form is a form of data content that a general user inputs. The details of the entry form are data items (for example, name,
It is related to the field length (the number of characters) of each item data, etc., and the data format (for example, a data type such as half-width numbers, half-width alphanumeric characters, and full-width characters). What is important here is that the entry form is created by a question and answer system called a so-called wizard. Then, when this entry form is created, the form information is transmitted to the public Web server 3 by the entry sheet reflecting means 5c, and an entry sheet defining a data input screen in the public Web page 3a managed by the public Web server 3 is created. Reflected in the format,
This means that the form information is transmitted to the database server 5 by the database structure reflecting means 5d and reflected in the structure of the database managed by the database server 5. This mechanism is based on PHP, CGI, A
It is realized by a program such as SP. Here, the form information is the item name and data format of the data to be input, and the field length of each data.

Regarding the method of reflecting the form information on the format of the entry sheet and the structure of the database, even when all the items provided on the entry form are directly reflected, some of them may be omitted, or other In some cases, it may be indirectly reflected by mediating the item. Specifically, the company user operates the operation terminal 3b to input the form information according to the question and answer format provided by the entry form providing means 5b, thereby causing the entry form providing means 5b to create an entry form. As the form information, at least the data item, the data format, the field length of the data, and the entry field (entry field) of the entry sheet corresponding to each data
Is associated with each data item. Then, when the entry form is created, the entry sheet reflecting means forms a form such as a data item, a data format, and a field length of data for the input field of the entry sheet based on the form information of the entry form. Reflect the information on the entry sheet. Similarly, the database structure reflecting unit 5d counts the number of data items of the form information of the created entry form to determine the number of data items to be reflected in the database, and also associates the data item of each data with The field length and data format of each data item are read from the form information, and data setting information corresponding to each data is set. Then, the database structure reflecting means 5d establishes a connection with the database 5a and reflects the database structure based on the data setting information on the database 5a. In addition,
The reflection on the entry sheet and the reflection on the database structure are carried out immediately and automatically by the entry sheet reflection means 5c and the database structure reflection means 5d.

The entry form is created by the corporate user by operating the Web page operated by the database server 5 using the browser installed in the operating terminal 3b owned by the corporate user. In addition to the wizard form for creating the entry form, the operation is performed using a general-purpose browser that is familiar to us, so it is easy to create the entry form. In this way, when the entry form is decided, the entry sheet used by the general user for data entry and the database structure matching the entry form are immediately and automatically reflected. FIG. 2 shows that the data input format on the home page and the structure of the database are reflected so as to match the entry form.

The entry sheet reflecting means 5c
In addition, the form information is reflected on a personal computer entry sheet created according to the size of the personal computer screen (for example, 600 pixels in the vertical direction and 800 pixels in the lateral direction), and the entry for the cellular phone that can be displayed and input on the cellular phone is performed. The sheet may be provided with a mobile phone entry sheet reflecting means (not shown) for automatically reflecting the form information, or a PDA screen size (for example, 480 pixels vertically, 640 pixels horizontally, etc. The PDA entry sheet that can be displayed in a small size is equipped with a PDA entry sheet reflecting means (not shown) that reflects the form information, and the form information can be displayed on the entry sheet that can be displayed on the mobile phone or PDA. It may be reflected.

FIG. 5 is an example of a screen display for creating an entry form by selecting a corresponding one from the basic model and processing it. Here, as a basic model, “personnel recruitment”, “questionnaire”, “marketing”, “inquiry”, “monitoring”, “present”, “others”, “created from DB” and the like are shown. Of course, the entry form can be constructed by the entry form providing means 5b from a blank state without depending on these basic models. Here, “create from DB” means to create an entry form that follows the database structure in order to utilize the data accumulated in the existing database. The existing database to be used may be the one stored in the database server 5 side, or may be the data held by the corporate user in the in-house computer.
The data in the existing database held by the corporate user in the company may be converted into a format such as a CSV file, attached to an e-mail, sent to the database server 5, and integrated into a new database.

For creating an entry form using the wizard method, for example, "Do you have a hobby item?", "How many bytes is that field length?", "Are there any restrictions on the format of the input data?" Such a question is asked by the entry form providing means asking a business user, and the business user answers the questions one after another. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the final form of the entry form is almost solidified after a number of questions. Following this process, the “automatic placement of entry form” by the entry sheet reflecting means 5c and the database structure reflecting means. It is indicated that "automatic generation of database field" by 5d is automatically processed.
The "automatic placement of entry form" completes the input screen on the Web page, and the "automatic generation of database fields" determines the structure of the database.

When the structure of the data input screen and the database on the public Web page 3a is determined in this way, the data registration from the general user will be accepted thereafter. Data registration is performed by a general user accessing a public Web page 3a (route indicated by 1 in the figure) which is organized by a corporate user, and inputting data into necessary items of the entry sheet posted on the public Web page 3a. The input data is saved in the database server 5
Will be forwarded in real time or periodically (route indicated by 2 in the figure) to be registered in the database. This input data is the public Web
The transfer means 3c (see FIG. 4) provided in the server 3 transfers the data from the public Web server 3 to the database server 5. An electronic mail is used as this transfer means. In the case of electronic mail, it is easy to confirm the sender of the electronic mail data based on the header of the electronic mail, and therefore unnecessary data will not be accepted. Further, the general user who participates in the event is devised so that the existence of the database server 5 cannot be seen, and the general user is only aware of the data input to the public Web page.

By the way, in general, many entry sheets to the database generally have a simple design, but in the present invention, a multicolored and colorful design (not shown) is used. There is. This is an effective method for making the entry work on the entry sheet entertaining as well as motivating the general user to participate in the event. Multiple types of this colorful design,
If you prepare an entry sheet with a design suitable for each event, you can expect high response.

It should be noted that input data check means (not shown) for checking an input error of data input to the entry sheet may be provided to prevent input of incorrect data. Specifically, when the form information is reflected on the entry sheet by the entry sheet reflecting unit 5c (see FIG. 4), the input data check unit is configured to input each input field (input field) of the entry sheet included in the form information. The data format and the field length of the data for the column) are stored, and when data having an error in the data format and the field length is input, the input of correct data is prompted again. By this input data check means, it is possible to prevent the data format of the input field for inputting the mobile phone number from being a numeral or an erroneous data format other than "-" (for example, "abcd") from being stored in the database. it can.

The data accumulated in the database in this way is operated by operating the operation terminal 3b owned by the corporate user, and the data is stored as if the database exists locally through the Web page operated by the database server 5. You can use it freely. A browser is used for this operation, and security measures are provided so that only the person who has passed the password check can access the database.

FIG. 7 shows a menu screen 7 for utilizing the database. Data for displaying the menu screen 7 on the operation terminal 3b and displaying a graph, a list, a distribution on a map, etc. on a display of a computer used by a company user based on the data accumulated in the database. The contents display means 5f (see FIG. 4) is provided in the database server 5.
When the company user operates the menu screen 7, the data content display means 5f browses the detailed personal attribute information 8 as shown in FIG. 8 or displays the data content in a graph as shown in FIG. 10 or can be expressed as a distribution 11 on the map.

Further, the database registration means 5e
Is a public web page for general users using an entry sheet.
Information to be sequentially written in pages is stored in the database 5a over time, and time information such as date and time written in the Web page is also stored in the database 5a to generate history information. It should be noted that, in the personal attribute information page (see FIG. 8), the history 9 of data entry using the entry sheet from this user is stored by the database registration means 5e over time, This means that it is managed as a communication history. By leaving such a history 9, it is possible to make the treatment for the user (general user) more appropriate. For example, assuming the case of constructing a database that processes complaints from customers, in the past, for customers who have repeatedly inquired about similar complaints,
It will be possible to take care such as taking care not to duplicate the correspondence with the past.

The number of persons who can log in to the database server 5 is about 5 to 10 and many persons in charge operate the operation terminal 3b so that the entry form providing means 5b causes the entry form and the database to operate. The structure may be created or modified.

The database managed by the database server 5 stores the data input by the general user through the public Web page of the corporate user, but in the present invention, the corporate also utilizes the data accumulated in the past. It can be so. Therefore, existing data transfer means (not shown) for transferring the accumulated data to a computer that stores the accumulated (existing) data in the past
Is provided, the accumulated data is transferred to the database server 5. Then, the data transferred to the database server 5 is stored in the database server 5
The database server 5 is equipped with a database integration means 5g (see FIG. 4) for integrating with a database managed by the database server 5, and the data accumulated in the past is stored in the database server 5.
To integrate and reflect. Specifically, a data import page 12 as shown in FIG. 10 is provided on the screen of a computer that stores previously accumulated data, and an existing database file containing previously accumulated data is included as a reference file. The corporate user operates the computer to specify. Then, the existing data transfer means is
The specified file is extracted (converted) as a CSV file and transferred to the database server 5 as an attachment file of an e-mail. C forwarded by email
Since the SV file is integrated with the database managed by the database server 5 by the database integration means 5g, it is possible to provide a database that makes use of (follows) past data. Further, since the database integration means 5g adopts a CSV file which is a general file format of the database, the database integration means provided in the existing database system can be used.

When a general user inputs a mail address as data using an entry sheet, it can also be input as data whether the mail address is a mail address for a personal computer (computer) or a mobile phone. To create an entry sheet. Further, if the mail address is for the mobile phone, the data of the business operator of the mobile phone and the service type of the electronic mail can be input. The number of characters that a mobile phone can receive depends on the operator and its service (for example, in NTT Docomo i-mode (NTT Docomo registered trademark), 250 characters is the upper limit of the number of characters. Since au (registered trademark of KDDI Co., Ltd.) has a maximum of 5000 characters.), the message of the number of characters corresponding to the character limit of the e-mail for this mobile phone is input by the general user from the mobile phone operator and It will also be possible to deliver messages with a number of characters that does not exceed the character limit of the email service.

[0040]

According to the database system of the present invention, a corporate user can create an entry form through a communication network by a question and answer system, and the form information of the created entry form is provided on a public Web page. Since it is reflected in the format of the entry sheet and the structure of the database managed by the database server, even when developing various events with different contents of collected data independently, each event can be performed without depending on an external programmer. You will be able to generate the corresponding entry sheet and database structure yourself. Moreover, the work can be adequately handled even by a person who does not have specialized program knowledge.

When a general user is provided with history information generating means for storing history information by sequentially storing information sequentially written on a public Web page by using an entry sheet, as in the invention according to claim 4, Since it is possible to deal with the past communication history in consideration, more appropriate treatment can be performed.

Since the entry sheet for the mobile phone and the entry sheet for the PDA can be created as in the invention according to claim 5, a general user can input data from the mobile phone or the PDA.

When the entry sheet is provided with a colorful design of a plurality of colors as in the invention according to claim 6, it is easy to attract the interest of general users and is advantageous in increasing the motivation to participate in the event.

When the corporate user transfers the internally accumulated data to the database server so that the data can be integrated as in the invention according to claim 7, past accumulation is not wasted.

When the corporate user uses a browser as a means for operating the database server as in the invention according to claim 8, it is not necessary to separately prepare special application software, and the operation method is familiar to the user. You can, so you don't need special learning.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the overall configuration of the present system.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing that a Web page having a data input format adapted to an entry form and a database structure adapted to the entry form are generated.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual explanatory diagram showing a device configuration around a database server.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a public Web server and a database server.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an entry form creation menu.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a state of an entry form creation work in which the work has progressed to an intermediate stage, and a transition to an automatic placement of the entry form and a field automatic generation work of a database after completion of this work.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram in which an operation menu of a database server is displayed using an operation terminal device of a company user.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which personal attribute information is browsed using the operation terminal device.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a display setting screen of data accumulated in the database server.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of a data import page for integration with an existing database server.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 route 2 routes 3 Public Web server 3a Public Web page 3b Operation terminal 3c Transfer means 4 Communication terminal equipment 5 Database server 5a Database main body 5b Entry form providing means 5c Entry sheet reflection means 5d Database structure reflection means 5e Database registration means 5f Data content display means 5g Database integration means 6 Communication network 7 Menu screen 8 personal attribute information 9 Communication history 10 Graph display 11 Map distribution 12 Data import page

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A public Web server that manages a public Web page of a corporate user who is an event presider, and a general user who is an event participant who browses the public Web page, A communication terminal device that performs an input operation on the provided entry sheet involved in the event, and its address is set as a transfer destination of data written by the general user on the public Web page,
A web database system is provided, which comprises a database for organizing and storing transfer data from the public web server, and a database server for accepting remote operation of the database from the corporate user using an operation terminal. In addition to the above, in addition to these, an entry form providing means for providing an environment in which the enterprise user uses the operation terminal to create an entry form by the enterprise user of the entry sheet required at the start of a new event. An entry sheet reflecting means for reflecting the form information of the created entry form in an entry sheet of a public Web page managed by the public Web server; and the form information of the created entry form in the database. A database structure reflecting means for reflecting the structure of a database managed by a server, and a web database system capable of freely setting a registration format. 2. The registration format according to claim 1, wherein the form information is reflected on the entry sheet of the public Web page and reflected on the structure of the database managed by the database server immediately and automatically. W that can
eb database system. 3. A transfer means for transferring data written in a public Web page to a database server is the public W.
The Web database system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the Web database system is provided in an eb server, and the transfer unit transfers data by electronic mail. 4. The database server comprises database registration means for registering, in the database, information that a general user sequentially writes on a public web page using an entry sheet, and the database registration means sequentially writes on the web page. A Web database system capable of freely setting a registration format according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein information is stored in the database over time. 5. The entry sheet reflecting means reflects the entry sheet for a personal computer as well as the entry sheet for a mobile phone or the entry sheet for a PDA, according to claim 1. A web database system that allows you to freely set the registration format. 6. A Web database system capable of freely setting a registration format according to claim 1, wherein an entry sheet is provided with a colorful design of a plurality of colors. 7. The registration according to claim 1, wherein the data of the existing database stored in the computer inside the corporate user is transferred to the database server and the data is inherited to the new database. A web database system that allows you to freely set the format. 8. The database system according to claim 1, wherein the corporate user operates the database server using a browser.