JP2011138495A - Knowledge management system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow a user of a database to understand a complete picture of information accumulated in the database only by reviewing a display on a display. <P>SOLUTION: A 3D image of a sphere 51 (or part thereof) having a flow 52 systematically developing items of a business stored in a knowledge database association with the content of the business disposed on the surface thereof is displayed as a portal screen 45 on a display of a client terminal with a display magnification and a viewing direction corresponding to a point of view designated by operation of a keyboard or mouse of the client terminal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a knowledge management system.

  For example, in the production engineering department in the manufacturing industry, various knowledge and techniques for increasing productivity are accumulated. It is desirable that such knowledge and technology be effectively utilized when a production plan including a similar process occurs later. Therefore, it is important to visualize and share knowledge about production technology and technology within the organization.

  With regard to visualization of such knowledge and technology, information related to knowledge and technology has been stored in a database and provided to designers engaged in production technology by referring to the stored information from the terminal as necessary. Has been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1).

  In a database as described above, it is important how to configure a portal screen as a man-machine interface used by a user who refers to information in the database. For example, if the portal screen simply lists the titles of information stored in the database, no information will be output from the database if no title is specified, so the necessary information is stored in the database. The database information can be used only when the user recognizes in advance and the user can specify the title.

  In view of this, it is conceivable to display the titles of information stored in the database on the display in a tree format systematized according to the size of the concept on the portal screen. If the title of the information is displayed in a tree, even if the user does not recognize in advance that the necessary information is stored in the database, the overview of the tree can be used to view the information that needs to be referenced. The presence / absence can be recognized by the user himself / herself.

JP 2006-139600 A

  When displaying the titles of information stored in the database on the portal screen as described above in a tree, the entire tree may not fit on the display screen as the number of titles increases. In that case, a part of the tree is displayed on the display, and when the remaining part of the tree is viewed, the screen is scrolled up and down or left and right to be displayed on the display. In portal screen display with such a form of screen scrolling, it is difficult for the user to understand the overall image of information stored in the database only by overviewing the display on the display. Such problems are not limited to the database of knowledge and technology accumulated in the production engineering department. For example, in the database of information born in all fields such as skills cultivated at the manufacturing site. Is a problem that can occur as well.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a knowledge management system that allows a database user to understand the overall image of information stored in a database simply by overviewing the display on the display. Is to provide.

In order to achieve the above object, the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 1 comprises:
In a knowledge management system for displaying information stored in a database in which a plurality of systematized items and a plurality of contents corresponding to each item are stored in association with each other,
A display for displaying a sphere with a flow systematically developing the plurality of items arranged on the surface;
Viewpoint designating means for designating the viewpoint of the sphere to be displayed on the display;
The surface portion of the sphere visible from the direction corresponding to the specified viewpoint is arranged on the surface portion of the flow at a magnification corresponding to the distance from the viewpoint specified by the viewpoint specifying means to the sphere. Sphere display means for displaying on the display together with the flow part made,
Item designating means for designating a desired item from one or a plurality of the items arranged in the flow part displayed on the display;
Content display means for causing the display to display the content stored in the database in association with the item specified by the item specifying means;
It is characterized by providing.

  According to the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 1, a flow in which a plurality of items stored in the database are systematically developed is a flow of a sphere with a magnification corresponding to a designated viewpoint and a designated viewing direction. It is placed on the surface and displayed on the display. Therefore, the entire surface portion on which the spherical flow is arranged can be displayed on the display by specifying an appropriate viewpoint and viewing direction. As a result, it is possible to systematically understand the overall image of the items stored in the database simply by overviewing the display on the display.

  The knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 2 is the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 1, wherein the sphere display means displays on the display together with the surface portion in accordance with the magnification. The level of detail of the display content of the flow part to be changed is changed.

  According to the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 2, in the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 1, the flow displayed on the surface of the sphere of the display in accordance with the display magnification of the sphere in the display The level of detail of the displayed content is changed. Therefore, when the display magnification of the sphere is high, it is possible to secure a large display area for each item and increase the level of detail of the display content of the flow. On the other hand, if the display magnification of the sphere is low and a large display area cannot be secured for each item, the level of detail of the flow content displayed in the display area of each item can be reduced.

  Furthermore, the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 3 is the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 1 or 2, wherein each of the items is assigned to any one of a plurality of different systems. A plurality of flows according to systems are arranged on the surface of the sphere, and the items belonging to different systems are associated with each other on the stored information of the database, and the sphere display means However, in the space above the surface portion, a subflow for connecting the items having different systems to each other between the flow portions to which the items belong is displayed on the display.

  According to the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 3, in the knowledge management system of the present invention described in claim 1 or 2, items in a plurality of flows having different systems are associated on the stored information in the database. If so, a subflow connecting these items is displayed in the space above the surface portion of the sphere displayed on the display. Therefore, if a subflow is displayed above the item of the flow part arranged on the surface part of the sphere displayed on the display, the item related to the item must exist on another flow. Can be recognized by the display on the display.

  According to the knowledge management system of the present invention, an overall picture of items stored in a database can be systematically understood only by overviewing the display on the display.

It is explanatory drawing which shows schematic structure of the knowledge management system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the memory content of the knowledge database of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the explanatory screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which set the link to the explanatory screen of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state by which the description screen of the link destination of FIG. 10 was superimposed on the original description screen, and was displayed on the display of the client terminal. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the display magnification of the portal screen in FIG. 14 is increased. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG. FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the display magnification of the portal screen of FIG. 17 is increased.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a knowledge management system according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing contents stored in the knowledge database of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is an item of knowledge in the knowledge database of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a display by the display of a client terminal which shows the content of the knowledge linked | related and memorize | stored.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the knowledge management system of the present embodiment is configured by an intranet in which a knowledge database 10, an image data server 20, a WEB server 30, and a plurality of client terminals 40, 40,. . Some or all of the client terminals 40 may be connected to the knowledge database 10, the image data server 20, and the WEB server 30 via the Internet (not shown). Each client terminal 40 has a display 41, a keyboard 42, and a mouse 43, respectively.

  The knowledge database 10 stores, for example, various knowledge and technology items (titles) developed in the production engineering department in the manufacturing industry in association with their contents. Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the items include “business flow” and “know-how”. In the present embodiment, both “business flow” and “know-how” are systematized using an ontology. For this purpose, the knowledge database 10 includes a large number of items related to “business flow” and a large number of items related to “know-how” using at least one of roles and classes using OWL (Web Ontology Language). Systematically related with the concept of In the knowledge database 10, some items related to “business flow” and some items related to “know-how” are associated in terms of roles using OWL.

  The association between items using OWL as described above is, for example, that of the software “Houzo” distributed at the Mizoguchi Laboratory's legal website (http://www.hozo.jp/hozo/) at Osaka University. This can be done using the ontology editor. Further, the contents related to each item are as shown in FIG. 3, for example. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a knowledge content explanation screen displayed on the display 41 of the client terminal 40 shown in FIG. In the explanation screen 46 of FIG. 3, the content of the business associated with the business item “business G-2-3” is illustrated. Data necessary to display the explanation screen 46 on the display 41 of the client terminal 40 is stored in the knowledge database 10 in association with the corresponding item. Instead of data necessary for displaying the explanation screen 46, a web address on the Internet or an intranet on which the explanation screen 46 is displayed on the web browser can be associated with a corresponding item.

  The above-mentioned “business flow” and “know-how” are displayed as systematically developed flows on a portal screen 45 (see FIG. 4) described later displayed on the display 41 of the client terminal 40 using a web browser. The The flow displayed on the portal screen 45 can be selected and set to one or both of “business flow” and “know-how” by operating the keyboard 42 and the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40. Then, systematic association data using the OWL of the selected item is output to the WEB server 30 described later, for example, when the system is activated.

  The image data server 20 supplies the client terminal 40 with data necessary for displaying a spherical image on the portal screen 45 (see FIG. 4). In order to display a spherical image on the portal screen 45 using the supplied data, dedicated application software is installed in the client terminal 40. This application software is used for modeling and 3D rendering using data supplied from the image data server 20 and displaying a spherical image on the web browser of the display 41. Thus, on the surface of the sphere displayed on the web browser and a part of the space above it, a systematic flow of the items selected on the client terminal 40 side outputted from the knowledge database 10 to the WEB server 30 Is displayed.

  In the present embodiment, as the base of the image data server 20, Google Earth Server provided by Google Inc. is used for Google Earth (Google is a registered trademark) of Google Inc., which provides 3D images of the earth. This Google Earth Server supplies data for displaying a 3D image of the earth on the web browser of the display 41 to the client terminal 40 in response to a request. The 3D image of the earth based on the data supplied from the Google Earth Server to the client terminal 40 is an image of the earth viewed from the viewing direction designated by the operation of the keyboard 42 or the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40. In addition, the 3D image of the earth based on the data supplied from the Google Earth Server to the client terminal 40 is an earth having a magnification corresponding to the distance from the viewpoint (not shown) input by the operation of the keyboard 42 and the mouse 43 to the earth. It becomes the image of. Therefore, the 3D image of the earth displayed on the web browser may be the whole earth or a part of the earth depending on the magnification and the viewing direction.

  The 3D image of the earth displayed on the web browser of the display 41 of the client terminal 40 can be processed in the client terminal 40 such that the surface of the earth becomes a sphere covered with a plain mask image. In addition, on the 3D image of the earth displayed on the web browser, an image of a systematic item flow indicating a systematic association relationship using the item OWL stored in the knowledge database 10 is superimposed and displayed. Processing can be performed. In this flow, a system is represented by a line connecting the nodes, and items are systematically arranged in each section. In each section, an icon image such as a thumbtack pin is displayed together with the item.

  The process of covering the surface of the 3D image of the earth with the mask image and the process of displaying the lines connecting the nodes of the flow are displayed by superimposing the Google Earth Server borders and state borders on the 3D image of the earth. It can be realized by using the function. In addition, image data processing that displays an icon such as a thumbtack pin at the position of an item that becomes a section of the flow is realized by using a function to display a pin icon as a landmark at a specified point of Google Earth Server can do. These functions are basically realized by application software dedicated to Google Earth installed in the client terminal 40.

  Therefore, in order to display the image data of the systematic flow of items on the 3D image of the earth on the web browser of the display 41, each item is masked based on the definition of the association relationship between the items by OWL. It is necessary to determine the coordinate value of each item (the coordinate value of the location to be a node on the flow) for placement on (the surface of the 3D image of the earth). This coordinate value is represented by the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the earth according to the 3D image of the earth under the mask.

  As described above, by determining the coordinate value of each item by OWL, for example, an item having a class level of 1 or an item having a part-of-part relationship has a predetermined pitch (predetermined longitude) in the longitude line direction of the earth. ) Deployed and arranged at intervals. The class level 2 items below and the items of the part-of-part relationship are expanded in the direction of the latitude line of the earth at intervals of a pitch (predetermined latitude) shorter than the predetermined pitch between items in the class level 1, Be placed. Thereafter, as the class level decreases to 3, 4, 5, 6... (The hierarchy of items in the system decreases), the expansion direction is the latitude line direction, longitude line direction, latitude line direction, longitude line direction,. While changing each item and reducing the pitch between items, each item and the item in the part-of-part relationship are developed and arranged.

  The WEB server 30 loads the stored contents of the knowledge database 10 when the system is started, for example. And the coordinate value of each item by OWL mentioned above is determined from the loaded storage content based on the definition content of the association relation between the items by OWL.

  In addition, the WEB server 30 sets the image data of the 3D image of the sphere supplied from the above-described image data server 20 in a data format that can be displayed on a web browser. In addition, the WEB server 30 generates, in an XML or HTML format that can be displayed on a web browser, data on an explanation screen indicating the content of knowledge related to an item specified by operating the keyboard 42 or the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40. To do. The data of the explanation screen is generated with reference to the data of the knowledge content stored in the knowledge database 10 in association with the designated item.

  With the above configuration, in the knowledge management system of the present embodiment, a plain item flow indicating the association relationship of items selected by the operation of the keyboard 42 or the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40 is arranged on the surface. The 3D image of the sphere covered with the mask image can be displayed on the web browser of the display 41 of the client terminal 40.

  Next, the operation (action) of the knowledge management system of this embodiment will be described. 4 to 13 are explanatory diagrams of a portal screen displayed on the display of the client terminal of FIG.

  In the knowledge management system of this embodiment, when a system program is activated by operating the keyboard 42 or mouse 43 of the client terminal 40, a web browser is activated on the client terminal 40 and displayed on the display 41. The portal screen 45 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed on the display 41 by the web browser. On this portal screen 45, a 3D image of a sphere 51 with a systematic flow 52 of items arranged on the surface is displayed.

  The item for arranging the flow 52 on the surface of the sphere 51 can be selected by checking the check box of the item list displayed on the left side of the portal screen 45 by operating the keyboard 42 or the mouse 43. Further, in the default state when the system is activated, the sphere 51 is a portal screen with a magnification when the point farthest from the sphere 51 is the viewpoint in front of the sphere 51 and a viewing direction when the sphere 51 is viewed from the front. 45 is displayed.

  When the viewpoint is brought close to the sphere 51 without changing the viewing direction from the above-described default state by operating the keyboard 42 or the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40, the 3D of the sphere 51 on the portal screen 45 is displayed as illustrated in the explanatory diagram of FIG. The image display magnification is higher than that in the state of FIG. In the case illustrated in FIG. 5, as a result of the display magnification being increased, a part of the surface of the sphere 51 surrounded by the dashed-dotted frame in FIG. 4 is displayed on the entire portal screen 45. In addition, the knowledge item names that are not displayed in the state of FIG. 4 where the display magnification is low and the pins indicating the positions of the items on the flow 52 are displayed in the state of FIG. 5 where the display magnification is high. That is, the level of detail of the display content of the flow 52 is changed as the display magnification of the sphere 51 changes. Such a change in the display mode is a function that allows Google Earth Server, which is the base of the image data server 20, to display the names of major cities on the earth according to the display magnification of the 3D image of the earth. It can be realized using.

  In the state of FIG. 5, when the viewing direction of the sphere 51 is moved from the front to the upper side of the portal screen 45 without changing the display magnification by operating the keyboard 42 or the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40, the explanatory diagram of FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 3, the 3D image of the sphere 51 displayed on the portal screen 45 is an image in which the upper side of the sphere 51 is viewed obliquely from the front.

  Furthermore, in the state of FIG. 5, when the viewpoint is brought closer to the sphere 51 without changing the viewing direction, the display magnification of the 3D image of the sphere 51 on the portal screen 45 is higher than that of the state of FIG. Will be even higher. In the state of FIG. 7, if the viewing direction of the sphere 51 is moved from the front to the upper right of the portal screen 45 without changing the display magnification by operating the keyboard 42 or the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40, the description of FIG. 8 will be given. As shown in the figure, the viewing direction of the 3D image of the sphere 51 displayed on the portal screen 45 changes to the upper right side from the front of the sphere 51.

  In the state of FIG. 8, for example, when a pointer (not shown) is overlapped with a pin corresponding to the item “business G-2-3” by operating the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40, “business G- A pop-up image 53 for displaying the explanation screen of the knowledge content corresponding to the item “2-3” is displayed on the portal screen 45. Then, when the hyperlink “business G-2-3” in the pop-up image 53 is clicked by operating the mouse 43 or the like, the item “business G-2-3” is displayed as shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, the explanation screen 46 of “Business G-2-3” described with reference to FIG. 3 showing the content stored in the knowledge database 10 as the corresponding knowledge content, Is displayed on the display 41 over the portal screen 45 using another web browser.

  Further, when there is information related to the knowledge content on the explanation screen 46 displayed on the display 41, the corresponding information screen is displayed by searching and extracting the information in advance. It is also possible to configure such that a link for pop-up display on 41 is automatically pasted in the explanation screen 46. For example, a keyword surrounded by a frame in the explanation screen 46 shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 10 is an item for which corresponding information exists, and a frame surrounding the keyword is displayed to indicate the presence of a link. By clicking on the keyword surrounded by the frame by operating the mouse 43 or the like, another web browser that displays a screen of the web address linked to the clicked keyword is newly opened and displayed on the display 41. That is, as shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 11, an explanatory screen 46 showing information corresponding to the clicked keyword is displayed on the display 41 using a newly opened web browser.

  The information displayed on the pop-up explanation screen 46 shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 11 may be information existing at the web address stored in the knowledge database 10 in association with the keyword item. In addition to the stored content, the screen of information existing at a specific web address associated with the keyword item may be used.

  Such a configuration can be realized by using the software “Magpie The Semantic Filter” distributed at the Knowledge Media Institute (KMi) site (http://kmi.open.ac.uk/), for example. Can do. In this case, a dedicated server (hereinafter referred to as “link server”) 50 that associates and stores a keyword enclosed in a frame indicating the presence of a link in the explanation screen 46 and a linked web address is connected on the intranet. Are preferably used. However, it is not denied that they are physically shared with other servers.

  Of the association data between the keyword stored in the link server 50 and the linked web address, at least the content of the keyword is included in the content stored as an item in the knowledge database 10. The linked web address may also be included in the content stored as an item in the knowledge database 10. Therefore, it is desirable to periodically update the storage contents of the link server 50 according to the latest storage contents of the knowledge database 10. When the stored content of the knowledge database 10 is used as it is as the stored content of the link server 50, the data format corresponding to the knowledge database 10 may be converted into a data format corresponding to the link server 50 and imported.

  When “Magpie The Semantic Filter” is used, a keyword to be displayed in the explanation screen 46 surrounded by a frame indicating the presence of a link by this software can be selected from a plurality of groups. The group can be selected by clicking the group selection button (not shown) displayed near the menu bar of the explanation screen 46 according to the setting of the web browser. In order to enable such group selection, the association data between the keyword of the link server 50 and the web address of the link destination includes data that associates the keyword with one or more groups to which the keyword belongs. become.

  In addition, writing may be added to the explanation screen 46 using open source such as Marginalia. Marginalia is a JavaScript (registered trademark) web annotation system that allows a user to specify and highlight text displayed in a web browser and to write margin notes about that text. Marginalia's software can be obtained from the geof home page (http://www.geof.net/).

  For example, when writing in the explanation screen 46 is possible using Marginalia, the clauses or words related to the writing of sentences described in the center column of FIG. specify. As a result, the entry field for the written content is displayed on the right side of the center column of the explanation screen 46 located right next to the phrase or word for which the range has been specified. By inputting the desired written content into the input column by operating the keyboard 42 and saving it, the written content previously input is displayed on the right side of the central column of the explanation screen 46 displayed on the display 41 thereafter. Will be displayed. In this series of operations, Marginalia acquires the input contents of writing on the explanation screen 46 as the update contents of the knowledge contents constituting the explanation screen 46, and uses this format to update the corresponding knowledge contents of the knowledge database 10. To be stored in the knowledge database 10. This additional storage may be performed in an overwrite storage format including the original knowledge content.

  By the way, as shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 12, in the portal screen 45, when both the “business flow” and “know-how” flows 52 are arranged on the surface of the sphere 51, they are arranged on the respective flows 52. In addition, items related to “business flow” and items related to “know-how” may be connected by a subflow 54 that passes through a space above the sphere 51. This subflow 54 is displayed on the portal screen 45 when items related to “business flow” and items related to “knowhow” are stored in the knowledge database 10 in association with each other. In FIG. 12, the item “business F-3-8-1-1-1” located in the class under the item “business F-3-8-1-1” of “business flow” is “ An example associated with an item related to “know-how” is shown. Specifically, as shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 13, “know-how A-2-1-1”, “know-how A-2-2-1”, “know-how B-2-1”, etc. of “know-how” Are displayed as a flow 52 connected to the item “business F-3-8-1-1” by the subflow 54.

  As is clear from the above description, in the knowledge management system of the present embodiment, the knowledge database 10 corresponds to the database in the claims. In the present embodiment, the keyboard 42 and the mouse 43 of the client terminal 40 correspond to viewpoint specifying means, direction specifying means, and item specifying means in the claims. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the image data server 20 and the WEB server 30 constitute a sphere display unit in the claims. Moreover, in this embodiment, the WEB server 30 comprises the content display means in a claim.

  According to the knowledge management system of the present embodiment configured as described above, a sphere 51 (or its sphere) in which a flow 52 that systematically expands knowledge items stored in a knowledge database in association with knowledge contents is arranged on the surface. A part of the 3D image is displayed as a portal screen 45 on the display of the client terminal at a display magnification and a viewing direction corresponding to the viewpoint specified by the keyboard or mouse operation of the client terminal.

  Therefore, by designating an appropriate viewpoint and viewing direction by operating the keyboard 42 and the mouse 43, the entire surface portion on which the flow 52 of the sphere 51 is arranged can be displayed on the portal screen 45 of the display 41. As a result, the entire image of the knowledge items stored in the knowledge database 10 can be systematically understood simply by overviewing the display on the display 41 (portal screen 45). In addition, since the viewing direction of the sphere 51 can be designated, the display of the flow 52 including the item of interest viewed from a desired direction is displayed on the display 41 (portal screen 45), and the system of knowledge items The flow 52 can be displayed on the display 41 (portal screen 45) in such a manner that it is easier to grasp the above.

  In the knowledge management system of the present embodiment, the knowledge item name not displayed in the state of FIG. 4 where the display magnification of the sphere 51 is low and the pin indicating the position of the item on the flow 52 are shown in FIG. In the state of, it is configured to be displayed. Such a configuration for changing the level of detail of the display content of the flow 52 with a change in the display magnification of the sphere 51 may be omitted. However, if such a configuration is provided as in the present embodiment, when the display resolution of the flow 52 linked to the magnification of the sphere 51 displayed on the display 41 (portal screen 45) is low, the display content of the flow 52 When the level of detail is lowered and the display resolution of the flow 52 is low, the level of detail of the display content of the flow 52 can be increased and the display content of the flow 52 can be adjusted to a content that can be visually discriminated.

  Further, in the knowledge management system of the present embodiment, the space between the “work flow” flow 52 item and the “know-how” flow 52 item displayed on the surface of the sphere 51 on the portal screen 45 is above the sphere 51. The sub-flow 54 passing through the space may be connected. Such a configuration may be omitted. However, if such a configuration is provided as in the present embodiment, when knowledge items related to “business flow” and “know-how” having different systems are related to each other, By defining the association, the systematic flow 52 of knowledge items across the systems is displayed on the display 41 (portal screen 45), and the know-how related to the business can be easily obtained from the business to be executed in the future. It can be recognized and the contents can be grasped.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the case has been described in which the knowledge items and the contents stored in the knowledge database 10 are related to “business flow” and “know-how”. However, the knowledge stored in the knowledge database 10 is not limited to “business flow” and “know-how”, but is arbitrary. In this embodiment, knowledge (items and contents) belonging to one of the two systems (“business flow” and “know-how”) is stored in the knowledge database 10, but is stored in the knowledge database 10. The knowledge to be obtained may be only knowledge belonging to a single system, or may be knowledge belonging to any of three or more different systems.

  Further, in this embodiment, an item at a certain class level and an item at a class level one level below are arranged by changing the development direction by 90 ° from each other (latitude line direction or longitude line direction). Explained the case. However, the arrangement of items for each class level is not limited to such an arrangement.

  For example, “know-how” is often associated with a plurality of items in a class level one lower than one item in a class level in parallel. In such a case, it is preferable in terms of usability to express a systematic flow with a tree that repeats branching from an upper item to a lower item.

  Corresponding to such a case, one point on the sphere 51 may be used as a base point, and the systematic flow 52 may be displayed on the display 41 by expanding radially from the base point. In that case, each item belonging to each class level (hierarchy) on the flow 52 is, for example, a distance from the base point of the flow 52 between the same hierarchies on the image of the sphere 51 displayed in a plane on the screen of the display 41. Are substantially the same, and the different layers may be arranged in a distributed manner so that the distance from the base point is clearly different.

  In this case, the flow 52 arranged near the base point of the flow 52 is displayed on the display 41 for items belonging to the higher class level. At this time, if the center of the planar image of the sphere 51 displayed on the display 41 is set as the base point of the flow 52, the class level is changed from the higher class level to the lower class level (for example, the class level is 3, 4, 5, 6, The distance difference from the base point of the flow 52 with respect to the item belonging to the class level immediately above may be sequentially shortened. By doing so, items of each class level can be displayed with a stereoscopic perspective on the surface of the sphere 51 that is displayed in a planar shape on the screen but is actually a spherical surface.

  The distance from the center of the plane image of the sphere 51 (the base point of the flow 52) of the item belonging to the lowest class level is made shorter than the shortest distance from the center of the plane image of the sphere 51 to the outer periphery. Is preferably displayed on the display 41.

  Then, the distance from the center of the plane image of the sphere 51 (the base point of the flow 52) of the item belonging to the lowest class level is made smaller than the shortest distance from the center of the plane image of the sphere 51 to the outer periphery of the sphere 51. Thus, items belonging to all class levels can be arranged on the plane image of the sphere 51. As a result, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a class level in which items are arranged on the back side of the sphere 51 and to prevent items from being hidden on the back side of the sphere 51 and displayed on the planar image of the sphere 51.

  By the way, the arrangement of items (sections) at each class level is represented by coordinate values based on the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the earth as described above. Therefore, in the case where items of the same class level are arranged at approximately the same distance from the center on the plane image of the sphere 51, the base point of the flow 52 set at the center of the plane image of the sphere 51 is set to the north or south pole of the earth. It is preferable to set the coordinate position. Thus, by giving coordinate values of the same latitude of the earth to items of the same class level, the items of the same class level can be easily arranged at positions approximately the same distance from the center on the planar image of the sphere 51. it can. Hereinafter, the description will be made assuming that the base point of the flow 52 is set to the coordinate position of the north pole (or south pole) of the earth.

  Next, a method for determining coordinate values related to the longitude of each item will be described. Each flow developed radially from the center on the plane image of the sphere 51 displayed on the display 41, that is, from the north pole (or south pole) of the earth, associates one or more items of class level one level lower than itself. It is composed of a set of branch items and leaf items that do not have any one lower-level class level item associated with them.

  Therefore, in determining the coordinate value related to the longitude of each item, a space (longitude angle width) for arranging the items in each flow without overlapping each other on the plane image (the surface of the earth) of the sphere 51. Need to be allocated.

  At this time, if the items of the higher class level are arranged on the surface of the earth in the order of the item A, the item B, the item C,. The lower class level items (item group) related to item A are also preferably arranged on the surface of the earth in the same arrangement order as the upper class level items.

  This is because if the order of the items is switched between the upper class level and the lower class level, the lines connecting the related items between the upper class level and the lower class level interfere with each other. Or it may interfere with the display of surrounding items.

  However, even if the order of the items is the same at the upper class level and the lower class level, the line connecting the related items between the upper class level and the lower class level is not connected to the surface of the earth. However, it is not always possible to prevent interference with the display of other lines and items. In order to prevent this surely, it is necessary to allocate a space to each item under conditions such as those described later.

  If space is allocated to each item so as to satisfy the conditions described later, by setting the coordinate value of the item in that space, each item and the line connecting them on the surface of the earth do not interfere with each other It is possible to arrange them (except for the case where items and lines displayed on the display 41 are overlapped due to insufficient display resolution).

  Hereinafter, conditions for allocating space to each item will be described. As an example of this condition, there is a method of allocating a space to each item in order from a class level arranged at a latitude close to the north pole (or south pole) of the earth. In this method, first, an angle width in the longitude direction obtained by equally dividing longitude = 360 ° by the number of items of class level = 1 is assigned to each item of class level = 1. Next, the angle width in the longitude direction obtained by equally dividing the angle width in the longitude direction assigned to one item of class level = 1 by the number of items of class level = 2 associated with the class level = 2. Assign to each item.

  Thereafter, the same operation is repeated until each item at the last class level, so that all items (branch items and leaf items) existing on one flow overlap each other on the surface of the earth. Giving a space that should not be.

  By using the longitude value at the center of the space allocated by the method described above as the coordinate value related to the longitude of each item, and the latitude value corresponding to the class level of each item as the coordinate value related to the latitude of each item, each item Each item and line can be placed on the surface of the earth so that the and the lines connecting them do not interfere with each other. The portal screen 45 in which the items and lines are arranged on the surface of the earth as such is shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG.

  When the coordinate value related to the longitude of each item is determined in this way, between items of the same class level, the lower class level associated with each item (including the class level immediately below and lower than that) When there is an extreme difference in the number of existing leaf items, even if the display magnification of the sphere 51 on the display 41 is increased to the limit in some items, as shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. On the 51 plane image, items of the same class level are displayed overlapping each other. This is a phenomenon that occurs when the number of leaf items associated with lower class levels is too large for the space in the longitude direction assigned to the upper class level items.

  Therefore, in order to prevent the phenomenon shown in FIG. 15 from occurring, a space is set in each item in order from the class level (low class level) to which coordinate values in the latitude direction far from the north pole (or south pole) of the earth are assigned. A method of allocating the amount is conceivable. In this method, first, a space having a width in the longitude direction obtained by equally dividing longitude = 360 ° by the total number of leaf items regardless of the level of the class level is assigned to each leaf item. And let the longitude value of the center in the longitude direction of the allocated space be a coordinate value regarding the longitude of the item of each leaf.

  Next, the coordinate value for the longitude of the branch item at the class level one level above the item for each leaf is assigned to the item for each leaf located at the class level one level below that associated with the item for that branch. The central longitude value in the longitude direction of the entire space is set as the coordinate value related to the longitude of the branch item.

  Next, the central space in the longitude direction of the entire space allocated to the item of the branch and leaf of the next lower class level for which the coordinate value related to the latitude is determined is associated with the item of the same branch. The longitude value is determined to be a coordinate value related to the longitude of the item of the class level branch one level higher associated with the item.

  Thereafter, the same operation is repeated until reaching each item of the branch of class level = 1. The coordinate value regarding the latitude of each item is a latitude value corresponding to the class level of each item, as in the space allocation method described above. This gives all items (branch items and leaf items) present on one flow 52 a non-overlapping space on the surface of the earth. Thereby, each item and the line which connects them are arrange | positioned without interfering with each other.

  However, when the coordinate value related to the longitude of each item is determined by this method, the method described with reference to FIG. 14 is extremely limited in the number of leaf items existing in the lower class level in which the phenomenon shown in FIG. 15 occurs. When there is a significant difference, as shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 16, the direction of the line connecting the related items of the upper and lower class levels becomes extremely farther away from the center of the sphere 51 and moves to the lower class level. It may change. If it becomes like this, it will become difficult to understand only at a glance of the whole system of the flow 52, and it is not preferable on usability.

  Therefore, a method of allocating a space to each item is used by assigning a ratio of the width in the longitude direction to the item for each class level and assigning the total to longitude = 360 °. For example, regardless of whether the item is class level = 1, whether it is a branch item or a leaf item, a ratio corresponding to a fixed value is uniformly assigned to the width in the longitude direction. Here, a case where a constant value = 2 is described as an example.

  Then, as the class level is lowered, the ratio assigned to each class level item is sequentially lowered to a value smaller than one of a predetermined value. Specifically, a linear mode for decreasing the ratio linearly, an exponent mode for decreasing the ratio exponentially, a power mode for decreasing the ratio exponentially, and the like can be considered.

  In the linear mode, a value obtained by decreasing a constant value in inverse proportion to the class level value is assigned to each class level item as a ratio of the width in the longitude direction. For example, for each item of class level = 2, a ratio of “1/4”, which is “½” of “one of a certain value = ½”, is assigned. For each item of class level = 3, a ratio of “1/6” obtained by “1/3” “one-half of a fixed value = 1/2” is assigned.

  In the exponent mode, a value that is inversely proportional to the class level power of a constant value is assigned to each class level item as a ratio of the width in the longitude direction. For example, for each item of class level = 2, a ratio of “1/4”, which is a constant value = 2 squared, is assigned. For each item of class level = 3, a ratio of “1/8”, which is one-third of a constant value = 2, is assigned.

  In the power mode, a value that is inversely proportional to the constant power of the class level is assigned to each class level item as a ratio of the width in the longitude direction. For example, for each item of class level = 2, a ratio of “1/4”, which is the inverse of 2 × 2, obtained by raising the class level “2” to a constant value, is assigned. For each item of class level = 3, a ratio of “1/9”, which is a reciprocal of 3 × 3, obtained by raising the class level “3” to a constant value, is assigned.

  In this way, the ratios assigned to the items of the respective class levels are totaled. For example, if the total is “9/2”, the longitude is assigned to 360 °, and for example, the ratio “1/2” is the longitude direction. Convert to width = 20 °. Then, a space having a width in the longitude direction corresponding to the ratio assigned to each class level item is assigned to each class level item, and the longitude value in the center in the longitude direction of the assigned space is set as a coordinate value related to longitude. Also, the coordinate value related to the latitude of each item is a latitude value corresponding to the class level of each item, as in the space allocation method described above.

  Regardless of the linear mode, exponent mode, or power mode described above, the arrangement of the items at each class level can be allocated so as to fall within the range of 360 ° in the longitude direction. Then, if spaces of the same longitude angle width are allocated to leaf items of the same class level, as shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 17, the items of the same class level are arranged with no unevenness in the longitude direction as a tendency. be able to. As a result, a certain directionality can be seen in the positional relationship in the flow between the items associated with the upper and lower class levels.

  By doing so, it is possible to realize an arrangement of items with little variation in density, which is commensurate with the actual longitude direction width of the sphere 51 and the system of each item on the flow 52. Therefore, a layout that can be understood at a glance at the entire system of the flow 52 is maintained, and the usability is improved.

  Then, using any of the linear mode, exponent mode, and power mode described above, the space of the same longitude angle width is allocated to the item of the leaf of the same class level, and the coordinate value regarding the longitude of each item is determined. As shown in the explanatory diagram of FIG. 18, the display magnification of the sphere 51 is increased even if there are a number of class-level items one level below that are associated with class-level items that are separated from the center of the sphere 51 in the latitude direction. Then, items of the same class level will be displayed at intervals.

  In any of the three methods described above, a systematic flow 52 of items at each class level can be expressed by a tree that repeats a branch from an upper item to a lower item. Therefore, a tree-like systematic flow 52 may be displayed on the sphere 51 by selecting an appropriate method in accordance with the number of items to be displayed on the sphere 51 and the contents of each class level.

  In the present embodiment, a series of processes for determining the arrangement of each item on the sphere 51 described above is determined with reference to the stored contents loaded from the knowledge database 10 by the WEB server 30. Therefore, when executing any of the three methods described above, the image data server 20 and the WEB server 30 constitute a spherical display means in the claims.

  Also by the knowledge management system of the present embodiment configured as described above, by designating an appropriate viewpoint and viewing direction by operating the keyboard 42 and the mouse 43, the entire surface portion on which the flow 52 of the sphere 51 is arranged can be obtained. It can be displayed on the portal screen 45 of the display 41. As a result, the entire image of the knowledge items stored in the knowledge database 10 can be systematically understood simply by overviewing the display on the display 41 (portal screen 45). In addition, since the viewing direction of the sphere 51 can be designated, the display of the flow 52 including the item of interest viewed from a desired direction is displayed on the display 41 (portal screen 45), and the system of knowledge items The flow 52 can be displayed on the display 41 (portal screen 45) in such a manner that it is easier to grasp the above.

  In each of the above-described embodiments, a database of various knowledge and technologies developed in the production engineering department in the manufacturing industry has been described as an example. However, the knowledge management system of the present invention is For example, it can be widely applied to a knowledge management system used when creating a database of information born in various fields such as skills cultivated at the manufacturing site.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Knowledge database 20 Image data server 30 WEB server 40 Client terminal 41 Display 42 Keyboard 43 Mouse 45 Portal screen 46 Description screen 50 Link server 51 Sphere 52 Flow 53 Pop-up image 54 Subflow

Claims (3)

In a knowledge management system for displaying information stored in a database in which a plurality of systematized items and a plurality of contents corresponding to each item are stored in association with each other,
A display for displaying a sphere with a flow systematically developing the plurality of items arranged on the surface;
Viewpoint designating means for designating the viewpoint of the sphere to be displayed on the display;
Direction designating means for designating the viewing direction of the sphere to be displayed on the display;
A flow in which a surface portion of the sphere that is visible from the specified viewing direction is arranged on the surface portion of the flow at a magnification corresponding to a distance from the viewpoint specified by the viewpoint specifying means to the sphere. Sphere display means for displaying on the display together with a portion;
Item designating means for designating a desired item from one or a plurality of the items arranged in the flow part displayed on the display;
Content display means for causing the display to display the content stored in the database in association with the item specified by the item specifying means;
Knowledge management system characterized by comprising   The knowledge management system according to claim 1, wherein the sphere display unit changes a detail level of display contents of the flow part displayed on the display together with the surface part according to the magnification.   Each item belongs to any one of a plurality of systems different from each other, and a plurality of flows for each system are arranged on the surface of the sphere. The items belonging to different systems are associated with each other, and the spherical display means connects the items belonging to different systems in the space above the surface portion between the flow sections to which the items belong. 3. The knowledge management system according to claim 1, wherein a subflow is displayed on the display.