File management method

Abstract

To further reduce time and effort of a user for file management.SOLUTION: A file management method includes: encrypting a file stored in a predetermined local folder of a terminal by a user (S30) and storing it in a first cloud (S40); generating transcribed text data from a voice file or a moving image file including human voice data among the files stored in the first cloud (S70); on the basis of a prompt designated by the user (S120), generating summary data obtained by summarizing contents from the text data (S130); and performing generating of the text data and the summary data on a second cloud. As the result, the user can safely back up the file on the first cloud, and further can cause transcription or generation of a summary from the voice file or the moving image file, so that it is possible to further reduce the time and effort of the user for file management while ensuring a secure state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a file management method related to file storage and data generation from files.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, with the development of technologies such as cloud technology and AI, various services have been proposed in the field of file management. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a system for efficiently managing information by associating photos with electronic files on cloud storage, and Patent Document 2 discloses an information processing apparatus for assisting in reviewing a cloud storage service for storing files.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, there is still room for improvement in services in the file management field, for example, regarding file storage and data generation from files. The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to further reduce the labor of file management for users.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] (Aspect of the Invention) The following aspects of the invention illustrate the configuration of the present invention and are described separately for each item to facilitate the understanding of various configurations of the present invention. Each item does not limit the technical scope of the present invention. Therefore, even if some of the components of each item are replaced, deleted, or other components are added while considering the best mode for implementing the invention, they may be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0006] (1) A file management method that encrypts a file stored in a predetermined local folder of a terminal by a user and stores it in a first cloud, generates character data obtained by performing speech recognition on an audio file or a video file containing human voice data among the files stored in the first cloud, generates summary data obtained by summarizing the content from the character data based on a prompt specified by the user, and executes the generation of the character data and the summary data on a second cloud.

[0007] The file management method described in this item first encrypts a file and stores it in a first cloud when the file is stored in a predetermined local folder of the user's terminal by the user. As a result, the user only needs to store the file to be saved in a predetermined local folder of the terminal, and the file can be safely stored and backed up on the first cloud. Therefore, even if the user's terminal is infected with a virus such as Emotet, the file can be recovered without problems by downloading the file from the first cloud after the terminal is initialized.

[0008] In addition, the file management method described in this section targets audio files and video files containing human voice data among the files stored in the first cloud. Upon receiving a command from the user or the like, it generates character data obtained by performing speech recognition on these files using AI or the like. That is, it causes the voice data contained in the audio file or video file to be recognized by AI or the like and outputs it as character data. Furthermore, based on a command from the user or the like received from the character data thus generated, it generates summary data obtained by summarizing the content using AI or the like. At this time, the content of the character data is summarized based on the prompt specified by the user. Then, the generation of the above-mentioned character data and summary is executed on the second cloud.

[0009] Therefore, the user designates a file that requires character data or summary data, such as for creating meeting minutes, among the audio files and video files stored in the first cloud, and causes speech recognition from the voice data and generation of a summary. Moreover, since the audio files and video files temporarily placed from the first cloud to the second cloud are used and the processing for generating character data and summary is performed on the second cloud, the processing is securely executed in a closed state on the second cloud. In this way, while using cloud services, the generation processing of character data and summary is performed without the information being publicly disclosed on the Internet or the like. Therefore, in combination with the above-described processing of saving files to the first cloud, the user's file management effort is further reduced while ensuring a secure state.

[0010] (2) The file management method according to item (1) above, in which when storing in the first cloud, the file is encrypted locally, and the encrypted file and the encryption key are stored in separate servers. When storing the files stored in a predetermined local folder of a user's terminal in a first cloud, the file management method described in this section first creates an encryption key based on local information of the terminal and encrypts the files locally using this encryption key. Then, the encrypted files and the encryption keys used therefor are stored in separate servers of the first cloud. As a result, for example, a third party attempting to illegally obtain the files needs to obtain both the encrypted files stored in the servers of the first cloud and the encryption keys stored in separate servers of the first cloud, and thus cannot substantially decrypt the files. For this reason, storing files in the first cloud is realized in a more secure state.

[0011] (3) The file management method according to item (1) above, wherein, after the generation of the character data is completed, a notification is sent to a contact previously registered by the user. The file management method described in this section is to receive a command from the user or the like, and after the generation of character data from an audio file or a video file is completed, send a notification to a contact previously registered by the user. That is, although it depends on the length of the audio file or video file, it takes a relatively long time to perform speech recognition on these files, so the completion of speech recognition is notified to the user. As a result, the user can grasp the end of speech recognition by the notification, and thus, for example, effectively use the time by performing another task between issuing the speech recognition command and the end of speech recognition.

[0012] (4) The file management method according to item (1) above, wherein a management screen including a list of stored files stored in the first cloud is presented to the user, and the management screen includes a file name display column, an icon for generating the character data, and an icon for generating the summary data for each of the stored files. The file management method described in this section presents a management screen containing a list of saved files stored in a first cloud to the user, and this management screen is usually displayed on the user's terminal. And on this management screen, for each of the saved files stored in the first cloud, there are a file name display column, an icon for generating character data for instructing speech recognition, and an icon for generating summary data for instructing summary generation from the generated character data. As a result, the user can grasp at a glance the files safely stored in the first cloud, and can intuitively give instructions for generating character data and generating summary data by operating the icons. For this reason, the labor of the user's file management is further reduced.

Advantages of the Invention

[0013] Since the present invention is configured in this way, it is possible to further reduce the labor of the user's file management.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0014]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0015] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Here, throughout the drawings, the same parts or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals. Also, detailed descriptions of the same parts or corresponding parts as in the prior art will be omitted. FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of a file management system 10 used to execute a file management method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Here, the roles of the respective components of the file management system 10 will be briefly described, and the details will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 2 described later. Note that the configuration of the file management system 10 is not limited to the block diagram of FIG. 1, and for example, depending on the procedure and situation of the file management method, some of the components shown in FIG. 1 may be deleted, changed, or appropriately added.

[0016] The file management system 10 assists in the file management of the user U. In this embodiment, a desktop application that constitutes a part of the file management system 10 is installed on the terminal 30 of the user U, so that the user U can use the file management system 10. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the file management system 10 includes a file storage unit 12, a speech recognition unit 14, a summarization unit 16, a notification unit 18, and a screen generation unit 20. The file storage unit 12 encrypts the files stored in a predetermined local folder 32 of the terminal 30 of the user U and stores them in the first cloud 36. At this time, the file storage unit 12 stores the encryption key used for encryption in the first server 40 of the first cloud 36, and stores the encrypted files in the second server 42 of the first cloud 36. Although not limited thereto, for example, "Google Cloud (registered trademark)" or the like is used for the first cloud 36.

[0017] The speech-to-text conversion unit 14 performs speech-to-text conversion on audio files or video files containing human voice data among the files stored in the first cloud 36 by using AI in the second cloud 46 in this embodiment. That is, the speech-to-text conversion unit 14 recognizes the voice data of the audio file or video file by AI and generates character data. Further, the summarization unit 16 generates summarized data that summarizes the content by using AI in the second cloud 46 in this embodiment based on the prompt specified by the user U from the character data generated by the speech-to-text conversion unit 14. Although not limited thereto, for example, "Microsoft Azure (registered trademark)" or the like is used for the second cloud 46.

[0018] The notification unit 18 sends a notification to the preset contact destination of the user U when the speech-to-text conversion work by the speech-to-text conversion unit 14 is completed. Further, the screen generation unit 20 generates various screens for inputting and outputting information and provides them to the terminal 30 when the user U uses the file management system 10 via the terminal 30. Here, each component of the file management system 10 as described above is divided in terms of functional units, and is not divided in terms of software or hardware units for actually constructing the file management system 10. In addition, arbitrary software and hardware can be used for the software and hardware for constructing the file management system 10.

[0019] Further, the terminal 30 used by the user U can be any terminal as long as it can be connected to the first cloud 36 or the file management system 10 via a network. For example, it can be a personal computer, a tablet computer, or the like. Although only one terminal 30 is shown in FIG. 1, each terminal 30 of a plurality of users U using the file management system 10 is connected to the first cloud 36 and the file management system 10. Further, although not shown in FIG. 1 in detail, various settings and inputs are made to the file management system 10 by an administrator terminal used by an administrator of the file management system 10 or the like.

[0020] Next, a file management method according to an embodiment of the present invention that uses the file management system 10 shown in FIG. 1 will be described along the flow of the flowchart shown in FIG. 2. Refer to FIG. 1 as appropriate for the configuration of the file management system 10. The flowchart shown in FIG. 2 shows an example of the flow of procedures for explaining the file management method according to the embodiment of the present invention. Therefore, the file management method is not limited to these flowcharts. For example, depending on the configuration and situation of the file management system 10, etc., a flowchart in which some of the steps shown in FIG. 2 are deleted, changed, or appropriately added may be used, or a flowchart in which the order of some steps is changed may also be used.

[0021] S10 (App installation): The user U installs a dedicated desktop application that constitutes a part of the file management system 10 on the terminal 30 that uses the file management system 10. S20 (Storage Folder Setting): The user U sets an arbitrary local folder 32 in the terminal 30 as the storage destination for files to be saved in the first cloud 36. The folder 32 set here will be recognized by the file management system 10 as a predetermined local folder 32 where the files saved in the first cloud 36 are stored. Note that if the local folder 32 set by default during the installation in S10 is used as it is, this step may not be necessary.

[0022] S30 (File Storage): The user U operates the terminal 30 to store the files to be saved in the first cloud 36 in the predetermined local folder 32 set in S20 above. The files to be stored may be files of any format such as audio files, video files, image files, document files, spreadsheet files, PDF files, etc. S40 (File Saving): The file saving unit 12 saves the files stored in the predetermined local folder 32 of the terminal 30 in S30 above in the first cloud 36. At this time, in this embodiment, an encryption key is generated based on the local information of the terminal 30, etc., and the file is encrypted using the encryption key in the local environment. Then, the encryption key is saved in the first server 40 of the first cloud 36, and the encrypted file is saved in the second server 42 of the first cloud 36. In other words, the files stored in the local folder 32 are automatically encrypted and a cloud-based backup that safely synchronizes to the first cloud 36 is executed.

[0023] S50 (Management Screen Confirmation): The user U operates the terminal 30 to display the management screen generated by the screen generation unit 20. FIG. 3 shows an example of the management screen 50 generated by the screen generation unit 20. Briefly explaining the management screen 50 in FIG. 3, a list of files backed up onto the first cloud 36 is shown, and the file names of each file are displayed in the folder / file name display column 51. And on the right side of the folder / file name display column 51, the update date and time, type, and size of each file are shown, and further icons 53 to 56 are shown. Among the multiple files in the range displayed in FIG. 3, only one is a PDF file, and the rest are video files in MP4 or MP3 format. The user U checks such a management screen 50 to confirm that the files stored in S30 are synchronized onto the first cloud 36.

[0024] Icon 53 is for generating a download URL for each file, and a download URL is generated by being operated by the user U. Icon 54 is for generating a preview URL for each file, and a preview URL is generated by being operated by the user U. In FIG. 3, only the PDF-formatted file that can be previewed can be operated on by icon 54. These icons 53 and 54 are used when wanting to share each file stored in the first cloud 36 with other users, etc.

[0025] Icon 55 is for performing speech recognition on each file to generate character data when each file is an audio file or video file containing audio data. In FIG. 3, the icon 55 of each video file except the PDF file can be operated, and the color of the icon 55 changes before and after the generation of the character data. Icon 56 is for generating summary data by summarizing the content from the character data generated by performing speech recognition on an audio file or video file. In FIG. 3, the icon 56 of each video file except the PDF file can be operated, and the color of the icon 56 changes before and after the generation of the summary data. The actual operations of icons 55 and 56 will be described later.

[0026] S60 (Speech Recognition Command): The user U operates the terminal 30 to select an arbitrary audio file or video file containing audio data from the files stored in the first cloud 36 as shown in FIG. 3, and causes the speech recognition of that file to be executed. Specifically, by operating the icon 55 of an arbitrary audio file or video file, the execution of the speech recognition of that file is commanded. 70 (Speech Recognition Execution): In response to the command from the user U in S60 above, the speech recognition unit 14 executes the speech recognition from the selected audio file or video file, and generates character data from the audio data contained in that file. As described above, in this embodiment, speech recognition is executed using AI on the second cloud 46. For example, when using "Microsoft Azure", the file is temporarily placed in its blob storage or the like, and the speech recognition process is executed on that file.

[0027] S80 (Notification Sending): When the character recognition by the character recognition unit 14 in S70 is completed, the notification unit 18 sends a notification to the contact of the preset user U. In this case, the notification is usually assumed to use an email, but it may be another notification method such as a push notification. The contact of the user U to whom the notification is sent is not limited to the terminal 30 of the user U, and may be another terminal such as a smartphone. S90 (Confirmation of Character Recognition Result): Upon receiving the notification sent in S80, the user U confirms the result of the character recognition. FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a character recognition screen 60 generated by the screen generation unit 20 after the generation of the character data. The character recognition screen 60 includes a character data display column 61, a copy button 62, a dictionary content reflection button 63, and a word registration button 64. Since the result of the character recognition by the character recognition unit 14 is displayed in the character data display column 61, the user U checks the displayed content. The copy button 62 is for copying the result of the character recognition to the clipboard as needed.

[0028] S100 (Word Registration): If the user U determines that it is necessary to correct the character-recognized character data as a result of the confirmation in S90, words are registered for the purpose of correcting fluctuations or incorrect conversions of words in the character data. Specifically, the word registration button 64 is operated to generate and display, for example, a word registration screen 70 as shown in FIG. 5 by the screen generation unit 20. The word registration screen 70 includes a dictionary name column 71, a pre-conversion word column 72, a post-conversion word column 73, and an explanation column 74. The dictionary name column 71 indicates the dictionary name of the word to be registered and is arbitrarily set by the user U. The pre-conversion word column 72 and the post-conversion word column 73 are places to input the word to be converted and its converted word in the character recognition result, and the explanation column 74 is a place to arbitrarily input an explanation such as the intention of the conversion. Using such a word registration screen 70, the user U registers all the words that are considered to need correction. Then, after the registration is completed, the user U operates the dictionary content reflection button 63 shown in FIG. 4 to reflect the conversion of the registered words in dictionary units.

[0029] S110 (Summary Instruction): The user U operates the terminal 30 to select a file that requires summarization from the generated text data in the voice file or video file after the speech-to-text conversion is completed, and executes the generation of the summary data for that file. Specifically, on the management screen 50 shown in FIG. 3, by operating the icon 56 of the selected file, the execution of the generation of the summary data for that file is commanded. S120 (Prompt Setting): In response to the operation from the user U in S110 above, the screen generation unit 20 generates a summary setting screen 80 as shown in FIG. 6, for example, and displays it on the terminal 30. The summary setting screen 80 includes a template column 81, a history column 82, a condition column 83, and an execution button 84. The template column 81 is for setting the template of the prompt to be applied during summarization, and allows any template to be set, such as selecting from the pre-prepared templates or editing and inputting a new template. The history column 82 displays the history of the prompts applied in the past, and a prompt may be selected from here. The condition column 83 is for inputting the detailed conditions of the summarization other than the prompt set in the template column 81. Using these template column 81, history column 82, and condition column 83, the user U sets the prompt for summarization, and when the setting is complete, operates the execution button 84.

[0030] S130 (Summary Execution): In response to the operation of the execution button 84 in S120 above, the summarization unit 16 generates summary data from the text data of the file selected in S110 according to the prompt set in S120. As described above, in this embodiment, AI is used on the second cloud 46 to generate summary data. S140 (Summary Result Confirmation): The user U confirms the result of summary data generation. FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a summary screen 90 generated by the screen generation unit 20 after the generation of summary data. The summary screen 90 includes, in addition to a character data display column 61, a copy button 62, a dictionary content reflection button 63, and a word registration button 64 similar to those of the character transcription screen 60 shown in FIG. 4, a summary data display column 91. Since the summary data generated by the summary unit 16 is displayed in the summary data display column 91, if the user U checks the display content and determines that the summary data needs to be corrected, the user may re-set the prompt in S120 and execute the summary again in S130.

[0031] Here, the file management system 10 and the file management method according to the embodiment of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various changes can be made by those skilled in the art within the technical idea of the present invention. For example, each screen generated by the screen generation unit 20 may have different components from the screens shown in FIGS. 3 to 7, and the layout of the components may also be arbitrarily changed. Also, in addition to "Google Cloud" and "Microsoft Azure", another cloud service such as "Amazon Web Service (registered trademark)" may be used for the first cloud 36 and the second cloud 46. Further, the same cloud service may be used for the first cloud 36 and the second cloud 46.

[0032] Now, according to the embodiment of the present invention having the above configuration, the following operational effects can be obtained. That is, the file management method according to the embodiment of the present invention is executed by, for example, a file management system 10 as shown in FIG. 1. First, when a file is stored in a predetermined local folder 32 of the terminal 30 of the user U by the user U (see S30 in FIG. 2), the file storage unit 12 encrypts the file and stores it in the first cloud 36 (see S40 in FIG. 2). Thereby, the user U can safely store and back up the file on the first cloud 36 only by storing the file to be stored in the predetermined local folder 32 of the terminal 30. Therefore, even if the terminal 30 of the user U is infected with a virus such as Emotet, the file can be recovered without problems by downloading the file from the first cloud 36 after initializing the terminal 30.

[0033] Further, the file management method according to the embodiment of the present invention targets audio files and video files containing human voice data among the files stored in the first cloud 36, and receives a command from the user U (see S60 in FIG. 2). Then, the speech recognition unit 14 uses AI or the like to generate character data obtained by performing speech recognition on those files (see S70 in FIG. 2 and FIG. 4). That is, the voice data included in the audio file or video file is recognized by AI or the like and output as character data. Further, summary data obtained by summarizing the content using AI or the like is generated by the summarization unit 16 (see S130 in FIG. 2 and FIG. 7) in response to a command from the user U or the like received from the character data thus generated (see S110 in FIG. 2). At this time, the content of the character data is summarized based on the prompt specified by the user U (see S120 in FIG. 2 and FIG. 6). Then, the generation of the character data and the generation of the summary as described above are executed on the second cloud 46.

[0034] Therefore, the user U can specify files that require character data or summary data, such as for creating meeting minutes, from among the voice files and video files stored in the first cloud 36, and cause character recognition from the voice data and generation of a summary to be performed. Moreover, by using the voice files and video files temporarily placed from the first cloud 36 to the second cloud 46 to perform the processing of generating character data and a summary on the second cloud 46, it becomes possible to securely execute the processing in a closed state on the second cloud 46. In this way, while using cloud services, it is possible to perform the processing of generating character data and a summary without disclosing information on the Internet or the like. Therefore, in conjunction with the above-described processing of saving files to the first cloud 36, it becomes possible to further reduce the labor of file management for the user U while ensuring a secure state.

[0035] Also, when saving a file stored in a predetermined local folder 32 of the terminal 30 of the user U to the first cloud 36, the file management method according to the embodiment of the present invention first creates an encryption key based on local information of the terminal 30 and the like, and encrypts the file locally using this encryption key. Then, the encrypted file and the encryption key used therefor are saved to separate servers (the first server 40 and the second server 42) of the first cloud 36. Thereby, for example, a third party attempting to illegally obtain a file needs to obtain both the encrypted file stored in the second server 42 of the first cloud 36 and the encryption key stored in the first server 40 of the first cloud 36, which is different from it, and thus cannot substantially decrypt the file. For this reason, file saving to the first cloud 36 can be realized in a state with higher security.

[0036] Furthermore, the file management method according to an embodiment of the present invention receives a command from the user U or the like, and when the generation of character data from an audio file or a video file is completed, the notification unit 18 transmits a notification to the contact previously registered by the user U (see S80 in FIG. 2). That is, although it depends on the lengths of the audio file and the video file, it takes a relatively long time to perform speech recognition on these files, so the completion of speech recognition is notified to the user U. As a result, the user U can grasp the completion of speech recognition by the notification, and for example, can effectively use the time by performing another task between issuing the speech recognition command and the completion of speech recognition.

[0037] In addition, the file management method according to an embodiment of the present invention presents a management screen 50 (see FIG. 3) including a list of saved files stored in the first cloud 36 to the user U by the screen generation unit 20, and this management screen 50 is usually displayed on the terminal 30 of the user U. And on this management screen 50, each of the saved files stored in the first cloud 36 includes a file name display column 51, an icon 55 for generating character data for instructing speech recognition, and an icon 56 for generating summary data for instructing generation of a summary from the generated character data. As a result, the user U can grasp at a glance the files safely stored in the first cloud 36, and can intuitively issue commands for generating character data and generating summary data by icon operations. For this reason, it is possible to further reduce the trouble of file management for the user U.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0038] 30: Terminal, 32: Local Folder, 36: First Cloud, 40: First Server, 42: Second Server, 46: Second Cloud, 50: Management Screen, 51: Folder / File Name Display Column, 55: Icon for Generating Character Data, 56: Icon for Generating Summary Data, U: User

Claims

1. encrypting a file stored in a predetermined local folder of a terminal by a user and storing it in a first cloud; generating character data obtained by speech recognition from an audio file or a video file containing human speech data among the files stored in the first cloud; generating summary data obtained by summarizing the content from the character data based on a prompt specified by the user; A file management method, characterized in that generation of the character data and the summary data is executed on a second cloud.

2. The file management method according to claim 1, characterized in that when storing in the first cloud, the file is encrypted locally, and the encrypted file and the encryption key are stored in separate servers.

3. The file management method according to claim 1, characterized in that when generation of the character data is completed, a notification is sent to a pre-registered contact of the user.

4. presenting a management screen including a list of saved files stored in the first cloud to the user, wherein the management screen includes a file name display column, an icon for generating the character data, and an icon for generating the summary data for each of the saved files. The file management method according to claim 1.

Images