Information processing device, method, program

Abstract

In electronic contracts, there is a need for technology that reduces the risk of sending contract data to the wrong recipient when the sender transmits it. [Solution] The computer provides an electronic contract signing service that manages contracts as being concluded when each user who approves the contract contents performs an approval operation. The program accepts an operation from the processor to specify contract data that defines the contract conditions and the user who approves the contract data, and displays a first operation member on the operation screen that accepts an operation to send the contract data to the user set as the recipient as the approving user. In response to the user's operation on the first operation member, the program sends the contract data to the set user, and before sending the contract data, the recipient and the contents of the contract data can be confirmed in a first manner and a second manner different from the first manner.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus, method, and program.

Background Art

[0002] In business activities, transactions are conducted while concluding contracts between parties. Upon concluding a contract, various departments within each party review the contract terms, examine the wording of the contract document, and then proceed to prepare the contract. In addition, based on comments on each clause of the contract document from the counterparty of the contracting party, the parties agree on the contract terms, finalize the content of the contract document, and conclude the contract.

[0003] Conclusion of contracts through electronic contracts is also being advanced. Patent Document 1 points out that the problem to be addressed is "to suppress unauthorized agency by an unauthorized person in an electronic contract service", and describes that "by enabling an appropriate approver to be set on the receiver side of the electronic contract service, it is possible to suppress unauthorized agency in a case where a receiver without decision authority is set."

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] When concluding a contract via an electronic contract, a sender uploads data of the contract document to be concluded, specifies a receiver as a transmission destination (addressee) by an e-mail address or the like, and performs a transmission operation, thereby notifying the specified receiver (approver) of a request to approve the content of the contract document. However, if the transmission destination is specified by mistake, the data of the contract document may be transmitted to the incorrect transmission destination.

[0006] Therefore, in electronic contracts, there is a need for technology that reduces the risk of sending contract data to the wrong recipient when the sender transmits it. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] According to one embodiment, a program is provided for operating a computer equipped with one or more computer processors. The computer provides an electronic contract conclusion service that manages contracts as concluded when each user approving the contract contents performs an approval operation. The program causes one or more computer processors to execute the following steps: a step of receiving an operation to specify contract data that is awaiting approval and defines the contract conditions, and a user who will approve the contract data; a step of displaying a first operation member on the operation screen that receives an operation to send the contract data to a user set as the recipient as the approving user, and sending the contract data to the set user in response to the user's operation on the first operation member; and in the sending step, before sending the contract data, the recipient and the contents of the contract data can be confirmed in a first manner and a second manner different from the first manner. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to this disclosure, in electronic contracts, when the sender transmits contract data, it is possible to increase the likelihood that the sender will notice if they have entered the wrong recipient, thereby reducing the risk of sending the contract to the wrong recipient. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] Figure 1 shows the configuration of System 1. [Figure 2] Figure 2 shows the configuration of server 20. [Figure 3] Figure 3 shows the configuration of terminal 10. [Figure 4]Figure 4 shows the data structure of the user database 211. [Figure 5] Figure 5 shows the data structure of the template database 212. [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows the data structure of the approval request database 213. [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows the data structure of the review history database 214. [Figure 8] Figure 8 shows the data structure of the contract management database 215. [Figure 9] Figure 9 shows the data structure of the document management database 216. [Figure 10] Figure 10 shows the data structure of the legal consultation management database 217. [Figure 11] Figure 11 shows the process flow for sending contract data that defines the contract terms, in which the user confirms the recipient and the content of the contract data in two ways: a first method and a second method. [Figure 12] Figure 12 shows an example of an operation screen in which the user confirms the recipient and the content of the contract data, which defines the contract terms, in two ways: in the first manner and in the second manner. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. In all the drawings illustrating the embodiments, common components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated explanations are omitted. The following embodiments are not intended to unduly limit the content of this disclosure as described in the claims. Not all components shown in the embodiments are necessarily essential components of this disclosure. Also, each drawing is a schematic diagram and is not necessarily a strict illustration.

[0011] Further, in the following description, a "processor" is one or more processors. At least one processor is typically a microprocessor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), but may be another type of processor such as a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). The at least one processor may be single-core or multi-core.

[0012] Further, the at least one processor may be a processor in a broad sense such as a hardware circuit (for example, an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit)) that performs part or all of the processing.

[0013] Further, in the following description, an expression such as "xxx table" may be used to describe information from which an output can be obtained for an input, and this information may be data of any structure, or may be a learned model such as a neural network that generates an output for an input. Therefore, the "xxx table" can be referred to as "xxx information".

[0014] Further, in the following description, the configuration of each table is an example, and one table may be divided into two or more tables, or all or part of two or more tables may be a single table.

[0015] Further, in the following description, processing may be described with a "program" as the subject, but the program is executed by a processor to perform predetermined processing appropriately using a storage unit and / or an interface unit or the like, so the subject of the processing may be the processor (or a device such as a controller having the processor).

[0016] The program may be installed in a device such as a computer, or may be stored in, for example, a program distribution server or a computer-readable (e.g., non-transitory) recording medium. Further, in the following description, two or more programs may be implemented as a single program, or a single program may be implemented as two or more programs.

[0017] Further, in the following description, identification numbers are used as identification information for various targets, but other types of identification information (e.g., identifiers including alphabetic characters and codes) other than identification numbers may be adopted.

[0018] Further, in the following description, when elements of the same type are described without distinction, reference signs (or common signs among the reference signs) are used, and when elements of the same type are described with distinction, element identification numbers (or reference signs) may be used.

[0019] Further, in the following description, control lines and information lines indicate those considered necessary for the description, and not all control lines and information lines are necessarily indicated in the product. All components may be interconnected with each other.

[0020] <Outline of Embodiment> Hereinafter, embodiments will be described.

[0021] <First Embodiment> <1.1 Overall Configuration Diagram of System> Figure 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of System 1.

[0022] The system 1 shown in Figure 1 includes a server 20 for contract conclusion and document management services, a user terminal 10, a server 92 for business support system services, a server 93 for document review services, a server 95 for artificial intelligence (large language model) services, a server 96 for document creation services, and a server 97 for sales support system services. Each of these devices is communicatively connected via a network 80.

[0023] In the illustrated example, terminal 10 is shown as the terminal used by users of the contract signing and document management service provided by server 20, but each user operates their own terminal.

[0024] Server 20 is a device that provides services for concluding contracts electronically and for managing document data concluded electronically. It should be noted that in System 1, the contract conclusion service provided by Server 20 and the document data management service may be provided by separate devices or different service providers. For example, Server 20 provides a document management service and, in addition to electronically signed contract data, may also optically scan paper contracts with seals to extract information such as the contract period and whether the contract is automatically renewed, and manage this information along with the scanned contract data. This allows for notifications to be sent to the user when the contract period expires.

[0025] Server 20 may also be a server that provides services to support tasks such as submitting approval requests to organizations (business companies, etc.) that conduct business activities. For example, Server 20 provides a service to users that enables them to design a workflow for obtaining budget approval with multiple users.

[0026] Terminal 10 is a device operated by the user.

[0027] The business support system service server 92 provides users with tools that can be used for the organization's business operations. The business support system service server 92 provides users with a system for submitting approval requests as part of the organization's business operations. The business support system service server 92 may also communicate with server 20 to provide server 20 with data accumulated by the approval request service.

[0028] The document review service server 93 accepts document data such as contracts and term sheets that define contract terms, and provides users with information on whether each clause is advantageous or disadvantageous to the company, whether there are any missing clauses, and the importance of the review items, thereby supporting the review of the document data. The document review service server 93 provides the above review support service using rule-based or pre-trained models. As a rule-based approach, for example, it may be possible to perform rule-based reviews of document data by associating specific wording or expressions with pre-defined information on whether the conditions are advantageous or disadvantageous, and explanations. Alternatively, for example, it may be possible to provide the above review service by generating a pre-trained model that responds with review results to document data input, using data from expert reviews of contracts, term sheets, etc., as training data. Furthermore, the document review service server 93 can also summarize the contents of contracts and generate review comments using a large-scale language model, and provide the results to the user. For example, the document review service server 93 may prompt the large-scale language model service server 95 with the document data to be reviewed (such as contract data) and information indicating the review criteria, and instruct the server 95 to perform the review according to the review criteria. By receiving the output of the large-scale language model service server 95, the server 93 may generate review comments for the document data. The document review service server 93 may also communicate with server 20 to provide the server 20 with data accumulated by the document review service.

[0029] Server 95 of the Large-Scale Language Model Service is a server that executes language processing tasks using language models built through learning processes including artificial intelligence (AI). An LLM (Large Language Model) is a model that has been pre-trained on large amounts of data (such as text data), for example, a large amount of web content on the internet, or a large amount of data stored in a designated database, and can perform various language processing tasks by being given a task.

[0030] The AI ​​service server 95 (sometimes referred to as the "large-scale language model service server 95") accepts prompt input in the form of text, images, audio, etc., and generates and responds with answers to those prompts. Examples of LLMs include GPT-3, GPT-4, and GPT-4o developed by OpenAI, and BERT developed by Google.

[0031] The document creation service server 96 provides a service for managing document data such as meeting minutes in organizations conducting business activities. Server 96 can issue URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) for accessing document data, and for example, if the user account of a user of the document creation service has access rights to the document data, the document data can be accessed via the URL. The document creation service server 96 may also be linked with a server that provides a schedule management service with calendar functionality, so that user accounts are common to both services. For example, having a user account may allow access to both the schedule management service and the document creation service. In this case, if document data from the document creation service is associated with a schedule, access rights to that document data may be set for users participating in the schedule.

[0032] The document creation service server 96 may communicate with server 20 to provide server 20 with data accumulated by the document creation service.

[0033] The sales support system service server 97 provides services to support sales activities. For example, the sales support system service server 97 provides the following to the user: • For each sales project, manage information such as the client, transaction details (amount, goods), transaction history (memos, meeting minutes, etc.), and responsible parties (our company, the other party, etc.). • Provide analysis results of sales performance for each sales team (e.g., trends in closing rates). The server 97 of the sales support system service may communicate with the server 20 to provide the server 20 with the data accumulated by the sales support system service.

[0034] In this embodiment, each device (terminal device, server, etc.) can also be considered as an information processing device. That is, the collection of each device can be considered as a single "information processing device," and System 1 may be formed as a collection of multiple devices. The way in which the multiple functions required to realize System 1 according to this embodiment are distributed to one or more hardware can be appropriately determined in view of the processing capacity of each hardware and / or the specifications required for System 1.

[0035] Terminal 10 can be implemented, for example, as follows: • Handheld mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets • Stationary PCs (Personal Computers), Laptop PCs • Wearable devices worn by the user (watch-type, glasses-type, etc.) Terminal 10 includes a communication interface (IF) 12, an input device 13, an output device 14, memory 15, storage 16, and a processor 19.

[0036] The communication interface 12 is an interface for inputting and outputting signals so that terminal 10 can communicate with an external device.

[0037] The input device 13 is a device for receiving input operations from the user (for example, a touch panel, touchpad, pointing device such as a mouse, keyboard, etc.).

[0038] The output device 14 is a device (such as a display or speaker) for presenting information to the user.

[0039] Memory 15 is for temporarily storing programs and data processed by programs, etc., and is a volatile memory such as DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory).

[0040] Storage 16 is for storing data, and can be, for example, flash memory or an HDD (Hard Disk Drive).

[0041] The processor 19 is hardware for executing the instruction set described in the program, and consists of an arithmetic unit, registers, peripheral circuits, etc.

[0042] The server 20 includes a communication interface 22, an input / output interface 23, memory 25, storage 26, and a processor 29.

[0043] Communication IF22 is an interface for inputting and outputting signals so that the server 20 can communicate with external devices.

[0044] Input / Output IF23 functions as an interface between an input device for receiving user input operations and an output device for presenting information to the user.

[0045] Memory 25 is for temporarily storing programs and data processed by programs, etc., and is a volatile memory such as DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory).

[0046] Storage 26 is for storing data, and can be, for example, flash memory or an HDD (Hard Disk Drive).

[0047] The processor 29 is hardware for executing the instruction set described in the program, and consists of an arithmetic unit, registers, peripheral circuits, etc.

[0048] <1.2 Functional Configuration of Server 20> Figure 2 shows the configuration of server 20. As shown in Figure 2, server 20 functions as a communication unit 201, a storage unit 202, and a control unit 203.

[0049] The communications unit 201 performs processing to enable the server 20 to communicate with external devices.

[0050] The memory unit 202 stores various databases, such as the user database 211, template database 212, approval request database 213, review history database 214, contract signing management database 215, document management database 216, and legal consultation management database 217.

[0051] User database 211 is a database for managing users.

[0052] User database 211 contains information necessary for using the services provided by server 20, such as the user's name and employee number. Further details will be provided later.

[0053] Template Database 212 is a database that manages templates for documents used in transactions between parties, such as contracts. Further details will be provided later.

[0054] The approval request database 213 is a database that manages applications for approval, such as those for concluding contracts. For example, server 20 communicates with server 92 of the business support system service to obtain information related to the approval request and update the approval request database 213. Further details will be described later.

[0055] Review History Database 214 is a database that manages the history of reviews performed on document data such as contracts. Further details will be provided later.

[0056] The contract signing management database 215 is a database that manages the contract signing process carried out by the electronic contract service provided by server 20. Further details will be described later.

[0057] The document management database 216 is a database for managing document data and includes information for managing document data concluded through the electronic contract service provided by server 20. Further details will be described later.

[0058] Legal Consultation Management Database 217 is a database for managing consultations made to the department responsible for legal consultations. Further details will be provided later.

[0059] The control unit 203 is realized when the processor 29 reads a program stored in the memory unit 202 and executes instructions contained in the program. By operating according to the program, the control unit 203 performs the functions shown as the reception control module 2041, transmission control module 2042, user management module 2043, contract signing processing module 2044, document management module 2045, approval processing module 2046, LLM utilization module 2047, review processing module 2048, template management module 2049, and consultation processing module 2050.

[0060] The receive control module 2041 controls the process by which the server 20 receives signals from external devices according to a communication protocol.

[0061] The transmission control module 2042 controls the process by which the server 20 transmits signals to external devices according to a communication protocol.

[0062] The user management module 2043 is a module for managing information for each user using System 1. Specifically, the user management module 2043 accepts registration of each user's information and updates the user database 211.

[0063] The contract signing module 2044 controls the process of parties approving document data as part of the process of concluding a contract electronically. Specifically, the contract signing module 2044 notifies each user approving the document data and updates the contract signing management database 215 in response to the operation of approving the document data.

[0064] The document management module 2045 controls the process of managing document data by referring to the document management database 216. Specifically, based on the contract period information set in the document data, the document management module 2045 notifies the user of whether to renew the contract upon the expiration of the contract period, and updates the document management database 216 in response to user actions (such as renewing the contract).

[0065] The approval processing module 2046 receives an operation from a user to submit an approval request and controls the process by which approvers approve the request. Specifically, the approval processing module 2046 notifies each user who approves the request and updates the approval request database 213 in response to the operation to approve the request.

[0066] The LLM utilization module 2047 is a program module that performs processing related to the use of LLM, such as generating prompts to send to the server 95 of the large-scale language model service, sending the generated prompts as instructions to the server 95 of the large-scale language model service, receiving the results output by the server 95 of the large-scale language model service in response to the instructions (prompts), and performing processing using the received results.

[0067] The review processing module 2048 records reviews of the document data to be reviewed (for example, each clause of a contract) and updates the review history database 214. The review processing module 2048 communicates with the document review service server 93 and sends the document data to be reviewed, causing the server 93 to perform the review process. The module receives the results and updates the review history database 214. The review processing module 2048 also accepts operations from the user performing the review (for example, operations to input comments in association with the entire contract or each clause of the contract) and updates the review history database 214.

[0068] The template management module 2049 is a program module that performs template management processes for document templates managed in the template database 212, such as accepting operations to register templates, editing templates, and notifying each user about edited templates.

[0069] The consultation processing module 2050 is a program module that updates databases such as the legal consultation management database 217 by processing consultations to the department in charge of consultations and by predicting the workload of consultations to the department in charge of consultations.

[0070] <1.3 Configuration of Terminal 10> Figure 3 shows the configuration of terminal 10.

[0071] As shown in Figure 3, terminal 10 includes multiple antennas (antenna 111, antenna 112), communication units corresponding to each antenna (first communication unit 120, second communication unit 121), an input device 130 (including a touch-sensitive device 131), a display 132, an audio processing unit 140, a microphone 141, a speaker 142, a position information sensor 150, a camera 160, a motion sensor 170, a storage unit 180, and a control unit 190. Terminal 10 also has functions and configurations not specifically shown in Figure 3 (for example, a battery for maintaining power, a power supply circuit for controlling the supply of power from the battery to each circuit, etc.). As shown in Figure 3, each block included in terminal 10 is electrically connected by a bus or the like.

[0072] Antenna 111 radiates signals emitted by terminal 10 as radio waves. Antenna 111 also receives radio waves from space and provides the received signals to first communication unit 120.

[0073] Antenna 112 radiates signals emitted by terminal 10 as radio waves. Antenna 112 also receives radio waves from space and provides the received signals to the second communication unit 121.

[0074] The first communication unit 120 performs modulation and demodulation processing, etc., for the terminal 10 to transmit and receive signals via the antenna 111 in order to communicate with other wireless devices. The second communication unit 121 also performs modulation and demodulation processing, etc., for the terminal 10 to transmit and receive signals via the antenna 112 in order to communicate with other wireless devices. The first communication unit 120 and the second communication unit 121 are a communication module that includes a tuner, an RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) calculation circuit, a CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) calculation circuit, a high-frequency circuit, etc. The first communication unit 120 and the second communication unit 121 perform modulation and demodulation, frequency conversion, etc., of the wireless signals transmitted and received by the terminal 10, and provide the received signal to the control unit 190.

[0075] The input device 130 has a mechanism for receiving user input operations. Specifically, the input device 130 is configured as a touchscreen and includes a touch-sensitive device 131. The touch-sensitive device 131 receives user input operations of the terminal 10. The touch-sensitive device 131 detects the user's contact position with the touch panel, for example, by using a capacitive touch panel. The touch-sensitive device 131 outputs a signal indicating the user's contact position detected by the touch panel to the control unit 190 as an input operation.

[0076] The display 132 displays data such as images, videos, and text in accordance with the control of the control unit 190. The display 132 is implemented by, for example, an LCD or an organic EL display.

[0077] The audio processing unit 140 modulates and demodulates the audio signal. The audio processing unit 140 modulates the signal received from the microphone 141 and provides the modulated signal to the control unit 190. The audio processing unit 140 also provides the audio signal to the speaker 142. The audio processing unit 140 is implemented, for example, by an audio processing processor. The microphone 141 receives an audio input and provides the audio signal corresponding to that audio input to the audio processing unit 140. The speaker 142 converts the audio signal received from the audio processing unit 140 into sound and outputs the sound to the outside of the terminal 10.

[0078] The location information sensor 150 is a sensor that detects the location of the terminal 10, and is, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) module. A GPS module is a receiving device used in a satellite positioning system. In a satellite positioning system, signals are received from at least three or four satellites, and the current location of the terminal 10, which is equipped with a GPS module, is detected based on the received signals.

[0079] Camera 160 is a device that receives light using a photodetector and outputs it as an image. Camera 160 is, for example, a depth camera that can detect the distance from camera 160 to the object being photographed.

[0080] The motion sensor 170 includes an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensor, etc., and detects the movement of the terminal 10.

[0081] The storage unit 180 is composed of, for example, flash memory and stores data and programs used by the terminal 10. The various types of information stored in the storage unit 180 will be described later.

[0082] The control unit 190 controls the operation of the terminal 10 by reading the program stored in the memory unit 180 and executing the instructions contained in the program. The control unit 190 is, for example, an application processor. By operating according to the program, the control unit 190 performs the functions of an operation reception unit 191, a transmission / reception unit 192, a data processing unit 193, a notification control unit 194, and a memory control unit 195.

[0083] The operation reception unit 191 processes input operations from the user to an input device such as a touch-sensitive device 131. Based on the coordinate information of the touch-sensitive device 131 where the user's finger or the like has made contact, the operation reception unit 191 determines the type of operation, such as whether the user's operation is a flick operation, a tap operation, or a drag (swipe) operation.

[0084] The transmitting / receiving unit 192 performs processing to enable the terminal 10 to send and receive data with an external device such as a server 20 in accordance with a communication protocol.

[0085] The data processing unit 193 performs calculations on the data received as input by the terminal 10 according to the program and outputs the calculation results to memory or other locations.

[0086] The notification control unit 194 performs the following processes: displaying the display image on the display 132, outputting sound to the speaker 142, and generating vibrations.

[0087] The memory control unit 195 controls the storage of data to the memory unit 180.

[0088] The various types of information stored by the memory unit 180 will now be explained. In a given situation, the memory unit 180 stores various types of information, such as user information 181.

[0089] User information 181 is information about a user who uses the services of server 20. User information 181 includes, for example, the user's employee number, name, and other information.

[0090] <2 Data Structure> Figure 4 shows the data structure of the user database 211. The user database 211 includes the fields "User ID", "Business ID", "Name", "Email Address", "Department", "Position", "Date of Employment", "Date of Resignation", and "Qualifications Held".

[0091] The "User ID" field is information that identifies each user.

[0092] The "Business ID" field contains information that identifies each business.

[0093] The "Name" field contains the user's name information.

[0094] The "Email Address" field is information that identifies the user and serves as their contact information.

[0095] The "Department" field contains information about the user's department.

[0096] Specifically, the "Department" field may include the following information about the department to which the user belongs: • Departments that do not primarily handle legal affairs, such as business divisions and sales divisions. • Departments that primarily handle legal affairs, such as legal affairs departments and intellectual property departments. The "Job Title" field contains information about the user's job title.

[0097] The "Date of Joining" field contains information about the date the user joined the organization.

[0098] The "Resignation Date" field contains information about the date the user left the organization.

[0099] The "Qualifications Held" item contains information about the qualifications the user holds.

[0100] Specifically, the item "Qualifications Held" includes the following information regarding the qualifications held by the user. • Qualifications that demonstrate the expectation of possessing the knowledge necessary to review contracts, similar to that of a lawyer. • Qualifications that demonstrate knowledge of business activities, such as a Certified Management Consultant for Small and Medium Enterprises. • Qualifications such as Certified Public Accountant and Tax Accountant, which indicate that the individual possesses the necessary knowledge in accounting, taxation, and related fields. Figure 5 shows the data structure of the template database 212. The template database 212 includes the following items: "Contract template ID", "Contract document type", "Contract data", "Related legal tags", "Related issue tags", "Links to explanations of related laws and issues", "Status", "Start date of use", and "End date of use".

[0101] The item "Contract Template ID" is information that identifies each contract template managed by server 20.

[0102] The item "Contract Document Type" contains information about the type of contract template.

[0103] The item "Contract Document Type" may include contract templates and the following: Typical contract • Atypical contracts Term sheet template The item "Contract Data" contains information about the data file for the contract template.

[0104] More specifically, the item "Contract Data" is a data file in an editable format.

[0105] The item "Related Legal Tags" contains information about the types of laws and regulations related to the contract template.

[0106] The item "Related Legal Tags" may include the following as types of laws related to the contract template: • Information identifying the clauses in the contract template (for example, clauses such as "Article 3" or clauses such as "Article 4, Paragraph 2"), and relevant legal information for each clause. • Information on the entire contract (including the type of contract, such as a "non-disclosure agreement") and relevant laws and regulations. The item "Related Issue Tags" contains information about the types of issues related to the contract template.

[0107] The item "Related Issue Tags" may include the following as types of issues related to the contract template: • Information identifying the clauses in the contract template (for example, clauses such as "Article 3" or clauses such as "Article 4, Paragraph 2"), along with information on related issues for each clause. • Information on the entire contract (including the type of contract, such as a "non-disclosure agreement") and related issues. The item "Links to Explanations of Relevant Laws and Issues" contains reference information that includes explanations of laws and issues related to the contract.

[0108] The item "Links to explanations of related laws and issues" may include the following as reference information: • Information on links to books included in the book browsing service provided by server 99. This may also include links to sections in the book that explain the relevant laws and issues. • Information on links to articles posted on information media that provide legal information on websites. • Information on links to explanatory articles about laws or precedents, provided by Server 94 and other servers of the Legal and Case Law Information Provision Service. • Links to guidelines, standards, etc. issued by public institutions. The "Status" field indicates whether the contract template is available for use.

[0109] The "Status" field may include the following information regarding availability: • In use: Available as a template • Before use: A template is provided, but it is not yet usable. For example, it may become usable after a legal amendment is applied. • Under revision: The template is currently being revised. It may be considered unusable as a template, or it may be considered usable. • Termination of Use: Not currently used as a template. For example, its use as a template may be terminated due to the application of legal revisions. The item "Start Date of Use" contains information about when the template began to be used.

[0110] The item "Usage Termination Date" contains information about when the template will no longer be used.

[0111] Figure 6 shows the data structure of the approval request database 213. The approval request database 213 includes the fields "Approval Request ID", "Applicant ID", "Approver ID", "Application Date", "Approval Date", "Application Details", and "Contract ID".

[0112] The item "Approval Request ID" is information that identifies each approval request.

[0113] The "Applicant ID" field is information that identifies the user who submitted the approval request.

[0114] Specifically, the item "Applicant ID" may be associated with user information (User ID) managed in the user database 211.

[0115] The "Approver ID" field is information that identifies the user who is the approver of the proposal.

[0116] Specifically, the item "Approver ID" may be associated with user information (User ID) managed in the user database 211.

[0117] The "Application Date" field contains information about the date and time when the system received the operation from the user who will be submitting the approval request data, in order to request approval of the approval request data from each user.

[0118] The "Approval Date" field contains information about the date and time when the user approved the data in the approval request.

[0119] The item "Application Details" contains information that shows the content of the approval request.

[0120] Specifically, the item "Application Details" includes the following types of approval requests. • Conclusion of a contract • Budget approval • Expense claim The item "Contract Signing ID" is information that identifies each step in the contract signing process.

[0121] Specifically, the item "Contract Signing ID" may be associated with information (Contract Signing ID) that identifies each contract signing procedure, which is managed in the contract signing management database 215. This links the approval application data in the approval application database 213 with the contract signing data in the contract signing management database 215.

[0122] Figure 7 shows the data structure of the review history database 214. The review history database 214 includes the following items: "Review ID", "Document Data", "Document Management ID", "Review Date and Time", "Reviewing User", "Review Content", and "Review Requester's Rating".

[0123] The "Review ID" field is information that identifies each review performed on the document data.

[0124] The item "Document Data" contains information about the document data that will be reviewed.

[0125] The "Document Management ID" field is information that identifies each document data being managed.

[0126] Specifically, the item "Document Management ID" may be associated with information (Document Management ID) that identifies each document data managed in the document management database 216.

[0127] The "Review Date and Time" field contains information about the date and time the review was performed.

[0128] The item "Reviewing User" contains information about the user who conducted the review.

[0129] The item "Review Content" contains information that shows the results of the review.

[0130] Specifically, the item "Review Content" may include the following as a result of the review: • Results of the review by server 93 of the document review service (e.g., advantages / disadvantages of conditions, importance, proposed revisions) • Comments and suggested revisions entered by users (including information about the user who entered the review comment) The item "Review Requester's Rating" is information that shows the user's rating of the reviewer's review content.

[0131] Specifically, the item "Review Requester's Rating" includes the results of the user who requested the review evaluating the reviewer based on the actions they took with respect to the review results, and may include the following: • The user who requested the review sets a score for the review results. • The number of "likes" and other reactions on posts made to contact users about reviewing a product via messaging tools, etc. Figure 8 shows the data structure of the contract management database 215. The contract management database 215 includes the following fields: "Contract ID", "Sender ID", "Recipient ID", "Contract Target Data", "First Email Address", "Second Email Address", "Sending Date and Time", "User Signature Date and Time", "Contract Completion Date and Time", and "Status".

[0132] The item "Contract Signing ID" is information that identifies each step in the contract signing process.

[0133] Specifically, the item "Contract ID" includes identification information issued by server 20 when a new registration is accepted for the process of concluding an electronic contract by specifying an approver for document data that is subject to approval by the parties.

[0134] The "Sender ID" field is information that identifies the party who will be sending the document data when the party approves it.

[0135] Specifically, the item "Sender ID" may be associated with information about a business operator (Business ID) or information about a user (User ID) managed in the user database 211.

[0136] The "Recipient ID" field is information that identifies the recipient when they approve document data.

[0137] Specifically, the item "Recipient ID" is information that identifies the party designated as the recipient by the sender's user, and like the sender ID, it may be associated with information about a business operator (business operator ID) or information about a user (user ID) managed in the user database 211.

[0138] The item "Data Subject to Agreement" refers to the document data that the parties are required to approve.

[0139] Specifically, the item "Data subject to conclusion" refers to data (files such as PDFs) of transaction documents such as contracts, application forms, and quotations.

[0140] The item "First Email Address" is information that identifies the user who will be the sender in the process of concluding a contract by approving document data, and is the email address that serves as the contact address for that user.

[0141] Specifically, the item "First Email Address" is the email address of the user who performs the operation of sending the document data as the sender.

[0142] The item "Second Email Address" is information that identifies the user who approves the document data as the recipient in the process of concluding a contract by approving the document data, and is the email address that serves as the contact address for that user.

[0143] Specifically, the item "Second Email Address" is the email address of the user who approves the document data as the recipient. Note that there may be multiple users approving the document on each party's side, and if the user sending the document data specifies the email addresses of multiple users who will approve the document data, the contract management database 215 will also manage each of the specified email addresses.

[0144] The "Sending Date and Time" field contains information about the date and time when the sender, a user, initiated the process of requesting approval of the document data from each user.

[0145] The "User Signature Date and Time" field contains information about the date and time when the user performed an approval operation on the document data.

[0146] Specifically, the item "User Signature Date and Time" includes information about the timing when a user who has been requested to approve the document data reviews and approves the document data, and the server 20 accepts this operation, thereby electronically signing the document data. The server 20 electronically signs the document data each time a user performs the approval operation, and stores the timing information in the signing management database 215.

[0147] The item "Date and Time of Contract Completion" contains information about the date and time when the contract was completed.

[0148] Specifically, the item "Contract Completion Date and Time" is recorded in the contract management database 215 when the contract is concluded using the electronic contract service provided by server 20. The contract is considered concluded when all users designated to approve the document data complete the approval process.

[0149] The "Status" field indicates the stage in the contract signing process.

[0150] Specifically, the item "Status" may include the following as stages in the contract signing process: • Before sending: Indicates that the document data has been registered on server 20 by the sender, but has not yet been sent to the recipient. • In Progress: Indicates that the document data has been sent, but approval by each user has not yet been completed. • Completed: Indicates that the contract has been finalized. • Rejected, Returned: Indicates a situation where the contract was not finalized due to circumstances such as the user not approving the document data, or a timeout occurring after a certain period of time had elapsed before approval was complete. Figure 9 shows the data structure of the document management database 216. The document management database 216 includes the following items: "Document Management ID", "Contract Signing ID", "Document Title", "Contract Start Date", "Contract Expiration Date", "Automatic Renewal Status", and "Viewing Permission".

[0151] The "Document Management ID" field is information that identifies each document data being managed.

[0152] The "Contract Signing ID" field is information that identifies each contract signing procedure performed by the parties to approve the document data.

[0153] Specifically, the item "Contract Signing ID" may be associated with information (Contract Signing ID) that identifies each contract signing, which is managed in the contract signing management database 215.

[0154] The "Document Title" field contains information about the title of the document data being managed.

[0155] Specifically, the item "Document Title" may be a term used as the type or name of a contract, such as a confidentiality agreement, a sales agreement, or a license agreement.

[0156] The item "Contract Start Date" is the information shown in the document data as the contract start date.

[0157] Specifically, the item "Contract Start Date" may be set to the following value: • When the contract is finalized, Server 20 reads the contract start date from the contract data. • Information received from the user as the contract start date The same applies to the following items: "Contract Expiration Date" and "Automatic Renewal Status".

[0158] The item "Contract Expiration Date" is the information shown in the document data as the contract's expiration date.

[0159] The item "Automatic Renewal Status" indicates, in the document data, whether or not the contract period will be automatically extended (automatically renewed) without the parties specifically renegotiating a new contract upon the expiration of the contract period.

[0160] The item "Viewing Permission" is information about users who are set to have viewing permission for documents (e.g., contracts) managed in the document management database 216. Server 20 may allow users set as stakeholders of a document to view the document, and may not allow users who are not set to view the document to view it.

[0161] Specifically, the "Viewing Permissions" item may be used to manage the following users as stakeholders in the document data. - Users recorded in the contract management database 215 as users who approve document data. Note that the server 20 may identify the parties involved in the document data by referring to the users who approved the document data in the contract management database 215, rather than retaining the information of the parties involved in the document management database 216. • In the contract signing service provided by Server 20, in addition to the user who approves the document data, the server also accepts the designation of users to whom the data will be shared once the contract is signed. These designated users (the users to whom the data is transferred) are the ones specified. For example, in the case of minutes of a board meeting, a director may approve the document data, and then share the approved minutes with other users such as executive officers. • Other users designated by users who approve the document data, users who have permission to view the document data, etc. Furthermore, the "Viewing Permissions" item may be configured to include information that identifies departments or divisions within an organization, rather than individuals. For example, it may be possible to configure information corresponding to the "Department" item in user database 211. In other words, by defining which departments or divisions can view documents, users in those departments or divisions within the organization can view the documents.

[0162] Figure 10 shows the data structure of the legal consultation management database 217. The legal consultation management database 217 includes the following fields: "Consultation ID", "Consultation Date and Time", "Consultant User ID", "Consultant Department", "Consultation Title", "Consultation Content", "Consultation Type", "Source of Consultation Content Extraction", "Summary of Extracted Consultation Content", "Consultation Content Extraction Date and Time", "Response Date and Time", "Respondent User ID", "Respondent Department", "Response Content", and "Consultation Status".

[0163] The "Consultation ID" field is information that identifies each individual consultation history between departments.

[0164] The item "Consultation Date and Time" indicates the time when the consultation was received.

[0165] More specifically, the item "Consultation Date and Time" includes information about the timing when a consultation request was sent to a specific department, such as the legal department, from another department via messaging tools or similar means.

[0166] The item "Consultant User ID" is information that identifies the user who made the consultation.

[0167] The item "Consultant User ID" may be associated with the item "User ID" in user database 211.

[0168] The "Consultant Department" field contains information about the department to which the user who submitted the consultation belongs.

[0169] The item "Consultant Department" may be associated with the item "Department" in user database 211.

[0170] The item "Consultation Title" contains information about the brief title of the consultation.

[0171] More specifically, the item "Consultation Title" may be the title set by the consultant, or it may include the result summarized by the server 95 of the large-scale language model service based on the consultation content.

[0172] The item "Consultation Details" contains information about specific consultations from other departments.

[0173] More specifically, the item "Consultation Details" includes information about the consultation details entered by the person seeking advice.

[0174] The item "Type of consultation" contains information about the attributes of the consultation content.

[0175] More specifically, the item "Type of consultation" may include information on the type set by the person seeking consultation or the user of the department handling the consultation, or attribute information assigned by the server 95 of the large-scale language model service based on information such as the content of the consultation and the department of the person seeking consultation.

[0176] The item "Source of Consultation Content" contains information about the source from which the consultation content was extracted.

[0177] More specifically, the item "Source of Consultation Content" may be the result of the user making the consultation specifying a link to a post made in the messaging tool, or it may include business data on the consultation content collected by Server 20 without user operation, such as data created by the department making the consultation, which is managed by the messaging service server 98, the sales support system service server 97, the document creation service server 96, etc., and which contains specific keywords related to the consultation (for example, words that frequently appear in consultations with the legal department, such as "contract" and "legal risk," or words that are set in advance by the legal department, etc.).

[0178] The item "Summary of extracted consultation content" contains information summarizing the consultation content extracted from the information source.

[0179] More specifically, the item "Summary of Extracted Consultation Content" includes information obtained by identifying business data that meets certain conditions, such as containing specific keywords, from the information source, and summarizing the content of that data using the large-scale language model service server 95, etc. The summarization method may involve abstractly summarizing the content mentioned in the information source (for example, abstracting the themes being discussed), or by extracting the most important words from those mentioned in the information source. The summary may be in sentence form or word form.

[0180] The item "Date and time of extraction of consultation content" contains information about when the consultation content was extracted.

[0181] More specifically, the item "Date and time of extraction of consultation content" may be the time when the business data was generated at the information source that was extracted, or it may include information about the time when the extraction was performed.

[0182] The "Response Date and Time" field indicates the timing at which the response to the inquiry was provided by the department responsible for the response.

[0183] The item "Respondent User ID" is information that identifies the user who initiated the consultation.

[0184] The item "Respondent User ID" may be associated with the item "User ID" in user database 211.

[0185] The "Respondent Department" field contains information about the department to which the user who submitted the consultation belongs.

[0186] The item "Respondent Department" may be associated with the item "Department" in user database 211.

[0187] The item "Response Content" contains information about the response provided by the respondent to the consultation.

[0188] The "Consultation Status" field provides information about the current status of the consultation.

[0189] More specifically, the item "Consultation Status" includes statuses such as "Not Response," "Response Completed," etc.

[0190] <3 operations> Figure 11 shows the process flow for sending contract data that defines the contract terms, in which the user confirms the recipient and the content of the contract data in two ways: a first method and a second method.

[0191] Server 20 provides an electronic contract signing service that manages contracts as being concluded when each user who approves the contract contents performs the approval operation.

[0192] In the following description, the contract signing module 2044 of server 20 accepts the specification of the recipient and the specification of the contract data via electronic contract, and allows the user to confirm the recipient in different ways. For example, the contract signing module 2044 allows the user to confirm the recipient and the contents of the contract, and allows confirmation in multiple ways through an operation screen that accepts the "send" operation.

[0193] In step S1121, the contract signing processing module 2044 of the server 20 outputs an operation screen for signing a contract electronically to the terminal 10.

[0194] In step S1111, terminal 10 receives a specification from the user regarding the recipient (e.g., email address) and the content of the contract data.

[0195] Thus, the contract signing module 2044 accepts operations that specify contract data that is awaiting approval and defines the contract terms, as well as the user who approves the contract data.

[0196] In step S1122, the contract signing processing module 2044 of the server 20 displays a screen in the first manner for confirming the recipient and the contents of the contract data, based on the input information. On this screen, the contract signing processing module 2044 lays out and displays the recipient, the contents of the contract data, a send button, and so on.

[0197] Here, the contract signing processing module 2044 may be configured as follows to allow the user to easily and correctly specify the recipient. - As recipient information, retrieve the icon image set by the contact method, similar to the icon that users associate with their account in messaging tools and email, and display it on the screen where you confirm the recipient. Alternatively, display the result of the email validity check (whether the email can be sent). The contract signing processing module 2044 may also acquire an icon image representing a user who uses a communication service other than the electronic contract signing service, and display the acquired icon image representing the user in association with the information of the user set as the recipient.

[0198] or The contract signing processing module 2044 may also display the result of determining whether or not a request for approval of contract data will be undeliverable to the user set as the recipient, in association with the information of the user set as the recipient. • By referencing and displaying information related to legal consultations (matter management) and contract review information (review requests, information of users who performed reviews, etc.), it becomes easier to verify the recipient's information. The system detects recipient verification from legal consultation (matter management) and contract review data. The contract execution processing module 2044 may also display, in addition to the recipient and the content of the contract data, at least one of the following: data relating to legal consultations concerning the approval of the contract data, or review data relating to the review of the contract data, which is associated with the contract data.

[0199] The contract execution processing module 2044 may detect the user to whom the contract data will be sent by referring to the user information included in the legal consultation data relating to the approval of the contract data, or the user information included in the review data relating to the review of the contract data, which are associated with the contract data. The display of the user icon image, the display of the user information included in the legal consultation data, and the display of the user information relating to the review of the contract data resulting from the above processing may be displayed in the first embodiment as well as in the second embodiment as described below.

[0200] In step S1112, terminal 10 displays the contents of the contract data and the destination of the contract data in the first manner, and asks the user to confirm whether there are any errors in the destination and the contents of the contract data, and accepts a confirmation operation (e.g., sending the contract data by pressing the "Send button"). Terminal 10 sends the result of the confirmation operation in the first manner to server 20.

[0201] In step S1123, the contract signing processing module 2044 of the server 20 records the data received from the terminal and the results of the user's confirmation in the first manner, and detects that the user's confirmation in the first manner has been completed. Furthermore, the contract signing processing module 2044 may determine whether additional confirmation in the second manner is required based on the contract terms, etc., or it may accept the transmission of contract data with both confirmation in the first manner and the second manner being mandatory, as described below.

[0202] The contract signing processing module 2044 displays a first operating element on the user's operation screen, which accepts an operation to send contract data to a user designated as the recipient and authorized to approve the contract. In response to the user's operation on the first operating element, the module sends the contract data to the designated user.

[0203] The contract signing processing module 2044 allows the recipient and the contents of the contract data to be confirmed in a first manner and in a second manner different from the first manner, before transmitting the contract data. • An example of a user reviewing the submission in a different way as a double-check. For example, in the first embodiment, the recipient, contract data, and a send button for requesting approval of the contract data from the recipient are provided. In the second embodiment, the user can confirm the information in a different manner. Thus, in the first embodiment, the contract signing processing module 2044 displays the recipient, the contents of the contract data, and the first operating element together on the operation screen, and in the second embodiment, the user can confirm the recipient and the contents of the contract data in a manner different from the first embodiment. • Example of the second aspect: Before transmission, a preview of the notification of the request to conclude a contract, which is made by a service other than the electronic contract conclusion service, is displayed on the operation screen of the electronic contract conclusion service. In a second embodiment, the contract signing processing module 2044 may display a preview of the notification of the approval request for contract data on the operation screen of the electronic contract signing service, when the notification is sent in a communication service other than the electronic contract signing service, where messages are sent and received between users (such as the messaging service server 98). • Example of the second aspect: Display a preview of the email that will be delivered to the recipient. The contract signing processing module 2044 may also display a preview of the notification of the request for approval of the contract data, when it is sent via email, on the operation screen of the electronic contract signing service as a means of communication. • Example of the second aspect: Display the preview on a different device than the one used for verification in the first aspect (for example, verification on a PC in the first aspect and on a smartphone in the second aspect). In a second embodiment, the contract signing processing module 2044 may have the recipient and the contents of the contract data confirmed on a terminal different from the terminal used for confirmation in the first embodiment. • Operation for verification in different embodiments: First, verification is performed in the first embodiment, and in the first embodiment, an operating member for verification in the second embodiment is provided. In a first embodiment, the contract signing processing module 2044 accepts a confirmation operation indicating that the recipient and the contents of the contract data have been confirmed, and in a second embodiment, the user may be prompted to confirm the recipient and the contents of the contract data in response to the confirmation operation in the first embodiment. If the contract terms of the contract data are specific, verification in the second manner is required; otherwise, verification in the second manner is not required. The contract signing processing module 2044 may transmit the contract data after requiring confirmation in both the first and second aspects if the contract terms of the contract data are specific, or it may transmit the contract data without requiring confirmation in the second aspect if the contract data is not specific. • Items requiring confirmation in the second manner: Items with different terms depending on the other party (such as contract amount) will require double-checking including in the second manner, while items that are exactly as they are in the template (e.g., non-disclosure agreements) will not be subject to double-checking. The contracting processing module 2044 may stipulate that if the contract terms in the contract data are specific and different terms are set depending on the counterparty to the contract, both confirmation in the first and second forms are required. However, if the content of the contract terms does not differ depending on the counterparty to the contract and is as per the template, confirmation in the second form is not required. Examples of documents requiring verification in the second manner: personnel information, documents containing personal information (such as employment contracts) The contract execution processing module 2044 may require confirmation of both the first and second aspects for contract data containing personal information, assuming that the contract terms of the contract data are specific and vary depending on the counterparty to the contract. • The second aspect is an example of a system where the check is performed by a different user than the one used for verification in the first aspect. The fastening processing module 2044 may accept an operation for confirmation by a first user in the first embodiment, and an operation for confirmation by a second user different from the first user in the second embodiment. Other examples of how to cancel a transmission: Even after sending, it may be possible to cancel the transmission on a per-recipient basis (per email address) within a certain period of time. Even if the contract processing module 2044 transmits contract data in response to an operation on the first operating member, it may accept an operation to cancel the transmission on a per-user basis within a certain period of time from the operation on the first operating member. If the contract processing module 2044 receives an operation to cancel the transmission, it may not transmit contract data to the user who was the target of the cancellation operation, and after a certain period of time has elapsed from the operation on the first operating member, it may transmit the contract data to the users who have not canceled as recipients.

[0204] In step S1113, terminal 10, upon receiving instructions from server 20 (if confirmation in the second mode is required), displays a preview screen of the approval request notification based on the contract data in the second mode. The contract signing processing module 2044 presents, for example, the email content to be received by the recipient and icons for contact methods, prompting the user to perform an additional confirmation operation in the second mode. The contract signing processing module 2044 receives the confirmation operation (re-check) in the second mode from the user and obtains the result of that operation. If the confirmation in the second mode is to be performed on a terminal different from the terminal that performed the confirmation in the first mode, the same operation is performed on the relevant terminal and the result is sent to server 20.

[0205] In step S1124, the closing processing module 2044 of the server 20 detects whether the confirmation operation has been completed in both the first and second modes and determines whether the conditions for executing the transmission are met. • Operating system to prevent errors in setting recipients In addition to the first aspect, the contract signing processing module 2044 may also be configured to not send contract data to the recipient unless it detects that confirmation has been performed in the second aspect.

[0206] The contract signing processing module 2044 accepts an operation indicating confirmation in the second aspect, and may refrain from transmitting contract data unless it detects that it has received operations indicating confirmation in both the first and second aspects.

[0207] In step S1125, if the server 20's contract processing module 2044 has completed verification of both the first and second aspects, it executes the process of actually sending the contract data to the specified recipient (e.g., sending via email, SNS integration, etc.).

[0208] In step S1126, the contract processing module 2044 of the server 20 sends the transmission result (success / failure, etc.) back to the terminal 10 and confirms that the processing is complete.

[0209] In step S1114, terminal 10 receives the transmission result from the server device and displays the final transmission completion (or error) status on the screen.

[0210] <4 Screen Examples> Figure 12 shows an example of an operation screen in which the user confirms the recipient and the content of the contract data in a first and second manner when sending contract data that defines the contract terms. Operation screen 1200 is an operation screen in which the user confirms the recipient and the content of the contract data in a first and second manner when sending contract data that defines the contract terms. Operation screen 1200 corresponds to each process in Figure 10.

[0211] The recipient confirmation display area 1202 is an area that displays information about the recipient entered or selected by the user (email address, username, contact method icon, delivery confirmation result, etc.) to help prevent accidental sending.

[0212] The contract data content confirmation display area 1204 is an area that displays the content of the selected contract data, contract terms, and other related information in a laid-out format.

[0213] The notification preview display area 1206 is an area that, based on the second aspect, allows the recipient to check notifications (e.g., email content, SNS preview, etc.) before actually sending them.

[0214] The system message display area 1208 is an area that displays input errors, confirmation complete messages, cancellation messages, and other feedback messages from the system.

[0215] The recipient input field specification section 1210 is a field in which the user can directly input the recipient's email address or username or select it from existing contacts, and is an operating component that accepts specifications with the intention of incorporating an auto-completion function.

[0216] The contract data selection field specification section 1212 is a field for selecting contract data from an existing file list or importing contract data by uploading a file, and is an operating component that accepts specifications.

[0217] The transmission confirmation button operation unit 1214 is a button for confirming that the user has confirmed in the first and second manner and for starting the actual transmission process.

[0218] The cancel button operation section 1216 is an interrupt button that discards the entered content and confirmation operations and returns to the previous screen or editing state.

[0219] <Other> The features described in each of the above embodiments can be combined. In the above description of embodiments, an example was described in which the server 20 communicates with the server 95 of the large-scale language model service to prompt the large-scale language model and have it execute processing. In this way, the server 20 can prompt a system that performs language processing to perform information processing according to the prompt. Such an information processing system that performs language processing may use an external device (for example, the server 95 of the large-scale language model service), or it may be executed by an information processing system built into the server 20 or terminal 10 (for example, a processor for language processing).

[0220] A network consists of various mobile communication systems, such as the internet, LANs, and wireless base stations. For example, a network includes 3G, 4G, and 5G mobile communication systems, LTE (Long Term Evolution), and wireless networks that can connect to the internet via designated access points (e.g., Wi-Fi®). When connecting wirelessly, communication protocols include, for example, Z-Wave®, ZigBee®, and Bluetooth®. When connecting via a wired connection, the network also includes connections made directly via USB (Universal Serial Bus) cables, etc.

[0221] Furthermore, by distributing all or part of each hardware configuration across multiple computers and connecting them to each other via a network, a computer can be virtually realized. Thus, the concept of a computer includes not only computers housed in a single enclosure or case, but also virtualized computer systems.

[0222] A database, specifically a relational database, is used to manage and link together tabular data sets called masters, which are structurally defined by rows and columns. In a database, tables are called tables, masters are called masters, the columns of tables are called columns, and the rows of tables are called records. In a relational database, relationships can be established and linked between tables and masters.

[0223] Typically, each table and master has a primary key column to uniquely identify records, but setting a primary key column is not mandatory. The control unit can instruct the processor 901 to add, delete, or update records in specific tables and masters stored in the memory unit, according to various programs.

[0224] Furthermore, by storing data, various programs, and various databases in the memory unit, the information processing device and information processing system related to this disclosure can be considered to have been manufactured.

[0225] Furthermore, the databases and masters in this disclosure may include any data structures (lists, dictionaries, associative arrays, objects, etc.) in which information is structurally defined. Data structures also include data that can be considered as data structures by combining data with functions, classes, methods, etc., written in any programming language.

[0226] Furthermore, each of the above-mentioned configurations, functions, processing units, processing means, etc., may be implemented in hardware, either partially or entirely, by designing them as integrated circuits, for example. The present invention can also be implemented by software program code that realizes the functions of the embodiment. In this case, a storage medium on which the program code is recorded is provided to a computer, and the processor of that computer reads the program code stored in the storage medium. In this case, the program code read from the storage medium itself realizes the functions of the embodiment described above, and the program code itself and the storage medium on which it is stored constitute the present invention. Examples of storage media used to supply such program code include flexible disks, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs, hard disks, SSDs, optical disks, magneto-optical disks, CD-Rs, magnetic tapes, non-volatile memory cards, ROMs, and the like.

[0227] Furthermore, the program code that implements the functions described in this embodiment can be implemented in a wide range of programming or scripting languages, such as assembler, C / C++, Perl, Shell, PHP, and Java (registered trademark).

[0228] Furthermore, the program code for the software that implements the functions of the embodiment may be distributed via a network and stored in a storage means such as a computer's hard disk or memory, or in a storage medium such as a CD-RW or CD-R, and the computer's processor may read and execute the program code stored in the storage means or storage medium.

[0229] The functions realized by the components described herein may be implemented in a circuit or processing circuitry, including general-purpose processors, application-specific processors, integrated circuits, ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), CPUs (a Central Processing Unit), conventional circuits, and / or combinations thereof, programmed to realize the functions described herein. A processor is considered to be a circuit or processing circuitry, including transistors and other circuits. A processor may be a programmed processor that executes a program stored in memory.

[0230] In this specification, circuitry, unit, and means are hardware programmed to perform or execute the functions described herein. Such hardware may be any hardware disclosed herein, or any hardware known to be programmed to perform or execute the functions described herein.

[0231] If the hardware is a processor that is considered to be a type of circuitry, then the circuitry, means, or unit is a combination of hardware and software used to constitute the hardware and / or processor.

[0232] While several embodiments of this disclosure have been described above, these embodiments can be implemented in a variety of other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications are permitted without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their variations are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as in the claims and their equivalents.

[0233] (Note) The details described in each of the above embodiments are noted below.

[0234] (Note 1) A program for operating a computer having one or more computer processors, wherein the computer provides an electronic contract conclusion service that manages contracts as concluded when each user approving the contract contents performs an approval operation, and the program causes one or more computer processors to execute the following steps: a step of receiving an operation to specify contract data that is awaiting approval and defines the contract conditions, and a user who approves the contract data; a step of displaying a first operation member on an operation screen that receives an operation to send the contract data to a user set as the recipient as the approving user, and sending the contract data to the set user in response to the user's operation on the first operation member, and in the sending step, before sending the contract data, the recipient and the contents of the contract data can be confirmed in a first manner and a second manner different from the first manner.

[0235] (Note 2) The program described in Appendix 1, wherein, in the transmission step, in a first aspect, the destination, the contents of the contract data, and the first operating component are all displayed on the operation screen, and in a second aspect, the destination and the contents of the contract data can be confirmed in a manner different from that of the first aspect.

[0236] (Note 3) In the transmission step, the program described in Appendix 2 displays, as a second aspect, a preview of the notification of the request for approval of contract data, when it is notified in a communication service different from the electronic contract signing service, which is a communication service in which users send and receive messages, on the operation screen of the electronic contract signing service.

[0237] (Note 4) The program described in Appendix 3 displays a preview of the notification of the request for approval of contract data, which will be sent via email as a means of communication during the sending step, on the operation screen of the electronic contract signing service.

[0238] (Note 5) A program as described in any of Appendix 2 to 4, wherein, in the transmission step, a second aspect involves having a different terminal than the one used for verification in the first aspect verify the recipient and the contents of the contract data.

[0239] (Note 6) A program as described in any of Appendix 2 to 5, which, in the transmission step, accepts a confirmation operation in a first embodiment indicating that the recipient and the contents of the contract data have been confirmed, and in response to the confirmation operation in the first embodiment, causes the user to confirm the recipient and the contents of the contract data in a second embodiment.

[0240] (Note 7) A program as described in any of Appendix 1 to 6, which, in the transmission step, accepts an operation indicating confirmation in the second manner, and does not transmit contract data unless it detects that operations indicating confirmation in both the first and second manners have been received.

[0241] (Note 8) A program as described in any of Appendix 1 to 7, which, in the transmission step, requires confirmation in both the first and second aspects if the contract terms of the contract data are specific, and transmits the contract data without requiring confirmation in the second aspect if the contract data is not specific.

[0242] (Note 9) The program described in Appendix 8 requires that, in the transmission step, the contract terms of the contract data be specific, and that if different terms are stipulated depending on the counterparty to the contract, both confirmation in the first and second manners are required. However, if the content of the contract terms does not differ depending on the counterparty to the contract and is the same as the template, confirmation in the second manner is not required.

[0243] (Note 10) A program as described in any of Appendix 8 to 9, which, in the transmission step, requires confirmation of both the first and second aspects of contract data, including personal information, assuming that the contract terms of the contract data are specific and vary depending on the counterparty to the contract.

[0244] (Note 11) A program according to any of the appendices 1 to 10, wherein, in the transmission step, it accepts an operation to confirm by a first user in the first embodiment, and accepts an operation to confirm by a second user different from the first user in the second embodiment.

[0245] (Note 12) A program as described in any of the appendices 1 to 11, which in the transmission step, obtains an icon image representing a user set by a user using a communication service other than the electronic contract signing service, displays the obtained icon image representing the user in association with the information of the user set as the recipient, or displays the result of determining whether or not a request for approval of contract data would not fail to be delivered to the user set as the recipient, in association with the information of the user set as the recipient.

[0246] (Note 13) A program as described in any of Appendix 1 to 12, which, in the transmission step, further displays, in addition to the recipient and the content of the contract data, at least one of the following: data relating to legal consultations concerning the approval of the contract data, or review data relating to the review of the contract data, which is associated with the contract data.

[0247] (Note 14) The program described in Appendix 13, which, in the transmission step, detects the user to whom the contract data will be sent by referring to user information included in legal consultation data relating to the approval of the contract data, or user information included in review data relating to the review of the contract data, which are associated with the contract data.

[0248] (Appendix 15) The program according to any one of appendices 1 to 14, wherein in the transmitting step, even if the contract data is transmitted in response to an operation on the first operation member, an operation to cancel the transmission is accepted on a per-user basis included in the transmission destination within a certain period of time from the operation on the first operation member, and when the operation to cancel the transmission is accepted, the contract data is not transmitted to the user targeted by the cancel operation, and when the certain period of time has elapsed from the operation on the first operation member, the contract data is transmitted to users who have not been canceled as transmission destinations.

[0249] (Appendix 16) A method executed by a computer comprising one or more computer processors, wherein the computer provides an electronic contract conclusion service that manages a contract as being established when each user approving the contract content performs an approval operation, the method comprising the steps of: the one or more computer processors accepting an operation of specifying pre-approval contract data that defines contract terms and users who approve the contract data; and on an operation screen, displaying a first operation member for accepting an operation of transmitting the contract data to the users set as transmission destinations as users to approve, and transmitting the contract data to the set users in response to a user's operation on the first operation member, wherein in the transmitting step, before transmitting the contract data, the transmission destinations and the content of the contract data can be confirmed in a first mode and a second mode different from the first mode.

[0250] (Appendix 17) Information processing device, which provides an electronic contract conclusion service that manages contracts as concluded when each user approving the contract contents performs an approval operation, wherein the control unit of the information processing device executes the following steps: receiving an operation to specify contract data that defines the contract conditions and a user who will approve the contract data before approval; and displaying a first operation member on the operation screen that receives an operation to send the contract data to a user set as the recipient as the approving user, and sending the contract data to the set user in response to the user's operation on the first operation member, and in the sending step, before sending the contract data, the recipient and the contents of the contract data can be confirmed in a first manner and a second manner different from the first manner.

Claims

1. A program for operating a computer having one or more computer processors, wherein the computer provides an electronic contract conclusion service that manages contracts as being concluded when each user approving the contract content performs an approved operation, The program is configured on one or more computer processors. A step of accepting an operation to specify contract data that is awaiting approval and defines the contract terms, and a user who approves the contract data, On the operation screen, a first operation member is displayed that accepts an operation to send the contract data to the user set as the recipient as the user who will approve it, and in response to the user's operation on the first operation member, the contract data is sent to the set user. A program that, in the transmission step, allows the recipient and the contents of the contract data to be confirmed in a first manner and in a second manner different from the first manner, before transmitting the contract data.

2. The program according to claim 1, wherein in the transmission step, in a first aspect, the destination, the contents of the contract data, and the first operating member are all displayed on the operation screen, and in a second aspect, the destination and the contents of the contract data can be confirmed in a manner different from that of the first aspect.

3. The program according to claim 2, wherein, in the step of sending, in the second aspect, a preview of the notification of the request for approval of contract data, which is notified in a communication service different from the electronic contract signing service and in which messages are sent and received between users, is displayed on the operation screen of the electronic contract signing service.

4. The program according to claim 3, wherein in the transmission step, a preview of the notification of the request for approval of contract data, which is notified via email as a service of the communication means, is displayed on the operation screen of the electronic contract signing service.

5. The program according to claim 2, wherein, in the transmission step, as a second aspect, the destination and the contents of the contract data are confirmed by a terminal different from the terminal used for confirmation in the first aspect.

6. The program according to claim 2, wherein in the transmission step, in the first embodiment, a confirmation operation is accepted indicating that the recipient and the contents of the contract data have been confirmed, and in response to the confirmation operation in the first embodiment, the program causes the user to confirm the recipient and the contents of the contract data in the second embodiment.

7. The program according to claim 1, wherein in the transmission step, it accepts an operation indicating that it has been confirmed in the second embodiment, and does not transmit the contract data unless it detects that it has received operations indicating that it has been confirmed in both the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

8. The program according to claim 1, wherein in the transmission step, if the contract conditions of the contract data are specific, the program transmits the contract data after confirming both the first and second aspects, and if the contract data is not specific, the program transmits the contract data without requiring confirmation in the second aspect.

9. In the step of transmission, the contract terms of the contract data are specified, For contracts where different terms are stipulated depending on the counterparty, confirmation of both the first and second aspects described above is required. The program according to claim 8, wherein if the content of the contract terms does not differ depending on the counterparty to the contract but follows the template, the confirmation in the second aspect described above is not required.

10. The program according to claim 8, wherein in the transmission step, the contract terms of the contract data are specific and different terms are determined depending on the counterparty to the contract, and therefore both the first and second aspects of the contract data, including personal information, must be verified.

11. The program according to claim 1, wherein in the transmission step, it accepts an operation to confirm by a first user in the first embodiment, and accepts an operation to confirm by a second user different from the first user in the second embodiment.

12. In the aforementioned transmission step, The system acquires an icon image representing a user who uses a communication service different from the aforementioned electronic contract signing service, and displays the acquired icon image representing the user in association with the information of the user set as the recipient. or The result of determining whether or not a request for approval of the contract data will be undeliverable to the user designated as the recipient is displayed in association with the information of the user designated as the recipient. The program according to claim 1, which performs at least one of the following.

13. In the aforementioned transmission step, The program according to claim 1, further displaying, in addition to the recipient and the contents of the contract data, at least one of the following, associated with the contract data: data of legal consultation relating to the approval of the contract data, or review data relating to the review of the contract data.

14. In the aforementioned transmission step, The program according to claim 13, which detects a user to whom the contract data is to be sent by referring to user information included in legal consultation data relating to the approval of the contract data, or user information included in review data relating to the review of the contract data, which are associated with the contract data.

15. In the aforementioned transmission step, The program according to claim 1, wherein even if the contract data is transmitted in response to an operation on the first operating member, if within a certain period of time from the operation on the first operating member, the program accepts an operation to cancel the transmission on a per-user basis, and if an operation to cancel the transmission is accepted, the program does not transmit the contract data to the user that was the target of the cancellation operation, and once the certain period of time has elapsed from the operation on the first operating member, the program transmits the contract data to users who have not canceled as recipients.

16. A method performed by a computer having one or more computer processors, wherein the computer provides an electronic contract conclusion service that manages contracts as concluded when each user approving the contract content performs an approved operation, The above method involves one or more computer processors, A step of accepting an operation to specify contract data that is awaiting approval and defines the contract terms, and a user who approves the contract data, On the operation screen, a first operation member is displayed that accepts an operation to send the contract data to the user set as the recipient as the user who will approve it, and in response to the user's operation on the first operation member, the contract data is sent to the set user. A method for enabling the recipient and the contents of the contract data to be confirmed in a first manner and a second manner different from the first manner, before transmitting the contract data in the transmission step.

17. An information processing device provides an electronic contract conclusion service that manages contracts as being concluded when each user who approves the contract content performs an approval operation. The control unit of the information processing device, A step of accepting an operation to specify contract data that is awaiting approval and defines the contract terms, and a user who approves the contract data, On the operation screen, a first operation member is displayed that accepts an operation to send the contract data to the user set as the recipient as the user who will approve it, and in response to the user's operation on the first operation member, the contract data is sent to the set user. An information processing device that, in the transmission step, allows the recipient and the contents of the contract data to be confirmed in a first manner and in a second manner different from the first manner, before transmitting the contract data.

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