Blockchain Document Versioning for Supply Chain Integrity
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Centralized databases face issues such as single points of failure, dependency on network connectivity, limited access, and lack of data redundancy, which lead to inefficiencies and challenges in maintaining document trails across multiple organizations in blockchain-based supply chains.
Innovation Solution
A conflict-free document version control system utilizing a blockchain-based decentralized database, where multiple nodes communicate to maintain an immutable ledger, enabling secure, permissioned access and versioning of documents through smart contracts and encryption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a centralized database is used to store documents, then data redundancy is minimized and management is simplified, but the system has a single point of failure and limited access capability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the centralized database into multiple distributed nodes across different organizations. Each node stores copies of documents, transforming a single-point system into a multi-point system. This segmentation eliminates the single point of failure while maintaining document accessibility through multiple entry points.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates multiple copies of documents across different organizational nodes in the blockchain network. Instead of maintaining a single master copy, the system replicates document copies to multiple locations, ensuring that if one node fails, documents remain accessible from other nodes.
2Quantity of substance
If a centralized database maintains a single copy of data, then data redundancy is minimized, but multiple devices cannot access the same data simultaneously without creating conflicts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the monolithic centralized database into multiple distributed nodes, each capable of independently storing and accessing document copies. This allows multiple devices to simultaneously access documents from different nodes without creating conflicts, as each node operates independently while maintaining consistency through blockchain consensus.
Solution Approach 2:
The blockchain acts as an intermediary layer that coordinates access to documents across multiple nodes. It manages version control and ensures that simultaneous accesses from different devices are harmonized through consensus mechanisms, preventing conflicts while allowing parallel operations.
3Device complexity
If a centralized database is used, then the system is easy to manage and control, but it creates bottlenecks during high traffic periods
Solution Approach 1:
The patent distributes the database management function across multiple organizational nodes rather than concentrating it in a single central authority. Each node independently manages its local document copies, eliminating the bottleneck of centralized management during high traffic periods while maintaining overall system coherence through blockchain consensus.
4Adaptability or versatility
If documents are maintained in emails or individual file stores, then organizational autonomy is preserved, but maintaining a proof of documents trail across multiple organizations becomes challenging
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal blockchain-based document management layer that works across multiple independent organizational file stores. This multi-functional system simultaneously preserves organizational autonomy by allowing each organization to maintain its own files while providing a unified mechanism for creating and verifying document trails across all participants through blockchain consensus.
Data Source
AI summary
An example operation may include one or more of receiving, by a document processor node, a file with a document identifier (ID), generating, by the document processor node, a hash of the file, submitting, by the document processor node, a blockchain transaction containing the hash of the file, the document ID and a locator of a document, assigning, by the document processor node, document access permissions to participating nodes, and notifying the participating nodes of a version of the document under the ID.