Document Linking via Multi-Field Matching Rules
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Solution Overview
Problem
Inconsistent use of unique identifiers (UIDs) across parties complicates the linking of related electronic documents, especially in automated systems processing structured communications, leading to challenges in determining which documents are being referred to and requiring additional processing resources to adjust data fields and their values.
Innovation Solution
The system applies rules to selected data fields in request and response documents to determine the best match, accounting for missing or non-identical data and weighting matching fields, and generates secondary request documents to ensure complete data exchange, reducing the need for repeated requests and processing resources.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If unique identifiers are used to link documents between parties, then document identification is improved, but inconsistent UID usage across parties causes matching failures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary matching system that acts as a mediator between parties using different UIDs. This system applies rules to compare multiple data fields (beyond just UIDs) to determine document relationships, effectively translating between different parties' identifier systems and establishing reliable document links despite UID inconsistencies.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameters used for document matching from relying solely on unique identifiers to using multiple data fields including UIDs, document types, dates, and subject matter. This parameter expansion allows the system to match documents even when UIDs differ, maintaining identification accuracy while improving matching reliability.
2Measurement precision
If multiple data fields are compared to match documents, then matching accuracy is improved, but processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the document matching process into distinct rule-based comparisons for different data fields. Each field (UID, document type, date, subject) is evaluated separately according to specific rules, then combined to determine overall matches. This segmentation manages complexity by breaking down the multi-field comparison into manageable, rule-driven steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs self-service through automated rule application and machine learning algorithms that automatically learn optimal matching criteria from data. This automation reduces manual configuration complexity while maintaining high matching accuracy across multiple data fields.
3Loss of information
If secondary request documents are generated to fill data gaps, then data completeness is improved, but communication overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by proactively generating and sending secondary request documents to obtain missing data before it becomes a problem. By anticipating data gaps and filling them in advance, the system ensures data completeness while reducing the need for repeated communication cycles and minimizing overall bandwidth usage.
Data Source
AI summary
Keeping track of which communications are related, or linked, in a series of communications is an important feature in many electronic document systems. As communication chains grow and branch, however, these systems require meticulous use of unique document identifiers to maintain those links. Systems and methods to create or restore these links in the absence or misuse of unique document identifiers are therefore provided. Responsive communications from parties are linked with the initial communications whose requests are answered by the responsive communications. Additionally, any requests not answered by the responsive communications may be automatically configured into a secondary communication which will be linked with the responsive communication and the initial communication so that its responsive communication may be built into the chain of communication.