Document Lock Breaker Hierarchy for Shared Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for document locking prevent multiple users from accessing and editing shared electronic documents simultaneously, leading to bottlenecks and wasted time when one user locks a document without unlocking it, and administrative solutions fail to facilitate timely and appropriate unlocking decisions.
Innovation Solution
A system where a defined 'unlock' group of users can automatically break a lock on a document, with a hierarchy for notification, allowing users to be contacted and given access rights to unlock the document, and notifications are sent to users in the unlock group when a document is locked, enabling them to unlock it.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If only the original locking user can unlock a document, then document security and control are maintained, but document accessibility and collaboration efficiency deteriorate when the locking user is unavailable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary unlocking mechanism where designated unlock users can break locks on behalf of the original locking user. This mediator approach allows document access to be granted without requiring the original user's direct intervention, thus maintaining security while improving accessibility when the locking user is unavailable.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-designating unlock users and establishing unlock groups before lock conflicts occur. When a user locks a document, the system proactively identifies potential unlock candidates and prepares the unlocking mechanism in advance, enabling rapid resolution of lock conflicts without waiting for the original user to become available.
2Productivity
If administrative users are used to break locks, then document accessibility is improved, but system complexity and the difficulty of finding appropriate administrators increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the unlocking authority by creating specific unlock user roles and unlock groups rather than relying on a single administrative account. This segmentation distributes the unlocking capability to multiple designated users based on their roles and relationships to the document, reducing the complexity of finding and managing a single administrator while maintaining controlled access.
3Productivity
If administrative users are used to break locks, then document accessibility is improved, but the ability to make context-aware unlocking decisions deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback by notifying designated unlock users when a document is locked and providing them with information about the lock status and the locking user's identity. This feedback loop enables unlock users to make context-aware decisions about whether to break the lock based on the current situation and their knowledge of the locking user's intentions.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for allowing multiple users to access and unlock shared electronic documents in a computer system. A group of users are defined as potential “lock-breaker” users for a document, such that they are automatically contacted in the event that a user wishes to unlock the document after it has been locked by another user. The lock-breaker users defined for a document are given access rights to the document that allow them to break a current lock on the document, so that it can be opened for editing, and accordingly re-locked. The lock-breaker users for a document may be organized in a hierarchy, such as a hierarchy matching the relationships of employees of an organization. The lock-breaker hierarchy may define the order in which the lock-breaker users are automatically contacted when a user wishes to access a locked document (e.g. an LDAP directory tree or social network).