Debugging Master Documents via Questionnaire Intermediaries
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Debugging master documents used in generating customized documents is challenging, especially in lengthy or complex structures, where errors can be difficult to identify and correct, leading to unexpected behavior in the questionnaire and subsequent customized documents.
Innovation Solution
A method is introduced to debug master documents by generating a questionnaire, identifying variables with unexpected behavior, reviewing the master document for errors, correcting specific occurrences, and repeating the process until the questionnaire behaves as expected, utilizing dependency networks and ranking dependency statements to efficiently locate and correct structural errors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the master document structure is made more complex to handle diverse conditional content, then the document generation capability is improved, but the difficulty of detecting and measuring errors increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a questionnaire as an intermediary component between the master document and the final customized document. The questionnaire serves as a mediator that explicitly defines variable dependencies and validation rules, making it easier to detect and measure errors in the master document structure without compromising the complex generation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the questionnaire validation results are used to detect errors in the master document. By validating variable values against the questionnaire definitions and checking for unexpected behavior in questionnaire responses, the system provides feedback that helps identify structural errors in the master document, thereby improving error detection capability.
2Quantity of substance
If the master document is made longer to include more comprehensive content, then the information completeness is improved, but the time required to review and debug increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the master document into manageable components by extracting variable definitions, conditional content, and validation rules into the questionnaire structure. This segmentation allows developers to review and debug specific portions of the master document independently, reducing the overall time required to review lengthy documents while maintaining information completeness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary action by generating the questionnaire before finalizing the master document. The questionnaire is created first to define the expected variable values and dependencies, then the master document is reviewed and validated against these pre-defined expectations. This preliminary creation of validation criteria speeds up the subsequent debugging process.
3Reliability
If the questionnaire validation is made more strict to ensure accuracy, then the reliability is improved, but the ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the questionnaire to automatically detect and report its own validation errors and unexpected behavior. The system self-validates variable values against defined constraints and self-reports discrepancies, improving reliability while reducing the manual effort required for debugging and making the process more user-friendly.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to debugging of document templates or master documents used in the automated generation of customised documents.