MATERIALS FOR CHEMICAL PRODUCTS

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The technology disclosed herein may be applicable to the calculation of classifications and generation of communication materials.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Generally, chemical products include a number of properties, such as being corrosive if brought into contact with exposed skin, which users may need to be notified of so that they can handle the relevant products appropriately. However, current practices for determining these types of hazardous properties and generating materials to communicate them to users are currently largely manual, making them error prone, difficult and expensive. These problems may be compounded as the number of potential customers for a chemical product grows, as increases in customers may correspond to a proliferation of differing regulatory, linguistic and/or business requirements for those customers. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved technology for calculating classifications and generating communication materials for chemical products, without any direct human intervention.

SUMMARY

[0003] Embodiments disclosed herein may be used to implement methods, computer program products and machines which may be useful for purposes such as calculating classifications and/or generating communication materials for chemical products. For example, embodiments disclosed herein may be used to perform a method which comprises determining a set of classifications for a chemical preparation based on a plurality of ingredients comprising the chemical preparation, without any manual intervention; generating a set of documents for a product comprising the chemical preparation based on the determined set of classifications; and publishing the set of documents for the product comprising the chemical preparation. As another example, embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented in the form of a computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions for performing a method comprising determining a set of classifications for a chemical preparation based on a plurality of ingredients comprising the chemical preparation without any manual intervention; generating a set of documents for a product comprising the chemical preparation based on the determined set of classifications; and publishing the set of documents for the product comprising the chemical preparation. As yet another example, some embodiments may be implemented in the form of a machine comprising a database storing information for a plurality of chemical ingredients, and a means for determining a set of classifications for a chemical preparation based on information stored in the database without any manual intervention.

[0004] Further information on how the disclosed technology could potentially be implemented is set forth herein, and variations on the sample will be immediately apparent to and could be practiced without undue experimentation by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the material which is set forth in this document. Accordingly, exemplary methods and machines described in this summary should be understood as being illustrative only, and should not be treated as limiting on the scope of protection provided by this or any related document.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0005] Figure 1 is a flow chart of steps which may be performed for hazard calculation in some embodiments.

[0006] Figure 2 illustrates an exemplary screen such as might be used in some embodiments to allow a user to define the physical and format parameters of a label to create for kit containing potentially hazardous preparations.

[0007] Figure 3 illustrates an exemplary screen such as might be used in some embodiments to allow a user to define content for a label.

[0008] Figure 4 provides an exemplary screen which may be used in some embodiments to define information for a label such as could be applied to a kit. [0009] Figure 5 provides an exemplary screen which may be used in some embodiments to define information for a label such as could be applied to a kit.

[0010] Figure 6 illustrates how a populated label template may be presented to a user in some embodiments.

[0011] Figure 7 illustrates a screen which might be used to specify transportation information in some embodiments.

[0012] Figure 8 illustrates an excerpt from an exemplary pre-approval safety data sheet. [0013] Figure 9 illustrates an excerpt from an exemplary pre-approval safety data sheet. [0014] Figure 10 exemplary environment in which some embodiments may be deployed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] Disclosed herein are techniques which may be used in a variety of settings, including determining hazard classifications for chemical preparations without any manual intervention. While aspects of the disclosed technology may be used to address long felt in that context, it should be understood that embodiments of the disclosed technology may be used in other contexts as well. For example, rather than being used to determine hazard classifications, some embodiments may determine other types of classifications for chemical preparations. Accordingly, the examples and embodiments set forth herein should be understood as being illustrative only, and should not be treated as limiting on the protection provided by this document or any other document which claims the benefit of this disclosure.

[0016] Embodiments disclosed herein may be used to implement methods, computer program products and machines which may be usable for purposes such as automatically calculating hazard classifications and/or generating communication materials for chemical products. For example, embodiments disclosed herein may be used to perform a method which comprises automatically determining a set of hazard classifications for a chemical preparation based on a plurality of ingredients comprised by the chemical preparation, generating a set of documents for a product which comprises the chemical preparation (which generation may be based on the determined set of hazard classifications), and publishing the generated set of documents to a website for the product which comprises the chemical preparation.

[0017] In some embodiments of such a method, automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may comprise determining the plurality of ingredients comprised by the chemical preparation. In some such embodiments, automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may also comprise, for each ingredient in the plurality of ingredients comprised by the chemical preparation, determining that ingredient’s contribution to one or more hazard classifications from the set of hazard classifications based on hazard information maintained for that ingredient in a database and a portion of the chemical preparation made up by that ingredient.

[0018] In some embodiments of a method such as described in any of the preceding two paragraphs, the chemical preparation may comprise one or more components which themselves comprise one or more ingredients, and automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may comprise determining the plurality of ingredients which are comprised by the chemical preparation based on decomposing the components from the chemical preparation into the ingredients which are comprised by those components.

[0019] In some embodiments of a method such as described in any of the preceding three paragraphs, automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may comprise decomposing the chemical preparation into the plurality of ingredients it comprises using recursive tree traversal.

[0020] In some embodiments of a method such as described in any of the preceding four paragraphs, automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may comprise determining if all contributions to a first hazard classification by ingredients which are comprised by the chemical preparation collectively exceed a threshold level for the first hazard classification, wherein none of the contributions to the first hazard classifications by ingredients which are comprised by the chemical preparation individually exceed the threshold level for the first hazard classification. Further, in such a method automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may comprise, based on determining that all contributions to the first hazard classification by ingredients which are comprised by the chemical preparation collectively exceed the threshold level for the first hazard classification, determining that the chemical preparation meets the first hazard classification. Similarly, in some embodiments of a method such as described in any of the preceding four paragraphs, automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may comprise determining if all contributions to a first hazard classification by ingredients which are comprised by the chemical preparation collectively exceed a threshold level for the first hazard classification, wherein none of the contributions to the first hazard classifications by ingredients which are comprised by the chemical preparation individually exceed the threshold level for the first hazard classification. Further, in such a method automatically determining the set of hazards for the chemical preparation may comprise, based on determining that all contributions to the first hazard classification by ingredients which are comprised by the chemical preparation are collectively less than the threshold level for the first hazard classification, determining a value to add to a second hazard classification based on a conversion factor between the first hazard classification and the second hazard classification.

[0021] In some embodiments of a method such as described in any of the preceding five paragraphs, the method may further comprise maintaining a database of chemical ingredients and associated hazard information.

[0022] Further, in some embodiments aspects of the disclosed technology may be used to implement a computer program product storing instructions for performing methods such as described in any of the preceding six paragraphs.

[0023] Similarly, in some embodiments, aspects of the disclosed technology may be used to implement a machine comprising a database storing hazard information for a plurality of chemical ingredients, and a means for automatically determining a set of hazard classifications for a chemical preparation based on hazard information stored in the database. In some embodiments of such a machine, the means for automatically determining the set of hazard classifications for the chemical preparation based on hazard information stored in the database may be configured to automatically determine the set of hazard classifications using recursive tree traversal.

[0024] To illustrate how the disclosed technology could potentially be applied, consider the task of preparing labels for a kit containing multiple preparations separated into individual chambers. In some embodiments, to facilitate the creation of such labels, the manufacturer of the kit may maintain a database of information indicating the various properties of the different preparations, as well as the preparations’ ingredients and those ingredients’ respective properties. In embodiments where it is present, such a database may be built in a bottom up manner - i.e., starting from ingredients and then providing those ingredients as building blocks for preparations which in turn may be incorporated into products. In such an embodiment, when an ingredient is initially added to a database, it may be accompanied by information indicating its associated hazards. For example, if hydrochloric acid is added to an ingredient database, it may be accompanied by information indicating that it is harmful if swallowed, could cause severe skin burns and eye damage, and that users should avoid breathing its vapors, as well as having associated symbols reflecting its particular hazards.

[0025] In some embodiments, in addition to a database of ingredients and their associated hazards, there may also be a database showing how those ingredients may be combined into components for a preparation. For example, if a particular supplier provides a dilution of hydrochloric acid which is 38% hydrochloric acid and 62% water, then a database entry may be created for that component specifying the respective percentages of the ingredients it includes. In that same vein, in some embodiments it may be possible for a component to be defined as being made up of subcomponents, which themselves might be made up of other components, of ingredients, or of combinations.

[0026] In some embodiments which maintain information regarding components such as described above, the components may be used as building blocks to define chemical preparations for inclusion in products. For example, if a preparation for determining bilirubin made up of hydrochloric acid, de-ionized water, anhydrous sulfanilic acid and sodium chloride was going to be included in a product, the individual creating that preparation could make a database entry for it indicating the components he or she had used to synthesize the preparation, along with their respective percentages. In some embodiments that individual may also add information about the preparation’s properties to the database, such as its boiling point, freezing point, physical state, and other similar information. Further, in some embodiments this information may be supplemented information on hazards posed by the overall preparation, which as described below, may be calculated automatically based on information provided previously about the preparation’s ingredients.

[0027] It should be understood that there may be different ways that hazard calculations may be performed in different embodiments. For example, in some embodiments, hazard calculations may be performed using a method such as shown in figure 1. In that method, after the preparation for which the hazard calculation has been selected 101, the ingredients for that preparation may be determined 102. This may be done, for example, by running a loop controlled by a determination 103 if any components from the preparation had not been analyzed (such a determination may be made, for example, by maintaining a stack of components which had not yet been broken into their ingredients/subcomponents, and declaring all components analyzed when the stack was empty). Within the loop, if there were any components which had not been analyzed, a check 104 might be made if an unanalyzed component (e.g., the next component on a stack) had any ingredients (as opposed to, for example, a component which was solely made up of subcomponents). If the component did have ingredients, then those ingredients could be added 105 to a list of ingredients for the preparation, in amounts determined by the amount of the relevant component in the preparation and their proportions in that component. Alternatively, if the component did not have ingredients, it could be declared 106 to be analyzed (e.g., by removing it from the analysis queue, in embodiments where such a queue is present), and the ingredient determination process could return to the check 103 of if there were any unanalyzed components left (potentially after adding any subcomponents for the just-analyzed components to the queue, if such a queue is present in the relevant embodiment). This could continue until the check indicated that there were no more components to analyze, at which point the ingredient list for the preparation could be declared 107 complete (e.g., placed in a memory location from which it could be accessed by other instructions for further manipulation or use).

[0028] In some embodiments, after the determination 102 of ingredients was complete, a method such as shown in figure 1 might continue with, for each of a predetermined set of hazards (e.g., eye damage, skin corrosion, etc.), determining whether the preparation should be identified as presenting those hazards when the ingredients of its components (and sub-components, if any) are viewed as a whole. In some embodiments, this might be done in a manner similar to what was described above for the determination 102 of ingredients. That is, there may be a loop controlled by a check 108 of whether any hazard classes had not yet been calculated. For each hazard, a sub-procedure could be performed for each ingredient, testing 109 if that ingredient was associated with that hazard and, if it was, incrementing 110 a value for that hazard based on the percentage of that ingredient in the preparation (e.g., if a preparation was 10% hydrochloric acid, then when the preparation was tested for the eye damage hazard, the hydrochloric acid ingredient could increment the eye damage hazard value by 0.1). Once all the ingredients had been checked, a further determination 111 might be made regarding whether the calculated value for the hazard under consideration exceeded a hazard threshold. If the calculated value did exceed the threshold, then that hazard could be declared 112 to be present in the preparation (even if none of the contributions of the individual components was above the threshold). Otherwise, in some embodiments a hazard conversion routine 113 could be applied. In some embodiments, this routine 113 might comprise applying rules which would indicate whether, when a value for a first hazard didn’t exceed that hazard’s threshold, that hazard value should be applied to a second hazard for the preparation. For example, in some embodiments, if the hazard value for skin corrosion 1 did not exceed that hazard’s threshold (e.g., the threshold was 0.1, and the value was 0.05) the value for skin corrosion 1 might be multiplied by an enhancement factor (e.g., 10X) and added to the hazard value of skin corrosion 2, so that when skin corrosion 2 was calculated the system would be able to consider the contribution of the ingredient(s) which were classified as potentially posing the more serious hazard. [0029] Variations on methods such as illustrated in figure 1 may also be possible in some embodiments. For example, in some embodiments, when an object (e.g., a preparation, a component) representing multiple ingredients is defined, that object may be immediately associated with a list of its ingredients, in which case the determination of ingredients 102 may be performed by a simple database lookup rather than through a procedure such as described in the context of figure 1. As another example, rather than iteratively looping through a set of hazard classifications as described in the context of figure 1, some embodiments may iterate through the ingredients and determine the impact on each hazard classification as each ingredient is evaluated. As yet another example, in some embodiments there may not be separate determinations of ingredients and determinations of the impact of those ingredients on the hazard classification, but instead those tasks may be combined. Exemplary pseudo-code for a recursive tree traversal implementation of this type of approach is provided below in table 1.

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Table 1: Exemplary pseudo-code for a recursive tree-traversal hazard calculation implementation such as may be used in some embodiments.

[0030] Of course, it should be understood that the pseudo-code listed above in table 1 is intended to be illustrative only, and should not be treated as the only way contemplated for recursive tree traversal to potentially be implemented (in embodiments which utilize recursive tree traversal at all). For example, it is possible that a recursive tree traversal algorithm could be implemented using other types of programming paradigms, such as procedural programming instead of object oriented programming. Similarly, some embodiments may use implementations of recursive tree traversal which involve separate determinations of ingredients and hazards. For example, some embodiments may use recursive tree traversal to identify ingredients and follow with calculation of hazard classifications using iterative loops such as discussed in the context of figure 1. In general, there are numerous ways for calculating hazards which may be used in some embodiments and the description above is provided only by way of illustrative example and numerous modifications and alternate embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, recursive tree traversal pseudo-code set forth above in table 1 should not be treated as implying limitations on the protection afforded by this document or any other document which claims the benefit of this disclosure.

[0031] Turning now to figure 2, that figure illustrates an exemplary screen such as might be used in some embodiments to allow a user to define the physical and format parameters of a label to create for kit containing potentially hazardous preparations. As reflected in figure 2, such a screen could include a template selector 201 operable by the user to select a pre-defined template to use for the label, as well as various structural selectors such a stock selector 202, a coating selector 203, and an adhesive selector 204. The screen of figure 2 also includes administrative information for the label, such as what approval it would be subjected to, if the approval had happened yet, who updated the label, when that update occurred, etc. With this type of information, some embodiments may support a controlled approach to creation and dissemination of communication materials, instead of (or in addition to) allowing those communication materials to be created in an easier and more accurate manner.

[0032] Tuning next to figure 3, that figure illustrates an exemplary screen such as might be used in some embodiments to allow a user to define content for a label. As can be seen in figure 3, this content can be accompanied by a language marker 301 indicating the language whose speakers would be expected to understand the label content being defined. In some embodiments, there may be functionality to allow a user to create label content in multiple languages (e.g., a selector could be used to select the language to be defined, accompanied by screens such as shown in figure 3 for each of the relevant languages). Alternatively, in some embodiments once a user has defined English label text he or she could be given a tool (e.g., a control, such as a button or set of buttons) which could be used to automatically request that the text he or she specified be translated into any other language(s) that are spoken in markets where products bearing the label would be likely to be shipped. However localization is handled though, preferably in embodiments where labels may be created in multiple languages (or where a single label with information in multiple languages might be created) a system implemented based on this disclosure will not allow a label to be submitted (e.g., for consideration by an approval workflow and/or for printing and application to manufactured products) until the label content had been created/translated in all relevant languages.

[0033] Figures 4 and 5 provide further exemplary screens which may be used in some embodiments to define information for a label such as could be applied to a kit, while figure 6 indicates how a label template populated with information such as indicated in figures 3-5 may be presented to a user. For example, figure 6 illustrates that the label could include manufacturing address 601 and European Community representative address 602 such as could have been specified using an interface as shown in figure 4 and then automatically populated into the label in locations specified by the applicable template. Similarly, figure 6 illustrates that the label could include a corrosion symbol 603 and a caution symbol 604, such as may have been specified in an interface such as shown in figure 5. In this way, a user (e.g., a user defining content for a label, or an approver after a label had been created) could see the appearance of a label and identify and remediate any issues relatively early in the material creation process.

[0034] Of course, as indicated previously, in some embodiments, aspects of the disclosed technology might be used for creating additional types of documents beyond labels for products and/or their components. For example, screens similar to those shown in figures 3-5 may be used in some embodiments to specify transportation information such as might be included in a safety data sheet for a product. An example of this type of screen is show in figure 7. Excerpts from an exemplary safety data sheet (prior to approval) such as may be created using some embodiments are presented in figures 8-9. As can be seen in figures 8-9, such a safety data sheet may include information such as a department of transportation hazard classification 801 which, in some embodiments, may have been populated in a screen such as shown in figure 7. Additionally, a safety data sheet such as excerpted in figures 8-9 may also include information which is common with a label, such as corrosion and caution symbols 603 604. In some embodiments, this type of common information may be automatically populated for each type of document it is to be included in, thereby both facilitating document creation and avoiding inconsistencies which could be introduced by prior art processes of manually creating individual documents. [0035] Turning now to figure 10, that figure illustrates an exemplary environment in which some embodiments may be deployed. In an environment such as shown in figure 10, a user may use a workstation 1001 to access a remote server 1002 which in turn might retrieve appropriate information (e.g., ingredient hazard information) from a database 1003. In some embodiments deployed in this type of environment, the workstation 1001 may display screens such as shown in figures 2-5 and 7, while the remote server 1002 might perform processing tasks such as the determination 102 of ingredients for a preparation. The environment of figure 10 also includes a number of additional servers 1004 1005 1006, which may be deployed in certain embodiments to perform various specific tasks and/or to provide certain additional information· For example, in some embodiments, separate servers 1004 1005 1006 may be used to host dedicated applications for creating labels and/or data sheets, or could store help files or documentation. Also, as shown in figure 10, in some embodiments there may be an external server 1007 separate from the others by a firewall 1008. In embodiments where is it present, such an external server 1007 could be used to host a website where information materials (e.g., data sheets, labels, etc.) created using aspects of the disclosed technology could be published (e.g., made available for viewing and/or download) after they had been approved by whatever internal approvers were appropriate for their specific circumstances.

[0036] Of course, it should be understood that figure 10 is intended to be illustrative only, and that some embodiments may be deployed in environments which vary from the environment shown in figure 10. As one example of such a variation, consider a case where the remote server 1002 and the workstation 1001 are both deployed as part of the internal network of an organization which makes use of aspects of the disclosed technology (e.g., a chemical products manufacturer), but there is a desire for users to be able to use the disclosed technology even when they are operating outside of the organization’s network. In order to support this type of use case, in some embodiments, there may be an additional server which provides functionality similar to what could be provided by the remote server 1002 inside the organization in the form of a web application, so that users would have more flexibility in when and how they could work to generate hazard classifications and/or communication materials. Variations with fewer components are possible as well. For example, in some embodiments, rather than having multiple additional servers 1004 1005 1006, it is possible that the functionality which would otherwise be provided by those additional servers (e.g., document creation, storage of help information, etc.) could be consolidated on the remote server 1002 which would interface with a user’s workstation 1001. Other variations are also possible, and will be immediately apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in light of the material disclosed explicitly herein. Accordingly, the above discussion of environments where aspects of the disclosed technology could be deployed should be treated as illustrative only, and should not be treated as implying limitations on the protection provided by this document or any other document which claims the benefit of this document or its disclosure.

[0037] Variations may also be possible in processes which some embodiments may perform, rather than only in environments where the disclosed technology may be deployed. For example, the above disclosure described a method in which hazard information for ingredients comprised by a preparation was already available when communication materials for a product comprising that preparation needed to be made. However, in some embodiments it may be possible to initiate creation of communication materials (e.g., a label) even when hazard information for a product’s ingredients was not yet available. In some embodiments where this is possible, it may be done by allowing a user who is creating communication materials (e.g., a label) to identify if hazard information is not available for a particular ingredient and then request another user who was responsible for defining that information (e.g., a chemist) to add the necessary data so that work on the communication material for the product could be completed.

[0038] Further variations on, features for, and potential implementations and applications of the inventors’ technology will be apparent to, and could be practiced without undue experimentation by, those of ordinary skill in the art in light of this disclosure. Accordingly, neither this document, nor any document which claims the benefit of this document’s disclosure, should be treated as being limited to the specific embodiments of the inventor’s technology which are described herein.

[0039] As used herein, the singular forms“a”,“an”, and“the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. The invention has now been described in detail for the purposes of clarity and understanding. However, it will be appreciated that certain changes and modifications may be practiced within the scope of the appended claims.

[0040] As used herein, the term“machine” refers to a device or combination of devices.

[0041] As used herein,“means for determining a set of classifications for a chemical preparation based on information stored in the database without any manual intervention” should be understood as a limitation set forth as a means for performing a specified function as provided for in 35 U.S.C. § 112(f), where the function is“determining a set of classifications for a chemical preparation based on information stored in the database without any manual intervention,” and the corresponding structure is a computer configured as described herein in the context of figure 1 and table 1.

[0042] As used herein, the term“set” refers to a number, group, or combination of zero or more things of similar nature, design, or function.

[0043] As used herein, a statement that a thing is done“without any manual intervention” means that the thing is done automatically.

[0044] As used herein, the term“based on” means that something is determined at least in part by the thing that it is indicated as being“based on.” To indicate that something must be completely determined based on something else, it would be described as being based“exclusively” on whatever it is completely determined by.

[0045] As used herein, modifiers such as“first,”“second,” and so forth are simply labels used to improve readability, and are not intended to imply any temporal or substantive difference between the items they modify. For example, referring to items as a“first program” and a“second program” in the claims should not be understood to indicate that the“first program” is created first, or that the two programs would necessarily cause different things to happen when executed by a computer. Similarly, when used in the claims, the words“computer” and“server” should be understood as being synonyms, with the different terms used to enhance the readability of the claims and not to imply any physical or functional difference between items referred to using those different terms.