Data Curation Function

The data curation system under consideration for RCOS, while also collaborating with GakuNin RDM and WEKO3, will realize an external collaboration system for data curation by providing a human network infrastructure for data curators in various fields belonging to inter-university research institutions and research organizations and support staff from university libraries and other institutions. Institutions participating in the network will be able to conduct data curation through this system, even in fields for which they do not have appropriate data curators. This will free researchers from the particularly burdensome task of publishing research data and create an environment in which they can concentrate on their research.

In order to increase the value of using research data, it is necessary to process the data into an approriate form at that can be interpreted by researchers in other fields and citizens, and to give it rich metadata, based on international standards such as the FAIR Data Principles. On the other hand, in order to carry out such data curation, it is essential to have the cooperation of researchers and data curators who have specialized knowledge in data formulation (organizing data in accordance with some standards) and metadata assignment. The data curation system will connect researchers with data curators belonging to the participating institutions of the network, enabling them to receive professional data curation services even if they do not have appropriate data curators at their institution.

To meet the demands for data curation that cannot be covered by a single institution, the data curation system will provide a human network infrastructure of data curators in various fields belonging to inter-university research institutions and research organizations and support staff at university libraries and other institutions. University libraries will be able to aggregate curation needs from researchers at their institutions and request data curators from other institutions to curate research data in various fields. The data curation system will provide not only the basic functions of registering and assigning appropriate data curators and managing the use of mutual curation services but also provide advanced functions such as workflow management, reporting data curator activity results, and the issuance of certification marks for FAIR-compliant data.