Printing authority management system, information management device and printing authority management program

Abstract

The labor of additional purchase of printing rights based on a prepaid method is eliminated, thereby improving convenience. A printing service providing system (1) receives a purchase request for printing rights corresponding to a user's operation in S65, grants the printing rights to a corresponding user or a multifunction device (200) in S75, adds the number of recharged sheets corresponding to the printing rights to the number of printable sheets of the multifunction device (200) in S80, and performs automatic recharge not based on the user's purchase request when specified conditions are met in S25 and S45.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a printing authority management system, an information management device and a printing authority management program for managing printing authority in a printing device. Background Art

[0002] In printing services where a user of a printing device pays a fee corresponding to the printed content to a service provider, a prepaid fee system is sometimes introduced. Conventionally, for example, as described in Patent Document 1, there is a known technology in which a user can purchase printing authority for a fee and print with a specified printing volume guaranteed by the purchased printing authority as an upper limit.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2021-68372 Summary of the invention

[0006] Problems to be solved by the invention

[0007] In the above-mentioned previous technology, when the printing process based on the guaranteed print volume guaranteed by the printing authority is completed and the upper limit value that can be printed in the printing device, that is, the allowed print volume, becomes zero, the user can continue printing by purchasing new printing authority and increasing the allowed print volume by adding the guaranteed print volume guaranteed by the printing authority.

[0008] However, if a user who prints based on a guaranteed print volume in a prepaid method frequently makes additional purchases of the above-mentioned printing rights, the user's labor increases.

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide a printing authority management system, an information management device, and a printing authority management program for printing authority that can improve convenience by eliminating the labor of additionally purchasing printing authority based on a prepaid method.

[0010] Means for solving problems

[0011] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention is a printing authority management system, comprising: a terminal device; and an information management device, comprising a communication I / F and a control unit, wherein the communication I / F can communicate with the printing device and the terminal device via a network, the printing device can perform printing with the allowed printing amount as the upper limit, and the control unit manages the printing device and can increase the allowed printing amount according to the specified guaranteed printing amount guaranteed by the printing authority obtained by the user by paying money, wherein the control unit of the information management device performs: purchase acceptance processing, accepting a purchase request for the printing authority corresponding to the operation of the user at the terminal device; authority granting processing, granting the printing authority accepted in the purchase acceptance processing to the corresponding user or the printing device; print amount addition processing, adding the guaranteed printing amount corresponding to the printing authority accepted in the purchase acceptance processing to the allowed printing amount of the printing device; and automatic purchase processing, executing automatic purchase of the printing authority not based on the purchase request of the user at the terminal device when specified conditions are met.

[0012] The printing authority management system of the present invention has a terminal device and an information management device, and manages the printing authority in the printing device. The user can perform printing in a so-called prepaid manner by paying money to obtain the printing authority. The printing device is configured to perform printing with the allowed printing amount as the upper limit. The control unit of the information management device can increase the allowed printing amount according to the specified guaranteed printing amount guaranteed by the printing authority obtained by the user.

[0013] The control unit of the print management device of the present invention executes a purchase acceptance process, an authority granting process, and a print quantity addition process.

[0014] In the purchase acceptance process, a purchase request for the above-mentioned printing authority corresponding to the operation of the user at the terminal device is accepted. The printing authority obtained by accepting the purchase request is granted to the corresponding user or printing device in the authority granting process. In the print quantity addition process, the guaranteed print quantity corresponding to the printing authority obtained by accepting the purchase request is added to the allowed print quantity of the printing device. By adding the allowed print quantity, the upper limit value of the amount that can be printed in the printing device can be increased.

[0015] By executing the printing process one by one, the upper limit of the printable amount in the printing device, i.e., the above-mentioned allowable print volume, is reduced. If the specified conditions are met, the control unit of the printing management device performs automatic purchase processing. In the automatic purchase processing, the automatic purchase of the printing authority is performed without the purchase request of the user at the above-mentioned terminal device.

[0016] According to the present invention, since the printing authority is automatically purchased in a prepaid manner based on the satisfaction of a predetermined condition, the labor of additional purchase by operating the user's terminal device can be eliminated, thereby improving convenience.

[0017] Effects of the Invention

[0018] According to the present invention, the labor of additionally purchasing printing rights based on the prepaid method can be eliminated, thereby improving convenience. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] Figure 1 This is a functional block diagram showing the overall schematic configuration of the print service providing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 2 It is a functional block diagram showing the schematic structure of a mobile terminal.

[0021] Figure 3 This is a diagram showing the overall network configuration of the print service providing system.

[0022] Figure 4 This is a diagram showing an example of screen transitions in a mobile terminal.

[0023] Figure 5 This is a diagram schematically showing an event management table stored in the management server.

[0024] Figure 6 This is a flowchart showing an example of a control process executed by a processor of a management server.

[0025] Figure 7 It is a diagram showing an example of screen transition in the mobile terminal according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] Figure 8 This is a diagram schematically showing an event management table.

[0027] Fig. 9 This is a flowchart showing an example of a control process executed by a processor of a management server.

[0028] Fig.10 This is a diagram showing an example of screen transition of a mobile terminal in a modified example of correcting the number of printable sheets after periodic automatic recharge. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] Please refer to the attached Figure 1 Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

[0030] <First Embodiment>

[0031] First, use Figure 1 to Figure 6 The first embodiment of the present invention is described below. Figure 1 2 shows a system configuration of a print service providing system according to the present embodiment. The present embodiment is a print service providing system 1 that can provide a prepaid print service in which a user as a customer pays a fee in advance to use the print function of a multifunction machine 200.

[0032] <Overview of Print Service Providing System>

[0033] exist Figure 1 In the embodiment, the printing service providing system 1 includes a management server 100, a multifunction machine 200, a mobile terminal 300, and a transaction server 400. The management server 100, the multifunction machine 200, the mobile terminal 300, and the transaction server 400 are connected to a network NT including a mobile phone communication line and can communicate with each other. It should be noted that the printing service providing system 1 is an example of a printing authority management system, the multifunction machine 200 is an example of a printing device, and the mobile terminal 300 is an example of a terminal device.

[0034] <Management Server>

[0035] The management server 100 is a server installed and managed by the manufacturer of the multifunction device 200, for example, and includes a processor 110, a storage device 115, and a communication interface 190. The processor 110, the storage device 115, and the communication interface 190 are connected to each other via a bus 105. The management server 100 is an example of an information management device.

[0036] The storage device 115 includes a volatile storage device 120 and a nonvolatile storage device 130. The volatile storage device 120 is, for example, a DRAM, and stores various programs and data to be processed. The nonvolatile storage device 130 is, for example, a hard disk drive or a solid state drive, and has a program storage area 131 and a data storage area 132.

[0037] Various programs are stored in the program storage area 131. For example, the data storage area 132 stores Figure 5 , Figure 8 As shown in the figure, the event management table stores information related to various events that the user has executed in the past for the print service as a history.

[0038] The processor 110 is a device for performing data processing, such as a CPU, and executes various programs including the program related to the prepaid printing service of this embodiment stored in the program storage area 131. The processor 110 performs various processes including data communication with the mobile terminal 300, the multifunction machine 200, and the transaction server 400 connected to the network NT. The processor 110 cooperates with the mobile terminal 300 to execute the purchase of the printing authority by the printing service providing system 1 of this embodiment. The processor 110 and the program stored in the above-mentioned program storage area 131 are an example of a control unit.

[0039] The communication interface 190 is a wired LAN interface or a wireless interface for communicating with other devices, and is connected to the network NT. The communication interface 190 is an example of a communication I / F.

[0040] It should be noted that the above-mentioned storage device 115 is not limited to the structure implemented by the above-mentioned device elements, for example, it can also be composed of removable recording media such as RAM, ROM, EEPROM, HDD, USB memory loaded and unloaded relative to the mobile terminal 300, a buffer possessed by the processor 110, etc., or a combination thereof.

[0041] It should be noted that the storage device 115 may also be a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium is a non-transitory medium. In addition to the above examples, non-transitory media also include recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs. In addition, non-transitory media are also tangible media.

[0042] The same applies to the storage device 215 of the multifunction peripheral 200 described later.

[0043] <Multifunctional machine>

[0044] The multifunction machine 200 is owned by, for example, a printing service provider or a user that provides the above-mentioned prepaid printing service. The multifunction machine 200 includes a scanning unit 280, a printing unit 290, a processor 210, a storage device 215, a display unit 240, an operation unit 250, a communication unit 285, and a communication interface 270. The scanning unit 280, the printing unit 290, the processor 210, the storage device 215, the display unit 240, the operation unit 250, the communication unit 285, and the communication interface 270 are connected to each other via a bus 205.

[0045] The storage device 215 includes a volatile storage device 220 and a nonvolatile storage device 230. The volatile storage device 220 is, for example, a DRAM, and includes an image data storage area 222 for storing image data of a print target. The nonvolatile storage device 230 is, for example, a flash memory, and includes a program storage area 232. Various programs are stored in the program storage area 232 as, for example, firmware. The storage device 215 stores a multifunction device ID for identifying the multifunction device 200.

[0046] The processor 210 is a device that performs data processing, such as a CPU, and executes various programs stored in the program storage area 232 .

[0047] The display unit 240 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, and can display various information. The operation unit 250 is a device for accepting user operations. The user can input various instructions to the multifunction machine 200 by operating the operation unit 250. The communication interface 270 is a wired or wireless network interface for communicating with other devices, and is connected to the network NT.

[0048] The scanner unit 280 optically reads a document as a reading object by using a photoelectric conversion element such as a CCD or a CMOS, and generates scan data representing the read image.

[0049] The printing unit 290 takes out the paper from the paper feed tray and transports it using a transport mechanism (not shown), and prints an image on the transported paper in a predetermined manner. The following description takes the case of printing using an inkjet method as an example. The printing unit 290 forms an image on the paper using the liquid ink of the ink cartridge detachably mounted in the ink cartridge holder (not shown) according to the print job sent from the mobile terminal 300 or the print job generated by itself based on the operation of the operation unit 250.

[0050] The communication unit 285 is, for example, a terminal, and is electrically connected to a cartridge memory (IC chip) included in the ink cartridge mounted in the cartridge holder.

[0051] <Mobile Terminal>

[0052] exist Figure 2 The system structure of the mobile terminal 300 is shown in FIG. Figure 2 In the example, the mobile terminal 300 is a mobile terminal such as a smartphone owned by a user, and is connected to the network NT via wireless communication. The mobile terminal 300 includes a CPU 310, a memory 320, a communication control unit 330 for connecting to the network NT via wireless communication, a touch panel 340, and a large-capacity storage device 350.

[0053] The large-capacity storage device 350 is, for example, a flash memory, and includes a program storage area 351 and a data storage area 352. The program storage area 351 stores various programs, for example, as firmware. The various programs include Figure 6 The CPU 310 executes the printing authority management program of the present embodiment stored in the program storage area 351. The CPU 310 cooperates with the management server 100 to perform various processes including data communication with the management server 100 connected to the network NT. The user ID issued based on the above program or the above printing service is stored in the data storage area 352 as identification information that can identify the user corresponding to the mobile terminal 300.

[0054] In addition, the mobile terminal 300 uses a touch panel 340 formed by integrating a liquid crystal display and a touch pad to display various information and accept various user operations. The user can input various instructions to the mobile terminal 300 by operating the touch panel 340. An example of the display content of the touch panel 340 will be described later.

[0055] It should be noted that other information terminals such as a tablet computer and a personal computer may be used instead of the mobile terminal 300. Hereinafter, these information terminals are collectively referred to as "mobile terminals" as appropriate. The CPU 310 is an example of a computing unit.

[0056] <Trading Server>

[0057] The transaction server 400 is installed in, for example, a company that provides various online services for network settlement, and includes a processor, a storage device, and a communication interface (not shown) for connecting to the network NT.

[0058] <Prepaid Printing Service>

[0059] In the print service providing system 1 of the present embodiment, the management server 100, the multifunction machine 200, the mobile terminal 300 and the transaction server 400 are connected via the network NT in a manner capable of transmitting and receiving information. Figure 3As shown, a plurality of mobile terminals 300 owned by a plurality of users and a plurality of multifunction machines 200 installed in various places individually send and receive information to and from the management server 100. The management server 100 centrally manages events that are respectively performed from the plurality of mobile terminals 300 to the plurality of multifunction machines 200. Events are purchase or acquisition of printing authority, execution of printing to a designated multifunction machine 200, and the like. The management server 100 executes these events according to instructions from the mobile terminals 300, and automatically executes these events when prescribed conditions are satisfied.

[0060] In the present embodiment, the printing service provided by the printing service providing system 1 is a prepaid printing service. The prepaid printing service is a service in which the number of recharged sheets guaranteed by the printing authority purchased in advance by the user is added to the number of printable sheets of the target multifunction machine 200, and the printing process in the multifunction machine 200 can be executed with the printable number of sheets as the upper limit. The recharged number of sheets is an example of the guaranteed printing amount, and the printable number of sheets is an example of the permissible printing amount.

[0061] In the print service providing system 1 of the present embodiment, as a method of purchasing the print authority, first, the print authority can be purchased based on a purchase request from a user.

[0062] The purchase of the printing authority based on the purchase request of the user is performed in the following manner: according to the operation of the user, the purchase application of the printing authority is sent from the mobile terminal 300 to the management server 100, and the management server 100 accepts the purchase application. At this time, the purchase of the printing authority is performed at any timing desired by the user. At this time, the user selects any of a plurality of recharge services with different prices and purchase units, such as 10 recharge sheets = 100 yen, 30 sheets = 280 yen, 50 sheets = 450 yen, and purchases the corresponding printing authority.

[0063] It should be noted that, in this example, the printing authority corresponding to the recharge service purchased by the user is obtained in a form of establishing a correspondence with the multifunction machine 200 specified by the user, and the number of recharged sheets guaranteed by the printing authority is added to the number of printable sheets of each multifunction machine 200. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the printing authority may be obtained in a form of establishing a correspondence with the user (specifically, the user ID), and the number of recharged sheets is added to the number of printable sheets of each user ID.

[0064] The purchase of the printing authority based on the purchase request of the user is hereinafter appropriately referred to as "manual recharge".

[0065] <Example of using manual charging at a mobile terminal>

[0066] As an example, using Figure 4(a) to (c) are used to explain the screen displayed on the touch panel 340 of the mobile terminal 300 and the user's operation when manually recharging using the above-mentioned prepaid printing service.

[0067] First, if the user starts the dedicated application related to the printing authority management program in the mobile terminal 300, the Figure 4 The screen 340A shown in (a) of FIG. 340A displays a "charge" button for instructing the execution of manual charging of the multifunction machine ID "No. 026" that the user can select as a target for use and a "print" button for instructing the execution of printing.

[0068] If the user presses the "Recharge" button in screen 340A, Figure 4 The screen 340B shown in (b) is transferred. In this example, the screen 340B displays buttons indicating the respective charging services of "10 sheets / 100 yen", "30 sheets / 280 yen", and "50 sheets / 450 yen", and any one of these three charging services can be selected.

[0069] For example, if the user operates the "10 sheets / 100 yen" button in the screen 340B, Figure 4 The screen 340C shown in (c) is transferred. In the screen 340C, a message "10 prints added to the following devices" is displayed, and it is displayed that the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 "No. 026" selected by the user has increased by 10 sheets to 10 sheets by operating the above button.

[0070] At this time, select Figure 4 An operation of any of the buttons representing the various charging services displayed on the screen 340B of (b) is an example of a purchase request.

[0071] The manual recharge performed by the above-mentioned operation is performed when the user newly purchases the print authority or when the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 associated with the newly purchased print authority decreases and the user purchases additional print authority in accordance with the user's will.

[0072] It should be noted that Figure 4 (d) to (h) will be described later.

[0073] <Features of the embodiment>

[0074] For example, as described above, after the user newly purchases the print authority by manual recharging, if the user purchases additional print authority by manual recharging every time the number of printable sheets of the corresponding multifunction machine 200 decreases, it takes time each time and the burden on the user increases.

[0075] Therefore, in the printing service providing system 1 of this embodiment, as another method of purchasing printing rights other than the above-mentioned manual recharge, automatic purchase of printing rights not based on a purchase request from a user can be performed. Hereinafter, the above-mentioned automatic purchase of printing rights not based on a purchase request from a user is appropriately referred to as "automatic recharge".

[0076] That is, after the user purchases a new printing right by manual recharge, the management server 100 automatically executes the automatic recharge when the management server determines that the prescribed condition is satisfied. In this case, the timing of executing the automatic recharge is the timing of satisfying the prescribed condition. In this example, as an example of the prescribed condition, the automatic purchase is executed when the number of printable sheets of the target multifunction machine 200 becomes less than a prescribed threshold.

[0077] As described later, in this embodiment, automatic purchase is performed at two timings: when the number of printable sheets becomes less than 5 sheets and when the number of printable sheets becomes 0 sheets. However, the present invention is not limited to this example, and for example, automatic purchase may be performed only when the number of printable sheets becomes 0 sheets. It is also possible to allow the user to freely set whether automatic recharge is performed when the number of printable sheets reaches a certain number.

[0078] In this example, the recharge service for automatic recharge is preset to one. Specifically, it is preset to automatically purchase the recharge service of "30 tickets = 280 yen". This setting can also be changed by the user at will through operations based on the mobile terminal 300. Or, for example, it can be set to automatically purchase the recharge service with the least number of recharge tickets among the recharge services that the user can select (in the above example, the recharge service of "10 tickets = 100 yen").

[0079] <Event Management Table>

[0080] In this embodiment, in order to purchase the printing authority as described above, the management server 100 manages events indicating the user's usage trend of the multifunction machine 200 in the form of an event management table. Figure 5 Examples of event management tables are shown in (a) to (c).

[0081] exist Figure 5 In the event management table (a) to (c) of FIG. 1 , the events instructed from one mobile terminal 300 to the management server 100 are recorded in the order in which the events are executed, with the multifunction device 200 having the multifunction device ID No. 026 as the target.

[0082] The recorded items include the content of the event executed, the date of execution, the target MFP ID, the content of the authority obtained by the MFP 200 through the event, the price for obtaining the authority, the increase or decrease in the number of printable sheets, and the current number of printable sheets at the time point after each event is executed.

[0083] It should be noted that, in the event management table, identification information about the user of the mobile terminal 300 is not displayed, but it may be displayed.

[0084] <Specific example of purchasing printing rights>

[0085] The following is a specific example of purchasing the printing authority in this embodiment. Figure 4 (d)~ Figure 4 (h) and Figure 5 And explain it specifically.

[0086] <When automatic recharge is performed when the number of printable sheets is 5>

[0087] For example, if the user passes the Figure 4 After purchasing 30 recharge tickets using manual recharge as described in (a) to (c) of Figure 4 If the "Print" button is operated in the screen 340A of (a), 20 sheets of printing are executed in the above-mentioned multifunction machine 200. As a result, Figure 4 As shown in the screen 340D of (d), it is displayed that the number of printable sheets after the multifunction peripheral 200 executes printing has become 10 sheets.

[0088] Thereafter, if the user again operates the “Print” button to print five sheets in the multifunction machine 200, when the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 reaches five, the touch panel 340 displays, for example, Figure 4 The screen 340E shown in (e) of FIG. 340E displays that the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 has become 5 sheets, a message "Automatic recharge?" requesting permission for automatic purchase, and "OK" and "No" buttons. The display content of the screen 340E including these messages and buttons is an example of a permission request.

[0089] If the user presses the "OK" button in screen 340E, Figure 4 The screen 340F shown in (f) is transferred. The screen 340F displays that the automatic recharge is completed, a message "30 prints have been added to the following devices", the ID of the multifunction machine 200 that is the target of the automatic recharge, and the result of the recharge that the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 has become 35.

[0090] It should be noted that in this example, the screen 340F is transferred by pressing the "OK" button for allowing automatic purchase in the screen 340E, but it is also possible not to request the permission of automatic purchase. In this case, the screen 340E is not displayed, and the automatic purchase is executed at the timing when the number of printable sheets reaches 5 sheets, and the screen 340F is displayed on the touch panel 340.

[0091] Figure 5 The event management table shown in (a) is an example corresponding to the above-mentioned behavior. First, on January 18, 2021, a new recharge service of 30 sheets was purchased by manual recharge with a consideration of 280 yen. As a result, the corresponding recharged sheets of 30 sheets are obtained as printing rights, and the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 increases by 30 sheets to a total of 30 sheets.

[0092] On January 18, 2021, the same day as the recharge, 20 sheets of printing are executed for the multifunction peripheral 200, and as a result, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 decreases by 20 sheets to 10 sheets. This state corresponds to the screen 340D.

[0093] On the next day, January 19, 2021, 5 more sheets are printed, and the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 is reduced by 5 sheets, and as a result, the number of printable sheets becomes 5 sheets. This state corresponds to the above-mentioned screen 340E. By the user operating the "OK" button in the screen 340E, 30 sheets are automatically recharged by paying the consideration of 280 yen. As a result, the recharged number of 30 sheets is obtained as the printing authority, and the number of printable sheets becomes 35 sheets. This state corresponds to the above-mentioned screen 340F.

[0094] <When automatic recharge is performed when the number of printable sheets is 0>

[0095] On the other hand, if the user operates the "No" button in the above screen 340E, when the user further executes printing of 5 sheets and the number of printable sheets reaches 0, Figure 4 The screen 340G shown in (g) is displayed on the touch panel 340. The screen 340G displays that the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 has become 0, a message "Cannot print", a message "Automatic recharge?" for requesting permission for automatic purchase, and "OK" and "No" buttons. It should be noted that the message "Cannot print" is an example of a report that printing cannot be performed, and the display content of the screen 340G including these messages and buttons is also an example of permission request.

[0096] If the user presses the "OK" button in screen 340G, Figure 4 The screen 340H shown in (h) is displayed. The screen 340H displays that the automatic recharge is completed, "30 additional prints have been added to the following printers.", the ID of the multifunction machine 200 that is the target of the automatic recharge, and that the printable number has become 30 as a result of the recharge.

[0097] Figure 5The event management table shown in (b) is an example corresponding to the above-mentioned behavior. Figure 5 Similarly, on January 18, 2021, 30 sheets of manual recharge and 20 sheets of printing were performed, and on January 19, 5 sheets of printing were performed, and the number of printable sheets became 5 sheets. Figure 5 (a) The screen 340E is displayed in the same manner, but the automatic recharge is not performed because the user operates the "No" button.

[0098] After that, on January 21, 2021, 5 more sheets are printed, and the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 is reduced by 5 sheets, and as a result, the number of printable sheets becomes 0 sheets. This state corresponds to the above-mentioned screen 340G. By the user operating the "OK" button in the screen 340G, 30 sheets are automatically recharged by paying the consideration of 280 yen. As a result, the recharged number of 30 sheets is obtained as the printing authority, and the number of printable sheets becomes 30 sheets. This state corresponds to the above-mentioned screen 340H.

[0099] <If automatic recharge is not performed even if the number of printable sheets is 0>

[0100] On the other hand, if the user operates the "No" button in the above-mentioned screen 340G, the screen returns to the above-mentioned screen 340A. As described above, after the user operates the "Recharge" button in the screen 340A, the user operates any of the "10 sheets / 100 yen", "30 sheets / 280 yen" or "50 sheets / 450 yen" buttons in the screen 340B to perform manual recharge, and the screen moves to the screen 340C or an equivalent screen.

[0101] Figure 5 The event management table shown in (c) is an example corresponding to the above-mentioned behavior. Figure 5 Similarly, on January 18, 2021, 30 sheets of manual recharge and 20 sheets of printing were performed, on January 19, 5 sheets of printing were performed, and on January 21, 5 sheets of printing were further performed, and the number of printable sheets became 0 sheets. Figure 5 (b) The screen 340G is displayed in the same manner, but the automatic recharge is not performed because the user operates the "No" button.

[0102] In this example, on January 21, the user operated the "10 sheets / 100 yen" button in the screen 340B transferred from the screen 340A, and manually recharged 10 sheets by paying 100 yen. As a result, the recharged number of 10 sheets is obtained as the printing authority, and the printable number of sheets becomes 10 sheets.

[0103] <Selection of executing / not executing automatic recharge>

[0104] It should be noted that the printing service providing system 1 includes the automatic recharge function as described above, but the user can also be allowed to appropriately choose whether to use the automatic recharge function. Based on the user's appropriate operation on the mobile terminal 300, the selection of execution / non-execution of the automatic recharge function is accepted by the processor 110 of the management server 100. The processing performed by the processor 110 at this time is an example of the selection acceptance processing. The processor 100 only performs the automatic recharge as described above when the execution of the automatic recharge function is accepted, and does not perform the automatic recharge when the non-execution of the automatic recharge is accepted.

[0105] <Control Process>

[0106] use Figure 6 An example of a control process executed by the processor 110 of the management server 100 to implement the above-mentioned method in this embodiment is described with reference to a flowchart. The processor 110 starts execution of the process when the multifunction device 200 and the mobile terminal 300 are online with respect to the management server 100, for example.

[0107] First, in S5, the processor 110 sets the printable number flag F to F = 0, which indicates that the printable number is in a state where printing should be limited. Thus, printing is limited until the printable number is set by recharging and purchasing.

[0108] In S10, processor 110 determines whether the user has issued a print instruction to MFP 200 via mobile terminal 300. If processor 110 determines that a print instruction has been issued, the process proceeds to S15. On the other hand, if processor 110 does not determine that a print instruction has been issued, the process proceeds to S60 described later.

[0109] In S15, the processor 110 determines whether the printable sheet number flag F is 1, which indicates that printing does not need to be restricted. If it is determined that F=1, the process moves to S20 to execute printing. On the other hand, if it is not determined that F=1, printing is restricted, and the process moves to S65 described later.

[0110] In S20, the processor 110 outputs an appropriate print control signal to the multifunction machine 200 to which the print instruction was given in S10 via the mobile terminal 300, and executes the desired printing in the multifunction machine 200. Alternatively, the mobile terminal 300 may directly output a print control signal to the multifunction machine 200 to execute printing, and the processor 110 of the management server 100 may obtain information indicating the execution status of the printing.

[0111] At this time, the processor 110 reduces the number of printable sheets in the multifunction peripheral 200 according to the print volume printed in S20 .

[0112] In S25, the processor 110 determines whether the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 at that time point, which has been reduced in S20 as described above, has reached a predetermined threshold. It should be noted that, in accordance with the above example, the threshold is set to 5 sheets in this example. The processing executed by the processor 110 in S25 is an example of the permissible print amount determination processing.

[0113] If the processor 110 determines that the printable number of sheets has reached the predetermined threshold, the process proceeds to S30 . On the other hand, if the processor 110 does not determine that the printable number of sheets has reached the predetermined threshold, the process proceeds to S90 described later.

[0114] In S30, the processor 110 displays, for example, Figure 4 The screen 340E of (e) shows a permission request screen including a message, a button, etc. requesting permission for automatic recharge. The process executed by the processor 110 in S30 is an example of a permission request process.

[0115] In S35, the processor 110 determines whether the user has permitted the automatic recharge. Figure 4 The "OK" button in the screen 340E of (e) is operated or the "NO" button is operated. If the processor 110 determines that the "OK" button is operated, the process transfers to S40. On the other hand, if the processor 110 determines that the "NO" button is operated, the process transfers to S45 described later.

[0116] In S40, the processor 110 executes the aforementioned automatic recharge. The touch panel 340 of the mobile terminal 300 displays, for example, Figure 4 The screen 340F of (f) is a screen for reporting the completion of automatic recharge. The process executed by the processor 110 in S40 is an example of automatic purchase processing.

[0117] In S45, the processor 110 determines whether the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 at that time point after being reduced in S20 as described above is 0 sheets. If it is determined that the number of printable sheets is 0 sheets, in S47, a printable sheet number flag F is set to F=0 indicating that the printable sheet number is in a state where printing should be limited, and the process moves to S50. On the other hand, if it is not determined that the printable sheet number is 0 sheets, the process moves to S90 described later. The process executed by the processor 110 in S45 is also an example of the permissible print amount determination process.

[0118] In S50, the processor 110 displays, for example, Figure 4The screen 340G of (g) is a permission request screen for requesting permission for automatic recharge. The process executed by the processor 110 in S50 is also an example of a permission request process.

[0119] In S55, the processor 110 determines whether the user has permitted the automatic recharge. Figure 4 In the screen 340G of (g), the "OK" button or the "NO" button is operated. If the processor 110 determines that the "OK" button is operated, the process transfers to the above-mentioned S40. On the other hand, if the processor 110 determines that the "NO" button is operated, the process transfers to S60.

[0120] In S60, the processor 110 determines whether there is a purchase instruction for the recharge service. Figure 4 The processor 110 determines whether the "charge" button of the screen 340A shown in (a) has been operated. If the processor 110 determines that there is a purchase instruction, the process moves to S65. On the other hand, if the processor 110 determines that there is no purchase instruction, the process moves to S90 described later.

[0121] In S65, the processor 110 displays, for example, a Figure 4 The recharge purchase screen shown in the screen 340B of (b) displays a plurality of recharge services in a selectable manner. In addition, in S65, based on the user's operation of the above three buttons on the screen 340B, a purchase application for any recharge service, i.e., a purchase request, is sent from the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300, and the purchase request is accepted by the processor 110 of the management server 100. The processing step executed by the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300 in S65 is an example of a purchase request step, and the processing executed by the processor 110 of the management server 100 in S65 is an example of a purchase acceptance process.

[0122] In S70, the processor 110 determines whether the user has applied for purchase of any of the above-mentioned charging services in S65. If the user has applied for purchase, the process proceeds to S75.

[0123] In S75, the processor 110 executes manual recharge based on the recharge service applied for in S65. In other words, the processor 110 associates the printing authority corresponding to the recharge service applied for in S65 with the multifunction device 200. The process executed by the processor 110 in S75 is an example of authority granting process.

[0124] In S80, the processor 110 adds the recharged number of sheets corresponding to the recharge service purchased in S65 to the number of printable sheets of the printing device 200, and updates the number of printable sheets. A signal indicating the update result is sent from the management server 100 to the mobile terminal 300, and the updated number of printable sheets ( Figure 4 (f), Figure 4 (h) or Figure 4 (c)).

[0125] The processing sequence executed by CPU 310 of mobile terminal 300 in S80 is an example of a summing display step, and the processing executed by processor 110 in S80 is an example of a print quantity summing process.

[0126] In S85 , the processor 110 sets the printable sheet number flag F of the multifunction peripheral 200 to F=1.

[0127] In S90 , processor 110 determines whether to terminate the provision of the prepaid printing service. Specifically, for example, it determines whether an “end” button (not shown) provided on touch panel 340 of mobile terminal 300 is operated or whether the activated dedicated application is terminated.

[0128] If the provision of the prepaid print service is not to be terminated, the process returns to S10 and the same process is repeated. If the provision of the prepaid print service is to be terminated, the flowchart is terminated.

[0129] <Effects of the First Embodiment>

[0130] As described above, the printing service providing system 1 of the present embodiment includes the mobile terminal 300 and the management server 100, and manages the printing authority in the multifunction machine 200. The user can perform printing in a so-called prepaid manner in which the user pays money to obtain the printing authority. The multifunction machine 200 is configured to perform printing with the printable number of sheets as the upper limit. The CPU 110 of the management server 100 can increase the printable number of sheets according to the specified recharge number guaranteed by the printing authority obtained by the user.

[0131] The processor 110 accepts a purchase request for the recharge service corresponding to the user's operation in S65. In S75, a corresponding multifunction machine 200 is established based on the printing authority of the recharge service accepted in S65. In S80, the number of recharged sheets guaranteed by the printing authority of the recharge service accepted in S65 is added to the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 established in S75. By adding the number of recharged sheets, the upper limit value of the amount that can be printed in the multifunction machine 200 can be increased.

[0132] By executing the printing process one by one, the upper limit of the printable number of sheets in the multifunction machine 200 decreases. If the predetermined condition is satisfied, the CPU 110 performs automatic recharge in S40. In the automatic recharge, the automatic purchase of the printing authority is performed without the purchase request of the user in the mobile terminal 300.

[0133] According to the present embodiment, since the automatic purchase of the prepaid printing authority, that is, automatic recharge, is performed based on the satisfaction of a predetermined condition, the labor of additional purchase based on the operation of the user's mobile terminal 300 can be eliminated, thereby improving convenience.

[0134] In the present embodiment, in particular, in S25 and S45, it is determined whether the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 has become equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, and automatic recharging is executed when the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 has become equal to or less than the threshold value.

[0135] According to the present embodiment, there is no worry that the number of printable sheets becomes zero and printing becomes impossible, so the user can freely and leisurely use the multifunction peripheral 200 without noticing the decrease in the number of printable sheets.

[0136] In this embodiment, in particular, before automatic recharge is executed, a permission request for automatic recharge is sent to the mobile terminal 300 in S30 and S50, and automatic recharge is executed when the user permits the request in S55.

[0137] According to this embodiment, the user's intention can be confirmed in advance before automatic recharge is performed. This is particularly effective in the following situations: for example, if automatic recharge is performed without permission, the user will feel uneasy because he cannot understand the amount of payment.

[0138] In the present embodiment, in particular, when the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 becomes zero in S50 , the permission request includes a notification that printing is impossible.

[0139] According to this embodiment, it is possible to notify the user that the number of printable sheets has reached zero and printing has become impossible, and to confirm in advance with the user whether automatic recharging is possible to exit the state where printing is impossible.

[0140] Even if automatic recharge is not permitted for some reason when the number of printable sheets reaches 5 in S30, the automatic recharge can be permitted again when the number of printable sheets reaches zero in S50.

[0141] In addition, in the present embodiment, in particular, the user can freely select whether to use the automatic recharge function based on the operation at the mobile terminal 300. As a result, a usage method that matches the user's preference and situation can be provided.

[0142] <Second Embodiment>

[0143] Next, use Figure 7~Figure 10 The same reference numerals are used for the components equivalent to those of the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted or simplified as appropriate.

[0144] <Features of the Second Embodiment>

[0145] In the present embodiment, the prescribed condition for executing the aforementioned automatic recharge is independent of the value of the number of printable sheets as in the first embodiment described above, and is a situation where a prescribed timing has arrived. That is, for example, automatic recharge is executed at a timing that becomes the 1st of each month. In the present embodiment, the automatic recharge executed on the 1st of each month is appropriately referred to as "regular automatic recharge" below. However, not limited to this example, as a prescribed condition, automatic recharge may also be executed at a timing that a prescribed period such as one month has passed since the last manual recharge or automatic recharge. In addition, the user may also be able to freely set the date for executing regular automatic recharge.

[0146] In addition, in this embodiment, as described later, in addition to the above-mentioned periodic automatic recharge, automatic recharge is also performed using comparison with a predetermined threshold as a predetermined condition, as in the above-mentioned first embodiment. In this example, the automatic recharge (hereinafter appropriately referred to as "additional automatic recharge") is performed when the number of printable sheets becomes less than 5 sheets or 0 sheets.

[0147] <Specific example of purchasing printing rights>

[0148] The following is a specific example of purchasing a printing right based on the above-mentioned periodic automatic recharge, etc. in this embodiment. Figure 7 (a)~ Figure 7 (m) and Figure 8 (a) and Figure 8 (b) is used to explain it in detail.

[0149] <If you continue to perform regular automatic recharge>

[0150] In the state where the regular automatic recharge is already being performed, if, for example, the user is in the same screen as the above-mentioned screen 340A Figure 7 If the "Print" button is operated in the screen 340I of (a), printing is executed in the multifunction machine 200, and then the Figure 7 The screen 340J of (b) is transferred. It should be noted that in this example, the printing execution and transfer are illustrated as being performed on January 18, 2021. In the screen 340J, it is displayed that the number of printable sheets after the above printing execution becomes 15 sheets, and a message indicating that the next scheduled automatic recharge date is February 1, etc.

[0151] It should be noted that, although the illustration is omitted, when the "Recharge" button is operated in screen 340I, as in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the screen is transferred to a screen equivalent to screen 340B, and buttons representing multiple recharge services are displayed in a selectable manner, and then the same processing as the first embodiment is performed.

[0152] Then, when it is February 1 of the next month, touch panel 340 displays, for example, Figure 7 The screen 340K shown in (c) of FIG. 340I shows that after the display state of the above screen 340I, 5 sheets are printed in the multifunction machine 200 and the number of printable sheets becomes 10 sheets, and a message "Regular automatic recharge?" is displayed requesting permission for automatic purchase, and "Yes" and "No" buttons. The display content of the screen 340K including these messages and buttons is an example of a permission request in this embodiment.

[0153] By the user pressing the "OK" button in the screen 340K, Figure 7 The screen 340L shown in (d) is transferred. In the screen 340L, it is displayed that the regular automatic recharge is completed, "30 prints have been added to the following devices", the number of printable sheets has become 40, and "The next regular automatic recharge is scheduled for March 1st."

[0154] It should be noted that in this example, the screen 340L is transferred by pressing the "OK" button for allowing the periodic automatic recharge in the screen 340K, but the permission of the periodic automatic recharge may not be requested. In this case, the screen 340K is not displayed, the periodic automatic recharge is performed at the time of February 1, and the screen 340L is displayed on the touch panel 340.

[0155] After that, in this example, 35 sheets are printed in the multifunction machine 200, and as a result, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 is reduced to 5 sheets by February 20, 2021. Therefore, on February 20, Figure 7 The screen 340M shown in (e) is displayed on the touch panel 340. The screen 340M displays a message indicating that the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 has become 5 sheets, a message "Additional automatic recharge?" requesting permission for automatic purchase, and buttons such as "OK" and "No". The display content of the screen 340M including these messages and buttons is also an example of a permission request in the present embodiment.

[0156] By the user pressing the "OK" button in the screen 340M, Figure 7The screen 340N shown in (f) is transferred. In the screen 340N, it is displayed that the additional automatic recharge has been completed, a message "30 additional prints have been added to the following devices", the number of printable sheets has become 35, and a message "The next regular automatic recharge is scheduled on March 1st."

[0157] It should be noted that, when the user operates the "No" button in the screen 340M, the above-mentioned additional automatic recharge is not performed, and the number of printable sheets is maintained at 5 sheets.

[0158] As described above, additional automatic recharge may be automatically executed when the number of printable sheets reaches 5 without requesting permission, and screen image 340N may be displayed on touch panel 340 .

[0159] Thereafter, in this example, printing of 25 sheets is executed in the multifunction peripheral 200 , and as a result, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 is reduced to 10 sheets by March 1, 2021, the next month.

[0160] If you reach March 1 in this state, for example Figure 7 The screen 340O shown in (g) is displayed on the touch panel 340. The screen 340O displays that after the display state of the above screen 340N, 25 sheets are printed in the multifunction machine 200 and the number of printable sheets has become 10 sheets, and a message "Periodic automatic recharge?" is displayed requesting permission for automatic purchase, and "Yes" and "No" buttons. The display content of the screen 340O including these messages and buttons is also an example of a permission request in the present embodiment.

[0161] By the user pressing the "OK" button in the screen 340O, Figure 7 The screen 340P shown in (h) is transferred. In the screen 340P, as described above, the completion of the regular automatic recharge, the message of adding 30 corresponding prints, the display of 40 printable sheets, and the message that the next scheduled automatic recharge is scheduled on April 1 are displayed.

[0162] It should be noted that, when the user operates the "No" button in the screen 340O, the above-mentioned periodic automatic recharge is not performed, and the number of printable sheets is maintained at 10 sheets.

[0163] In addition, similar to the above, it is not necessary to specifically request permission for automatic purchase. In this case, when March 1, 2021 comes, the regular automatic recharge is automatically executed, and the screen 340P is displayed on the touch panel 340 instead of the screen 340O.

[0164] It should be noted that Figure 7The regular automatic recharge performed before the display time point of screen 340I of (a) (for example, January 1, 2021) is also executed through the same screen changes and operations as above.

[0165] <Event Management Table>

[0166] In the above-mentioned first embodiment Figure 5 Corresponding Figure 8 An example of the event management table in this embodiment is shown in FIG.

[0167] Figure 8 The event management table shown in (a) is the same as the above Figure 7 (a)~ Figure 7 An example corresponding to the behavior of (h). In this example, the service for recharging in the above-mentioned periodic automatic recharge and the above-mentioned additional automatic recharge is pre-set to one, specifically, the recharge service of automatically purchasing "30 tickets = 280 yen" is pre-set. It should be noted that this setting can also be arbitrarily changed by the user through operations based on the mobile terminal 300.

[0168] exist Figure 8 In (a), the above-mentioned 30-sheet recharge service is automatically purchased through regular automatic recharge on January 1, 2021. As a result, the corresponding recharged sheet number 30 sheets are acquired as the printing authority, and the number of sheets that can be printed by the multifunction machine 200 increases by 30 sheets to a total of 30 sheets.

[0169] Thereafter, on January 18, 2021, printing of 15 sheets is executed in the multifunction peripheral 200, and as a result, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 decreases by 15 sheets to 15. This state corresponds to the above-described screen 340J.

[0170] On the next day, January 19, 2021, printing of 5 more sheets is performed, and the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 decreases by 5 sheets, resulting in the number of printable sheets becoming 10 sheets.

[0171] Then, on February 1, 2021, the user presses the "OK" button in the aforementioned screen 340K, thereby automatically purchasing the above-mentioned 30-sheet recharge service through regular automatic recharge. As a result, the corresponding recharged sheets of 30 sheets are obtained as printing rights, and the number of printable sheets becomes 40 sheets. This state corresponds to the aforementioned screen 340L.

[0172] Thereafter, on February 10, 2021, printing of 20 sheets is executed in the multifunction peripheral 200 , and the number of printable sheets decreases by 20 sheets to 20 sheets.

[0173] Furthermore, on February 20, 2021, printing of 15 sheets is performed, and the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 decreases by 15 sheets to 5 sheets.

[0174] The user presses the "OK" button in the aforementioned screen 340M displayed on February 20 when the number of printable sheets becomes 5, thereby automatically purchasing the aforementioned 30-sheet recharge service by adding automatic recharge. As a result, the corresponding recharged number of 30 sheets is obtained as the printing authority, and the number of printable sheets becomes 35. This state corresponds to the aforementioned screen 340N.

[0175] Thereafter, on February 25, 2021, printing of 25 sheets is executed in the multifunction peripheral 200 , and the number of printable sheets is reduced by 25 sheets to 10 sheets.

[0176] Then, on March 1, 2021, the user presses the "OK" button in the aforementioned screen 340O, thereby automatically purchasing the above-mentioned 30-sheet recharge service through regular automatic recharge. As a result, the corresponding recharged sheets of 30 sheets are obtained as printing rights, and the number of printable sheets becomes 40 sheets. This state corresponds to the aforementioned screen 340P.

[0177] <If you temporarily stop the automatic recharge period>

[0178] exist Figure 7 In the screen 340K displayed on February 1, 2021, if the user intends not to perform the regular automatic recharge at that time and presses the "No" button, the above-mentioned Figure 7 (d) The periodic automatic recharge described in the preceding paragraph.

[0179] Then, in this example, 5 sheets are printed in the multifunction machine 200, and as a result, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 is reduced to 5 sheets by February 5, 2021. Therefore, on February 5, Figure 7 The screen 340Q shown in (i) is displayed on the touch panel 340. The screen 340Q displays a message "Additional automatic recharge?" requesting permission for automatic purchase, and buttons such as "Yes" and "No". The display content of the screen 340Q including these messages and buttons is also an example of a permission request in the present embodiment.

[0180] If the user operates the "OK" button in the screen 340Q, although detailed description is omitted, it is the same as using the above Figure 7 On the other hand, if the user operates the "No" button, the above-mentioned additional automatic recharge is not performed, and the state of the printable number of sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 is maintained at 5 sheets.

[0181] After that, in this example, 5 sheets are printed in the multifunction machine 200. As a result, on February 10, 2021, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 is reduced to 0 sheets, and the display of the touch panel 340 changes to Figure 7 The screen 340R shown in (j) is transferred. In the screen 340R, it is displayed that the number of printable sheets of the multifunction machine 200 has become 0, a message "Cannot print. Do you want to add automatic recharge?" and buttons such as "Yes" and "No". The above message displayed at this time is an example of a report that printing cannot be performed, and the display content of the screen 340R including these messages and buttons is also an example of a permission request in this embodiment.

[0182] By the user pressing the "OK" button in the screen 340R, Figure 7 The screen 340S shown in (k) is transferred. In the screen 340S, as in the above screen 340N, it is displayed that the additional automatic recharge has been completed, a message "30 prints have been added to the following devices", the number of printable sheets has become 30, and a message "The next regular automatic recharge is scheduled for March 1st" is displayed.

[0183] Note that, if the user operates the "No" button in the screen 340R, the above-mentioned additional automatic recharge is not performed, and the printable number remains at 0, that is, the multifunction peripheral 200 cannot print if the status quo is maintained.

[0184] As described above, additional automatic recharge may be automatically executed when the number of printable sheets reaches 0 without requesting permission, and screen image 340S may be displayed on touch panel 340 .

[0185] Thereafter, in this example, printing of five sheets is executed in the multifunction peripheral 200 , and as a result, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 is reduced to 25 sheets by March 1, 2021, the next month.

[0186] If you reach March 1 in this state, for example Figure 7 The screen 340T shown in (1) is displayed on the touch panel 340. The screen 340T displays a situation that after the display state of the above screen 340S, 5 sheets are printed in the multifunction machine 200 and the number of printable sheets becomes 25 sheets, a message "Periodic automatic recharge?" requesting permission for automatic purchase, and "OK" and "No" buttons. The display content of the screen 340T including these messages and buttons is also an example of a permission request in the present embodiment.

[0187] By the user pressing the "OK" button in the screen 340T, Figure 7The screen 340U shown in (m) is transferred. In the screen 340U, as described above, the completion of the regular automatic recharge, the message of adding 30 corresponding prints, the display of 55 printable sheets, and the message that the next regular automatic recharge plan date is April 1 are displayed.

[0188] It should be noted that, when the user operates the "No" button in the screen 340T, the above-mentioned periodic automatic recharge is not performed, and the number of printable sheets is maintained at 25 sheets.

[0189] In addition, similar to the above, it is not necessary to specifically request permission for automatic purchase. In this case, when March 1, 2021 comes, the regular automatic recharge is automatically executed, and the screen 340U is displayed on the touch panel 340 instead of the screen 340T.

[0190] <Event Management Table>

[0191] Figure 8 The event management table shown in (b) is the same as the above Figure 7 (i)~ Figure 7 The behavior of (m) corresponds to the example. Figure 8 (b) of the above, until the regular automatic recharge on January 1, 2021, the printing of 15 sheets on January 18, and the printing of 5 sheets on January 19, Figure 8 (a) is the same.

[0192] After that, on February 1, 2021, Figure 8 (a) The screen 340K is displayed in the same manner, but the automatic recharge is not performed because the user operates the "No" button.

[0193] Thereafter, on February 5, 2021, printing of five sheets is executed in the multifunction peripheral 200, and as a result, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 decreases by five sheets to 5. This state corresponds to the above-described screen 340Q.

[0194] The user operated the "No" button in the above-mentioned screen 340M displayed on February 20 when the number of printable sheets became 5, thereby not performing the printing. Figure 8 By further executing printing of 5 sheets on February 10, 2021, the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 is further reduced by 5 sheets to 0 sheets. This state corresponds to the above-mentioned screen 340R.

[0195] The user presses the "OK" button in the aforementioned screen 340R displayed on February 10 when the number of printable sheets becomes 0, thereby automatically purchasing the aforementioned 30-sheet recharge service by adding automatic recharge. As a result, the corresponding recharged number of 30 sheets is obtained as the printing authority, and the number of printable sheets becomes 30. This state corresponds to the aforementioned screen 340S.

[0196] Thereafter, on February 20, 2021, printing of 5 sheets is performed, and the number of printable sheets of the multifunction peripheral 200 decreases by 5 sheets to 25 sheets.

[0197] Then, on March 1, 2021, the user presses the "OK" button in the aforementioned screen 340T, thereby automatically purchasing the above-mentioned 30-sheet recharge service through regular automatic recharge. As a result, the corresponding recharged sheets of 30 sheets are obtained as printing rights, and the number of printable sheets becomes 55 sheets. This state corresponds to the aforementioned screen 340U.

[0198] <Control Process>

[0199] use Fig. 9 An example of a control process executed by the processor 110 of the management server 100 to realize the above-mentioned method in this embodiment is described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0200] First, after Figure 6 Similarly, after S5, in this embodiment, in S6, the processor 110 determines whether the timing of the periodic automatic recharge has arrived (that is, if following the above example, it determines whether it has become the 1st of each month). If it is determined that the above timing has arrived, the processing is transferred to S7. If it is not determined that the above timing has arrived, the processing is transferred to S10 described later. The processing performed by the processor 110 in S6 is an example of timing determination processing.

[0201] In S7, the processor 110 displays, for example, a Figure 7 The screen 340K of (c) shows a screen for requesting permission for periodic automatic recharge.

[0202] In S8, the processor 110 determines whether the user has permitted the execution of the periodic automatic recharge. Figure 7 In the screen 340G of (c), the "OK" button is operated or the "NO" button is operated. If the processor 11 determines that the "OK" button is operated, the processing is forwarded to the above Figure 6 On the other hand, if the processor 110 determines that the "No" button has been operated, the process proceeds to the same step as above. Figure 6 Same with the S10 transfer.

[0203] Afterwards, the processing performed in S10~S90 is Figure 6 It is the same, and the explanation is omitted.

[0204] It should be noted that Figure 6 Similarly, in this embodiment, the processing executed by the processor 110 in S30 and S50 is an example of permission request processing, and the processing executed by the processor 110 in S40 is an example of automatic purchase processing. In addition, the processing executed by the processor 110 in S65 is an example of purchase acceptance processing, the processing executed by the processor 110 in S75 is an example of authority granting processing, and the processing executed by the processor 110 in S80 is an example of print amount addition processing.

[0205] <Effects of the Second Embodiment>

[0206] In this embodiment as well, the same effects as those of the above-mentioned first embodiment can be obtained.

[0207] That is, in S6, as the aforementioned predetermined condition, it is determined whether the predetermined timing has arrived, and based on the result, the purchase of printing rights based on the charging service is automatically performed regardless of whether printing is executed or the number of prints when printing is executed.

[0208] Specifically, in the above example, the specified number of recharged sheets is automatically added to the number of printable sheets on the 1st of each month, so the possibility that the number of printable sheets becomes zero and printing becomes impossible without the user noticing can be reduced. In other words, even if the user does not sign a fixed-amount contract, he or she can obtain the same ease of use as the so-called subscription method that guarantees a specified upper limit number of prints within a specified period based on the signing of a fixed-amount contract.

[0209] In particular, in the case of a prepaid printing service that has no special provisions regarding the application period, the user can also use the above service using periodic automatic recharge only during the desired period. In addition, it is also possible to appropriately change the number of recharged sheets for periodic automatic recharge or to select whether to perform periodic automatic recharge with the user's permission. In this way, various user expectations can be flexibly met.

[0210] In the present embodiment, in addition to the periodic automatic recharge, additional automatic recharge is performed by determining whether the number of printable sheets is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value in S25 and S45.

[0211] This eliminates the user's worry that the number of printable sheets becomes zero and printing becomes impossible. According to the present embodiment, the user can use the multifunction peripheral 200 without noticing the decrease in the number of printable sheets, thereby further improving convenience.

[0212] <Modification>

[0213] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the main purpose and technical concept thereof. Such modifications are described in sequence. The same reference numerals are used for the parts equivalent to the above-mentioned embodiments, and the description is appropriately omitted or simplified.

[0214] (1) When a limit is imposed on the number of sheets that can be printed after periodic automatic recharge

[0215] When the fixed amount automatic recharge is continuously executed by the method of the second embodiment, for example, the following situation may occur: the increase in the number of printable sheets due to the periodic automatic recharge is greater than the decrease in the number of printable sheets due to the user's printing execution, and the number of printable sheets gradually increases.

[0216] In this modification, in order to prevent the number of printable sheets from increasing endlessly, a predetermined transfer-in restriction condition is set for the number of printable sheets. That is, in this modification, after the above-mentioned periodic automatic recharge is performed, if there is a portion of the print volume that exceeds the predetermined transfer-in restriction condition for the number of printable sheets associated with the multifunction machine 200, a correction is performed to subtract the portion of the print volume from the number of printable sheets after the periodic automatic recharge.

[0217] As the transfer-in conditions specified above, there may be, for example, a quantity restriction condition such as limiting the upper limit of the number of recharged sheets relative to the number of printable sheets to a specified number. Alternatively, there may be a time restriction condition such as the number of recharged sheets purchased cannot be transferred in after two months from the date of purchase. Furthermore, by not transferring in the portion of the number of printable sheets that exceeds these restriction conditions, the number of printable sheets is ultimately corrected so as to be within the restriction conditions.

[0218] In this modification, the case where the transfer of the recharged number of sheets is limited in such a manner as to prevent the accumulated printable number of sheets from exceeding the maximum 50 sheets is described as an example. Fig.10 (a) and Fig.10 (b) to illustrate.

[0219] Fig.10 (a) indicates Figure 7 The screen 340T of the touch panel 340 shown in (l) of FIG. As described above, the screen 340T displays that the number of printable sheets has reached 25 and a message "Do you want to recharge automatically on a regular basis?" If the user presses the "OK" button to allow recharging automatically on a regular basis in the screen 340T, in this variant, the message "Do you want to recharge automatically on a regular basis?" is displayed. Fig.10 The screen (b) shows 340W.

[0220] In screen 340W, similar to screen 340U, the message that the periodic automatic recharge has been completed, "30 prints have been added to the following devices." and the message "The next automatic recharge is scheduled for April 1." are displayed. However, in screen 340W of this modification, unlike screen 340U, the message that the number of printable sheets has reached 50 and the message "5 sheets exceeding the limit of 50 sheets have not been added." are displayed.

[0221] That is, in this example, although the original printable number of 25 sheets is automatically recharged by 30 sheets to a total of 55 sheets, the 5 sheets exceeding 50 are subtracted from the printable number of sheets, and the 50 sheets after the subtraction correction are set as the new printable number of sheets.

[0222] In the above, the determination by the processor 110 as to whether or not there is a portion of the printable number of sheets exceeding 50 sheets after the periodic automatic recharge is an example of the limit determination process.

[0223] In addition, the processing performed by the processor 110 to subtract the excess print amount from the printable number of sheets and set the new printable number of sheets is an example of correction processing. Fig. 9 Just execute it in the newly set steps between S80 and S85.

[0224] <Effects of Modification Example>

[0225] In this variation, as described above, if there is a portion of the printable number of sheets after the periodic automatic recharge that exceeds the transfer-in restriction condition, the printable number of sheets after the automatic purchase is subtracted from the printable number of sheets through the above correction processing. According to this variation, excessive transfer-in of the printable number of sheets can be suppressed.

[0226] (2) Others

[0227] In the above description, in the case of automatic recharge, a screen requesting permission from the user is displayed, but automatic recharge may be performed without displaying a screen requesting permission from the user in all or part of the process.

[0228] In the above, Figure 6 , Fig. 9 The flowchart shown does not limit the present invention to the steps shown in the flowchart, and steps may be added / deleted or their order may be changed without departing from the gist and technical concept of the invention.

[0229] In addition to what has been described above, the techniques of the above-described embodiment and each modified example may be combined as appropriate and utilized.

[0230] In addition, although not specifically described, the present invention can be implemented with various modifications added thereto without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0231] Description of Reference Numerals

[0232] 1 Printing service provision system (an example of a printing authority management system)

[0233] 100 Management server (an example of information management device)

[0234] 110 Processor

[0235] 200 Multifunction machine (an example of a printing device)

[0236] 300 Mobile terminal (an example of a terminal device)

[0237] 310 CPU (an example of a computing unit)

[0238] 340 Touch Panel

[0239] NT network.

Claims

1. A printing authority management system, comprising: Terminal device; and An information management device having a communication I / F and a control unit, wherein the communication I / F can communicate with a printing device and the terminal device via a network, the printing device can perform printing with an allowable printing amount as an upper limit, and the control unit manages the printing device and can increase the allowable printing amount according to a specified guaranteed printing amount guaranteed by a printing authority obtained by a user by paying money, in, The control unit of the information management device executes: a purchase acceptance process for accepting a purchase request for the printing authority in response to an operation by a user at the terminal device; an authority granting process of granting the printing authority accepted in the purchase acceptance process to the corresponding user or the printing device; a print amount adding process of adding the guaranteed print amount corresponding to the print authority accepted in the purchase acceptance process to the allowed print amount of the printing device; and The automatic purchase process executes the automatic purchase of the printing authority not based on the purchase request of the user at the terminal device when a predetermined condition is satisfied.

2. The printing authority management system according to claim 1, The control unit further executes an allowable print amount determination process for determining whether the allowable print amount is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value as the predetermined condition. When it is determined in the allowable print amount determination process that the allowable print amount is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value, the automatic purchase is executed in the automatic purchase process.

3. The printing authority management system according to claim 1, The control unit further executes a timing determination process for determining whether a predetermined timing has arrived as the predetermined condition. The automatic purchase is executed in the automatic purchase process when it is determined in the timing determination process that the predetermined timing has arrived.

4. The printing authority management system according to claim 3, The control unit further executes an allowable print amount determination process for determining whether the allowable print amount is below a predetermined threshold value. The automatic purchase is executed in the automatic purchase process when it is determined in the allowable print amount determination process that the allowable print amount has become equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value.

5. The printing authority management system according to claim 1, The control unit further executes a permission request process of transmitting a permission request for requesting permission of the automatic purchase to the terminal device when the predetermined condition is satisfied. In a case where permission of the automatic purchase is performed at the terminal device in accordance with the permission request, the automatic purchase is executed in the automatic purchase process.

6. The printing authority management system according to claim 5, The control unit transmits the permission request including a report that printing cannot be executed when the permissible print amount is zero in the permission request process.

7. The printing authority management system according to claim 3, The control unit also performs: a restriction determination process for determining whether there is a portion of the print volume that exceeds a prescribed transfer restriction condition, with respect to the allowable print volume associated with the user or the printing device after the automatic purchase is performed in the automatic purchase process at the arrival of the prescribed timing; and A correction process is performed, in which, when it is determined in the restriction determination process that there is a portion of the print volume that exceeds the transfer-in restriction condition, a correction is performed by subtracting the print volume portion from the allowable print volume after the automatic purchase and setting it as the new allowable print volume.

8. The printing authority management system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, The control unit further executes a selection acceptance process for accepting a selection of execution / non-execution of the automatic purchase process based on an operation at the terminal device, When the execution is accepted in the selection acceptance process, the automatic purchase process is executed, and when the non-execution is accepted in the selection acceptance process, the automatic purchase process is not executed.

9. An information management device, comprising: a communication I / F capable of communicating with a printing device and a terminal device via a network, wherein the printing device can perform printing with an allowable printing amount as an upper limit; and a control unit that manages the printing device and is capable of increasing the permissible printing volume according to a predetermined guaranteed printing volume guaranteed by the printing authority obtained by the user by paying money, The control unit performs: a purchase acceptance process for accepting a purchase request for the printing authority in response to an operation by a user at the terminal device; an authority granting process of granting the printing authority accepted in the purchase acceptance process to the corresponding user or the printing device; a print amount addition process of adding the guaranteed print amount corresponding to the print authority accepted in the purchase acceptance process to the allowed print amount of the printing device; and The automatic purchase process executes the automatic purchase of the printing authority not based on the purchase request of the user at the terminal device when a predetermined condition is satisfied.

10. A printing authority management program for causing a computing unit of a terminal device capable of communicating with an information management device to execute a purchase request step and an addition display step, The information management device is capable of communicating with a printing device, the printing device is capable of executing printing with an allowable printing volume as an upper limit, and is capable of increasing the allowable printing volume according to a predetermined guaranteed printing volume guaranteed by a printing authority obtained by a user by paying money, In the purchase request step, a purchase request for the printing authority is sent in response to an operation by a user via an operation unit of the terminal device. In the addition display step, when the information management device executes automatic purchase of the printing authority not based on the purchase request when a predetermined condition is satisfied, the guaranteed print volume corresponding to the automatically purchased printing authority is displayed.

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