Image forming apparatus, method for controlling the same, and program

Abstract

To solve the problem in which when using a printer holding a contract for a pay-per-print service when the number of sheets to be printed exceeds a fixed number, a contractor may unintentionally perform printing on a pay-per-print basis.SOLUTION: A server notifies a printer of the number of printable sheets remaining in a fixed amount, and the printer displays a warning or stops printing according to the number. For a printer used by a plurality of users, an upper limit of the number of printable sheets for every user is set in order to prevent a situation where one user uses up the entire number of sheets in the contract when printing, and printing is stopped when the upper limit is reached.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, a control method thereof, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] In image forming devices equipped with network capabilities, various services such as defect analysis and billing systems are being developed by transmitting device information and user usage history to a management server. For example, a service in which consumables such as ink are managed by a management server and automatically delivered when the ink runs low is one example. In recent years, with the introduction of subscription contracts, fixed-price services that rent the device and consumables to users who sign up for the service and do not require initial investment or maintenance costs are becoming more common. In such a contract-based flat-rate service, the image forming device communicates with a management server and transmits the number of pages printed to the management server. For example, the user is charged a flat rate up to the number of pages determined by the contract, and a pay-per-print fee is charged for any number of pages printed that exceeds the contracted number. Patent Document 1 discloses an invention aimed at solving the problem of managing the number of prints for each image forming device when multiple image forming devices under subscription contracts are operated. Specifically, when the contracted print limit is reached, the problem of limiting the number of prints is solved by informing the user of the use of other image forming devices that have an excess of prints. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2007-109159 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the invention of Patent Document 1, when a subscription contract is made for only one image forming device, it is not possible to introduce other image forming devices. In a subscription contract in which a fixed amount is charged up to a certain number of pages and a pay-per-use charge is applied when the number of pages exceeds the fixed amount, there is a possibility that a user may unintentionally print at a pay-per-use charge. In addition, when multiple users share one image forming device, there is a possibility that some users may use up the number of pages contracted within the fixed amount. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that can limit printing that exceeds a predetermined number of prints for a flat-rate service and alert the user before switching to a pay-per-use service. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The present invention is characterized in that an image forming device is connected via a network to a server that manages a flat-rate service that allows printing up to a specified number of sheets at a fixed price, and has a transmitting means that executes a print job and transmits the results to the server, a receiving means that receives from the server the remaining number of sheets that can be printed under the flat-rate service, and a display means that displays a message indicating that the remaining number of sheets is low when the remaining number of sheets that can be printed falls below a specified threshold. Image forming device. Effect of the Invention

[0006] It is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that can limit printing that exceeds a predetermined number of prints for a flat-rate service and alert the user before switching to a pay-per-use service. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] A diagram showing the overall configuration of the management system [Diagram 2] Block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the printer hardware [Diagram 3] Block diagram showing the schematic hardware configuration of the device management server [Figure 4] Block diagram showing the schematic hardware configuration of the service management server [Diagram 5]Overall sequence diagram until service start [Figure 6] Printing sequence diagram [Figure 7] Printing Flowchart Diagram [Figure 8] Example of user configuration information DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention related to the claims of the patent. Although the embodiments describe a number of features, not all of these features are essential to the invention, and the features may be combined in any manner. Furthermore, in the attached drawings, the same reference numbers are used for the same or similar configurations, and duplicated descriptions are omitted.

[0009] [Embodiment 1] A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below. Overall configuration of the service management system 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a service management system according to the present embodiment. The service management system is configured by connecting a printer 100 as an image forming apparatus, a device management server 200, and a service management server 300 via a communication network 400 such as the Internet. The printer 100 records the contract information in the non-volatile memory 108 of the printer 100, and is controlled according to the recorded contract information. The printer 100 receives the contract information by communicating with the device management server 200 via the communication network 400. The device management server 200 holds the contract information notified by the service management server 300, and provides the contract information to the printer 100 based on the contract information. Communications between the printer 100, the device management server 200, and the service management server 300 use a communication protocol such as Hypertext Transfer Protocol (hereinafter referred to as "HTTP"), and the control method is a known method. Also, although the device management server 200 is interposed between the printer 100 and the service management server 300, this embodiment is not limited to this. For example, the printer 100 and the service management server 300 may directly exchange contract information via the Internet. Details of the contract information and the control of the printer 100 according to the contract information will be described later.

[0010] Hardware configuration of image forming device 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of a printer 100, which is an image forming apparatus in this embodiment. The printer 100 is made up of a ROM 101, a RAM 102, a CPU 103, a print unit 104, a display unit 105, an operation unit 106, a network communication unit 107, a non-volatile memory 108, and the like. The ROM 101 stores fixed data such as the control program executed by the CPU 103, data tables, and the OS program. The RAM 102 is composed of a DRAM or the like that requires a backup power supply. The RAM 102 is also used as the main memory and work memory of the CPU 103. When a user logs in to the printer 100, the user information 400 stored in the non-volatile memory 108 is read out and a user identifier 401 of the currently logged-in user is stored. The CPU 103 is a central processing unit for controlling each unit in the printer 100. In this embodiment, the CPU 103 loads each control program stored in the ROM 101 onto the RAM 102, and performs software execution control such as scheduling, task switching, and interrupt processing under the management of the embedded OS stored in the ROM 101. A print unit 104 forms an image on a recording medium such as paper using a recording material such as ink based on information stored in a ROM 101 or a RAM 102 or a print job received from a PC or the like, and outputs the print result.

[0011] The display unit 105 is composed of an LED (light emitting diode) and an LCD (liquid crystal display) and is used to display data and notify the status of the printer 100. The operation unit 106 is made up of switches, hard keys, etc., for a user to perform various input operations such as a login operation to the printer 100. In addition, it is also possible to configure the display unit 205 to have a touch panel function and function as an operation unit for performing input operations, etc. A network communication unit 107 connects to a network such as the Internet or a local area network, and communicates with other devices. The non-volatile memory 108 is composed of devices such as an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) and a flash memory. The non-volatile memory 108 is mainly required to retain data even when the power to the printer 100 is not supplied. Data such as the settings of the printer 100, contract information for each service described below, and user information 800 registered in the printer are stored in this non-volatile memory 108.

[0012] -Hardware configuration of device management server FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic hardware configuration of the device management server 200. As shown in FIG. The CPU 201 performs processes such as calculation, judgment, and control of data and instructions in accordance with software stored in the ROM 202 , the RAM 203 , or the hard disk 204 . The RAM 203 is used as a temporary storage area when the CPU 201 performs various processes. The hard disk 204 records an operating system (OS), application software, programs, etc. The hard disk 204 also records device information for each printer, which will be described later, and a record table of the contract status of each service. A system bus 206 transmits and receives data between the CPU 201 and information storage devices such as a ROM 202, a RAM 203, and a hard disk 204. Furthermore, the network connection unit 205 uses a wireless LAN or a wired LAN that complies with standards such as IEEE802.11a, and transmits and receives data to and from devices on the same network or the Internet using protocols such as TCP / IP. Service Management Server Hardware Configuration Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the hardware of the service management server 300. As in Fig. 3, the CPU 301 is composed of a ROM 302, a RAM 303, a hard disk 304, a network connection unit 305, and a system bus 306, and each module is also similar to Fig. 3, so a description thereof will be omitted. 3 and 4 is not limited to such a configuration, and may be configured to realize the services that can be provided by the device management server 200 or the service management server 300 using a server on a cloud. Also, the device management server 200 and the service management server 300 do not have to be configured as a single server each. In other words, the functions provided by the device management server 200 and the service management server 300 may be realized by a server system consisting of three or more servers or a single server that aggregates all of the servers.

[0013] - Sequence from service contract to start of printer control according to contract information The sequence from the service contract to the start of printer control according to the contract information in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. First, in S501, the user 500 makes a contract for a service on a system that manages the service. When the user 500 makes a contract for a service, the system that manages the service notifies the service management server 300 of the contract information. Next, in S502, the service management server 300 performs a service registration process for linking the user information with the printer to be registered. In S503, the printer 100 registered in S502 is delivered to the user. In S504, the user 500 who has received the printer 100 unpacks the printer 100 and starts the initial installation. In S505, the printer 100 proceeds with the initial installation process and performs initial settings such as network settings for connecting to the Internet in accordance with instructions from the user 500. When the printer 100 completes the network connection in the initial settings, the process proceeds to S506. In S506, a device registration request is sent to the device management server 200 together with identification information such as the product serial number of the printer. In S507, the device management server 200 that has received the device registration request performs registration processing based on the identification information received from the printer 100. In S508, when the registration process is completed, the device management server 200 returns the registration result to the printer 100 and notifies the service management server 300 of the completion of device registration. This notification of the completion of device registration to the service management server 300 may be configured to be sent to multiple service management servers 300 for each service. In S509, the service management server 300 receives a device registration completion notification from the device management server 200, and notifies the device management server 200 of the contract information of the associated service based on the identification information of the printer 100 received at that time. In this embodiment, the contract information is information related to the contract that includes information for determining that a contract has been concluded in order to be used for activation during initial setup of the device. The device management server 200 holds the contract information notified by the service management server 300 therein. Then, in S510, when the device management server 200 is requested by the printer 100 to obtain the contract information, the device management server 200 notifies the printer 100 of the retained contract information for each service in an HTTP response. This acquisition of contract information is a request to obtain the contract status of multiple services collectively, and is not a communication performed for each service. In S511, the printer 100 receives the contract information for multiple services from the device management server 200, stores the contract information for each service in the printer 100, and reflects control according to the contract information in subsequent printer control. For example, when it is confirmed that a service has been subscribed to, printer functions related to that service that have been restricted up until that point are released and the user can use them. In this embodiment, the printer 100 is provided on the premise that the user 500 has subscribed to the service, and all basic functions of the printer 100, such as the print function, scan function, and copy function, are restricted until it is confirmed in S510 that the user has subscribed to the service. Then, after S510, those functions become available. This is the end of this sequence. Printing sequence FIG. 6 shows a sequence for printing using the printer 100 with which a service contract has been concluded. (User Print Sequence) In S601, the printer 100 communicates with the device management server 200 to perform a service check to confirm the contract status. S601 is executed when the printer 100 is connected to the network. The device management server 200 confirms the contract status of the printer 100 with the service management server 300. The service management server 300 returns the number of pages that the printer 100 can print within the fixed fee to the device management server 200. The device management server 200 notifies the printer 100 of the number of pages that can be printed within the fixed fee (FIG. 8). In S602, the user 500 instructs the printer 100 to execute printing, and the printer 100 executes printing. When printing is complete, in S603, the print results including information on the number of pages printed are transmitted to the device management server 200. The device management server 200 transmits the print results to the service management server 300. The service management server 300 corrects and notifies the device management server 200 of the number of pages that can be printed within the fixed fee, and the device management server 200 notifies the printer 100 of the corrected number of pages that can be printed within the fixed fee. In S604, the printer 100 updates the printable number of sheets of the printer 100 and the printable number of sheets assigned to the user 500 (FIG. 8). (Administrator setup sequence) The administrator 501 who registered the printer 100 in the service management server in S605 logs in to the printer 100. In S606, the administrator can check the number of pages that can be printed within the fixed fee for each user 500, set the upper limit of the number of pages that can be printed to be allocated to the user 500, and change the setting for whether or not printing is permitted under pay-per-use charging when the upper limit of the number of pages that can be printed is exhausted. In Fig. 6, the user 500 and the administrator 501 are shown separately, but the user 500 may also serve as the administrator 501. In addition, one or more users 500 can be set for each printer, and the administrator 501 can set the upper limit of the number of pages that can be printed for each user 500. This is the end of this sequence.

[0014] Printing process on the printer 7 is a flowchart when the user 500 executes printing on the printer 100. This process is realized by the CPU 103 of the printer 100 expanding a program stored in the ROM 101 or the like into the RAM 102 and executing it. In S701, the CPU 103 of the printer 100 accepts an input print job. In S702, the CPU 103 determines whether the printable number 805 (shown in FIG. 8) allocated to the user 500 who plans to execute printing remains. If there is no printable number remaining (No in S702), the CPU 103 advances the process to S709. In S709, the CPU 103 cancels the print job, and the process proceeds to S710. On the other hand, if the printable number 805 remains (Yes in S702), the CPU 103 advances the process to S703. In S703, the CPU 103 determines whether the number of printable sheets remains within the fixed amount of the service contract of the printer 100. If the printable number of sheets within the fixed amount remains (Yes in S703), the CPU 103 advances the process to S704. In step S704, the CPU 103 instructs the execution of printing, and printing is executed. On the other hand, if it is determined in S703 that the number of printable sheets within the fixed amount is exhausted (No in S703), the CPU 103 advances the process to S705. In S705, the CPU 103 determines whether printing based on pay-per-use is permitted in the printer 100. If not permitted (No in S705), the process proceeds to S709. If printing based on pay-per-use is permitted (Yes in S705), the CPU 103 advances the process to S704. After printing is performed in S704 and printing is completed, print log information indicating the printing results, including the number of printed sheets, is sent to the device management server 200 in S706. In the next step S707, the printer 100 receives the printable number within the fixed amount (the remaining number of printable pages) from the device management server 200 as a response to the transmission. The CPU 103 updates the printable number within the fixed amount held by the printer 100 and the printable number 805 allocated to the user 500. In S708, CPU 103 determines whether the remaining number of printable sheets within the fixed amount falls below the set threshold. If the remaining number of printable sheets within the fixed amount falls below the set threshold (Yes in S708), CPU 103 proceeds to S710. If the remaining number of printable sheets within the fixed amount does not fall below the set threshold (No in S708), this process ends. If the number of printable sheets within the fixed amount falls below the threshold in S708 (Yes in S708), a message indicating that the number of printable sheets within the fixed amount is low is displayed on the display unit 105 in S710, and this process ends. If the print job is canceled in S709, a message to the effect that the print job has been canceled is displayed on the screen in S710, and this process ends. In this embodiment, if the printable number of sheets remaining for the print executing user is exhausted, the print job is canceled, but instead of canceling the job, a screen for inquiring permission to the administrator 501 is displayed in S710. Then, the user 500 may inquire of the administrator 501, and the administrator 501 may change the setting value by lending the remaining printable number of sheets to another user, thereby permitting printing. Furthermore, the administrator 501 can set the printable number of sheets for each user every month in consideration of the past (previous month) printing results, thereby ensuring smooth operation.

[0015] (User information) 8 shows an example of user information managed by the printer 100. User information 800 is stored in the non-volatile memory 108 of the printer 100. The user identifier 801 is used to identify the user who submitted the print job. It is issued by the service management server 300, notified to the printer 100 by the device management server 200, and stored in the non-volatile memory . A user name 802 and a password 803 are used for authentication when a user logs in to the image forming apparatus. A print limit 804 is the maximum number of sheets that can be printed during a certain period set for each user. The printable number 805 is the remaining number of pages that the user can print within a certain period. A setting value for whether or not to permit printing with pay-per-use in S606 may be added as user information, and whether or not to permit pay-per-use printing may be set for each user. With the above explanation, the user can decide in advance whether to prevent unintended printing at pay-per-use charges or to accept pay-per-use charges and to prevent a specific user from using up the limited number of prints available for the flat-rate service when multiple users share the same printer.

[0016] (Other Examples) The present invention can also be realized by a process in which a program for implementing one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or device read and execute the program. The present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that implements one or more of the functions. The disclosure of this embodiment includes the following configuration, method, and program. (Configuration 1) An image forming apparatus connected via a network to a server that manages a flat-rate service that allows printing up to a set number of sheets at a fixed rate, A transmission means for executing a print job and transmitting a print result to a server; a receiving means for receiving from the server the remaining number of sheets that can be printed under the flat-rate service; and a display means for displaying a small number of remaining sheets when the number of remaining sheets that can be printed falls below a predetermined threshold value. 1. An image forming apparatus comprising: (Configuration 2) A setting unit is provided for allowing an administrator to set the number of printable sheets for each user registered in the image forming apparatus. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, (Configuration 3) The setting unit allows the administrator to set whether or not printing on a pay-per-use basis is possible on the image forming apparatus. 3. The image forming apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 and 2. (Configuration 4) If there are no more pages available for printing in the flat-rate service assigned to the user of the print job, the print job is canceled. 4. The image forming apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 3. (Configuration 5) When there is a remaining number of sheets that can be printed using the flat-rate service of the image forming apparatus, the print job is printed. 5. The image forming apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 4. (Configuration 6) When the number of remaining pages that can be printed by the flat-rate service of the image forming apparatus is exhausted and printing by pay-per-use is permitted in the image forming apparatus, the print job is printed. 6. The image forming apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 5. (Method 1) A method for controlling an image forming apparatus connected via a network to a server that manages a flat-rate service that allows printing up to a set number of sheets at a fixed price, comprising the steps of: A transmission means for executing a print job and transmitting a print result to a server; a receiving step of receiving from the server the remaining number of sheets that can be printed under the flat-rate service; When the number of remaining printable sheets falls below a set threshold, a display step is provided to display a message indicating that the number of remaining sheets is small. 2 is a control method for an image forming apparatus according to claim 1 . (Program 1) A program for causing a computer to execute the control method for an image forming apparatus according to the first method. [Explanation of symbols]

[0017] 100 Printers 200 Device Management Server 300 Service Management Server

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus connected via a network to a server that manages a flat-rate service that allows printing up to a set number of sheets at a fixed rate, A transmission means for executing a print job and transmitting a print result to a server; a receiving means for receiving from the server the remaining number of sheets that can be printed under the flat-rate service; and a display means for displaying a small number of remaining sheets when the number of remaining sheets that can be printed falls below a predetermined threshold value.

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

2. A setting unit is provided for allowing an administrator to set the number of printable sheets for each user registered in the image forming apparatus.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

3. The setting unit allows the administrator to set whether or not printing on a pay-per-use basis is possible on the image forming apparatus.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2,

4. If there are no more pages available for printing in the flat-rate service assigned to the user of the print job, the print job is canceled.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

5. When there is a remaining number of sheets that can be printed using the flat-rate service of the image forming apparatus, the print job is printed.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4.

6. When the number of remaining pages that can be printed by the flat-rate service of the image forming apparatus is exhausted and printing by pay-per-use is permitted in the image forming apparatus, the print job is printed.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5,

7. A method for controlling an image forming apparatus connected via a network to a server that manages a flat-rate service that allows printing up to a set number of sheets at a fixed price, comprising the steps of: A transmission means for executing a print job and transmitting a print result to a server; a receiving step of receiving from the server the remaining number of sheets that can be printed under the flat-rate service; When the number of remaining printable sheets falls below a set threshold, a display step is provided to display a message indicating that the number of remaining sheets is small.

23. A method for controlling an image forming apparatus comprising:

8. A program for causing a computer to execute the method for controlling an image forming apparatus according to claim 7.

Images