Image processing system and control method

Abstract

To enable an operator to check a print job whose printing is not allowed by a manager.SOLUTION: An image processing system is provide with job list management means for managing a job list including a print job, the job list management means has disallowed update means for updating a status of the print job to disallowance if a print approval result is printing disallowance, display means has job list display means for displaying the job list, and the job list display means displays a job list including approved print jobs and disallowed print jobs.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image processing system and a control method. [Background technology]

[0002] With the growing social interest in information security, there is a demand for methods to prevent information leakage due to printing of confidential documents. In response to this, there are conventional systems that monitor print jobs by printing devices. Such systems have the function of detecting whether a print job that an operator is about to print contains a keyword that has been preset by an administrator, and notifying the administrator when a keyword is detected.

[0003] However, in the above-mentioned system for monitoring print jobs, the administrator is notified but the printing itself continues, which is an insufficient method for preventing information leakage.

[0004] In response to this, in Patent Document 1, when a preset keyword is detected, an administrator is inquired about printing permission, and only when printing permission is received, a print job is sent to the printing device for printing. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-43909 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, in Patent Document 1, when an administrator disallows printing, the print job disappears, and the print job that is disallowed from printing is not displayed on the printing device. Therefore, when an operator tries to execute printing on the printing device, there is a problem that the operator cannot check on the printing device the print job that has been disallowed from printing by the administrator.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned points, and has an object to enable an operator to check a print job for which printing has been prohibited by an administrator. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] An image processing system according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a print job analysis means for analyzing a print job, a job list management means for managing a job list including the print job, and a display means for displaying the job list, wherein the print job analysis means has a confidential information detection means for analyzing document data of the print job to detect confidential information, and the job list management means has a print approval request sending means for sending a print approval request for the print job to an external information processing device if confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection means, a print approval result receiving means for receiving a print approval result for the print approval request from the external information processing device, an approved updating means for updating the status of the print job to approved if the print approval result is printing approved, and a not approved updating means for updating the status of the print job to not approved if the print approval result is printing not permitted, and the display means has a job list display means for displaying the job list, and the job list display means displays a job list including approved print jobs and not approved print jobs. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible for an operator to check a print job for which printing has been prohibited by an administrator. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of an image processing system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the printing apparatus. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of an operator PC and an administrator PC. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a print server and a monitoring server. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a software configuration of the image processing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing processing between devices according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing processing between devices according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of document data to be processed by the image processing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an administrator approval screen according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] 6 is a flowchart showing details of a process of the monitoring server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] 5 is a flowchart showing details of a process of the print server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] 5 is a flowchart showing details of a process of the print server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] 5 is a flowchart showing details of a process of the print server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] 5 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] 5 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by the printing device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a job list screen according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a printer approval screen according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 18] 10 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] 10 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 20]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a job list screen according to the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 21] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a detection result details screen according to the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 22] 10 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a third embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 23] 10 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 24] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a job list screen according to the third embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 25] 10 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 26] 10 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 27] 10 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 28] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 29] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 30] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 31] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 32] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 33] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a printer approval screen according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 34] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 35] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 36]13 is a flowchart showing details of a process of a print server according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 37] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 38] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 39] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a printed matter according to Example 6 of the present invention. [Diagram 40] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 41] 13 is a flowchart showing details of a process performed by a printing device according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 42] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a job list screen according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 43] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a job history screen according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0012] Example 1 <Overall system configuration> FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an image processing system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The image processing system 100 also functions as a print job monitoring system. The image processing system 100 includes a printing device 101, an operator PC 102, a first administrator PC 103, a second administrator PC 108, a print server 106, and a monitoring server 107. PC is an abbreviation for Personal Computer. The printing device 101, the operator PC 102, the first administrator PC, and the second administrator PC 108 are communicably connected to a server that provides various services via a LAN 104. LAN is an abbreviation for Local Area Network.

[0013] The printing device 101 is a multifunction device having multiple image processing functions such as a printing function, a reading function, and a FAX function. The printing device 101 is an example of an image processing device that can generate print image data from document data of a print job transmitted from a print server 106 and print the generated print image data.

[0014] The operator PC 102 is a computer or application that issues a print instruction. The first administrator PC 103 and the second administrator PC 108 are computers or applications that approve or reject a print approval request sent from the print server 106.

[0015] The print server 106 is a server that has a function of saving and managing print jobs requested by the operator PC 102, and a function of transmitting the print jobs to the printing device 101. The print server 106 also has a function of requesting the monitoring server 107 to analyze whether confidential information is included in the document data of the print job, and a function of transmitting a print approval request to the administrator PC 103. The monitoring server 107 is a server that can analyze the document data of the print job to detect confidential information.

[0016] Although the image processing system 100 of this embodiment has the configuration shown in Fig. 1, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the printing device 101 may also function as the print server 106 and the monitoring server 107. Furthermore, the print server 106 and the monitoring server 107 may be connected to a server on a LAN rather than on the Internet. Furthermore, an administrator PC may be further provided in addition to the configuration of Fig. 1.

[0017] <Hardware Configuration of Printing Device 101> 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the printing device 101. The printing device 101 includes a control unit 200, an operation panel 206, a printer 208, and a scanner 210.

[0018] The control unit 200 includes a CPU 201, a ROM 202, a RAM 203, a HDD 204, an operation panel I / F 205, a printer I / F 207, a scanner I / F 209, a network I / F 211, and a system bus 212. CPU is an abbreviation for Central Processing Unit. ROM is an abbreviation for Read Only Memory. RAM is an abbreviation for Random Access Memory. HDD is an abbreviation for Hard Disk Drive. I / F is an abbreviation for interface. As shown in FIG. 2, each component included in the control unit 200 is connected to each other via the system bus 212 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0019] The control unit 200 controls the overall operation of the printing device 101. The CPU 201 functions as a unit for executing various processes (print control process, read control process, image process, etc.) by reading and executing programs stored in a storage device. The storage device in which the programs executed by the CPU 201 are stored is, for example, at least one of the ROM 202, the RAM 203, and the HDD 204. This storage device stores and holds the programs executed by the CPU 201, image data, etc.

[0020] The ROM 202 is a non-volatile memory that holds programs and the like, and the CPU 201 reads out and executes the programs to perform various control processes, etc. The RAM 203 is a volatile memory used as a temporary storage area such as the main memory and work area of ​​the CPU 201. The HDD 204 is a non-volatile memory used as a large-capacity storage area for storing images and the like to be processed by the CPU 201.

[0021] An operation panel I / F 205 connects an operation panel 206 and the control unit 200 via a system bus 212. The operation panel 206 is provided with a liquid crystal display unit having a touch panel function, hard buttons, and the like.

[0022] The printer I / F 207 connects the printer 208 and the control unit 200 via a system bus 212. The printer 208 receives image data generated by the CPU 201 via the printer I / F 207, and performs a print process on recording paper using the received image data.

[0023] The scanner I / F 209 connects the scanner 210 and the control unit 200 via a system bus 212. The scanner 210 reads an original such as a document, generates scanned image data, and inputs the scanned image data to the control unit 200 via the scanner I / F 209.

[0024] The network I / F 211 connects the control unit 200 to the LAN 104. The control unit 200 transmits image data and information to external devices on the LAN 104 and receives various information from external devices on the LAN 104 via the network I / F 211. The network I / F 211 ultimately connects the printing device 101 to the LAN 104.

[0025] As described above, the printing device 101 according to this embodiment is capable of providing an image processing function by using the above hardware configuration. The printing device 101 is not limited to the configuration shown in Fig. 2, but may include other configurations depending on the functions that can be executed by the printing device 101. For example, the printing device 101 may include a configuration required to execute a FAX function or a configuration that enables short-distance wireless communication.

[0026] <Hardware Configuration of Operator PC 102, First Administrator PC 103, and Second Administrator PC 108> 3 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the operator PC 102, the first administrator PC 103, and the second administrator PC 108. Each of the operator PC 102, the first administrator PC 103, and the second administrator PC 108 includes a control unit 300. The operator PC 102, the first administrator PC 103, and the second administrator PC 108 basically have the same configuration, with only differences in the available storage capacity of the HDD 304, etc., and therefore, hereinafter, the operator PC 102 will be described as a representative example.

[0027] A control unit 300 including a CPU 301 controls the overall operation of the operator PC 102. Of the components, details of the CPU 301, ROM 302, RAM 303, HDD 304, and network I / F 305 are the same as those described in the printing device 101, and therefore will not be described here.

[0028] The CPU 301 reads out programs stored in the ROM 302 and executes various control processes, etc. The RAM 303 is used as a temporary storage area such as a main memory and a work area for the CPU 301. The HDD 304 stores document data and various programs.

[0029] The network I / F 305 connects the control unit 300 to the LAN 104. The control unit 300 transmits and receives various information to and from other devices on the LAN 104 via the network I / F 305. The network I / F 305 ultimately connects the operator's PC 102 to the LAN 104.

[0030] The display / operation I / F 306 connects an output device such as a display device and an input device such as a keyboard and a mouse to the control unit 300 via a system bus 310 .

[0031] <Hardware Configuration of the Print Server 106 and the Monitoring Server 107> 4 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the print server 106 and the monitoring server 107. Each of the print server 106 and the monitoring server 107 includes a control unit 400. The print server 106 and the monitoring server 107 have basically the same configuration, with only differences in the storage capacity of the HDD 404 and the like, and therefore the print server 106 will be described below as a representative example.

[0032] A control unit 400 including a CPU 401 controls the overall operation of the print server 106 . Of the components, the CPU 401, the ROM 402, the RAM 403, the HDD 404, and the network I / F 405 are similar to those described for the operator PC 102, and therefore will not be described in detail here.

[0033] A CPU 401 reads out programs stored in a ROM 402 and executes various control processes, etc. A RAM 403 is used as a temporary storage area such as a main memory and a work area for the CPU 401. A HDD 404 stores document data and various programs.

[0034] The network I / F 405 connects the control unit 400 to the LAN 104. The control unit 400 receives processing requests from other devices (such as the operator's PC 102) on the LAN 104 and transmits and receives various information via the network I / F 405. The network I / F 405 ultimately connects the print server 106 to the LAN 104.

[0035] <Software configuration of image processing system 100> 5 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of the image processing system 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Here, the software configurations of the printing device 101, the operator PC 102, the first administrator PC 103, the second administrator PC 108, the print server 106, and the monitoring server 107 will be described.

[0036] The printing device 101 has a display unit 501, an operation unit 502, a print control unit 503, and a print unit 504. The display unit 501 displays a job list of print jobs via the operation panel 206. The operation unit 502 accepts input from a user via the operation panel 206. The print control unit 503 receives a job list and a print output instruction from the print server 106 via the network I / F 212. The print control unit 503 also transmits an instruction to resume the print job to the print server 106 via the network I / F 212. Furthermore, the print control unit 503 controls the print jobs in the job list based on an instruction from the operation unit 502.

[0037] The operator's PC 102 has a display unit 511, an operation unit 512, and a print instruction unit 513. The display unit 511 displays an application screen or a print setting screen on the display device via the display / operation I / F 306. The operation unit 512 accepts user input from a mouse or keyboard via the display / operation I / F 306. The print instruction unit 513 transmits a print instruction for document data as a print job to the print server 106 via the network I / F 305 based on an instruction from the operation unit 512.

[0038] The first administrator PC 103 has a display unit 521, an operation unit 522, and a print approval unit 523. The display unit 521 displays the confidential information detection result and an administrator approval screen on a display device via the display / operation I / F 306. The operation unit 522 accepts user input from a mouse or keyboard via the display / operation I / F 306. The print approval unit 523 receives the confidential information detection result and a print approval request from the print server 106 via the network I / F 305. In addition, the print approval unit 523 transmits the print approval result to the print server 106 via the network I / F 305 based on an instruction from the operation unit 522.

[0039] The second administrator PC 108 has a display unit 551, an operation unit 552, and a print approval unit 553. The display unit 551 displays the confidential information detection result and an administrator approval screen on the display device via the display / operation I / F 306. The operation unit 552 accepts user input from a mouse or keyboard via the display / operation I / F 306. The print approval unit 553 receives the confidential information detection result and a print approval request from the print server 106 via the network I / F 305. In addition, the print approval unit 553 transmits the print approval result to the print server 106 via the network I / F 305 based on an instruction from the operation unit 552.

[0040] The print server 106 includes a job list management unit 531 and a job list database 532. The job list management unit 531 receives a print instruction for document data as a print job from the operator PC 102 via the network I / F 405. The job list management unit 531 also transmits an analysis request for the print job to the monitoring server 107 via the network I / F 405. The job list management unit 531 also receives an analysis result of the print job from the monitoring server 107 via the network I / F 405. The job list management unit 531 also transmits a detection result of confidential information and a print approval request to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC 108 via the network I / F 405. The job list management unit 531 also receives a print approval result from the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC 108 via the network I / F 405. The job list management unit 531 also adds the print job to the job list and manages the job list. Job list database 532 holds job list information in HDD 404. A job list refers to a list of multiple print jobs. It is possible to add or delete print jobs to or from the job list, and job list management unit 531 adds or deletes print jobs to or from the job list.

[0041] The monitoring server 107 includes a print job analysis unit 541 and a monitoring database 542. The print job analysis unit 541 receives a print job analysis request from the print server 106 via the network I / F 405. The print job analysis unit 541 also analyzes document data of the print job to detect confidential information and calculate the job importance. The print job analysis unit 541 also transmits the print job analysis result to the print server 106 via the network I / F 405. The monitoring database 542 holds monitoring setting information in the HDD 404. The monitoring setting information is setting information including keywords to be detected, a personal information dictionary in which character strings indicating names and addresses are registered, a threshold value of job importance, and weights for keywords and personal information character strings when calculating job importance. The print approval unit 523 of the first administrator PC 103 updates the setting information of the monitoring database 542 via the network I / F 305 and the network I / F 405 based on a user input received via the operation unit 522. The print approval unit 553 of the second administrator PC 108 updates the setting information of the monitoring database 542 via the network I / F 305 and the network I / F 405 based on the user input received by the operation unit 552 .

[0042] 5 illustrates an example of a configuration in which the print server 106 has the job list management unit 531, and the monitoring server 107 has the print job analysis unit 541. The present invention is not limited to this configuration, and the printing device 101 may include the functions of the job list management unit 531 and the print job analysis unit 541.

[0043] <Processing sequence> Next, a processing sequence of the image processing system 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 6 and Fig. 7. Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 are sequence diagrams showing processing between devices according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0044] In the following, a print instruction for document data accepted by the operator PC 102 is sent as a print job to the print server 106. Then, based on the result of print approval by the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC 108, the print server 106 updates the status of the print job, and the printing device 101 displays a job list and prints out the job. Although Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 show the print server 106 interacting with the monitoring server 107 and the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC 108, the printing device 101 may be configured to execute the operations instead of the print server 106.

[0045] In step S601, the operation unit 512 of the operator's PC 102 accepts a print instruction for document data from the user via the display / operation I / F 306. The print instruction also includes settings for the paper size and color mode to be used for printing.

[0046] In step S602, the print instruction unit 513 of the operator's PC 102 transmits a print instruction for printing document data to the print server 106 as a print job. FIG. 8 shows an example of document data to be processed by the image processing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Information included in the print job includes the document data, job name, user name, execution date and time of the print instruction, status, status update date and time, job type, paper size, color mode, and number of copies shown in FIG. 8. Table A, which is a table showing the status types of the print job, is shown as Table 1. The job types refer to, for example, copy, scan, print, and FAX. In step S602, the print instruction unit 513 sets the status of the print job to "waiting for processing" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update. The print instruction unit 513 also stores various information in the print job. When a print instruction for the document data shown in FIG. 8 is received, information such as the job name "Sample-5.pdf", the user name "aaa123456", the execution date and time "2023-05-23 11:20:57", and the status "waiting for processing" is stored. In addition, information such as the status update date and time "2023-05-23 11:21:40", the job type "print", the paper size "A4", the color mode "color", and the number of copies to be printed "1" is stored. Note that the information included in the print job is not limited to that described above. [Table 1]

[0047] In step S603, the job list management unit 531 of the print server 106 receives the print instruction as a print job and then puts the print job on hold. When the print job is put on hold, the printed matter is not output from the printing device 101 until the print job is resumed. Note that when the job list management unit 531 receives a print job resume instruction from the printing device 101, it resumes the print job.

[0048] In step S604, the job list management unit 531 of the print server 106 transmits a print job analysis request to the monitoring server 107. Details of the processing of the job list management unit 531, including steps S603 and S604, will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0049] In step S605, after receiving the print job analysis request, the print job analysis unit 541 of the monitoring server 107 analyzes the document data of the print job to detect confidential information. Confidential information refers to, for example, keywords registered in the monitoring database 542, or character strings indicating personal information such as a name, address, or telephone number.

[0050] In step S606, the print job analysis unit 541 of the monitoring server 107 calculates the importance of the print job. The process in step S606 is an example of a job importance calculation unit that calculates the importance of the print job. The importance of the job is a numerical value calculated from information such as the number of keywords and personal information included in the document data.

[0051] In step S607, the print job analysis unit 541 of the monitoring server 107 transmits the result of the confidential information detection in S605 and the job importance calculated in S606 as the print job analysis result to the print server 106. Note that details of the processing of the print job analysis unit 541 including steps S605 to S607 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0052] In step S608, after receiving the print job analysis results, the job list management unit 531 of the print server 106 transmits the confidential information detection results to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC 108 depending on the confidential information detection results and the job importance.

[0053] In step S609, the job list management unit 531 of the print server 106 transmits a print approval request for the print job to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC 108, depending on the result of the confidential information detection and the job importance. Details of the processing of the job list management unit 531, including steps S608 to S609, will be described with reference to FIGS. 11, 12, and 13.

[0054] In step S610, after the display unit 521 of the first administrator PC 103 or the display unit 551 of the second administrator PC 108 receives the print approval request in the print approval unit 523 or the print approval unit 553, the display unit 521 of the first administrator PC 103 or the display unit 551 of the second administrator PC 108 displays an administrator approval screen on the display / operation I / F 306. Fig. 9 shows an example of the administrator approval screen according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0055] The administrator approval screen 801 has a document data display area 802, a job information display area 803, a job analysis result display area 804, and a print approval area 805. The document data of the print job is displayed in the document data display area 802. In addition, in the document data displayed in the document data display area 802, character strings 808, 809, 810, and 811 of confidential information detected in step S605 are highlighted. FIG. 9 shows an example in which "Confidential" is detected as a keyword, "Yamada Takashi" as personal information name, "1123 XYZ City, Japan" as address, and "ABCD University" as organization name. In the print approval area 805, a button 806 for approving printing and a button 807 for disallowing printing are displayed.

[0056] In step S611, the operation unit 522 of the first administrator PC 103 or the operation unit 552 of the second administrator PC 108 accepts the administrator approval instruction through the display / operation I / F 306 and stores the contents of the instruction in the print approval result. The administrator approval instruction accepts an instruction to approve printing or not to permit printing. In FIG. 9, when the button 806 is pressed, printing is approved, and when the button 807 is pressed, printing is not permitted. In this embodiment, the administrator approval screen is displayed in steps S610 to S611 to accept the print approval instruction, but the print approval unit 523 or the print approval unit 553 may automatically determine the print approval according to a predetermined logic. For example, when a specific keyword is not included, it may be determined that printing is approved, and when a specific keyword is included, it may be determined that printing is not permitted. In addition, when the automatic determination is made, the print server 106 may include the function of the print approval unit 523 or the print approval unit 553.

[0057] In step S612 in FIG. 7 following step S611, the print approval unit 523 of the first administrator PC 103 or the print approval unit 553 of the second administrator PC 108 transmits a print approval result to the print server 106.

[0058] In step S613, the job list management unit 531 of the print server 106 transmits a job list to the printing device 101 according to the confidential information detection result, the job importance, and the print approval result. Details of the processing of the job list management unit 531, including step S613, will be described with reference to FIGS. 11, 12, and 13.

[0059] In step S614, after receiving the job list, the display unit 501 of the printing apparatus 101 displays a job list screen.

[0060] In step S615, the operation unit 502 of the printing apparatus 101 accepts an instruction to resume the print job in the job list.

[0061] In step S616, the print control unit 503 of the printing device 101 transmits an instruction to resume the print job to the print server 106. Details of the processing by the display unit 501, operation unit 502, and print control unit 503 of the printing device 101, including steps S614 to S616, will be described with reference to Figures 14 and 15. Also, if the print approval unit 523 of the first administrator PC 103 or the print approval unit 553 of the second administrator PC 108 transmits the print approval result as print approval in step S612, steps S614 to S616 may be omitted and the process may proceed to step S617.

[0062] In step S617, after receiving the instruction to resume the print job, the job list management unit 531 of the print server 106 resumes the print job and generates a print output instruction.

[0063] In step S 618 , the job list management unit 531 of the print server 106 transmits a print output instruction to the printing device 101 .

[0064] In step S619, after the print control unit 503 receives the print output instruction, the print unit 504 of the printing apparatus 101 prints out the document data of the print job.

[0065] In step S620, the print control unit 503 of the printing device 101 updates the status of the print job to "printed" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update. Details of the processing by the print control unit 503 and the printing unit 504, including steps S619 to S620, will be described with reference to Figs. 14 and 15.

[0066] Through the above process sequences, a print instruction for document data can be sent as a print job, the status of the print job can be updated based on the result of print approval, and a job list can be displayed and printed out.

[0067] <Processing flow of the monitoring server 107> 10 is a flowchart showing details of the process of the monitoring server 107 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The flowchart in FIG. 10 includes steps S605 to S607 in FIG.

[0068] In step S901, the print job analysis unit 541 receives a print job analysis request from the print server .

[0069] In step S605, the print job analysis unit 541 analyzes the document data of the print job to detect confidential information.

[0070] Specifically, in the process of step S605, first, a character string is extracted from the document data. If the document data contains a character code, the character string is extracted from the character code. If the document data is an image or contains an image, the character string is extracted by applying OCR processing to the image. OCR is an abbreviation for Optical Character Recognition.

[0071] Specifically, in the process of step S605, a keyword is then detected from the character string extracted from the document data. The character string extracted from the document data is searched for using keywords registered in monitoring database 542, and if it matches the character string extracted from the document data, it is determined that the keyword has been detected. For example, if the keyword "Confidential" is registered, the keyword is detected in the document data of FIG. 9. On the other hand, if the keyword "Printing Prohibited" is registered, the keyword is not detected in the document data of FIG. 9.

[0072] Specifically, in the process of step S605, next, personal information is detected from the character string extracted from the document data. The character string extracted from the document data is searched for among character strings registered in the personal information dictionary of monitoring database 542, and if it matches the character string extracted from the document data, it is determined that personal information has been detected. For example, if the name "Yamada Takashi" and the organization name "ABCD University" are registered in the personal information dictionary, the name and organization name are detected in the document data of FIG. 9.

[0073] The method of detecting confidential information is not limited to the above method. For example, a method of detecting personal information may be performed by pattern matching using regular expressions, instead of by matching with a character string registered in a dictionary. Also, a character string extracted from document data may be searched for using an attribute character string indicating an attribute such as "Name", and a character string located close to the coordinate position of the found attribute character string may be detected as a name.

[0074] In step S902, if print job analysis unit 541 detects confidential information in step S605, the process proceeds to step S606, and if print job analysis unit 541 does not detect confidential information, the process proceeds to step S607.

[0075] In step S606, print job analysis unit 541 calculates the importance of the print job by adding a value obtained by multiplying the number of detected keywords or personal information character strings by the weight for each attribute.

[0076] For example, suppose that the weights corresponding to the personal information attributes "name" and "organization name" are "5" and "1", respectively, and the weight corresponding to the keyword "Confidential" is "8." In the example of Fig. 9, the job importance is calculated as follows: (number of "names" = 1) x (weight of "name" = 5) + (number of "organization names" = 1) x (weight of "organization name" = 1) + (number of "keywords" = 1) x (weight of "keyword" = 8) = 14.

[0077] If no confidential information is detected in step S605, the job importance is set to 0. The method of calculating the job importance is not limited to the above method.

[0078] In step S607, the print job analysis unit 541 of the monitoring server 107 transmits the result of the confidential information detection in step S605 and the job importance calculated in step S606 to the print server 106 as the print job analysis result.

[0079] <Processing flow of the print server 106> 11, 12, and 13 are flowcharts showing details of the process of the print server 106 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The flowcharts in Fig. 11, 12, and 13 include steps S603 to S604, steps S608 to S609, and step S613 in Fig. 6.

[0080] In step S1001, the job list management unit 531 receives a print instruction from the operator PC 102 as a print job.

[0081] In step S603, the job list management unit 531 puts the print job on hold. When the print job is put on hold, the printed matter is not output from the printing device 101 until the print job is resumed. Note that when the job list management unit 531 receives a print job resume instruction from the printing device 101, it resumes the print job.

[0082] In step S1002, if the job list already exists in the job list database 532, job list management section 531 proceeds to step S1004, and if the job list does not exist, proceeds to step S1003.

[0083] In step S 1003 , the job list management unit 531 creates a new job list and registers it in the job list database 532 .

[0084] In step S1004, job list management unit 531 adds the print job to the job list registered in job list database 532. If a new job list is created in step S1003, the job list will contain one print job. Table B, which is a table showing an example of a job list, is shown as Table 2. Table B shows a job list in which two print jobs have already been listed, and in step S1004, a print job has been added, bringing the total number of print jobs to three. [Table 2]

[0085] In step S604, the job list management unit 531 transmits a request to the monitoring server 107 to analyze the print job.

[0086] In step S1005, the job list management unit 531 updates the status of the print job for which the analysis request was sent to "confidential information checking in progress" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update.

[0087] In step S 1006 , the job list management unit 531 receives the print job analysis result from the monitoring server 107 .

[0088] In step S1007, the job list management unit 531 adds the print job analysis result to the print job. Specifically, the "print job analysis result" is added to the print job. The "print job analysis result" includes attribute information and character string information of confidential information included in the document data, coordinate position information of the character string, and job importance.

[0089] In step S1008, if the job list management unit 531 detects confidential information in the print job analysis result, the process proceeds to step S1009, and if confidential information is not detected, the process proceeds to step S1010.

[0090] In step S1009, if the job importance of the print job analysis result is equal to or less than the first threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1010, and if the job importance is greater than the first threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S608. The first threshold is a threshold for job importance.

[0091] In step S1010, job list management section 531 updates the status of the print job to "approval not required" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update. After step S1010, the process proceeds to step S1020 in FIG.

[0092] In step S608, the job list management unit 531 transmits the result of the detection of confidential information to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC .

[0093] In step S1011, if the job importance of the print job analysis result is equal to or less than the second threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1012, and if the job importance is greater than the second threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1013 in Fig. 12. The second threshold is a threshold for the job importance and is greater than the first threshold.

[0094] In step S1012, the job list management unit 531 updates the status of the print job to "printer approval required" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update. The process of step S1012 is an example of a printer approval required update means that updates the status of the print job to printer approval required when the importance is equal to or lower than the threshold. After the process of step S1012, the process of step S1020 in FIG. 13 is executed.

[0095] 12, if the job importance of the print job analysis result is equal to or less than the third threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S609, and if the job importance is greater than the third threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1019. The third threshold is a threshold for the job importance and is greater than the second threshold.

[0096] In step S1019, job list management section 531 updates the status of the print job to "auto cancel" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update. After step S1019, the process proceeds to step S1020 in FIG.

[0097] In step S609, the job list management unit 531 transmits a print approval request for the print job to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC .

[0098] In step S1014, job list management unit 531 updates the status of the print job to "administrator approval in progress" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update.

[0099] In step S1015, the job list management unit 531 receives the print approval result of the print job from the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC .

[0100] In step S1016, if the print approval result is print approval, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1017, and if the print approval result is print disapproval, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1018.

[0101] In step S1017, the job list management unit 531 updates the status of the print job to "administrator approved" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update. After the process of step S1017, the process of step S1020 in FIG. 13 is executed.

[0102] In step S1018, job list management section 531 updates the status of the print job to "cancelled by administrator" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update. After step S1018, the process proceeds to step S1020 in FIG.

[0103] In step S1020 of FIG. 13, the job list management unit 531 calculates the difference between the status update date and time of the print job in the job list and the current date and time at the time of processing execution. Specifically, a case where print job A and print job B exist in the job list, and the status update date and time of print job A is "2023-05-20 10:15:40", and the status update date and time of print job B is "2023-05-24 11:20:30" is taken as an example. When the current date and time at the time of processing execution is "2023-05-24 11:25:50", the difference from the current date and time is calculated as "0000-00-04 01:10:10" for print job A and "0000-00-00 00:05:20" for print job B. Note that the method of calculating the difference is not limited to the above method.

[0104] In step S1021, if there is a print job whose difference calculated in step S1021 is equal to or greater than the fourth threshold, job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1022. In step S1021, if there is no print job whose difference calculated in step S1021 is equal to or greater than the fourth threshold, job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S613. The fourth threshold is a threshold for the difference between the status update date and time of the print job and the current date and time at the time of processing execution.

[0105] In step S1022, job list management unit 531 deletes from the job list registered in job list database 532 print jobs for which the difference calculated in step S1021 is equal to or greater than the fourth threshold value.

[0106] In step S613, the job list management unit 531 sends the job list to the printing device 101.

[0107] <Processing flow of the printing device 101> 14 and 15 are flowcharts showing details of the process of the printing device 101 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The flowcharts of Fig. 14 and 15 include steps S614 to S616 and steps S618 to S619 in Fig. 7.

[0108] In step S 1101 , the print control unit 503 receives a job list from the print server 106 .

[0109] In step S614, the display unit 501 displays a job list screen. Fig. 16 shows an example of the job list screen according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 16(A) shows an example of the job list screen displayed in step S614. The job list screen includes a job list 1201 and a print start button 1202. Print jobs are displayed in the job list 1201. In Fig. 16(A), since a print job in the job list 1201 has not been selected, the print start button 1202 is displayed so that it cannot be pressed. Also, among the print jobs in the job list 1201, print job 1203 indicates a print job whose status is "printer approval required."

[0110] In step S1102, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to select a print job based on an operation on the job list screen. When the display unit 501 accepts the instruction to select a print job, it highlights the selected print job on the job list screen. FIG. 16(B) shows that print job 1204 with a status of "approved by administrator" is highlighted and selected. At this time, a print start button 1205 is displayed so that the document data of print job 1204 can be printed by pressing the print start button 1205. FIG. 16(C) shows that print job 1206 with a status of "cancelled by administrator" is selected. At this time, a print start button 1207 is displayed so that the document data of print job 1206 cannot be printed by pressing the print start button 1207.

[0111] In step S1103, if the status of the print job for which the selection instruction was accepted in step S1102 is "printer's approval required", the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S1104. In step S1103, if the status of the print job for which the selection instruction was accepted in step S1102 is other than "printer's approval required", the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S1108.

[0112] In step S1104, the display unit 501 displays a printer approval screen. An example of the printer approval screen according to the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in Fig. 17. The printer approval screen 1301 includes a document data display area 1302, a job information display area 1303, a job analysis result display area 1304, and a print approval area 1305.

[0113] The document data display area 1302 displays the document data of the print job. In addition, in the document data displayed in the document data display area 1302, character strings 1308, 1309, 1310, and 1311 of confidential information detected in step S605 are highlighted. FIG. 17 shows an example in which a keyword, a name and address of personal information, and an organization name are detected as confidential information. FIG. 17 shows an example in which "Confidential" is detected as a keyword. FIG. 17 shows an example in which "Yamada Takashi" is detected as a name of personal information. FIG. 17 shows an example in which "1123 XYZ City, Japan" is detected as an address of personal information. FIG. 17 shows an example in which "ABCD University" is detected as an organization name. In the print approval area 1305, a button 1306 for approving printing and a button 1307 for disapproving printing are displayed. In addition, a button 1312 for closing the print approval screen is displayed on the print person approval screen 1301.

[0114] In step S1105, the operation unit 502 accepts a print owner approval instruction. The print owner approval instruction accepts an instruction to approve printing or not permit printing. In Fig. 17, when the button 1306 is pressed, printing is approved, and when the button 1307 is pressed, printing is not permitted.

[0115] In step S1106, if the result of the approval instruction received in step S1105 is printing approval, the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S615 in Fig. 15. In step S1106, if the result of the approval instruction received in step S1105 is printing disapproval, the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S1107 in Fig. 15.

[0116] In step S1107 in FIG. 15, the print control unit 503 updates the status of the print job to "printer canceled" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update.

[0117] In step S1108 of Fig. 14, if the status of the print job is "approval not required" or "administrator approved", the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S615 of Fig. 15. In step S1108 of Fig. 14, if the status of the print job is neither "approval not required" nor "administrator approved", the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S1110 of Fig. 15.

[0118] In step S615 in Fig. 15, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to resume the print job. In the example in Fig. 16B, when the print start button 1205 is pressed, it is determined that an instruction to resume the print job has been issued.

[0119] In step S616, the print control unit 503 transmits an instruction to the print server 106 to resume the print job.

[0120] In step S 1109 , the print control unit 503 receives a print output instruction from the print server 106 .

[0121] In step S619, the printing unit 504 prints out the document data of the print job. Specifically, the printing unit 504 renders the document data of the print job to generate image data for printing. Then, the image data for printing is printed on recording paper.

[0122] In step S620, the print control unit 503 of the printing device 101 updates the status of the print job to "printed" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update.

[0123] In step S1110, the operation unit 502 accepts a screen transition instruction, which is an instruction to transition to a job list screen or to end processing.

[0124] In step S1111, if an instruction to transition to the job list screen was received in step S1110, the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S614 in FIG. 14, but if an instruction to end processing was received in step S1110, the process ends.

[0125] According to the above-described first embodiment, the status of the print job is updated based on the print approval result by the administrator, and a job list is displayed on the printing device. This makes it possible to display not only print jobs that can be printed, but also print jobs that have been disapproved by the administrator on the printing device, thereby improving the convenience for the operator.

[0126] Example 2 In the first embodiment, the status of the print job is updated based on the print approval result by the administrator, and a job list is displayed on the printing device. This makes it possible to display not only print jobs that can be printed, but also print jobs that have been disallowed from printing by the administrator on the printing device. However, by simply displaying the job list, it is not possible to check the details of the print jobs that have been disallowed from printing by the administrator. Therefore, in the second embodiment of the present invention, an example is described in which a screen for accepting an instruction to display details of the detection result of confidential information is displayed on the printing device, and when an instruction to display details of the detection result of confidential information is given, a detailed screen of the detection result is displayed on the printing device. Note that only the points that differ from the first embodiment are described below.

[0127] <Processing flow of the printing device 101> 18 and 19 are flowcharts showing details of the processing of the printing device 101 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Here, the differences between the flowcharts of Fig. 18 and 19 and the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 14 and 15 are described. The same processes as those in Fig. 14 and 15 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in Fig. 14 and 15, and the description thereof is omitted. Fig. 18 and Fig. 19 include the processing of steps S1401, S1402, and S1403 in addition to the processing of the first embodiment.

[0128] In step S614, the display unit 501 displays a job list screen. An example of the job list screen according to the second embodiment of the present invention is shown in Fig. 20. The job list screen in Fig. 20 includes a detection result details display button 1501 in addition to the job list 1201 and print start button 1202 described in Fig. 16(A).

[0129] In step S1102, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to select a print job based on an operation on the job list screen. When the display unit 501 accepts the instruction to select a print job, it highlights the selected print job on the job list screen. Fig. 20 shows that a print job 1502 with a status of "cancelled by administrator" has been selected. At this time, a detection result details button 1501 is displayed so that the detection result details screen for confidential information in the print job 1502 can be displayed by pressing the detection result details display button 1501.

[0130] In step S1401, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to display a detection result details screen. In the example of Fig. 20, when the detection result details button 1501 is pressed, it is determined that an instruction to display the detection result details screen has been given.

[0131] In step S1402, if the print control unit 503 has received an instruction to display the detection result details screen in step S1401, the process proceeds to step S1403; if the print control unit 503 has not received an instruction to display the detection result details screen in step S1401, the process proceeds to step S1103.

[0132] In step S1403, the display unit 501 displays a detection result details screen. An example of the detection result details screen according to the second embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG.

[0133] The detection result details screen 1601 includes a document data display area 1602, a job information display area 1603, and a job analysis result display area 1604. The document data of the print job is displayed in the document data display area 1602. Furthermore, in the document data displayed in the document data display area 1602, character strings 1608, 1609, 1610, and 1611 of confidential information detected in step S605 are highlighted. FIG. 21 shows an example in which a keyword, a name and address of personal information, and an organization name are detected as confidential information. FIG. 21 shows an example in which "Confidential" is detected as a keyword. FIG. 21 shows an example in which "Yamada Takashi" is detected as a name of personal information. FIG. 21 shows an example in which "1123 XYZ City, Japan" is detected as an address of personal information. FIG. 21 shows an example in which "ABCD University" is detected as an organization name. Furthermore, the detection result details screen 1601 displays a button 1605 for closing the detection result details screen.

[0134] In step S615, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to resume the print job. In the example of Fig. 16B, when the print start button 1205 is pressed, it is determined that an instruction to resume the print job has been issued.

[0135] According to the second embodiment described above, the operator can check the details of the print job for which printing is not permitted on the printing device.

[0136] Example 3 In the first embodiment, the status of the print job is updated based on the print approval result by the administrator, and a job list is displayed on the printing device. However, for a print job that requires approval from the administrator, printing cannot be performed unless the administrator approves it. Therefore, in cases such as when the administrator forgets to give approval, printing is not possible, and convenience for the operator is reduced. Therefore, in the third embodiment of the present invention, an example is described in which a screen for accepting an instruction to resend a print approval request is displayed on the printing device, and when an instruction to resend the print approval request is given, the print approval request is resent from the printing device. Note that only the differences from the first embodiment are described below.

[0137] <Processing flow of the printing device 101> Fig. 22 and Fig. 23 are flowcharts showing details of the processing of the printing device 101 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. Here, the differences between the flowcharts of Fig. 22 and Fig. 23 and the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 are described. The same processing as in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 is given the same reference numerals as in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 and the description thereof is omitted. Fig. 22 and Fig. 23 include processing of steps S1701, S1702, and S1703 in addition to the processing of the first embodiment.

[0138] In step S614, the display unit 501 displays a job list screen. An example of the job list screen according to the third embodiment of the present invention is shown in Fig. 24. The job list screen in Fig. 24 includes an approval request send button 1801 in addition to the job list 1201 and print start button 1202 described in Fig. 16(A).

[0139] In step S1102, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to select a print job based on an operation on the job list screen. When the display unit 501 accepts the instruction to select a print job, it highlights the selected print job on the job list screen. Fig. 24 shows that a print job 1802 with a status of "Pending administrator approval" has been selected. At this time, an approval request send button 1801 is displayed so that a print approval request for the print job 1802 can be sent by pressing the approval request send button 1801.

[0140] In step S1701, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to resend the print approval request. In the example of Fig. 24, when the approval request send button 1801 is pressed, it is determined that an instruction to resend the print approval request has been given.

[0141] In step S1702, if the print control unit 503 has accepted an instruction to resend the print approval request in step S1701, the process proceeds to step S1703; if the print control unit 503 has not accepted an instruction to resend the print approval request in step S1701, the process proceeds to step S1103.

[0142] In step S1703, the print control unit 503 transmits a print approval request for the print job to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC .

[0143] According to the above-described third embodiment, a screen for receiving an instruction to resend the print approval request is displayed on the printing device, and when an instruction to resend the print approval request is given, the printing device resends the print approval request. This allows the operator to urge the administrator for print approval from the printing device, improving the convenience for the operator.

[0144] Example 4 In the first embodiment, the status of the print job is updated based on the print approval result by the administrator, and a job list is displayed on the printing device. However, for print jobs that require the administrator's approval, printing cannot be performed unless the administrator approves it. Therefore, when the administrator is away from his desk or the administrator's PC is offline, printing is not possible, and the convenience of the operator is reduced. Therefore, in the fourth embodiment of the present invention, an example will be described in which the first administrator PC determines whether the first administrator PC is in a state where it cannot approve the print, and if it is in a state where it cannot approve the print, a print approval request is sent to the second administrator PC. Note that only the differences from the first embodiment will be described below.

[0145] <Processing flow of the print server 106> 25, 26, and 27 are flowcharts showing details of the process of the print server 106 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. Here, the flowcharts of FIG. 25, 26, and 27 will be described with respect to differences from the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 11, 12, and 13. The same processes as those in FIG. 11, 12, and 13 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 11, 12, and 13, and the description thereof will be omitted. FIG. 26 has a process of step S1901 instead of the process of step S609 in the first embodiment. Also, FIG. 25, 26, and 27 have processes of step S1902, step S1903, and step S1904 in addition to the process of the first embodiment.

[0146] In step S1901, the job list management unit 531 transmits a print approval request for the print job to the first administrator PC 103.

[0147] In step S1902, the job list management unit 531 determines whether the first administrator PC 103 is in a state where printing cannot be approved. The process in step S1902 is an example of an approval status determination unit that determines whether the first administrator PC is in a state where printing can be approved in response to the first approval request. Specifically, if the print approval result is not received within one hour after the print approval request is sent in step S1901, it is determined that printing cannot be approved. Note that the time required to determine that printing cannot be approved does not have to be one hour as described above. Furthermore, the method of determining that printing cannot be approved is not limited to the method described above. For example, if the first administrator PC 103 is offline, it may be determined that printing cannot be approved by using a PING command.

[0148] In step S1903, if the job list management unit 531 determines in step S1902 that the first administrator PC 103 is in a state where printing cannot be approved, the process proceeds to step S1904. In step S1903, if the job list management unit 531 determines in step S1902 that the first administrator PC 103 is in a state where printing can be approved, the process proceeds to step S1015.

[0149] In step S1904, the job list management unit 531 transmits a print approval request for the print job to the second administrator PC .

[0150] According to the fourth embodiment described above, the first administrator PC determines whether printing cannot be approved, and if printing cannot be approved, sends a print approval request to the second administrator PC. This allows the second administrator to approve printing and print even when the first administrator is away from his desk or the administrator's PC is offline, improving the convenience of the operator.

[0151] Example 5 In the first embodiment, when the status of the print job is "printer approval required", the print server transmits the confidential information detection result of the print job to the administrator PC. Then, the printing device receives an instruction to approve or not approve the print job. However, the confidential information detection result of the print job for which the printing device receives an instruction to not approve the print job is always transmitted to the administrator PC, which reduces the convenience of the administrator. Therefore, in the fifth embodiment of the present invention, when the status of the print job is "printer approval required", the print server does not transmit the confidential information detection result of the print job to the administrator PC. Then, when the printing device receives an instruction to approve the print job, an example is described in which the approval result is transmitted from the printing device to the administrator PC. Note that only the points that are different from the first embodiment are described below.

[0152] <Processing flow of the print server 106> 28, 29, and 30 are flowcharts showing details of the process of the print server 106 according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. Here, the differences between the flowcharts of FIG. 28, 29, and 30 and the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 11, 12, and 13 will be described. The same processes as those in FIG. 11, 12, and 13 are given the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 11, 12, and 13, and the description will be omitted. The flowcharts of FIG. 28, 29, and 30 are basically the same as those in FIG. 11, 12, and 13 of the first embodiment, but the process performed in step S608 in FIG. 29 is different from that in the first embodiment, so the process related to step S608 will be described.

[0153] In step S1009 in FIG. 28, if the job importance of the print job analysis result is equal to or less than the first threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1010, and if the job importance is greater than the first threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1011.

[0154] In step S1010, job list management section 531 updates the status of the print job to "approval not required" and sets the status update date and time to the current date and time at the time of status update.

[0155] In step S1011, if the job importance of the print job analysis result is equal to or less than the second threshold, the job list management unit 531 proceeds to step S1012, and if the job importance is greater than the second threshold, the process proceeds to step S608 in FIG.

[0156] In step S608 in FIG. 29, the job list management unit 531 transmits the result of the detection of confidential information to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC .

[0157] <Processing flow of the printing device 101> Fig. 31 and Fig. 32 are flowcharts showing details of the processing of the printing device 101 according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. Here, the differences between the flowcharts of Fig. 31 and Fig. 32 and the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 are described. The same processing as in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 is given the same reference numerals as in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 and the description thereof is omitted. Fig. 31 and Fig. 32 include processing of step S2101 in addition to the processing of the first embodiment.

[0158] In step S1104 of FIG. 31, the display unit 501 displays a printer approval screen. The process of step S1104 is an example of an approval screen display means that displays the printer approval screen when the status of the print job is printer approval required. FIG. 33 shows an example of the printer approval screen according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. The printer approval screen includes a print approval area 2201. In the print approval area 2201, a button 2202 for approving the printing and a button 2203 for disallowing the printing are displayed. In addition, the print approval area 2201 displays a message that the administrator will be notified if the printing is approved.

[0159] In step S1106, if the result of the approval instruction received in step S1105 is printing approval, the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S2101 in Fig. 32. In step S1106, if the result of the approval instruction received in step S1105 is printing disapproval, the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S1107 in Fig. 32.

[0160] 32, the print control unit 503 transmits the print person approval result to the first administrator PC 103 or the second administrator PC 108. The process of step S2101 is an example of an approval result transmitting means that transmits the print person approval result when the print person approval is accepted.

[0161] According to the fifth embodiment described above, when a print job is approved on the printing device, the approval result is sent from the printing device to the administrator's PC. This improves the convenience of the administrator because the confidential information detection result of the print job for which a print denial instruction is received on the printing device is not sent to the administrator's PC.

[0162] Example 6 In the first embodiment, the status of the print job is updated based on the print approval result by the administrator, and a job list is displayed on the printing device. This makes it possible to display not only printable print jobs, but also print jobs that have been disapproved by the administrator on the printing device. However, some printing devices have small display screens. Therefore, it is difficult to check the job list on a printing device with a small screen. Therefore, in the sixth embodiment of the present invention, an example will be described in which, when the print approval result by the administrator is disapproved, the document data of the print job is replaced with document data indicating that printing is not permitted. Note that only differences from the first embodiment will be described below.

[0163] <Processing flow of the print server 106> Fig. 34, Fig. 35, and Fig. 36 are flowcharts showing details of the process of the print server 106 according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. Here, the flowcharts of Fig. 34, Fig. 35, and Fig. 36 will be described with respect to differences from the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 11, Fig. 12, and Fig. 13. The same processes as those in Fig. 11, Fig. 12, and Fig. 13 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in Fig. 11, Fig. 12, and Fig. 13, and the description thereof will be omitted. Fig. 35 has processes of steps S2301 and S2302 in addition to the processes of the first embodiment.

[0164] In step S2301, the job list management unit 531 replaces the document data of the print job with data indicating "cancelled by administrator." The process in step S2301 is an example of a document data replacement unit that replaces document data with data indicating denial when the print approval result is printing not permitted. Specifically, the document data contains only the character string "Printing not permitted because confidential information is included. Status: canceled by administrator." Note that the data to be replaced is not limited to that described above.

[0165] In step S2302, the job list management unit 531 replaces the document data of the print job with data indicating "automatic cancellation." For example, the document data contains only the character string "Printing not permitted due to confidential information included. Status: automatic cancellation." Note that the data to be replaced is not limited to the one described above.

[0166] <Processing flow of the printing device 101> Fig. 37 and Fig. 38 are flowcharts showing details of the processing of the printing device 101 according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. Here, the differences between the flowcharts of Fig. 37 and Fig. 38 and the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 are described. The same processes as those in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15, and the description thereof is omitted. Fig. 27 has processing of step S2401 instead of processing of step S1108 in the first embodiment.

[0167] In step S2401, if the status of the print job is "pending administrator approval," "checking confidential information," or "printer canceled," the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S1110 in Fig. 38. In step S2401, if the status of the print job is not "pending administrator approval," "checking confidential information," or "printer canceled," the print control unit 503 proceeds to step S615 in Fig. 38.

[0168] In step S619 in Fig. 38, the printing unit 504 prints out the document data of the print job. Specifically, the document data of the print job is rendered to generate image data to be printed. The image data to be printed is then printed on recording paper. Fig. 39 shows an example of a printed matter according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 39 shows an example of printed out document data of a print job whose status is "cancelled by administrator". In the example of Fig. 39, the document data replaced in step S2301 in Fig. 35 is output as a printed matter.

[0169] According to the sixth embodiment described above, when the administrator's print approval result is not permitted, the document data of the print job is replaced with document data indicating that printing is not permitted. This allows a user to check the print job for which printing is not permitted by looking at the printed matter, even if the user is using a printing device with a small screen.

[0170] Example 7 In the first embodiment, the status of the print job is updated based on the print approval result by the administrator, and a job list is displayed on the printing device. This makes it possible to display not only print jobs that can be printed, but also print jobs that have been disallowed from printing by the administrator on the printing device. However, there are cases where it is desired to check print jobs that have been disallowed from printing not only in the job list but also in the job history. The job history refers to a list of print jobs that have been printed or instructed to be operated on the printing device in the past. In the seventh embodiment of the present invention, an example is described in which not only print jobs that have been printed on the printing device but also a job history including print jobs that have been disallowed from printing is displayed. Note that only the differences from the first embodiment are described below.

[0171] <Processing flow of the printing device 101> Figures 40 and 41 are flowcharts showing details of the processing of the printing device 101 according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention. Here, the differences between the flowcharts of Figures 40 and 41 and the flowcharts of the first embodiment shown in Figures 14 and 15 will be described. The same processing as in Figures 14 and 15 is given the same reference numerals as in Figures 14 and 15, and the description will be omitted. Figures 40 and 41 have processing of steps S2601, S2602, S2603, and S2604 in addition to the processing of the first embodiment.

[0172] In step S614, the display unit 501 displays a job list screen. Fig. 42 shows an example of the job list screen according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention. The job list screen in Fig. 42 has a job history display button 2701 in addition to the job list 1201 and print start button 1202 described in Fig. 16(A). At this time, even if a job is not selected, the job history display button 2701 is displayed so that the job history screen can be displayed by pressing the job history display button 2701.

[0173] In step S2601, the operation unit 502 accepts an instruction to display a job history screen. In the example of Fig. 42, when the job history display button 2701 is pressed, it is determined that an instruction to display the job history screen has been given.

[0174] In step S2602, if the print control unit 503 has accepted an instruction to display the job history screen in step S2601, the process proceeds to step S2603. If the print control unit 503 has not accepted an instruction to display the job history screen in step S2601, the process proceeds to step S1102.

[0175] In step S2603, the print control unit 503 creates a job history. The process in step S2603 is an example of a job history creating unit that creates a job history when a display instruction is received. Specifically, the job history is created by extracting only print jobs whose status is "Printed", "Automatically canceled", "Administrator canceled", or "Printer canceled" from the job list.

[0176] In step S2604, the display unit 501 displays a job history screen. Fig. 43 shows an example of the job history screen according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention. The job history screen includes a job history 2801. A print job 2802 indicates a print job whose status is "printer canceled." After the process of step S2604, the process of step S1110 in Fig. 41 is executed.

[0177] According to the seventh embodiment described above, not only the print jobs that have been printed but also the job history including the print jobs that have been prohibited from being printed are displayed on the printing device. This makes it possible to display the print jobs that have been prohibited from being printed in the job history, thereby improving the convenience for the operator.

[0178] (Other embodiments) The present invention can also be realized by a process in which a program for realizing one or more functions of the above-mentioned 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. Also, the present invention can be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) for realizing one or more functions.

[0179] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

[0180] The disclosure of the present embodiment includes the following configurations and methods. In the following, the reference numerals given to corresponding configurations are given in parentheses. (Configuration 1) A print job analysis means (541) for analyzing a print job; A job list management means (531) for managing a job list including the print job; A display means (501) for displaying the job list; Equipped with The print job analysis means includes a confidential information detection means (S605) for analyzing document data of the print job and detecting confidential information; The job list management means includes: a print approval request sending means for sending a print approval request for the print job to an external information processing device when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection means (S609); a print approval result receiving means (S1015) for receiving a print approval result for the print approval request from the external information processing device; an approved update means for updating the status of the print job to approved when the print approval result is approved (S1017); a disapproval update means for updating the status of the print job to "disapproved" if the print approval result indicates that printing is not permitted (S1018); having The display means has a job list display means (S614) for displaying the job list, The job list display means displays a job list including approved print jobs and disapproved print jobs. 1. An image processing system comprising: (Configuration 2) An operation means (502) for receiving an operation instruction for the print job, The operation means includes a detection result display instruction receiving means (S1401) for receiving an instruction to display the confidential information detected by the confidential information detection means, The display means includes a detection result display means (S1403) for displaying the detection result of the confidential information when a display instruction is given by the detection result display instruction receiving means. 2. The image processing system according to configuration 1, (Configuration 3) An operation means (502) for receiving an operation instruction for the print job; A print control means (503) for controlling the print job on a printing device; Equipped with The operation means includes a retransmission instruction receiving means (S1701) for receiving an instruction to retransmit the print approval request, The print control means includes a retransmission means (S1703) for retransmitting the print approval request when a retransmission instruction is received by the retransmission instruction receiving means. 3. The image processing system according to configuration 1 or 2. (Configuration 4) An operation means (502) for receiving an operation instruction for the print job; A print control means (503) for controlling the print job on a printing device; Equipped with The operation means includes a job history display instruction receiving means (S2601) for receiving an instruction to display a job history; having The print control means has a job history creating means (S2603) for creating the job history when a display instruction is received by the job history display instruction receiving means, The display means has a job history display means (S2604) for displaying the job history, The job history display means displays a job list including print jobs that have been printed and print jobs that have been disapproved. 4. The image processing system according to any one of configurations 1 to 3. (Configuration 5) The job list management means includes: a first approval request sending means (S1901) for sending a first approval request, which is an approval request for the print job, to a first administrator PC when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection means; an approval / non-approval state determination means (S1902) for determining whether the first administrator PC is in a state in which the first approval request can be approved; a second approval request sending means (S1904) for sending a second approval request, which is an approval request for the print job, to a second administrator PC when the first approval request cannot be approved; 5. The image processing system according to any one of configurations 1 to 4, comprising: (Configuration 6) An operation means (502) for receiving an operation instruction for the print job; A print control means (503) for controlling the print job on a printing device; Equipped with The print job analysis means includes a job importance calculation means (S606) for calculating the importance of the print job, The job list management means includes a printer approval required update means (S1012) for updating a status of the print job to printer approval required when the importance is equal to or less than a threshold value; The display means includes an approval screen display means (S1104) for displaying a print user approval screen when the status of the print job is that the print user approval is required; The operation means includes an approval instruction receiving means (S1105) for receiving a print owner's approval, The print control means includes an approval result sending means (S2101) for sending a print person approval result when the approval instruction receiving means receives the print person approval. 6. The image processing system according to claim 1, wherein the first and second inputs are input to the image processing apparatus. (Configuration 7) A print job analysis means (541) for analyzing a print job; A job list management means (531) for managing a job list including the print job; A printing means (504) for printing document data of the print job; Equipped with The print job analysis means includes a confidential information detection means (S605) for analyzing the document data and detecting confidential information; The job list management means includes: a print approval request sending means for sending a print approval request for the print job to an external information processing device when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection means (S609); a print approval result receiving means (S1015) for receiving a print approval result for the print approval request from the external information processing device; a document data replacing means for replacing the document data with data indicating printing disapproval when the print approval result indicates printing disapproval (S2301); having The printing means includes a print output means (S619) for printing out the print job; 1. An image processing system comprising: (Method 1) a print job analysis step of analyzing the print job; a job list management step of managing a job list including the print job; a display step of displaying the job list; Equipped with The print job analyzing step includes a confidential information detecting step of detecting confidential information by analyzing document data of the print job, The job list management step includes: a print approval request sending step of sending a print approval request for the print job to an external information processing device when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection step; a print approval result receiving step of receiving a print approval result for the print approval request from the external information processing device; an approved updating step of updating a status of the print job to approved when the print approval result is approved; a disapproval updating step of updating a status of the print job to "disapproved" when the print approval result indicates that printing is not permitted; having The display step includes a job list display step of displaying the job list, The job list display step displays a job list including approved print jobs and disapproved print jobs. A control method comprising: [Explanation of symbols]

[0181] 101 Printing device 106 Print Server 107 Monitoring Server 501 Display section 531 Job List Management Department 541 Print Job Analysis Unit

Claims

1. A print job analysis means for analyzing a print job; a job list management means for managing a job list including the print job; A display means for displaying the job list; Equipped with the print job analysis means includes a confidential information detection means for detecting confidential information by analyzing document data of the print job; The job list management means includes: a print approval request sending means for sending a print approval request for the print job to an external information processing device when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection means; a print approval result receiving means for receiving a print approval result for the print approval request from the external information processing device; an approved update means for updating a status of the print job to approved when the print approval result is approved; a disapproval update means for updating a status of the print job to "disapproved" when the print approval result indicates that printing is not permitted; having the display means has a job list display means for displaying the job list, The job list display means displays a job list including approved print jobs and disapproved print jobs.

1. An image processing system comprising:

2. an operation unit for receiving an operation instruction for the print job; the operation means has a detection result display instruction receiving means for receiving an instruction to display the confidential information detected by the confidential information detection means, The display means includes a detection result display means for displaying the detection result of the confidential information when a display instruction is given by the detection result display instruction receiving means.

2. The image processing system according to claim 1.

3. an operation unit for receiving an operation instruction for the print job; a print control means for controlling the print job on a printing device; Equipped with The operation means has a retransmission instruction receiving means for receiving an instruction to retransmit the print approval request, The print control means has a retransmission means for retransmitting the print approval request when a retransmission instruction is received by the retransmission instruction receiving means.

2. The image processing system according to claim 1.

4. an operation unit for receiving an operation instruction for the print job; a print control means for controlling the print job on a printing device; Equipped with The operation means includes a job history display instruction receiving means for receiving an instruction to display a job history; having the print control means has a job history creating means for creating the job history when a display instruction is received by the job history display instruction receiving means, the display means includes a job history display means for displaying the job history, The job history display means displays a job list including print jobs that have been printed and print jobs that have been disapproved.

2. The image processing system according to claim 1.

5. The job list management means includes: a first approval request sending means for sending a first approval request, which is an approval request for the print job, to a first administrator PC when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection means; an approval / non-approval state determination means for determining whether the first administrator PC is in a state in which the first approval request can be approved; a second approval request sending means for sending a second approval request, which is an approval request for the print job, to a second administrator PC when the first approval request cannot be approved; 2. The image processing system according to claim 1, further comprising:

6. an operation unit for receiving an operation instruction for the print job; a print control means for controlling the print job on a printing device; Equipped with The print job analysis means includes a job importance calculation means for calculating the importance of the print job, the job list management means includes a printer approval required update means for updating a status of the print job to printer approval required when the importance is equal to or less than a threshold value; the display means has an approval screen display means for displaying a printer approval screen when the status of the print job is printer approval required; The operation means includes an approval instruction receiving means for receiving approval of a printer, The printing control means includes an approval result sending means for sending a printing person approval result when the approval instruction receiving means receives the printing person approval.

2. The image processing system according to claim 1.

7. A print job analysis means for analyzing a print job; a job list management means for managing a job list including the print job; a printing means for printing document data of the print job; Equipped with the print job analysis means includes a confidential information detection means for detecting confidential information by analyzing the document data; The job list management means includes: a print approval request sending means for sending a print approval request for the print job to an external information processing device when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection means; a print approval result receiving means for receiving a print approval result for the print approval request from the external information processing device; a document data replacing unit which replaces the document data with data indicating that printing is not permitted when the print approval result indicates that printing is not permitted; having The printing means includes a print output means for printing out the print job; 1. An image processing system comprising:

8. a print job analysis step of analyzing the print job; a job list management step of managing a job list including the print job; a display step of displaying the job list; Equipped with The print job analyzing step includes a confidential information detecting step of detecting confidential information by analyzing document data of the print job, The job list management step includes: a print approval request sending step of sending a print approval request for the print job to an external information processing device when confidential information is detected by the confidential information detection step; a print approval result receiving step of receiving a print approval result for the print approval request from the external information processing device; an approved updating step of updating a status of the print job to approved when the print approval result is approved; a disapproval updating step of updating a status of the print job to "disapproved" when the print approval result indicates that printing is not permitted; having The display step includes a job list display step of displaying the job list, The job list display step displays a job list including approved print jobs and disapproved print jobs. A control method comprising:

Images