Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and information processing program

Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and an information processing program that reduce the man-hours required for acquisition of setting data.SOLUTION: In an information processing system 100, an information processing apparatus has: a data registration unit that stores setting data related to the settings of a device, and disclosure advisability data indicating whether to permit disclosure of the setting data in a setting data storage unit in association with each other; a disclosure list output unit that outputs, to a terminal device, a list of setting data permitted to be disclosed in the disclosure advisability data, of the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit; and a setting data output unit that outputs setting data specified from the list to the terminal device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and an information processing program. [Background technology]

[0002] In conventional printing devices, if the paper attributes to be used are not registered, a technique is known in which a request is made via a network to an administrator to register the paper attributes, and after the administrator has registered the attributes, the updated paper attributes are identified and the paper settings for the tray are performed. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] In the conventional technology described above, when a request is made to register paper attributes, the administrator must create new paper attributes corresponding to the paper settings. In other words, in the conventional technology, if setting data is not registered in the printing device, the administrator must create new setting data, which requires a lot of work to obtain the setting data.

[0004] The disclosed technology has been developed in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to reduce the number of steps required to obtain setting data. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The disclosed technology is an information processing device having a data registration unit that associates setting data regarding device settings with disclosure availability data indicating whether the setting data is allowed to be made public and stores the associated setting data in a setting data storage unit, a disclosure list output unit that outputs to a terminal device a list of setting data stored in the setting data storage unit that is allowed to be made public in the disclosure availability data, and a setting data output unit that outputs setting data identified from the list to the terminal device. Effect of the Invention

[0006] The amount of work required to obtain the setting data can be reduced. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a system configuration of an information processing system. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing device. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a setting data storage unit; [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the functional configuration of each device in the information processing system. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a first sequence diagram illustrating an operation of the information processing system. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a second sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the information processing system. [Figure 7] 11 is a first flowchart illustrating a process of the information processing device. [Figure 8] 13 is a second flowchart illustrating the process of the information processing device. [Figure 9] 13 is a third flowchart illustrating the process of the information processing device. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a registration screen displayed on a terminal device. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an acquisition screen displayed on a terminal device. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a details screen displayed on a terminal device. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a comparison result screen displayed on a terminal device. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 illustrates another example of the setting data storage unit. [Figure 15] FIG. 11 is a first diagram showing a modified example of a registration screen displayed on a terminal device. [Figure 16] FIG. 11 is a second diagram showing a modified example of the registration screen displayed on the terminal device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a system configuration of an information processing system.

[0009] The information processing system 100 of this embodiment includes an information processing device 200, a terminal device 300, and a terminal device 400. The information processing device 200 and the terminal device 300 and the terminal device 400 are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via a network or the like.

[0010] In the information processing system 100 of this embodiment, the information processing device 200 includes a display control unit 220, a processing unit 230, and a setting data storage unit 240.

[0011] The display control unit 220 controls the display on the terminal devices 300 and 400. The processing unit 230 stores in the setting data storage unit 240 the setting data created in each of the multiple terminal devices.

[0012] Here, the setting data is data related to the settings of the devices used by the respective users of the multiple terminal devices, and is created by the respective users of the multiple terminal devices. In the example of Fig. 1, the user of the terminal device 300 uses the device 10, and the user of the terminal device 400 uses the device 20. Each user of the terminal devices 300 and 400 may use multiple devices.

[0013] The devices 10 and 20 are devices connected to the terminal devices 300 and 400, respectively, and include, for example, an image forming device, a microfabrication device, an inspection device, etc. Furthermore, the devices 10 and 20 of the present embodiment may be any devices that operate using setting data including values ​​set by a user.

[0014] In addition, the setting data of this embodiment is associated with disclosure permission data indicating whether or not each user of the multiple terminal devices is permitted to disclose the setting data to other users. The disclosure permission data is transmitted to the information processing device 200 together with the setting data, and is stored in the setting data storage unit 240 together with the setting data.

[0015] In the example of Figure 1, the setting data storage unit 240 of the information processing device 200 may store setting data and public / non-public data created by a user of the terminal device 300, and setting data and public / non-public data created by the terminal device 400.

[0016] The following describes an overview of the operation of the information processing system 100. Here, the description is based on the assumption that the setting data and disclosure permission data of the device 10 created in the terminal device 300 are stored in the setting data storage unit 240 of the information processing device 200, and the user of the terminal device 400 acquires the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit 240 and sets it in the device 20.

[0017] In the information processing system 100, when setting data for the device 10 is created, the terminal device 300 prompts the user to input disclosure permission data indicating whether or not to permit the created setting data to be made public. Then, the terminal device 300 transmits the setting data and the disclosure permission data to the information processing device 200. When the information processing device 200 receives the setting data and the disclosure permission data from the terminal device 300, the processing unit 230 stores the setting data and the disclosure permission data in the setting data storage unit 240. When new setting data permitted to be made public is stored in the setting data storage unit 240, the information processing device 200 transmits a list of setting data including the new setting data to the terminal devices 300, 400.

[0018] Furthermore, when the information processing device 200 receives a request from the terminal device 400 to acquire setting data identified from the list, the processing unit 230 transmits the identified setting data to the terminal device 400.

[0019] In this manner, in this embodiment, the setting data of the device 10 created by the user of the terminal device 300 can be provided to the user of the terminal device 400. Therefore, in this embodiment, for example, when creating setting data for the device 20, the user of the terminal device 400 can create the setting data for the device 20 by acquiring the setting data for the device 10 from the information processing device 200 and reusing the setting data for the device 10.

[0020] Therefore, in this embodiment, the user of the terminal device 400 does not need to create new setting data for the device 20 that he or she uses, and can use the setting data of another device (device 10) created by the user of the terminal device 300, thereby reducing the amount of work required to obtain the setting data.

[0021] 1, the information processing device 200 is one computer, but is not limited to this. The information processing device 200 may be realized by a plurality of computers. In the present embodiment, the setting data storage unit 240 is included in the information processing device 200, but is not limited to this. The setting data storage unit 240 may be provided in part or in whole in an external device capable of communicating with the information processing device 200.

[0022] 1, the terminal devices included in the information processing system 100 are the terminal devices 300 and 400, but the present invention is not limited to this. The number of terminal devices included in the information processing system 100 may be any number. In addition, in the example of FIG. 1, the devices connected to the terminal devices 300 and 400 are the devices 10 and 20, respectively, but the number of devices connected to each of the terminal devices 300 and 400 may be multiple, or may be any number.

[0023] In addition, in FIG. 1 and the following description, it is assumed that the terminal device 300 stores setting data for the information processing device 200, and the terminal device 400 acquires setting data from the information processing device 200, but this is not limiting.

[0024] In the information processing system 100, the terminal device 400 may store setting data in the information processing device 200, or the terminal device 300 may acquire setting data from the information processing device 200. Furthermore, the terminal device that stores setting data in the information processing device 200 and the terminal device that acquires setting data from the information processing device 200 may be the same terminal device, and the storage and acquisition of setting data may be performed at the discretion of the user of the terminal device.

[0025] The hardware configuration of the information processing device 200 of this embodiment will be described below with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the information processing device.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing device 200 is constructed by a computer, and as shown in FIG. 2, it includes a CPU 201, a ROM 202, a RAM 203, an HD 204, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) controller 205, a display 206, an external device connection I / F (Interface) 208, a network I / F 209, a bus line 210, a keyboard 211, a pointing device 212, a DVD-RW (Digital Versatile Disk Rewritable) drive 214, and a media I / F 216.

[0027] Among these, the CPU 201 controls the operation of the entire information processing device 200. The ROM 202 stores programs such as an IPL used to drive the CPU 201. The RAM 203 is used as a work area for the CPU 201. The HD 204 stores various data such as programs. The HDD controller 205 controls reading or writing of various data from or to the HD 204 under the control of the CPU 201. The display 206 displays various information such as a cursor, a menu, a window, a character, or an image. The external device connection I / F 208 is an interface for connecting various external devices. In this case, the external device is, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory or a printer. The network I / F 209 is an interface for data communication using a communication network. The bus line 210 is an address bus, a data bus, or the like for electrically connecting each component such as the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 2.

[0028] The keyboard 211 is a type of input means having a plurality of keys for inputting characters, numbers, various instructions, etc. The pointing device 212 is a type of input means for selecting and executing various instructions, selecting a processing target, moving a cursor, etc. The DVD-RW drive 214 controls reading and writing of various data from a DVD-RW 213 as an example of a removable recording medium. Note that this is not limited to DVD-RW, and may be DVD-R, etc. The media I / F 216 controls reading and writing (storing) of data from a recording medium 215 such as a flash memory.

[0029] The hardware configuration of the terminal devices 300 and 400 may be similar to that of the information processing device 200, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0030] Next, the setting data storage unit 240 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the setting data storage unit.

[0031] The setting data storage unit 240 of this embodiment may be realized by, for example, the HD 204 or the like.

[0032] The data stored in the setting data storage unit 240 of this embodiment includes setting data 241, disclosure permission data 242, and evaluation data 243, and the setting data, disclosure permission data, and evaluation data are associated with each other.

[0033] The setting data includes information items such as user ID, device, name, setting data type, adjustment content, and update date. The disclosure availability data includes information items such as disclosure setting. The evaluation data includes information items such as the number of acquisitions and evaluation.

[0034] The value of the item "User ID" indicates identification information for identifying the user who created the setting data. Note that in this embodiment, identification information for identifying the setting data may be used instead of the user ID. Also, in this embodiment, the value of the item "Name" may be used as identification information for identifying the setting data.

[0035] The value of the item "Device / Model" indicates information for identifying a device corresponding to the setting data. In the example of Fig. 3, the name of the device and the model of the device are used as information for identifying the device. Note that the information for identifying the device is not limited to the example of Fig. 3, and may be identification information specific to the device, etc.

[0036] The value of the item "Name" indicates the name of the setting data. The name may be given arbitrarily by the user who created the setting data. The value of the item "Setting data type" indicates the type of device or processing to which the setting data applies. The value of the item "Adjustment contents" indicates the specific setting contents, such as various setting values. The value of the item "Update date" indicates the date on which the setting data was updated.

[0037] The value of the item "Public Setting" indicates whether or not the setting data is permitted to be made public. Specifically, the setting data for which the value of the item "Public Setting" is "Public" is permitted to be made public, and the setting data for which the value of the item "Public Setting" is "Private" is prohibited from being made public.

[0038] The value of the item "acquisition count" indicates the number of times the corresponding setting data has been acquired in the past. The value of the item "rating" indicates the result of tallying up the ratings from users who have acquired the corresponding setting data.

[0039] Next, the functional configuration of each device included in the information processing system 100 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating the functional configuration of each device included in the information processing system.

[0040] The terminal devices 300 and 400 of the present embodiment have the same functional configuration. The terminal devices 300 and 400 each have an input receiving unit 330 and 430 and a display control unit 340 and 440, respectively.

[0041] The input receiving units 330 and 430 receive inputs by operating the screens displayed on the display control units 340 and 440, respectively.

[0042] The display control units 340 and 440 cause the terminal devices 300 and 400 to display, on their respective displays, a screen for storing the setting data in the information processing device 200 and a screen for acquiring the setting data.

[0043] The information processing device 200 of this embodiment includes a display control unit 220 and a processing unit 230. The display control unit 220 and the processing unit 230 are realized by the CPU 201 of the information processing device 200 reading and executing a program stored in the ROM 202, the HD 204, or the like.

[0044] The display control unit 220 of this embodiment instructs the terminal devices 300 and 400 to display various screens.

[0045] The processing unit 230 of this embodiment includes a data registration unit 250 , a data output unit 260 , a data search unit 270 , a comparison unit 280 , and a related data acquisition unit 290 .

[0046] In this embodiment, the data registration section 250 , the data output section 260 , and the data search section 270 each independently execute a process in response to a request from the terminal devices 300 and 400 that communicate with the information processing device 200 .

[0047] The data registration unit 250 stores the setting data in the processing unit 230. The data registration unit 250 has an input reception unit 251, a storage control unit 252, and a disclosure list output unit 253. The input reception unit 251 receives input of the setting data and the disclosure permission data created in the terminal device 300. In other words, the input reception unit 251 receives a storage request for the setting data from the terminal device 300, together with the setting data and the disclosure permission data.

[0048] The storage control unit 252 stores the setting data and disclosure permission data received by the input receiving unit 251 in the setting data storage unit 240. When the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit 240 is updated, the disclosure list output unit 253 outputs a notification indicating that the setting data permitted to be made public has been updated to the terminal devices 300, 400. Specifically, the disclosure list output unit 253 outputs a list of the setting data permitted to be made public.

[0049] The data output unit 260 outputs the setting data identified in the terminal device 400 to the terminal device 400. The data output unit 260 includes an acquisition request receiving unit 261, an acquisition permission determining unit 262, and a setting data output unit 263.

[0050] The acquisition request receiving unit 261 receives a request to acquire setting data from the terminal device 400. The acquisition permission determining unit 262 determines whether the setting data for which an acquisition request has been received can be acquired by the terminal device 400. The setting data output unit 263 outputs the setting data to the terminal device 400.

[0051] In response to a search request for setting data from the terminal device 400 , the data search unit 270 searches for setting data stored in the setting data storage unit 240 , and outputs the search results to the terminal device 400 .

[0052] The data search unit 270 has a search request receiving unit 271, a search unit 272, and a search result output unit 273. The search request receiving unit 271 receives a search request for setting data from the terminal device 400. The search unit 272 searches the setting data storage unit 240 in response to the search request. The search result output unit 273 outputs the search results by the search unit 272 to the terminal device 400.

[0053] For example, when the comparison unit 280 outputs setting data to the terminal device 400, the comparison unit 280 acquires from the terminal device 400 setting data of the image forming device connected to the terminal device 400, and compares the output setting data with the setting data acquired from the terminal device 400. The comparison result may be displayed on the terminal device 400 by the display control unit 220.

[0054] The associated data acquisition section 290 may acquire setting data associated with the setting data selected on the terminal device 400, and cause the acquired results to be displayed on the terminal device 400 by the display control section 220.

[0055] In addition, the image forming apparatus connected to the terminal apparatus 400 is, in other words, an image forming apparatus linked to the user ID of the user who uses the terminal apparatus 400.

[0056] Next, the operation of the information processing system 100 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 5 and Fig. 6. Fig. 5 describes the operation of storing the setting data and disclosure permission data of the device 10, and Fig. 6 describes the operation of setting the setting data in the device 20 using the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit 240. In Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, the device 10 is the image forming device A, and the device 20 is the image forming device B.

[0057] FIG. 5 is a first sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the information processing system.

[0058] In the information processing system 100 of this embodiment, the terminal device 300 receives, via the input receiving unit 330, an operation for acquiring setting data of the device 10 from a user (step S501).

[0059] Next, the terminal device 300 transmits a request to the device 10 to acquire the setting data currently set in the device 10 (step S502), and acquires the setting data from the device 10 (step S503).

[0060] Next, the terminal device 300 accepts an operation to instruct the information processing device 200 to register (store) the setting data of the device 10 (step S504), and transmits a setting data registration request to the information processing device 200 (step S505).

[0061] The information processing device 200 accepts the registration request and causes the display control unit 220 to transmit an instruction to display a setting data registration screen to the terminal device 300 (step S506).

[0062] The terminal device 300 receives an instruction to display the registration screen and causes the display control unit 340 to display the registration screen (step S507). Next, when the terminal device 300 receives a setting for public / private of the setting data of the device 10 (step S508), the terminal device 300 transmits the setting data of the device 10 and the data on whether or not to disclose to the information processing device 200 (step S509).

[0063] The information processing device 200 accepts a request to register the setting data and the disclosure data of the device 10 from the terminal device 300, and causes the data registration unit 250 to register (store) the setting data and the disclosure data of the device 10 in the setting data storage unit 240 (step S510). The process of step S510 will be described in detail later.

[0064] Next, the information processing device 200 notifies the terminal device 300 and the terminal device 400 of the fact that the setting data and the disclosure permission data have been registered by the data registration unit 250 (steps S511 and S512).

[0065] The operation of storing the setting data and disclosure permission data of the device 10 in the setting data storage unit 240 of the information processing device 200 has been described above.

[0066] FIG. 6 is a second sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the information processing system.

[0067] In the information processing system 100, the terminal device 400 receives an operation to instruct the device 20 to start setting the device 20 through the input receiving unit 430 (step S601). Then, the terminal device 400 transmits a request to obtain the currently set setting data to the device 20 (step S602), and obtains the setting data from the device 20 (step S603).

[0068] Next, the terminal device 400 displays a search screen for inputting search conditions, and upon receiving input of search conditions for setting data to be acquired from the information processing device 200 (step S604), transmits a search request including the search conditions to the information processing device 200 (step S605). The search conditions input here may be, for example, search conditions for searching for existing setting data to be used in creating setting data for the device 20.

[0069] The information processing device 200 accepts the search request, causes the data search unit 270 to search the setting data storage unit 240 using the search conditions (step S606), and transmits the search results to the terminal device 400 (step S607). The process of step S606 will be described in detail later.

[0070] When the terminal device 400 receives the search results, the display control unit 440 displays a search result screen (step S608). Next, when the terminal device 400 accepts a selection of setting data from the search results included in the search result screen (step S609), the terminal device 400 transmits an acquisition request for the selected setting data to the information processing device 200 (step S610).

[0071] The information processing device 200 accepts the request to acquire the setting data, acquires the requested setting data by the data output unit 260 (step S611), and transmits the acquired setting data to the terminal device 400 (step S612). It is assumed here that the setting data of the device 10 is acquired. The process of step S611 will be described in detail later.

[0072] When the terminal device 400 acquires the setting data of the device 10 by the display control unit 440, the terminal device 400 displays the setting data of the device 10 and the current setting data of the device 20 so that the user can compare them (step S613).

[0073] Next, when the terminal device 400 accepts an operation to confirm the setting values ​​to be set in the device 20 (step S614), it transmits a setting instruction for the setting data whose setting values ​​have been confirmed to the device 20 (step S615). In response to the setting instruction from the terminal device 400, the device 20 sets the setting data in itself (step S616).

[0074] Next, the processing of the information processing device 200 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 7 to Fig. 9. Fig. 7 is a first flowchart for explaining the processing of the information processing device. Fig. 7 shows details of the processing of step S510 in Fig. 5. In other words, Fig. 7 shows the processing of the data registration unit 250 of the processing unit 230 of the information processing device 200.

[0075] The data registration unit 250 of this embodiment executes the process shown in FIG. 7 every time it receives a request to register setting data and disclosure permission data from the terminal device 300 that communicates with the information processing device 200.

[0076] In the data registration unit 250 of this embodiment, the input reception unit 251 acquires the setting data and the disclosure permission data received from the terminal device 300 (step S701).

[0077] Next, the data registration unit 250 causes the storage control unit 252 to search the setting data storage unit 240 with the setting data acquired in step S701 (step S702), and determines whether or not the corresponding setting data is stored in the setting data storage unit 240 (step S703). In other words, the storage control unit 252 determines whether or not the setting data corresponding to the received setting data is already stored in the setting data storage unit 240. Note that the storage control unit 252 may search the setting data storage unit 240 with a name or the like included in the received setting data.

[0078] In step S703, if setting data corresponding to the received setting data is not stored in the setting data storage unit 240, the storage control unit 252 stores the received setting data and the disclosure availability data as new setting data in the setting data storage unit 240 (step S604), and proceeds to step S706 described below.

[0079] In step S703, if setting data corresponding to the received setting data is stored in the setting data storage unit 240, the storage control unit 252 overwrites the received setting data and disclosure data with the corresponding setting data and disclosure data (step S605).

[0080] Next, the data registration unit 250 generates a list of the setting data that is allowed to be made public as a notification indicating that the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit 240 has been updated by the public list output unit 253 (step S706), and terminates the processing.

[0081] The list generated in step S706 is output to the terminal devices 300 and 400 that communicate with the information processing device 200 in steps S511 and S512.

[0082] The notification output here may be information specifying newly added setting data or overwritten setting data.

[0083] Fig. 8 is a second flowchart illustrating the processing of the information processing device. Fig. 8 shows details of the processing of step S606 in Fig. 6. In other words, Fig. 8 shows the processing of the data search unit 270 included in the processing unit 230 of the information processing device 200.

[0084] The data search unit 270 of this embodiment executes the process shown in FIG. 7 every time it receives a search request for setting data from any terminal device that communicates with the information processing device 200.

[0085] In the data search unit 270 of this embodiment, the search request receiving unit 271 receives a search request for setting data from the terminal device 400 (step S801). The search request for setting data may include search conditions. The search conditions are search keys input by the user of the terminal device 400.

[0086] Furthermore, the search request for setting data may be transmitted from the terminal device 400 to the information processing device 200 in response to an operation for searching for setting data on a search screen displayed on the terminal device 400. Note that the search screen may be displayed on the display in response to a display request received from the terminal device 400, in which the display control unit 220 issues a display instruction to the terminal device 400, and the display control unit 440 of the terminal device 400 displays the search screen on the display in response to the display instruction.

[0087] Furthermore, a list of setting data that is permitted to be made public in the setting data storage unit 240 may be displayed on the search screen.

[0088] When the data search unit 270 receives the search request, the search unit 272 searches the setting data storage unit 240 using the search conditions included in the search request (step S802).

[0089] Next, the search unit 272 determines whether or not setting data matching the search conditions exists in the setting data storage unit 240 (step S803).

[0090] If there is no setting data matching the search conditions in step S703, the data search section 270 causes the search result output section 273 to output a notice to that effect to the terminal device 400 (step S804), and ends the process.

[0091] In step S803, if there is setting data that matches the search conditions, the data search unit 270 extracts the corresponding setting data through the search result output unit 273 (step S805). Then, the search result output unit 273 outputs a list of the extracted setting data to the terminal device 400 as a search result (step S806), and the process ends.

[0092] Fig. 9 is a third flowchart illustrating the processing of the information processing device. Fig. 9 shows details of the processing of step S611 in Fig. 6. In other words, Fig. 9 shows the processing of the data output unit 260 included in the processing unit 230 of the information processing device 200.

[0093] The data output unit 260 of this embodiment executes the process shown in FIG. 9 every time it receives a request to acquire setting data from any terminal device that communicates with the information processing device 200.

[0094] In the present embodiment, the data output unit 260 receives a request to acquire setting data from the terminal device 400 via the acquisition request receiving unit 261 (step S901). The request to acquire setting data may include information for identifying the setting data to be acquired. The information for identifying the setting data may be, for example, the name of the setting data.

[0095] Furthermore, the request to acquire setting data may be transmitted from terminal device 400 to information processing device 200 in response to an operation to acquire setting data on an acquisition screen displayed on terminal device 400.

[0096] When the data output unit 260 receives the acquisition request, the acquisition possibility determination unit 262 determines whether or not the setting data specified in the acquisition request can be acquired (step S902).

[0097] Specifically, acquisition permission determination section 262 refers to disclosure permission data associated with the identified setting data in setting data storage section 240, and determines whether or not disclosure of the identified setting data is permitted.

[0098] In step S902, if the disclosure of the identified setting data is permitted, the data output unit 260, via the setting data output unit 263, obtains the identified setting data from the setting data storage unit 240 and outputs it to the terminal device 400 (step S903), and terminates the processing.

[0099] In step S902, if the disclosure of the identified setting data is prohibited, the data output unit 260 outputs, via the setting data output unit 263, an error indicating that the identified setting data cannot be obtained to the terminal device 400 (step S904), and the processing ends.

[0100] In this embodiment, by making such a judgment using the acquisition permission judgment unit 262, it is possible to prevent a user from acquiring setting data that is prohibited from being made public, for example, in cases where, between the time when desired setting data is selected from a list of setting data that is permitted to be made public and the time when an acquisition request is executed, the publication permission data corresponding to the selected setting data is updated to a setting that prohibits publication.

[0101] Next, various screens displayed on the terminal devices 300 and 400 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0102] 10 is a diagram showing an example of a registration screen displayed on a terminal device 300. A screen 301 shown in Fig. 10 is an example of the registration screen displayed on the terminal device 300 in step S507 of Fig. 5.

[0103] 10 may be displayed in the terminal device 300 when updating setting data already stored in the setting data storage unit 240. In addition, the screen 301 in FIG.

[0104] The screen 301 includes display areas 302 , 303 , 304 , and 305 , and operation buttons 306 , 307 , 308 , and 309 .

[0105] Information for setting the setting data type is displayed in the display area 302. In the example of Fig. 10, image formation information is selected as the setting data type. Note that when the setting data type is "custom task", settings related to a specific process to be performed by the image forming apparatus may be performed.

[0106] Information for selecting a device corresponding to the setting data is displayed in a display area 303. In the example of Fig. 10, image forming device A is selected as the corresponding device.

[0107] The display area 304 displays a list of setting data created in the terminal device 300. In other words, the display area 304 displays a list of setting data created by a user associated with the terminal device 300.

[0108] The display area 305 includes an input field 305a for search conditions and an operation button 305b for sending a search request. In this embodiment, when the search conditions are input in the input field 305a and the operation button 305b is operated, setting data that matches the search conditions may be extracted from the list of setting data displayed in the display area 304.

[0109] Operation button 306 is an operation button for setting to "public" the disclosure data corresponding to the setting data selected in the list displayed in display area 304. Operation button 307 is an operation button for setting to "private" the disclosure data corresponding to the setting data selected in the list displayed in display area 304.

[0110] In other words, the operation buttons 306 and 307 are operation members for setting whether or not to permit the setting data to be made public.

[0111] In FIG. 10, for example, in the list of setting data displayed in display area 304, setting data with the name "Paper A Print Settings" is selected, operation button 306 is operated, and the public setting of the setting data with the name "Paper A Print Settings" is updated from "Private" to "Public."

[0112] Operation button 308 is an operation button for displaying details of setting data selected from the list displayed in display area 304 .

[0113] The operation button 309 is an operation button for transmitting the updated setting data and the disclosure permission data to the information processing device 200. In this embodiment, when the operation button 309 is operated on the screen 301, the disclosure setting corresponding to the setting data named "Paper A Print Settings" stored in the setting data storage unit 240 of the information processing device 200 is updated to "Public".

[0114] 11 is a diagram showing an example of a search result screen displayed on a terminal device 400. A screen 401 shown in FIG. 11 is displayed by the display control unit 440 of the terminal device 400 in step S608 of FIG.

[0115] The screen 401 includes display areas 402 , 403 , 404 , and 405 , and operation buttons 406 , 407 , and 408 .

[0116] Display area 402 displays information for selecting the setting data type of the setting data to be displayed in display area 405. In the example of Fig. 11, image formation information is selected as the setting data type.

[0117] Display area 403 displays information for selecting a device corresponding to the setting data to be displayed in display area 405. In the example of Fig. 11, image forming device A is selected as the corresponding model.

[0118] The display area 404 includes a search key input field 404a and an operation button 404b for transmitting a search request. In this embodiment, when a search condition is input in the input field 404a and the operation button 404b is operated, a search request for setting data that is the setting data type selected in the display area 402, is the model selected in the display area 403, and includes the search key input in the input field 404a is transmitted to the information processing device 200.

[0119] In other words, the display areas 402 , 403 , and 404 on the screen 401 can be considered as input fields for search conditions to be transmitted to the information processing device 200 .

[0120] Display area 405 displays a list of setting data searched according to the search conditions input in display area 402, display area 403, and display area 404. Therefore, in the example of Fig. 11, it can be seen that display area 405 displays the results of searching setting data storage unit 240 using the search condition "paper A."

[0121] Operation button 406 is an operation button for transmitting an acquisition request for setting data (specified setting data) selected in the list displayed in display area 405 to information processing device 200. Operation button 407 is an operation button for displaying detailed information of setting data selected in the list displayed in display area 405. Operation button 408 is an operation button for ending the display of screen 401.

[0122] In this embodiment, when setting data is selected in the display area 405 and the operation button 406 is operated, a request to obtain the selected setting data is transmitted to the information processing device 200 .

[0123] Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the operation button 407 is operated, the terminal device 400 transitions the screen 401 to a screen showing details of the setting data selected from the list displayed in the display area 405.

[0124] Details of the setting data selected in the list displayed in the display area 405 may be displayed before the setting data is acquired. In this way, the user of the terminal device 400 can check the details of the setting data before acquiring the setting data.

[0125] Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a details screen displayed on a terminal device. Screen 401A shown in Fig. 12 is an example of a screen showing details of setting data. Screen 401A is displayed on terminal device 400 when operation button 407 is operated on screen 401 displayed on terminal device 400.

[0126] The screen 401A includes display areas 410 and 411, and operation buttons 412, 413, 414, and 415.

[0127] A display area 410 displays the update date, setting data type, number of acquisitions, and evaluation of the setting data selected on the screen 401. A display area 411 displays the adjustment contents of the setting data selected on the screen 401.

[0128] Operation button 412 is an operation button for requesting information processing device 200 to compare the setting data, the details of which are displayed on screen 401A, with the setting data set in an image forming device connected to terminal device 400.

[0129] In this embodiment, when the operation button 412 is operated on the screen 401A, the terminal device 400 acquires setting data set in the image forming device connected to the terminal device 400 and transmits the same to the information processing device 200.

[0130] When the information processing device 200 receives this setting data, the comparison unit 280 compares the setting data received from the terminal device 400 with the setting data selected on the screen 401, and the display control unit 220 instructs the terminal device 400 to display the comparison results.

[0131] More specifically, the comparison unit 280 may identify items for which adjustment contents differ between the setting data received from the terminal device 400 and the setting data selected on the screen 401, and may take the identified items as the comparison results.

[0132] The operation button 413 is an operation button for acquiring the setting data the details of which are displayed on the screen 401 A. The operation button 413 may be operated, for example, when the setting data has not been acquired by the terminal device 400.

[0133] Operation button 414 is an operation button for transmitting, to information processing device 200, a search request for setting data related to the setting data the details of which are displayed on screen 401A.

[0134] Operation button 415 is an operation button for displaying search results for setting data related to the setting data the details of which are displayed on screen 401A.

[0135] In this embodiment, when operation button 414 is operated on screen 401A, terminal device 400 transmits to information processing device 200 a search request for setting data related to the setting data selected on screen 401. Then, when operation button 415 is operated on screen 401A, terminal device 400 transmits to information processing device 200 a request to obtain related setting data.

[0136] When the information processing device 200 of this embodiment receives a search request for setting data related to the selected setting data from the terminal device 400, the related data acquisition unit 290 searches the setting data storage unit 240 and acquires the related setting data.

[0137] For example, the related data acquisition unit 290 may search for setting data having adjustment contents similar to those of the setting data selected on the screen 401 as related setting data. More specifically, the related data acquisition unit 290 may acquire setting data having adjustment items similar to those of the selected setting data or setting data having a similar target to be adjusted as setting data related to the selected setting data. Setting data having a similar target to be adjusted is, for example, setting data that is found when searching for setting data related to the same paper attribute A when searching for something related to setting data of the same paper attribute A.

[0138] In this manner, in this embodiment, the setting data related to the selected setting data can be presented to the user of the terminal device 400, thereby helping the user to obtain the setting data that he or she desires.

[0139] Fig. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a screen of the comparison result displayed on the terminal device. Screen 401B shown in Fig. 13 is an example of a screen displayed on terminal device 400 in step S613 of Fig. 6, for example. Screen 401B includes the comparison result by comparison unit 280. Screen 401B is displayed on terminal device 400 when operation button 412 is operated on screen 401 displayed on terminal device 400.

[0140] The screen 401B includes display areas 410, 41, and 422, and operation buttons 423, 413, 414, and 415.

[0141] Display area 421 displays information for selecting information to be displayed as a comparison result by comparison unit 280. Specifically, display area 421 displays a checkbox for selecting whether or not to display only items with different values ​​as items of adjustment contents to be displayed as a comparison result.

[0142] In the example of FIG. 13, in the display area 421, the adjustment content items displayed as the comparison results are only those items whose values ​​are different.

[0143] The comparison result is displayed in display area 422. In the example of Fig. 13, only items whose values ​​are different between the adjustment contents included in the setting data received from terminal device 400 and the adjustment contents included in the setting data selected on screen 401 are identified and displayed. Furthermore, in display area 421, for the identified items, both the value in the setting data received from terminal device 400 and the value in the setting data selected on screen 401 are displayed.

[0144] In this embodiment, by displaying items whose values ​​differ between the two, along with their respective values, the user of terminal device 400 can understand the difference between the setting data currently set in the image forming device and the setting data obtained from information processing device 200.

[0145] In step S613 in FIG. 6, the two setting data to be compared may be displayed side by side.

[0146] In this embodiment, the equipment used by each user of the multiple terminal devices is described as an image forming device, and the setting data related to the equipment is described as setting data related to the image forming device, but the equipment used by each user of the multiple terminal devices is not limited to an image forming device.

[0147] The devices used by each user of multiple terminal devices may be, for example, a cleaning device, a music playback device, various air conditioners, various lighting devices, various monitoring devices, etc., in which case the setting data will be setting data corresponding to each device.

[0148] Furthermore, the device used by each user of a plurality of terminal devices may be, for example, a nursing bed used in a nursing facility, etc., in which case the setting data is setting data corresponding to the nursing bed.

[0149] In this manner, in this embodiment, setting data created by one user in various devices can be made available to other users, thereby reducing the amount of work required to obtain the setting data.

[0150] (Modification) In the following modified examples, the devices 10 and 20 are various devices other than image forming devices.

[0151] 14 is a diagram showing another example of the setting data storage unit 240A. The data stored in the setting data storage unit 240A shown in FIG.

[0152] The setting data 241A includes, as information items, a group name in addition to the items shown in FIG. 3, and the disclosure permission data 242 includes, as information items, a disclosure range in addition to a disclosure setting.

[0153] The item "group name" indicates the group name when the setting data is grouped. For example, in the example of FIG. 14, the setting data with the name "X-ray" is classified into a group with the group name "Model A; IoT". In this way, by grouping the setting data by device, it is possible to search for the setting data using, for example, the group name as a search criterion.

[0154] The value of the item "Publication range" indicates the range to which the setting data is made public. More specifically, the value of the item "Publication range" indicates the network to which the setting data is made public. When the value of the item "Publication range" is "Public server", the setting data is made public on the Internet, and when the value is "Internal server", the setting data is made public on the internal network.

[0155] In the example of FIG. 14, the group name and the disclosure range are set for the setting data of the "Inspection device model A" which is the value of the item "Device / Model".

[0156] Fig. 15 is a first diagram showing a modified example of the registration screen displayed on the terminal device. A screen 301A shown in Fig. 15 includes display areas 302A, 303A, 304X, 305, and operation buttons 306, 307, 308, and 309A.

[0157] In the display area 302A, "inspection" is selected as the setting data type. When the setting data type is "processing", setting data related to processing by the inspection device model A may be created or edited.

[0158] In the display area 303A, information for selecting a device corresponding to the setting data is displayed. In the example of Fig. 15, the inspection device model A is selected as the corresponding device.

[0159] In the display area 304X, a list of created setting data and a list of setting data acquired from the information processing device 200 are displayed.

[0160] Display area 304X includes tabs 304a and 304b, and when tab 304a is selected, a list of setting data created in terminal device 300 is displayed in display area 304X, making it possible to edit the created setting data. When tab 304b is selected, a list of setting data that is permitted to be made public is displayed.

[0161] In the example of FIG. 15, tab 304a is selected in display area 304X, and list 304A of created setting data is displayed.

[0162] In the terminal device 300, when setting data is selected from the list 304A of created setting data on the screen 301, it becomes possible to edit the selected setting data. In the example of FIG. 15, when operation button 309A is operated, selection of tab 304a may be cancelled.

[0163] Fig. 16 is a second diagram showing a modified example of the registration screen displayed on the terminal device. In screen 301B shown in Fig. 16, tab 304b is selected in display area 304X, and list 304B of setting data that is permitted to be made public is displayed.

[0164] More specifically, list 304B in FIG. 16 displays a list of setting data that is permitted to be made public, out of list 304A of created setting data shown in FIG.

[0165] In this way, the user of the terminal device 300 can switch between viewing the list of created setting data and the list of setting data that is permitted to be made public.

[0166] Each function of the above-described embodiment can be realized by one or more processing circuits. In this specification, the term "processing circuit" includes a processor programmed to execute each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, and a device such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a DSP (digital signal processor), an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or a conventional circuit module designed to execute each function described above.

[0167] Additionally, the devices described in each embodiment are merely representative of one of multiple computing environments for implementing the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0168] In one embodiment, information processing apparatus 200 includes multiple computing devices, such as a server cluster, configured to communicate with each other over any type of communications link, including a network, shared memory, etc., to perform the processes disclosed herein. Similarly, information processing apparatus 200 may include multiple computing devices configured to communicate with each other.

[0169] Furthermore, the information processing device 200 can be configured to share the disclosed processing steps in various combinations. For example, the process performed by a given unit can be performed by the information processing device 200. Similarly, the function of a given unit can be performed by the information processing device 200.

[0170] The information processing device 200 may be any device equipped with a communication function, such as a PJ (Projector), an output device such as digital signage, a HUD (Head Up Display) device, industrial machinery, an imaging device, a sound collection device, medical equipment, network home appliances, an automobile (Connected Car), a notebook PC (Personal Computer), a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a game console, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a digital camera, a wearable PC, or a desktop PC.

[0171] For example, aspects of the present invention are as follows. <1> a data registration unit that associates setting data relating to device settings with disclosure permission data indicating whether or not disclosure of the setting data is permitted, and stores the corresponding setting data in a setting data storage unit; a disclosure list output unit that outputs to a terminal device a list of the setting data that is permitted to be disclosed in the disclosure permission data, among the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit; and a setting data output unit that outputs the setting data identified from the list to the terminal device. <2> a search unit that receives an input of search conditions for setting data from the terminal device and searches the setting data storage unit; a search result output unit that outputs a list of the setting data extracted as a result of the search to the terminal device; an acquisition permission determination unit that determines whether or not the setting data specified from the list of extracted setting data is permitted to be made public; The setting data output unit outputting the setting data identified from the list of extracted setting data to the terminal device when the disclosure of the setting data is permitted; <1> The information processing device described. <3> The setting data storage unit stores setting data created by a plurality of different users. <1> or <2> The information processing device described. <4> The device includes an image forming device. <1> ~ <3> 13. An information processing device according to claim 12 . <5> a comparison unit that acquires setting data of a device connected to the terminal device and compares the setting data with the setting data specified from the list; A display control unit that displays a result of the comparison by the comparison unit on the terminal device. <1> ~ <4> 13. An information processing device according to claim 12 . <6> a related data acquisition unit that acquires, from the setting data storage unit, setting data that is related to the setting data identified from the list; A display control unit that displays the related setting data on the terminal device. <1> ~ <5> 13. An information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 12. <7> A method by an information processing device, the information processing device comprising: storing setting data relating to settings of the device and disclosure permission data indicating whether or not the setting data is permitted to be made public in a setting data storage unit in association with each other; outputting, to a terminal device, a list of the setting data that is permitted to be made public in accordance with the publication permission data, among the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit; The information processing method further comprises outputting the setting data identified from the list to the terminal device. <8> storing setting data relating to settings of the device and disclosure permission data indicating whether or not the setting data is permitted to be made public in a setting data storage unit in association with each other; outputting, to a terminal device, a list of the setting data that is permitted to be made public in accordance with the publication permission data, among the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit; An information processing program that causes an information processing device to execute a process of outputting the setting data identified from the list to the terminal device.

[0172] Although the present invention has been described above based on the embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the requirements shown in the above embodiments. These points can be changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and can be appropriately determined according to the application form. [Explanation of symbols]

[0173] 100 Information Processing Systems 200 Information processing device 230 Processing section 240 Setting data storage unit 250 Data Registration Department 260 Data Output Section 270 Data Search Department 280 Comparison Section 290 Related Data Acquisition Section 300, 400 terminal equipment [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0174] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-107442 A

Claims

1. a data registration unit that associates setting data relating to device settings with disclosure permission data indicating whether or not disclosure of the setting data is permitted, and stores the corresponding setting data in a setting data storage unit; a disclosure list output unit that outputs to a terminal device a list of the setting data that is permitted to be disclosed in the disclosure permission data, among the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit; and a setting data output unit that outputs the setting data identified from the list to the terminal device.

2. a search unit that receives an input of search conditions for setting data from the terminal device and searches the setting data storage unit; a search result output unit that outputs a list of the setting data extracted as a result of the search to the terminal device; an acquisition permission determination unit that determines whether or not the setting data specified from the list of extracted setting data is permitted to be made public; The setting data output unit The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, when the setting data specified from the list of extracted setting data is permitted to be made public, the setting data is output to the terminal device.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein said setting data storage section stores setting data created by a plurality of different users.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the device includes an image forming apparatus.

5. a comparison unit that acquires setting data of a device connected to the terminal device and compares the setting data with the setting data specified from the list; The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising: a display control unit that causes the terminal device to display a result of the comparison made by the comparison unit.

6. a related data acquisition unit that acquires, from the setting data storage unit, setting data that is related to the setting data identified from the list; The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising: a display control unit that causes the terminal device to display the related setting data.

7. A method by an information processing device, the information processing device comprising: storing setting data relating to settings of the device and disclosure permission data indicating whether or not the setting data is permitted to be made public in a setting data storage unit in association with each other; outputting, to a terminal device, a list of the setting data that is permitted to be made public in accordance with the publication permission data, among the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit; The information processing method further comprises outputting the setting data identified from the list to the terminal device.

8. storing setting data relating to settings of the device and disclosure permission data indicating whether or not the setting data is permitted to be made public in a setting data storage unit in association with each other; outputting, to a terminal device, a list of the setting data that is permitted to be made public in accordance with the publication permission data, among the setting data stored in the setting data storage unit; An information processing program that causes an information processing device to execute a process of outputting the setting data identified from the list to the terminal device.

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