Electronic apparatus and image formation device

Abstract

To restrict the use of each function of an electronic apparatus while suppressing the decrease in user convenience.SOLUTION: An image formation device 1 includes a restriction information storage unit 83 that associates time limit information indicating a time during which usage is restricted, set for each of one or two or more functions, with restricted person information for identifying the restricted person, and stores each of these pieces of information as restriction information, a determination unit 101 that, when a user uses any of a plurality of functions, refers to the time limit information and the restricted person information, and determines whether usage of the function that the user is attempting to use is restricted for the user, on the basis of user information on the user and current time information indicating the time of the usage, and a control unit 100 that restricts the user's usage of the function when the determination unit 101 determines that usage of the function is restricted for the user.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic device and an image forming apparatus that execute a plurality of functions, and in particular to a technique for restricting the use of the functions. [Background technology]

[0002] As an example of electronic equipment, image forming devices such as copy machines and multifunction devices are installed in an office and may be used by multiple people. For such image forming devices used by multiple people, the use of certain functions may be restricted. The following Patent Documents 1 to 5 describe technologies for restricting the use of electronic equipment by user. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] U.S. Patent No. 9,203,999 [Patent Document 2] US Patent Application Publication No. 2005-0185217 [Patent Document 3] JP 2007-081913 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2010-028658 A [Patent Document 5] JP 2011-223416 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Here, if the use of all the functions of the image forming device is uniformly restricted for each user, the convenience of the user when using the image forming device decreases, so the administrator of the image forming device may want to set restrictions for each function of the image forming device for each user, for example, from the viewpoint of security or cost. However, the above Patent Documents 1 to 5 do not disclose a configuration or a proposal for setting restrictions for each user individually for each function of the image forming device.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and has an object to make it possible to restrict the use of each function of an electronic device while minimizing the decrease in user convenience. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An electronic device according to one aspect of the present invention is an electronic device capable of executing a plurality of functions, and comprises: a restriction information storage unit that associates time limit information indicating the time period during which usage is restricted, set for each of one or more functions, with restricted person information for identifying the restricted person, and stores each of these pieces of information as restriction information; a judgment unit that, when a user uses any of the plurality of functions, refers to the time limit information and the restricted person information, and determines whether or not usage of the function that the user is attempting to use is restricted for the user, based on user information about the user and current time information indicating the time of the usage; and a control unit that restricts usage of the function by the user when the judgment unit determines that usage of the function is restricted for the user.

[0007] An image forming apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes the electronic device described above and an image forming section that forms an image on a recording medium. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to set restrictions on each function of an electronic device individually for each user, so that it is possible to restrict the use of each function of the electronic device while minimizing the decrease in convenience for the user. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating an outline of a main internal configuration of an image forming apparatus including an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a data configuration of a restriction information storage unit. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 4] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 7] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 8] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 10] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 11] 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process performed by a control unit in the image forming apparatus. [Figure 12] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 13] 5A to 5C are diagrams showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 14] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on a display unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] An electronic device and an image forming device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a schematic main internal configuration of an image forming device including an embodiment of an electronic device according to the present invention. The image forming device 1 is a multifunction device having multiple functions such as a copy function, a printer function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function.

[0011] The image forming apparatus 1 includes a control unit 10, an original feeding section 6, an original reading section 5, an image forming section 12, a fixing section 13, a paper feeding section 14, an operation section 47, a network interface section 91, and a storage section 8. The image forming apparatus 1 is configured so that an external storage medium 7 such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory can be detachably attached thereto.

[0012] The document feeder 6 is configured to be openable and closable by a hinge or the like (not shown) on the top surface of the document reading unit 5, and functions as a document pressing cover when reading a document placed on a platen glass (not shown). The document feeder 6 is also an ADF (Auto Document Feeder), and includes a document placement tray (not shown), and supplies documents placed on the document placement tray to the document reading unit 5.

[0013] A description will be given of a case where a document reading operation is performed by the image forming apparatus 1. The document reading unit 5 optically reads an image of a document supplied to the document reading unit 5 by the document feeding unit 6 or a document placed on the platen glass, and generates image data. The image data generated by the document reading unit 5 is stored in an image memory or the like (not shown).

[0014] The following describes an image forming operation performed by the image forming apparatus 1. Based on image data generated by a document reading operation, image data stored in an image memory or the like, image data received from a computer connected via a network, and the like, the image forming unit 12 forms a toner image on a recording paper as a recording medium fed from a paper feed unit 14.

[0015] The fixing unit 13 applies heat and pressure to the recording paper on which the toner image has been formed by the image forming unit 12, thereby fixing the toner image to the recording paper, and the recording paper that has been subjected to the fixing process is discharged to a discharge tray (not shown). The paper supply unit 14 includes a paper supply cassette.

[0016] The operation unit 47 receives instructions, such as an instruction to execute an image forming operation, from an operator regarding various operations and processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 1. The operation unit 47 includes a display unit 473 that displays operation guides and the like for the operator. The operation unit 47 also receives input of instructions from the user based on the user's operation (touch operation) on the operation screen displayed on the display unit 473 via a touch panel that the display unit 473 has.

[0017] The display unit 473 is composed of an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or the like. The display unit 473 is equipped with a touch panel. When the operator touches a button or key displayed on the screen, the touch panel receives an instruction associated with the touched position.

[0018] The network interface unit 91 is a communication interface for transmitting and receiving various data to and from an external device (for example, a personal computer) within a local area or on the Internet.

[0019] The storage unit 8 is a large-capacity storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD), and stores various control programs, etc. The storage unit 8 has a user information storage unit 81, an organization information storage unit 82, a restriction information storage unit 83, and a setting information storage unit 84 as its storage areas.

[0020] The user information storage unit 81 stores user authentication information and the like used to authenticate whether or not each user is qualified to use the image forming apparatus 1. For example, the user authentication information is a user name and a login password for logging in to the image forming apparatus 1.

[0021] The organizational information storage unit 82 stores, for each user, affiliation information indicating the department to which the user belongs, lineage information indicating the user's manager (e.g., superior), work location information indicating where each member works, and work style information indicating each member's work style (e.g., day shift or night shift).

[0022] The restriction information storage unit 83 associates restriction target information for identifying a restricted target with restriction time information, which is set for each of one or more functions and indicates a time during which the use of the function is restricted, and stores the information as restriction information. That is, the restriction information storage unit 83 stores information necessary for function restriction based on time.

[0023] 2 is a diagram showing an example of the data configuration stored in the restriction information storage unit 83. The restriction information storage unit 83 stores, for each restriction information, restriction target information, start time information and end time information constituting the restriction time information, restriction function information indicating the function to be restricted, restriction release possibility information indicating whether the restriction can be released by inputting a release code, release code information indicating the release code, and contact information indicating a contact to be notified that the restriction has been released by inputting the release code.

[0024] For example, the restriction information storage unit 83 stores "restriction information 1", which is one of the restriction information. "Restriction information 1" includes information indicating the restricted person, such as "Name: Matsuko Sato", "Works on the 15th floor", "Belongs to the Human Resources Department", "Night shift", "Identification code includes RF-00", and "Superior is Taro Suzuki". Furthermore, "restriction information 1" stores the time limit "from 10:00 AM on August 23, 2022 to 12:30 PM on August 23, 2022", the restricted function "scan, copy", restriction release "possible", release code "abc001", and contact information "xxx@xxxx".

[0025] If you do not set an end time for the time limit, the function restriction will continue indefinitely. An example of this is shown in "Restriction Information 3."

[0026] In addition, the item "Restricted Function" indicates the functions for which usage is restricted, and by setting the setting value of this item to "All," all functions provided by the image forming apparatus 1 and stored by the control unit 100 as functions for which usage restrictions can be set are set as subject to usage restrictions.

[0027] The setting information storage unit 84 stores setting information. This setting information is, for example, information indicating whether function restriction based on time is to be enabled or disabled.

[0028] The control unit 10 includes a processor, a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a dedicated hardware circuit. The processor is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit). The control unit 10 includes a control unit 100 and a determination unit 101.

[0029] The control unit 10 functions as a control unit 100 and a determination unit 101 by the operation of the processor in accordance with a control program stored in the storage unit 8. However, the control unit 100 and the like can also be configured by hardware circuits, without relying on the operation of the control unit 10 in accordance with a control program. The same applies to each embodiment below unless otherwise stated.

[0030] The control unit 100 is responsible for controlling the overall operation of the image forming apparatus 1. The control unit 100 is connected to the document feeding unit 6, the document reading unit 5, the image forming unit 12, the fixing unit 13, the paper feeding unit 14, the operation unit 47, the network interface unit 91, the storage unit 8, and the external storage medium 7, and performs drive control of each of these units. For example, the control unit 100 executes various processes necessary for image formation by the image forming apparatus 1.

[0031] In addition, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display an operation screen G1 as a "login screen" as shown in Fig. 3. The operation screen G1 prompts a user who wishes to use the image forming apparatus 1 to input a login name (Login User name) and a login password (Login Password) as login information.

[0032] If the user name and login password, which are login information input via the operation unit 47, match the user name and login password indicated by the user information stored in the user information storage unit 81, the control unit 100 determines that the user is a qualified person permitted to use the image forming apparatus 1, and if they do not match, the control unit 100 determines that the user is not permitted to use the image forming apparatus 1. If the control unit 100 determines that the user is a qualified person, it displays a function selection screen G2 as a "home screen" as shown in FIG. 4(A) on the display unit 473. The function selection screen G2 has seven function selection buttons SB1 to SB7, including a function selection button SB1 labeled "Copy," a function selection button SB2 labeled "Scan," and a function selection button SB3 labeled "FAX."

[0033] The control unit 100 performs control based on an instruction received by the operation unit 47 through a user's operation. For example, when the operation unit 47 receives a copy function selection instruction associated with the function selection button SB1 via a touch panel, the control unit 100 transitions the screen displayed on the display unit 473 from the function selection screen G2 to a copy setting screen G3 as shown in FIG. 4B in accordance with the copy function selection instruction.

[0034] The determination unit 101 refers to the restricted user information, time restriction information, and restricted function information from each piece of restriction information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83, and determines whether or not the function that a user who is logged in to the image forming apparatus 1 is attempting to use is restricted from use by that user, based on the user authentication information (user name) and current time information. The determination unit 101 obtains the user authentication information from the user information storage unit 81, and obtains the current time information from a clock built into the control unit 10.

[0035] When the determination unit 101 determines that the use of the function is restricted for the user, the control unit 100 restricts the use of the function by the user, that is, prohibits the use of the function by the user.

[0036] Next, new registration of restriction information in the restriction information storage unit 83 and editing of restriction information registered in the restriction information storage unit 83 will be described. The control unit 100 displays a time restriction setting screen G4 as shown in FIG. 5 on the display unit 473 in accordance with an instruction received by the operation unit 47 through a user operation. The time restriction setting screen G4 shown in FIG. 5 has a radio button RB11 for receiving an instruction to enable a function restriction based on time, and a radio button RB12 for receiving an instruction to disable a function restriction based on time. Furthermore, the time restriction setting screen G4 has an operation button B1 for receiving an instruction to display a restriction list, and an operation button B2 for receiving an instruction to save the setting.

[0037] When the user operates radio button RB11, an enable instruction to enable function restriction based on time is received by operation unit 47 via the touch panel. When the user operates radio button RB12, an disable instruction to disable function restriction based on time is received by operation unit 47 via the touch panel. When operation unit 47 receives a user operation on operation button B2 marked "Save setting," control unit 100 stores the content indicated by either the enable instruction or the disable instruction received by operation unit 47 at this time in setting information storage unit 84 as enable / disable information for function restriction.

[0038] Furthermore, when the operation unit 47 receives an instruction to display the restriction list via the touch panel by the user operating the operation button B1 marked "Restriction List", the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a restriction list display screen G5 as shown in Fig. 6. The restriction list display screen G5 has a table T1 consisting of the items "Title" and "Process", as well as an operation button B3 marked "Add", an operation button B4 marked "Output", and an operation button B5 marked "Save".

[0039] In the "Title" field of table T1, "Restriction information 1" is displayed, and in the "Processing" field corresponding to "Restriction information 1", an operation button B6 labeled "Edit" is displayed.

[0040] When an instruction to display a restriction content setting screen is received by the operation unit 47 via the touch panel based on a user's operation on the operation button B3 marked "Add," the control unit 100 displays a restriction content setting screen G6 as shown in Fig. 7(A) on the display unit 473. The restriction content setting screen G6 is an operation screen for setting restriction information for functions, and has text boxes TX1 to TX3, operation buttons B7, B8, date and time boxes DX1, DX2, check boxes CX1 to CX6, and a radio button RB2.

[0041] The text box TX1 is a field for receiving input of a title of the restriction information. The date and time box DX1 is a field for receiving input of the date and time (Start time) when the function restriction starts. The date and time box DX2 is a field for receiving input of the date and time (End time) when the function restriction ends. The check boxes CX1 to CX6 are displays for receiving instructions to select the functions to be restricted.

[0042] When the user touches any of the check boxes CX2 to CX6, the operation unit 47 receives an instruction via the touch panel to restrict the function corresponding to the operated display portion, in this case, the print function, the scan function, the copy function, the facsimile function, or the device settings function. When the user touches all of the check boxes CX2 to CX6, the operation unit 47 receives an instruction via the touch panel to restrict all of these five functions (All).

[0043] The radio button RB2 is for receiving an instruction to set whether or not to enable the release of the function restriction (Override restriction) by inputting a release code. The text box TX2 is a field for receiving the input of the release code (Override password). The text box TX3 is for receiving the input of a contact to be notified that the restriction has been released by inputting the release code. In response to a touch operation by the user on each field, a display instruction of the soft keyboard is received by the operation unit 47 via the touch panel, and in accordance with this display instruction, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a window showing the soft keyboard in the restriction content setting screen G6. Character information required for each of these inputs is received by the control unit 100 by inputting character information associated with each key of the soft keyboard to the operation unit 47 via the touch panel in response to a touch operation by the user on the soft keyboard. The control unit 100 causes each received character information to be displayed in the corresponding field. FIG. 7B is a diagram showing an example of the restriction content setting screen G6 on which the title, time limit, and function to be restricted are displayed.

[0044] When a setting save instruction is accepted by the operation unit 47 in response to a user's operation of the operation button B8, the control unit 100 saves the content set on the restriction content setting screen G6 at this point (the content accepted by the operation unit 47) as restriction information in the restriction information memory unit 83.

[0045] Furthermore, when the user operates the operation button B7 marked "Configuration Contents" to receive an instruction to display a configuration contents setting screen on the operation unit 47 via the touch panel, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a configuration contents setting screen G7 as shown in FIG. 8(A) as an example. The configuration contents setting screen G7 is an operation screen for setting users to be restricted from using functions. The configuration contents setting screen G7 has combo boxes CB1 to CB18 and an operation button B9. The combo boxes CB1 to CB18 are used to set information indicating specific items for identifying users to be restricted, status settings for the specific items, and setting values ​​for the status.

[0046] The combo boxes CB1 to CB6 are for setting specific items (Property), the combo boxes CB7 to CB12 are for setting states (Condition) of the specific items, and the combo boxes CB13 to CB18 are for setting setting values ​​(Value) of the states.

[0047] Here, the three combo boxes CB1, CB7, and CB13 arranged horizontally in Figure 8 (A) make it possible to input the status settings and even the setting value of the specific item entered via combo box CB1 for the person to be restricted.

[0048] In the example shown in FIG. 8(B), in the combo boxes CB1 to CB6, the specific items "User name," "User group," "Department," "Employee shift," "ID Number," and "Immediate superior" can be selectively input.

[0049] FIG. 8B is a diagram showing an example of a state in which the specific item, the status setting of the specific item, and the setting value of the status are displayed, which are input for a person to be restricted. In this example, "Person whose name is Matsuko Sato" is displayed in the first row, and "Person who works on the 15th floor" is displayed in the second row. The following has been entered and displayed: "First floor Users," "Those who belong to the Human Resources department (HR)," "Those who work the night shift," "Those whose identification code includes RF-00," and "Those whose supervisor is Suzuki Taro" in the fifth row.

[0050] When a user operates the operation button B9 marked "Save Rule" and a save instruction is accepted by the operation unit 47, the control unit 100 saves the content that has been completed to be entered on the configuration content setting screen G7 (content accepted by the operation unit 47) as restricted user information, and saves the restriction information associated with the time limit information and restricted function information in the restriction information memory unit 83.

[0051] In addition, when the user operates the operation button B6 marked "Edit" in the restriction list display screen G5 (FIG. 6) and the operation unit 47 receives an instruction to display the restriction content setting screen via the touch panel, the control unit 100 reads out the restriction information indicated by "restriction information 1" associated with the operation button B6 from the restriction information storage unit 83, and displays the read restriction information in the corresponding display field, and causes the display unit 473 to display the restriction content setting screen G6 as shown in FIG. 7(B) for example. This makes it possible to edit the restriction information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 on the restriction content setting screen G6, and when, for example, the user operates the operation button B8 after editing and a save instruction is received by the operation unit 47, the control unit 100 changes the restriction information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 according to the edited content at this time. The restriction information storage unit 83 is capable of storing a plurality of pieces of restriction information. When a plurality of pieces of restriction information are stored in the restriction information storage unit 83, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a restriction list display screen G5 showing a list of the restriction information, as shown in FIG.

[0052] Furthermore, when the operation unit 47 receives an output instruction based on a user operation on the operation button B4 marked "Output" on the restriction list display screen G5 shown in Fig. 6 and Fig. 9, the control unit 100 converts the restriction information (including time limit information and restricted person information) stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 into data for output (for example, in csv format or xls format) and outputs the converted data from the network interface unit 91 to an external device (such as a personal computer) or from the USB interface 70 to an external storage medium (such as a USB memory). The network interface unit 91 and the USB interface 70 are examples of a communication unit in the claims.

[0053] For example, when the operation unit 47 receives the output instruction, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display an output setting screen G8 as shown in FIG. 10. The output setting screen G8 is a screen for receiving the selection of an output destination by the user. When "USB memory" is selected as the output destination, the control unit 100 outputs the data to a USB memory serving as an external storage medium 7 attached to the image forming apparatus 1 via the USB interface 70. When email is selected as the output destination, the control unit 100 transmits the data by email via the network interface unit 91 to a specified destination (email address).

[0054] Furthermore, the control unit 100 acquires, via the USB interface 70, restriction information created by another image forming apparatus having the same function as the image forming apparatus 1 and stored in the external storage medium 7. Furthermore, the control unit 100 acquires the restriction information from an external device such as a personal computer via the network interface unit 91. The control unit 100 stores the restriction information thus acquired from the outside in the restriction information storage unit 83. The restriction information acquired from the outside and stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 is used for function restriction processing by the control unit 100 and the determination unit 101.

[0055] Next, an example of function restriction processing in the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

[0056] It is assumed that a certain user has completed logging in to the image forming apparatus 1 and is operating the image forming apparatus 1. The function restriction process is performed, for example, when the user operates any one of the function selection buttons SB1 to SB7 on the function selection screen G2 as shown in Fig. 4(A) and the operation unit 47 receives a function selection instruction, for example, when the operation unit 47 receives an instruction to select a copy function based on the operation of the function selection button SB1 by the user.

[0057] When a function selection instruction is received, the control unit 100 refers to the setting information stored in the setting information storage unit 84 and determines whether or not a function restriction based on time is valid (S1).

[0058] If the control unit 100 determines that the above-mentioned functional restriction is valid (YES in S1), the judgment unit 101 refers to the restricted person information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 and determines whether the user attempting to use the image forming device 1 is included in the restricted persons based on the login information entered by the user at login (S2).

[0059] When the determination unit 101 determines that the user is included in the restricted persons (YES in S2), it refers to the restricted function information stored in the restricted information storage unit 83 in association with the restricted person information indicating that the user is included in the restricted persons, and determines whether or not the function indicated by the received function selection instruction, i.e., the function that the user is attempting to use, is a restricted function (S3). For example, in the example shown in Fig. 2, when the user name entered at login is "Sato Matsuko" and the function that the user is attempting to use is copying, the determination unit 101 determines that the function that the user is attempting to use is a restricted function.

[0060] When the determination unit 101 determines that the function the user is about to use is subject to restriction (YES in S3), it acquires the current time information at this time point. Based on the current time information, the determination unit 101 refers to the time restriction information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 in association with the restricted user information and the restricted function information, and determines whether the current time information is within the time restriction range (S4).

[0061] If the judgment unit 101 judges that the current time information is within the time limit range (YES in S4), the control unit 100 judges whether the setting allows the function restriction to be lifted by inputting an unlock code based on the restriction lifting information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 in correspondence with the restricted user information, the restricted function information, and the time limit information (S5).

[0062] If the control unit 100 determines that the settings do not allow the function restriction to be lifted (NO in S5), it causes the display unit 473 to display a pop-up screen PG1 having a message indicating that the use of the function is restricted, as shown in FIG. 12 (S6). The control unit 100 restricts (prohibits) the user from using the function indicated by the function selection instruction. This notifies the user that the function that the user is attempting to use at this point in time is restricted. After this, the process ends.

[0063] On the other hand, if the control unit 100 determines that the settings allow the functional restrictions to be lifted (YES in S5), it causes the display unit 473 to display a pop-up screen PG2 having a message prompting the user to enter a release code that will allow the functional restrictions to be lifted, as shown in an example in Figure 13 (A) (S7).

[0064] Thereafter, the control unit 100 judges whether the release code received by the operation unit 47 through the user's operation is a legitimate release code (S8). Specifically, the control unit 100 judges that the release code received by the operation unit 47 is a legitimate code when the release code received by the operation unit 47 matches the release code indicated by the release code information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 in association with the above-mentioned restricted user information, the above-mentioned restricted function information, and the above-mentioned restricted time information. When the release code received by the operation unit 47 does not match the release code indicated by the release code information, the control unit 100 judges that the release code received by the operation unit 47 is not a legitimate code.

[0065] If the control unit 100 determines that the release code received by the operation unit 47 is not a legitimate code (NO in S8), it displays on the display unit 473 a pop-up screen PG3 having a message indicating that the input code is incorrect, as shown in Fig. 13(B) (S9), and then displays on the display unit 473 a pop-up screen having a message indicating that the use of the function is restricted (S6). After this, the process ends.

[0066] On the other hand, when the control unit 100 determines that the release code received by the operation unit 47 is a legitimate code (YES in S8), it causes the display unit 473 to display a pop-up screen PG4 having a message indicating that the input code is correct, as shown in FIG. 13(C) (S10). Furthermore, the control unit 100 transmits information indicating that the function restriction has been released by inputting the release code to a pre-registered contact via the network interface unit 91 by email (S11). The pre-registered contact is a contact indicated by the contact information stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 in association with the restriction target information, the restriction function information, and the restriction time information.

[0067] Thereafter, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a function setting screen such as the copy setting screen G3 (S12). For example, if the function the user wishes to use is copying, the control unit 100 displays the copy setting screen G3 as shown in FIG. 4B on the display unit 473. When the function setting screen is displayed, the control unit 100 executes processing based on the settings and instructions received by the operation unit 47 for the function corresponding to the function setting screen. This puts the image forming apparatus 1 in a state in which the user can use the function selected by the function selection instruction.

[0068] On the other hand, in S1, if the control unit 100 determines that the function restriction is not valid (invalid) (NO in S1), or in S2, if the judgment unit 101 determines that the user is not included in the restricted persons (NO in S2), if the judgment unit 101 determines that the function the user is about to use is not subject to restriction (NO in S3), or if the judgment unit 101 determines that the restricted function is not within the time limit (NO in S4), then there is no need to restrict the function, and the function setting screen is displayed on the display unit 473 as usual (S12). When the function setting screen is displayed, the control unit 100 executes processing based on the settings and instructions received by the operation unit 47 for the function corresponding to the function setting screen. After this, the processing ends.

[0069] According to the above embodiment, the use of functions is not restricted uniformly, but restricted for each function, for each user, and even according to time, so that it is possible to restrict the use of functions while suppressing a decrease in user convenience. Also, since the restriction information can be output to an external device or an external storage medium of the image forming apparatus 1, or can be acquired from the outside, it can be shared by image forming apparatuses having the same functions as the image forming apparatus 1. Therefore, it is no longer necessary to create the same restriction information in duplicate in multiple image forming apparatuses, which reduces the burden on the user.

[0070] Incidentally, in a company, floor changes may occur, for example, the sales department on the 15th floor may be moved to the 14th floor, and the human resources department on the 14th floor may be moved to the 15th floor. When such floor changes occur, there is a possibility that problems may occur with the above-mentioned function restrictions. As shown in the example of FIG. 2, if "working on the 15th floor" is stored as part of the information of the restricted person in the title "Restriction Information 1", when the above-mentioned floor change changes the information to "working on the 14th floor", the restriction will continue to be imposed on the condition of "working on the 15th floor", so that it is not possible to impose restrictions on the person "working on the 14th floor".

[0071] In this case, "works on the 15th floor" is configured with the specific item being "department," the specific item status being "working," and the status setting value being "15th floor." Therefore, when the configuration content setting screen G7, an example of which is shown in Fig. 8(B), is displayed on the display unit 473, the user can simply change the status setting value "15th floor" corresponding to the combo box CB14 to the status setting value "14th floor" to update the previous restricted person information to new restricted person information with the condition "works on the 14th floor."

[0072] In yet another embodiment, the control unit 100 may acquire information on change of the setting value indicating a floor change or the like, and automatically update the information on the restricted person stored in the restriction information storage unit 83 based on the acquired change information. For example, when the affiliation information, system information, work place information, and work style information stored for each user in the organization information storage unit 82 are updated, the control unit 100 may identify the content changed at the time of the update, and change the setting value corresponding to the identified change content from the previous value to the value indicated by the change content. Since it is considered that internal reforms such as floor changes are carried out all at once, changing the setting value in the restriction information in accordance with the update of the information stored in the organization information storage unit 82 improves the convenience when executing the function restriction. Note that the information stored in the organization information storage unit 82 is updated by acquiring data from an external personal computer via the network interface unit 91, acquiring data from the USB memory 7 via the USB interface 70, or operating the operation unit 47 by the user.

[0073] In the above embodiment, a case is described where a user to whom a function is to be restricted is set on the configuration content setting screen G7 shown in Fig. 8, but as another embodiment, the control unit 100 may restrict a function based on restriction information that sets a user to whom a function is not to be restricted, rather than setting a user to whom a function is to be restricted. The control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a configuration content setting screen G9 as shown in Fig. 14. The configuration content setting screen G9 has a "Match" radio button RB31 and a "Mismatch" radio button RB32.

[0074] When the user operates the "Match case" radio button RB32 and the operation unit 47 accepts the selection of "Match", the control unit 100 restricts functions to users who match the conditions indicated by the restricted user information in accordance with the restricted user information set and stored on the configuration content setting screen G9. On the other hand, when the user operates the "Do not match case" radio button RB31 and the operation unit 47 accepts the selection of "Do not match", the control unit 100 restricts functions to all users who do not match the conditions indicated by the restricted user information set and stored on the configuration content setting screen G9.

[0075] The present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. In the above embodiment, the image forming device 1 is shown as one embodiment of the electronic device according to the present invention, but the electronic device according to the present invention is not limited to this, and may be other electronic devices such as medical devices and precision machine control devices. In addition, the mechanism part of the image forming device 1 that does not have an image forming unit may be one embodiment of the electronic device according to the present invention, and an image forming device according to one embodiment of the present invention may be formed by adding an image forming unit to this.

[0076] In addition, in the above embodiment, the configuration and processing shown in the above embodiment using FIGS. 1 to 14 are merely one embodiment of the present invention, and it is not intended that the present invention be limited to these configurations and processing. [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] 1. Image forming device 12 Image forming section 47 Operation section 70 USB Interface 83 Restriction information storage unit 91 Network Interface Section 100 Control section 101 Judgment Department

Claims

1. An electronic device capable of performing multiple functions, a restriction information storage unit that associates restriction time information, which is set for each of one or more functions and indicates a time during which use is restricted, with restriction target information, which is used to identify a restricted target, and stores the information as restriction information; a determination unit that, when a user uses any one of the plurality of functions, refers to the time limit information and the restricted user information, and determines whether or not the use of the function that the user is about to use is restricted for the user, based on user information about the user and current time information indicating the time of the use; and a control unit that, when the determination unit determines that the use of the function is restricted for the user, restricts the user from using the function.

2. Further comprising an operation unit for receiving an operation input, The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit stores a predetermined release code that allows the lifting of functional restrictions, and when the operation unit accepts input of the release code, the control unit releases the restrictions and makes the electronic device in a state in which the user can use the functions.

3. A communication unit that inputs and outputs the restriction information to and from an external device or an external medium, The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit converts the restriction information, which is composed of the time limit information and the restricted person information, into data for output, and outputs the converted data from the communication unit to an external device or external medium of the electronic device.

4. The electronic device according to claim 3 , wherein the control unit further stores the restriction information acquired from the external device or the external medium via the communication unit in the restriction information storage unit.

5. The restriction target information includes information indicating a specific item for identifying the restriction target, a state of the specific item, and a setting value of the state, The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit changes the setting value contained in the restriction target information stored in the restriction information storage unit to the content of change information indicating that the setting value has been changed.

6. The electronic device according to claim 1 ; An image forming apparatus comprising: an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording medium.

Images