Information processing system and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing system and a program capable of prohibiting use even when not connected to the Internet.SOLUTION: In a case in which a system is not connected to the Internet, when a program for controlling the operation of the system is not updated by a set deadline, the system is prohibited from being used.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing system and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 describes an image processing device that downloads and runs files that have been processed to embed the device's serial ID number individually into the downloaded firmware file itself, thereby preventing only registered or designated users from running the file. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-235791 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] To prohibit the use of an information processing system whose location is unknown or an information processing system that has been occupied in a manner that the owner does not want, but if these information processing systems are not connected to the Internet, it is not possible to prohibit the use of these systems by remote operation.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an information processing system and a program that can prohibit use even when not connected to the Internet. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The information processing system of the first aspect includes a processor, and the processor controls the system to prohibit use if the system is not connected to the Internet and a program for controlling the operation of the system is not updated by a set deadline.

[0007] In a second aspect of the information processing system, in the information processing system of the first aspect, the processor prohibits use of the system if the program for operating the system has not been updated for a set period of time and the manufacturing date of the installed consumables meets set conditions.

[0008] An information processing system of a third aspect is the information processing system of the second aspect, wherein the condition is that the manufacturing time of the consumable is later than the provision time of the program.

[0009] An information processing system of a fourth aspect is the information processing system of the second aspect, wherein the condition is that the manufacturing date of the consumable is later than the shipping date of the system itself.

[0010] In a fifth aspect of the information processing system, in the information processing system of the first aspect, when the program is updated, the processor prohibits use of the system if the individual identification number of the system that prohibits an operation included in the program matches the individual identification number of the system itself.

[0011] In the information processing system of a sixth aspect, in the information processing system of the fifth aspect, when the system is connected to the Internet, the processor connects to a management server and updates the program.

[0012] In the information processing system of the seventh aspect, in the information processing system of the first aspect, when the processor prohibits use of the own system, it also prevents the use of consumables installed in the own system in the own system and in systems other than the own system.

[0013] In an information processing system of an eighth aspect, in the information processing system of the seventh aspect, the processor sets an identifier stored in a memory unit provided in the consumable item, indicating that use is prohibited, to prohibited in order to prevent the consumable item from being used.

[0014] The program of the ninth aspect causes a computer to execute a step of controlling the use of the system when the system is not connected to the Internet and the program for controlling the operation of the system is not updated by a set deadline. [Effects of the Invention]

[0015] According to the information processing system of the first aspect, use can be prohibited even when the system is not connected to the Internet.

[0016] According to the information processing system of the second aspect, it is possible to prohibit the use of an information processing system equipped with a consumable product whose manufacturing date satisfies a set condition.

[0017] According to the information processing system of the third aspect, it is possible to prohibit the use of an information processing system equipped with a consumable item manufactured after the time the program is provided.

[0018] According to the information processing system of the fourth aspect, it is possible to prohibit the use of an information processing system equipped with a consumable item manufactured after the shipping date of the information processing system itself.

[0019] According to the information processing system of the fifth aspect, it is possible to prohibit the use of the information processing system having the individual identification number set to operation prohibition.

[0020] According to the information processing system of the sixth aspect, when the information processing system is connected to the Internet, it is possible to forcibly update the program.

[0021] According to the information processing system of the seventh aspect, it is possible to make it impossible to use consumables installed in the information processing system whose operation has been prohibited.

[0022] According to the information processing system of the eighth aspect, it is possible to make the consumable item unusable by using the identifier stored in the storage unit of the consumable item.

[0023] According to the program of the ninth aspect, use can be prohibited even when there is no connection to the Internet. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] 1 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of consumables of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a firmware configuration. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process flow during operation determination in the image forming apparatus. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a processing flow when updating a firmware program in an image forming apparatus. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the system configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0026] As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming system of this embodiment includes an image forming apparatus 10, a user terminal 20, and a management server 30.

[0027] The image forming apparatus 10 is a so-called multifunction device that has multiple functions such as printing, scanning, copying, facsimile, etc. The image forming apparatus 10 is an example of an information processing system in the technology of the present disclosure.

[0028] The user terminal 20 is connected to the image forming apparatus 10 via a local network 45 and is a terminal for using the functions of the image forming apparatus 10 .

[0029] The management server 30 is a server for controlling the operation of the image forming apparatus 10 and for supplying a firmware program for controlling the operation of the image forming apparatus 10. The firmware program is an example of a program for controlling the operation of the image forming apparatus 10. The management server 30 is connected to a local network 45 via the Internet 40.

[0030] Next, the hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 10 in the data processing system of this embodiment is shown in FIG.

[0031] 2, the image forming apparatus 10 has a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 12, a storage device 13 such as a hard disk drive, a communication interface (abbreviated as IF) 14, a user interface (abbreviated as UI) device 15 including a touch panel or a liquid crystal display and a keyboard, a scanner 16, and a print engine 17. These components are connected to each other via a control bus 18.

[0032] The communication IF 14 transmits and receives data to and from external devices via the Internet 40. The UI device 15 accepts instruction input from a user. The scanner 16 reads an original document loaded in the image forming apparatus 10 as image data. The print engine 17 prints an image on a recording medium such as printing paper through processes such as charging, exposure, development, transfer, and fixing.

[0033] The CPU 11 is a processor that controls the operation of the image forming apparatus 10 by executing predetermined processes based on a firmware program stored in the RAM 12 or the storage device 13. While the present embodiment describes the CPU 11 as reading and executing the firmware program stored in the RAM 12 or the storage device 13, this is not limiting. The firmware program may be provided in a form recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. For example, the program may be provided in a form recorded on an optical disc such as a CD (Compact Disc)-ROM (Read Only Memory) or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc)-ROM, or in a semiconductor memory such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory or a memory card. The firmware program may also be acquired from an external device via a communication line connected to the communication interface 14.

[0034] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the image forming apparatus 10 that is realized by executing the above firmware program.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 3, the image forming apparatus 10 of this embodiment includes a control unit 51, an operation input unit 52, a display unit 53, a data transmission / reception unit 54, an authentication unit 55, a memory unit 56, an image reading unit 57, and an image output unit 58.

[0036] The control unit 51 controls the overall operation of the image forming apparatus 10, and controls the reading of the document image by the image reading unit 57 and the output of print data from the image output unit 58 based on instructions input from the user.

[0037] The operation input unit 52 inputs information on various operations performed by the user. The display unit 53 is controlled by the control unit 51 and displays various information to the user. The data transmission / reception unit 54 transmits and receives data to and from external devices such as the user terminal 20. The authentication unit 55 performs authentication processing for a user who attempts to use the image forming apparatus 10.

[0038] The storage unit 56 stores data such as firmware. The image reading unit 57 reads an original image from a loaded original under the control of the control unit 51. The image output unit 58 outputs an image onto a recording medium such as printing paper under the control of the control unit 51.

[0039] An administrator of an image forming device 10 may wish to prohibit the use of an image forming device 10 whose location is unknown or an image forming device 10 that has been occupied in a manner that the administrator does not desire. If the image forming device 10 whose operation is to be prohibited is connected to the Internet 40, the use of the image forming device 10 can be prohibited by remote operation from the management server 30. However, if the image forming device 10 whose operation is to be prohibited is not connected to the Internet 40, the use of the image forming device 10 cannot be prohibited by remote operation from the management server 30.

[0040] To solve such problems, the control unit 51 of the image forming device 10 of this embodiment performs control to prohibit use of the image forming device 10 if the image forming device 10 is not connected to the Internet 40 and the firmware program for controlling the operation of the image forming device 10 is not updated by the set deadline.

[0041] The firmware program can be updated periodically, for example, every month, every six months, etc. An image forming apparatus 10 that is being used legitimately is normally connected to the management server 30 via the Internet 40, and when the firmware program is updated, a new firmware program is downloaded from the management server 30, and the firmware program is updated to the latest version.

[0042] However, there is a risk that the firmware program of an image forming device 10 that is being used illegally without being connected to the Internet 40 has not been updated periodically. Therefore, by prohibiting the use of an image forming device 10 whose firmware program has not been updated by a set deadline, it is possible to prevent the image forming device 10 from being used illegally.

[0043] Here, the "set deadline" may be set to any deadline as long as it is a deadline that would allow the image forming apparatus 10 to be suspected of being used fraudulently.

[0044] For example, if the firmware program is updated periodically, the deadline may be set to a time after a certain period of time that allows for a certain margin of error in the periodic update period, based on the date of the last update of the firmware program. Specifically, if the firmware program is updated periodically every month, the deadline may be set to a date two months after the date of the last update of the firmware program.

[0045] Furthermore, regardless of whether the firmware program is updated periodically, if it is expected that the firmware program will be updated at least once within a predetermined period, the deadline may be set to a time after a certain period of time, with a certain margin of error, based on the date of the last firmware program update. Specifically, if it is expected that the firmware program will be updated at least once every six months, the deadline may be set to a date eight months after the date of the last firmware program update.

[0046] Furthermore, the "control to prohibit use of image forming device 10" may be any control that makes image forming device 10 unusable by the user. For example, it may be control to prohibit image forming device 10 from starting up, or control to prevent user operations from being accepted even if image forming device 10 is started up.

[0047] In this embodiment, the control unit 51 may prohibit use of the image forming device 10 if the firmware program for operating the image forming device 10 has not been updated for a set period of time and the manufacturing date of the installed consumables meets set conditions.

[0048] The consumables installed in the image forming apparatus 10 are, for example, drum cartridges or toner cartridges used in the print engine 17.

[0049] Here, the condition may be, for example, that the manufacturing date (e.g., lot) of the consumable is later than the provision date of the firmware program, or that the manufacturing date (e.g., lot) of the consumable is later than the shipping date of the image forming device 10.

[0050] In addition, when the control unit 51 updates a firmware program, if the individual identification number of the image forming device that prohibits an operation included in the firmware program matches the individual identification number of the image forming device 10, the control unit 51 may prohibit use of the image forming device 10.

[0051] In this case, when the image forming apparatus 10 is connected to the Internet 40, the control unit 51 may connect to the management server 30 and update the firmware program.

[0052] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the administrator can create a prohibited use list of individual identification numbers of image forming devices suspected of fraudulent use and include the list in the firmware program.

[0053] When the firmware program is updated, the control unit 51 prohibits use of the image forming device 10 if the individual identification number included in the prohibited use list included in the firmware program matches the individual identification number of the image forming device 10.

[0054] In addition, when prohibiting the use of the image forming device 10, the control unit 51 may also prevent the use of consumables installed in the image forming device 10 in the image forming device 10 and devices other than the image forming device 10.

[0055] In this case, in order to prevent the use of the consumable item, the control unit 51 may set an identifier that indicates that the use is prohibited and that is stored in a storage unit included in the consumable item to "prohibited."

[0056] 5, the print engine 17 of the image forming apparatus 10 uses a drum cartridge 61 and a toner cartridge 62 as consumables. The drum cartridge 61 includes a storage unit 61a that stores an identifier indicating that its use is prohibited. Similarly, the toner cartridge 62 includes a storage unit 62a that stores an identifier indicating that its use is prohibited.

[0057] When this identifier is set to a state indicating that use is prohibited, the drum cartridge 61 and toner cartridge 62 can be made unusable in similar devices, including the image forming device 10.

[0058] When prohibiting the use of the image forming device 10, the control unit 51 simply sets the identifier stored in the memory unit 61a of the drum cartridge 61 and the identifier stored in the memory unit 62a of the toner cartridge 62 to a state indicating that use is prohibited.

[0059] Next, the flow of processing during operation determination in the image forming apparatus 10 of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0060] In step S11, the control unit 51 determines whether the firmware program has not been updated by the set deadline.

[0061] In step S11, if it is determined that the firmware program has been updated by the set deadline, that is, if the determination result is No, the control unit 51 ends the operation determination process.

[0062] If it is determined in step S11 that the firmware program has not been updated by the set deadline, i.e., if the determination result is Yes, the control unit 51 determines in step S12 whether the lot of the consumables satisfies the conditions. Here, as an example, it determines whether the lot of the consumables is released after the firmware program is released.

[0063] In step S12, if it is determined that the lot of the consumable is not later than the provision time of the firmware program, that is, if the determination result is No, the control unit 51 ends the operation determination process.

[0064] If it is determined in step S12 that the lot of consumables is later than the time when the firmware program was provided, i.e., if the determination result is Yes, the control unit 51 performs a process to prohibit use of the image forming device 10 in step S13, and then performs a process to prohibit use of the consumables in step S14, and terminates the operation determination process.

[0065] Next, the flow of processing when upgrading the firmware program in the image forming apparatus 10 of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0066] In step S21, the control unit 51 starts updating the firmware program.

[0067] Next, in step S22, the control unit 51 determines whether the image forming apparatus 10 is an individual registered in the use prohibition list included in the firmware program.

[0068] If it is determined in step S22 that the image forming device 10 is an individual registered on the prohibited use list, i.e., if the determination result is Yes, the control unit 51 stops the firmware program version upgrade process, performs a process to prohibit use of the image forming device 10 in step S23, and then performs a process to prohibit use of consumables in step S24, and ends the firmware program version upgrade process.

[0069] If it is determined in step S22 that the image forming device 10 is not an individual registered on the prohibited use list, i.e., if the determination result is No, the control unit 51 continues the firmware program upgrade process in step S25, and terminates the process when the firmware program upgrade process is completed.

[0070] [Variations] An image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure has been described above, but the technology of the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiment and can be modified as appropriate.

[0071] In each of the above embodiments, the term "processor" refers to a processor in a broad sense, and includes general-purpose processors (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit, etc.) and dedicated processors (e.g., GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, programmable logic device, etc.).

[0072] Furthermore, the operations of the processor in each of the above embodiments may be performed not only by a single processor but also by multiple processors located at physically separate locations working together. Furthermore, the order of the operations of the processor is not limited to the order described in each of the above embodiments and may be changed as appropriate.

[0073] Furthermore, the operations of the processors in the above embodiments may not only be performed by a single processor, but may also be performed by multiple processors located at physically separate locations working together. Furthermore, the order of the operations of the processors is not limited to the order described in the above embodiments, and may be changed as appropriate.

[0074] In addition, in the above embodiment, the present disclosure is described as being applied to an image forming apparatus, but the present disclosure is not limited to this and can also be applied to various information processing systems, such as a scanner.

[0075] [Note] The following additional notes are provided regarding the above-described embodiment.

[0076] (((1))) a processor; The processor: When the system is not connected to the Internet, if the program that controls the operation of the system is not updated by the set deadline, the system is prohibited from being used. Information processing system.

[0077] (((2))) The processor: If the program that runs the system has not been updated for a set period of time, and the manufacturing date of the installed consumables meets the set conditions, the use of the system is prohibited. The information processing system according to (((1))).

[0078] (((3))) The condition is that the manufacturing time of the consumables is later than the provision time of the program. The information processing system according to (((2))).

[0079] (((4))) The condition is that the manufacturing date of the consumable is later than the shipping date of the system. The information processing system according to (((2))).

[0080] (((5))) The processor: When the program is updated, if the individual identification number of the system whose operation is prohibited in the program matches the individual identification number of the system itself, the use of the system itself is prohibited. 1. An information processing system according to any one of ((1))) to (((4))).

[0081] (((6))) The processor: When the system is connected to the Internet, it connects to the management server and updates the program. The information processing system according to (((5))).

[0082] (((7))) The processor: When prohibiting the use of the own system, the system also prohibits the use of consumables installed in the own system in the own system and systems other than the own system. 1. An information processing system according to any one of ((1))) to (((6))).

[0083] (((8))) The processor: In order to make the consumable product unusable, an identifier that indicates that the consumable product is prohibited from use and that is stored in a storage unit of the consumable product is set to "prohibited." The information processing system according to (((7))).

[0084] (((9))) a step of performing control to prohibit use of the system when the system is not connected to the Internet and a program for controlling the operation of the system is not updated by a set deadline; A program that is executed by a computer.

[0085] The effects of the configuration described above will be described below.

[0086] According to the information processing system (((1))), use can be prohibited even when the system is not connected to the Internet.

[0087] According to the information processing system (((2))), it is possible to prohibit the use of an information processing system equipped with a consumable product whose manufacturing date satisfies a set condition.

[0088] According to the information processing system of (((3))), it is possible to prohibit the use of an information processing system equipped with a consumable item manufactured after the time the program was provided.

[0089] According to the information processing system (((4))), it is possible to prohibit the use of an information processing system equipped with a consumable item manufactured after the shipping date of the information processing system itself.

[0090] According to the information processing system (((5))), it is possible to prohibit the use of the information processing system having an individual identification number that has been set to be prohibited from operation.

[0091] According to the information processing system of (((6))), when the information processing system is connected to the Internet, it is possible to forcibly update the program.

[0092] According to the information processing system of (((7))), it is possible to make it impossible to use consumables installed in the information processing system whose operation has been prohibited.

[0093] According to the information processing system (((8))), it is possible to make the consumable item unusable by using the identifier stored in the storage unit of the consumable item.

[0094] According to the program (((9))), use can be prohibited even when there is no connection to the Internet. [Explanation of symbols]

[0095] 10 Image forming device 11 CPU 12 RAM 13 Storage device 14 Communication Interface 15 User Interface Device 16 Scanner 17 Print Engine 18 Control Bus 20 User terminal 30 Management Server 40 Internet 45 Local Network 51 Control section 52 Operation input section 53 Display section 54 Data transmission / reception unit 55 Authentication Department 56 Memory section 57 Image reading unit 58 Image output unit 61 Drum Cartridge 61a Storage section 62 Toner cartridge 62a Storage section

Claims

1. a processor; The processor: When the system is not connected to the Internet, if the program that controls the operation of the system is not updated by the set deadline, the system is prohibited from being used. Information processing system.

2. The processor: If the program that runs the system has not been updated for a set period of time, and the manufacturing date of the installed consumables meets the set conditions, the use of the system is prohibited. The information processing system according to claim 1 .

3. The condition is that the manufacturing time of the consumables is later than the provision time of the program. The information processing system according to claim 2 .

4. The condition is that the manufacturing date of the consumable is later than the shipping date of the system. The information processing system according to claim 2 .

5. The processor: When the program is updated, if the individual identification number of the system whose operation is prohibited in the program matches the individual identification number of the own system, the use of the own system is prohibited. The information processing system according to claim 1 .

6. The processor: When the system is connected to the Internet, it connects to the management server and updates the program. The information processing system according to claim 5 .

7. The processor: When prohibiting the use of the own system, the use of consumables installed in the own system is also prohibited in the own system and systems other than the own system. The information processing system according to claim 1 .

8. The processor: In order to make the consumable product unusable, an identifier indicating that the consumable product is prohibited from use and stored in a storage unit of the consumable product is set to "prohibited." The information processing system according to claim 7 .

9. a step of performing control to prohibit use of the system when the system is not connected to the Internet and a program for controlling the operation of the system is not updated by a set deadline; A program that is executed by a computer.

Images