Component life prediction system, component life prediction method, and computer program

Abstract

To provide a component life predication system which can suppress lowering of accuracy in predicting life of a component used in a device even if an operation speed is changed for a predetermined period of time.SOLUTION: A component life prediction system according to the present invention has prediction means for predicting life of a component of a device based on an operation speed of the device, and speed changing means for changing the operation speed of the device for a predetermined period of time. The prediction means, depending on length of the predetermined period of time and the operation speed during the predetermined period of time, modifies the prediction of the life.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a part life prediction system, a part life prediction method, a computer program, and the like. [Background technology]

[0002] Devices such as electrophotographic image forming apparatuses (hereinafter referred to as "devices"), which form visible images through scanning by charging, exposing, and developing, generally operate at a print speed determined for each model. However, a system has been proposed that allows the same model to offer multiple print performance levels based on price by controlling print speed with software. Specifically, this is a contract that allows for increased print speed during busy periods such as the end of the month or the end of the accounting period.

[0003] On the other hand, devices also have consumable parts other than paper and toner that need to be replaced periodically. Specific examples include photosensitive drums, color developers, intermediate transfer belts, cleaners, fusers, and waste toner containers. When these parts exceed their service life, problems such as streaks appearing in printed images can occur. For this reason, in recent years, systems have been proposed that predict when consumable parts should be replaced and allow users to replace them before their service life expires.

[0004] To predict replacement times, the daily counter value (number of times used) and the wear level of parts quantified by sensors, etc. are used as time-series data, and future counter values ​​and increases in wear level are predicted based on this. When wear levels change over time like this, a method is generally used in which a prediction model is built from past time-series data and predictions are made using the prediction model.

[0005] The increase in counter value and wear level on a daily basis depends on how and how often the device is used, so to achieve accurate predictions, it is necessary to accumulate time-series data over a certain period of time in that usage environment and create a trained prediction model.

[0006] When predicting the wear of parts for a device that has a contract to increase the printing speed for a specific period, as mentioned above, there may be a large discrepancy between the predicted part life based on the printing performance at the time of purchase and the actual wear, due to the difference in printing performance at the end of the month. For this reason, in Patent Document 1, the predicted value of the part life is reset when the printing speed changes. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2023-107585 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] In this way, with the technology of Patent Document 1, when the printing speed of the device changes, the predicted value of the part life is re-predicted based on the new printing speed. However, changes in printing speed occur periodically, for example, based on a specific date and time, such as the end of the month, the end of the fiscal year, or every quarter.

[0009] In this case, the technique of Patent Document 1 cannot reflect in advance the situation where the printing speed change period ends and the normal speed is restored, or the next and subsequent printing speed changes, in the prediction, which may result in a large prediction error.

[0010] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and one of its objectives is to provide a component life prediction system that can suppress a decrease in the accuracy of life prediction of device components even when the operating speed is changed for a specified period of time. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] One aspect of the present invention is a component life prediction system, comprising: a prediction means for predicting the life of a component of the device based on the operating speed of the device; a speed change means for changing the operation speed of the device for a predetermined period of time; the prediction means modifies the prediction of the lifespan according to the length of the predetermined period and the operating speed during the predetermined period; It is characterized by: [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a component life prediction system that can suppress a decrease in accuracy of the life prediction of device components even when the operating speed is changed for a predetermined period of time. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a part life prediction system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1A and 1B are block diagrams showing an example of the hardware configuration of each device constituting a part life prediction system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 1 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of each device constituting a part life prediction system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 3 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of contract information managed by a contract information management unit 312 of the contract management server 101 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 5] 5 is a diagram showing an example of print information 501 transmitted from a print information transmission unit of the device 103 to the part life prediction server 102 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure in which the device according to the first embodiment of the present invention changes the print speed based on a contract. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure for contract information acquisition processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure when contract information acquisition fails according to the second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. In each drawing, the same members or elements are designated by the same reference numerals, and duplicate descriptions will be omitted or simplified.

[0015] <Embodiment 1> Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a part life prediction system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The part life prediction system shown in Fig. 1 is made up of a contract management server 101, a part life prediction server 102, a device 103 such as an image forming apparatus, and a PC 104. The image forming apparatus is, for example, a printing apparatus.

[0016] 1, the part life prediction system of this embodiment may include other servers (not shown) that provide other functions. Also, the device 103 is not limited to an image forming apparatus. It may be any device, such as an autonomous mobile object, as long as the life of the device's parts changes depending on the operating speed or the like.

[0017] Reference numeral 101 denotes a contract management server, which manages information relating to changes in print speed as the operating speed of a device 103. It returns contract information in response to requests from the device 103, PC 104, and other servers. It also creates and modifies new contracts in response to requests from the device 103 and PC 104.

[0018] Reference numeral 102 denotes a parts life prediction server, which receives counter values ​​and wear levels of consumable parts of a device and predicts the lifespan (replacement time) of the consumable parts of the device based on the counter values ​​and wear levels of the consumable parts of the device. The parts life prediction server 102 functions as a prediction means for predicting the lifespan of parts such as consumable parts of a device based on the operating speed (printing speed, etc.) of the device. Note that the lifespan of a part in this embodiment is a parameter corresponding to the wear level of the part, and the lifespan may be replaced with the wear level.

[0019] When the device 103 is an image forming apparatus, the consumable parts specifically include a photosensitive drum, a developer for each color, an intermediate transfer belt, a cleaner, a fixing unit, a waste toner container, and the like.

[0020] Here, when predicting a lifespan, the part life prediction server 102, which serves as a prediction means, constructs a prediction model by learning time-series data and performs the prediction using the prediction model. The prediction model can be constructed using any common method (such as the moving average method, exponential smoothing, ARIMA, or a method using a neural network), and is not limited to this. The prediction model learns in advance the wear tendency of parts based on the wear rate of the parts, the operating speed (printing speed), a predetermined period, etc.

[0021] The contract management server 101, the part life prediction server 102, the device 103, and the PC 104 are connected via a network 100. The network 100 is a communication network realized by, for example, any one or a combination of a LAN such as the Internet, a WAN, a telephone line, a dedicated digital line, an ATM or frame relay line, a cable television line, a wireless line for data broadcasting, etc.

[0022] Note that LAN stands for Local Area Network, WAN stands for Wide Area Network, and ATM stands for Asynchronous Transfer Mode.

[0023] 2A and 2B are block diagrams showing examples of the hardware configuration of each device constituting the part life prediction system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Also, Fig. 2A is a block diagram showing examples of the hardware configuration of the contract management server 101, the part life prediction server 102, and the PC 104.

[0024] In the figure, reference numeral 201 denotes a CPU serving as a computer that directly or indirectly controls each piece of hardware (ROM, RAM, etc., described later) connected via an internal bus and executes a computer program for realizing the first embodiment.

[0025] Reference numeral 202 denotes a ROM in which the BIOS is stored. Reference numeral 203 denotes a RAM (direct storage device) that is used as a work area for the CPU 201 and as temporary storage for loading software modules for realizing the part life prediction system of the first embodiment.

[0026] 204 is a storage device such as an HDD (hard disk drive) or SSD (solid state drive) that stores the OS, which is basic software, and software modules.

[0027] Reference numeral 205 denotes an input device such as a keyboard or pointing device (not shown), 206 denotes an output device to which a display or the like is connected, and 207 denotes an I / F for connecting to the network 100.

[0028] After startup, these pieces of hardware become operational when the CPU 201 executes the BIOS and loads the OS from the HDD 204 to the RAM 203. The CPU 201 loads various software modules (described later) from the HDD 204 to the RAM 203 as needed, in accordance with the operation of the OS, so that they can be executed.

[0029] The various software modules are executed and operated by the CPU 201 in cooperation with the above hardware components. The I / F 207 is connected to a network 100 such as the Internet or a local network, and is controlled by the CPU 201 in accordance with the operation of the OS to realize communication via the above communication means.

[0030] 2B is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the device 103. Note that the hardware configuration in FIG. 2B excluding the print engine 238 may also be called a controller that manages the control system of the device 103. Each hardware component of the device 103 is connected to a system bus 230.

[0031] A CPU 231 as a computer controls the entire device and comprehensively controls access to various hardware connected to a system bus 230. This control is based on a control program stored in a ROM 232 or a control program and resource data (resource information) stored in an external memory 236 connected via a disk controller (DKC 235).

[0032] The RAM 233 functions as the main memory, work area, etc. of the CPU 231, and is configured so that the memory capacity can be expanded by an optional RAM connected to an expansion port (not shown). The storage device 240 is an external storage means that functions as a large-capacity memory.

[0033] The operation panel (operation unit) 239 displays a screen and accepts user operation instructions via the screen. It also has buttons and a display unit such as a liquid crystal panel for performing operations such as setting the operation mode of the device 103, displaying the operation status of the device 103, and specifying content data to be printed.

[0034] The network controller 234 is, for example, a network interface card (NIC), and exchanges data with external devices via the network controller 234. The raster controller 237 is a controller that converts print data written in, for example, PDL language into image data.

[0035] The print engine 238 uses known printing technology to form an image on a sheet based on image data input from the raster controller 237. The print engine 238 is, for example, an electrophotographic (laser beam) type, inkjet type, dye sublimation (thermal transfer) type, etc. The device I / F 241 is a connection I / F with an external device that can be connected via USB or the like.

[0036] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of each device that constitutes the component life prediction system of embodiment 1 of the present invention, and shows an example of the functional configuration of the contract management server 101, component life prediction server 102, device 103, and PC 104.

[0037] Note that some of the functional blocks shown in FIG. 3 are realized by causing a CPU or the like, which serves as a computer included in each device constituting the part life prediction system, to execute a computer program stored in a memory, which serves as a storage medium.

[0038] However, some or all of these functions may be implemented by hardware. Examples of hardware that can be used include dedicated circuits (ASICs) and processors (reconfigurable processors, DSPs). Furthermore, the functional blocks shown in Fig. 3 do not have to be built into the same housing, and may be configured as separate devices connected to each other via signal paths.

[0039] The contract management server 101 includes a customer information management unit 311, a contract information management unit 312, and a contract information transmission / reception unit 313. The customer information management unit 311 manages customer tenant information (not shown). Here, the customer tenant information includes account information and qualification information of the customers who are the users of 101 to 104, as well as an identifier (customer tenant ID) for uniquely identifying the customer.

[0040] The contract information management unit 312 manages contract information set for devices used by customers. The contract information management unit 312 functions as a contract information management means for storing and managing contract information related to the operating speed of the device (printing speed, the period for operating at that speed, etc.).

[0041] The contract information transmission / reception unit 313 transmits contract information to the target device when a contract is set or changed by operation from the PC 104, and also receives contract setting / changing operations from the operation panel 239 of the device 103 and reflects them in the contract information management unit 312.

[0042] The part life prediction server 102 includes a contract information acquisition unit 321, a device management unit 322, a print information receiving unit 323, a part life prediction unit 324, and a part life management unit 325. The operation of each unit of the part life prediction server 102 will be described later with reference to Figs. 6 to 8, etc.

[0043] The device 103 comprises a contract information transmission / reception unit 331, a print information transmission unit 332, a job execution unit 333, a control unit 334, etc. The contract information transmission / reception unit 331 transmits contract information to the contract management server when a contract setting or change operation is performed using the operation panel 239, and acquires the latest contract information from the contract management server 101 when printing.

[0044] The print information sending unit 332 sends print information collected by a control unit 334 (described later) to the part life prediction server 102. The job executing unit 333 executes a job instructed by the device 103. For example, when a print job is instructed, the job executing unit 333 executes print processing based on the print job.

[0045] The control unit 334 collects print information when a job is executed, and transmits the print information to the part life prediction server 102 via the print information transmission unit 332. The PC 104 has a browser 341 and the like. By operating the browser 341, the customer as a user can use the contract management server 101, part life prediction server 102, and device 103 to set and update contract information, execute print jobs, view consumable part lifespans, and the like.

[0046] When a customer is viewing the consumable part lifespan, the browser 341 sends a device list acquisition request, including the user ID, to the part lifespan management unit 325 of the part lifespan prediction server 102, and acquires a list of devices that the customer can view. The customer can select a device from the device list screen displayed by the browser 341.

[0047] The browser 341 sends a consumable part lifespan acquisition request including the user ID and the ID of the device selected by the customer to the part lifespan management unit 325. The browser 341 displays the acquired consumable part lifespan on the screen, and the customer views the consumable part lifespan. Furthermore, this consumable part lifespan viewing process may be in a form in which the lifespans of all consumable parts are acquired at once without requiring the customer to select a device.

[0048] Furthermore, if the lifespan is updated while the customer is browsing, the browser 341 may be configured to send a device list acquisition request and a consumable part lifespan acquisition request to the part lifespan management unit 325 based on a push notification from the part lifespan management unit 325. Then, the consumable part lifespan may be automatically acquired and the screen may be updated.

[0049] 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of contract information managed by the contract information management unit 312 of the contract management server 101 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 4, contract information 401 is made up of a user ID 402, a device ID 403, a contract ID 404, a contract period 405, an initial print speed 406, a changed print speed 407, a print speed change condition 408, and the like.

[0050] The user ID 402 is an ID for uniquely identifying a customer who owns and uses a device. The device ID 403 is an ID for uniquely identifying a device. The contract ID 404 is an ID assigned to each piece of contract information, and is used to manage the association between the device and the contract. The contract period 405 indicates the period for which the contract is valid.

[0051] The initial print speed 406 is the print speed when the print speed change condition 408 is not satisfied. The changed print speed 407 is the print speed when the print speed change condition 408 is satisfied. The print speed change condition 408 is an item indicating the conditions for changing the print speed. Specifically, it is information indicating the conditions related to a period such as the end of the month or every weekend, and may be in Japanese, English, CRON format, etc.

[0052] 5 is a diagram showing an example of print information 501 transmitted from the print information transmission unit of the device 103 according to the first embodiment of the present invention to the part life prediction server 102. The print information 501 is composed of a user ID 502, a device ID 503, a model ID 504, a speed change flag 505, job information 506, operation information 507, etc.

[0053] A user ID 502 is an ID for uniquely identifying a customer who owns and uses a device. A device ID 503 is an ID for uniquely identifying a device. A model ID 504 is an ID indicating the model of the device. A speed change flag 505 is a value indicating whether or not the print speed change conditions have been met.

[0054] Job information 506 includes details about the executed printing, specifically, print size, black and white / color, number of sheets, page designation, double-sided / single-sided, etc. Other information about printing may also be included. Operation information 507 is a value indicating counter information, etc., of each component inside the device 103.

[0055] 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing procedure for a device according to the first embodiment of the present invention to change the print speed based on a contract. Note that the operation of each step in the flowchart in FIG. 6 is performed sequentially by the CPU or the like serving as a computer in each of the device 103 and the contract management server 101 executing a computer program stored in memory.

[0056] FIG. 6 shows an example of a processing procedure for acquiring contract information, changing the print speed if the conditions are met, and sending the print information to the part life prediction server after printing is completed.

[0057] At the start of printing, in step S601, the contract information transmission / reception unit 331 of the device 103 transmits a contract information acquisition request to the contract management server 101. The contract information acquisition request includes a user ID and a device ID for identifying the contract linked to the device 103.

[0058] In step S602, the contract information transmission / reception unit 313 of the contract management server 101 receives the contract information acquisition request. In step S603, the contract information management unit 312 of the contract management server 101 identifies the contract information 401 (contract information record) linked to the device 103 from the contract information 401 it holds, and transmits it to the device 103.

[0059] In step S604, the contract information transmission / reception unit 331 of the device 103 acquires the contract information 401 (contract information record) linked to the device 103. In step S605, the control unit 334 of the device 103 determines whether the speed change condition is met based on the current date and time, the contract period 405 in the contract information record, and the print speed change condition 408.

[0060] If the speed change condition is not satisfied, in step S606, the job execution unit 333 of the device 103 executes the print job at the default speed in the contract information 401, that is, the relatively slow initial print speed 406.

[0061] If the speed change conditions are met, in step S608, the job execution unit 333 of the device 103 executes the print job at the relatively high changed print speed 407 in the contract information record. Note that step S608 functions as a speed change step (speed change means) that changes the operating speed of the device for a predetermined period at a predetermined cycle in accordance with the contract information, etc.

[0062] After printing is completed, in step S607, the print information transmission unit 332 of the device 103 transmits the print information 501 to the part life prediction server 102, and the processing flow in Fig. 6 ends. This allows printing to be performed at the print speed based on the latest contract.

[0063] 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure for contract information acquisition processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Note that the CPUs or the like serving as computers in the part life prediction server 102 and the contract management server 101 execute computer programs stored in their memories, thereby sequentially performing the operations of the steps in the flowchart in FIG.

[0064] In the flow of Figure 7, the part life prediction server determines whether the printing speed has changed based on the speed change flag 505 of the printing information received from the device 103, and if it has changed, obtains the contract information from the contract management server and performs a life prediction in accordance with the contract contents.

[0065] In step S701, the print information receiving unit 323 of the part life prediction server 102 receives the print information 501 from the device 103. In step S702, the device management unit 322 of the part life prediction server 102 determines whether the speed change flag 505 included in the print information 501 is true or false.

[0066] If the speed change flag 505 is false, that is, if the determination in step S702 is No, the process proceeds to step S703. In step S703, the part life prediction unit 324 of the part life prediction server 102 predicts the part life at the default speed based on the model ID 504, job information 506, and operation information 507 included in the print information 501, and stores the prediction in the part life management unit 325.

[0067] If the speed change flag 505 is true, that is, if the determination in step S702 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S704, where the contract information acquisition unit 321 sends a contract information acquisition request to the contract management server 101. The contract information acquisition request includes the user ID and device ID acquired from the printing information 501 to identify the contract linked to the device.

[0068] In step S705, the contract information transmission / reception unit 313 of the contract management server 101 receives the contract information acquisition request. In step S706, the contract information management unit 312 of the contract management server 101 identifies the contract information 401 (contract information record) linked to the device 103 from the contract information 401 it holds, and transmits it to the device 103.

[0069] In step S707, the contract information acquisition unit 321 of the part life prediction server 102 acquires the above-mentioned contract information record. In step S708, the part life prediction unit 324 of the part life prediction server 102 identifies the print speed based on the current date and time and the contract period 405, initial print speed 406, changed print speed 407, and print speed change condition 408 in the contract information record.

[0070] In step S709, the part life prediction unit 324 of the part life prediction server 102 predicts a life from the printing speed identified in step S708 and the contract information. That is, the life is predicted using information such as the printing speed identified in step S708, the contract period 405 acquired from the contract information, the initial printing speed 406, the changed printing speed 407, the printing speed change conditions 408, the job information 506 in the printing information 501, and the operation information 507.

[0071] Specifically, the above information is used to predict the lifespan of the parts by accumulating the degree of wear during the contract period and outside the contract period, and the predicted result is stored in the parts lifespan management unit 325. Here, steps S703 and S709 function as a prediction step (prediction means) that predicts the lifespan of the device parts based on the printing speed as the operating speed of the device.

[0072] As described above, in step S709, which serves as a prediction step (prediction means), contract information is acquired from the contract information management unit 312 in response to an instruction to change the operating speed of the device (such as a print speed change flag). Then, based on the acquired contract information, the predicted lifespan of the device's components is corrected in accordance with the length of a predetermined period and the operating speed during that period. After processing step S709, the processing flow in FIG. 7 ends.

[0073] By performing the above process, even if the printing speed of a device changes depending on the contract, the accuracy of the part life prediction can be improved by reflecting the period and conditions of the printing speed change in the part life prediction.

[0074] <Embodiment 2> In the first embodiment, if acquisition of contract information fails in steps S704 and S707, the part life prediction server 102 does not hold the contract information, and therefore the change in print speed associated with the contract cannot be reflected in the part life prediction. In the second embodiment, in addition to the processing of the first embodiment, the contract information is held in the part life prediction server 102.

[0075] Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure when contract information acquisition fails according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Note that the operation of each step in the flowchart of Fig. 8 is performed sequentially by a CPU or the like serving as a computer in the part life prediction server 102 executing a computer program stored in a memory.

[0076] Note that steps S801 to S805 are omitted from the description because they are the same as steps S701 to S704 and S707 in embodiment 1. In step S806, the contract information acquisition unit 321 of the part life prediction server 102 determines whether or not the acquisition of the contract information has been successful.

[0077] If the determination in step S806 is Yes, i.e., if it is determined that the acquisition was successful, the device management unit 322 associates the acquired contract information with the device and stores it in step S807. If the determination in step S806 is No, i.e., if it is determined that the acquisition failed, the device management unit 322 acquires the most recent contract information that has been stored in step S808.

[0078] In step S809, the part life prediction unit 324 of the part life prediction server 102 identifies the print speed based on the current date and time, the contract period 405 of the contract information, the initial print speed 406, the changed print speed 407, and the print speed change conditions 408.

[0079] In step S810, the part life prediction unit 324 of the part life prediction server 102 predicts a life from the printing speed identified in step S809 and the contract information. That is, the part life is predicted using the contract period 405, initial printing speed 406, changed printing speed 407, and printing speed change conditions 408 obtained from the contract information, and the job information 506 and operation information 507 in the printing information 501, and the prediction is saved in the part life management unit 325.

[0080] That is, in step S810, if the contract information is successfully acquired from the contract information management unit 312, a prediction is made based on the acquired contract information, and if the acquisition of the contract information fails, a prediction is made based on previously saved contract information.

[0081] As described above, according to this embodiment, the part life prediction server 102 uses the most recently successfully acquired contract information until it succeeds in acquiring the contract information, thereby enabling highly accurate predictions even in the event of a temporary communication failure.

[0082] The present invention has been described above in detail based on its preferred embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications and combinations of the above embodiments are possible based on the spirit of the present invention, and these are not excluded from the scope of the present invention.

[0083] The present invention also includes those that realize the functions of the above embodiments using, for example, at least one processor such as a CPU, memory, or circuit (for example, ASIC). Also, multiple processors may be used to perform distributed processing.

[0084] In order to realize part or all of the control in the above-described embodiments, a computer program that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments may be supplied to an information processing device or the like via a network or various storage media. Then, a computer (or a CPU, MPU, or the like) in the information processing device or the like may read and execute the program. In this case, the program and the storage medium storing the program constitute the present invention. The present invention also includes the following combinations.

[0085] (Configuration 1) A component life prediction system comprising: a prediction means for predicting the life of a component of a device based on the operating speed of the device; and a speed change means for changing the operating speed of the device for a predetermined period of time, wherein the prediction means corrects the prediction of the life in accordance with the length of the predetermined period and the operating speed during the predetermined period.

[0086] (Configuration 2) A component life prediction system according to Configuration 1, characterized in that the prediction means predicts the component life using a prediction model that has previously learned the component wear tendency based on the component wear level, the operating speed, and the predetermined period.

[0087] (Configuration 3) A component life prediction system according to configuration 1 or 2, characterized in that it has a contract information management means for storing and managing contract information relating to the operating speed of the device, and the prediction means acquires the contract information from the contract information management means in response to an instruction to change the operating speed of the device.

[0088] (Configuration 4) The component life prediction system according to configuration 3, wherein the speed change means changes the operating speed at a predetermined cycle for the predetermined period in accordance with the contract information.

[0089] (Configuration 5) A component life prediction system according to configuration 3 or 4, characterized in that the prediction means, if successful in acquiring the contract information from the contract information management means, makes the prediction based on the acquired contract information, and, if unsuccessful in acquiring the contract information, makes the prediction based on the contract information stored in the past.

[0090] (Configuration 6) The part life prediction system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the device is an image forming apparatus.

[0091] (Method) A component life prediction method comprising: a prediction step of predicting the life of a component of a device based on the operating speed of the device; and a speed change step of changing the operating speed of the device for a predetermined period of time, wherein the prediction step modifies the prediction of the life depending on the length of the predetermined period and the operating speed during the predetermined period.

[0092] (Program) A computer program for controlling each means of the component life prediction system according to any one of configurations 1 to 6 by a computer. [Explanation of symbols]

[0093] 101: Contract management server 102: Parts life prediction server 103:Device 311:Customer Information Management Department 312: Contract Information Management Department 313: Contract information transmission and reception unit 321: Contract Information Acquisition Department 322: Device management section 323: Printing information receiving unit 324: Parts life prediction section 325: Parts Life Management Department 331: Contract information transmission and reception unit 332: Printing information transmission unit 333: Job execution unit 334: Control unit

Claims

1. a prediction means for predicting the life of a component of the device based on the operating speed of the device; a speed change means for changing the operation speed of the device for a predetermined period of time; the prediction means modifies the prediction of the lifespan according to the length of the predetermined period and the operating speed during the predetermined period; A parts life prediction system characterized by:

2. 2. A component life prediction system according to claim 1, wherein the prediction means predicts the component life using a prediction model that has previously learned the component wear tendency based on the component wear rate, the operating speed, and the predetermined period.

3. 2. The component life prediction system according to claim 1, further comprising a contract information management means for storing and managing contract information relating to the operating speed of the device, wherein the prediction means acquires the contract information from the contract information management means in response to an instruction to change the operating speed of the device.

4. 4. The part life prediction system according to claim 3, wherein said speed change means changes said operating speed at a predetermined cycle for said predetermined period in accordance with said contract information.

5. 4. A part life prediction system according to claim 3, wherein the prediction means, if successful in acquiring the contract information from the contract information management means, makes the prediction based on the acquired contract information, and, if unsuccessful in acquiring the contract information, makes the prediction based on the contract information stored in the past.

6. 2. The part life prediction system according to claim 1, wherein the device is an image forming apparatus.

7. a prediction step of predicting the life of a component of the device based on the operating speed of the device; a speed changing step of changing the operating speed of the device for a predetermined period of time, the prediction step includes modifying the prediction of the lifespan according to the length of the predetermined period and the operating speed during the predetermined period; A component life prediction method characterized by:

8. A computer program for controlling each means of the component life prediction system according to any one of claims 1 to 6 by a computer.

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