Printer, method for controlling printer, and program

Abstract

To record history information of printing jobs that fail in processing before executing a printing job in a printer.SOLUTION: A network diagnosis part instructs a communication control part to monitor and acquire a network packet. A printing control part requests a job log management part to record a job history due to printing processing and requests the communication control part to store the network packet. The network diagnosis part reads the network packet stored in a storage, and request the job log management part to acquire a job history of printing jobs executed during the same time zone as a reception time zone of a detected network packet. The network diagnosis part requests the job log management part to record information on connection requests which do not correspond to the acquired job history as a job history from the acquired job history and an analysis result of the network packet.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for controlling a job history in a printing device. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, printing devices have been provided with a diagnostic function that, when a job execution fails, identifies the cause of the failure from various pieces of information held by the printing device and presents a solution.

[0003] Patent document 1 discloses a method for diagnosing whether the current printing device is in a printable state when a job error occurs by comparing the current status information of the printing device with separately stored status information of the printing device when it is operating normally.

[0004] In addition, many printing devices are provided with a function that records the history information of submitted jobs and displays the job processing status on the user interface, and if the job fails to execute, a function is also provided that diagnoses the failure based on the history information and presents a solution. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-149191 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, a printing device typically records job history information for a job submitted from an external device when it attempts to execute the received job. If the processing preceding the job execution fails, the job history information is not recorded. For example, if the printing device fails to establish a communication path or perform user authentication based on a connection request from an external device that sends the print job, the printing device will not receive the print job. If the print job cannot be received, the print job cannot be executed, and therefore history information for the print job cannot be recorded. Therefore, conventional diagnostics based on job history information may not only be unable to provide a solution to the failure if the processing preceding the job execution fails, but may also be unable to identify the job that failed to execute. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The technology disclosed herein is a printing device that performs printing processing in accordance with a print job, and includes a communication means for receiving the print job from an external device, a management means for managing job history relating to executed print jobs among the received print jobs as history information, and a display control means for displaying the history information on a display device, wherein the management means, when detecting information indicating the existence of a print job that has not yet been executed, adds the job history relating to the print job that has not yet been executed to the history information. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The technology disclosed herein allows a printing device to record history information about print jobs that have failed in processing before the execution of the print job. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a connection configuration of an MFP, a gateway, and a client PC according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an MFP according to an embodiment. [Figure 3]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of an MFP used in an embodiment. [Figure 4] 10 is a diagram showing an example of print job history information managed in an MFP according to an embodiment. FIG. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing an example of a diagnosis result displayed on the MFP when job processing has failed in an embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating job processing of a job submitted from a client PC. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process of recording job history information according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process of recording job history information according to the second embodiment. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process of recording job history information according to the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The following describes embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention as claimed, and not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0011] First Embodiment This embodiment is a technology for controlling network diagnosis performed in a multi-function peripheral (MFP) having two communication lines, a main line and a sub-line. Here, an example of multiple physically separate communication lines is described, but the present disclosure is also applicable to multiple virtually separated communication lines using a virtual network interface. Furthermore, the implementation entity is not limited to an MFP, and may be any information processing device that executes jobs input from the outside via multiple communication lines.

[0012] FIG. 1 shows a connection configuration of an MFP 100, gateways 111 and 121, and client PCs 112 and 122 according to this embodiment.

[0013] The MFP 100 has a controller unit 101, an operation unit 102, a printer unit 103, and a scanner unit 104. The configuration of the controller unit 101 will be described in detail later with reference to FIG. 2. The operation unit 102 is an interface that performs input and output with the user to accept user input and present information to the user. The printer unit 103 outputs an image onto a paper medium based on electronic data. The scanner unit 104 optically reads the paper medium and converts the image on the paper medium into electronic data.

[0014] The operation unit 102, printer unit 103, and scanner unit 104 are connected to the controller unit 101, and realize the multiple functions of the MFP 100 under the control of the controller unit 101. Note that the configuration of the MFP 100 is not limited to the above, and the MFP 100 may have other configurations for providing other functions.

[0015] The MFP 100 and the client PC 112 are connected to each other via a LAN 110 and a gateway 111 so as to be able to communicate with each other. Similarly, the MFP 100 and the client PC 122 are connected to each other via a LAN 120 and a gateway 121 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0016] Gateway 111 and gateway 121 are network routers that relay communications from MFP 100 between client PC 112 and client PC 122. Client PC 112 and client PC 122 can share files with MFP 100 and send print requests to MFP 100 using, for example, the SMB (Server Message Block) protocol.

[0017] <Hardware Configuration of Printing Device 100> 2 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the network device provided in the controller unit 101 and MFP 100 in this embodiment. The MFP 100 has a reading function for reading images on paper media, a file transmission function for transmitting the read images to an external device, and a printing function for printing images on paper media. The MFP 100 also has a function for receiving and printing print jobs from client PCs 112 and 122.

[0018] The CPU 201 controls the entire MFP 100, reads out control programs stored in the ROM 202 or storage 204, and controls various processes such as printing and reading. The ROM 202 stores control programs executable by the CPU 201. The RAM 203 is a main memory accessed by the CPU 201, and is used as a work area or a temporary storage area for expanding the various control programs. The storage 204 stores jobs, image data, various programs, and various setting information. In this way, the hardware such as the CPU 201, ROM 202, RAM 203, and storage 204 constitutes a so-called information processing device.

[0019] In the controller unit 101 of this embodiment, one CPU 201 executes each process shown in the flowcharts described below using one memory (RAM 203), but multiple CPUs or GPUs may be used to execute the processes. For example, multiple processors, memories, and storages may work together to execute each process shown in the flowcharts described below. Also, some of the processes shown in the flowcharts described below may be executed by a hardware circuit or the like other than the above-described configuration.

[0020] 1 via an operation unit I / F 205, and realizes user input and output to and from the operation unit 102. The CPU 201 is also connected to the printer unit 103 shown in FIG. 1 via a printer I / F 207, and realizes output processing (print processing) onto paper media using the printer unit 103.

[0021] The CPU 201 is connected to the scanner unit 104 shown in FIG. 1 via the scanner I / F 206, and realizes the reading process (scanning process) of the document using the scanner unit 104.

[0022] Wired LAN devices 209 and 210 are connected to the network I / F 208. In this embodiment, a configuration in which two wired LAN devices 209 and 210 are connected to the network I / F 208 will be described. Note that the configuration of the LAN devices connected to the network I / F 208 is not limited to this, and other LAN devices such as wireless LAN devices and LAN devices connected via USB, and other connection forms are also applicable. The CPU 201 realizes communication on the LAN 110 by controlling the wired LAN device 209 via the network I / F 204. Further, the CPU 201 realizes communication on the LAN 120 by controlling the wired LAN device 210.

[0023] <Software Configuration of the MFP 100> FIG. 3 shows an example of the software configuration of the MFP 100 in this embodiment.

[0024] The screen operation control unit 301 performs display control for indicating a scanning operation screen via the operation unit 102, and for displaying printing, the transmission result of the scanned image data, and the processing result of the network diagnosis unit described later.

[0025] The setting management unit 302 manages the settings of various functions of the MFP 100. The various setting values include, for example, settings related to paper and image processing necessary for performing scanning and printing processes, and communication settings with communication terminals. These setting values are stored in a non-volatile storage device such as the storage 204, and are held regardless of the power state of the MFP 100. The setting management unit 302 performs control to read out the stored setting values, change the setting values, and store them.

[0026] The scanner control unit 303 transmits the scanned image data obtained by the MFP 100 scanning using the scanner 104 to the client PC 112 or the client PC 122. The scanner control unit 303 acquires setting values ​​required for the scanning process and the transmission process of the scanned image data from the setting management unit 302, and transmits the scanned image data to the destination terminal using the communication control unit 307.

[0027] The print control unit 304 receives a print job that the MFP 100 has received from the client PCs 112 and 122, and performs a series of print processes from paper feeding to paper ejection using the printer 103 via the printer I / F 207. The print control unit 304 acquires setting values ​​necessary for the print process from the setting management unit 302, analyzes the received print job, performs image processing, outputs an image on a fed paper medium, and ejects the paper medium with the image output.

[0028] The job log management unit 305 manages history information indicating the history of jobs executed, such as printing and scanning, according to a job. The job history information includes the job history of the executed job and the job history of jobs before execution, and the job history of jobs before execution may also include the results of a network diagnosis by the network diagnosis unit 306. The job history information is stored in a nonvolatile storage device such as the storage 204 or a job log management server on the network, and is retained regardless of the power state of the MFP 100. The job log management unit 305 receives processing results performed by the scanner control unit 303 and the print control unit 304, and stores them in the nonvolatile storage device or the job management server. The job log management unit 305 can also read job history information from the nonvolatile storage device or the like, and display it on the operation unit 102 using the screen operation control unit 301.

[0029] In the configuration shown in FIG. 1 , the network diagnostic unit 306 verifies the validity of the network communication settings held by the MFP 100. This validity verification verifies that the IP address, subnet mask, and gateway 111 settings required for network communication with the LAN 110 are correct, for example. This validity verification also verifies that the client PC 112 and the MFP 100 do not use the same IP address. The network diagnostic unit 306 also checks the status of the physical communication link with the connected LANs 110 and 120 periodically or in response to instructions from the screen operation control unit 301, scanner control unit 303, and print control unit 304. If the network diagnostic unit 306 detects a communication link disconnection, it notifies the screen operation control unit 301, scanner control unit 303, and print control unit 304 of the communication link disconnection. Furthermore, if communication with the client PCs 112 and 122, which are the communication partners, fails during scan image data transmission processing or print processing, the network diagnostic unit 306 can perform a diagnosis to identify the cause of the failure. The diagnosis performed by the network diagnosis unit 306 to identify the cause of the failure includes, for example, checking communication with the client PCs 112 and 122 and performing test communications.

[0030] The communication control unit 307 controls network communications to send scanned image data to the client PCs 112 and 122 in response to a transmission instruction from the scanner control unit 303. In a configuration in which wired LAN devices 209 and 210 are present as in this embodiment, the MFP 100 holds two types of MAC addresses and IP addresses in a multi-homed network environment, and can communicate with each of the LANs 110 and 120. In a multi-homed network environment, the communication control unit 307 can identify a communication partner terminal and establish a network connection.

[0031] <Explanation of the Job History screen> 4 shows an example of a print job list displayed on the operation unit I / F 205 of the MFP 100. A print job list 400 displays history information of print jobs managed by the job log management unit 305 in the storage 204.

[0032] When MFP 100 accepts a print job, print control unit 304 sends a recording request to job log management unit 305 to record print job information associated with the print job and the execution result (success / failure) of the print job as job history information. Upon receiving the recording request, job log management unit 305 records, retains, and manages the information included in the recording request as job history information in storage 204. Furthermore, if a diagnostic process (described later) has been completed for each print job, job log management unit 305 also records, retains, and manages the diagnostic results as job history information in storage 204. The job history information recorded, retained, and managed by job log management unit 305 in this way is displayed on operation unit I / F 205 as print job list 400.

[0033] Print job list 400 indicates a date and time 401, a department ID 402, a user name 403, a job name 404, a line 405, and a result 406 for a print job sent to MFP 100. Date and time 401 indicates the date and time when the print job was executed or the date and time when the connection request was accepted, and department ID 402 indicates the ID of the department to which the user who sent the print job belongs. User name 403 indicates the user name of the user who sent the print job, and job name 404 indicates the job name of the sent print job. Line 405 indicates the communication line used to receive the print job when MFP 100 has multiple communication lines, LAN 110 and LAN 120, as in this embodiment, and result 406 indicates the execution result (success / failure) of the print job.

[0034] When one job history is selected in the print job list 400, it is highlighted as in job history 407, and it becomes possible to press a diagnosis result button 408. When the diagnosis result button 408 is pressed, if there is a diagnosis result for the selected job history, the job log management unit 305 displays the diagnosis result on the operation unit I / F 205. The diagnosis execution button 409 can be pressed regardless of whether one job history is selected, and when the diagnosis execution button 409 is pressed, the network diagnosis unit 307 starts a network diagnosis for job histories that have not yet been diagnosed.

[0035] The job history 410 is the job history of a print job that has not yet been executed, and values ​​of some job history items, such as the department ID 402, user name 403, and job name 404, are unknown or incomplete. Conventionally, the job history of a job that has not yet been executed, such as the job history 410, has not been recorded. However, in this embodiment, the job history of such a job is also recorded, retained, and managed by the job log management unit 305. However, the job history 410 is limited in the items and information that can be displayed for the job history 407 of an executed job, etc. The job history 410 cannot display information included in the job, such as the department ID 402, user name 403, and job name 404. Therefore, the job history 410 displays information about the terminal that sent the connection request (the host name and IP address of the client PC) and the communication protocol specified in the connection request as the user name 403 and job name 404. Although an alternative display is shown here as an example, it is also possible to display the user name and terminal information, the job name and communication protocol separately in advance, and display the unknown and available parts for each item.

[0036] In this manner, in this embodiment, since the job history can be recorded even for print jobs for which pre-job processing has failed, it is possible to diagnose more print jobs than in the past.

[0037] 5(a) shows an example of a diagnostic result 500 executed by the network diagnostic unit 307 and displayed on the operation unit I / F 205 of the MFP 100. The diagnostic result 500 is displayed, for example, by selecting the job history 407 in the print job list 400 shown in FIG. 4 and pressing the diagnostic result display button 408.

[0038] The failure cause explanation message 501 is a message that explains the cause of the failure in the job execution, and the solution explanation message 502 is a message that explains how to deal with the cause of the failure displayed in the failure cause explanation message 501. In addition, if a user manual that describes how to deal with the cause of the failure is available on the Web, the two-dimensional code 503 is a two-dimensional code that encodes the URL of the Web page where the user manual is posted.

[0039] When the detailed diagnosis button 504 is pressed, the network diagnosis unit 306 performs a more detailed diagnosis at that time. For example, the network diagnosis unit 306 diagnoses various settings required for communication between the MFP 100 and the client PC that sent the print job, the communication status, etc. When the back button 505 is pressed, the display returns to the print job list 400.

[0040] 5(b) shows an example of the diagnostic result 506 executed by the network diagnostic unit 307 and displayed on the operation unit I / F 205 of the MFP 100. The diagnostic result 506 is displayed, for example, when the job history 410 is selected in the print job list 400 shown in FIG. 4 and the diagnostic result display button 408 is pressed.

[0041] The failure cause explanation message 507 is a message that explains the reason for the failure to connect to the client PC that attempted to send the print job. The solution explanation message 508 is a message that explains how to deal with the failure cause displayed in the failure cause explanation message 507. However, because the job history 410 contains less information than the job history 407, it may not be possible to narrow down the cause of failure or the solution to one, and in such cases, multiple candidates for the cause of failure or the solution may be displayed.

[0042] In this manner, in this embodiment, the job history 410, which is not recorded in the conventional job history information, is also recorded, and the diagnosis result 507, which has not been available until now, can be displayed.

[0043] <About preprocessing for receiving print jobs> 6 shows a sequence diagram of the process up to when the MFP 100 receives a print job from a client PC that makes a print request via a network. A case will be described with reference to FIG. 6 where processing related to a print job fails before the MFP 100 executes the print job. The communication control unit 307, which controls communication between the MFP 100 and external devices such as the client PCs 112 and 122, can be broadly divided into a TCP / IP unit 601 and a print communication unit 602.

[0044] The TCP / IP unit 601 functions as a TCP / IP protocol stack, assigning an individual communication port for each communication protocol supported by the MFP 100 and waiting for a connection request from the client PCs 112, 122, etc. Generally, when handling a print job, a method called the 3-way handshake of TCP communication is used to establish a communication path with an external device, and a connection is made to the external device that is making the print request. If the communication path establishment process is successful, subsequent communication between the MFP 100 and the client PC is performed according to the communication protocol set in the established communication path. When the client PC requests a connection to a communication port, the TCP / IP unit 601 establishes a communication path and assigns a communication protocol corresponding to the communication port used at the time of connection.

[0045] The print communication unit 602 is a communication unit that operates according to a communication protocol (print processing communication protocol) that can be used for data communication related to print processing, and has a separate communication unit for each print processing communication protocol. Examples of print processing communication protocols that can be used include IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) and LPD (Line Printer Daemon). The print processing communication protocol that the print communication unit 602 uses for a communication unit that operates is determined by the print processing communication protocol specified by the client PC that requests printing.

[0046] A process 603 indicates a 3-way handshake of TCP communication performed between the client PC making the print request and the TCP / IP unit 601 to establish a communication path.

[0047] Process 604 shows a process related to a print job that is performed in the print communication unit 602 according to the print processing communication protocol after the communication path is established. In this example, user authentication process is shown as an example of a process that is performed according to the print processing communication protocol before the print job is executed. Processes other than user authentication process may be used as long as they are related to the print job and are used to receive the print job over the established communication path.

[0048] Process 605 indicates a process for receiving a print job from a client PC after the process 604, which is a preparatory step for executing the print job, is completed.

[0049] These processes 603 to 605 are processes that must be performed to send a print job from a client PC to MFP 100, and are part of the processes related to the print job. However, at each stage of processes 603 to 605, information that should be recorded as a job history is insufficient, as described below. For example, at the stage of process 603, not only has the MFP 100 not yet received the print job, but the user name of the client PC that sent the print job is also unknown. At this stage, the MFP 100 can only detect information such as the connection date and time, the IP address of the client PC, the communication line used at the time of connection, and the print processing communication protocol, and some of the information that should be recorded as a job history is unknown. At the stage of process 604, in addition to the information obtained in process 603, the user name is obtained from the result of user authentication, but the print job itself still does not exist in MFP 100, so some of the information that should be recorded as a job history, such as the job name, is unknown.

[0050] In this embodiment, based on the information obtained at each stage of processes 603 to 605, it is determined that these processes are related to a print job, and these processes are recorded as a job history like the job history 410 shown in Fig. 4. At this time, the communication control unit 307 notifies the job log management unit 305 of information such as the connection date and time, IP address, communication line, print processing communication protocol, and user name detected for processes 603 to 605. By recording job history information as shown in Figs. 7 and 8 (to be described later), even stages prior to job execution can be recorded as a job history like the job history 410, which can provide more opportunities to review the print processing environment, including the client PC.

[0051] Thereafter, when the job history 410 is selected and the diagnostic result display button 408 is pressed, the network diagnostic unit 306 acquires and analyzes the various information notified to the job log management unit 305 by the communication control unit 307, thereby identifying the cause of the failure and potential solutions. As a result, in this embodiment, it is possible for the MFP 100 to display the diagnostic result 506 shown in FIG. 5(b) even if it is unable to attempt to execute the print job.

[0052] <Regarding the recording of job history information> 7 shows a flowchart for explaining the recording process of job history information in this embodiment. The print control unit 304 also detects processes related to print jobs that have not yet been attempted to be executed and records them in the job history.

[0053] FIG. 7A shows the print control unit 304, job log management unit 305, network diagnostic unit 306, and communication control unit 307.

[0054] In step S701, the network diagnostic unit 306 instructs the communication control unit 307 to monitor and acquire network packets. This instruction is issued when the MFP 100 is powered on and network communication becomes possible, or when a specific operational instruction is issued to the MFP 100. An example of the specific operational instruction is an operational instruction to change the various print processing communication protocols operated by the communication control unit 307 from disabled to enabled. In response to this operational instruction, the communication control unit 307 begins acquiring network packets from at least the communication ports for each of the various print processing communication protocols that are awaiting connection as the print communication unit 602. The network packets monitored and acquired by the communication control unit 307 include at least the IP address of the terminal requesting the connection and a TCP packet portion required for establishing a communication path. This network packet monitoring and acquisition continues until the MFP 100 is powered off.

[0055] In step S702, when the print control unit 304 confirms receipt of print job data in the network packet acquired by the communication control unit 307, it analyzes the print job and causes the printer 103 to print via the printer I / F 207.

[0056] In step S703, upon completion of the print process, the print control unit 304 transmits a request to record job history information for the executed print job, such as the job history 407, and causes the job log management unit 305 to record the job history information. The job log management unit 305 stores the various pieces of information described in the job history 407 in the storage 204 as a job history and manages it.

[0057] In S704, regardless of whether the print processing result is a success or failure, the print control unit 304 requests the job log management unit 305 to record job history information upon completion of the print processing, and also requests the communication control unit 307 to store network packets. The communication control unit 307 receives the print completion response and stores the network packets from the start of network packet acquisition to the end of print processing in the storage 204. Note that the communication control unit 307 continues acquiring network packets even while storing network packets. Therefore, when the communication control unit 307 confirms receipt of the next print job in S702, it stores the network packets from the end of print processing of the previous print job to the end of print processing of the next print job in the storage 204.

[0058] In S705, the communication control unit 307 determines whether or not to cause the network diagnostic unit 306 to start diagnostic processing on the stored network packets. The criteria for starting the diagnostic processing may be, for example, each time storage of the network packets in S704 is completed, or each time the number of stored network packets reaches a predetermined amount.

[0059] In step S706, the network diagnostic unit 306 diagnoses whether there are network packets related to the print job that are not recorded in the job history information and whether the job history information needs to be updated. Details of the diagnostic process will be described with reference to FIG. 7B.

[0060] FIG. 7B shows a flowchart for explaining the diagnostic processing of the network diagnostic unit 306 upon receiving a diagnostic start instruction.

[0061] In step S711, the network diagnostic unit 306 reads and begins analyzing the network packets stored in the storage 204. This analysis process includes detecting the time period during which the stored network packets are received and the time period during which connection requests to communication ports associated with all print processing communication protocols that the print control unit 304 is waiting for are received.

[0062] In step S712, the network diagnostic unit 306 requests the job log management unit 305 to acquire the job history of print jobs that were executed during the same time period as the time period during which the network packet was received, stored in the storage 204. The job history of print jobs that were executed during the same time period as the time period during which the network packet was received refers to the job history of print jobs that were executed within a predetermined time period from the time the network packet was received. The job log management unit 305 provides the job history information for the requested time period to the network diagnostic unit 306.

[0063] In S713, the network diagnostic unit 306 determines whether there are any network packets related to a connection request that does not correspond to the acquired job history, based on the job history and the analysis results of the network packets acquired in S712. A connection request that does not correspond to the acquired job history is, for example, a connection request that was received at a time that is more than a predetermined time before the execution time of the print job or at a time after the execution time of the print job. A connection request that was received less than a predetermined time before the execution time of the print job but whose sender or print processing communication protocol used at the time of reception is different from that of the print job is also a connection request that does not correspond to the acquired job history. If there are any network packets related to a connection request that does not correspond to the acquired job history, the process proceeds to S714. If there are no network packets related to a connection request that does not correspond to the acquired job history, the diagnostic process ends.

[0064] In S714, the network diagnostic unit 306 requests the job log management unit 305 to record, as a job history, information about connection requests that do not correspond to the job history acquired in S712. At this time, the network diagnostic unit 306 detects, from the network packets, information generated in processing related to the print job, such as that shown in the job history 410, and requests that the detected information be recorded in the job history. In response to this request, the job log management unit 305 stores and manages various pieces of information in the storage 204 as a job history.

[0065] By comparing the network packets with the job history information in this manner, for example, if the establishment of a communication path fails in process 603, the print control unit 304 can record the job history of the print job based on the processing prior to the execution of the print job.

[0066] In this embodiment, acquisition of network packets starts in S701 when the MFP 100 is powered on and continues until the MFP 100 is powered off, but acquisition of network packets may be stopped by an instruction from the operation unit 102. In addition, for the storage area of ​​network packets, a mechanism such as a ring buffer may be incorporated so that when a certain storage size is reached, old stored data is overwritten to prevent overflow of the storage area.

[0067] <Second embodiment> This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the timing at which network packet acquisition begins and the number of communication ports that monitor and acquire network packets. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of network packets that are monitored and acquired. Figure 8 shows a flowchart explaining the recording process of job history information in this embodiment. Note that a description of steps that have the same processing content as Figure 7 will be omitted.

[0068] In step S801, the communication control unit 307 waits for a connection request from a client PC on the network that makes a print request to a predetermined communication port that complies with a specific print processing communication protocol, while no connection request is received.

[0069] In step S802, the communication control unit 307 starts acquiring network packets when a connection request is received from a client PC for a predetermined communication port that conforms to a specific print processing communication protocol. Here, the communication control unit 307 starts acquiring packets so that the network packets acquired include at least a start packet of the print processing communication protocol on the predetermined communication port to which the print request is being made.

[0070] In S803, the communication control unit 307 stops the network packet acquisition and monitoring started in S802. In the first embodiment, network packets are constantly acquired and monitored, whereas in this embodiment, network packets are acquired and monitored only while a connection for a print request is being made. Therefore, in this embodiment, regardless of whether the print job was successfully executed, it is not a problem to stop the network packet acquisition and monitoring when the print job execution ends. In this embodiment, S803 is configured to be executed after S706, but S803 may also be executed before S705 or S706.

[0071] As a result, similar to the first embodiment, if the user authentication process 604 is interrupted, for example, the information obtained up until the interruption of the user authentication process 604 can be recorded as a job history, even if the print control unit 304 does not execute a print job to start the print process. In this case, since the network diagnostic unit 306 has performed the user authentication process, there is a possibility that the user name that made the print request has been detected. If the network diagnostic unit 306 has acquired the user name in the user authentication process, it requests the job log management unit 305 to update the IP address recorded in the user name 403 in the corresponding job history 410 with the acquired user name.

[0072] This updating of job history information is performed not only when the user authentication process 604 fails, but also when any of the processes performed from the connection process 603 to immediately before the completion of the print job reception process 605 fails. For example, even when the print control unit 304 is unable to execute the subsequent print job due to a lack of print paper in the MFP 100 or a paper jam, the job history can be recorded in a similar manner.

[0073] The differences between this embodiment and the first embodiment are that the communication ports that monitor and acquire network packets are limited to specific communication ports, the timing for starting network packet acquisition is different, and the size of the acquired packets. In the first embodiment, the MFP 100 cannot determine in advance which print processing communication protocol the client PC that issues the print request will use to make the connection request. Therefore, the communication control unit 307 must constantly acquire and monitor network packets from all communication ports that are waiting as print processing communication protocols. As a result, while the first embodiment can acquire network packets from the start of a connection request, the amount of network packets that must be monitored is constantly large.

[0074] In contrast, in this embodiment, the communication control unit 307 accepts a connection request for a specific communication port among communication ports that comply with the print processing communication protocol, and acquires only network packets from that specific communication port. Furthermore, in this embodiment, network packets are acquired only from communication ports that comply with the print processing communication protocol for which a connection request has actually been made. Therefore, in this embodiment, the amount of network packets to be monitored can be reduced.

[0075] <Third embodiment> The first and second embodiments are configured to receive a print job from a client PC 112 or 122 on the network. However, there are also cases where MFP 100 receives a notification that a print job to be processed exists on a server on the network, and MFP 100 issues a connection request to that server to obtain the print job.

[0076] 1, when client PC 112 functions as a print server that holds print jobs, communication may be performed between client PC 112 and MFP 100 to share the existence of print jobs to be processed. This communication may be communication in which MFP 100 periodically inquires of client PC 112 about the existence of print jobs, or communication in which client PC 112 notifies MFP 100 of the existence of print jobs to be processed.

[0077] 9 shows a flowchart for explaining the recording process of job history information according to the third embodiment. As described above, it is assumed here that communication for sharing the existence of a print job is being performed between MFP 100 and client PC 112 functioning as a print server.

[0078] In S901, the communications control unit 307 waits for a storage notification from the client PC 112 indicating that a print job is stored, and proceeds to S902 when it is confirmed that a print job to be processed is stored in the client PC 112. As described above, instead of waiting for a notification from the client PC 112, the communications control unit 307 may periodically inquire of the client PC 112 as to whether or not a print job is stored.

[0079] In S902, the communication control unit 307 acquires the print job and various attribute information such as paper size and paper type required to execute the print job. Note that in this embodiment, communication regarding whether or not the print job is stored must be performed between the MFP 100 and the client PC 112, but the storage destination of the print job, i.e., the storage destination of the main data of the print job, does not have to be within the client PC 112. If the storage destination of the print job is not within the client PC 112, link information of the storage destination of the print job (URL information of the download destination, etc.) can be shared in the communication in S901.

[0080] In S903, the communication control unit 307 determines whether or not the acquisition of the print job was successful. If the acquisition of the print job was successful, the process proceeds to S904, and if the acquisition of the print job was unsuccessful, the process proceeds to S905.

[0081] In S904, the print control unit 304 executes the acquired print job and starts various print processes, including print job analysis and image processing. If acquisition of the print job fails, the print control unit 304 cannot execute the print job and start the print process. This failure to acquire the print job can occur, for example, when communication is interrupted while the communication control unit 307 is acquiring a job from the client PC 112, or when the print job is deleted (job canceled) in the client PC 112.

[0082] In S905, the print control unit 304 or the communication control unit 307 requests the job log management unit 305 to record job history information. In S905, the request to record job history information is made regardless of whether the print job was successfully acquired, but if S904 is performed, the print control unit 304 requests to record job history information, and if S904 cannot be performed, the communication control unit 307 requests to record job history information. If S904 is not performed, the print control unit 304 cannot analyze the print job and some of the information to be recorded as job history, such as the user name, cannot be acquired. In such a case, the communication control unit 307 requests to record the URL information of the storage destination of the print job instead of the user name in the user name 403 field of the job history.

[0083] In this embodiment, since the existence of print jobs is shared between MFP 100 and client PC 112, which is the print server, the job history of print jobs that have not yet been attempted can be recorded without monitoring network packets.

[0084] As a result, in the present disclosure, it is possible to record job history information even if the print control unit 304 has not executed a print job and started the print process, and by using this job history information, it is possible to diagnose a larger number of print jobs.

[0085] (Other Examples) The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and having one or more processors in the computer of the system or device read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

[0086] The present disclosure includes the following configurations and methods. [Configuration 1] A printing device that performs printing processing according to a print job, a communication means for receiving the print job from an external device; a management unit for managing, as history information, job histories relating to the executed print jobs among the received print jobs; a display control means for displaying the history information on a display device; Equipped with when the management unit detects information indicating the existence of a print job that has not yet been executed, it adds a job history relating to the print job that has not yet been executed to the history information. A printing device characterized by: [Configuration 2] the communication means receives the print job via a communication path established based on a connection request from the external device; the management unit detects, from among the connection requests, information relating to the connection requests that is not related to the job history included in the history information, as information indicating the existence of the unexecuted print job; 2. The printing device according to configuration 1. [Configuration 3] the management means stores the network packets received by the communication means in a storage means, and identifies the connection request that is not related to the job history included in the history information based on the stored network packets and the history information. 3. The printing device according to configuration 2. [Configuration 4] the management means stores the network packet in the storage means when the printing device is powered on, when a communication protocol capable of receiving the print job is set, or when the connection request is received. 4. The printing device according to configuration 3. [Configuration 5] the communication means receives the print job via a communication port that operates in accordance with a communication protocol that can be used for data communication related to the printing process; 5. The printing device according to any one of configurations 2 to 4. [Configuration 6] the network packets stored in the recording means are network packets received via the communication port; 6. The printing device according to configuration 5. [Configuration 7] the management unit determines that the connection request received at a time that is a predetermined time or more before or after the execution time of the print job corresponding to the job history included in the history information is a connection request that is not related to the job history included in the history information. 7. The printing device according to any one of configurations 2 to 6. [Configuration 8] the management means classifies, among the connection requests received less than a predetermined time before the execution time of the print job corresponding to the job history included in the history information, the connection requests whose sender or communication protocol used at the time of reception is different from that of the print job as connection requests unrelated to the job history included in the history information; 7. The printing device according to any one of configurations 2 to 6. [Configuration 9] the management unit adds information obtained in a process executed in relation to the print job to be executed, to the job history of the print job to be executed. 9. The printing device according to any one of configurations 2 to 8. [Configuration 10] the process executed in relation to the print job not yet executed includes a process of establishing a communication path based on the connection request; 10. The printing device according to configuration 9. [Configuration 11] The process performed in relation to the print job before execution includes a user authentication process. 11. The printing device according to configuration 10. [Configuration 12] the connection request includes at least one of a host name and an IP address of the external device; 12. The printing device according to any one of configurations 2 to 11. [Configuration 13] the information indicating the existence of the unexecuted print job is information indicating that the print job obtained from the print server is stored in the print server or the external device; 2. The printing device according to configuration 1. [Configuration 14] A method for controlling a printing device that performs printing processing according to a print job, comprising: receiving the print job from an external device; managing, as history information, job histories relating to the executed print jobs among the received print jobs; displaying the history information on a display device; and and when detecting information indicating the presence of a print job that has not yet been executed, the managing step adds a job history relating to the print job that has not yet been executed to the history information. A control method comprising: [Configuration 15] 15. A program for causing a computer to execute the control method according to claim 14.

Claims

1. A printing device that performs printing processing according to a print job, a communication means for receiving the print job from an external device; a management unit for managing, as history information, job histories relating to the executed print jobs among the received print jobs; a display control means for displaying the history information on a display device; Equipped with When the management unit detects information indicating the existence of a print job that has not yet been executed, the management unit adds a job history relating to the print job that has not yet been executed to the history information. A printing device characterized by:

2. the communication means receives the print job via a communication path established based on a connection request from the external device; the management unit detects, from among the connection requests, information relating to the connection requests that is not related to the job history included in the history information, as information indicating the existence of the unexecuted print job; 2. The printing device according to claim 1.

3. the management means stores the network packets received by the communication means in a storage means, and identifies the connection request that is not related to the job history included in the history information based on the stored network packets and the history information.

3. The printing device according to claim 2.

4. the management means stores the network packet in the storage means when the printing device is powered on, when a communication protocol capable of receiving the print job is set, or when the connection request is received.

4. The printing device according to claim 3.

5. the communication means receives the print job via a communication port that operates in accordance with a communication protocol that can be used for data communication related to the printing process; 3. The printing device according to claim 2.

6. the network packets stored in the recording means are network packets received via the communication port; 6. The printing device according to claim 5.

7. the management unit determines that the connection request received at a time that is a predetermined time or more before or after the execution time of the print job corresponding to the job history included in the history information is a connection request that is not related to the job history included in the history information.

3. The printing device according to claim 2.

8. the management unit classifies, among the connection requests received less than a predetermined time before the execution time of the print job corresponding to the job history included in the history information, the connection requests whose sender or communication protocol used at the time of reception is different from that of the print job as connection requests unrelated to the job history included in the history information.

3. The printing device according to claim 2.

9. the management unit adds information obtained in a process executed in relation to the print job to be executed, to the job history of the print job to be executed.

3. The printing device according to claim 2.

10. the process executed in relation to the print job not yet executed includes a process of establishing a communication path based on the connection request; 10. The printing device according to claim 9.

11. The process performed in relation to the print job before execution includes a user authentication process.

11. The printing device according to claim 10.

12. the connection request includes at least one of a host name and an IP address of the external device; 3. The printing device according to claim 2.

13. the information indicating the existence of the unexecuted print job is information indicating that the print job obtained from the print server is stored in the print server or the external device; 2. The printing device according to claim 1.

14. A method for controlling a printing device that performs printing processing according to a print job, comprising: receiving the print job from an external device; managing, as history information, job histories relating to the executed print jobs among the received print jobs; displaying the history information on a display device; and and when detecting information indicating the presence of a print job that has not yet been executed, the managing step adds a job history relating to the print job that has not yet been executed to the history information. A control method comprising:

15. A program for causing a computer to execute the control method according to claim 14.

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