Delivery information providing server and information delivery printing system

Abstract

To perform totalization with quick responsiveness equivalent to Web display even when printing an advertisement based on bidding.SOLUTION: An advertisement providing server 100 includes a control unit 110, receives an advertisement image managed by an advertisement management server 500, and distributes the advertisement image to a printer 200, wherein the control unit 110 transmits a bid request of the advertisement image to the advertisement management server 500 in a S5. A successful bid advertisement image is determined in S5 among advertisement images received from the advertisement management server 500 in response to a bid request transmitted in S8, the advertisement image determined in S8 is acquired in S20, a distribution image for printing based on the advertisement image acquired in S20 is distributed to the printer 200 in S30, and after the advertisement image is acquired in S20 and before the distribution image for printing is distributed in S30, a charge notification for charging a reward corresponding to the distribution of the distribution image for printing is transmitted to the advertisement management server 500 in S140.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a distribution information providing server and an information distribution printing system that distributes distribution information to a destination printing device and prints the information. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, as described in Patent Document 1, for example, a technique is known in which bids are solicited for advertisements to be attached to images of printed matter printed by a printing device, a target advertisement is determined based on the bidding results from multiple advertisers, and a charge is made corresponding to the bid amount for that advertisement. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-140250 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the technology disclosed in the above cited document 1, for example, depending on the circumstances, it may take a long time from the time of bidding until the successful advertisement is actually printed by the printing device. In this case, if the billing is performed when printing is completed, the advertiser of the advertisement cannot quickly count the completion of advertisement distribution and advertising costs, etc., which results in a problem of inferior responsiveness and usability compared to web advertisements, which can be counted in real time when display is completed.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a distribution information providing server and an information distribution printing system that can perform tallying with the same responsiveness as web display even when printing advertisements based on bids. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a distribution information providing server that includes a control unit and receives distribution information managed by a distribution information management server and distributes it to a printing device, wherein the control unit is configured to execute a request sending process that sends a bid request for distribution information to the distribution information management server, an information determination process that determines specific distribution information that will be a successful bid from the distribution information received from the distribution information management server in response to the bid request sent in the request sending process, a specific distribution information acquisition process that acquires the specific distribution information determined in the information determination process, a distribution process that distributes printable distribution information based on the specific distribution information acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process to the printing device, and a claim notice sending process that, after acquiring the specific distribution information in the specific distribution information acquisition process and before distributing the printable distribution information in the distribution process, sends a claim notice to the distribution information management server to claim a remuneration corresponding to the distribution of the printable distribution information.

[0007] In the present invention, bidding is held for distribution information to a printing device, and distribution and printing are performed to the printing device according to the bidding results. A request transmission process executed by a control unit issues a bid request to a distribution information management server, an information determination process determines specific distribution information that will be the successful bid from the distribution information received from the distribution information management server, the determined specific distribution information is acquired in a specific distribution information acquisition process, and distribution information for printing based on the acquired specific distribution information is distributed to the printing device in the distribution process. In the present invention, the control unit performs a billing notice sending process during the above flow, before the printing device actually prints the distribution information for printing. That is, after acquiring the specific distribution information in the specific distribution information acquisition process and before distributing the distribution information for printing in the distribution process, the control unit sends a billing notice to the distribution information management server to request a fee for the distribution. According to the present invention, a bill for payment arrives before the actual completion of printing, so the advertiser can regard the state as equivalent to the completion of printing at that point, and can quickly tally up the completion of advertisement distribution, advertising costs, etc., thereby improving convenience. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, even when a bid-based advertisement is printed, it is possible to perform tabulation with the same responsiveness as when it is displayed on the web. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of an information distribution and printing system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 10 is a sequence flow illustrating an example of a flow of a process executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer. [Figure 3] 10 is a sequence flow illustrating an example of a flow of a process executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed on a display unit of a printer that has entered a blocked state. [Figure 5] 10 is a sequence flow illustrating an example of a flow of a process executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer in a modified example in which blocking is performed after a billing notice is transmitted. [Figure 6] 10 is a sequence flow illustrating an example of a flow of a process executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer in a modified example in which a bid request is blocked when it is transmitted. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to an information distribution and printing system that distributes advertising information from a server to a printer and prints it.

[0011] <Overall configuration of information distribution printing system> FIG. 1 shows an example of the overall configuration of an information distribution printing system 1 according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the information distribution printing system 1 includes an advertisement provision server (SSP: Supply Side Platform) 100, a printer 200, a terminal device 300, a user management server (DMP: Data Management Platform) 400, and an advertisement management server (DSP: Demand Side Platform) 500. The servers 100, 400, and 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300 each include a communication unit and can communicate with each other via a network NT. The network NT includes at least one of the Internet, a local area network (LAN), and a wide area network (WAN). The communication unit may include multiple types of communication circuits for connecting to the network NT. In this case, devices connected to the network NT may communicate with multiple other devices using different communication circuits. In this embodiment, the multiple types of communication circuits are collectively referred to as a communication unit.

[0012] <Terminal Device> The terminal device 300 is, for example, a mobile terminal such as a smartphone owned by a user, and in this example, is connected to the network NT via wireless communication. The terminal device 300 may be any appropriate terminal other than the printer 200, such as a tablet PC, notebook PC, or desktop PC, in addition to a smartphone. Alternatively, the terminal device 300 may be a portable or stationary terminal provided in karaoke booths, various stores, and the like for song selection, menu selection, product browsing, and the like. The terminal device 300 includes a display unit, a control unit, an operation unit, a memory unit, a communication unit, and the like (not shown). Various programs are stored in the memory unit. The control unit executes the various programs stored in the memory unit. The various programs include programs that execute the processes shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 2 and 3 (described below). The user can input various instructions to the terminal device 300 by operating the operation unit.

[0013] <User management server> The user management server 400 manages information about users via the terminal device 300. The user management server 400 includes a control unit, a storage unit, a communication unit, and the like, all of which are not shown.

[0014] <Advertisement server> The advertisement providing server 100 is a server installed and managed by, for example, the manufacturer of the printer 200. The advertisement providing server 100 receives an advertisement image from the advertisement management server 500 at a predetermined timing. The advertisement providing server 100 delivers the acquired advertisement image to the printer 200 and causes it to be printed. The advertisement providing server 100 is an example of a distribution information providing server, and the advertisement image is an example of distribution information.

[0015] In detail, the advertisement providing server 100 has a control unit 110, a storage unit 115, a communication unit 140, etc. The control unit 110, the storage unit 115, the communication unit 140, etc. are connected via a bus 105 so as to be able to transmit and receive information. The storage unit 115 is composed of, for example, a RAM, a ROM, an EEPROM, an HDD, etc. The storage unit 115 stores various programs 120 and various data 130. The various programs 120 include an information distribution program that executes the control details of the advertisement providing server 100 shown in the flows of FIGS. 2 and 3 described below, and the various data 130 includes the printer ID of the printer 200, a user ID, an advertisement image, etc.

[0016] The control unit 110 is a device that performs data processing, and is, for example, a processor such as a CPU. The control unit 110 executes various programs stored in the storage unit 115. The control unit 110 performs various processes, including data communication with the printer 200, terminal device 300, user management server 400, and advertisement management server 500, which are connected to the network NT. The communication unit 140 includes hardware such as a NIC (Network Interface Card) for connecting to Ethernet, is connected to the network NT, and communicates with the printer 200, terminal device 300, user management server 400, and advertisement management server 500.

[0017] <Advertising management server> The advertisement management server 500 transmits an advertisement image to be printed by the printer 200 to the advertisement providing server 100. The advertisement management server 500 has a control unit, a storage unit, a communication unit, etc. (not shown). In this example, the communication unit receives a bid request from the advertisement providing server 100. Terminal devices or servers of multiple advertisers (not shown) are connected to the network NT. The control unit of the advertisement management server 500 holds an auction in response to the bid request for advertisement images submitted by these advertisers, and acquires suitable advertisement images through bids for the auction. When a successful bid that meets the specified conditions of the auction is made, the control unit of the advertisement management server 500 acquires the corresponding advertisement image from the terminal device, etc. of the advertiser who is the successful bidder. The acquired advertisement image is transmitted from the advertisement management server 500 to the advertisement providing server 100 via the communication unit, and then transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100 to the printer 200 for printing. The advertisement providing server 100 may acquire the advertisement image from the advertisement management server 500, or the advertisement management server 500 may acquire the advertisement image from another external server and transmit it to the advertisement providing server 100. The advertisement management server 500 is an example of a distribution information management server.

[0018] Each of the servers 100, 400, and 500 may be configured as a single "server," or may be configured as multiple servers. Alternatively, at least two of the functions of the servers 100, 400, and 500 may be provided in a single "server."

[0019] <Printer> The printer 200 is assigned the printer ID described above. The printer 200 includes a control unit 210, a memory unit 215, a display unit 240, an operation unit 250, a communication unit 260, and a printing unit 270. The control unit 210, the memory unit 215, the display unit 240, the operation unit 250, the communication unit 260, and the printing unit 270 are connected via a bus 205 so as to be able to send and receive information. The printer 200 is an example of a printing device.

[0020] The storage unit 215 is configured with, for example, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, HDD, etc. The storage unit 215 stores various programs 220 and various data 230. The various programs 220 include, for example, programs for executing the control of the printer 200 according to the flows shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 described below. The various data 230 include the aforementioned printer ID and advertising images received from the advertisement providing server 100, acquired from a terminal device of a successful bidder among the advertisers, and transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100. At least a portion of the various data may be stored in the storage unit 115 of the advertisement providing server 100. Alternatively, at least a portion of the original data may be stored in either the storage unit 215 of the printer 200 or the storage unit 115 of the advertisement providing server 100, and a copy of the original data may be stored in the other one of them.

[0021] The control unit 210 is a device that performs data processing, and is, for example, a processor such as a CPU. The control unit 210 executes various programs stored in the storage unit 215. In this example, the display unit 240 is a touch panel using a liquid crystal display, and the operation unit 250 is a touch sensor integrally provided on the front surface of the touch panel. That is, with various information displayed on the touch panel, the user can input various instructions, including print instructions, to the printer 200 by performing input operations using the keyboard, buttons, etc. displayed on the touch panel (see also FIG. 4 described below). The communication unit 260 is connected to the network NT and is capable of communicating with the advertisement providing server 100, the advertisement management server 500, the user management server 400, and the terminal device 300. The printing unit 270 includes a print engine, and forms and prints an image on the print paper by inkjet printing in this example while removing and transporting print paper from a paper tray using a transport mechanism (not shown). Note that a laser printing engine may also be used.

[0022] The cartridge holder 280 is configured to be able to house cartridges 285. The cartridges 285 are configured with cartridges of multiple ink colors, such as cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. The cartridge holder 280 is provided with an ink amount sensor (not shown) that can detect the remaining amount or consumed amount of each of the cartridges of the multiple ink colors using a known method.

[0023] The printing unit 270 performs printing processing while consuming ink from the cartridge 285. The reader / writer 290 is provided in the cartridge holder 280. The reader / writer 290 reads and writes cartridge information from an IC chip provided in the cartridge 285 housed in the cartridge holder 280. For example, the reader / writer 290 detects the type of cartridge 285 housed in the cartridge holder 280 by reading the cartridge information from the IC chip. Note that the amount of ink used or remaining in the cartridge 285 may be detected by the above reading by the reader / writer 290.

[0024] <Features of the embodiment> As described above, in this embodiment, an auction is held for an advertisement, and bids are solicited. If a successful bid is received from an advertiser who meets certain conditions, the winning advertisement image is delivered to the printer 200 and the advertisement is printed. In this case, depending on the circumstances, it may take a long time for the successful advertisement to be printed by the printer 200 after the bid is placed. In this case, if charges are made upon completion of printing, the advertiser cannot quickly count the completion of advertisement delivery and advertising costs. This results in a problem of poor responsiveness and usability compared to web advertising, which can be counted in real time upon completion of display. A feature of this embodiment is that, even when printing an advertisement based on a bid, counting can be performed with the same responsiveness as when displaying it on the web, thereby improving convenience. The details of this process are described below with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIGS. 2 and 3 are sequence flows illustrating control executed by the advertisement providing server 100, the advertisement management server 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300 in cooperation with each other.

[0025] 2, first, in S5, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a bid request including a minimum bid price to the advertisement management server 500. The minimum bid price is, for example, uniquely determined in advance when soliciting bids for an advertisement image, and is stored in the storage unit 115. In S5, the minimum bid price is determined based on the contents stored in the storage unit 115, and a bid request including the minimum bid price is transmitted to the advertisement management server 500. The process executed in S5 is an example of a request transmission process, and the control unit 110 that executes S5 is an example of a request transmission unit.

[0026] In response to the transmitted bid request, the advertisement management server 500 conducts an auction for suitable advertisements and solicits bids. At this time, the bid request requests advertisement images that satisfy predetermined conditions, including a bid price equal to or higher than the minimum bid price.

[0027] In S7, the bidding results of the auction held in response to the bidding request sent in S5 are received from the advertising management server 500. If there is a bid that meets the predetermined conditions requested in the bidding request, the received content includes the advertising image from that bidder. If there is no bid that meets the predetermined conditions requested in the bidding request, the received content includes a message to that effect.

[0028] In S8, it is determined whether or not there is a bid that satisfies the winning conditions based on the content received in S7, and the bid that satisfies the winning conditions is determined as the advertisement that will be the successful bid. The winning conditions may be, for example, the highest bid price. Alternatively, the winning condition may be the satisfaction of a predetermined condition requested in the bid request. The determined advertisement is an example of specific distribution information, the process executed in S8 is an example of information determination process, and the control unit 110 that executes S8 is an example of an information determination unit.

[0029] In S10, a "hold notice" is sent to the advertisement management server 500 to notify the advertiser who submitted a bid that satisfies the bidding conditions, i.e., the successful bidder, that the bid content has been accepted and will be stored without being deleted. This hold notice is sent by the advertisement management server 500 to the terminal device or the like of the successful bidder. Note that if there are multiple bids that satisfy the bidding conditions, multiple hold notices may be sent.

[0030] In S15, a "notice of defeat" is sent to the advertisement management server 500 to inform the advertiser who submitted a bid that does not satisfy the conditions for successful bidding, i.e., the non-successful bidder, that the bid content will not be adopted because there is another successful bidder. This notice of defeat is sent by the advertisement management server 500 to the terminal device or the like of the non-successful bidder. Note that if there are multiple bids that do not satisfy the conditions for successful bidding, multiple notices of defeat may be sent.

[0031] In S17, an advertising image request is sent to the advertising management server 500, requesting an advertising image of the successful bidder to whom the suspension notice was sent in S10. If there are multiple successful bidders, multiple advertising images may be requested. In response to the advertising image request, in S20, the advertising management server 500 sends an advertising image of the successful bidder, which is received and acquired by the advertisement providing server 100. The acquired advertising image is stored, for example, in the memory unit 115. The process executed in S20 is an example of a specific distribution information acquisition process, and the control unit 110 that executes S20 is an example of a specific distribution information acquisition unit.

[0032] In S21, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits to the printer 200 a block instruction to prohibit printing of any image other than a print delivery image (see S30 described below) based on the advertisement image acquired in S20. That is, as another feature of the present embodiment, when a print delivery image is predicted to be delivered to the printer 200, printing of any image other than the print delivery image in the printer 200 is disabled, i.e., prohibited. In this example, the "case when a print delivery image is predicted to be delivered to the printer 200" is the case when an advertisement image is received and acquired from the advertisement management server 500 in S20. The block instruction is an example of an invalidation instruction, the process executed in S21 is an example of an invalidation instruction transmission process, and the control unit 110 that executes S21 is an example of an invalidation processing unit.

[0033] When the printer 200 receives the block instruction in S21, the printer 200 transitions to a blocked state in S22, where printing other than printing of the distribution image for printing is disabled, i.e., prohibited. Then, in S23, a message indicating that the printer has transitioned to the blocked state is displayed. Specifically, for example, in response to a display signal output from the control unit 210 of the printer 200, a block notification screen 240A as shown in Fig. 4 is displayed on the touch panel of the display unit 240. In this example, the screen 240A displays a message saying, "Preparing to print the advertisement. Please try again after the advertisement printing is complete." This notifies the user that the printer 200 has transitioned to a blocked state due to a block instruction from the advertisement providing server 100, and that, as a result, normal print execution instructions from the touch panel, i.e., print execution instructions other than for the delivery image to be printed, are not possible. In addition to invalidating printing based on touch panel operation, it is also possible to invalidate printing other than the delivery image for printing from other terminals, including terminal device 300, via network NT. As for the mode of the notification, the notification may be made without any particular user operation on printer 200 after the block instruction is issued as described above, or the notification may be made in response to some operation on printer 200. The control unit 210 of printer 200 that executes S23 is an example of a invalidation notification unit.

[0034] Thereafter, in S140, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a billing notice to the advertisement management server 500 to bill the successful bidder for the fee corresponding to the advertisement printing. In this manner, in this embodiment, the billing is performed after the successful bidder acquires the advertisement image in S20 described above and before transmitting the delivery image for printing in S30 described below. The process executed in S140 is an example of a billing notice transmission process, and the control unit 110 that executes S140 is an example of a billing notice unit.

[0035] In S145, the advertisement management server 500 receives the billing notice and transmits the billing notice to the terminal device or the like of the successful bidder.

[0036] Thereafter, in S24, the advertisement providing server 100 creates a delivery image for printing in which the information received in S20, including the advertisement image of the successful bidder, is arranged. Note that the delivery image for printing may be the advertisement image itself obtained through bidding, or may have appropriate information added to it. For example, this includes cases where multiple advertisements are distributed together on a single image for printing. Instead of the advertisement providing server 100 creating a delivery image for printing, the advertisement management server 500 may create the delivery image for printing, and the delivery image for printing may be acquired by the advertisement providing server 100. Also, instead of creating a delivery image for printing, print data for printing the delivery image for printing may be created in various page description languages. The process executed in S24 is an example of a delivery information for printing generation process.

[0037] In S25, the advertisement providing server 100 sets a deadline, which is one of the criteria for determining whether printing is successful or unsuccessful in the printer 200. In this embodiment, two types of deadlines are set: a first predetermined deadline and a second predetermined deadline within which printing of the advertisement must be completed. For example, in cases where the value of the advertisement will drop significantly if printing is not completed within a certain time frame, such as an advertisement for the sale of fresh food, the advertiser may have strict time requirements. In this embodiment, in S25, the first and second predetermined deadlines can be set as time limits for completing advertisement printing on the printer 200. The proper use of the first and second predetermined deadlines in processing will be described later. One example of setting the first predetermined deadline is, for example, setting it based on the remaining time, such as within 24 hours from the start of counting in S27 (described later), or setting it based on an end time, such as 10:00 AM. The first and second predetermined deadlines may be stored in the storage unit 115 in advance, or may be set in response to an instruction from the advertisement management server 500. Alternatively, they may be added to the advertisement image transmitted from the advertisement management server 500 in S20. The first and second predetermined deadlines may be the same date and time, or the second predetermined deadline may be later than the first predetermined deadline. In S25, both the first and second predetermined time limits may be set, or only one or two of them may be set.

[0038] In S27, the time count is started for the time limit set in S25.

[0039] In S30, a print instruction including the print delivery image created in S24 is delivered to the printer 200. Note that this print instruction may include a command to stop the print process in the printer 200 when a print cancel instruction is input in S97, S115, etc., described below, or when a printer error occurs in S75, described below. The process executed in S30 is an example of a delivery process.

[0040] In S35, the print instruction transmitted in S30 is received by the printer 200 and stored in the storage unit 215. Subsequently, the printing unit 270 starts printing the print delivery image included in the print instruction. Note that in S30, the advertisement providing server 100 may transmit the print delivery image to the printer 200 via another relay device. Alternatively, instead of transmitting the print delivery image to the printer 200, the advertisement providing server 100 may transmit a page description language for printing the print delivery image or a link destination of the delivery image to the printer 200. If a link destination of the print delivery image is transmitted, the printer 200 accesses the link destination, acquires the print delivery image, and executes printing using the printing unit 270.

[0041] After S35, in S40, the advertisement providing server 100 starts a standby process to wait for a print progress notification, which will be described later.

[0042] 3, in S45, the printer 200 determines whether printing of the delivery image for printing, including the advertisement image, started in S35 above, is complete. If printing is complete, a Yes determination is made and the process moves to S50, where the content of the print progress notification sent in S90, described below, is set to "printing successful." Thereafter, in S90, the print progress notification indicating "printing successful" is sent from the printer 200 and received by the advertisement providing server 100.

[0043] In the advertisement providing server 100, after the standby process is started in S40, the process proceeds to S95. In S95, it is determined whether the time elapsed since S27 reaches the first predetermined time limit set in S25 while the above-mentioned print progress notification is not received, resulting in a timeout. For example, if the first predetermined time limit arrives before the print progress notification transmitted in S90 is received because the printing is not yet complete, the determination in S95 is Yes, and a print cancellation instruction is transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100 in S97 and received by the printer 200. After S97, the process proceeds to S120, which will be described later. Furthermore, if the user performs a print cancel operation on the terminal device 300 before printing is completed as described above, a corresponding print cancel instruction is sent from the terminal device 300 in S65 and received by the printer 200.

[0044] When the printer 200 receives a print cancellation instruction in S97 or S65 as described above, a Yes judgment is made in S70 following S45, and processing proceeds to S80, which will be described later. In S80, to which processing proceeds after a Yes judgment is made in S70, the print delivery image received from the advertisement providing server 100 in S30 is deleted from the storage unit 215, and the print processing is stopped. Then, the content of the print progress notification is set to "print failed." Note that in this case, reason information is added to the print progress notification, such as the reason for the print failure, i.e., whether it was due to the first predetermined deadline or a cancellation process by the user, for example. If a print cancel instruction has not been received, S70 returns No, and processing proceeds to S75. In S75, it is determined whether a printer error has occurred. A printer error is a state in which some kind of malfunction has occurred that makes it difficult to start or continue printing, such as a paper jam, ink consumables running out, or the printer 200 being offline and not connected to the network NT. If no printer error has occurred, S75 returns No, processing returns to S45, and printing continues until S45 returns Yes when printing is completed.

[0045] If S75 is judged as Yes, the process proceeds to S85, where the content of the print progress notification is set to "printing incomplete." In this case, the print progress notification also includes information about the printer error that caused the print incomplete, such as whether the print paper is jammed.

[0046] Thereafter, in S90, a print progress notification indicating the progress of the process in the printer 200, such as "printing successful", "printing failed", or "printing incomplete", is sent from the printer 200 and received by the advertisement providing server 100.

[0047] On the other hand, in the advertisement providing server 100, if the first predetermined deadline has not arrived in S95 above, a No determination is made, and the process proceeds to S100. In S100, the print progress notification sent from the printer 200 in S90 described above is received, and it is determined whether the time elapsed since S27 at the time of reception has reached the second predetermined deadline set in S25, resulting in a timeout. If the second predetermined deadline has arrived, a Yes determination is made in S100, and the process proceeds to S120, which will be described later. If the second predetermined deadline has not arrived, a No determination is made in S100, and the process proceeds to S110.

[0048] In S110, it is determined whether the print progress notification received from the printer 200 in S90 above was a notification indicating "printing incomplete." If the print progress notification was a "printing successful" or "printing failed" notification, the determination is No, and processing proceeds to S117, which will be described later. If the print progress notification was a "printing incomplete" notification, the determination is Yes, and in S115 a print cancellation instruction is sent from the advertisement providing server 100 and received by the printer 200. After S115, processing proceeds to S120, which will be described later. If the printer 200 received a print cancellation instruction from the advertisement providing server 100 in S115, the delivery image for printing sent in S30 is deleted from the storage unit 215, and the print processing is canceled. Then, the processing of the flow in FIG. 3 in the printer 200 ends.

[0049] In S117, it is determined whether the print progress notification received from printer 200 in S90 above was a notification indicating "printing failure." If the print progress notification indicates "printing failure," S117 is determined as Yes, and the process proceeds to S120, which will be described later. If the print progress notification indicates "printing success," the process is determined as No, and the process proceeds to S150.

[0050] In S150, the advertisement providing server 100 associates the print delivery image sent to the printer 200 in S30 with the printer ID of the corresponding printer 200, the user ID of the corresponding user, current time information, and the bidding conditions when the advertising image included in the print delivery image was won, and stores the linked information in the memory unit 115 as a success history.

[0051] Thereafter, in S151, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits to the printer 200 an unblock instruction to instruct the printer 200 to release the blocked state based on the block instruction transmitted in S21, and the process ends. In this embodiment, after the transmission of the block instruction, the unblock instruction is transmitted when a predetermined condition is satisfied. In this example, the completion of printing of the successful bid advertisement image, specifically, the display of "printing successful," corresponds to an example of the predetermined condition being satisfied. Alternatively, the predetermined condition may be satisfied when an appropriate user operation is performed on the terminal device 300, or when a predetermined period of time has elapsed since S21. The unblock instruction is an example of an invalidation instruction, and the process executed in S151 is an example of an invalidation instruction transmission process.

[0052] When the unblock instruction of S151 is received, in printer 200, under the control of control unit 210, in S152, the blocked state from S22 is released, the above-mentioned print invalidation is released, and printing of images other than the delivery image for printing becomes possible. Then, in S153, the display on display unit 240 indicating the transition to the blocked state from S23 disappears. Then, the processing of the flow of FIG. 3 in printer 200 ends.

[0053] Meanwhile, in S120 following S97, S100, S115, and S117, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a successful bid cancellation notice to revoke the aforementioned successful bid determined in S8, and the notice is received by the advertisement management server 500. The advertisement management server 500 notifies the advertiser who is the successful bidder for the corresponding advertisement of the cancellation of the successful bid.

[0054] In S130, the advertisement providing server 100 stores the print delivery image for which the successful bid was canceled in S120 as a failure history in the memory unit 115, linking it to history information such as the successful bid conditions when the advertising image included in the print delivery image was successful, the aforementioned failure reason information, and the date and time of failure confirmation.

[0055] Thereafter, in S131, similar to S151 above, an unblock instruction is sent to instruct the release of the blocked state based on the block instruction sent in S21, and the process ends. This unblock instruction is also an example of an invalidation release instruction, and the process executed in S131 is also an example of an invalidation release instruction sending process.

[0056] When the printer 200 receives the unblock instruction of S131, the printer 200 unblocks the blocked state from S22 in S132 under the control of the control unit 210, the print invalidation is released, and printing of images other than the distribution image for printing becomes possible. Then, in S133, the display on the display unit 240 indicating the transition to the blocked state from S23 disappears. Then, the processing of the flow of FIG. 3 in the printer 200 ends.

[0057] <Effects of the embodiment> As described above, in this embodiment, bidding is held for advertisements to be delivered to the printer 200, and the advertisements are delivered to the printer 200 and printed according to the bidding results. In S5, executed by the control unit 110 of the advertisement providing server 100, a bidding request is made to the advertisement management server 500, and in S8, the successful advertisement is determined from the advertisement images received from the advertisement management server 500. In S20, executed by the control unit 110, the determined advertisement image is acquired, and in S30, a delivery image for printing based on the acquired advertisement image is delivered to the printer 200. In this embodiment, in the middle of the above flow, before the printer 200 actually prints the delivery image for printing, the control unit 110 transmits a billing notice in S140. That is, after acquiring the advertising image in S20 and before distributing the delivery image for printing in S30, the control unit 110 transmits a billing notice to the advertising management server 500 to request a fee corresponding to the distribution. According to this embodiment, the invoice for payment arrives before the actual printing is completed, so the advertiser can consider the printing to be equivalent to being completed at that point, and can quickly tally up the delivery and printing completion of the advertising image, advertising costs, etc., thereby improving convenience.

[0058] Furthermore, particularly in this embodiment, a delivery image for printing is generated in S24 based on the advertising image acquired in S20, and a billing notice is sent to the advertising management server 500 after S20 and before S24. By sending a billing notice to the advertising management server 500 after acquiring the advertising image in S20 and before generating the delivery image for printing, it is possible to reliably deliver a billing notice for remuneration to the advertiser before the actual completion of printing.

[0059] Furthermore, particularly in this embodiment, when a print delivery image is expected to be delivered to the printer 200, a block instruction is sent to the printer 200, disabling printing other than printing the print delivery image. According to this embodiment, the printer 200 is prohibited from printing other than the print delivery image, and the print delivery image is given top priority.

[0060] In particular, in this embodiment, when the successful bid advertisement image is acquired in S20, the user can be notified that the printer 200 is in a state in which printing other than the distribution image for printing is prohibited.

[0061] In particular, in this embodiment, after the block instruction is sent in S21, when a predetermined condition is satisfied, an unblock instruction is sent in S151 to unblock the printer 200 from the blocked state based on the block instruction. According to this embodiment, even if the printer 200 enters a blocked state in which printing other than distribution images for printing is prohibited based on a block instruction as described above, if a predetermined condition is subsequently met, the block is released and the printer can return to a normal state in which printing other than distribution images for printing is possible.

[0062] In particular, in this embodiment, the user can be notified by a display on the display unit 240 in S23 that the printing unit 270 is in a state where printing other than the distribution image for printing based on the advertising image is prohibited based on the block instruction.

[0063] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and technical concept of the present invention. Such modifications will be described below in order. The same reference numerals will be used to designate parts equivalent to those in the above-described embodiment, and descriptions thereof will be omitted or simplified as appropriate.

[0064] (1) Blocking after a billing notice is sent In the above embodiment, a block instruction is sent to the printer 200 when an advertisement image is received and acquired from the advertisement management server 500 in S20, which is "when it is predicted that a print delivery image will be delivered to the printer 200." However, this is not limited to this. In this modified example, a block instruction is sent at a different timing.

[0065] FIG. 5 is a sequence flow corresponding to FIG. 2 of the above embodiment, showing control executed by the advertisement providing server 100, advertisement management server 500, printer 200, and terminal device 300 in cooperation with each other in this modification.

[0066] 5, in this modification, S21, S22, and S23 in FIG. 2 are omitted, and instead, S141, S142, and S143, which are similar processing contents, are added after S140. That is, in the advertisement providing server 100, after a billing notice is sent to the advertisement management server 500 in S140, a block instruction is sent to the printer 200 in the newly added S141 to prohibit printing of images other than the delivery image for printing based on the advertisement image acquired in S20. The processing executed in S141 is an example of an invalidation instruction sending processing in this modification, and the control unit 110 that executes S141 is an example of an invalidation processing unit in this modification.

[0067] When the block instruction of S141 is received, the printer 200 transitions to a blocked state in S142, and printing other than printing of the distribution image for printing described above is disabled, i.e., prohibited. Then, in S143, a message indicating that the printer 200 has transitioned to the blocked state is displayed. The control unit 210 of the printer 200 that executes S143 is an example of a disablement notification unit in this modified example.

[0068] The subsequent processes in the advertisement providing server 100 from S25 onwards, the processes in the printer 200 from S35 onwards, etc. are the same as those in FIG. 2 described above, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

[0069] According to this modified example, when a billing notice is sent in S140 to claim compensation for the distribution of the advertising image, the user can be notified that the printer 200 is in a state in which printing other than the distribution image for printing is prohibited.

[0070] (2) Blocking when a bid request is sent In this modified example, a block instruction is sent at yet another timing, ie, "when it is predicted that a print delivery image will be delivered to the printer 200." Figure 6 is a sequence flow corresponding to Figure 2 of the above embodiment and Figure 5 of variant (1), which shows the control executed in this variant by cooperation between the advertisement providing server 100, the advertisement management server 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300.

[0071] 6, in this modification, S21, S22, and S23 of FIG. 2 are omitted, and instead, S11, S12, and S13, which are similar processing contents, are added after S5. That is, in the advertisement providing server 100, after a bid request is transmitted to the advertisement management server 500 in S5, a block instruction is transmitted to the printer 200 in the newly added S11 to prohibit printing of images other than a delivery image for printing based on the advertisement image to be acquired in S20, which will be described later. The processing performed in S11 is an example of an invalidation instruction transmission processing in this modification, and the control unit 110 that executes S11 is an example of an invalidation processing unit in this modification.

[0072] When the block instruction of S11 is received, the printer 200 transitions to a blocked state in S12, and printing other than printing of the distribution image for printing described above is disabled, i.e., prohibited. Then, in S13, a message indicating that the printer 200 has transitioned to the blocked state is displayed. The control unit 210 of the printer 200 that executes S13 is an example of a disablement notification unit in this modified example.

[0073] The subsequent processes in the advertisement providing server 100 from S8 onwards, the processes in the advertisement management server 500 from S20 onwards, and the processes in the printer 200 from S35 onwards are the same as those in FIG. 2 described above, and therefore will not be described.

[0074] According to this modification, when the bid request is sent to the advertisement management server 500 in S5, it is possible to notify the user that the printer 200 is in a state in which printing other than the distribution image for printing is prohibited.

[0075] (3) Other For example, in the above S97 and S115, instead of sending a print cancel instruction from the advertisement providing server 100, the print instruction of S30 may be sent again to the printer 200 a predetermined number of times or for a predetermined period of time. Alternatively, the print instruction may be sent repeatedly to the printer 200 until the advertisement providing server 100 receives a print progress notification indicating successful printing.

[0076] In the above description, as an example, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a successful bid cancellation notice as successful bid withdrawal information to the advertisement management server 500 in S120 without billing the advertisement management server 500 for the expenses in S140. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, for example, after the above-mentioned expenses have been billed and the external server has made a settlement for the expenses, the advertisement providing server 100 may transmit an instruction to refund the expenses as successful bid withdrawal information to the advertisement management server 500. Alternatively, instead of this refund instruction, the advertisement providing server 100 may transmit a compensation instruction to reduce another billing amount to be collected from the external server as successful bid withdrawal information to the advertisement management server 500. Alternatively, after the above-mentioned expenses have been billed and the external server has not yet made a settlement for the expenses, the advertisement providing server 100 may transmit an instruction to suspend the settlement as successful bid withdrawal information to the advertisement management server 500. In either case, the transmission process performed by the advertisement providing server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 is an example of information transmission process. In the above description, the process of transmitting the successful bid withdrawal information is performed in real time each time a successful bid advertisement is determined in S8 of Fig. 2, but this is not limiting. For example, the successful bid withdrawal information may be collected and transmitted at a predetermined interval, such as once at the beginning of each month.

[0077] In the above, the advertisement providing server 100, the terminal device 300, and the printer 200 perform each process to deliver the advertisement image, but which device (the advertisement providing server 100, the terminal device 300, or the printer 200) performs each process, i.e., how the roles are divided, can be freely changed as appropriate. For example, it is possible for the printer 200 to perform all of the processes.

[0078] Furthermore, the sequence flows shown in Figures 2, 3, 5, and 6 do not limit the present invention to the procedures shown in the above flows, and steps may be added or deleted or the order may be changed within the scope that does not deviate from the spirit and technical idea of ​​the invention.

[0079] In addition to the above, the methods according to the above embodiments and modifications may be used in appropriate combination.

[0080] Although not specifically illustrated, the present invention can be implemented with various modifications within the scope of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 1. Information distribution printing system 100 Advertisement providing server (example of distribution providing server) 110 control section 115 Storage section 200 Printer (an example of a printing device) 500 Advertising management server (example of distribution management server)

Claims

1. A distribution information providing server including a control unit, which receives distribution information managed by a distribution information management server and distributes the information to a printing device, The control unit a request transmission process for transmitting a bid request for distribution information to the distribution information management server; an information determination process for determining specific distribution information that will be a successful bid from the distribution information received from the distribution information management server in response to the bid request transmitted in the request transmission process; a specific distribution information acquisition process for acquiring the specific distribution information determined in the information determination process; a distribution process for distributing print distribution information based on the specific distribution information acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process to the printing device; a request notice sending process for sending a request notice to the distribution information management server after acquiring the specific distribution information in the specific distribution information acquisition process and before distributing the printable distribution information in the distribution process, in order to request a fee corresponding to the distribution of the printable distribution information; A distribution information providing server configured to execute the above.

2. The control unit further a print distribution information generation process for generating the print distribution information based on the specific distribution information acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process, In the request notice transmission process, the request notice is transmitted to the distribution information management server after the specific distribution information is acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process and before the print distribution information generation process.

2. The distribution information providing server according to claim 1.

3. The control unit further an invalidation instruction sending process for sending an invalidation instruction to the printing device when the print distribution information is predicted to be delivered to the printing device, the invalidation instruction for invalidating printing other than printing of the print distribution information in the printing device; 2. The distribution information providing server according to claim 1, configured to execute the above.

4. 4. The distribution information providing server according to claim 3, wherein the case where the print distribution information is predicted to be distributed to the printing device is a case where the specific distribution information is acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process.

5. 4. The distribution information providing server according to claim 3, wherein the case where the print distribution information is predicted to be distributed to the printing device is when the billing notice is transmitted to the distribution information management server in the billing notice transmission process.

6. The control unit 4. The distribution information providing server according to claim 3, wherein the case where the print distribution information is predicted to be distributed to the printing device is a case where the bid request is transmitted to the distribution information management server in the request transmission process.

7. The control unit further an invalidation cancellation instruction sending process for sending, to the printing device, an invalidation cancellation instruction for canceling the invalidation in the printing device based on the invalidation instruction, when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the invalidation instruction is sent; 4. The distribution information providing server according to claim 3, wherein the server is configured to execute the above.

8. An information distribution and printing system, comprising: a request sending unit that sends a bid request for distribution information; an information determination unit that determines specific distribution information that will be a successful bid from among the distribution information received in response to the bid request transmitted by the request transmission unit; a specific distribution information acquisition unit that acquires the specific distribution information determined by the information determination unit; a printing unit that prints an image based on the specific distribution information acquired by the specific distribution information acquisition unit; a billing notification unit that transmits a billing notification for requesting a fee corresponding to printing of an image after the specific distribution information acquisition unit acquires the specific distribution information and before the printing unit prints the image based on the specific distribution information; and An information distribution printing system having:

9. a disabling processing unit that, when printing of the image based on the specific distribution information in the printing unit is predicted, disables printing in the printing unit other than printing of the image based on the specific distribution information.

9. The information distribution and printing system of claim 8, further comprising:

10. an invalidation notification unit that transmits an invalidation notification that notifies that printing other than printing of the image based on the specific distribution information in the printing unit has been invalidated by the invalidation processing unit; 10. The information distribution and printing system of claim 9, further comprising:

Images