Image management server and image management method

Abstract

If the sorting condition name or condition is changed or deleted between the transfer failure and the retransmission, the sorting condition to be applied at the time of retransmission may not be uniquely determined.SOLUTION: An image processing apparatus comprising: an image receiving unit configured to receive an image; a sorting condition setting unit configured to set a sorting condition of the image; an external transfer unit configured to transfer the image to a folder of an external transfer destination corresponding to the sorting condition; and a retransmission accepting unit configured to accept a retransmission request of the image when the transfer by the external transfer unit fails, wherein the external transfer unit transfers the image to the folder of the external transfer destination corresponding to the sorting condition when the sorting condition or the condition name of the sorting condition is changed or the sorting condition is deleted during a period from when the transfer fails to when the retransmission request is received.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image management server and an image management method. [Background technology]

[0002] There are technologies that transfer images captured with an imaging device such as a digital camera to a server via a network, sort the images based on image sorting conditions preset by the user, and transfer the sorted images to external storage. These technologies link images to the destination storage location to identify which sorting conditions were used to sort the images on the external storage. Furthermore, when transferring images to external storage, successful transfer may not be possible due to network communication errors or authentication errors at the external transfer destination. In such cases, images that could not be transferred can be resent by user operation, but the image sorting conditions may have changed between the failed transfer and the resend.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for linking an image to a storage destination. In this technology, in a system that stores data scanned by an MFP in cloud storage, machine learning is performed to learn the correspondence between the feature amounts of the scanned image and the storage destination, and the storage destination for the image data is determined according to the feature amounts. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-194201 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The above-mentioned technology does not allow the user to decide the storage destination, but rather determines the storage destination uniquely within the system, so even if the data cannot be saved to cloud storage due to a network communication error or other reason and is resent, the storage destination is not affected.

[0006] However, if the sorting condition name or condition is changed or deleted between the time of transfer failure and the time of retransmission, the sorting condition to be applied at the time of retransmission may not be uniquely determined.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to appropriately resend images even if the sorting condition name or condition is changed or deleted between the time of transfer failure and the time of resend. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and provides a method for receiving an image, the method comprising: The system comprises a sorting condition setting means for setting sorting conditions for images, an external transfer means for transferring the images to an external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions, and a retransmission receiving means for receiving a request to retransmit the images if the transfer by the external transfer means fails, wherein the external transfer means transfers the images to the external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions at the time the transfer failed if the sorting conditions or the condition name of the sorting conditions or the sorting conditions are changed or deleted between the time the transfer failed and the time the retransmission request is received. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, even if the sorting condition name or the condition is changed or deleted between the time of transfer failure and the time of retransmission, the image can be retransmitted appropriately. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a system configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of an image management server according to the present embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a functional block diagram of an image management server according to a first embodiment; [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing a basic processing flow according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 shows a transfer history table according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing a process flow relating to retransmission according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 10 is a schematic functional block diagram of an image management server according to a second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a processing flow when a sorting condition or a condition name is changed or deleted according to the second embodiment. [Figure 9] Processing flow at the time of retransmission according to the second embodiment [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a screen prompting reconfirmation according to the second embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a screen for selecting a sorting condition to be applied when retransmitting according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a system configuration according to this embodiment.

[0012] Reference numeral 100 denotes an imaging device such as a digital camera, a mobile phone with a camera, a smartphone, or a tablet terminal, and is connected to an external device, an image management device 102, via a network 101.

[0013] Although FIG. 1 shows a configuration in which the devices are connected via a network 101, the devices may be connected directly without a network.

[0014] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the image management server in this embodiment.

[0015] 200 is an information processing device.

[0016] Reference numeral 201 denotes a CPU, 202 denotes a RAM, 203 denotes a storage unit such as a storage medium such as an HDD or SSD, 204 denotes a communication unit, and 205 denotes a system bus.

[0017] The CPU 201 uses the RAM 202 as a work memory to execute the OS (operating system) and various computer programs stored in the storage unit 203 and controls each unit via the system bus 205 .

[0018] The programs executed by the CPU 201 include a program in the image management server 300, which will be described later.

[0019] This concludes the explanation of Figure 2.

[0020] (First Example) A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings and flowcharts, although the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

[0021] 3 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the image management server of the present invention. The main parts of the image management server will be described below, but the image management server may also be provided with other processing units.

[0022] 300 is an image management server.

[0023] An image receiving unit 301 receives an image captured by an imaging device such as a digital camera.

[0024] A sorting condition setting unit 302 sets the image sorting conditions. Specifically, the sorting conditions include, but are not limited to, conditions for classifying subjects such as "people" and "animals," and settings for removing blurry images and images with improper exposure.

[0025] An external transfer unit 303 transfers the images received by the unit 301 to an external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions set by the sorting condition setting unit 302 .

[0026] A retransmission reception unit 304 receives a request to retransmit the image received by the external transfer unit 301 if the transfer by the external transfer unit 303 fails.

[0027] A transfer history management unit 305 manages the transfer history used during transfer by the external transfer unit 303. Specifically, it manages information that uniquely identifies the sorting conditions 302, the name of the sorting conditions, and the status of whether or not transfer is possible, in association with the image received by 301. Note that there is no problem if the unit is provided with parameters other than those described here.

[0028] Next, the processing flow of the first embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 4. The flow described in Fig. 4 is a flow in which, after receiving an image, a determination process is performed based on the sorting conditions and the image is transferred to an external service.

[0029] Step S400 is a step for receiving an image, and is executed by the image receiving unit 301 in Fig. 3. The image acquired in this step is an image captured by an imaging device such as a digital camera.

[0030] Step S401 is a step for acquiring sorting conditions, which is executed by the sorting condition setting unit 302 in FIG.

[0031] Step S402 is a step for executing a classification process, which is executed by the external transfer unit 303 in FIG.

[0032] Step S403 is a step of transferring to an external service, and is executed by the external transfer unit 303 in Figure 3. In this step, a folder is created with the sorting condition name in the sorting conditions acquired in step S401 as the folder name, and the folder is transferred to the external service, but this is not limited to this embodiment.

[0033] Step S404 is a step for updating the transfer history, which is executed by the transfer history management unit 305 in Fig. 3. Here, the table for managing the transfer history updated in this step will be explained using Fig. 5.

[0034] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a transfer history table that is the target when updating the transfer history in step S404 in Fig. 4. Note that 500 to 504 represent columns, and 505 to 507 represent rows. Also, the items managed in this transfer history table may include items other than those described here.

[0035] A column 500 is an image ID, which is an ID that uniquely identifies the image received in 301 in FIG.

[0036] A column 501 is a sorting condition ID, which is an ID that uniquely identifies the sorting condition for the image set in 302 in FIG.

[0037] A column 502 is a sorting condition name, and like the column 501, it is the name of the image sorting condition set in 302 in FIG.

[0038] Column 503 is the destination service, and is information that can uniquely identify the destination service to which the message is forwarded in 303 in Fig. 3. In this embodiment, the service name is used, but an ID uniquely identified for each service may also be used, and is not particularly limited.

[0039] Column 504 is a status, which is a status for determining whether the transfer was successful or not as a result of the transfer in 303 in Fig. 3. In this embodiment, a successful transfer is represented as a success, and an unsuccessful transfer is represented as a failure, but this is not particularly limited.

[0040] A specific explanation will be given using lines 505 to 507.

[0041] Line 505 shows an example in which transfer to Google Photos using sorting conditions where the image ID is image01.jpg, the sorting condition ID is id1, and the sorting condition name is dog failed.

[0042] Line 506 shows an example in which the image ID is image02.jpg, and the sorting condition ID and sorting condition name are the same as image01.jpg in line 505, but the transfer to Google Drive was successful.

[0043] Line 507 shows an example of a successful transfer to Flickr using sorting conditions such as image ID image03.jpg, sorting condition ID id2, and sorting condition name family.

[0044] This concludes the explanation of Figure 5.

[0045] Returning to the description of step S404 in FIG.

[0046] In step S404, the sorting conditions acquired and applied in steps S401 and S402 for the image acquired in step S400 are linked with the transfer results transferred in step S403, and the transfer history table in FIG. 5 is updated.

[0047] This concludes the explanation of Figure 4.

[0048] Next, the flow of retransmission in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0049] Step S600 is a step for obtaining the image ID, sorting condition ID, sorting condition name, and destination service for the image for which a resend instruction has been received from the transfer history. This step is executed by the image transfer unit 303 in Fig. 3 with reference to the transfer history table managed by the transfer history management unit 304.

[0050] Steps S601 to S606 are a flow for determining whether a folder matching the sorting condition ID and sorting condition name acquired in step S600 exists at the destination service before transferring the folder. Note that steps S601 to S605 are executed by the external transfer unit 303 in Figure 3. The following explains this.

[0051] Step S601 is a step for obtaining folder information from the transfer destination service obtained in step S600.

[0052] Step S602 is a step for determining whether the sorting condition ID acquired in step S600 exists in the folder information of the destination service acquired in step S601. If it is determined in step S602 that the sorting condition ID does not exist, the process proceeds to step S603, and if it is determined that the sorting condition ID exists, the process proceeds to step S604.

[0053] Step S603 is a step that is executed when it is determined in step S602 that the sorting condition ID does not exist in the folder information of the destination service. In step S603, the folder information of the destination service acquired in step S601 is referenced to determine whether a folder exists that matches the sorting condition name acquired in step S600. If it is determined in this step that a matching folder name exists, the process proceeds to step S603; if it is determined that a matching folder name does not exist, the process proceeds to step S606.

[0054] Step S604 is a step that is executed when it is determined in step S602 that a sorting condition ID exists in the folder information of the destination service. Step S604 is a step that references the folder information of the destination service acquired in step S601 and determines whether a folder exists that matches the sorting condition name acquired in step S600. If it is determined in this step that a matching folder does not exist, the process proceeds to step S606; if it is determined that a matching folder exists, the process proceeds to step S605.

[0055] Step S605 is a step of transferring to an external transfer service.

[0056] Step S606 is a step that is performed if it is determined in steps S603 and S604 that a folder that matches the sorting condition ID and sorting condition name acquired in step S600 does not exist at the transfer destination service destination. In step S606, a new folder is created.

[0057] The above is the explanation for Fig. 6, but the flow relating to retransmission in Fig. 6 does not update the transfer history in step S404 in Fig. 4. In other words, it is possible to retransmit an image whose transfer has failed using the sorting conditions that were used at the time of the failure.

[0058] According to the above sequence, the image management server of the first embodiment can appropriately resend images by using the conditions used when the transfer failed when resending.

[0059] (Second Example) The second embodiment of the present invention will be described below, focusing on the differences from the first embodiment, although the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

[0060] In the first embodiment, a method for retransmitting an image that has failed to be transferred is described, using the conditions used when the transfer failed. In the second embodiment, a method for displaying a screen for prompting reconfirmation when the conditions have been changed or deleted between the time of the transfer failure and the time of retransmission is described, and for displaying a screen for selecting sorting conditions to be applied when retransmitting.

[0061] 7 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of a second embodiment of the image management server of the present invention. The main parts of the image management server will be described below, but other processing parts may also be provided.

[0062] Reference numeral 700 denotes an image management server in the second embodiment.

[0063] 701 to 705 are functional blocks similar to 301 to 305 in FIG. 3, and therefore detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0064] A screen display unit 706 displays a screen prompting the user to reconfirm if the sorting conditions or condition names accepted by the sorting condition setting unit 702 are changed or deleted between the time the transfer fails and the time a retransmission request is accepted. Also, when retransmitting, a screen is displayed that allows the user to select the sorting conditions to be applied.

[0065] This concludes the explanation of Figure 7.

[0066] Next, the processing flow in the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0067] In particular, FIG. 8 shows the processing flow when the sorting conditions or condition names accepted by the sorting condition setting unit are changed or deleted between the time when the transfer fails and the time when a retransmission request is accepted.

[0068] FIG. 9 shows the processing flow at the time of retransmission.

[0069] First, a description will be given of the processing flow in Fig. 8. The processing in Fig. 8 is executed by the screen presentation unit 706 in Fig. 7.

[0070] Step S800 is a step of acquiring a transfer history from the transfer management unit 705 in Fig. 7. The transfer history acquired from the transfer management unit 705 in Fig. 7 is acquired by referring to the transfer history table in Fig. 5 described in the first embodiment.

[0071] Step S801 is a step for determining whether or not there is an image that uses the set sorting condition name among the images that failed to be transferred. Only if it is determined in this step that there is an image, the flow proceeds to step S802.

[0072] Step S802 is a step that is executed if there are images that use the set sorting condition name among the images that failed to be transferred in step S801, and a screen is displayed to reconfirm the change or deletion. An example of the screen displayed in this step is explained below with reference to FIG. 10.

[0073] Fig. 10 shows an example of a screen that prompts the user to reconfirm if the sorting conditions or condition names accepted by the sorting condition setting unit 702 in Fig. 7 are changed or deleted between the time when the transfer failed and the time when a retransmission request is accepted. Note that the screen shown is merely an example and is not limited to this embodiment.

[0074] 1000 indicates a screen prompting for reconfirmation.

[0075] In 1000, a message urging reconfirmation is displayed, and the corresponding images are displayed as shown between 1001 and 1002, allowing the user to select between two options: yes or no. In this embodiment, the screen displaying the corresponding images between 1001 and 1002 has been described as an example, but there is no limitation on whether or not the images are displayed.

[0076] This concludes the explanation of Figure 10.

[0077] Returning to the explanation of Figure 8.

[0078] If it is determined in step S801 that there is no image using the set sorting condition name among the images that failed to be transferred, the screen described in step S802 is not displayed.

[0079] This concludes the explanation of Figure 8.

[0080] Next, a description will be given of the processing flow in Fig. 9. The processing in Fig. 8 is executed by the screen presentation unit 706 in Fig. 7.

[0081] Step S900 is a step of acquiring a transfer history from the transfer management unit 705 in Fig. 7. The transfer history acquired from the transfer management unit 705 in Fig. 7 is acquired by referring to the transfer history table in Fig. 5 described in the first embodiment.

[0082] Step S901 is a step of referencing the transfer history acquired in step S900 and acquiring the sorting condition ID and sorting condition name used when the transfer failed.

[0083] In step S902, the sorting condition ID acquired from the transfer history and the name of the sorting condition that matches the sorting condition ID acquired from the transfer history are acquired from among the currently set sorting conditions.

[0084] Step S903 is a step for determining whether the sorting condition name acquired in step S901 matches the sorting condition name acquired in step S902. If it is determined in step S903 that they do not match, the process proceeds to step S904, and if it is determined that they match, the process proceeds to step S905.

[0085] Step S904 is a step that is performed if it is determined in step S903 that there is no match, and a classification determination is made using the classification condition name acquired in step S902.

[0086] Step S905 is a step that is performed if it is determined in step S903 that there is a match, and the sorting conditions acquired in step S901 are used to resend the data.

[0087] This concludes the explanation of FIG.

[0088] Step S906 is a step for determining the result of the classification determination made in step S904. If the classification determination result is OK, the flow proceeds to step S907, and if NG, the flow proceeds to step S905.

[0089] Step S907 is a step that is performed if the sorting judgment result in step S906 is OK, and a screen that allows the user to select the sorting conditions to be applied is presented. An example of the screen presented in this step will now be described with reference to FIG.

[0090] Fig. 11 shows an example of a screen for selecting the sorting conditions to be applied when retransmission is performed in the event that the sorting conditions or condition names accepted by the sorting condition setting unit 702 in Fig. 7 are changed or deleted between the time of transfer failure and the time of accepting a retransmission request. Note that the screen shown is merely an example and is not limited to this embodiment.

[0091] Reference numeral 1100 denotes a screen for selecting the sorting conditions to be applied.

[0092] 1101 is the image to be retransmitted.

[0093] Buttons 1102 and 1103 are used to select the sorting condition name from the selection candidates.

[0094] This concludes the explanation of FIG.

[0095] Returning to the explanation of Figure 9.

[0096] Step S908 is a step of retransmitting the document using the sorting conditions selected by the user on the screen presented in step S907.

[0097] This concludes the explanation of FIG.

[0098] With the above sequence, the image management server according to the second embodiment can display a screen prompting the user to reconfirm any changes or deletions made to the conditions between the time of transfer failure and the time of retransmission. It can also display a screen prompting the user to select the sorting conditions to be applied when retransmitting.

[0099] (Other embodiments) The present invention can also be realized by executing the following process: software (programs) that realize the functions of the above-described embodiments are supplied to a system or device via a network or various storage media, and the computer (or CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or device reads and executes the programs. [Explanation of symbols]

[0100] 300 Image Management Server 301 Image receiving unit 302 Sorting condition setting section 303 External Transfer Department 304 Resend Reception Department 305 Transfer History Management Department

Claims

1. image receiving means for receiving an image; a sorting condition setting means for setting image sorting conditions; an external transfer means for transferring the image to an external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions; a retransmission receiving means for receiving a request to retransmit the image when the transfer by the external transfer means has failed, The external transfer means During the period from when the transfer fails to when the retransmission request is accepted, If the sorting conditions or the name of the sorting conditions are changed, or the sorting conditions are deleted, The image management server transfers the image to an external destination folder corresponding to the sorting condition when the transfer failed, based on the request to resend the image.

2. A transfer history management means for managing information that uniquely identifies the sorting conditions, the names of the sorting conditions, and whether or not the images can be transferred, in association with the images.

2. The image management server according to claim 1, further comprising:

3. image receiving means for receiving an image; a sorting condition setting means for setting image sorting conditions; an external transfer means for transferring the image to an external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions; a retransmission receiving means for receiving a request to retransmit the image when the transfer by the external transfer means has failed, During the period from when the transfer fails to when the retransmission request is accepted, An image management server characterized by having a screen presentation means that, when the sorting conditions or the condition names of the sorting conditions are changed, or the sorting conditions are deleted, presents a screen to the user to reconfirm the change to the sorting conditions or the condition names of the sorting conditions, or the deletion of the sorting conditions.

4. The screen presentation means During the period from when the transfer fails to when the retransmission request is accepted, The image management server of claim 3, characterized in that when the sorting conditions or the condition names of the sorting conditions are changed, or the sorting conditions are deleted, a screen is presented that allows the user to set the sorting conditions to be applied when resending.

5. an image receiving step of receiving an image; a sorting condition setting step of setting image sorting conditions; an external transfer step of transferring the image to an external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions; a retransmission receiving step of receiving a request to retransmit the image when the transfer by the external transfer step has failed, In the external transfer step, During the period from when the transfer fails to when the retransmission request is accepted, An image management method characterized in that, when the sorting conditions or the condition names of the sorting conditions are changed, or the sorting conditions are deleted, the image is transferred to an external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions when the transfer failed based on the retransmission request.

6. an image receiving step of receiving an image; a sorting condition setting step of setting image sorting conditions; an external transfer step of transferring the image to an external transfer destination folder corresponding to the sorting conditions; a retransmission receiving step of receiving a request to retransmit the image when the transfer by the external transfer step has failed, During the period from when the transfer fails to when the retransmission request is accepted, If the sorting conditions or the name of the sorting conditions are changed, or the sorting conditions are deleted, and a screen display step of displaying to the user a screen for reconfirming whether to change the sorting conditions or the condition names of the sorting conditions, or to delete the sorting conditions.

Images