Image forming apparatus, control method for image forming apparatus, control program for image forming apparatus
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- SEIKO EPSON CORP
- Filing Date
- 2024-11-25
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-04
Smart Images
Figure 2026091445000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, a control method for an image forming apparatus, and a control program for an image forming apparatus.
Background Art
[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a configuration for logging in to an image forming apparatus by holding an IC card.
Prior Art Documents
Patent Documents
[0003]
Patent Document 1
Summary of the Invention
Problems to be Solved by the Invention
[0004] When correspondence information in which card information indicating an IC card and user information of a user who holds the IC card are associated is recorded in a storage medium of an image forming apparatus, user authentication by the IC card can be performed based on the correspondence information. However, conventionally, in the correspondence information stored in the image forming apparatus, the association between the card information and the user information cannot be individually deleted.
Means for Solving the Problems
[0005] An image forming apparatus for solving the above problems includes a storage unit that stores, in a storage medium, by associating card information of a card used for user authentication of the image forming apparatus and user information of a user of the image forming apparatus, an acquisition unit that acquires a deletion request for the user information of a target user from a user interface unit of the image forming apparatus or a terminal device, and a deletion unit that deletes the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information in response to the deletion request.
[0006] A control method for an image forming apparatus to solve the above problems includes storing in a storage medium the card information of a card used for user authentication of the image forming apparatus and the user information of the user of the image forming apparatus in association with each other, obtaining a deletion request for user information from the user interface unit or terminal device of the image forming apparatus, and deleting the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information in response to the deletion request.
[0007] The control program for the image forming apparatus to solve the above problems causes the computer to function as a storage unit that stores in a storage medium the card information of the card used for user authentication of the image forming apparatus and the user information of the user of the image forming apparatus in association with each other, a user interface unit for the image forming apparatus, or an acquisition unit that obtains deletion requests for user information from a terminal device, and a deletion unit that deletes the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information in response to the deletion request. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0008] [Figure 1] Block diagram of a multifunction printer. [Figure 2] A diagram showing an example of user information stored on the server. [Figure 3] A diagram showing an example of correspondence information stored in a multifunction printer. [Figure 4] A flowchart illustrating the process for deleting user information when a deletion request is made via the UI section of a multifunction printer. [Figure 5] A diagram showing an example of screen transitions on a multifunction printer. [Figure 6] A flowchart illustrating the process for deleting user information when a deletion request is made via the management screen of a multifunction printer. [Figure 7] A diagram showing an example of a user settings screen. [Figure 8] This diagram shows an example configuration when multiple multifunction printers according to other embodiments are in operation. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0009] Here, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order. (1) Configuration of the multifunction printer: (2) User information deletion process: (2-1) Removal from the UI section of the multifunction printer: (2-2) Deletion from the admin panel: (3) Other embodiments:
[0010] (1) Configuration of the multifunction printer: Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a multifunction printer 100 as an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The multifunction printer 100 works in cooperation with a terminal device 200 and a server 300 as an information processing device. The terminal device 200 is a terminal used by the administrator of the multifunction printer 100 and may be a PC, tablet, smartphone, etc.
[0011] In this embodiment, the multifunction printer 100 is assumed to be installed, for example, in a company office. Employees working in the office are permitted to use the multifunction printer 100, and each user is given an IC card indicating that they are authorized to use the multifunction printer 100. The recording medium of the IC card stores card information for identifying the IC card. Each user is also assigned a user ID. The server 300 stores user information, including each user's user ID and password, on the server 300's storage medium.
[0012] In this embodiment, a user of the multifunction printer 100 can log in to the multifunction printer 100 and use it by holding their IC card over the multifunction printer 100 or by entering their user ID and password.
[0013] The multifunction device 100 includes a processor 110, a storage medium 120, a communication unit 130, a UI unit 140, a FAX communication unit 150, a printing unit 160, and a reading unit 170. The processor 110 includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, etc. (not shown), and can execute a control program recorded in the storage medium 120 to control each part of the multifunction device 100. Note that the processor 110 may be composed of a single chip or multiple chips. Also, for example, an ASIC may be adopted instead of the CPU, or a configuration in which the CPU and the ASIC cooperate may be used. When each device in this embodiment includes a processor, the processor can be realized in various forms similar to the processor 110.
[0014] The communication unit 130 includes various communication interfaces for communicating with other devices either wired or wirelessly. The multifunction device 100 communicates with the server 300 via the communication unit 130. Note that the communication unit 130 includes an interface for communicating with various removable memories attached to the multifunction device 100, and it is possible to print data recorded in the removable memory, send a FAX, save scan data to the removable memory, etc.
[0015] Also, in this embodiment, the communication unit 130 includes an NFC (Near Field Communication) unit 131. The NFC unit 131 has a function of communicating with an IC card equipped with an IC chip and an antenna corresponding to short-range wireless communication when approaching within a predetermined distance, and acquiring data recorded in the recording medium of the IC card.
[0016] The UI unit 140 as a user interface unit includes a touch panel display, keys, LEDs, speakers, etc. The processor 110 guides various information to the user through output units such as the touch panel display, LEDs, speakers, etc., and inputs the user's instructions through input units such as the touch panel display and keys.
[0017] The FAX communication unit 150 includes a modem for performing FAX communication of image data via a public switched telephone network or the like, a circuit for detecting or generating a control signal for transmitting and receiving the image data, a circuit for encoding transmission data or decoding reception data, and the like. The printing unit 160 includes a drive unit, mechanical components, sensors, etc. for performing printing on various printing media by various printing methods such as an inkjet method or an electrophotographic method. The reading unit 170 includes a device for reading a document placed on the document table glass or a document set in the ADF document tray, for example, an image sensor, a light source, a drive unit for reading the document, mechanical components, sensors, etc.
[0018] In the present embodiment, user information including a user ID and a password has the latest information stored in the storage medium of the server 300. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of user information stored in the server 300. As shown in FIG. 2, in the user information, a password, a display name of the user, an email address, etc. are stored in association with a user ID for identifying each user. In addition, for example, the department and position to which the user belongs, the number of the mobile phone, etc. may be stored in association with the user ID. Also, the card information of the IC card assigned to the user may be stored in association.
[0019] As described above, each user of the multifunctional machine 100 carries an IC card that indicates that the use of the multifunctional machine 100 is permitted and that can communicate with the NFC unit 131 as described above. Card information for identifying the card is recorded on the recording medium of the IC card. When the user holds the IC card over the NFC unit 131, the processor 110 acquires the card information stored in the IC card by the NFC unit 131.
[0020] If user information associated with the acquired card information is not stored in the storage medium 120 of the multifunction printer 100, the processor 110 prompts the user to enter a user ID and password into the multifunction printer 100, and user authentication is performed at the server 300 using the entered user ID and password. If the user ID and password from the latest user information stored at the server 300 are entered, the server 300 determines that user authentication is successful. If user authentication is successful, the processor 110 retrieves the user information from the server 300 and stores the user information in association with the card information at the storage medium 120 of the multifunction printer 100. Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of user information stored in association with card information as corresponding information 121 stored at the storage medium 120 of the multifunction printer 100. In the corresponding information 121, the card ID is stored as card information. In this embodiment, the user information in the corresponding information 121 does not include the password from the user information stored at the server 300.
[0021] When a user holds an IC card over the NFC unit 131 of the multifunction printer 100, the processor 110 obtains the card ID of the IC card and searches whether user information associated with the card ID is stored in the correspondence information 121 of the storage medium 120. If user information associated with the card ID is stored, the processor 110 considers user authentication successful and switches the multifunction printer 100 to a state where the user is logged in. In the logged-in state, the user can use functions of the multifunction printer 100 that they are authorized to use, such as functions using the fax communication unit 150, the printing unit 160, the reading unit 170, etc. In this way, the multifunction printer 100 can perform user authentication using an IC card. That is, when a user attempts to log in using an IC card, user authentication can be performed on the multifunction printer 100, not on the server 300. Therefore, even if communication with the server 300 is not possible for some reason, the user can still use the multifunction printer 100.
[0022] Incidentally, if a user who has been given an IC card no longer uses the multifunction printer 100, for example, due to retirement, the user returns the IC card they possessed to the administrator of the multifunction printer 100. On the server 300, the user information corresponding to that user is deleted. Subsequently, if another user becomes the new user of the multifunction printer 100, it was desired that the IC card previously used by the retired user could be given to the new user for reuse.
[0023] Traditionally, while the user information of retired users was deleted from the server 300, the association between the card information and the retired user's user information remained stored in the storage medium 120 of the multifunction printer 100. Therefore, when a new user held the IC card used by the previous user over the multifunction printer 100, they would be logged in as the previous user. Consequently, the new user could not use the multifunction printer 100 while logged in. This could lead to inconveniences, such as the inability to use functions that are normally available to the new user.
[0024] Therefore, in this embodiment, the processor 110 of the multifunction printer 100 can execute a control program to implement a function that individually deletes the associations between card information and user information stored in the multifunction printer 100. By executing this control program, the processor 110 functions as a storage unit 111, an acquisition unit 112, and a deletion unit 113.
[0025] The memory unit 111 allows the processor 110 to store the card information of the card used for user authentication of the multifunction printer 100 in association with the user information of the user of the multifunction printer 100 in the storage medium 120. That is, the processor 110 stores the card ID and user ID in association, for example, as shown in Figure 3. When new user information needs to be associated with the card information, as described above, the processor 110 retrieves the user information from the server 300, which stores the user information of users authorized to use the multifunction printer 100, and stores it in association with the card information. Therefore, with this configuration, the user information of legitimate users managed by the server 300 can be retrieved and stored in the multifunction printer 100 in association with the card information.
[0026] The acquisition unit 112 allows the processor 110 to acquire a deletion request for the target user's user information from the UI unit 140 of the multifunction printer 100 or from the terminal device 200. Specifically, the processor 110 acquires a deletion request when the new user themselves performs an operation on the UI unit 140 to delete the user information of the target user, i.e., the previous user, associated with the card information indicated by the IC card. The processor 110 also acquires a deletion request when an administrator operates the terminal device 200 to display the management screen of the multifunction printer 100 on the terminal device 200 and requests the deletion of the previous user's user information associated with the card information via the management screen. If the previous user's user information is to be deleted but the new user's user information is not associated with the card information, the act of holding the IC card over the UI unit 140 is not limited to the new user; for example, an administrator or the previous user before retirement may also perform this action.
[0027] The deletion unit 113 causes the processor 110 to delete the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to that user information from the storage medium 120 in response to a deletion request. First, the case in which a deletion request is obtained via the UI unit 140 will be explained. When a new user holds an IC card over the NFC unit 131, the processor 110 assumes that the user whose information is associated with the card information of the card, i.e., the previous user, has logged into the multifunction printer 100, and displays the home screen of the previous user after login on the UI unit 140. In this embodiment, the processor 110 displays a delete button on the home screen for deleting the user information of the logged-in user. When a new user operates this delete button, the processor 110 considers that it has received an operation indicating the deletion of the user information of the logged-in user, i.e., the previous user, and determines that it has obtained a deletion request. In response to obtaining a deletion request, the processor 110 deletes the user information of the logged-in user and the card information associated with that user information from the storage medium 120. For example, as shown in Figure 3, if a deletion request is received while logged in as user_A with user ID E240001, the processor 110 deletes the user information, including the user display name and email address corresponding to user ID:E240001, and the card ID associated with user ID:E240001. In this way, according to this embodiment, a user possessing an IC card can operate the multifunction printer 100 to delete the user information associated with that card.
[0028] Once the deletion of user information and the corresponding card information is complete, the processor 110 puts the multifunction printer 100 into a logged-out state. In the logged-out state, each user cannot use the functions of the multifunction printer 100, such as the fax communication unit 150, the printing unit 160, or the reading unit 170. By configuring the system to transition to the logged-out state once the deletion of the corresponding card information is complete, it is possible to prevent the multifunction printer 100 from being used as the previous user indicated by the deleted user information. The processor 110 may also be configured to display a message on the UI unit 140 indicating that the deletion is complete before transitioning to the logged-out state.
[0029] After transitioning to the logout state, the processor 110 may display a screen on the UI unit 140 indicating that it is in the logout state, or it may turn off the display of the UI unit 140. In this embodiment, when the deletion of user information and the card information corresponding to the user information is completed, the system transitions to the logout state and displays a screen on the UI unit 140 prompting the user to log in. This encourages the new user to store the user information and card information in association with each other in the storage medium 120.
[0030] Next, an example of obtaining a deletion request via the management screen will be described. The acquisition unit 112 allows the processor 110 to obtain a deletion request from the terminal device 200 based on operations performed on the management screen of the multifunction printer 100 displayed on the terminal device 200. The management screen is a website published by the multifunction printer 100. The administrator can access the management screen of the multifunction printer 100 by operating the terminal device 200 and log in to the management screen using the administrator's user ID and password. The management screen provides menus for the administrator to perform various settings related to the multifunction printer 100. These menus include the deletion of user information stored in the storage medium 120 of the multifunction printer 100. When the administrator selects and deletes user information indicating a retired user on the terminal device 200, the multifunction printer 100 obtains information from the terminal device 200 indicating that the operation has been performed and deletes the selected user information and the card information associated with that user information. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the multifunction printer 100 can also receive deletion requests from terminal devices other than the multifunction printer 100.
[0031] As described above, according to this embodiment, the user information of the previous user, which is stored in the multifunction printer 100 in association with the card information of the IC card used by the previous user, can be deleted in response to a deletion request from the multifunction printer 100 itself or from a terminal device 200 that can communicate with the multifunction printer 100. As a result, the new user can associate their own user information with the card information of the IC card, and the IC card can be reused by the new user.
[0032] (2) User information deletion process: (2-1) Removal from the UI section of the multifunction printer: Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the user information deletion process when a deletion request is made via the UI unit 140 of the multifunction printer 100. Figure 5 shows an example of the screen transitions displayed on the UI unit 140 of the multifunction printer 100 when the user information deletion process in Figure 4 is executed. The user information deletion process in Figure 4 will be explained with reference to Figure 5. Screen g1 is an example of a screen displayed when logged out. Screen g1 displays a message prompting the user to log in by holding an IC card over the reader or by using a user ID and password managed by the server 300.
[0033] When a user holds an IC card over the NFC unit 131 of the communication unit 130, the processor 110 obtains card information recorded on the recording medium of the IC card via the NFC unit 131 (step S100). Next, the processor 110 searches for user information corresponding to the card information based on the correspondence information 121 stored in the storage medium 120 and determines whether or not user information corresponding to the card information is stored (step S105).
[0034] In step S105, if it is determined that the user information is not stored, the processor 110 retrieves the user information from the server 300 and stores the user information in association with the card information (step S110). Specifically, the processor 110 displays screen g5. Screen g5 is a screen that prompts the user to log in with their user ID in order to associate the IC card information with the user information. When button b1 is selected, the processor 110 displays screen g6. Screen g6 is a user ID input screen. When the user ID is entered and the next button b9 is selected, the processor 110 displays a password input screen (not shown). When a password is entered on the password input screen and the user is instructed to log in, the server 300 performs user authentication based on the user ID and password. If authentication is successful, the server 300 sends a message indicating successful authentication and at least some of the user information stored in the server 300, such as the user ID, user display name, and email address, to the multifunction printer 100. The processor 110 stores the user information sent from the server 300 in the storage medium 120, associating it with the card information obtained in step S100.
[0035] In step S105, if it is determined that the information is stored, or after step S110 is completed, the processor 110 transitions to a state where the user is logged in with the user ID corresponding to the card ID, and displays screen g2, which indicates that the user is logged in with the user ID associated with the card ID. Screen g2 is the home screen of the logged-in user. Screen g2 includes a username display section p1 and a logout button b2. Screen g2 in Figure 5 shows the state where the user is logged in as user_A. Screen g2 also includes buttons b3, b4, b5, and b6 for using the functions of the multifunction printer 100. Screen g2 also includes a button b7 for deleting user information.
[0036] With screen g2 displayed, the processor 110 determines whether or not user information deletion has been selected (step S115). Specifically, the processor 110 determines whether or not the delete button b7 on screen g2 has been pressed, and if so, displays screen g3. Screen g3 is a screen that prompts the user to confirm whether or not to proceed with deleting user information. On screen g3, the processor 110 determines whether or not the button b8 indicating permission to delete user information has been pressed, and if it is determined that it has been pressed, it considers that user information deletion has been selected.
[0037] If it is determined in step S115 that user information deletion is selected, the processor 110 deletes the user information and card information (step S120). Specifically, the processor 110 deletes the user information corresponding to the user ID indicating the logged-in user and the card ID associated with that user ID in the corresponding information 121. In the case of screen g3 in Figure 5, if button b8 is selected, the user information of user_A and the card information corresponding to that user information will be deleted.
[0038] After deleting user and card information, the processor 110 transitions the multifunction printer 100 to the logout state (step S125). As a result, the processor 110 displays screen g4. Screen g4 is a screen prompting login. After executing step S125 and displaying screen g4, the processor 110 returns to the process of step S100. If the IC card is held over the reader after steps S120 and S125 and card information is obtained in step S100, step S105 will result in an N judgment. Therefore, the processor 110 displays screen g5, and the new user enters their user ID and password on screen g6, etc. When the server 300 notifies that authentication was successful, the processor 110 transitions to a state where the new user is logged in and displays screen g7, which is the user's home screen. Screen g7 shows that user_D is logged in as the new user.
[0039] If it is not determined in step S115 that the delete button b7 was pressed, the processor 110 determines whether or not the logout button b2 was pressed (step S130). If it is determined in step S130 that the logout button b2 was pressed, the processor 110 performs the process in step S125. In addition, if there is no operation for a predetermined time or longer, the same process as when the logout button is pressed is performed.
[0040] If it is not determined in step S130 that the logout button b2 was pressed, the processor 110 determines whether any other buttons were pressed (step S135). In this embodiment, the other buttons are b3, b4, b5, and b6. If it is determined in step S135 that any other buttons were pressed, the processor 110 performs the processing corresponding to the other buttons (step S140) and returns to step S115. That is, in step S140, the processing is performed until the function corresponding to the other buttons is executed and the system returns to screen g2. For example, if the print button b3 is pressed, the processor 110 displays a screen for selecting the file to be printed, and after the user makes a selection, it executes printing when instructed to start printing, and after printing is complete, it displays screen g2 when instructed by the user to return to screen g2.
[0041] If it is not determined that any other button was pressed in step S135, the processor 110 executes the process in step S115.
[0042] (2-2) Deletion from the admin panel: Figure 6 is a flowchart showing the user information deletion process when a deletion request is made via the management screen of the multifunction printer 100. Figure 6 shows the process after an administrator operates the terminal device 200 to access the management screen of the multifunction printer 100 and logs in to the management screen using the administrator's user ID and password. For example, various menus are displayed on the home screen of the management screen, and when the administrator selects the user settings menu, the terminal device 200 sends a request to the multifunction printer 100 to display the user settings screen (step S200). Upon receiving the display request in step S200, the processor 110 of the multifunction printer 100 sends the display data for the user settings screen to the terminal device 200 (step S205).
[0043] When the terminal device 200 acquires the display data, it displays a user settings screen on the terminal device 200 based on the display data (step S210). Figure 7 shows an example of the user settings screen. The user settings screen shown in Figure 7 displays a list of users and checkboxes cb corresponding to each user. The user settings screen also includes a delete button b20. When the administrator selects a checkbox cb for a user to be deleted and then selects the delete button b20, the terminal device 200 accepts the selection of the user to be deleted and the execution of the deletion, and sends a deletion request for the selected user to the multifunction printer 100 (step S215). When the multifunction printer 100 acquires the deletion request, it deletes the user information of the selected user (step S220). That is, the processor 110 deletes the user information selected in the correspondence information 121 and the card information associated with that user information.
[0044] (3) Other embodiments: The embodiments described above are merely examples for carrying out the present invention, and various other embodiments can be adopted. For example, in the above embodiments, the image forming apparatus was configured as a multifunction device equipped with an image forming function, an image reading function, and a fax transmission and reception function, but the invention is not limited to this configuration. Whether or not the image forming apparatus has functions other than the image forming function is optional. The image forming apparatus may be intended for use in various organizations other than companies, such as schools. In addition to the card ID, the card information of the IC card may include various other information related to the IC, such as the manufacturing date and the date of introduction into the organization.
[0045] Multiple multifunction printers may exist within a single organization, and in such cases, parent-child relationships may be pre-registered for each printer. Figure 8 shows an example where a multifunction printer 400 registered as the parent unit and multifunction printers 500 and 600 registered as child units are installed and operated within a single organization. The configurations of multifunction printers 400, 500, and 600 may be the same as those of multifunction printer 100 shown in Figure 1, for example. The storage medium of the parent unit, multifunction printer 400, stores the device IDs and IP addresses of the child units, multifunction printers 500 and 600. The storage medium of the child unit, multifunction printer 500, stores the device ID and IP address of the parent unit, multifunction printer 400, and similarly, the storage medium of the child unit, multifunction printer 600, stores the device ID and IP address of the parent unit, multifunction printer 400.
[0046] The correspondence information 121 described in the above embodiment is stored in the respective storage media of the multifunction printers 400, 500, and 600, and the user can use any of the 400, 500, or 600 multifunction printers using an IC card. Multiple multifunction printers operating within the same organization may be configured to cooperate in deleting user information.
[0047] For example, if the master multifunction printer 400 receives a request to delete user information via the UI unit of the master multifunction printer 400 or via the management screen of the master multifunction printer 400, the deletion unit of the master multifunction printer 400 may be configured to delete the user information and the card information corresponding to the user information stored in the storage medium of the master multifunction printer 400, and then send a deletion request to the second image forming apparatus multifunction printers 500 and 600 which are registered as slave units. Then, upon receiving the deletion request from the master multifunction printer 400, the second image forming apparatus multifunction printers 500 and 600 which are registered as slave units may be configured to delete the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information stored in their respective storage media. With this configuration, if user information and the corresponding card information are deleted in the master multifunction printer, the other multifunction printers registered as slave units will also be able to delete the same user information and the corresponding card information. Therefore, for example, if a new user performs the operation to delete the previous user's information on any of the 400, 500, or 600 multifunction printers, they do not need to perform the same operation again on other multifunction printers, thus reducing the user's workload. Similarly, if an administrator performs the deletion operation on the management screen of the master unit, they do not need to perform the same operation on other multifunction printers, thus reducing the administrator's workload. The timing of the deletion request being sent from the master unit to the slave unit may be synchronized with the deletion being executed on the master unit, or it may be a predetermined synchronization time such as midnight every day, or it may be when the master unit and slave unit become able to communicate after being unable to communicate.
[0048] For example, if a deletion request for user information is received via the UI unit or management screen of one of the slave units, the deletion unit of the slave unit, the slave unit, the slave unit, may be configured to delete the user information and the corresponding card information stored in the storage medium of the slave unit, the slave unit, and then send the deletion request to the third image forming apparatus, the slave unit Furthermore, after a deletion request is sent from a child device to a master device as described above, and the master device performs the deletion in accordance with the request, the master device may be configured to send the deletion request to all child devices other than the child device that sent the original request. By configuring it in this way, the deletion of user information and corresponding card information can be reflected in each multifunction device within the organization. This reduces the effort required from both users and administrators.
[0049] Furthermore, the present invention is also applicable as a program or method executed by a computer. For example, the above can be applied as an invention of a control method for an image forming apparatus, which includes storing card information of a card used for user authentication of the image forming apparatus in association with user information of the user of the image forming apparatus in a storage medium, obtaining a deletion request for user information from the user interface unit or terminal device of the image forming apparatus, and deleting the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information in response to the deletion request.
[0050] Furthermore, for example, the above content can also be applied to the invention of a control program for an image forming apparatus that causes a computer to function as a storage unit that stores in a storage medium the card information of a card used for user authentication of the image forming apparatus and the user information of the user of the image forming apparatus in association with each other, a user interface unit for the image forming apparatus, or an acquisition unit that obtains deletion requests for user information from a terminal device, and a deletion unit that deletes the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information in response to the deletion request.
[0051] Furthermore, the systems, programs, and methods described above may be implemented as a single device or by utilizing components from multiple devices, encompassing various forms. They can also be modified as needed, with some being software and others hardware. Moreover, the invention also functions as a recording medium for a program that controls the system. Of course, this recording medium could be a magnetic recording medium, a semiconductor memory, or any recording medium developed in the future; the same principle applies. [Explanation of symbols]
[0052] 100...Multifunction printer, 110...Processor, 111...Storage unit, 112...Acquisition unit, 113...Deletion unit, 120...Storage medium, 121...Corresponding information, 130...Communication unit, 131...NFC unit, 140...UI unit, 150...FAX communication unit, 160...Printing unit, 170...Reading unit, 200...Terminal device, 300...Server, 400...Multifunction printer, 500...Multifunction printer, 600...Multifunction printer
Claims
1. An image forming apparatus, A storage unit that stores in a storage medium the card information of a card used for user authentication of the image forming apparatus and the user information of the user of the image forming apparatus in association with each other. The user interface unit of the image forming apparatus, or the acquisition unit that acquires a deletion request for the user information of the target user from a terminal device, A deletion unit that deletes the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information in response to the deletion request, An image forming apparatus equipped with the following features.
2. The storage unit acquires the user information from an information processing device that stores the user information of users authorized to use the image forming apparatus, and stores it in association with the card information. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
3. After deleting the user information and the card information corresponding to the user information, the deletion unit sends the deletion request to the second image forming apparatus registered as a slave unit, causing the second image forming apparatus to delete the user information and the card information corresponding to the user information. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
4. After deleting the user information and the card information corresponding to the user information, the deletion unit sends the deletion request to the third image forming apparatus registered as the master unit, causing the third image forming apparatus to delete the user information and the card information corresponding to the user information. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
5. The acquisition unit acquires the deletion request after logging into the image forming apparatus as a user of the user information associated with the card information of the card using the card, and then receiving an operation indicating the deletion of the user information via the user interface unit. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
6. The deletion unit, upon completion of the deletion of the user information and the card information corresponding to the user information, will log the user out of the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.
7. When the deletion unit has completed the deletion of the user information and the card information corresponding to the user information, it displays a screen prompting the user to log in to the user interface unit. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6.
8. The acquisition unit acquires the deletion request from the terminal device by operating on the management screen of the image forming apparatus displayed on the terminal device. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
9. In an image forming apparatus, The card information of the card used for user authentication of the image forming apparatus and the user information of the user of the image forming apparatus are stored in a storage medium in association with each other. The user interface unit of the image forming apparatus or a terminal device obtains a deletion request for the user information, In response to the deletion request, the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information are deleted. A control method for an image forming apparatus, including the following.
10. Computers A storage unit that stores in a storage medium the card information of a card used for user authentication of an image forming apparatus and the user information of the user of the image forming apparatus in association with each other. The user interface unit of the image forming apparatus, or the acquisition unit that acquires a deletion request for the user information from the terminal device, A deletion unit deletes the user information to be deleted and the card information corresponding to the user information in response to the deletion request. A control program for an image forming apparatus that functions as such.