Device registration system, device registration device, device registration program, and system

Abstract

This invention provides a device registration system, device registration device, device registration program, and system that can simplify tenant creation compared to conventional methods. [Solution] The device registration system 40, which registers an image forming apparatus with a cloud application provisioning system that provides cloud applications used by the image forming apparatus, is characterized in that, when it receives a request from the image forming apparatus to register the image forming apparatus with the cloud application provisioning system, it causes the cloud service 31 of the cloud application provisioning system to create a tenant where the image forming apparatus that sent the request is registered (S224~S225), and causes the cloud service 31 to register the image forming apparatus that sent the request with the tenant created by the cloud service 31 (S232~S233).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a device registration system, a device registration apparatus, a device registration program, and a system for registering an electronic device in an application providing system that provides applications used by electronic devices.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a system in which electronic devices are registered with a tenant has been known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the conventional system, a tenant cannot be created from the electronic device used by the user, so there is a problem that the tenant creation work is complicated.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a device registration system, a device registration apparatus, a device registration program, and a system that can simplify tenant creation more easily than before.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The present invention relates to a device registration system that registers an electronic device with an application provisioning system that provides applications used by the electronic device, and is characterized in that, when the system receives a request from the electronic device to register the electronic device with the application provisioning system, the system causes the application provisioning system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and causes the application provisioning system to register the electronic device that sent the request with the tenant created by the application provisioning system.

[0007] With this configuration, when the device registration system of the present invention receives a request from an electronic device to register the electronic device to the application provisioning system, it causes the application provisioning system to create a tenant where the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and then causes the application provisioning system to register the electronic device that sent the request to the tenant created by the application provisioning system. This makes the creation of tenants easier than in the conventional method.

[0008] In the device registration system of the present invention, the application provisioning system manages tenants in association with a specific type of information, the request includes the specific type of information, and if there is a tenant managed by the application provisioning system in association with the specific type of information included in the request, the device registration system does not need to cause the application provisioning system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered.

[0009] This configuration allows the device registration system of the present invention to reduce the possibility of creating unnecessary tenants, because if there is a tenant managed by the application provider system associated with a specific type of information included in the request, the application provider system will not create a tenant to which the electronic device sending the request is registered.

[0010] In the device registration system of the present invention, the specific type of information is an email address, and when the device registration system receives the request transmitted from the electronic device, it may send an email indicating that the request has been received to the email address included in the request.

[0011] This configuration allows the device registration system of the present invention to send an email indicating receipt of a request to the email address included in the request when it receives a request from an electronic device, thereby improving convenience.

[0012] In the device registration system of the present invention, the tenant is assigned one of a plurality of licenses with different restrictions on the use of the application, and the device registration system may, when it has the application provider system create the tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, have the application provider system set the license corresponding to the specific type of information included in the request for the tenant created by the application provider system.

[0013] With this configuration, the device registration system of the present invention can improve convenience by having the application provisioning system create a tenant where the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and then having the application provisioning system set a license for the tenant created by the application provisioning system according to the specific type of information included in the request.

[0014] The device registration system of the present invention may, if the number of requests that have been initiated by the application provisioning system and have not yet been processed by the application provisioning system is less than a certain number, initiate processing of a new request in the application provisioning system; or, if the number of requests that have been initiated by the application provisioning system and have not yet been processed by the application provisioning system is not less than the certain number, wait before initiating processing of a new request in the application provisioning system.

[0015] With this configuration, the device registration system of the present invention can reduce the possibility of overloading the application provider system. If the number of requests that have been initiated by the application provider system but have not yet been processed by the application provider system is less than a certain number, the system will initiate processing based on a new request. If the number of requests that have been initiated by the application provider system but have not yet been processed by the application provider system is not less than a certain number, the system will wait to initiate processing based on a new request.

[0016] When the device registration system of the present invention is waiting for the application provider system to start processing based on a new request, it may notify the electronic device that sent the request and is waiting for the application provider system to start processing that it is waiting for the application provider system to start processing.

[0017] This configuration allows the device registration system of the present invention to improve convenience by notifying the electronic device that sent the request to initiate processing of a new request to the application provider system, when the system is waiting for the application provider system to start processing based on a new request.

[0018] In the device registration system of the present invention, the request includes a specific type of information, the tenant is set with one of a plurality of licenses with different restrictions on the use of the application, and when the device registration system causes the application provider to create the tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, the device registration system causes the application provider to set the license corresponding to the specific type of information included in the request for the tenant created by the application provider, and when there are a plurality of requests waiting for the application provider to start processing, the device registration system may set the request that was waiting for the application provider to start processing first among the plurality of requests waiting for the application provider to start processing, which has the highest priority according to the license corresponding to the specific type of information included in the request.

[0019] With this configuration, when there are multiple requests waiting for the application provider to start processing, the device registration system of the present invention will, among the multiple requests waiting for the application provider to start processing, select the request that has the highest priority according to the license corresponding to a specific type of information contained in the request, and which was the first to wait for the application provider to start processing, and will then be the next request to be processed by the application provider. This allows electronic devices to be registered with the application provider in order of priority according to their licenses.

[0020] The device registration device of the present invention is a device registration device that registers an electronic device with an application provisioning system that provides applications used by the electronic device, and is characterized in that, when a request for registration of the electronic device is received from the electronic device, the device registration device causes the application provisioning system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and causes the application provisioning system to register the electronic device that sent the request with the tenant created by the application provisioning system.

[0021] With this configuration, when the device registration device of the present invention receives a request from an electronic device to register the electronic device to the application provisioning system, it causes the application provisioning system to create a tenant where the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and then causes the application provisioning system to register the electronic device that sent the request to the tenant created by the application provisioning system. This makes the creation of tenants easier than in the conventional method.

[0022] The present invention is a device registration program for registering an electronic device with an application provisioning system that provides applications used by the electronic device, characterized in that, when a computer receives a request from the electronic device to register the electronic device with the application provisioning system, the computer causes the application provisioning system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and causes the computer to register the electronic device that sent the request with the application provisioning system in the tenant created by the application provisioning system.

[0023] With this configuration, when a computer executing the device registration program of the present invention receives a request from an electronic device to register the electronic device to the application provisioning system, it causes the application provisioning system to create a tenant where the electronic device that sent the request will be registered, and then causes the application provisioning system to register the electronic device that sent the request to the tenant created by the application provisioning system. This makes the creation of tenants easier than before.

[0024] The system of the present invention includes an electronic device, an application providing system that provides an application used by the electronic device, and a device registration system that registers the electronic device with the application providing system. When the device registration system receives a request from the electronic device to register the electronic device with the application providing system, the device registration system causes the application providing system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that is the source of the request is to be registered, and causes the application providing system to register the electronic device that is the source of the request with the tenant created by the application providing system.

[0025] With this configuration, when the device registration system of the system of the present invention receives a request from an electronic device to register the electronic device with the application providing system, the device registration system causes the application providing system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that is the source of the request is to be registered, and causes the application providing system to register the electronic device that is the source of the request with the tenant created by the application providing system. Therefore, the creation of a tenant can be facilitated more easily than before.

[0026] The system of the present invention includes a data analysis system that analyzes data obtained from at least one of the application providing system and the device registration system. The data analysis system may display information regarding the registration of the electronic device with the application providing system on a dashboard.

[0027] With this configuration, since the data analysis system of the system of the present invention displays information regarding the registration of an electronic device with the application providing system on a dashboard, the convenience can be improved.

Advantages of the Invention

[0028] The device registration system, device registration apparatus, device registration program, and system of the present invention can facilitate the creation of a tenant more easily than before.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0029] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram of an example of a system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 1 is a block diagram of an example of a cloud application delivery system that consists of a single computer. [Figure 3] Figure 2 shows an example of tenant management information. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of the tenant hierarchy structure as shown in the tenant management information in Figure 3. [Figure 5] Figure 2 shows an example of tenant user management information. [Figure 6] Figure 2 shows an example of device management information. [Figure 7] Figure 1 is a block diagram of an example of a device registration system that is configured using a single computer. [Figure 8] Figure 7 shows an example of plan information. [Figure 9] Figure 1 is a block diagram of an example of a data analysis system that consists of a single computer. [Figure 10] Figure 9 shows an example of tenant creation history information. [Figure 11] Figure 9 shows an example of device registration history information. [Figure 12] Figure 9 shows an example of request processing history information. [Figure 13] Figure 1 is a block diagram of an example of an image forming apparatus that is composed of MFPs. [Figure 14] Figure 13 shows an example of device information. [Figure 15] Figure 1 is a sequence diagram of the system's operation when the device registration request program is started. [Figure 16] Figure 1 is a sequence diagram of the system's operation when the device registration request unit accepts an email address. [Figure 17]Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the device registration system when a device registration request is received in the reception queue. [Figure 18] Figure 13 shows a flowchart of the operation of the image forming apparatus when it receives a standby notification. [Figure 19] Figure 7 shows a flowchart illustrating the operation of the device registration system when it receives a processing status inquiry. [Figure 20] Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of how the device registration system operates when sending device registration requests in the reception queue to a cloud service. [Figure 21] This flowchart shows an example of how a device registration system operates when sending device registration requests in the reception queue to a cloud service, different from the example shown in Figure 20. [Figure 22] Figure 7 shows an example of priority information stored in the memory unit. [Figure 23] Figure 1 is a sequence diagram of the system's operation when a device registration request is sent from the device registration system to the cloud service. [Figure 24] Figure 23 is a sequence diagram of "Tenant Creation Device Registration". [Figure 25] Figure 9 shows a flowchart illustrating the operation of the data analysis system when displaying the management dashboard. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0030] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0031] First, the configuration of a system according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0032] Figure 1 is a block diagram of an example of the system 10 according to this embodiment.

[0033] As shown in Figure 1, System 10 includes a cloud application delivery system 20 that provides cloud applications. The cloud application delivery system 20 may consist of one computer, such as a PC (Personal Computer), or it may consist of multiple computers. The cloud application delivery system 20 is configured on the cloud.

[0034] System 10 includes a device registration system 40 for registering image forming apparatus as electronic equipment with the cloud application provisioning system 20. The device registration system 40 may be composed of one computer, such as a PC, or multiple computers. The device registration system 40 may be configured on the cloud.

[0035] System 10 includes a data analysis system 50 that analyzes data acquired from the cloud application provision system 20 and the device registration system 40. The data analysis system 50 may be composed of one computer, such as a PC, or multiple computers. The data analysis system 50 may be configured on the cloud.

[0036] System 10 includes an image forming apparatus 60 that utilizes a cloud application provided by a cloud application provisioning system 20. System 10 may also include at least one other image forming apparatus with a configuration similar to that of image forming apparatus 60. The image forming apparatus may be, for example, a dedicated printer, a dedicated scanner, or an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral).

[0037] The cloud application provisioning system 20 provides a cloud service 31 for providing cloud applications. The cloud service 31 exposes a REST API (Application Programming Interface) to accept external access. The cloud service 31 communicates with the device registration system 40 via the REST API.

[0038] The cloud application provisioning system 20 provides cloud applications 32 that are provided on the cloud service 31. In addition to cloud applications 32, the cloud application provisioning system 20 may also provide other cloud applications that are provided on the cloud service 31. For example, cloud applications may include applications that cause an image forming apparatus to perform printing based on data stored in the cloud, applications that store image data read from a document by the image forming apparatus in the cloud, and applications that perform various processes on image data read from a document by the image forming apparatus, such as OCR (Optical Character Recognition).

[0039] Figure 2 is a block diagram of an example of a cloud application delivery system 20 that is configured with a single computer.

[0040] As shown in Figure 2, the cloud application provisioning system 20 includes an operation unit 21, which is an operation device such as a keyboard or mouse into which various operations are input; a display unit 22, which is a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) that displays various information; a communication unit 23, which is a communication device that communicates with external devices via a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) or the Internet, or directly via wired or wireless connection without going through a network; a storage unit 24, which is a non-volatile storage device such as a semiconductor memory or HDD (Hard Disk Drive) that stores various information; and a control unit 25 that controls the entire cloud application provisioning system 20.

[0041] The memory unit 24 can store a cloud service program 24a for realizing the cloud service 31. The cloud service program 24a may, for example, be installed in the cloud application provisioning system 20 during the manufacturing stage, or it may be additionally installed in the cloud application provisioning system 20 from an external storage medium such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, or it may be additionally installed in the cloud application provisioning system 20 from a network.

[0042] The storage unit 24 can store a cloud application program for each cloud application to implement a cloud application. For example, the storage unit 24 can store a cloud application program 24b for implementing a cloud application 32. The cloud application program may be installed on the cloud application provisioning system 20 during the manufacturing stage, or it may be additionally installed on the cloud application provisioning system 20 from an external storage medium such as a USB memory stick, or it may be additionally installed on the cloud application provisioning system 20 from a network.

[0043] The memory unit 24 is capable of storing tenant management information 24c for managing tenants of the cloud service 31.

[0044] Figure 3 shows an example of tenant management information 24c.

[0045] As shown in Figure 3, the tenant management information 24c includes, for each target tenant, the "Tenant ID" as identification information for the target tenant, the tenant directly above the target tenant (hereinafter referred to as "Directly Above Tenant"), the tenant directly below the target tenant (hereinafter referred to as "Directly Below Tenant"), the type of the target tenant (hereinafter referred to as "Tenant Type"), the representative email address of the target tenant (hereinafter referred to as "Representative Address"), and the "Plan" if the target tenant uses a cloud application. The value of "Directly Above Tenant" in the tenant management information 24c is indicated by the Tenant ID of the Directly Above Tenant. The value of "Directly Below Tenant" in the tenant management information 24c is indicated by the Tenant ID of the Directly Below Tenant. The "Tenant Type" value in the tenant management information 24c includes "Seller Tenant" as the tenant of the seller of the image forming apparatus, and "Customer Tenant" as the tenant of the customer of the seller of the image forming apparatus. The "Plan" values ​​include, for example, "Basic," which has the fewest restrictions on cloud application usage; "Entry," which has more restrictions than "Basic"; and "Free," which has the most restrictions on cloud application usage. The tenant management information 24c shown in Figure 3 is depicted with some information omitted.

[0046] Figure 4 shows an example of the tenant hierarchy structure as shown in tenant management information 24c.

[0047] As shown in Figure 4, the tenants shown in tenant management information 24c have a hierarchical structure. Here, a seller tenant can be placed directly under another seller tenant. On the other hand, a customer tenant can only be placed directly under a seller tenant.

[0048] As shown in Figure 2, the storage unit 24 is capable of storing tenant user management information 24d for managing tenant users (hereinafter referred to as "tenant users").

[0049] Figure 5 shows an example of tenant user management information 24d.

[0050] As shown in Figure 5, the tenant user management information 24d includes, for each tenant user, the "Tenant ID" of the tenant to which the tenant user belongs, the "Tenant User ID" as identification information for the tenant user, the tenant user's "Password," the tenant user's "Email Address," and the tenant user's "Role." The "Role" value in the tenant user management information 24d includes, for example, the tenant administrator (hereinafter referred to as "Tenant Administrator") and "General User." In Figure 5, the tenant user management information 24d is depicted with some information omitted.

[0051] As shown in Figure 2, the storage unit 24 can store device management information 24e for managing image forming machines belonging to a tenant.

[0052] Figure 6 shows an example of device management information 24e.

[0053] As shown in Figure 6, the device management information 24e includes, for each image forming apparatus, a "device ID" as identification information for the image forming apparatus, a "tenant ID" of the tenant to which the image forming apparatus belongs, and the "product name" of the image forming apparatus. The device ID may be, for example, the serial number of the image forming apparatus. In Figure 6, some information of the device management information 24e is omitted.

[0054] The control unit 25 shown in Figure 2 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores programs and various data, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) used as a working area for the CPU of the control unit 25. The CPU of the control unit 25 executes programs stored in the storage unit 24 or the ROM of the control unit 25.

[0055] The control unit 25 implements the cloud service 31 by executing the cloud service program 24a. The control unit 25 implements the cloud application by executing the cloud application program. For example, the control unit 25 implements the cloud application 32 by executing the cloud application program 24b.

[0056] Figure 7 is a block diagram of an example of a device registration system 40 configured with a single computer.

[0057] As shown in Figure 7, the device registration system 40 includes an operation unit 41 which is an operation device such as a keyboard or mouse into which various operations are input; a display unit 42 which is a display device such as an LCD that displays various information; a communication unit 43 which is a communication device that communicates with external devices via a network such as a LAN or the Internet, or directly by wired or wireless connection without going through a network; a storage unit 44 which is a non-volatile storage device such as a semiconductor memory or HDD that stores various information; and a control unit 45 which controls the entire device registration system 40.

[0058] The device registration system 40 is associated with a specific seller tenant.

[0059] The memory unit 44 can store a device registration program 44a for registering an image forming apparatus with the cloud application provisioning system 20. The device registration program 44a may, for example, be installed in the device registration system 40 during the manufacturing stage, or it may be additionally installed in the device registration system 40 from an external storage medium such as a USB memory, or it may be additionally installed in the device registration system 40 from a network.

[0060] The memory unit 44 can store information 44b for authenticating the device registration request program of the image forming apparatus (see Figure 1), as described later (hereinafter referred to as "program authentication information").

[0061] The memory unit 44 can store a reception queue 44c that accepts requests for registration of the image forming apparatus to the cloud service 31 (hereinafter referred to as "device registration requests").

[0062] The storage unit 44 can store unprocessed request information 44d, which indicates the number of unprocessed requests, which is the number of device registration requests sent to the cloud service 31 that have not yet been processed.

[0063] The storage unit 44 can store processing limit information 44e, which indicates the maximum number of device registration requests that can be processed simultaneously in the cloud service 31.

[0064] The memory unit 44 can store plan information 44f that indicates the plan to be set for a newly created tenant.

[0065] Figure 8 shows an example of plan information 44f.

[0066] The plan information 44f shown in Figure 8 includes an email address and a plan for each email address. Some information is omitted in the plan information 44f shown in Figure 8.

[0067] As shown in Figure 7, the storage unit 44 can store seller address information 44g, which indicates the email address of the tenant administrator of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40.

[0068] The control unit 45 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM that stores programs and various data, and RAM as memory used as a workspace for the CPU of the control unit 45. The CPU of the control unit 45 executes programs stored in the storage unit 44 or the ROM of the control unit 45.

[0069] The control unit 45 implements a device registration unit 45a that registers the image forming apparatus with the cloud application provisioning system 20 by executing a device registration program 44a.

[0070] Figure 9 is a block diagram of an example of a data analysis system 50 that consists of a single computer.

[0071] As shown in Figure 9, the data analysis system 50 includes an operation unit 51 which is an operation device such as a keyboard or mouse into which various operations are input; a display unit 52 which is a display device such as an LCD that displays various information; a communication unit 53 which is a communication device that communicates with external devices via a network such as a LAN or the Internet, or directly by wired or wireless connection without going through a network; a storage unit 54 which is a non-volatile storage device such as a semiconductor memory or HDD that stores various types of information; and a control unit 55 that controls the entire data analysis system 50.

[0072] The memory unit 54 is capable of storing a data analysis program 54a for analyzing data related to the cloud application provision system 20 and the device registration system 40. The data analysis program 54a may, for example, be installed in the data analysis system 50 during the manufacturing stage, or it may be additionally installed in the data analysis system 50 from an external storage medium such as a USB memory stick, or it may be additionally installed in the data analysis system 50 from a network.

[0073] The storage unit 54 is capable of storing tenant creation history information 54b, which shows the history of tenant creation.

[0074] Figure 10 shows an example of tenant creation history information 54b.

[0075] As shown in Figure 10, the tenant creation history information 54b includes the date and time of tenant creation, the tenant ID of the created tenant, and the plan set for the created tenant, for each tenant created. Some information is omitted in the tenant creation history information 54b shown in Figure 10.

[0076] As shown in Figure 9, the storage unit 54 can store device registration history information 54c, which indicates the registration history of the image forming apparatus.

[0077] Figure 11 shows an example of device registration history information 54c.

[0078] The device registration history information 54c shown in Figure 11 includes the date and time of registration of the image forming apparatus, the device ID of the registered image forming apparatus, the tenant ID of the tenant to which the registered image forming apparatus belongs, and the product name of the registered image forming apparatus, for each registration of an image forming apparatus. Some information is omitted in the device registration history information 54c shown in Figure 11.

[0079] As shown in Figure 9, the storage unit 54 can store request processing history information 54d, which shows the processing status of device registration requests.

[0080] Figure 12 shows an example of request processing history information 54d.

[0081] The request processing history information 54d shown in Figure 12 includes the date and time when the processing status of the device registration request changed, the request ID as identification information for the device registration request, and the processing status of the device registration request for each processing status of the device registration request. For example, the processing status of the device registration request can be "waiting" for processing, "in progress" for processing, "success" as a result of processing the device registration request, or "failure" as a result of processing the device registration request. Some information is omitted when depicting the request processing history information 54d shown in Figure 12.

[0082] The control unit 55 shown in Figure 9 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM that stores programs and various data, and RAM as memory used as a workspace for the CPU of the control unit 55. The CPU of the control unit 55 executes programs stored in the storage unit 54 or the ROM of the control unit 55.

[0083] The control unit 55 implements a data analysis unit 55a that analyzes data related to the cloud application provision system 20 and the device registration system 40 by executing a data analysis program 54a.

[0084] Figure 13 is a block diagram of an example of an image forming apparatus 60 that is configured with an MFP.

[0085] As shown in Figure 13, the image forming apparatus 60 is a computer comprising: an operation unit 61 which is an operation device such as buttons into which various operations are input; a display unit 62 which is a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) which displays various information; a printer 63 which is a printing device which prints images onto a recording medium such as paper; a scanner 64 which is a reading device which reads images from an original document; a communication unit 65 which is a communication device which communicates with external devices via a network such as a LAN or the Internet, or directly by wired or wireless connection without going through a network; a fax communication unit 66 which is a fax device which communicates faxes with an external facsimile device (not shown) via a communication line such as a public telephone line; a storage unit 67 which is a non-volatile storage device such as a semiconductor memory or HDD (Hard Disk Drive) which stores various information; and a control unit 68 which controls the entire image forming apparatus 60.

[0086] The storage unit 67 can store a cloud application usage program for each cloud application, which is used to utilize cloud applications provided by the cloud application provisioning system 20 (see Figure 1). For example, the storage unit 67 can store a cloud application usage program 67a for using cloud application 32 (see Figure 1). The cloud application usage program may be installed in the image forming apparatus 60 during the manufacturing stage, or it may be additionally installed in the image forming apparatus 60 from an external storage medium such as a USB memory, or it may be additionally installed in the image forming apparatus 60 from a network.

[0087] The storage unit 67 can store a device registration request program 67b for requesting registration of the image forming apparatus 60 with the cloud service 31. The device registration request program 67b may, for example, be installed in the image forming apparatus 60 during the manufacturing stage, or it may be additionally installed in the image forming apparatus 60 from an external storage medium such as a USB memory, or it may be additionally installed in the image forming apparatus 60 from a network.

[0088] The device registration request program 67b includes program authentication information 67c for the device registration request program 67b itself.

[0089] The memory unit 67 is capable of storing device information 67d that indicates various types of information about the image forming apparatus 60.

[0090] Figure 14 shows an example of device information 67d.

[0091] As shown in Figure 14, the device information 67d includes the "device ID" and the "product name" of the image forming apparatus 60. Some information is omitted from the device information 67d shown in Figure 14.

[0092] The control unit 68 shown in Figure 13 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM that stores programs and various data, and RAM as memory used as a workspace for the CPU of the control unit 68. The CPU of the control unit 68 executes programs stored in the storage unit 67 or the ROM of the control unit 68.

[0093] The control unit 68 implements a cloud application utilization unit that uses cloud applications by executing a cloud application utilization program. For example, the control unit 68 implements a cloud application utilization unit 68a that uses cloud application 32 by executing a cloud application utilization program 67a.

[0094] The control unit 68 implements a device registration request unit 68b that requests registration of the image forming apparatus 60 to the cloud service 31 by executing a device registration request program 67b.

[0095] Next, we will describe the operation of system 10.

[0096] First, we will describe the operation of system 10 when the device registration request program 67b is started.

[0097] The control unit 68 of the image forming apparatus 60 starts the device registration request program 67b when the initial setup of the image forming apparatus 60 is performed by a user of the image forming apparatus 60. For example, the control unit 68 of the image forming apparatus 60 may start the device registration request program 67b after the image forming apparatus 60 is connected to the internet during the initial setup of the image forming apparatus 60.

[0098] Furthermore, a user of the image forming apparatus 60 can instruct the image forming apparatus 60 to start the device registration request program 67b via the operation unit 41. When the control unit 68 of the image forming apparatus 60 is instructed to start the device registration request program 67b, it starts the device registration request program 67b.

[0099] Figure 15 is a sequence diagram of the operation of system 10 when the device registration request program 67b is started.

[0100] When the control unit 68 of the image forming apparatus 60 starts the device registration request program 67b, the device registration request unit 68b transmits the program authentication information 67c of the device registration request program 67b to the device registration system 40, as shown in Figure 15 (S101).

[0101] In S101, the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives program authentication information transmitted from the image forming apparatus 60 and performs authentication of the device registration request program 67b based on the received program authentication information and the program authentication information stored in the storage unit 44 (S102). Specifically, the device registration unit 45a determines that the authentication of the device registration request program 67b has been successful if the same program authentication information as the program authentication information transmitted from the image forming apparatus 60 in S101 exists in the storage unit 44. On the other hand, the device registration unit 45a determines that the authentication of the device registration request program 67b has failed if the same program authentication information as the program authentication information transmitted from the image forming apparatus 60 in S101 does not exist in the storage unit 44.

[0102] If the device registration unit 45a determines in S102 that the authentication of the device registration request program 67b has failed, it notifies the device registration request unit 68b of the failure of the authentication of the device registration request program 67b (S103).

[0103] When the processing in S103 is completed, the device registration unit 45a disconnects communication with the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 (S104).

[0104] When the device registration request unit 68b receives the notification in S103, it displays the failure of authentication by the device registration request program 67b on the display unit 62 (S105).

[0105] If the device registration unit 45a determines in S102 that the authentication of the device registration request program 67b has been successful, it notifies the device registration request unit 68b of the success of the authentication of the device registration request program 67b (S106).

[0106] Next, we will describe the operation of the system 10 when the device registration request unit 68b accepts the input of an email address.

[0107] When the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 receives the notification in S106, it can accept input of an email address as information necessary to register the image forming apparatus 60 with the cloud service 31. Therefore, users of the image forming apparatus 60 can input their email address to the device registration request unit 68b via the operation unit 61.

[0108] Figure 16 is a sequence diagram of the operation of the system 10 when the device registration request unit 68b accepts the input of an email address.

[0109] After receiving the notification in S106, the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60, upon receiving an email address via the operation unit 61, requests the device registration system 40 to confirm the existence of the entered email address (S121), as shown in Figure 16.

[0110] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives a request in S121, it queries the mail server that manages the email address to find out whether or not the email address that is the subject of the request in S121 exists (S122).

[0111] If the result of the query in S122 is that the email address requested in S121 does not exist, the device registration unit 45a notifies the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 that the email address requested in S121 does not exist (S123).

[0112] When the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 receives the notification in S123, it displays on the display unit 62 that the email address to which the request in S121 belongs does not exist (S124).

[0113] If the result of the query in S122 is that the email address requested in S121 exists, the device registration unit 45a notifies the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 that the email address requested in S121 exists (S125).

[0114] When the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 receives the notification in S125, it sends a device registration request to the device registration system 40 to request that the image forming apparatus 60 be registered with the cloud service 31 (S126). The device registration request unit 68b includes the device ID and product name of the image forming apparatus 60, as shown in the device information 67d, and the email address to which the request in S121 pertains, in the device registration request in S126.

[0115] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives a device registration request in S126, it assigns a request ID to the device registration request received in S126 (S127).

[0116] When the processing in S127 is completed, the device registration unit 45a sends an email to the email address of the request in S121 indicating that registration of the image forming apparatus 60 to the cloud service 31 has been requested (S128).

[0117] When the processing in S128 is completed, the device registration unit 45a notifies the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 that it has sent an email to the email address that was the subject of the request in S121 (S129).

[0118] When the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 receives the notification in S129, it displays on the display unit 62 that an email has been sent to the email address entered by the user (S130).

[0119] When the processing in S127 is completed, the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 transmits to the data analysis system 50 the date and time the device registration request was received in S126, the request ID assigned in S127, and information indicating that the processing of the device registration request is pending (S131).

[0120] When the data analysis unit 55a of the data analysis system 50 receives information transmitted by the device registration system 40 in S131, it writes the history based on the received information to the request processing history information 54d (S132).

[0121] When the processing in S127 is completed, the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 places the device registration request received in S126 into the reception queue 44c (S133).

[0122] Next, we will explain the operation of the device registration system 40 when a device registration request is received in the reception queue 44c.

[0123] Figure 17 is a flowchart showing the operation of the device registration system 40 when a device registration request is received in the reception queue 44c.

[0124] The device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 executes the operation shown in Figure 17 each time a device registration request (hereinafter referred to as "target request" in the operation description shown in Figure 17) is received in the reception queue 44c.

[0125] As shown in Figure 17, the device registration unit 45a determines whether the number of unprocessed requests indicated in the unprocessed request number information 44d is less than the processing limit indicated in the processing limit information 44e (S141).

[0126] If the device registration unit 45a determines in S141 that the number of unprocessed requests indicated in the unprocessed request count information 44d is not less than the processing limit indicated in the processing limit information 44e, it sends a notification (hereinafter referred to as a "waiting notification") to the image forming apparatus that sent the target request, indicating that it is waiting to send the target request to the cloud service 31, that is, waiting for the cloud application provision system 20 to start processing (S142). The device registration unit 45a includes the request ID of the target request in the waiting notification sent in S142.

[0127] The device registration unit 45a terminates the operation shown in Figure 17 when it determines in S141 that the number of unprocessed requests indicated in the unprocessed request number information 44d is less than the processing limit indicated in the processing limit information 44e, or when the processing in S142 is completed.

[0128] Next, we will describe the operation of the image forming apparatus 60 when it receives a standby notification.

[0129] Figure 18 is a flowchart showing the operation of the image forming apparatus 60 when it receives a standby notification.

[0130] When the device registration request unit 68b of the image forming apparatus 60 receives a standby notification (hereinafter referred to as "target notification" in the description of the operation shown in Figure 18) from the device registration system 40, it executes the operation shown in Figure 18.

[0131] As shown in Figure 18, the device registration request unit 68b displays a message on the display unit 62 prompting the user to wait, such as "Processing. Please wait a moment." (S161).

[0132] When the device registration request unit 68b finishes processing S161, it determines whether a specific amount of time has elapsed since the completion of the previous processing S161 (S162), until it determines that a specific amount of time has elapsed since the completion of the previous processing S161. Here, the specific amount of time is, for example, 5 minutes.

[0133] When the device registration request unit 68b determines in S162 that a specific periodic timing has elapsed, it sends an inquiry to the device registration system 40 regarding the processing status of the device registration request identified by the request ID included in the target notification (hereinafter referred to as the "processing status inquiry") (S163). The device registration request unit 68b includes the request ID included in the target notification in the processing status inquiry sent in S163.

[0134] Figure 19 is a flowchart showing the operation of the device registration system 40 when it receives a processing status inquiry.

[0135] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives a processing status inquiry (hereinafter referred to as "target inquiry" in the description of the operation shown in Figure 19) from the image forming apparatus 60, it executes the operation shown in Figure 19.

[0136] As shown in Figure 19, the device registration unit 45a determines whether or not a device registration request (hereinafter referred to as the "target request" in the description of the operation shown in Figure 19) identified by the request ID included in the target query exists in the reception queue 44c (S181).

[0137] If the device registration unit 45a determines in S181 that the target request is in the reception queue 44c, it sends a response to the image forming apparatus that sent the target inquiry (S182) indicating that it is waiting to send the target request to the cloud service 31, that is, waiting for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to start processing, and then terminates the operation shown in Figure 19.

[0138] If the device registration unit 45a determines in S181 that the target request is not present in the reception queue 44c, it sends a response to the image forming apparatus that sent the target inquiry (S183) indicating that the target request has been sent to the cloud service 31, that is, that the cloud application provisioning system 20 has started processing it, and then terminates the operation shown in Figure 19.

[0139] As shown in Figure 18, once the processing in S163 is completed, the device registration request unit 68b determines whether or not it has received a response from the device registration system 40 to the processing status inquiry sent to the device registration system 40 in S163, until it determines that it has received a response from the device registration system 40 to the processing status inquiry sent to the device registration system 40 in S163 (S164).

[0140] If the device registration request unit 68b determines in S164 that it has received a response from the device registration system 40 to the processing status inquiry it sent to the device registration system 40 in S163, it determines the content of the response received from the device registration system 40 (S165).

[0141] If the response received from the device registration system 40 indicates that the system is waiting for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to start processing, the device registration request unit 68b executes the process in S161.

[0142] If the response received from the device registration system 40 indicates that the cloud application provisioning system 20 has started processing, the device registration request unit 68b terminates the operation shown in Figure 18.

[0143] Next, we will explain the operation of the device registration system 40 when it sends a device registration request in the reception queue 44c to the cloud service 31.

[0144] Figure 20 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the device registration system 40 when it sends a device registration request in the reception queue 44c to the cloud service 31.

[0145] As shown in Figure 20, the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 determines whether or not there is a device registration request in the reception queue 44c until it determines that there is a device registration request in the reception queue 44c (S201).

[0146] If the device registration unit 45a determines in S201 that there is a device registration request in the reception queue 44c, it determines whether the number of unprocessed requests indicated in the unprocessed request count information 44d is less than the processing limit indicated in the processing limit count information 44e (S202).

[0147] If the device registration unit 45a determines in S202 that the number of unprocessed requests indicated in the number of unprocessed requests information 44d is less than the processing limit indicated in the processing limit information 44e, it retrieves the device registration request that entered the reception queue 44c first from the reception queue 44c (S203).

[0148] When the processing in S203 is completed, the device registration unit 45a associates the device registration request retrieved from the reception queue 44c in S203 with the tenant ID of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 and sends it to the cloud service 31 (S204).

[0149] When the processing in S204 is completed, the device registration unit 45a increments the number of unprocessed requests shown in the unprocessed request count information 44d by 1 (S205).

[0150] When the processing in S205 is completed, the device registration unit 45a sends information to the data analysis system 50 (S206) indicating the date and time the device registration request was sent in S204, the request ID of the device registration request sent in S204, and that the processing of the device registration request is in progress. When the data analysis unit 55a of the data analysis system 50 receives the information sent by the device registration system 40 in S206, it writes a history based on the received information to the request processing history information 54d.

[0151] The device registration unit 45a executes the process in S201 if it determines in S202 that the number of unprocessed requests indicated in the unprocessed request count information 44d is not less than the processing limit indicated in the processing limit count information 44e, or if the process in S206 is completed.

[0152] In the above case, the device registration unit 45a retrieves the device registration request that entered the reception queue 44c first from among the device registration requests in the reception queue 44c in order to send it to the cloud service 31 (S203). However, as shown in Figure 21, the device registration unit 45a may also identify the device registration request to retrieve from the device registration requests in the reception queue 44c for transmission to the cloud service 31, depending on the plan.

[0153] Figure 21 is a flowchart of an example of the operation of the device registration system 40 when sending a device registration request in the reception queue 44c to the cloud service 31, which differs from the example shown in Figure 20.

[0154] If the device registration unit 45a performs the operation shown in Figure 21 instead of the operation shown in Figure 20, the device registration system 40 stores priority information 44h (see Figure 22) in the storage unit 44, which indicates the priority when retrieving a device registration request from the reception queue 44c.

[0155] Figure 22 shows an example of priority information 44h.

[0156] The priority information 44h shown in Figure 22 illustrates the correspondence between plans and priorities. In Figure 22, a lower number indicates a higher priority.

[0157] The operation shown in Figure 21 is the same as the operation shown in Figure 20, but with the processing in S211 to S212 replaced by the processing in S203 (see Figure 20).

[0158] As shown in Figure 21, when the device registration unit 45a determines in S202 that the number of unprocessed requests indicated in the number of unprocessed requests information 44d is less than the processing limit indicated in the processing limit information 44e, it identifies the priority of all device registration requests in the reception queue 44c based on the plan information 44f and the priority information 44h (S211). Specifically, for each device registration request in the reception queue 44c, the device registration unit 45a identifies the priority associated in the priority information 44h with the plan associated in the plan information 44f with the email address included in the device registration request.

[0159] When the processing in S211 is completed, the device registration unit 45a retrieves from the reception queue 44c the device registration request that entered the reception queue 44c first among the device registration requests with the highest priority identified in S211 (S212).

[0160] When the processing in S212 is completed, the device registration unit 45a associates the device registration request retrieved from the reception queue 44c in S212 with the tenant ID of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 and sends it to the cloud service 31 (S204).

[0161] Next, we will describe the operation of system 10 when a device registration request is sent from the device registration system 40 to the cloud service 31.

[0162] Figure 23 is a sequence diagram of the operation of system 10 when a device registration request is sent from the device registration system 40 to the cloud service 31. Figure 24 is a sequence diagram of the "tenant creation device registration" shown in Figure 23.

[0163] As shown in Figures 23 and 24, when the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 sends a device registration request (hereinafter referred to as the "target request" in the operations shown in Figures 23 and 24) to the cloud service 31 (S204 (see Figure 20 or 21)), the cloud service 31 determines whether the tenant associated with the email address included in the target request received from the device registration system 40 (hereinafter referred to as the "target tenant" in the operations shown in Figures 23 and 24) is located directly under the seller tenant identified by the tenant ID received from the device registration system 40 in connection with the target request (S221).

[0164] If the cloud service 31 determines in S221 that a target tenant exists directly under the seller tenant identified by the tenant ID received from the device registration system 40 in association with the target request, it registers the image forming apparatus identified by the device ID included in the target request received from the device registration system 40 in the target tenant located directly under the seller tenant identified by the tenant ID received from the device registration system 40 in association with the target request (S222). Specifically, the cloud service 31 creates a record in the device management information 24e that includes a combination of the tenant ID in the record in the tenant management information 24c, the device ID included in the target request received from the device registration system 40, and the product name included in the target request received from the device registration system 40, where the tenant ID received from the device registration system 40 in association with the target request is the tenant ID of the directly above tenant and the email address included in the target request received from the device registration system 40 is the representative address.

[0165] If the cloud service 31 determines in S221 that there is no target tenant directly under the seller tenant identified by the tenant ID received from the device registration system 40 in association with the target request, it notifies the device registration system 40 that the target tenant does not exist (S223).

[0166] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives the notification in S223, it requests the cloud service 31 to create a tenant associated with the email address included in the target request (S224). The device registration unit 45a includes the tenant ID of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 in the request in S224.

[0167] When cloud service 31 receives a request in S224, it creates a tenant directly under the seller tenant identified by the tenant ID included in the request in S224, which is associated with the email address included in the target request (S225). Specifically, cloud service 31 creates a record in tenant management information 24c that includes the tenant ID included in the request in S224 as the tenant ID of the direct parent tenant, and the email address included in the target request as the representative address. Cloud service 31 generates a tenant ID in the record created in S225 that is different from an already existing tenant ID.

[0168] When the processing in S225 is completed, the cloud service 31 notifies the device registration system 40 that the tenant creation is complete (S226).

[0169] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives the notification in S226, it requests the cloud service 31 to set the plan associated in the plan information 44f with the email address included in the target request as the target tenant of the notification in S226 (S227).

[0170] When the cloud service 31 receives a request in S227, it sets the plan included in the request in S227 in the plan of the record associated with the tenant ID of the tenant targeted by the request in S227 in tenant management information 24c (S228).

[0171] When the processing of S228 is completed, the cloud service 31 sends information to the data analysis system 50 including the date and time of tenant creation in processing S225, the tenant ID of the tenant created in processing S225, and the plan set in processing S228 (S229).

[0172] When the data analysis unit 55a of the data analysis system 50 receives information transmitted by the cloud service 31 in S229, it writes the history based on the received information to the tenant creation history information 54b (S230).

[0173] When the processing in S228 is completed, the cloud service 31 notifies the device registration system 40 that the plan setup is complete (S231).

[0174] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives the notification in S231, it requests the cloud service 31 to register the image forming apparatus identified by the device ID included in the target request to the tenant that was the subject of the notification in S226 (S232).

[0175] When cloud service 31 receives a request in S232, it registers the image forming apparatus that is the subject of the request in S232 in the tenant that is the subject of the request in S232 (S233). Specifically, cloud service 31 creates a record in device management information 24e that includes a combination of the tenant ID of the tenant that is the subject of the request in S232, the device ID of the image forming apparatus that is the subject of the request in S232, and the product name included in the target request.

[0176] When the processing of S222 or S233 is completed, the cloud service 31 sends information to the data analysis system 50 (S234) that includes the date and time of registration of the image forming apparatus in the processing of S222 or S233, the device ID of the image forming apparatus registered in the processing of S222 or S233, the tenant ID of the tenant that registered the image forming apparatus in the processing of S222 or S233, and the product name of the image forming apparatus registered in the processing of S222 or S233.

[0177] When the data analysis unit 55a of the data analysis system 50 receives information transmitted by the cloud service 31 in S234, it writes a history based on the received information to the device registration history information 54c (S235).

[0178] When the processing in S222 or S233 is completed, the cloud service 31 notifies the device registration system 40 that the registration of the image forming apparatus is complete (S236).

[0179] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 receives the notification in S236, it reduces the number of unprocessed requests shown in the unprocessed request information 44d by 1 (S237).

[0180] The above describes an example in which the device registration unit 45a reduces the number of pending requests by 1 when the registration of the image forming apparatus is successful. However, similarly, if the registration of the image forming apparatus fails, the device registration unit 45a also reduces the number of pending requests by 1.

[0181] When the processing in S237 is completed, the device registration unit 45a sends an email indicating the success of the registration of the image forming apparatus to the email address included in the target request and the email address shown in the seller address information 44g, that is, the email address of the tenant administrator of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 (S238). The device registration unit 45a may also obtain the email address of the tenant administrator of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 from the cloud service 31.

[0182] The above describes an example in which, when the registration of the image forming apparatus is successful, the device registration unit 45a sends an email indicating the success of the registration of the image forming apparatus to the email address included in the target request and to the email address of the tenant administrator of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40. However, similarly, if the registration of the image forming apparatus fails, the device registration unit 45a also sends an email indicating the failure of the registration of the image forming apparatus to the email address included in the target request and to the email address of the tenant administrator of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40. Similarly, if the creation of a tenant fails, the device registration unit 45a also sends an email indicating the failure of the creation of a tenant to the email address included in the target request and to the email address of the tenant administrator of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40.

[0183] When the device registration unit 45a of the device registration system 40 completes the processing in S237, it transmits to the data analysis system 50 the date and time of the notification received in S236, the request ID of the target request, and information indicating the success of the processing of the device registration request (S239).

[0184] When the data analysis unit 55a of the data analysis system 50 receives information transmitted by the device registration system 40 in S239, it writes the history based on the received information to the request processing history information 54d (S240).

[0185] The above describes an example in which, when the registration of the image forming apparatus is successful, the history of the successful processing of the device registration request is written to the request processing history information 54d. However, similarly, if the registration of the image forming apparatus fails, the history of the failure of the device registration request processing is also written to the request processing history information 54d.

[0186] Next, we will describe how the data analysis system 50 operates when displaying the management dashboard.

[0187] Figure 25 is a flowchart showing the operation of the data analysis system 50 when displaying the management dashboard.

[0188] The tenant administrator of a seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 can, for example, instruct the data analysis system 50 to display a management dashboard via a computer such as a PC (not shown). Here, the tenant administrator of a seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 can specify the conditions for the information displayed on the management dashboard. For example, there are various conditions that indicate information related to the registration of image forming machines to the cloud application provision system 20, such as the number of tenants created in the past week, the number of image forming machines that were successfully registered in the past three days, and the number of image forming machines that were not successfully registered in the past three days.

[0189] As shown in Figure 25, when the data analysis unit 55a of the data analysis system 50 is instructed to display the management dashboard, it generates data according to the instructed conditions (S261).

[0190] When the processing in S261 is completed, the data analysis unit 55a sends the dashboard data that displays the data generated in S261 to the computer that instructed the data analysis system 50 to display the dashboard (S262), and then terminates the operation shown in Figure 25.

[0191] When a computer instructs the data analysis system 50 to display a dashboard, it displays a dashboard corresponding to the data received by the data analysis system 50 in S262. Therefore, the tenant administrator of the seller tenant associated with the device registration system 40 can view the information they desire on the dashboard.

[0192] As described above, when the device registration system 40 receives a request from an image forming apparatus to register the image forming apparatus to the cloud application provision system 20, i.e., a device registration request, it causes the cloud application provision system 20 to create a tenant where the image forming apparatus that sent the device registration request will be registered (S224-S225), and then causes the cloud application provision system 20 to register the image forming apparatus that sent the device registration request with the tenant created by the cloud application provision system 20 (S232-S233). Therefore, the creation of tenants can be made easier than before. Accordingly, the device registration system 40 can shorten the time required to register an image forming apparatus to the cloud application provision system 20.

[0193] The device registration system 40 prevents the cloud application provisioning system 20 from creating a tenant to which the image forming apparatus that sent the device registration request will be registered, if there is a tenant managed by the cloud application provisioning system 20 associated with the email address included in the device registration request (S221-S222), thereby reducing the possibility of creating unnecessary tenants.

[0194] The device registration system 40, upon receiving a device registration request from an image forming apparatus, sends an email indicating receipt of the device registration request to the email address included in the device registration request (S128), thereby improving convenience.

[0195] When the device registration system 40 has the cloud application provisioning system 20 create a tenant to which the image forming apparatus that sent the device registration request will be registered (S224-S225), it has the cloud application provisioning system 20 set a plan (license) corresponding to the email address included in the device registration request for the tenant created by the cloud application provisioning system 20 (S227-S228), thereby improving convenience.

[0196] The device registration system 40, when the number of device registration requests that have been initiated by the cloud application provisioning system 20 and have not yet been processed by the cloud application provisioning system 20, i.e., the number of unprocessed requests, is less than the processing limit (YES in S202), initiates processing on a new device registration request in the cloud application provisioning system 20 (S204). When the number of unprocessed requests is not the processing limit (NO in S202), the system waits for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to initiate processing on a new device registration request, thereby reducing the possibility of excessive load on the cloud application provisioning system 20.

[0197] When the device registration system 40 is waiting for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to start processing based on a new device registration request (NO in S141), it notifies the image forming apparatus that sent the device registration request and is waiting for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to start processing that it is waiting for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to start processing (S142), thereby improving convenience.

[0198] When there are multiple device registration requests waiting for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to start processing, the device registration system 40 selects the device registration request that has the highest priority according to the plan (license) corresponding to the email address included in the device registration request, and which is the device registration request that was waiting for the cloud application provisioning system 20 to start processing first, and sets it as the next device registration request to be processed by the cloud application provisioning system 20 (S211~S212). This allows the image forming apparatus to be registered with the cloud application provisioning system 20 in order of priority according to the plan (license).

[0199] System 10 can improve convenience because the data analysis system 50 displays information regarding the registration of the image forming apparatus to the cloud application provisioning system 20 on a dashboard (S262).

[0200] In this embodiment, the "specific type of information" in the present invention is an "email address." However, the "specific type of information" in the present invention may be information other than an "email address."

[0201] In this embodiment, the "electronic device" of the present invention is an "image forming apparatus." However, the "electronic device" of the present invention may be an electronic device other than an "image forming apparatus."

[0202] The above describes a device registration system for registering electronic devices with a cloud application provisioning system that provides cloud applications used by electronic devices. However, the device registration system of the present invention may also register electronic devices with an application provisioning system that provides applications other than cloud applications used by electronic devices. [Explanation of symbols]

[0203] 10 Systems 20 Cloud application delivery system 32 Cloud Applications 40. Device registration system (device registration device, computer) 44a Device Registration Program 50 Data Analysis Systems 60 Image forming equipment (electronic equipment)

Claims

1. A device registration system for registering an electronic device with an application provision system that provides applications used by the electronic device, A device registration system characterized in that, when the electronic device receives a request from the electronic device to register the electronic device to the application provision system, the application provision system creates a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and the application provision system registers the electronic device that sent the request to the tenant created by the application provision system.

2. The aforementioned application provisioning system manages the tenants in association with specific types of information, The aforementioned request includes the aforementioned specific type of information, The device registration system according to claim 1, characterized in that, if there is a tenant managed by the application provider system in association with the specific type of information included in the request, the application provider system does not allow the application provider system to create the tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered.

3. The aforementioned specific type of information is an email address. The device registration system according to claim 2, characterized in that when the device registration system receives the request transmitted from the electronic device, it sends an email indicating that the request has been received to the email address included in the request.

4. The tenant is configured with one of several licenses that have different restrictions on the use of the application. The device registration system according to claim 2, characterized in that when the device registration system causes the application provision system to create the tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, the application provision system sets the license corresponding to the specific type of information included in the request for the tenant created by the application provision system.

5. If the number of requests that have been initiated to be processed by the application provisioning system and whose processing by the application provisioning system has not yet been completed is less than a certain number, the application provisioning system is instructed to start processing based on a new request. The device registration system according to claim 1, characterized in that, if the number of requests for which processing has been initiated in the application provisioning system and which processing in the application provisioning system has not yet been completed is not less than the specified number, the system waits for the application provisioning system to initiate processing based on a new request.

6. The device registration system according to claim 5, characterized in that, when waiting for the application provider system to start processing based on a new request, it notifies the electronic device that sent the request and is waiting for the application provider system to start processing that it is waiting for the application provider system to start processing.

7. The aforementioned request includes a specific type of information, The tenant is configured with one of several licenses that have different restrictions on the use of the application. When the device registration system causes the application provisioning system to create the tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, it causes the application provisioning system to set the license corresponding to the specific type of information included in the request for the tenant created by the application provisioning system. The device registration system according to claim 5, wherein, when there are multiple requests waiting for the application provider to start processing, the request that was waiting first for the application provider to start processing is selected from among the multiple requests waiting for the application provider to start processing, the request that has the highest priority according to the license according to the specific type of information contained in the request, and is the next request to be processed by the application provider.

8. A device registration device for registering an electronic device with an application provision system that provides applications used by electronic devices, A device registration device characterized in that, upon receiving a request from the electronic device to register the electronic device to the application provision system, it causes the application provision system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and registers the electronic device that sent the request to the application provision system in the tenant created by the application provision system.

9. A device registration program for registering an electronic device with an application provisioning system that provides applications used by electronic devices, A device registration program characterized in that, when a computer receives a request from the electronic device to register the electronic device to the application provision system, the computer causes the application provision system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and then causes the computer to register the electronic device that sent the request to the application provision system in the tenant created by the application provision system.

10. Electronic devices and, An application provision system that provides applications used by the aforementioned electronic device, A device registration system for registering the electronic device with the aforementioned application provision system Equipped with, The device registration system is characterized in that, when it receives a request from the electronic device to register the electronic device to the application provision system, it causes the application provision system to create a tenant in which the electronic device that sent the request is registered, and then causes the application provision system to register the electronic device that sent the request to the tenant created by the application provision system.

11. The system includes a data analysis system that analyzes data obtained from at least one of the aforementioned application provision system and the aforementioned device registration system. The data analysis system is characterized in that it displays information regarding the registration of the electronic device to the application provision system on a dashboard, as described in claim 10.

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