SERVICE PROVIDING SYSTEM, ELECTRONIC DEVICE, INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD, AND PROGRAM

Abstract

To provide a service providing system, an electronic apparatus, an information processing method, and a program for transmitting information to an image forming apparatus not connected to an external network.SOLUTION: A service providing system includes an image forming apparatus that has a camera for reading an image and a display screen for displaying an image and is not connected to an external network, and a terminal device that has a camera for reading an image and a display screen for displaying an image. The image forming apparatus has a first display unit that displays a first code image obtained by converting first information into a code image, and a first reading unit that reads the code image displayed by the terminal device on the display screen. The terminal device has a second reading unit that reads the first code image displayed by the image forming apparatus on the display screen, a second code conversion unit that converts the read first code image and outputs first information, a second management unit that acquires second information based on the output first information, and a second display unit that displays a second code image obtained by converting the second information into a code image.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a service providing system, an electronic device, an information processing method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] There are techniques for connecting an image forming device to an external network to obtain information or to operate the device remotely, but if a customer does not connect the image forming device to an external network, it is not possible to obtain this information or to remotely operate a user-maintained machine. For this reason, a means for easily communicating information about an image forming device to customers who are not connected to an external network has been developed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for, when an abnormality occurs in an image forming device, converting encrypted information about the failure into a one-dimensional or two-dimensional code image and having another device read the code image. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] However, with conventional technology, even if a means was used to simply communicate information about an image forming device that is not connected to an external network, there was a problem in that it was not possible to transmit information necessary for remote operation, etc. to the image forming device.

[0004] In view of the above-mentioned problems, an object of an embodiment of the present invention is to transmit information to an electronic device that is not connected to an external network. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a service providing system having an electronic device not connected to an external network, the electronic device having a camera for reading an image and a display screen for displaying the image, and a terminal device having a camera for reading an image and a display screen for displaying the image, the electronic device having a first display unit for displaying a first code image obtained by converting first information into a code image, and a first reading unit for reading a second code image displayed on the display screen by the terminal device, the terminal device having a second reading unit for reading the first code image displayed on the display screen by the electronic device, a second code conversion unit for converting the first code image read by the second reading unit and outputting the first information, and obtaining second information based on the first information output by the second code conversion unit, Determine whether automatic notification of the second information is possible A second management department; If automatic notification of the second information is possible, and a second display unit that displays a second code image obtained by converting the second information into a code image. Effect of the Invention

[0006] According to an embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to transmit information to an electronic device that is not connected to an external network. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a service providing system according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing information transmitted and received between a terminal device and a support service. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a terminal device and an information processing device. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a functional configuration of a service providing system. [Figure 6] 11 is a diagram showing an example of a sequence for transmitting and receiving information using a two-dimensional code between an image forming apparatus and a terminal apparatus; [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a flowchart for displaying and reading a two-dimensional code by an image forming apparatus. [Figure 8] 13 is an example of an application display screen displayed when a two-dimensional code is displayed on the image forming apparatus. [Figure 9] 13 is an example of an application display screen displayed when a two-dimensional code is read by the image forming apparatus. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart for reading and displaying a two-dimensional code by a terminal device. [Figure 11] 13 is an example of an application display screen displayed when a two-dimensional code is read by a terminal device. [Figure 12] 13 is an example of an application display screen displayed when a two-dimensional code is displayed on a terminal device. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a flowchart for analyzing failure information by a terminal device. [Figure 14] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a failure information database. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of a service providing system, an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0009] [First embodiment] The present embodiment is characterized in that a terminal device 20 such as a smartphone reads a two-dimensional code displayed on an image forming device 10 that is not connected to an external network, and the image forming device 10 reads the two-dimensional code displayed on the terminal device 20 in succession, thereby enabling mutual information communication. This enables the image forming device 10 to use information acquired by the terminal device 20 from an external network.

[0010] <System configuration example> 1 is a diagram showing a conceptual diagram of a service providing system 1 in an embodiment of the present invention. When an image forming device 10 installed in a customer environment breaks down, a user uses a terminal device 20 such as a smartphone with a camera to transmit and receive a two-dimensional code obtained by converting the fault information and repair information required to deal with the fault between the two devices. Here, the image forming device 10 may be connected to a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) in the customer environment, but is not connected to an external network such as the Internet, and cannot directly receive repair information from a support service 40 or the like.

[0011] A two-dimensional code is an image converted from text information, and the original information can be obtained by converting a two-dimensional code read by a camera. There are various conversion methods, such as QR Code (registered trademark), and although the embodiment of the present invention refers to a two-dimensional code, any method may be used, including a one-dimensional code called a barcode. Images converted by these methods are generally called "code images," but the word "image" may be omitted or the method may be limited to two-dimensional codes, and expressions such as "reading a two-dimensional code" may be used.

[0012] The fault information is acquired by the image forming apparatus 10 within the apparatus, and includes a predetermined number (called a fault number) that identifies the fault content, and the state and setting value of the apparatus that are determined to be acquired in advance according to the fault content. The repair information includes information indicating a procedure for repair and information on a program to be executed by the image forming apparatus 10, depending on the fault information content. When a fault occurs, the image forming apparatus 10 acquires fault information in a predetermined procedure, and displays a two-dimensional code obtained by converting the acquired fault information on the panel display unit 940a. The terminal apparatus 20 reads the two-dimensional code, and acquires repair information by performing network communication with the support service 40 as necessary, and displays the two-dimensional code obtained by converting the acquired repair information on the screen. The image forming apparatus 10 uses the camera 941 to read the two-dimensional code displayed on the screen of the terminal apparatus 20, and acquires repair information by converting the read two-dimensional code. In this way, the image forming apparatus 10 can repair the fault based on the acquired repair information.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing information transmitted and received between the terminal device 20 and the support service 40. The terminal device 20 receives failure information from the image forming device 10 when a failure occurs, and receives failure prediction information, device setting information, supply information, and the like during regular maintenance, and transmits them to the support service 40. Here, the failure prediction information is information used to predict the occurrence of a failure, such as the operating time of the device and the number of times printing and scanning have been performed. The device setting information is, for example, current setting information such as print density, print speed, power saving settings, and application version number. The supply information is information used to supply consumables, such as the remaining amount of toner or ink and the remaining amount of printing paper. The support service 40 transmits repair information corresponding to the received failure information, and setting change information and image adjustment information determined based on the received failure prediction information, setting information, and supply information to the terminal device 20 in order to apply them to the image forming device 10. The setting change information and image adjustment information include information on setting values, procedures, and programs required for changing settings and adjusting images in the image forming device 10, respectively.

[0014] An application that allows a user to display and read two-dimensional codes is installed in the image forming device 10 and the terminal device 20. This application may be a program with a screen display function such as a Web browser, or may be a dedicated program without being limited to a Web browser. The application may be abbreviated to app.

[0015] The terminal device 20 is not limited to a smartphone, but may be a tablet terminal, a personal computer, or the like, so long as it has a camera 517 and a display 506 capable of reading and displaying a two-dimensional code.

[0016] The support service 40 may be realized by one information processing device 30, or may be distributed among multiple information processing devices. For example, an information processing device may exist for each service, one information processing device may provide multiple services, or multiple information processing devices may provide one service.

[0017] Furthermore, the support service 40 may be compatible with cloud computing. Cloud computing refers to a form of usage in which resources on a network are used without being aware of specific hardware resources. A support service 40 compatible with cloud computing may be called a cloud system. The support service 40 may be located on the Internet or on-premise.

[0018] <Hardware configuration> 3 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 10. As shown in FIG. 3, the image forming apparatus 10 includes a controller 910, a short-distance communication circuit 920, an engine control unit 930, an operation panel 940, a camera 941, and a network I / F 950. The operation panel 940 includes a panel display unit 940a for receiving input from a user, and a numeric keypad 940b for receiving input from a user. Of these, the controller 910 includes a CPU 901, which is a main part of a computer, a system memory (MEM-P) 902, a north bridge (NB) 903, a south bridge (SB) 904, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) 906, a local memory (MEM-C) 907, which is a storage unit, an HDD controller 908, and an HD 909, which is a storage unit, and is configured such that the NB 903 and the ASIC 906 are connected by an AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) bus 921.

[0019] Of these, the CPU 901 is a control unit that performs overall control of the MFP 9. The NB 903 is a bridge for connecting the CPU 901 with the MEM-P 902, the SB 904, and the AGP bus 921, and includes a memory controller that controls reading and writing to the MEM-P 902, a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) master, and an AGP target.

[0020] The MEM-P 902 is composed of a ROM 902a which is a memory for storing programs and data for implementing the various functions of the controller 910, and a RAM 902b which is used for developing the programs and data, and as a drawing memory during memory printing, etc. The programs stored in the RAM 902b may be provided by being recorded in a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, CD-R, or DVD in the form of an installable or executable file.

[0021] The SB904 is a bridge for connecting the NB903 to a PCI device and a peripheral device. The ASIC906 is an IC (Integrated Circuit) for image processing purposes having hardware elements for image processing, and plays the role of a bridge connecting the AGP bus 921, the PCI bus 922, the HDD 908, and the MEM-C 907. The ASIC906 is composed of a PCI target and an AGP master, an arbiter (ARB) that is the core of the ASIC906, a memory controller that controls the MEM-C 907, a plurality of DMACs (Direct Memory Access Controllers) that rotate image data using hardware logic, and a PCI unit that transfers data between the scanner unit 931 and the printer unit 932 via the PCI bus 922. The ASIC906 may be connected to a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface or an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 1394 (IEEE1394) interface.

[0022] Fig. 4 is a hardware configuration diagram of an example of the terminal device 20 and the information processing device 30. As shown in Fig. 4, these are constructed by computers and include a CPU 501, a ROM 502, a RAM 503, a HD (Hard Disk) 504, a HDD (Hard Disk Drive) controller 505, a display 506, an external device connection I / F (Interface) 508, a network I / F 509, a bus line 510, a keyboard 511, a pointing device 512, a DVD-RW (Digital Versatile Disk Rewritable) drive 514, and a media I / F 516.

[0023] Of these, the CPU 501 controls the overall operation of the service providing system 1 and the terminal device 20. The ROM 502 stores programs such as an IPL used to drive the CPU 501. The RAM 503 is used as a work area for the CPU 501. The HD 504 stores various data such as programs. The HDD controller 505 controls the reading or writing of various data from the HD 504 under the control of the CPU 501. The display 506 displays various information such as a cursor, a menu, a window, a character, or an image. The external device connection I / F 508 is an interface for connecting various external devices. In this case, the external device is, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory or a printer. The network I / F 509 is an interface for data communication using the external network 2. The bus line 510 is an address bus, a data bus, or the like for electrically connecting each component such as the CPU 501.

[0024] The keyboard 511 is a type of input means having a plurality of keys used for inputting characters, numbers, various instructions, etc. The pointing device 512 is a type of input means for selecting and executing various instructions, selecting a processing target, moving a cursor, etc. The DVD-RW drive 514 controls reading and writing of various data from a DVD-RW 513 as an example of a removable recording medium. The DVD-RW drive 514 is not limited to a DVD-RW, and may be a DVD-R or the like. The media I / F 516 controls reading and writing (storing) of data from a recording medium 515 such as a flash memory. The camera 517 takes pictures and videos, and is used in the present invention when reading an image of a two-dimensional code.

[0025] <About the function> Next, the functional configuration of the service providing system 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the service providing system 1 according to this embodiment.

[0026] The image forming device 10 has a first management unit 11, a first operation unit 12, a first display unit 13, a first reading unit 14 and a first code conversion unit 15, and is installed in a customer environment and is not connected to an external network 2.

[0027] The terminal device 20 has a second management unit 21, a second operation unit 22, a second display unit 23, a second reading unit 24, a second code conversion unit 25, and a second communication unit 26, and is connected to the external network 2 via a wireless network or the like, and is capable of communicating with the support service 40. The failure information database 27 and the device information database 28 do not necessarily have to be included in the terminal device 20. In that case, the terminal device 20 obtains necessary information from the support service 40.

[0028] The support service 40 is composed of an information processing device 30 having a third management unit 31, a first communication unit , a failure information database 37, and a device information database .

[0029] Hereinafter, functional parts having similar characteristics in each device will be described together.

[0030] The first management unit 11, the second management unit 21 and the third management unit 31 manage the failure information and repair information transmitted and received between each device, or the information stored in the failure information databases 27, 37 and the equipment information databases 28, 38, and obtain necessary information from these databases.

[0031] The first operation unit 12 and the second operation unit 22 receive operation inputs for applications by a user.

[0032] The first display unit 13 and the second display unit 23 perform screen display of a two-dimensional code, an application display screen, and the like.

[0033] The first reading unit 14 and the second reading unit 24 use cameras 517 and 941 to read the two-dimensional code.

[0034] The first code conversion unit 15 and the second code conversion unit 25 convert the input information into a two-dimensional code, or convert the input two-dimensional code into the original information.

[0035] The second communication unit 26 and the first communication unit 36 ​​transmit and receive information via the external network 2 .

[0036] The fault information databases 27 and 37 are databases possessed by the terminal device 20 and the support service 40, respectively, and contain fault information relating to faults occurring in the image forming device 10 and repair information for dealing with the faults.

[0037] The equipment information databases 28, 38 are databases owned by the terminal device 20 and the support service 40, respectively, and contain information such as failure prediction information, setting information, supply information, setting change information, and image adjustment information for use in regular maintenance, etc., as shown in FIG. 2.

[0038] <Processing flow> Hereinafter, several cases of the processing executed by the service providing system 1 of the present invention will be described.

[0039] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a sequence for transmitting and receiving information using a two-dimensional code between an image forming apparatus and a terminal device.

[0040] S11: The user starts an application for displaying and reading two-dimensional codes on the image forming apparatus 10, and performs an operation to display a two-dimensional code of fault information.

[0041] S12: The first operation unit 12 of the image forming apparatus 10 accepts an operation input from the user. Based on the operation input from the user, the first code conversion unit 15 converts the malfunction information into a two-dimensional code. The first display unit 13 displays the two-dimensional code of the malfunction information on the panel display unit 940a.

[0042] S13: The user starts an application on the terminal device 20 for displaying and reading two-dimensional codes, sets the terminal device 20 in a state in which the two-dimensional code for fault information is to be read, and points the camera 517 of the terminal device 20 toward the panel display unit 940a of the image forming apparatus 10.

[0043] S14: The second operation unit 22 of the terminal device 20 accepts an operation input by the user to start reading the two-dimensional code. Based on the operation input by the user, the second reading unit 24 uses the camera 517 to read an image of the two-dimensional code of the fault information displayed on the panel display unit 940a of the image forming apparatus 10. The second code conversion unit 25 converts the read two-dimensional code to obtain the fault information.

[0044] S15: The second communication unit 26 of the terminal device 20 transmits a message requesting repair information to the support service 40. The transmitted message includes the acquired fault information. The transmission method is performed using a communication protocol such as TCP / IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol). Note that, since this sequence assumes that the terminal device 20 does not hold the fault information database 27, the terminal device 20 always requests repair information from the support service 40. The flowcharts shown in the following figures also show the case where the terminal device 20 holds the fault information database 27.

[0045] S16: The first communication unit 36 ​​of the support service 40 transmits the received message to the third management unit 31. The third management unit 31 acquires malfunction information from the received message, and acquires repair information corresponding to the acquired malfunction information from the malfunction information database 37. The first communication unit 36 ​​transmits the acquired repair information to the terminal device 20. The second communication unit 26 of the terminal device 20 receives the repair information.

[0046] S17: The user operates the application of the terminal device 20 to perform an operation to display a two-dimensional code of repair information.

[0047] S18: The second operation unit 22 of the terminal device 20 accepts an operation input for converting the correction information by the user into a two-dimensional code. Based on the operation input by the user, the second code conversion unit 25 converts the received repair information into a two-dimensional code. The second display unit displays the two-dimensional code of the repair information on the display 506.

[0048] S19: The user operates the application of the image forming apparatus 10 to set it in a state in which the two-dimensional code for repair information can be read, and points the display 506 of the terminal device 20 toward the camera 941 of the image forming apparatus 10.

[0049] S20: The first operation unit 12 of the image forming apparatus 10 accepts an operation input by a user to start reading a two-dimensional code. Based on the operation input by the user, the first reading unit 14 uses the camera 941 to read an image of the two-dimensional code of the repair information displayed on the display 506 of the terminal device 20. The first code conversion unit 15 converts the read two-dimensional code to obtain the repair information.

[0050] Through the above process, an application that displays and reads two-dimensional codes is executed on the image forming apparatus 10 and the terminal apparatus 20, making it possible to transmit and receive information between the two apparatuses. The image forming apparatus 10 can receive repair information for failure information sent to the terminal apparatus 20 even if it is not connected to the external network 2. Furthermore, the terminal apparatus 20 can communicate with the support service 40 via the external network 2 as necessary to obtain information such as repair information to be sent to the image forming apparatus 10.

[0051] Next, the details of the process performed by the image forming device 10 will be described. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart for transmitting and receiving a two-dimensional code by the image forming device 10. The process performed by the image forming device 10 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 will be described including a case where a large amount of failure information or repair information is divided into multiple two-dimensional codes to be used. In the flowchart, S21 to S24 are processes for transmitting a two-dimensional code, and S25 to S28 are processes for receiving a two-dimensional code. In addition, as screens of an application used by a user, an example of a display screen shown in FIG. 8 when a two-dimensional code is displayed by the image forming device 10 and an example of a display screen shown in FIG. 9 when a two-dimensional code is read by the image forming device 10 will be used for the description.

[0052] S21: As shown in S12 of Fig. 6, the first code conversion unit 15 of the image forming device 10 converts the malfunction information into a two-dimensional code. If the malfunction information is too large to be displayed in one two-dimensional code, the malfunction information is divided into an amount of information that can be displayed in one two-dimensional code, and each divided piece of information is converted into a two-dimensional code. The first display unit 13 displays the two-dimensional code of the malfunction information on the panel display unit 940a. When the user presses "Yes" on the display screen 101 of the application shown in Fig. 8, the two-dimensional code is displayed.

[0053] S22: If all the two-dimensional codes for the fault information have been displayed, proceed to S24, and if there are any remaining two-dimensional codes, proceed to S23.

[0054] S23: When multiple two-dimensional codes are to be displayed, the application display screen 102 is displayed as shown in Fig. 8. After the user confirms that the terminal device 20 has finished reading the two-dimensional codes, the user presses "display next code" to display the next two-dimensional code.

[0055] S24: When there are no more two-dimensional codes to be displayed, the user confirms that the terminal device 20 has finished reading the two-dimensional codes, and then presses "End Display" on the application display screen 103 shown in Fig. 8. After the display of the two-dimensional codes has ended, the first display unit 13 displays transmission completion information on the panel display unit 940a as shown on the application display screen 104 shown in Fig. 8. The transmission completion information may be included at the end of the two-dimensional code and transmitted to the terminal device 20, or the user may operate the terminal device 20 to end the reading of the two-dimensional code.

[0056] S25: As shown in S20 of Fig. 6, the first reading unit 14 of the image forming apparatus 10 starts a process of reading the two-dimensional code of the repair information displayed on the display 506 of the terminal device 20. Here, the reading process is started when the user presses "Yes" on the display screen 105 of the application shown in Fig. 9, and a message indicating that the two-dimensional code is being read as shown on the display screen 106 is displayed on the panel display unit 940a.

[0057] S26: If the read two-dimensional code contains transmission completion information, the first reading unit 14 of the image forming apparatus 10 ends reading of the two-dimensional code and proceeds to S28, otherwise proceeds to S27.

[0058] S27: The first display unit 13 displays on the panel display unit 940a a message for confirming whether or not to read the next two-dimensional code as shown on the application display screen 107 in Fig. 9. Alternatively, if the terminal device 20 does not include the transmission completion information in the last two-dimensional code in S26 and only displays the transmission completion information on the display 506, the user can select "No" on the display screen 107 to complete reading of the two-dimensional code.

[0059] S28: The first display unit 13 displays a message indicating completion of reading on the panel display unit 940a as shown on the display screen 108 of the application in FIG.

[0060] Through the above processing, it has been shown that the image forming device 10 is capable of transmitting and receiving information to and from the terminal device 20 by dividing the information and displaying or reading multiple two-dimensional codes, even when the amount of information to be transmitted and received is large.

[0061] Next, the details of the processing performed by the terminal device 20 will be described. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart for reading and displaying a two-dimensional code by the terminal device 20. The processing performed by the terminal device 20 in the flowchart shown in Fig. 6 will be described, including a case where a two-dimensional code of failure information or repair information is divided and processed. In the flowchart, steps S31 to S35 are processing for receiving a two-dimensional code, and steps S36 to S43 are processing for transmitting the two-dimensional code. In addition, as screens of an application used by a user, an example of a display screen when a two-dimensional code is read by the terminal device 20 shown in Fig. 11 and an example of a display screen when a two-dimensional code is displayed by the terminal device 20 shown in Fig. 12 will be used for the description.

[0062] S31: As shown in S14 of Fig. 6, the second reading unit 24 of the terminal device 20 starts a process of reading the two-dimensional code of the fault information displayed on the panel display unit 940a of the image forming apparatus 10. Here, the reading process is started when the user presses "Yes" on the display screen 111 of the application shown in Fig. 11, and a message indicating that the two-dimensional code is being read is displayed on the display 506 as shown on the display screen 112.

[0063] S32: If the read two-dimensional code contains transmission completion information, the second reading unit 24 of the terminal device 20 ends reading of the two-dimensional code and proceeds to S34, otherwise proceeds to S33.

[0064] S33: The second display unit 23 displays on the display 506 a message for confirming whether or not to read the next two-dimensional code as shown on the display screen 113 of the application in Fig. 11. Also, in S32, if the image forming apparatus 10 does not include the transmission completion information in the two-dimensional code and only displays the transmission completion information on the panel display unit 940a, the user can select "No" on the display screen 113 to complete the reading of the two-dimensional code.

[0065] S34: The second display unit 23 displays a message indicating completion of reading on the display 506, as shown on the display screen 114 of the application in FIG.

[0066] S35: The second code conversion unit 25 converts the read two-dimensional code into failure information. If multiple two-dimensional codes are read, all the two-dimensional codes are converted and then the information is aggregated to obtain the failure information.

[0067] S36: The second management unit 21 investigates whether or not repair information corresponding to the failure information can be acquired from the failure information database 27 held by the terminal device 20. The process of the flowchart proceeds to S39 if the repair information can be acquired, and to S37 if the repair information cannot be acquired. Here, cases where the repair information cannot be acquired are considered to be a case where the terminal device 20 does not hold the failure information database 27 itself (case 1) and a case where the repair information corresponding to the received failure information does not exist in the failure information database 27 (case 2). Furthermore, in case 2, there are cases where repair information is not prepared depending on the failure information, and an engineer of the support service 40 analyzes the failure information and deals with it (case 2-1), and a case where information does not exist because the version number of the failure information database 27 held by the terminal device 20 is old (case 2-2). As a countermeasure for case 2-2, for example, information on the version number of the application is included in the failure information, and the version numbers of the application and database of the image forming device 10 and the terminal device 20 are confirmed, and if the version number is old, it is updated to the latest version number.

[0068] S37: The second communication unit 26 transmits the failure information to the support service 40.

[0069] S38: The first communication unit 36 ​​of the support service 40 receives the failure information and transmits the received failure information to the third management unit 31. The third management unit 31 acquires repair information corresponding to the received failure information from the failure information database 37. Alternatively, the received failure information is notified to a technician of the support service 40 by email or the like, and the technician creates repair information corresponding to the received failure information and stores it in the failure information database 37 or the like so that the third management unit 31 can acquire the repair information. The third management unit 31 transmits the repair information to the first communication unit 36, and the first communication unit 36 ​​transmits the received repair information to the terminal device 20.

[0070] S39: The second code conversion unit 25 converts the repair information into a two-dimensional code. If the repair information is too large to display in a single two-dimensional code, the repair information is divided and each piece of information is converted into a two-dimensional code, similar to the method performed in S21 of FIG. 7.

[0071] S40: As shown in S18 of Fig. 6, the second display unit 23 of the terminal device 20 displays a two-dimensional code of repair information on the display 506. Here, the user presses "Yes" on the display screen 115 of the application shown in Fig. 12, whereby the two-dimensional code is displayed.

[0072] S41: If all the two-dimensional repair information codes have been displayed, proceed to S42. If there are any remaining two-dimensional codes, proceed to S41.

[0073] S42: When multiple two-dimensional codes are to be displayed, the application display screen 116 is displayed as shown in Fig. 12. After the user confirms that the image forming device 10 has finished reading the two-dimensional codes, the user presses "Show next code" to display the next two-dimensional code.

[0074] S43: When there are no remaining two-dimensional codes to be displayed, the user confirms that image forming device 10 has finished reading the two-dimensional codes, and then presses "End Display" on application display screen 117 shown in Fig. 12. After the display of the two-dimensional codes has ended, second display unit 23 displays transmission completion information on display 506 as shown in application display screen 118 shown in Fig. 12. The transmission completion information may be included at the end of the two-dimensional code and transmitted to image forming device 10, or the user may operate image forming device 10 to end reading of the two-dimensional code.

[0075] The above process shows that even when the amount of information to be transmitted and received is large, the terminal device 20 can transmit and receive information to and from the image forming device 10 by dividing the information and displaying or reading multiple two-dimensional codes. In addition, by the terminal device 20 being between the image forming device 10 and the support service 40 and transmitting and receiving information, it becomes possible to indirectly transmit and receive information between the image forming device 10 that is not connected to the external network 2 and the support service 40.

[0076] Next, a flow chart for analyzing failure information by the terminal device 20 shown in FIG. 13 will be described.

[0077] S51: The second reading unit 24 reads the two-dimensional code of the fault information displayed on the panel display unit 940a of the image forming apparatus 10.

[0078] S52: The second code conversion unit 25 converts the read two-dimensional code to obtain failure information.

[0079] S53: The second management unit 21 acquires repair information corresponding to the acquired malfunction information from the malfunction information database 27. As described in S36 of Fig. 10, there are some cases in which the terminal device 20 cannot acquire the repair information, but here, we will assume a case in which the repair information can be acquired and explain the method in detail.

[0080] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the fault information database 27. "Fault number" is a number that identifies the fault content, "fix number" is a number that identifies the fix method, and "detailed information" records "automatic notification possible", "related documents", and "program name" as detailed information about the fix method. "Automatic notification possible" indicates whether the application is allowed to automatically notify fix information (auto:OK means yes, auto:NG means no). "Related documents" indicates the document file name followed by doc:. "Program name" indicates the program name followed by prog:.

[0081] If the "fault number" included in the fault information acquired by the second management unit 21 is 123456, the second management unit 21 acquires the "fix number" (279148) and "detailed information" (auto;OK, doc:ccc.txt, prog:ccc.bat) for the "fault number" 123456 from the fault information database 27. The second management unit 21 acquires this "fix number" and "detailed information" as correction information because the content of the acquired "detailed information" indicates that automatic notification of correction information by an application is possible.

[0082] S54: The second code conversion unit 25 converts the acquired correction information into a two-dimensional code.

[0083] S55: The second communication unit 26 displays the two-dimensional code into which the correction information is converted on the panel display unit 940a.

[0084] Through the above processing, the terminal device 20 can analyze the fault information acquired from the image forming device 10, acquire repair information, and display the two-dimensional code on the display device in order to transmit the acquired repair information to the image forming device 10.

[0085] <Modification> As the first embodiment, the process of transmitting and receiving information required when the image forming apparatus 10 breaks down has been described, but as a modified example, it is also possible to transmit and receive information required during regular maintenance. A difference from the first embodiment is that the information transmitted from the image forming apparatus 10 to the terminal device 20 is not failure information, but failure prediction information, setting information, and supply information described in FIG. 2. Also, the information transmitted from the terminal device 20 to the image forming apparatus 10 is not repair information, but setting change information and image adjustment information. Also, the databases that manage and store this information are not failure information databases 27 and 37, but device information databases 28 and 38.

[0086] Although several forms for carrying out the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention.

[0087] For example, the configuration example of the functional block diagram in FIG. 5 is divided according to main functions to facilitate understanding of the processing by the image forming apparatus 10, the terminal apparatus 20, and the information processing apparatus 30. The method of dividing the processing units and the names of the processing units do not limit the present invention. The processing of the image forming apparatus 10, the terminal apparatus 20, and the information processing apparatus 30 can be divided into more processing units depending on the processing contents. Also, the processing units can be divided so that one processing unit includes more processes.

[0088] Each function of the above-described embodiments can be realized by one or more processing circuits. Here, the term "processing circuit" in this specification includes a processor programmed to execute each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, and a device such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a DSP (digital signal processor), an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or a conventional circuit module designed to execute each function described above.

[0089] Additionally, the described apparatuses are merely one of several computing environments for implementing the embodiments disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a service provision system includes a plurality of computing devices, such as a server cluster, configured to communicate with each other via any type of communication link, including a network, shared memory, etc., and to implement the processes disclosed herein.

[0090] Furthermore, the image forming apparatus 10 in the embodiment may be an electronic device such as a PC (personal computer) having a camera and a display screen, a projector, an electronic whiteboard, a video conference terminal, a digital camera, etc. Furthermore, the two-dimensional code may be read by a scanner instead of a camera. [Explanation of symbols]

[0091] 1 Service provision system 2 External Network 10 Image forming device 11 First Management Department 12 First operation section 13 First display section 14 First reading section 15 First code conversion unit 20 Terminal Equipment 21 Second Management Department 22 Second operation section 23 Second display section 24 Second reading section 25 Second Code Conversion Unit 26 Second Communications Department 27, 37 Failure Information Database 28, 38 Equipment Information Database 30 Information processing device 31 Third Management Department 36 First Communications Department 40 Support Services 517, 941 Camera 506 Display 940a Panel display [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0092] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-212958 A

Claims

1. an electronic device not connected to an external network, the electronic device having a camera for reading an image and a display screen for displaying the image; a terminal device having a camera for reading an image and a display screen for displaying the image; A service providing system having: The electronic device includes: a first display unit that displays a first code image obtained by converting the first information into a code image; a first reading unit that reads a second code image displayed on the display screen of the terminal device; having The terminal device a second reading unit that reads a first code image displayed on the display screen of the electronic device; a second code conversion unit that converts the first code image read by the second reading unit and outputs the first information; a second management unit that acquires second information based on the first information output by the second code conversion unit and determines whether automatic notification of the second information is possible; a second display unit that displays a second code image obtained by converting the second information into a code image when the second information can be automatically notified; A service providing system comprising:

2. The terminal device a second communication unit that transmits the first information output by the second code conversion unit to an information processing device connected to an external network and receives the second information from the information processing device; The service providing system according to claim 1 , further comprising:

3. The service providing system according to claim 2, characterized in that the second management unit determines whether or not to transmit the first information output by the second code conversion unit to the information processing device based on the first information.

4. the first information is information regarding a failure that has occurred in the electronic device, The second information is information regarding repair contents corresponding to the failure.

4. The service providing system according to claim 1, wherein the service providing system is a service providing system for providing a service to a user.

5. the first information is information regarding a setting or a state of the electronic device, The second information is information regarding a change in setting of the electronic device.

4. The service providing system according to claim 1, wherein the service providing system is a service providing system for providing a service to a user.

6. An electronic device that is not connected to an external network and has a camera for reading images and a display screen for displaying images, a first display unit that displays a first code image obtained by converting the first information into a code image; a first reading unit that reads a second code image displayed by a terminal device that reads the first code image; having The electronic device is characterized in that the second code image is obtained by converting second information capable of automatic notification, which is generated based on the first information by an information processing device connected to an external network, into a code image.

7. An information processing method performed by an electronic device that is not connected to an external network and that has a camera for reading images and a display screen for displaying images, comprising: displaying a first code image obtained by converting the first information into a code image; reading a second code image displayed by the terminal device that read the first code image; having An information processing method in which the second code image is obtained by converting second information capable of automatic notification, which is generated based on the first information by an information processing device connected to an external network, into a code image.

8. An information processing method performed by a terminal device having a camera for reading images and a display screen for displaying images, comprising: reading the first code image displayed by the electronic device; converting the first code image to output first information; obtaining second information based on the first information; determining whether automatic notification of the second information is possible; If automatic notification of the second information is possible, displaying a second code image obtained by converting the second information into a code image and having the electronic device read the second code image; An information processing method comprising the steps of:

9. A terminal device having a camera for reading an image and a display screen for displaying the image, reading the first code image displayed by the electronic device; converting the first code image to output first information; obtaining second information based on the first information; determining whether automatic notification of the second information is possible; If automatic notification of the second information is possible, displaying a second code image obtained by converting the second information into a code image and having the electronic device read the second code image; A program for executing the above.

Images