Information processing device, information processing system, and information processing program

Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing system, and an information processing program that can make setting information set as a favorite usable in the other apparatus.SOLUTION: When an information processing apparatus requests an image forming apparatus 12B to perform processing from a portable terminal device 14 by using setting information in which information unique to an image forming apparatus 12A is set in advance as a favorite, if a parameter of the setting information needs to be changed in the image forming apparatus 12B and there is one candidate for the change, the information processing apparatus changes the parameter to the value of the change candidate, and if there are a plurality of candidates for the change, allows a user to select the change candidate before the execution of the processing and changes the parameter to the value of the selected change candidate.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing system, and an information processing program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 proposes an information processing device that performs print settings for a device using composite settings including a combination of multiple printing-related setting values. In detail, the information processing device is disclosed that includes an editing unit that edits the printing-related setting values ​​included in the composite setting, a storage unit that stores the composite setting including the setting values ​​edited by the editing unit, and an output unit that outputs the composite setting stored by the storage unit as an external file.

[0003] Patent document 2 proposes a composite setting for changing multiple settings related to printing all at once, comprising a receiving means for receiving an instruction to import the composite setting generated under a different device environment, and a confirmation means for confirming, upon receiving the instruction, whether it is possible to print with the settings corresponding to the composite setting based on status information of the printing device, and, if it is confirmed that it is not possible to print with the settings corresponding to the composite setting, an information processing device that imports the composite setting that has been modified to a state in which no conflict occurs.

[0004] Patent document 3 proposes an information processing device which, when a composite setting is available for a plurality of devices, includes a selection means for selecting the composite setting to be used for a specified device, and, when setting output for the specified device using the composite setting selected by the selection means, determines whether the device can output using the contents of each setting item of the composite setting depending on the functions of the device. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2008-310831 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2012-138106 A [Patent Document 1] JP 2000-242597 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] When setting information for a process that uses information unique to a device is set as a favorite, the same favorite settings may not be usable on other devices.

[0007] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an information processing device, an information processing system, and an information processing program that are capable of making setting information set as favorites available on other devices. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, an information processing device according to a first aspect includes a processor, and when a process is requested of a second device different from the first device using setting information in which information specific to the first device is previously set as a favorite, if a parameter of the setting information needs to be changed in the second device and there is one change candidate, the processor changes the parameter to a value of the change candidate, and if there are multiple change candidates, the processor has a user select one of the change candidates before executing the process and performs a process of changing the parameter to the value of the selected change candidate. If there is no change candidate, a process of newly setting parameters of the setting information for the second device is performed, and if the setting information is a process of saving information in an area predetermined for each user, a process of newly creating the predetermined area corresponding to the user is performed as the process of newly setting parameters of the setting information. cormorant. In addition, an information processing device according to a second aspect includes a processor, and when the processor requests processing from a second device different from the first device using setting information that has been previously set as a favorite and that has information specific to the first device, if a change to a parameter of the setting information is required in the second device and there is one change candidate, the processor changes the parameter to a value of the change candidate, and if there are multiple change candidates, the processor has a user select one of the change candidates before executing the processing, and performs processing to change the parameter to the value of the selected change candidate, and if there is no change candidate and the user does not have authority to newly set the parameter of the setting information, performs a predetermined alternative processing.

[0009] Also, 3 The information processing device according to the embodiment is a first embodiment Or the second aspect In the information processing device according to the present invention, when predetermined short-range communication is established with the second device, the processor performs processing to obtain related information related to the setting information from the second device and detect whether or not the parameter needs to be changed.

[0010] Also, 4 The information processing device according to the embodiment , No. In the information processing device relating to the second target, when there is no change candidate, the processor performs processing for newly setting parameters of the setting information for the second device.

[0011] Also, 5 The information processing device according to the embodiment is 4 In an information processing device relating to the aspect, when the setting information is a process of storing information in a predetermined area for each user, the processor performs a process of creating a new predetermined area corresponding to the user as a process of newly setting parameters of the setting information.

[0012] Also, 6 The information processing device according to the embodiment is a first embodiment. Like In this information processing device, the processor performs a predetermined alternative process when there is no change candidate and there is no authority to newly set a parameter of the setting information.

[0013] Also, 7 The information processing device according to the embodiment is 6 In the information processing device according to the aspect, when the setting information is a process of saving information in an area predetermined for each user, the processor performs a process of sending the information to be saved to the device itself as the alternative process.

[0014] Also, 8 The information processing device according to the embodiment is the first embodiment to the third embodiment. 7 In an information processing device relating to any one of the aspects, the processor detects contact with or approach to a detection unit provided in the second device, and when contact with or approach to the detection unit is detected, performs processing to request the second device to execute processing using the changed parameters.

[0015] Also, 9 The information processing system according to the embodiment includes the first embodiment to the third embodiment. 8The present invention includes an information processing device according to any one of the aspects, and a device that receives a request for processing using the setting information and executes the processing.

[0016] Furthermore, 10 The information processing program according to the embodiment includes: The information processing device according to any one of the first to ninth aspects performs Execute the process. Effect of the Invention

[0017] According to the first aspect, it is possible to provide an information processing device capable of making setting information set as favorites available on other devices. Even if there are no change candidates, it is possible to make the setting information set as favorites available on other devices, and even if there are no change candidates, it is possible to execute a process of saving information in an area predetermined for each user. do. According to the second aspect, it is possible to provide an information processing device that can make setting information set as a favorite available on other devices, and even if there are no change candidates and there is no authority to newly set parameters of the setting information, processing by alternative processing is possible.

[0018] No. 3 According to the aspect, it is possible to make the setting information set as a favorite available on the second device simply by approaching the second device.

[0019] No. 4 According to the aspect, even if there are no change candidates, it is possible to make the setting information set as a favorite available on another device.

[0020] No. 5 According to the aspect, even if there are no change candidates, it is possible to execute a process of saving information in an area that is predetermined for each user.

[0021] No. 6 According to this aspect, even if there are no change candidates and there is no authority to newly set parameters of the setting information, processing by the alternative processing is possible.

[0022] No. 7 According to the aspect, instead of the process of storing the setting information in an area predetermined for each user, it is possible to transmit the information to be stored to the own device.

[0023] No. 8 According to this aspect, processing requests to devices other than the desired device can be suppressed.

[0024] No. 9 According to the aspect, it is possible to provide an information processing system that makes it possible to make setting information set as favorites available on other devices.

[0025] No. 10 According to the aspect, it is possible to provide an information processing program that makes it possible to make setting information set as favorites available on other devices. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0026] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part of an electrical system of an image forming apparatus in the information processing system according to the embodiment; [Diagram 3] 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part of an electrical system of a mobile terminal device in the information processing system according to the embodiment; FIG. [Figure 4] 11 is a diagram for explaining a processing example using a "favorite" setting in a mobile terminal device in the information processing system according to the embodiment. FIG. [Diagram 5] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing performed in a mobile terminal device when a job is executed and favorite settings are registered in the information processing system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6] 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of processes performed in a mobile terminal device when, after a favorite setting is registered, a job is executed using the favorite setting in an image forming device other than the image forming device in which the favorite setting is registered. [Figure 7] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of a parameter setting request process. [Figure 8] 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a flow of processing performed by an image forming apparatus of the information processing system according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0027] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an information processing system according to this embodiment.

[0028] An information processing system 10 according to this embodiment includes a mobile terminal device 14 as an information processing device, and an image forming apparatus 12 as a device.

[0029] The mobile terminal device 14 is capable of communicating with the image forming apparatus 12 through short-range communication, and the image forming apparatus 12 can be operated from the mobile terminal device 14. For example, a tablet terminal or a smartphone is used as the mobile terminal device 14. Wi-Fi (registered trademark), Bluetooth (registered trademark), etc. are used as short-range communication.

[0030] As an example of the image forming device 12, an image forming device having multiple functions such as a facsimile function, an image reading function, an image forming function, a copying function, a storage function for storing image information, and a transmission function for transmitting image information is applied. In addition, in FIG. 1, two image forming devices 12, image forming device 12A and image forming device 12B, are shown, but the number is not limited to two, and one device or three or more devices may be used. In the following description, when there is no need to distinguish between image forming device 12A and image forming device 12B, they are referred to as image forming device 12. In addition, in FIG. 1, one mobile terminal device 14 is shown, but the number is not limited to one, and two or more devices may be used, and one owned by each user may be applied.

[0031] In addition, although the communication between the mobile terminal device 14 and the image forming device 12 is described as short-range communication, as shown by the dotted line in FIG. 1, the communication may be performed via a wireless base station of a mobile phone network or the like or a communication line 16 of various networks (e.g., LAN, WAN, Ethernet (registered trademark), etc.).

[0032] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a main part of an electrical system of the image forming apparatus 12 in the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment.

[0033] 2, the image forming apparatus 12 according to this embodiment includes a control unit 20 including a central processing unit (CPU) 20A, a read only memory (ROM) 20B, and a random access memory (RAM) 20C. The CPU 20A controls the overall operation of the image forming apparatus 12. The RAM 20C is used as a work area when the CPU 20A executes various programs. The ROM 20B stores various control programs, various parameters, and the like in advance. In the image forming apparatus 12, each component of the control unit 20 is electrically connected to each other via a system bus 42.

[0034] On the other hand, the image forming apparatus 12 according to the present embodiment includes a HDD (hard disk drive) 26 that stores various data, application programs, and the like. The image forming apparatus 12 is also connected to a user interface 22 and includes a display control unit 28 that controls the display of various operation screens, etc. on the display of the user interface 22. The image forming apparatus 12 is also connected to the user interface 22 and includes an operation input detection unit 30 that detects operation instructions input through the user interface 22. In the image forming apparatus 12, the HDD 26, the display control unit 28, and the operation input detection unit 30 are electrically connected to a system bus 42. In the image forming apparatus 12 according to the present embodiment, the HDD 26 is used as a storage unit, but this is not limiting, and a non-volatile storage unit such as a flash memory may be used.

[0035] The image forming apparatus 12 according to the present embodiment also includes a reading control unit 32 that controls the optical image reading operation by the document reading unit 44 and the document feeding operation by the document transport unit, and an image forming control unit 34 that controls the image forming process by the image forming unit 24 and the transport of paper to the image forming unit 24 by the transport unit 25. The image forming apparatus 12 also includes a communication line I / F (interface) unit 36 ​​that transmits and receives communication data to and from other external devices connected to the communication line 16, and transmits and receives communication data by short-distance communication to and from the mobile terminal device 14. The image forming apparatus 12 also includes a facsimile I / F (interface) unit 38 that is connected to a telephone line (not shown) and transmits and receives facsimile data to and from a facsimile device connected to the telephone line. The image forming apparatus 12 also includes a transmission / reception control unit 40 that controls the transmission and reception of facsimile data via the facsimile I / F unit 38. In the image forming apparatus 12, the transmission / reception control unit 40, the reading control unit 32, the image forming control unit , the communication line I / F unit , and the facsimile I / F unit are electrically connected to a system bus .

[0036] With the above configuration, the image forming apparatus 12 according to the present embodiment executes access to the RAM 20C, the ROM 20B, and the HDD 26 by the CPU 20A. The image forming apparatus 12 also executes control of display of information such as an operation screen and various messages on the display 22A of the user interface 22 via the display control unit 28 by the CPU 20A. The image forming apparatus 12 also executes control of operation of the document reading unit 44 and the document transport unit via the reading control unit 32 by the CPU 20A. The image forming apparatus 12 also executes control of operation of the image forming unit 24 and the transport unit 25 via the image formation control unit 34, and control of transmission and reception of communication data via the communication line I / F unit 36 ​​by the CPU 20A. The image forming apparatus 12 also executes control of transmission and reception of facsimile data via the facsimile I / F unit 38 by the transmission and reception control unit 40 by the CPU 20A. Furthermore, in the image forming apparatus 12, the CPU 20A grasps the operation content in the user interface 22 based on the operation information detected by the operation input detection unit 30, and executes various controls based on the operation content.

[0037] Next, a description will be given of the main configuration of the electrical system of the mobile terminal device 14 according to this embodiment. Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the main configuration of the electrical system of the mobile terminal device 14 in the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 3, the mobile terminal device 14 according to the present embodiment includes a CPU 14A as an example of a processor, a ROM 14B, a RAM 14C, a storage 14D, an operation unit 14E, a display unit 14F, a communication line I / F (interface) unit 14G, and a photographing unit 14H. The CPU 14A controls the overall operation of the mobile terminal device 14. The ROM 14B stores various control programs and various parameters in advance. The RAM 14C is used as a work area when the CPU 14A executes various programs. The storage 14D stores various data and application programs. The operation unit 14E is used to input various information. The display unit 14F is used to display various information. The photographing unit 14H outputs image information obtained by photographing. The communication line I / F unit 14G transmits and receives various data to and from other devices connected to communication lines such as various networks. The communication line I / F unit 14G also transmits and receives various data to and from the mobile terminal device 14 using various well-known wireless communications. The above-described components of the mobile terminal device 14 are electrically connected to each other via a system bus 141. In the mobile terminal device 14 according to the present embodiment, the storage 14D is used as a storage unit, and various non-volatile storage units such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) and a flash memory are used as the storage 14D, for example.

[0039] With the above configuration, the mobile terminal device 14 according to this embodiment executes, by the CPU 14A, access to the ROM 14B, the RAM 14C, and the storage 14D, acquisition of various data via the operation unit 14E, photographing by the photographing unit 14H, and display of various information on the display unit 14F. In addition, the mobile terminal device 14 executes, by the CPU 14A, control of transmission and reception of communication data via the communication line I / F unit 14G.

[0040] Furthermore, the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment has a function of setting job-related parameters for the image forming apparatus 12 and notifying the target image forming apparatus 12 of the set settings as setting information by operating an application pre-installed in the mobile terminal device 14. Then, the image forming apparatus 12 executes a job using the parameter values ​​notified from the mobile terminal device 14. Note that the job here refers to the execution of various functions of the image forming apparatus 12, such as copying, image scanning, and information storage.

[0041] Furthermore, in the mobile terminal device 14, a group of settings that are frequently used can be registered as "favorites" on the application, and the setting operation can be easily performed by calling up the group.

[0042] Incidentally, in an environment where multiple image forming apparatuses 12A and 12B exist, there are cases where a group of settings registered in the "favorites" of an application can be executed in the image forming apparatus 12A but cannot be executed in the image forming apparatus 12B. In other words, there are cases where processing using setting information that is previously set as a favorite and is unique to the image forming apparatus 12A is not possible in the image forming apparatus 12B.

[0043] In this case, the fact that execution is not possible is not known until an error occurs at execution. In addition, the specified "favorite" settings need to be changed so that they can be executed on the image forming apparatus 12B, but the user does not know which settings to change and how, or it takes time to figure out. Furthermore, if it is desired to register a group of settings that have been changed so that they can be executed on the image forming apparatus 12B as "favorites," they need to be separately registered as "favorites" for the image forming apparatus 12B. As a result, it is necessary to register "favorites" for the number of image forming apparatuses 12, which makes it difficult to manage and operate the "favorites."

[0044] Therefore, in this embodiment, when the user operates the mobile terminal device 14 to call up the "favorites" setting from an application, and approaches the image forming device 12B to establish short-range communication, the configuration and registration information of the image forming device 12 related to the "favorites" setting are obtained.

[0045] If the application of the mobile terminal device 14 determines from the acquired information that there is a parameter that needs to be changed in the "favorites" called up by the user, it executes processing for each of the following cases.

[0046] If there is only one candidate for changing the parameter value, the parameter will automatically be changed to that value.

[0047] If there are two or more candidates for changing the parameter value, the user is notified as to which one to change, and the parameter is changed according to the user's selection.

[0048] If there are no candidates for changing the parameter value, the application performs a necessary registration operation on the image forming apparatus 12, and the parameters are automatically changed based on the result of the operation.

[0049] Here, a process using the "favorite" setting will be described with reference to FIG. 4, taking a specific example of an actual parameter. In the following, a case where the "favorite" setting is "save in private box" will be described as an example. Note that "save in private box" refers to a function of saving information such as scanned documents and received documents in a pre-set private box, and for example, the private box number is the parameter value. Note that by registering a delivery destination in a private box, a received document may be automatically sent to the delivery destination. Delivery destinations include fax destinations, e-mail destinations, folders, etc., and the delivery destination registered in a private box may also be the parameter value. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a process example using the "favorite" setting in the mobile terminal device 14 in the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment.

[0050] First, as shown in Fig. 4, an application installed in the mobile terminal device 14 is started and authentication is performed. In the example of Fig. 4, the user logs in with the user account setting "UserA".

[0051] By operating the application, a group of frequently used parameter settings such as favorite setting A, favorite setting B, favorite setting C, etc. can be saved for image forming apparatus 12A and reused from the next time onwards. As a result, by approaching image forming apparatus 12, communication with image forming apparatus 12A is performed by short-range communication, and a job is executed for image forming apparatus 12A using the favorite settings after authentication with the logged-in user ID. For example, the settings to be saved in confidential box No. 1 are registered as confidential setting A as a group of parameters set for image forming apparatus 12A. It is assumed that confidential box No. 1 is set as the confidential box of "User A" and confidential box No. 2 is set as the confidential box of "User B" in image forming apparatus 12A.

[0052] When the user wants to execute a job on image forming apparatus 12B with favorite setting A, the user selects "Save in mailbox" for favorite setting A from the "Favorite" settings and approaches image forming apparatus 12B. This establishes short-distance communication between mobile terminal device 14 and image forming apparatus 12, and authentication is performed with the logged-in user ID.

[0053] The application of the mobile terminal device 14 identifies model-dependent parameters from the confidential box settings, extracts the confidential box number from the identification result, and obtains confidential box registration information from the image forming device 12B.

[0054] From the obtained results, a search is made for the box number in which the user can save data, based on the user ID registered in the application. Depending on the search results, the following processing is executed for each case. (1) If there is only one applicable box number, that box number is made the target. For example, as shown in Fig. 4, if there is only one box number, Private Box No. 2, in which "User A" can save in image forming device 12B, then that box number is made the target and the parameter value is changed. In the example of Fig. 4, the Private Box No. as the parameter value is changed to Private Box No. 2. (2) If there are multiple applicable box numbers, they are presented to the user, and the parameter value is changed using the user's selection as the target. (3) If there is no corresponding box number, a new box is registered in image forming apparatus 12B from the application, and the parameter value is changed with that box number as the target. (4) When registering a new box, if the user does not have the authority to register a box, the scanned document can be transferred from the image forming device 12 to a mobile terminal such as the portable terminal device 14.

[0055] From the above result, the box number of the "favorite" setting is replaced with the corresponding number as a parameter, and the image forming apparatus 12B executes confidential box storage with the replaced setting. After the job is executed, the user is notified of the replaced box information.

[0056] This eliminates the need for each user and each image forming apparatus 12 to be aware of their own box number.

[0057] In addition, the user does not need to register the "favorite" settings for each image forming apparatus 12. Even if the configuration and registered information on the image forming apparatus 12 side are changed, the user does not need to change the "favorite" settings on the application side.

[0058] Furthermore, settings that would result in an error if the job were executed as is will be automatically changed so that an error does not occur.

[0059] Next, specific processes performed by each unit of the information processing system 10 according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. Note that the following will be described as an example of a case where, when a job is executed by the image forming apparatus 12A, the settings at the time of job execution are saved as favorite settings for the image forming apparatus 12A, and the job is executed by the image forming apparatus 12B using the favorite settings.

[0060] First, a process performed by the mobile terminal device 14 when a job is executed by the image forming apparatus 12A and a favorite setting is registered will be described. Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of a process performed by the mobile terminal device 14 when a job is executed and a favorite setting is registered in the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment. Note that the process in Fig. 5 will be described as being started when an application pre-installed in the mobile terminal device 14 is started and a user ID is entered and authenticated.

[0061] In step 100, the CPU 14A displays a predetermined parameter setting screen for setting parameters for executing a job on the display unit 14F, and then the process proceeds to step .

[0062] In step 102, the CPU 14A judges whether or not the setting is completed. This judges whether or not the setting is completed by operating the operation unit 14E on the parameter setting screen. The CPU 14A waits until the judgement is affirmative, and proceeds to step 104.

[0063] In step 104, the CPU 14A judges whether or not a job execution has been instructed. This judges whether or not an operation to instruct the job execution has been performed by the operation unit 14E. If the judgement is negative, the process proceeds to step 106, and if the judgement is positive, the process proceeds to step 108.

[0064] In step 106, the CPU 14A judges whether or not a command to stop the execution of the job has been issued. This judges whether or not an operation to instruct the execution of the job has been issued by the operation unit 14E. If the judgement is negative, the process returns to step 104 to repeat the above-mentioned process, and if the judgement is positive, the series of processes is terminated.

[0065] On the other hand, in step 108, the CPU 14A transmits an execution instruction to the image forming apparatus 12, and the process proceeds to step 110. Here, the CPU 14A instructs the image forming apparatus 12A to execute the job with the parameters set by short-distance communication.

[0066] In step 110, the CPU 14A judges whether or not to register the parameter as a favorite setting. For example, it judges whether or not an instruction to register the parameter set on the parameter setting screen in step 100 as a favorite has been given by the operation unit 14E. If the judgment is negative, the series of processes ends, and if the judgment is positive, the process proceeds to step 112.

[0067] In step 112, the CPU 14A saves the parameter settings as favorite settings and ends the series of processes.

[0068] Next, a process performed by the portable terminal device 14 when a job is executed using the favorite settings in an image forming device 12B other than the image forming device 12A in which the favorite settings are registered after the favorite settings are registered as described above will be described. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the process performed by the portable terminal device 14 when a job is executed using the favorite settings in an image forming device 12B other than the image forming device 12A in which the favorite settings are registered after the favorite settings are registered. Note that the process in Fig. 6 starts, for example, when an operation is performed on the portable terminal device 14 to display a screen for instructing execution of a job using the favorite settings.

[0069] In step 200, the CPU 14A selects and reads out the favorite settings, and then proceeds to step 202. For example, an application is started and the favorite settings are selected to read out the favorite settings.

[0070] In step 202, CPU 14A establishes short-distance communication when a user approaches image forming apparatus 12B, and the process proceeds to step 204. If short-distance communication is not established, an error may be displayed after a certain period of time has elapsed, or communication may be established via communication line 16.

[0071] In step 204, CPU 14A acquires the device information from image forming apparatus 12B through short-range communication, and proceeds to step 206. That is, when short-range communication is established, CPU 14A acquires the device information from image forming apparatus 12 by making a request to image forming apparatus 12 to transmit the device information.

[0072] In step 206, CPU 14A judges whether or not the favorite setting is impossible to execute based on the acquired device information. If the judgment is affirmative, the process proceeds to step 208, and if the judgment is negative, the process proceeds to step 220. If the judgment is affirmative, the fact that the favorite setting is impossible to execute as it is may be displayed on display unit 14F.

[0073] In step 208, the CPU 14A determines whether or not there is a parameter change candidate. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step 210, and if the determination is positive, the process proceeds to step 212.

[0074] In step 210, CPU 14A performs a parameter setting request process, and proceeds to step 222. The parameter setting request process is a process for newly registering favorite setting parameters in image forming apparatus 12, and the details of the process will be described later.

[0075] In step 212, the CPU 14A determines whether or not there are multiple parameter change candidates. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step 214, and if not, the process proceeds to step 218.

[0076] In step 214, CPU 14A displays the change candidates on display unit 14F, and proceeds to step 216. That is, parameter change candidates are presented to the user for selection.

[0077] In step 216, CPU 14A judges whether or not an alteration candidate has been selected. This judges whether or not an operation to select an alteration candidate has been performed by operation unit 14E. The process waits until the judgement is affirmative, and proceeds to step 218.

[0078] In step 218, CPU 14A changes the parameter of the favorite setting and proceeds to step 220. That is, if there is one change candidate, the parameter value is changed with the parameter of the change candidate as the target, and if there are multiple change candidates, the parameter value is changed with the parameter of the change candidate selected by the user as the target.

[0079] In step 220, CPU 14A instructs image forming apparatus 12 to execute the job by transmitting the job execution to image forming apparatus 12, and proceeds to step 222. That is, if the favorite settings are executable, job execution is instructed with the favorite settings, and if the favorite settings are not executable, job execution is instructed with the parameter values ​​changed. Note that when transmitting the job execution, for example, the image forming apparatus 12 may be touched with mobile terminal device 14 so that the image forming apparatus 12 recognizes the mobile terminal device 14 and then the job execution is transmitted. This prevents the job execution from being transmitted to an unintended image forming apparatus 12.

[0080] In step 222, if the parameters have been changed, the CPU 14A notifies the user of the changed parameters and ends the series of processes. For example, if the confidential box number has been changed, the user is notified of the changed confidential box information.

[0081] Next, the above-mentioned parameter setting request process will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the parameter setting request process.

[0082] In step 300, the CPU 14A issues a favorite parameter setting request to the image forming apparatus 12, and the process proceeds to step 302. For example, a request to register a confidential box is issued.

[0083] In step 302, the CPU 14A determines whether or not the setting result has been received by short-distance communication from the image forming apparatus 12. The process waits until the determination is affirmative, and then proceeds to step 304.

[0084] In step 304, the CPU 14A judges whether or not the setting has failed. If the judgment is negative, the process proceeds to step 306, and if the judgment is positive, the process proceeds to step 310.

[0085] In step 306, the CPU 14A changes the parameter value based on the setting result received from the image forming apparatus 12, and the process proceeds to step 308.

[0086] In step 308, the CPU 14A instructs the image forming apparatus 12 to execute the job by transmitting a command to execute the job to the image forming apparatus 12, and then ends the series of processes. That is, the job execution is instructed with the favorite settings having the changed parameter values.

[0087] Meanwhile, in step 310, CPU 14A displays alternatives for job settings on display unit 14F and proceeds to step 312. For example, the fact that favorite parameter settings such as confidential box settings cannot be executed is displayed on display unit 14F to notify the user, and an alternative option of directly transferring the scanned document to a mobile terminal such as portable terminal device 14 is presented to the user. Alternatively, the user may be presented with an option of sending the scanned document to a specified destination. Note that, in cases where printing conditions are set as favorites, parameters for predetermined printing conditions may be changed as the alternative process.

[0088] In step 312, the CPU 14A judges whether or not the alternative has been accepted. For example, the judgment is made by judging whether or not an operation to permit the alternative has been performed by the operation unit 14E. If the judgment is negative, the process ends as it is, and if the judgment is positive, the process proceeds to step 3014.

[0089] In step 314, the CPU 14A transmits a command to execute the job with the alternative of the job setting to the image forming apparatus 12, thereby instructing the image forming apparatus 12 to execute the job and completing the series of processes. That is, the command is to execute the job with the favorite setting in which the parameter values ​​of the alternative are set.

[0090] Next, a process performed on the image forming apparatus 12 side of the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment will be described. Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the process performed on the image forming apparatus 12 of the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment. The process in Fig. 8 starts when short-range communication with the mobile terminal apparatus 14 is established and a request to transmit device information is made from the application of the mobile terminal apparatus 14 in the above-mentioned step 204.

[0091] In step 400 , the CPU 20 A transmits the device information to the mobile terminal device 14 , and the process proceeds to step 302 .

[0092] In step 402, the CPU 20A judges whether or not a job execution is to be performed. This judges whether or not a job execution command has been received from an application of the mobile terminal device 14. If the judgement is negative, the process proceeds to step 404. positive If so, the process proceeds to step 414, which will be described later. Note that step 402 may also determine whether or not execution of the job has been instructed via the user interface 22.

[0093] In step 404, the CPU 20A judges whether or not a parameter setting request has been received from the mobile terminal device 14. If the judgment is negative, the process returns to step 402 and the above-mentioned processing is repeated. If the judgment is positive, the process proceeds to step 406.

[0094] In step 406, CPU 20A judges whether the requested parameters can be set. For example, if the parameter setting request is a request to set a mailbox, CPU 20A judges whether the mailbox can be set. Also, if the parameter setting request is to set the destination of information, CPU 20A judges whether the destination can be set. If the judgment is negative, CPU 20A proceeds to step 408, and if the judgment is positive, CPU 20A proceeds to step 410.

[0095] In step 408, CPU 20A transmits a setting result indicating that setting is not possible to mobile terminal device 14, and ends the series of processes.

[0096] On the other hand, in step 410, CPU 20A transmits a setting result indicating that setting is possible to mobile terminal device 14, and the process proceeds to step 412.

[0097] In step 412, the CPU 20A judges whether or not a job is to be executed. The judgment is made by judging whether or not a job execution command is received from an application of the portable terminal device 14. The CPU 20A waits until the judgment is affirmative and proceeds to step 414. In addition, in step 412, the CPU 20A may judge whether or not the job execution command is instructed via the user interface 22. Also, as described above, when the portable terminal device 14 transmits a job execution command, for example, a sensor that detects the approach or contact of the portable terminal device 14 may be provided in the image forming device 12 to detect the portable terminal device 14, and the image forming device 12 may recognize the portable terminal device 14, and then request the portable terminal device 14 to transmit the job execution command and receive the job execution command. This suppresses the transmission of a job execution command to an unintended image forming device 12.

[0098] In step 414 , CPU 20 A sets parameters in accordance with the job execution, and the process proceeds to step 416 .

[0099] In step 416, CPU 20A executes the instructed job and ends the series of processes.

[0100] In the above embodiment, the case of storing in a confidential box has been described as an example of a process using the "favorite" setting, but the present invention is not limited to the process of storing in a confidential box. For example, the "favorite" setting may be applied when printing conditions are set and printing is performed, or when a scanned document is transferred to a previously specified destination, or when other functions of the image forming device 12 are performed.

[0101] In addition, in the above embodiment, the CPU has been described as an example of a processor, but the term "processor" refers to a processor in a broad sense, and includes general-purpose processors (e.g., CPUs, etc.) and dedicated processors (e.g., GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, programmable logic devices, etc.).

[0102] In addition, the operations of the processor in the above embodiments may be performed not only by one processor, but also by multiple processors located at physically separate locations working together. The order of the operations of the processor is not limited to the order described in the above embodiments, and may be changed as appropriate.

[0103] The processes performed by each unit of the information processing system 10 according to the above embodiment may be processes performed by software, may be processes performed by hardware, or may be processes that combine both. The processes performed by each unit of the information processing system 10 may be stored as a program in a storage medium and distributed.

[0104] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above, and it goes without saying that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0105] 10. Information Processing Systems 12 Image forming device 14 Portable terminal device 14A CPU

Claims

1. a processor, the processor comprising: When requesting a process from a second device different from the first device using setting information that is preset as a favorite and is specific to the first device, If a parameter of the setting information needs to be changed in the second device and there is one change candidate, change the parameter to a value of the change candidate; If there are a plurality of change candidates, a user is prompted to select one of the change candidates before the execution of the process, and the process of changing the parameter to the value of the selected change candidate is performed; If there is no change candidate, a process of newly setting parameters of the setting information for the second device is performed; When the setting information is a process of storing information in a predetermined area for each user, an information processing device performs a process of newly creating the predetermined area corresponding to the user as a process of newly setting parameters of the setting information.

2. a processor, the processor comprising: When requesting a process from a second device different from the first device using setting information that is preset as a favorite and is specific to the first device, If a parameter of the setting information needs to be changed in the second device and there is one change candidate, change the parameter to a value of the change candidate; If there are a plurality of change candidates, a user is prompted to select one of the change candidates before the execution of the process, and the process of changing the parameter to the value of the selected change candidate is performed; When there is no change candidate and the user does not have the authority to newly set a parameter of the setting information, the information processing device performs a predetermined alternative process.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the processor, when a predetermined short-range communication is established with the second device, performs a process of acquiring related information related to the setting information from the second device and detecting whether or not the parameter needs to be changed.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the processor performs processing for newly setting parameters of the setting information for the second device when there is no change candidate.

5. The information processing device according to claim 4, wherein when the setting information is a process of storing information in a predetermined area for each user, the processor performs a process of creating a new predetermined area corresponding to the user as a process of newly setting parameters of the setting information.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processor performs a predetermined alternative process when there is no change candidate and the processor does not have authority to newly set a parameter of the setting information.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein, when the setting information is a process for saving information in an area predetermined for each user, the processor performs a process for transmitting the information to be saved to the information processing apparatus itself as the alternative process.

8. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the processor detects contact with or approach to a detection unit provided in the second device, and when contact with or approach to the detection unit is detected, performs a process of requesting the second device to execute processing using the changed parameters.

9. An information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 8; a device that receives a request for processing using the setting information and executes the processing; An information processing system comprising:

10. An information processing program for causing a computer to execute the processing performed by the information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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