Equipment, display method, program

Abstract

To provide an apparatus that displays a display component for connecting to a designated connection destination in a second region different from a first region where an application displays information.SOLUTION: The present invention is an apparatus in which an application displays information received from an information processing device on a network, in a first region of a screen. The apparatus includes: a display control unit that displays a display component for connecting to a designated connection destination in a second region different from the first region; and a communication unit that connects to the designated connection destination when the display component is pressed. The display control unit displays information received from the designated connection destination in the first region.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a device, a display method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] When a user uses a device such as an image forming device, they may be required to log in to the device or server in order to restrict unauthorized use of the device and to implement billing and usage restrictions based on the user's authority.

[0003] As a method for a device to authenticate a user, there is a method using an external server in addition to a method of performing authentication within the device (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 discloses an image forming device that performs authentication processing using a common external server for multiple applications. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, conventional technology has had a problem in that display components connected to the specified destination are not displayed in a second area that is different from the first area where the application displays information. For example, a device may display an authentication screen designed for PCs on its operation panel, but because the applications running on the device (e.g., web browsers) have limited functionality compared to those for PCs (personal computers), the screen may transition to one where the authentication operation cannot be continued. Because applications can display a variety of information, similar problems can occur not only with authentication screens.

[0005] In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention aims to provide a device that displays display components connected to a specified connection destination in a second area that is different from a first area in which an application displays information. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In view of the above problems, the present invention provides: A screen including a first area and a second area different from the first area,On the network server received from Displaying a first web page One Area and is registered in association with the server. Specified URL Connect to Accepts operations Displaying display components and displaying the screen including the second area. A display control unit and the display component User-operated In this case, the above-specified URL and a communication unit connected to the display control unit. To connect to The above specified The second web page of the URL is displayed in the first area. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] It is possible to provide a device that displays a display component connected to a specified connection destination in a second area that is different from a first area in which an application displays information. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating an example of screen transitions displayed by a web browser running on a PC (Personal Computer) or the like. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of an authentication screen of an external server displayed by a web browser of the device. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration of an example of a device utilization system. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 illustrates a hardware configuration of an example of an information processing system. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an example of a device. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of an example of a device utilization system. [Figure 7] 4 is a diagram showing an example of address information stored in an address information storage unit; FIG. [Figure 8] 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a procedure in which a device communicates with an external server and the external server authenticates a user. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure in which a device displays a reload button. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a message displayed when a reload button is pressed. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of an edited drawing displayed on a web page portion when an external server provides a PDF editing service. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, as an example of an embodiment of the present invention, a device and a display method performed by the device will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0010] <Supplementary information on screen transitions displayed by the device> First, referring to Figure 1, we will explain the screen transitions displayed by the device 20. Figure 1 shows the screen transitions displayed by a web browser running on a PC (Personal Computer) or the like. Figure 1(a) shows the first page of a series of articles, and when the user presses the Next button 201, the second page is displayed.

[0011] 1(b) shows page 2. Since page 2 is the transition from page 1, the web browser displays a back button 205. When the user presses the next button 202, page 3 is displayed.

[0012] 1(c) shows page 3. Since page 3 is the transition from page 2, the web browser displays a back button 205.

[0013] In this way, the web browser automatically displays a back button 205 when a screen transition occurs, but if the web page transitions to a different tab, the back button does not appear. For example, if the user clicks on PDF file 204 (which is actually a link to a PDF file) displayed on the second page, the web browser may display the PDF file in a different tab (this setting is written in the original web page). Figure 1(d) shows an example of a PDF file display, but because this is the first time a web page has been displayed on this tab, the web browser does not display the back button. However, when operating a PC, if the user wants to return to page 2, they can display page 2 by displaying the original tab.

[0014] When such a PC-oriented web page is displayed by a web browser running on a device such as an image forming device, the web browser may not support tabs. In a web browser that does not support tabs, if the user clicks on a PDF file displayed on the second page, the web browser will not display a back button. It is also difficult for the user to switch tabs (multiple tabs are not displayed in the first place), and the user cannot return to the second page (they cannot return to the first or third page, etc.). If the user has performed authentication operations on the device, the authentication operations cannot be continued.

[0015] <Screen Restoration Method of the Present Embodiment> Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in Figure 2, the device 20 displays a reload button 210 (an example of a display component) on the display screen of a web browser running on the device 20. The reload button 210 is a button that transitions the screen to a specified web page. Figure 2 shows an example of an authentication screen for an external server displayed by the web browser of the device 20. In Figure 2, only the area within frame 220a (the frame is not displayed) is a web page portion 220 (an example of a first area) displayed by the web browser, and the areas above and below frame 220a are device display portions 230, 240 (an example of a second area) displayed by a native application.

[0016] While the device 20 is communicating with the external server 40 to authenticate the user, the native application displays a reload button 210 outside the web page portion 220 under certain conditions, which will be described later. The native application may always display the reload button. Therefore, even if the user transitions to a screen that is difficult to return to during the authentication operation, the user can press the reload button 210 to transition to, for example, the initial screen of the authentication operation, and perform authentication again via the external server 40.

[0017] <Terminology> The specified connection destination is the connection destination associated with the button, and is indicated by, for example, a URL. The specified connection destination is at least a URL where the user can continue operation. The specified connection destination may be, for example, a destination URL where the initial screen of a screen transition, such as an authentication site, is displayed, or a specified URL when the user presses the reload button.

[0018] An application is software used for a specific function or purpose, and is not for operating a computer itself, like an OS. In this embodiment, a web browser is used as an example, but any application other than a web browser can also be used as long as it can display server information.

[0019] A native app is an app that is installed on a device before it is executed, while an app that runs on a web browser without being installed is called a web app.

[0020] Display components are the colors, shapes, and other elements that make up the screen. They are not components that can be separated from the device, but rather must be visually distinguishable and recognizable by humans. For example, buttons are display components.

[0021] <System configuration example> The system configuration of the device usage system 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the system configuration of the device usage system 100 according to this embodiment.

[0022] 2 includes an information processing system 10 and a device 20, which are communicatively connected via a wide area network N such as the Internet. The information processing system 10 can also communicate with various external servers 40.

[0023] The information processing system 10 is realized by one or more information processing devices, and provides various services to users via a network N, either independently or in conjunction with cloud services. The information processing system 10 according to this embodiment provides a wide range of services, including, for example, a workflow service that executes a series of processes such as scanning documents, OCR of image data, and uploading files. Another example of a service is pull printing of files from a cloud service. This embodiment can also be suitably applied to any other service that requires user authentication by an external server 40.

[0024] The information processing system 10 may be realized by cloud computing or by a single information processing device. Cloud computing refers to a form in which resources on a network are used without being aware of specific hardware resources. The information processing system 10 may exist on the Internet or on-premise.

[0025] The device 20 is any of various electronic devices used by a user. The device 20 may be, for example, an image forming device such as an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral), a projector, an electronic whiteboard, a video conference terminal, a digital camera, or the like. Alternatively, the device 20 may be capable of running a web browser. The device 20 can communicate with the information processing system 10 or an external server 40 via the network N. The user can use the device 20 to utilize various services provided by the information processing system 10 or the external server 40.

[0026] There may be multiple external servers 40 depending on the function. "External" means that the external server is a server separate from the information processing system 10. For example, the service provided by the information processing system 10 may be operated by a different server. When distinguishing between the external servers 40, they will be referred to as external servers 40A, 40B, and any external server will be simply referred to as "external server 40." The external server 40 is one or more information processing devices.

[0027] One of the external servers 40 has a function to authenticate users. The external server 40 supports, for example, OAUTH. OAUTH is a mechanism that allows multiple web services to operate in cooperation with each other. Normally, to use a web service, a user needs to individually enter a user ID and password to be authenticated, but by using OAUTH, web services can be linked together without the user having to individually enter an ID or password. The external server 40 authenticates the user of the device 20 in response to an authentication request from the information processing system 10.

[0028] Additionally, if the external server 40 authenticates the ID and password entered into the device 20, rather than the information processing system 10, the information processing system 10 may transmit the ID and password transmitted from the device 20 to the external server 40. In this case, the device 20 may receive from the information processing system 10 an authentication screen optimized for its own small operation panel and display it. However, if the information processing system 10 were to use the authentication function of the external server 40 to reduce authentication costs, the API (Application Programming Interface) of the external server 40 would not accept authentication information such as the ID and password. For this reason, the adoption of a mechanism such as OAUTH has been considered, but since the device 20 uses an embedded web browser, there is a risk of the inconvenience shown in Figure 1 occurring.

[0029] <Hardware configuration example> The hardware configurations of the information processing system 10 and the devices 20 included in the device utilization system 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0030] <<Information Processing System>> 4 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the information processing system 10 according to this embodiment. The hardware configuration of the external server 40 may be the same as that shown in FIG. 4, or may be different without hindrance to the description of this embodiment.

[0031] As shown in FIG. 4, the information processing system 10 is constructed by a computer and includes a CPU 501, a ROM 502, a RAM 503, an HD (Hard Disk) 504, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) controller 505, a display 506, an external device 20 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.

[0032] Of these, the CPU 501 controls the overall operation of the information processing system 10. 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 and writing of various data from and to the HD 504 under the control of the CPU 501. The display 506 displays various information, such as a cursor, menu, window, text, or image. The external device 20 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 network N. The bus line 510 is an address bus, a data bus, or the like, for electrically connecting the components, such as the CPU 501, shown in FIG. 4.

[0033] The keyboard 511 is a type of input means having multiple keys used to input 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, which is 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.

[0034] <<Equipment>> 5 is a hardware configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus, which is an example of device 20. As shown in FIG. 5, the image forming apparatus includes a controller 910, a short-range communication circuit 920, an engine control unit 930, an operation panel 940, and a network I / F 950.

[0035] Of these, the controller 910 has a CPU 901, which is the main part of the 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 also 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.

[0036] Of these, the CPU 901 is a control unit that performs overall control of the image forming apparatus. The NB 903 is a bridge that connects 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.

[0037] The MEM-P 902 comprises a ROM 902a, which is memory for storing programs and data that realize the functions of the controller 910, and a RAM 902b, which is used for expanding the programs and data and as a drawing memory during memory printing. The programs stored in the RAM 902b may be provided by being recorded in an installable or executable file format on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, CD-R, or DVD.

[0038] The SB 904 is a bridge for connecting the NB 903 with PCI devices and peripheral devices. The ASIC 906 is an integrated circuit (IC) for image processing applications that has hardware elements for image processing and serves as a bridge connecting the AGP bus 921, PCI bus 922, HDD controller 908, and MEM-C 907. The ASIC 906 includes a PCI target and AGP master, an arbiter (ARB) that forms the core of the ASIC 906, a memory controller that controls the MEM-C 907, multiple direct memory access controllers (DMACs) that perform image data rotation using hardware logic, and a PCI unit that transfers data between the scanner unit 931, printer unit 932, and facsimile unit via the PCI bus 922. The ASIC 906 may also have a universal serial bus (USB) interface or an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 1394 (IEEE 1394) interface.

[0039] The MEM-C907 is a local memory used as an image buffer for copying and a code buffer. The HD909 is a storage for storing image data, font data used during printing, and forms. The HD909 controls the reading and writing of data from and to the HD909 under the control of the CPU901. The AGP bus 921 is a bus interface for a graphics accelerator card proposed to speed up graphics processing, and direct high-throughput access to the MEM-P902 enables the graphics accelerator card to operate at high speed.

[0040] Further, the short-range communication circuit 920 is provided with a short-range communication circuit antenna 920a. The short-range communication circuit 920 is a communication circuit such as NFC or Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0041] The engine control unit 930 further includes a scanner unit 931, a printer unit 932, and a facsimile unit 933. The operation panel 940 includes a panel display unit 940a, such as a touch panel, that displays current setting values ​​and selection screens and receives inputs from the operator, and hard keys 940b, such as a numeric keypad that receives setting values ​​for image formation conditions such as density settings and a start key that receives a copy start command. The controller 910 controls the entire image forming apparatus, and controls, for example, drawing, communication, and inputs from the operation panel 940. The scanner unit 931 or the printer unit 932 includes an image processing unit such as error diffusion and gamma conversion.

[0042] The image forming apparatus allows the user to sequentially switch between the document box function, copy function, printer function, and facsimile function using the application switching key on the operation panel 940. When the user selects the document box function, the image forming apparatus enters document box mode, when the user selects the copy function, the image forming apparatus enters copy mode, when the user selects the printer function, the image forming apparatus enters printer mode, and when the user selects the facsimile mode, the image forming apparatus enters facsimile mode.

[0043] The network I / F 950 is an interface for performing data communication using the network N. The short-range communication circuit 920 and the network I / F 950 are electrically connected to the ASIC 906 via a PCI bus 922.

[0044] <About the function> Next, the functional configuration of the device usage system 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the device usage system 100 according to this embodiment.

[0045] <<Equipment>> The device 20 has a communication unit 21, a display control unit 22, and an operation reception unit 23. Each of these functional units of the device 20 is a function or means realized by the CPU 901 executing instructions contained in one or more programs installed in the device 20. Note that this program may be a web browser, a native application, or both.

[0046] The communication unit 21 transmits and receives various information to and from the information processing system 10 or the external server 40. In this embodiment, the communication unit 21 transmits an authentication request to the information processing system 10, redirects it to the external server 40, and performs communication related to authentication.

[0047] The display control unit 22 interprets screen information such as an authentication screen sent from the external server 40 and displays the web page on the web page unit 220 of the panel display unit 940a. The screen information is a program written in HTML, XML, a scripting language, CSS (Cascading Style Sheet), etc., with the structure of the web page being mainly defined by HTML, the behavior of the web page being defined by the scripting language, and the style of the web page being defined by CSS.

[0048] The display control unit 22 also combines display components provided by the native application to display the device display units 230 and 240 on the panel display unit 940a. The display control unit 22 simultaneously displays the web page unit 220 and the device display units 230 and 240 on the panel display unit 940a. The web page unit 220 and the device display units 230 and 240 appear to the user as a single screen.

[0049] The operation reception unit 23 receives various operations from the user on various screens displayed on the panel display unit 940a.

[0050] <<Information Processing System>> The information processing system 10 has a communication unit 11 and an address providing unit 12. Each of these functional units of the information processing system 10 is a function or means realized by the CPU 501 executing instructions included in one or more programs installed in the information processing system 10.

[0051] The communication unit 11 transmits and receives various information to and from the device 20 and the external server 40. In this embodiment, the communication unit 11 transmits, to the device 20, information for redirecting the device 20 to the external server 40 in response to an authentication request transmitted from the device 20.

[0052] The address providing unit 12 provides the URL of the reload destination stored in the address information storage unit 13 to the device 20 .

[0053] 7 is an example of address information stored in the address information storage unit 13. In the address information, a destination URL is registered in association with the type of external server 40. The type of external server 40 is an authentication external server 40 that can be used by the information processing system 10. The destination URL can be acquired by the device 20 by pressing the reload button 210, and the web browser of the device 20 connects to the destination URL in response to pressing the reload button 210. Note that the destination URL may be the same as the destination to which the device 20 redirects using OAUTH.

[0054] The address information shown in FIG. 7 can be set in advance by an administrator.

[0055] <<External Server>> Returning to Fig. 6, the external server 40 has a communication unit 41 and an authentication unit 42. Each of these functional units of the external server 40 is a function or means realized by the CPU 501 executing instructions contained in one or more programs installed on the external server 40.

[0056] The communication unit 41 transmits and receives various information to and from the device 20 and the information processing system 10. In this embodiment, the communication unit 41 receives authentication information and the like (user ID, password, etc.) from the device 20 and transmits an access token and the like.

[0057] The authentication unit 42 authenticates the user based on the OAUTH mechanism. It is assumed that the user's account (user ID, password, etc.) is set in the external server 40 in advance.

[0058] <Authentication screen display> 8 is an example of a sequence diagram showing a procedure in which the device 20 communicates with the external server 40 and the external server 40 authenticates the user. Note that FIG. 8 shows only the main processing of OAUTH, and there may be other processing steps in addition to those shown in the figure.

[0059] S1: When the user operates the device 20 to start authentication, the operation reception unit 23 receives the operation, and the communication unit 21 of the device 20 transmits an authentication start request to the information processing system 10.

[0060] S2: The communication unit 11 of the information processing system 10 receives the authentication start request and requests the device 20 to redirect to the external server 40 along with the type of external server 40 (the name of the external server 40 registered in the address information and the destination URL). If there are multiple external servers 40 that will perform authentication, the communication unit 11 may determine the external server 40 to be the redirect destination based on the designation information for the external server 40 included in the authentication start request, or the external server 40 to be the redirect destination may be determined in advance in the information processing system 10.

[0061] S3: The communication unit 21 of the device 20 receives the redirect request, and the display control unit 22 displays a selection screen for the external server 40. When the user selects an external server 40, the operation reception unit 23 accepts the selection, and the communication unit 21 connects to the redirect destination external server 40. However, the display control unit 22 may omit displaying the selection screen, and the communication unit 21 may immediately connect to the redirect destination external server 40.

[0062] S4: When the device 20 and the external server 40 are connected, the device 20 transmits the user's ID and password to the external server 40, the authentication unit 42 of the external server 40 performs authentication, the authorization authority is set, and the external server 40 transmits the authentication result to the device 20. Here, the external server 40 transmits screen information including fields for inputting the user's ID and password and screen information showing the authentication result to the device 20, and the device 20 can display a screen based on the received screen information. However, the device 20 may display part or all of the screen based on screen information stored in the device 20 or screen information received from the information processing system 10.

[0063] S5: The communication unit 41 of the external server 40 transmits a redirection request (including an authentication code) to the device 20, specifying the information processing system 10 as the redirection destination.

[0064] S6: The communication unit 21 of the device 20 receives the redirect request, and redirects the request to the information processing system 10 by specifying the authentication code.

[0065] S7: The communication unit 11 of the information processing system 10 receives the authentication code and requests an access token by specifying this authentication code from the external server 40. The external server 40 identifies the user and their authority associated with the authentication code.

[0066] S8: The communication unit 41 of the external server 40 requests an access token from the information processing system 10. The access token indicates that the user of the authenticated device 20 is authorized to use the data. Therefore, the information processing system 10 can access the user's information (e.g., files in cloud storage) with the user's authority.

[0067] Note that in Figure 8, the procedure in which the device 20 displays the authentication screen using the OAUTH procedure has been described, but the device 20 may also communicate directly with the external server 40 to display the authentication screen without going through the information processing system 10.

[0068] Although the present embodiment mainly describes an authentication screen as an example, the web page displayed by the device 20 may display any information. The web page displayed by the device 20 may be based on screen information acquired from the external server 40 or may be based on screen information acquired from the information processing system 10.

[0069] <How to display the reload button> 8, a screen such as that shown in Fig. 2 is displayed on the panel display unit 940a of the device 20. The content of the Web page section 220 may vary depending on the URL to which the device connects, so Fig. 2 is merely an example.

[0070] When a web page is displayed in the web page section 220, the user may find that for some reason the user is unable to change the screen. In this case, the device 20 displays a reload button 210 on the device display sections 230 and 240, which can control the display content on the device 20 side.

[0071] 9 is an example of a flowchart illustrating a procedure by which the device 20 displays the reload button 210. The processing in FIG. 9 starts when the display control unit 22 displays a Web page on the panel display unit 940a (before and after the Web page is displayed, and in parallel with the display processing of the device display unit).

[0072] First, the display control unit 22 interprets screen information of an authentication screen transmitted from the external server 40, for example, to generate a Web page, which is then combined with the device display units 230 and 240 and displayed on the panel display unit 940a (S11). The positions of the Web page unit 220 and the device display units 230 and 240 are assumed to be preset.

[0073] Next, the operation receiving unit 23 determines whether or not the reload button 250 has been pressed (S12). The reload button 250 is a button that causes the device 20 to receive screen information from the currently displayed URL and redisplay the Web page. The reload button 250 can be displayed in the Web page section 220, but is not limited to this. It may be displayed in the device display sections 230 and 240, or may be installed as a hardware key. In the following, a case will be described in which the reload button 210 and the reload button 250 are separately provided, but the function of the reload button 250 may also be provided in the reload button 210. In this case, the reload button 250 may be omitted.

[0074] If the determination in step S12 is Yes, the operation receiving unit 23 saves the current URL up to the domain as the specified URL (S13). This is because if the user presses the reload button 250, there is a possibility that an inconvenience will occur in the screen transition. The reason for saving up to the domain is that when the user presses the reload button 250, there is a possibility that the device 20 is already displaying a URL where operation cannot be continued. Note that a domain is a name used to identify a computer or network existing on the Internet. For example, in the case of http: / / sample.com / index.html, sample.com is the domain.

[0075] Next, the display control unit 22 determines whether the device 20 is connected to the external authentication server 40 (S14). To this end, the communication unit 21 acquires address information from the address information storage unit 13 from the information processing system 10. The display control unit 22 compares the destination URL (or any of them if there are multiple) associated with the external server 40 in the acquired address information with the URL of the current destination, thereby determining whether the device 20 is connected to the external authentication server 40. Note that this comparison does not require a perfect match; it is sufficient if the domains match.

[0076] If the determination in step S14 is No, it is determined whether the device 20 is connected to the specified URL (S15).

[0077] If the answer is Yes in step S14 or Yes in step S15, the display control unit 22 displays the reload button 210 on the device display units 230, 240 (S16). This allows the device 20 to always display the reload button 210 while the Web page unit 220 is displaying an authentication screen from the external server 40. Also, the reload button 210 can be displayed while the device 20 is displaying a screen of a URL for which the user pressed the reload button 250.

[0078] Furthermore, the display control unit 22 may change the display mode of the reload button 210 depending on whether the answer to step S14 is Yes or Yes depending on whether the answer to step S15 is Yes. That is, the display control unit 22 changes the display mode of the reload button 210 while the authentication screen by the external server 40 is being displayed and while the screen on which the reload button 250 was pressed is being displayed. For example, since pressing the reload button 210 is not necessarily necessary while the authentication screen is being displayed, the display control unit 22 displays the reload button 210 at normal brightness. While the screen on which the reload button 250 was pressed is being displayed, there is a possibility that a problem may occur with the screen transition, so the display control unit 22 highlights the reload button 210 and displays it in an emphasized manner. Examples of highlighting include increasing the brightness, changing the color, making the button larger, or blinking. Alternatively, the display control unit 22 may change the display mode of the reload button 210 depending on the type of address registered in the address information storage unit 13.

[0079] The display control unit 22 may not display the reload button 210 if the answer is Yes in step S14, and may display the reload button 210 only if the answer is Yes in step S15. This is because there may be cases where the reload button 210 is not necessary even when the authentication screen by the external server 40 is being displayed.

[0080] If the results are No in step S14 and No in step S15, the display control unit 22 hides the reload button 210 (S17). In this way, the device 20 can switch between displaying and hiding the reload button 210 depending on the connection destination to which the device 20 is connected to display information. The display control unit 22 may also hide the reload button 210 depending on the external server 40. The reload button 210 may also be hidden if the screen displayed in the web page unit 220 is based on screen information stored in the device 20.

[0081] When the reload button 210 is displayed, the operation acceptance unit 23 determines whether or not the reload button 210 has been pressed (S18).

[0082] When the reload button 210 is pressed, the communication unit 21 of the device 20 connects to the destination URL or the specified URL (S19). If the specified URL is saved, the communication unit 21, for example, connects by giving priority to the specified URL. The destination URL may also be given priority. Note that the native application detects the pressing of the reload button 210, and the native application notifies the web browser that the reload button 210 has been pressed.

[0083] Then, when the reload button 210 is pressed again (or when the reload button 210 is pressed for the first time if the specified URL has not been saved), the communication unit 21 of the device 20 acquires the destination URL from the information processing system 10 and displays the web page of the destination URL again on the web page unit 220. In this case, when the device 20 transmits the current URL to the information processing system 10, the address providing unit 12 of the information processing system 10 acquires a destination URL having the same domain as the URL from the address information storage unit 13. The communication unit 11 transmits the destination URL to the device 20. In this way, the device 20 can display an authentication screen that allows screen transition from a situation where screen transition is not possible.

[0084] The reload button 210 may be displayed only when the device 20 is redirected. The redirection can be detected by the HTTP status code (300).

[0085] <Message displayed when pressing the reload button> 10, the display control unit 22 may display a message when the user presses the reload button 210. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing the message that is displayed when the reload button 210 is pressed.

[0086] Pressing the reload button 210 causes the display control unit 22 to display a dialog box 310. The dialog box 310 has a message 311 saying, "The authentication information you have entered so far will be erased. Do you want to move to the initial screen?", a Yes button 312, and a No button 313. The user can read the message 311 and decide whether to change the screen. If the Yes button 312 is pressed (in response to a user operation), the communication unit 21 performs the processing of step S19. Such a display is effective when the user accidentally presses the reload button 210 (even though they do not want to change the screen).

[0087] <Displaying the reload button on screens other than the authentication screen> In this embodiment, the case where the Web browser displays the authentication screen of the external server 40 has been described, but the device 20 can display the reload button 210 regardless of the content of the Web page displayed by the Web page section 220.

[0088] FIG. 11 shows an example of an edited image displayed on the web page section 220 when the external server 40 provides a PDF editing service. In FIG. 11, it is assumed that the user can edit the PDF on the panel display section 940a. Because this service is provided for PCs, there is a possibility that the web browser of the device 20 may malfunction. For this reason, it is preferable for the user to be able to return to a normal screen (to reduce the frequency of contacting an administrator or calling for service).

[0089] 11, the device display units 230, 240 also display the reload button 210. When the reload button 210 is pressed, the device 20 redisplays the web page with the URL appropriate for the PDF service being used. If the user has logged in to use the PDF editing service, the device 20 returns to the state where the PDF file is open.

[0090] As a method for realizing this, for example, the communication unit 21 records at least the URL each time the domain of the connected URL is changed. If the URL of the connection destination includes a file name, the communication unit 21 preferably also records the file name. When the reload button 210 is pressed, the communication unit 21 connects to the last recorded URL.

[0091] In this way, the URL to which the device 20 connects when the reload button 210 is pressed does not need to be set in advance in the information processing system 10 or the like.

[0092] <Major Effects> As described above, in the device utilization system 100 of this embodiment, the device 20 displays the reload button 210 separately from the web page. Therefore, even if the user transitions to a screen that is difficult to return to during operation, the user can return to a screen where operation can be continued by pressing the reload button 210.

[0093] <Other application examples> The best mode for carrying out the present invention has been described above using examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples in any way, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention.

[0094] For example, when a user launches an application on the device 20 that does not use the external server 40, the device 20 may display a screen display portion of the application instead of the web page portion 220. Even in this case, the device 20 may display a reload button 210 on the device display portions 230 and 240. When the reload button 210 is operated, the device 20 may update the status of the application or restart the application. In other words, even when the same reload button 210 is operated, different processes may be executed depending on the type of the running application. For example, the display control unit 22 determines whether the application to be launched is an application that uses the external server 40. For example, if the application is a native application, the device 20 determines that the application does not use the external server 40, and updates the status of the application in response to the operation of the reload button 210. Furthermore, if the application is a web application or a web browser application, the device 20 determines that the application uses the external server 40, and connects to the specified connection destination in response to the operation of the reload button 210. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the display control unit 22 may hide the reload button if the launched application does not use the external server 40. In other words, the display control unit 22 may switch between displaying and hiding the reload button depending on the type of application to be launched.

[0095] For example, in this embodiment, the device 20 connects to the external server 40 using OAUTH, but the device 20 may connect to the external server 40 using any single sign-on mechanism.

[0096] 6 is an example, and multiple blocks may be realized as a single block, one block may be divided into multiple blocks, and / or some functions may be moved to another block.Furthermore, the functions of multiple blocks having similar functions may be processed in parallel or in time-sharing by a single piece of hardware or software.

[0097] Additionally, the devices described in the examples are merely illustrative of one of several computing environments for implementing the embodiments disclosed herein. In one embodiment, information processing system 10 includes multiple 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 perform the processes disclosed herein.

[0098] Furthermore, the information processing system 10 can be configured to share the processing steps disclosed in this embodiment, such as those shown in FIG. 8, in various combinations. For example, a process executed by a specific unit can be executed by multiple information processing devices included in the information processing system 10. Furthermore, the information processing system 10 may be integrated into a single server device, or may be divided into multiple devices.

[0099] Furthermore, 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 perform each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, as well as devices such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and conventional circuit modules designed to perform each of the above-described functions. [Explanation of symbols]

[0100] 10 Information Processing Systems 20 equipment 40 External Servers 100 Equipment Utilization System [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0101] [Patent Document 1] Patent Gazette No. 4976345

Claims

1. A display control unit that displays a screen including a first area and a second area different from the first area, the first area displaying a first web page received from a server on a network, and the second area displaying a display component that accepts an operation to connect to a specified URL that is registered in correspondence with the server; a communication unit that connects to the specified URL when the display component is operated by a user, The device is characterized in that the display control unit displays a second web page of the specified URL of the connection destination in the first area.

2. The display control unit determines whether the device is connected to the server, and if it determines that the device is connected, displays the display component.

2. The device of claim 1 .

3. When the device is not connected to the server, the display control unit determines whether the device is connected to any of the URLs saved by a user operation, If it is determined that the device is connected, the display component is displayed. If it is determined that the device is not connected, the display component is not displayed.

3. The device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the device communicates with an information processing system via a network; The specified URL, which differs for each server, is registered in the information processing system; The device described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that when the display component is pressed, the communication unit obtains from the information processing system the specified URL associated with the server connected to display the second web page, and the communication unit connects to the specified URL.

5. The device described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that when the display component is pressed, the display control unit displays a message indicating that the screen will change, and in response to the user's operation, the communication unit connects to the specified URL.

6. The device described in Claim 3, characterized in that the display control unit changes the display mode of the display component when the device is connected to the server and when the device is not connected to the server but is connected to a URL saved by user operation.

7. the communication unit stores a URL connected to display the first web page when a reload button of the first web page is pressed; 6. The device according to claim 5, wherein, when connected to the URL, the display control unit displays the display component in an emphasized manner.

8. A web browser runs on the device, The device runs native apps, the display control unit displays, in the first area, a first web page received from the server and a second web page received from the specified URL by the web browser; 8. The device according to claim 1, wherein the native application displays the display component in the second area.

9. A step of displaying a screen including a first area and a second area different from the first area, the screen including the first area displaying a first web page received from a server on a network, and the second area displaying a display component that accepts an operation to connect to a specified URL registered in correspondence with the server; connecting to the specified URL when the display component is operated by a user; displaying a second web page of the specified URL of the connection destination in the first area; A display method characterized in that the device performs the above.

10. The device, a display control unit that displays a screen including a first area and a second area different from the first area, the screen including the first area displaying a first web page received from a server on a network, and the second area displaying a display component that accepts an operation to connect to a specified URL that is registered in association with the server; When the display component is operated by a user, the display component functions as a communication unit that connects to the specified URL; The display control unit displays a second web page of the specified URL of the connection destination in the first area.

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