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

Abstract

To provide a technique that can execute highly convenient notification processing on a terminal device.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus acquires terminal information that is information on a user's terminal device sharing a consumable article, remaining amount information on the remaining amount of the consumable article, purchase authority information that is information on the authority to purchase the consumable article, and notification information including a notification condition and information on the purchase of the consumable article set according to the notification condition. The information processing apparatus determines information on the purchase of the consumable article based on terminal information, the remaining amount information, the purchase authority information, and the notification information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

Technical Field

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[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, a printing system, and a program that perform notifications according to the remaining amount of consumables.

Background Art

[0002] A printing system that can execute printing by a printer managed by a server using a terminal device is known. The server acquires information regarding the consumables of the printer, for example, and notifies the terminal of information regarding the purchase of ink including a message prompting the purchase of consumables and discount information available at the time of purchasing consumables according to the information. The purchase of ink is executed from a terminal device having the authority therefor. Therefore, among the information regarding the purchase of ink, it is desirable that the discount information be transmitted only to the terminal device having the authority to purchase ink.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a technique that enables a server to notify a terminal device of information such as the weather in the surrounding area based on the position information acquired from the terminal device.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, Patent Document 1 is merely a technique for performing notifications based on position information, and it is not possible to notify each terminal device held by a plurality of users sharing a printer or the like of information regarding the purchase of ink according to the purchase authority of the consumables.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to execute highly convenient notification processing for a terminal device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To achieve the above objective, one embodiment of the present invention is an information processing device that provides notifications to a terminal device of a user who shares consumables, comprising: a first acquisition means for acquiring terminal information which is information about the terminal device including information about the user; a second acquisition means for acquiring remaining amount information which is information about the remaining amount of the consumables; and a third acquisition means for acquiring purchase authority information which is information about the purchase authority of the consumables. The purchase of the consumables is set using the terminal information, the remaining amount information, and the purchase authorization information. notification Perform conditions and , The relevant article Regarding the matter Correspondence Regarding the purchase of the aforementioned consumables as set forth ru knowledge The contents and A fourth acquisition means for acquiring, Acquired The aforementioned terminal information, Acquired The remaining amount information, and obtained The aforementioned purchase authority information Based , Determine whether the above conditions are met, and if so, provide a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables with the content set in accordance with those conditions. It is characterized by having a determination means for determining the [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, it becomes possible to perform highly convenient notification processing on terminal devices. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] A schematic diagram of the printing system. [Figure 2] A diagram showing the hardware configuration of the control systems for each device that makes up the printing system. [Figure 3] Sequence diagram of the notification process in the first embodiment. [Figure 4] A diagram showing an example of print information, user information, and ink purchase information. [Figure 5] A diagram showing an example of notification settings. [Figure 6] A diagram showing the notification settings screen. [Figure 7] A diagram showing the ink information screen. [Figure 8] Figure showing an ink information screen on which an ink order area is displayed. [Figure 9] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the determination process. [Figure 10] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the process which is a subroutine of the determination process. [Figure 11] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the process which is a subroutine of the determination process. [Figure 12] Sequence diagram of the notification process during printing execution in the second embodiment. [Figure 13] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the notification process executed on the terminal. [Figure 14] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the notification execution process which is a subroutine of the notification process. [Figure 15] Sequence diagram of the notification process during non - printing execution in the second embodiment. [Figure 16] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the notification process executed on the terminal. [Figure 17] Sequence diagram of the notification process during printing execution in the third embodiment. [Figure 18] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the notification process executed on the terminal. [Figure 19] Sequence diagram of the notification process during non - printing execution in the third embodiment. [Figure 20] Flowchart showing the processing routine of the notification process executed on the terminal. [Figure 21] Figure showing an example of notification settings in other embodiments.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, examples of embodiments of the information processing device, information processing method, printing system, and program will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiments are not intended to limit the present invention, and not all combinations of features described in these embodiments are essential to the solutions of the present invention. Furthermore, the positions and shapes of the components described in the embodiments are merely illustrative and are not intended to limit the scope of this invention to them alone.

[0011] (First Embodiment) A printing system equipped with an information processing device according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 11.

[0012] <Printing System> Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a printing system equipped with an information processing device according to the first embodiment. The printing system 10 in Figure 1 includes a plurality of terminal devices 12 held by users receiving services from the printing system 10, and a printer 14 that performs printing based on instructions from the terminal devices 12. The printing system 10 also includes a purchase management server 16 that manages the purchase of consumables and a notification management server 18 that manages notifications to the terminal devices 12. In the following description, "terminal device" will be referred to simply as "terminal" as appropriate.

[0013] Terminal 12 and printer 14 are connected to a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) router 20 via wireless communication, enabling them to communicate with each other. The wireless LAN router 20 is connected to the internet 22, which in turn is connected to the purchase management server 16 and the notification management server 18. Therefore, terminal 12 and printer 14 are configured to communicate with the purchase management server 16 and the notification management server 18, respectively, via the wireless LAN router 20 and the internet 22.

[0014] In this embodiment, multiple users can each print using the printer 14 via terminal 12, and purchase ink, which is a consumable for the printer 14, via the purchase management server 16. In this way, the printing system 10 allows multiple users to share the printer 14. In this embodiment, the notification management server 18 provides notifications such as the remaining ink level in the printer 14 and information on available ink discounts when purchasing ink.

[0015] <Terminal device> Terminal 12 comprises a printer driver 24, a print management unit 26, an application 28, a utility 30, and a network interface control unit 32. When a user requests printing of image data created with application 28 in terminal 12, the request is submitted as a print job to the print management unit 26. The print management unit 26 then transmits the submitted print job to the printer driver 24.

[0016] When the printer driver 24 receives a print job, it generates print data that the printer 14 can interpret and sends the generated print data to the printer 14 via the network I / F control unit 32. Furthermore, after sending the print data to the printer 14, the printer driver 24 notifies the utility 30 that printing has been performed.

[0017] Utility 30 is software that provides functions for displaying various information on the display 210 (described later), such as the remaining ink level of the printer 14 and available ink discount information when purchasing ink, as well as functions for purchasing ink. When Utility 30 receives notification from the printer driver 24 to execute a print job, it sends print information to the notification management server 18 via the network I / F control unit 32, indicating that printing has been executed on the printer 14. Utility 30 also displays the ink discount information notified by the notification management server 18 on the display 210 and sends ink purchase (order) information to the purchase management server 16 via the network I / F control unit 32.

[0018] Next, the hardware configuration of terminal 12 will be described. Figure 2(a) shows the hardware configuration of the control system of terminal 12. Terminal 12 has an operating system (OS) built into it, and each component of terminal 12 is managed by the OS. Terminal 12 has the hardware configuration of a typical information processing device.

[0019] Specifically, terminal 12 is equipped with a central processing unit (CPU) 202, RAM 204, and ROM 206. The CPU 202 executes programs such as the OS and applications stored in the program ROM of ROM 206, or loaded into RAM 204 from the hard disk 208. Various processes, as shown later using flowcharts, are executed by programs stored in ROM 206. RAM 204 also functions as the main memory and work area of ​​the CPU 202.

[0020] Furthermore, terminal 12 includes a display controller (DSPC) 212 that controls the display on the display 210, and a keyboard controller (KBC) 214 that controls input data from the keyboard 220. In addition, terminal 12 includes a disk controller (DKC) 216 that controls data access to the hard disk 208 that stores various data. Furthermore, terminal 12 includes a network interface card (NIC) 218 ​​that controls the exchange of signals over the network. In this embodiment, the display 210 of terminal 12 is configured to display various notification contents, which will be described later.

[0021] <Printer> The printer 14 includes a printing unit 34 that ejects ink onto a printing medium to perform printing, a print control unit 36 ​​that controls printing by the printing unit 34, and a network I / F control unit 38 that controls the transmission and reception of information in the printer 14. When the print control unit 36 ​​receives print data from the terminal 12 via the network I / F control unit 38, it controls the printing unit 34 based on the print data to perform printing.

[0022] Next, the hardware configuration of printer 14 will be described. Figure 2(b) shows the hardware configuration of the control system of printer 14. It is equipped with a CPU 252, RAM 254, and ROM 256. RAM 254 functions as the work area for CPU 252. CPU 252 loads programs stored in ROM 256 into RAM 254 and executes them. In addition, printer 14 is equipped with a NIC 258 that controls signal conversion via the network.

[0023] <Purchase Management Server> The purchase management server 16 includes an ordering unit 40 that places orders for ink, a purchase control unit 42 that instructs the ordering unit 40 to execute the ink orders, and a network I / F control unit 44 that controls the transmission and reception of information in the purchase management server 16. The ordering unit 40 executes ink orders to external order receiving devices that accept ink orders, based on the information output from the purchase control unit 42.

[0024] When the purchase control unit 42 receives ink purchase information from the terminal 12 via the network I / F control unit 44, it outputs information for ordering ink to the order unit 40 based on that purchase information. The purchase control unit 42 also sends ink purchase information, including information about the terminal 12 that ordered the ink and information about the printer 14 to be used, to the notification management server 18 via the network I / F control unit 44. The hardware configuration of the purchase management server 16 is basically the same as that of the terminal 12, so a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0025] <Notification Management Server> The notification management server 18 includes a purchase information management unit 46 that manages information such as ink purchase information, a print information management unit 48 that manages print information, and a user information management unit 50 that manages user information including information about users who use the printer 14 and the terminals 12 of those users. The notification management server 18 also includes a notification setting unit 52 that accepts various settings for notifications and a notification control unit 54 that controls the output destination of information received via the network I / F control unit 56. Furthermore, the notification management server 18 includes a network I / F control unit 56 for sending and receiving information within the notification management server 18.

[0026] When the notification control unit 54 receives ink purchase information from the purchase management server 16 via the network I / F control unit 56, it stores the received ink purchase information in the purchase information management unit 46. Ink purchase information is, for example, purchase authority information, which is information regarding whether or not there is permission to purchase ink, and includes information about users who have permission to purchase ink and information about the terminal that purchased the ink. In this embodiment, the ink purchase information is information that can identify the terminal 12, the user, and the printer 14 that purchased the ink.

[0027] Furthermore, when the notification control unit 54 receives print information from the terminal 12 via the network I / F control unit 56, it stores the received print information in the print information management unit 48. Print information includes, for example, information that identifies the fact that printing was performed on the printer 14, and the terminal 12 and printer 14 that performed the printing. In addition, the notification control unit 54 generates user information based on the information managed by the purchase information management unit 46 and the print information management unit 48, and stores the generated user information in the user information management unit 50. User information includes, for example, information about the user who uses the printer 14, and includes information about the terminal used by each user.

[0028] The notification setting unit 52 combines various conditions to set the notification content and timing for the terminal 12 to be notified, and also stores the notification settings generated by these settings. In this embodiment, the notification content is information related to the purchase of ink. Specifically, it is information about ink discounts (ink discount information) and information prompting a request to purchase ink (ink purchase request information, described later). The settings in the notification setting unit 52 are performed by the service provider that provides the printing service by the printing system 10. The specific settings in the notification setting unit 52 will be described later. The notification control unit 54 then notifies the terminal 12 of the ink discount information, etc., based on the notification settings in the notification setting unit 52, the purchase information management unit 46, the printing information management unit 48, and the user information management unit 50. The hardware configuration of the notification management server 18 is basically the same as that of the terminal 12, so a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0029] <Notification processing in printing systems> In the above configuration, when a user requests printing, i.e., gives an execution command, on terminal 12, the printing system 10 performs printing based on the request on printer 14, and if necessary, sends a notification to terminal 12 according to the status of printer 14. Figure 3 is a diagram showing the processing sequence of the notification process in the printing system 10 in this embodiment.

[0030] When a user requests to print data created in application 28 (S302), application 28 generates a print job based on the request and outputs the generated print job to the printer driver 24 via the print management unit 26 (S304). Next, the printer driver 24 generates print data that the printer 14 can interpret based on the print job (S306), and sends the generated print data to the printer 14 via the network I / F control unit 32 (S308). In this embodiment, the printer 14 is configured to execute printing in response to a request from terminal 12.

[0031] When the printer 14 receives print data, it executes printing to the printing medium (S310). The printer driver 24 also notifies the utility 30 that printing has been executed after sending the print data to the printer 14 (S312). The utility 30 obtains the user ID and serial number of the terminal on which it operates (hereinafter referred to as "its own terminal") as terminal information (S314). In the printing system 10, the user ID and serial number of the terminal 12 used by the user in the printing system 10 are registered. Therefore, in S314, the utility 30 obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal that have been registered in advance. The terminal information is stored in the storage area of ​​each terminal 12, such as the ROM 206.

[0032] Subsequently, the utility 30 requests printer 14 to provide printer information for the printer that performed the print job, including the model name and serial number of printer 14, and ink information indicating the remaining ink levels of the printer 14 (S316). Then, it obtains a response from printer 14 to this request (S318). In S318, printer 14 will, for example, send printer information and ink information to terminal 12 when printing is completed. In other words, the ink information sent from S318 to utility 30 reflects the remaining ink levels after printing based on the print data. Subsequently, utility 30 sends the terminal information that requested the print job (obtained in S314) and the printer information that performed the print job (printer information and ink information obtained in S318) to the notification management server 18 as print information (S320).

[0033] When the notification management server 18 receives print information, it updates the information in the print information management unit 48 (S322). If the terminal information included in the print information is not included in the user information managed by the user information management unit 50, it updates the information in the user information management unit 50 (S324). In S324, if the terminal information included in the print information is included in the user information managed by the user information management unit 50, the process proceeds to S326, which will be described later, without updating the information in the user information management unit 50.

[0034] Here, we will explain the print information, user information, and ink purchase information managed by the notification management server 18, referring to Figure 4. Figure 4(a) shows an example of the information included in print information, Figure 4(b) shows an example of the information included in user information, and Figure 4(c) shows an example of the information included in ink purchase information.

[0035] In the notification management server 18, print information, user information, and ink purchase information are associated with the last update date and time information in the respective management units (purchase information management unit 46, print information management unit 48, and user information management unit 50) that manage the information. In this embodiment, however, the update date and time information does not necessarily have to be associated with each piece of information.

[0036] Furthermore, the notification management server 18 stores the following five pieces of information as print information after printing by the printer 14 in the print information management unit 48: namely, the model name 402 of the printer 14 that performed the printing, the serial number 404 of the printer 14, the ink information 406 of the printer 14, the user ID 408 of the terminal 12 that requested the print, and the serial number 410 of the terminal 12. In this embodiment, the printer 14 is equipped with four inks: black (BK), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y). The ink information, which is information on the remaining ink levels, stores a value indicating the ink level of each ink at the end of printing. In this embodiment, when the ink level falls below 5%, a notification state is set to be activated, which notifies the user of a warning prompting them to purchase or replace the ink.

[0037] Furthermore, the notification management server 18 maintains the following five pieces of information in the user information management unit 50 as user information for users who share the printer 14: namely, the model name 412 of the printable printer 14, the serial number 414 of the printer 14, the user ID 416 of the terminal 12 associated with the printer 14, the serial number 418 of the terminal 12, and remarks information 420 associated with each terminal 12. Note that the remarks information 420 may be omitted from the user information. Figure 4(b) shows an example in which three users A to C share the printer 14 in a household. Specifically, user A, the father, uses work terminal A1 and personal terminal A2, user B, the mother, uses personal terminal B1, and user C, the child, uses school terminal C1 and personal terminal C2. Therefore, in S324, if the terminal information of terminal 12, which is included in the print information, is not present in the terminal information of the user information, then the terminal information included in the print information is added to the terminal information of the user information.

[0038] Furthermore, the notification management server 18 stores the following four pieces of information in the purchase information management unit 46 as ink purchase information for users who have purchased ink for printer 14: namely, the model name 422 of the printer 14 from which the ink was purchased, the serial number 424 of the printer 14, the user ID 426 of the terminal 12 used to purchase the ink, and the serial number 428 of the terminal 12. In Figure 4(c), user A, the father, and user B, the mother, can use their terminals 12 to purchase ink. Specifically, user A, the father, can use his personal terminal A2 to purchase ink, and user B, the mother, can use her personal terminal B1 to purchase ink.

[0039] Furthermore, regarding ink purchase information, for example, if ink is purchased via a website for purchasing ink from a terminal 12 that is not registered in the ink purchase information, the terminal information of that terminal 12 will be newly registered in the ink purchase information on the purchase management server 16. In addition, when registering a user to use the printing system 10, terminals 12 that can be used to purchase ink may be registered. In the following description, terminals 12 identified by the terminal information registered in the ink purchase information will be described as terminals 12 used to purchase ink and terminals 12 that can be used to purchase ink.

[0040] Returning to Figure 3, the notification management server 18 then determines the notification content to be sent to each terminal 12 of each user who shares the printer 14 (S326). In this specification, "terminal 12 of users who share the printer 14" is also referred to as "terminal 12 that shares the printer 14." In S326, the notification content (information regarding ink purchase) is determined for each terminal 12 according to the notification conditions set in the notification settings. As will be described in detail later, the notification conditions in the notification settings include a notification timing, which is the timing at which notifications are sent to terminal 12. Therefore, in S326, the notification timing, which is set as a notification condition in the setting conditions corresponding to the determined notification content, is also obtained.

[0041] The notification management server 18 then sends print information, ink information, and the determined notification content to each terminal 12 that shares the printer 14 (S328). In S328, the determined notification content is sent from the notification management server 18 to the terminal 12 based on the notification timing obtained in S326. In other words, if the notification timing is, for example, "immediately," then once the notification content is determined in S326, the notification management server 18 immediately sends the notification content to the terminal 12. Also, if the notification timing is, for example, "21:00," then after the notification content is determined in S326, the notification management server 18 sends the notification content to the terminal 12 at 21:00. The notification management server 18 is equipped with a clock.

[0042] In this embodiment, when the notification management server 18 receives print information and printer information from the utility 30, it determines the notification content for each terminal 12 according to the notification conditions in the notification settings and sends it, thereby notifying the user in accordance with the user's printing operation. The notification management server 18 may, for example, store the print information received from the utility 30 and determine and send the notification content at a specific timing. This specific timing could be, for example, when the service provider performs an operation, or at a regular timing such as once a day. This reduces the processing load on the notification management server 18.

[0043] Here, the notification conditions and how to set them will be explained with reference to Figures 5 and 6. Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of notification settings. Figure 6 is a diagram showing the notification settings screen for setting notification conditions. In this embodiment, notification content is set for nine different notification settings with different notification conditions. The notification conditions include whether the printer 14 is shared or not, whether there is an ink purchase user or not, whether the terminal user has ink purchase authority or not, whether it is a terminal used for ink purchase or not, whether it is a printing user or not, whether it is a printing terminal or not, and the ink level. In addition, the notification timing is set as a notification condition. Note that the content of the setting conditions, combinations of setting conditions, and notification content shown in Figure 5 are merely examples and are not limited to those shown in Figure 5.

[0044] The notification management server 18 stores information regarding notification settings and the update date and time of the notification settings in the notification setting unit 52. In this embodiment, the information regarding the update date and time does not need to be associated with the notification settings. In notification settings (1) and (2), when the user who performed the print job has the authority to purchase ink, the threshold for the ink level at which ink discount information is notified to the terminal 12 that performed the print job is changed depending on whether the terminal 12 that performed the print job is a terminal used to order ink. Specifically, in notification setting (1), a notification is made when the ink level is 5% or less, which is below the first threshold, and in notification setting (2), it is set to 20% or less, which is below the second threshold, which is higher than the first threshold.

[0045] Furthermore, notification settings (2) and (3) change the timing of notifications to users who purchased ink depending on whether the terminal 12 used for printing was the one that performed the print job. Also, when a user prints, ink discount information is sent to the terminals 12 of all users who have the authority to purchase ink, so that the corresponding notification settings are associated with "ink discount information" as the notification content (see notification settings (1) to (5)). Note that notification settings (4) and (5) change the threshold ink level at which ink discount information is sent depending on whether the other user who performed the print job has the authority to purchase ink. Note that whether a user has the authority to purchase ink means whether the user owns a terminal 12 that can be used to purchase ink.

[0046] Users with ink purchase privileges can check the ink discount information notified to their device when they print, and purchase ink themselves if necessary. Therefore, when another user without ink purchase privileges prints, that user will be notified of the ink discount information when the ink level falls below 20%. On the other hand, other users with ink purchase privileges will not be notified of the ink discount information until the ink level falls below 5%, which is the warning level. This prevents excessive notification of ink discount information to users other than the one who requested the print job.

[0047] Furthermore, in notification settings (6) and (7), if a user without ink purchase authority prints and the ink level falls below 5%, which triggers a warning, an ink purchase request information is sent instead of ink discount information. This ink purchase request information prompts the user to request that the user with purchase authority purchase the ink. Also, in notification settings (1) to (7), the notification management server 18 immediately notifies the terminal 12 that performed the print job (see notification settings (1), (2), and (6)). On the other hand, other terminals 12 are notified immediately, but at a set time (see notification settings (3), (4), (5), and (7)).

[0048] This allows for notifications to be sent appropriately depending on whether the user has the authority to purchase ink. In notification setting (8), if no users who share printer 14 have purchased ink, when a user prints on the printer, ink discount information is immediately sent to all terminals 12 that share printer 14. In notification setting (9), if printer 14 is not shared with other users, when a user prints on printer 14, ink discount information is immediately sent to the terminal that requested the print.

[0049] These notification settings are configured by the service provider, including the notification conditions and content. Specifically, the service provider can configure the notification conditions using the notification settings screen 602 displayed on the display 210 of the notification management server 18 (see Figure 6). The notification settings screen 602 is displayed on the display 210 of the notification management server 18 by the notification settings unit 52 based on input from the service provider.

[0050] The service provider can edit and register multiple notification settings by switching the setting area 606 using the "Notification Settings" pop-up menu 604 on the notification settings screen 602. In this embodiment, notification settings (1) to (9) can be registered. The "Printer Sharing" checkbox 608 in the setting area 606 allows setting whether or not printer 14 is shared as a notification condition. The notification settings unit 52 makes area 610 configurable if the "Printer Sharing" checkbox 608 is enabled, and grays out area 610 to make it unconfigurable if it is disabled.

[0051] The "There is a user who purchases ink" checkbox 612 in area 610 allows you to set a notification condition to indicate whether or not there is a user who can purchase ink among the users who share the printer 14. The notification setting unit 52 makes area 614 configurable if the "There is a user who purchases ink" checkbox 612 is enabled, and grays out area 614 and makes it unconfigurable if it is disabled.

[0052] The "Terminal user has ink purchase authority" checkbox 616 in area 614 allows you to set whether the user using terminal 12 has ink purchase authority as a notification condition. The "Terminal used for ink purchase" checkbox 618 in area 614 allows you to set whether terminal 12 is used for (or capable of purchasing) ink as a notification condition. The "Printing user" pop-up menu 620 in area 614 allows you to set whether the user who performed the print job is yourself or someone else as a setting condition. If it is someone else, you can also specify whether that person has ink purchase authority or not. The "Printing terminal" pop-up menu 622 in area 614 allows you to set whether the terminal 12 that performed the print job is your own terminal or not as a notification condition.

[0053] The "Ink Level" pop-up menu 624 in setting area 606 allows you to set the ink level of the printer 14 as a notification condition. The ink level can be set as a threshold of any level below 0% to 100%, for example, in 5% increments. The "Notification Timing" pop-up menu 626 in setting area 606 allows you to set the notification timing to any time between 0:00 and 24:00 in 1-hour increments, or "immediately". The "Notification Content" setting field 628 in setting area 606 allows you to specify the path of the notification content.

[0054] When the "Register" button 630 is selected, the notification settings unit 52 stores the notification conditions and notification content set in the setting area 606 in a memory area such as RAM 204 and registers them as notification settings. Also, when the "× (Close)" button 632 is selected, the notification settings screen 602 is closed.

[0055] Returning to Figure 3, the utility 30 on terminal 12, which has received information sent from the notification management server 18, displays an ink information screen based on the received information (S330). In S330, terminal 12 of a user with ink purchase authority will display an ink information screen like that shown in Figure 7(a). Terminal 12 of a user without ink purchase authority will display an ink information screen like that shown in Figure 7(b). Figure 7 is an example of an ink display screen, where (a) is the ink information screen displayed on the terminal of a user with ink purchase authority, and (b) is the ink information screen displayed on the terminal of a user without ink purchase authority.

[0056] Specifically, in S330, the following processing is performed on terminal 12 of users who have the authority to purchase ink. Note that in S328, the notification management server 18 has sent ink discount information as notification content to terminal 12 of users who have the authority to purchase ink. Utility 30 displays the ink discount information from the received information on the notification content display unit 704. The notification content display unit 704 displays, for example, that ink is on sale at a discount, the discount sale period, and the discount rate as ink discount information.

[0057] Furthermore, based on the printer information received, the utility 30 displays on the printer information display unit 706 that printing has been performed on the printer 14. In addition, based on the ink information received, the utility 30 displays the ink level of each ink in the printer 14 on the ink level display unit 708. The ink level display unit 708 is provided with level display areas 710, 712, 714, and 716 corresponding to the BK, C, M, and Y inks. Therefore, in S330, the ink level corresponding to each level display area is displayed. Furthermore, if the ink level is below 5%, which is a warning state, the ink level display unit 708 displays a warning icon 718. The ink information screen 702 also displays a "Purchase" button 720.

[0058] Meanwhile, in S330, the following processing is performed on terminal 12 of users who do not have the authority to purchase ink. Note that in S328, notification management server 18 sends a notification request for ink purchase to terminal 12 of users who do not have the authority to purchase ink. Utility 30 displays the notification request information from the received information on the notification content display unit 704. The notification content display unit 704 notifies the user that the ink level is low and prompts them to purchase ink. In addition, in the same way as for terminals of users who have the authority to purchase ink, Utility 30 displays on the printer information display unit 706 that printing has been performed on printer 14 and on the ink level display unit 708 the ink level remaining for each ink. On this ink information screen 702, the "Purchase" button 720 is not displayed, and the "OK" button 722 is displayed.

[0059] If the "OK" button 722 or the "× (Close)" button 724 is selected, the utility 30 will close the ink information screen 702, and the process shown in Figure 3 will end. Therefore, the following explanation will describe the process when the operation is performed on the ink information screen 702 displayed on the terminal 12 of a user who has the authority to purchase ink.

[0060] Returning to Figure 3, when the "Purchase" button 720 displayed on the ink information screen 702 is selected (S332), the utility 30 sends printer information to the purchase management server 16. The utility 30 also requests the purchase management server 16 to provide a web page where ink for the printer 14 identified by the transmitted printer information can be purchased (S334), and obtains the response (S336). Subsequently, as shown in Figure 8, the utility 30 generates an ink order area 802 on the ink information screen 702 and displays the web page obtained from the purchase management server 16 in the ink order area 802 (S338).

[0061] Figure 8 shows the ink information screen 702 with the ink order area 802 generated. Utility 30 displays text fields 804, 806, 808, and 810 in the ink order area 802, where the user can specify the order quantities of BK ink, C ink, M ink, and Y ink used in the printer 14. Utility 30 also displays the subtotal amount in the subtotal display area 812 and the total amount in the total display area 814, according to the order quantities entered by the user in the text fields. Additionally, an "Order" button 816 is displayed in the ink order area 802.

[0062] Returning to Figure 3, when the user selects the "Order" button 816 displayed in the ink order area 802 (S340), the utility 30 obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal as terminal information (S342). Subsequently, the utility 30 sends the terminal information obtained in S342 and the order information entered in the ink order area 802 to the purchase management server 16 (S344).

[0063] When the purchase management server 16 receives order information, it accepts various inputs such as the address and payment method necessary for shipping the ink, places an order for the ink (S346), and transmits the confirmation result of the ink order to the terminal 12 identified by the received terminal information (S348). Note that various publicly known technologies can be used in the purchase management server 16 from receiving the order information to confirming the order, so a detailed explanation of these technologies is omitted.

[0064] When terminal 12 receives confirmation of the ink order, utility 30 hides the ink order area 802 (S350). Purchase management server 16 sends ink purchase information, including printer information of the printer 14 that will use the ordered ink and terminal information of terminal 12 that ordered the ink, to notification management server 18 (S352). In S352, if necessary, the ink purchase information is updated and the updated ink purchase information is sent to notification management server 18. For example, if ink is purchased by a terminal whose terminal information is not included in the ink purchase information, purchase management server 16 adds that terminal to the terminal information of the ink purchase information and updates the ink purchase information. When notification management server 18 receives the ink purchase information, it updates the information managed by the purchase information management unit 46 (S354).

[0065] <Decision Processing> Next, the decision process by which the notification control unit 54 in the notification management server 18 determines the notification content to be notified to each terminal 12 based on the notification settings stored in the notification setting unit 52 will be described. Accordingly, the notification control unit 54 obtains the notification settings (notification information) from the notification setting unit 52 and executes the decision process to determine the notification content according to the notification conditions set in the notification settings. In other words, in this embodiment, the notification control unit 54 functions as an acquisition means to obtain the notification conditions for determining the notification content, along with the notification content, which is information related to the purchase of ink, and also functions as a decision means to determine the notification content.

[0066] This decision process is the process executed at S326 in the sequence diagram of Figure 3. Figure 9 is a flowchart showing the detailed processing routine of the decision process. Figure 10(a) is a flowchart showing the processing routine of the first process, which is a subroutine of the decision process processing routine shown in Figure 9. Figure 10(b) is a flowchart showing the processing routine of the second process, which is a subroutine of the decision process processing routine shown in Figure 9. Figure 11(a) is a flowchart showing the processing routine of the third process, which is a subroutine of the decision process processing routine shown in Figure 9. Figure 11(b) is a flowchart showing the processing routine of the fourth process, which is a subroutine of the decision process processing routine shown in Figure 9.

[0067] The series of processes shown in the flowcharts of Figures 9 to 11(b) are performed by the CPU 202 in the notification management server 18, which loads the program code stored in the ROM 206 into the RAM 204 and executes it. Alternatively, some or all of the functions of the steps in Figures 9 to 11(b) may be performed by hardware such as an ASIC or electrical circuit. In the description of each process, the symbol S means a step in the flowchart (the same applies hereinafter in this specification). In the description of the decision process in this embodiment, it is assumed that the notification control unit 54, which is a functional configuration realized by the CPU 202 in the notification management server 18, executes each of the decision processes.

[0068] In the decision process, first, the notification control unit 54 obtains print information from the print information management unit 48 (S902). In other words, in S902, it obtains the print information from the print information management unit 48 that was updated in S322. Thus, in this embodiment, the notification control unit 54 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining ink information (included in the print information), which is the remaining ink level information. The notification control unit 54 also obtains user information, including printer information of the printer 14 that performed the printing, from the user information management unit 50 (S904). In other words, in 904, it obtains the user information from the user information management unit 50 that was updated in S324. Thus, in this embodiment, the notification control unit 54 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining terminal information (included in the user information) of the terminal 12 that shares the printer 14.

[0069] Next, the notification control unit 54 obtains the total number T of user terminals that share the printer 14 (S906). In S906, for example, the total number of terminal user IDs or the total number of terminal serial numbers in the terminal information included in the user information obtained in S904 is obtained. Then, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the printer 14 is shared by multiple terminals (S908). In S908, it determines whether the total number T obtained in S906 is 2 or more. If the total number T is 2 or more, it is determined that the printer 14 is shared by multiple terminals, and if the total number T is not 2 or more, that is, if it is 1, it is determined that the printer 14 is not shared by multiple terminals.

[0070] If it is determined in S908 that printer 14 is not shared by multiple terminals, the process proceeds to S916, which will be described later. If it is determined in S908 that printer 14 is shared by multiple terminals, the notification control unit 54 initializes the terminal index N (where N is a natural number), that is, sets N=1 (S910). In the terminal information of the user information, for example, a terminal index may be set for each user ID of the terminal, or the terminal index may be set sequentially from the top cell. The notification control unit 54 then obtains ink purchase information, including the printer information of the printer 14 that performed the printing, from the purchase information management unit 46 (S912). In other words, in S912, ink purchase information containing printer information that matches the printer information included in the print information obtained in S902 is obtained. Thus, in this embodiment, the notification control unit 54 functions as a means of obtaining ink purchase information, which is purchase authority information.

[0071] Subsequently, the notification control unit 54 determines whether or not there are users who can purchase ink based on the ink purchase information (S914). In S914, it determines whether or not terminal information exists in the ink purchase information obtained in S912. If terminal information does not exist in the ink purchase information, it is determined that there are no users who can purchase ink; if terminal information exists, it is determined that there are users who can purchase ink.

[0072] If it is determined in S914 that there are no users who can purchase ink, the notification control unit 54 executes the first process (S916). In the first process of S916, as shown in Figure 10(a), the notification control unit 54 first determines whether the remaining ink level of at least one ink of the printer 14 is less than 20% based on the print information acquired in S902 (S1002). The print information includes ink information indicating the remaining ink level of each ink (see Figure 4(a)), and in S1002, it is determined whether the remaining ink level of each ink is less than 20% based on this ink information.

[0073] In S1002, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of any of the printer 14 is not less than 20%, the notification control unit 54 decides not to send a notification (1004) and proceeds to S918. Also, in S1002, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of at least one of the printer 14 is less than 20%, the notification control unit 54 decides to immediately send an ink discount notification as the notification content and proceeds to S918. Thus, the notification content determined after this first process corresponds to the notification conditions of the notification settings (8) and (9) in Figure 5.

[0074] Returning to Figure 9, in S918, the notification control unit 54 determines whether there is another terminal to share the printer 14 with. Specifically, in S918, it determines whether there is a terminal 12 that has not yet decided on the notification content. If there is a terminal that has not yet decided on the notification content, it is determined that there is another terminal to share the printer 14 with; otherwise, it is determined that there is no other terminal to share the printer 14 with. If it is determined in S918 that there is no other terminal to share the printer 14 with, this determination process ends. If it is determined in S918 that there is another terminal to share the printer 14 with, N is incremented (S920), and the process proceeds to S922, which will be described later.

[0075] On the other hand, in S914, if it is determined that there is a user who can purchase ink, it is determined whether terminal 12 of terminal index N has the authority to purchase ink (S922). In S922, it is determined whether the user ID of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information. In S922, if the user ID of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that terminal 12 of terminal index N has the authority to purchase ink. Also, in S922, if the user ID of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, does not exist in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that terminal 12 of terminal index N does not have the authority to purchase ink.

[0076] In S922, if it is determined that terminal 12, which is terminal index N, does not have the authority to purchase ink, the notification control unit 54 executes a second process (S924), and then proceeds to S918. In the second process of S924, as shown in Figure 10(b), the notification control unit 54 first determines whether the user who performed the print is a user of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, based on the print information obtained in S902 and the user information obtained in S904 (S1010). In other words, in S1010, it is determined whether the user ID and serial number of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, in the user information matches the user ID and serial number of the terminal in the terminal information in the print information. In S1010, if the user ID and serial number of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, matches the user ID and serial number of the terminal in the print information, it is determined that the user who performed the print is a user of terminal 12, which is terminal index N. Furthermore, in S1010, if the user ID and serial number of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, do not match the user ID and serial number of the terminal in the print information, it is determined that the user who performed the print operation is not the user of terminal 12, which is terminal index N.

[0077] In S1010, if it is determined that the user who performed the print operation is not a user of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 decides not to send a notification (S1012) and proceeds to S918. Alternatively, if it is determined in S1010 that the user who performed the print operation is a user of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the remaining ink level of at least one ink in the printer 14 is less than 5% (S1014). In S1014, it is determined whether the remaining ink level of each ink is less than 5% based on the ink information in the print information obtained in S902.

[0078] In S1014, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of any of the inks in printer 14 is not less than 5%, the process proceeds to S1012. Also, in S1014, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of at least one of the inks in printer 14 is less than 5%, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the terminal 12 that performed the printing is terminal 12 with terminal index N (S1016). In other words, in S1016, it is determined whether the terminal information of terminal 12 with terminal index N in the user information obtained in S904 matches the terminal information of the print information obtained in S902. In S1016, if the terminal information of terminal 12 with terminal index N matches the terminal information of the print information, it is determined that the terminal 12 that performed the printing is terminal 12 with terminal index N. Also, in S1016, if it is determined that the terminal information of terminal 12 with terminal index N does not match the terminal information of the print information, it is determined that the terminal 12 that performed the printing is not terminal 12 with terminal index N.

[0079] In S1016, if it is determined that the terminal 12 that performed the print job is terminal 12 with terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 decides to immediately notify the terminal 12 with the ink purchase request information as the notification content (S1018), and proceeds to S918. Also, in S1016, if it is determined that the terminal 12 that performed the print job is not terminal 12 with terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 decides to notify the terminal 12 with the ink purchase request information as the notification content via a timer (S1020), and proceeds to S918. Note that a timer notification means that the notification will be sent when a preset time (21:00 in Figure 5) has been reached. Thus, the notification content determined after this second process corresponds to the notification conditions of notification settings (6) and (7) in Figure 5.

[0080] Returning to Figure 9, if it is determined in S922 that terminal 12, which has terminal index N, has the authority to purchase ink, then it is determined whether terminal 12, which has terminal index N, has ever been used to purchase ink (S926). In S926, it is determined whether the serial number of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information. In other words, S926 determines whether terminal 12, which has terminal index N, is available to purchase ink. Therefore, in S926, if the serial number of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that terminal 12, which has terminal index N, has ever been used to purchase ink. Also, in S926, if the serial number of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, does not exist in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that terminal 12, which has terminal index N, has never been used to purchase ink.

[0081] In S926, if it is determined that terminal 12, which has terminal index N, has never been used to purchase ink, the notification control unit 54 executes a third process (S928), and then proceeds to S918. In the third process of S928, as shown in Figure 11(a), the notification control unit 54 first determines whether the user who performed the print is the user of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, based on the print information obtained in S902 and the user information obtained in S904 (S1102). The specific processing content of S1102 is the same as in S1010.

[0082] In S1102, if it is determined that the user who performed the print operation is not the user of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 decides not to send a notification (S1104) and proceeds to S918. Alternatively, in S1102, if it is determined that the user who performed the print operation is the user of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the remaining ink level of at least one ink cartridge of printer 14 is less than 5% (S1106). The specific processing content of S1106 is the same as that of S1014.

[0083] In S1106, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of any of the inks in the printer 14 is not less than 5%, the process proceeds to S1104. Also, in S1106, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of at least one of the inks in the printer 14 is less than 5%, the notification control unit 54 decides to immediately notify the user of ink discount information as the notification content (S1108), and proceeds to S918. Thus, the notification content determined after this third process corresponds to the notification conditions in the notification setting (1) in Figure 5.

[0084] Returning to Figure 9, if it is determined in S926 that terminal 12, which is terminal index N, has been used to purchase ink, the notification control unit 54 executes the fourth process (S930), and then proceeds to S918. In the fourth process of S930, as shown in Figure 11(b), the notification control unit 54 first determines whether the user who performed the print is the user of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, based on the print information obtained in S902 and the user information obtained in S904 (S1110). The specific processing content of S1110 is the same as that of S1010.

[0085] In S1110, if it is determined that the user who performed the print operation is the user of terminal 12, which has terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the remaining ink level of at least one ink in the printer 14 is less than 20% (S1112). The specific processing content of S1112 is the same as that of S1002. In S1112, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of any of the inks in the printer 14 is not less than 20%, the notification control unit 54 decides not to send a notification (S1114) and proceeds to S918. Also, in S1112, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of at least one ink in the printer 14 is less than 20%, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the terminal 12 that performed the print operation is terminal 12, which has terminal index N (S1116). The specific processing content of S1116 is the same as that of S1016.

[0086] In S1116, if it is determined that the terminal 12 that performed the print job is terminal 12 with terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 decides to immediately notify the ink discount information as the notification content (S1118), and proceeds to S918. Also, in S1116, if it is determined that the terminal 12 that performed the print job is not terminal 12 with terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 decides to notify the ink discount information via a timer as the notification content (S1120), and proceeds to S918.

[0087] On the other hand, in S1110, if it is determined that the user who performed the print operation is not the user of terminal 12, which is terminal index N, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the user ID of terminal 12 that performed the print operation exists in the ink purchase information (S1122). In S1122, it is determined whether the user ID of the terminal in the print information obtained in S902 exists in the user ID of the terminal in the ink purchase information obtained in S912. In S1122, if it is determined that the user ID of terminal 12 that performed the print operation does not exist in the ink purchase information, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the remaining ink level of at least one ink cartridge of printer 14 is less than 5% (S1124). The specific processing content of S1124 is the same as in S1014.

[0088] In S1124, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of any of the inks in the printer 14 is not less than 5%, the process proceeds to S1114. Also in S1124, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of at least one ink in the printer 14 is less than 5%, the notification control unit 54 decides to send an ink discount notification as a timer notification (S1126), and proceeds to S918. Also in S1122, if it is determined that the user ID of the terminal 12 that performed the printing is present in the ink purchase information, the notification control unit 54 determines whether the remaining ink level of at least one ink in the printer 14 is less than 20% (S1128). The specific processing content of S1128 is the same as in S1002.

[0089] In S1128, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of any of the inks in the printer 14 is not less than 20%, the process proceeds to S1114. Also, in S1128, if it is determined that the remaining ink level of at least one of the inks in the printer 14 is less than 20%, the notification control unit 54 decides to send an ink discount notification via a timer (S1130), and proceeds to S918. Thus, the notification content determined after the fourth process corresponds to the notification conditions of the notification settings (2)(3)(4)(5) in Figure 5.

[0090] In this way, the fourth process changes the timing of notifications to the terminal 12 of the user who performed the print job, depending on whether or not it is the terminal 12 that performed the print job. Specifically, if it is the terminal 12 that was used to purchase ink, the ink discount information is notified immediately because the user can purchase ink using that terminal 12 right away. If it is a terminal 12 that was not used to purchase ink, the ink discount information is notified at a set time because it is unlikely that the user will purchase ink using that terminal 12. In this way, the notification control unit 54 controls notifications so that the ink discount information is displayed at the appropriate time.

[0091] Furthermore, in the fourth process, for terminals 12 of users who are not performing print operations, the threshold for the ink level at which ink discount information is notified is changed depending on whether or not the user has the authority to purchase ink. Specifically, if the user does not have the authority to purchase ink, it is assumed that they may not be able to easily purchase ink, so the ink discount information is notified at a relatively early stage, when the ink level is below 20%, at a set time. If the user has the authority to purchase ink, it is assumed that they will be able to easily purchase ink, so the ink discount information is notified at a relatively later stage, when the ink level is below 5%, at a set time. In this way, the notification control unit 54 controls notifications so that ink discount information is not unnecessarily displayed to users of terminals 12 that are not performing print operations.

[0092] Thus, in this embodiment, the notification content and timing are determined in the notification management server 18, and the notification management server 18 functions as an information processing device that sends notifications to each terminal 12 of each user who shares consumables (ink for the printer 14).

[0093] As described above, in this embodiment, when printing is performed on the printer 14, the terminal 12 that requested the print acquires print information and user information, and then sends this information to the notification management server 18. The notification management server 18 then notifies each terminal of each user sharing the printer 14 of information regarding the purchase of ink, etc., based on the received print information and user information, as well as ink purchase information and notification settings. Specifically, the notification content and timing are differentiated depending on whether the user of terminal 12 has the authority to purchase ink, and whether terminal 12 was used to purchase ink. This makes it possible to appropriately notify each terminal of each user sharing the printer 14 of information regarding the purchase of ink, such as ink discount information, and to suppress unnecessary notifications. In other words, it becomes possible to perform notification processing that is highly convenient for users.

[0094] (Second Embodiment) Next, an information processing apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 12 to 16. In the following description, components that are the same as or equivalent to those in the information processing apparatus according to the first embodiment described above will be referred to with the same reference numerals as those used in the first embodiment, and their detailed explanation will be omitted.

[0095] In the second embodiment, the terminal 12 determines and notifies the notification content, which is information regarding the purchase of ink according to the notification conditions. In other words, in the second embodiment, the determination of notification content and other actions that were performed by the notification management server 18 in the first embodiment are performed by the terminal 12.

[0096] In this embodiment, the print information, user information, ink purchase information, ink discount information, and notification information held by the terminal 12 and the notification management server 18 are each associated with information regarding the update date and time (hereinafter referred to as "update date and time information"). When the terminal 12 and the notification management server 18 acquire various information from the notification management server 18, they save and update this information, and save the updated date and time as update date and time information. In addition, when the purchase management server 16 updates the ink purchase information, it saves the updated date and time as update date and time information. In this embodiment, notification information refers to notification settings in which notification content is set according to notification conditions. This notification information is not limited to notification settings only, but may also include information for various notifications displayed on the ink information screen 702. Accordingly, notification information is stored in the notification setting unit 52.

[0097] <Notification processing in printing systems> In this embodiment, when printing is performed, the terminal 12 that performed the printing determines the notification content and sends the notification, and when printing is not performed, the above notification is sent to all terminals 12 that share the printer 14. The notification processing performed when printing is performed and when printing is not performed in this embodiment will be described in detail below.

[0098] =Notification process when printing is executed= Figure 12 is a diagram showing the processing sequence of the notification process when printing is executed in the printing system 10 in this embodiment. In Figure 12, the same step numbers are used to indicate the same processing content as in the processing sequence in Figure 3. For this reason, detailed explanations of the processes with the same step numbers as in Figure 3 will be omitted in the following description. Also, in Figure 12, the processing after the user selects the "Purchase" button 720 or the "Order" button 816 on the ink information screen 702 is the same as S332 to S354 in Figure 3, so these processes are not shown in the diagram, and their explanation in the following description is also omitted.

[0099] In the notification process during print execution, when the user requests print in S302, a print job is generated and output in S304, print data is generated in S306, the print data is sent to the printer 14 in S308, and the printer 14 executes the print in S310. Also, in S312, the printer driver 24 notifies the utility 30 that printing has been executed, and in S314, the utility 30 obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal. Then, in S316, the utility 30 requests the printer 14's model name, serial number, and ink information, and in S318, the response from the printer 14 is obtained.

[0100] Subsequently, in S320, the utility 30 sends the print information and printer information to the notification management server 18, and then the utility 30 saves the print information to a storage area such as the RAM 204 of the terminal 12 (S1202). In S1202, the utility 30 saves the date and time the print information was saved as update date and time information, associating it with the print information.

[0101] Next, the utility 30 requests the notification management server 18 for update date and time information of user information, ink purchase information, and notification information, including printer information of the printer 14 that performed the print job (S1204), and obtains the response (S1206). After that, the utility 30 checks the update status of the obtained user information, ink purchase information, and notification information (S1208). In S1208, the utility 30 compares the update date and time information of user information, ink purchase information, and notification information stored in terminal 12 with the update date and time information of each piece of information obtained in S1206. If the information stored in terminal 12 and the information obtained in S1206 are different, it is assumed that the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information have been updated. If they match, it is assumed that the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information have not been updated.

[0102] Then, when checking the update status in S1208, if the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information have not been updated, the utility 30 proceeds to S1216, which will be described later. Also, when checking the update status in S1208, if the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information have been updated, the utility 30 requests the notification management server 18 for information on the updated update date and time (S1210) and obtains a response (S1212). The utility 30 saves the information obtained in S1212, along with the update date and time information of the information (obtained in S1206), to the memory area of ​​the terminal 12 (S1214).

[0103] Subsequently, the utility 30 determines the notification content based on the terminal information of its own terminal, and the notification settings included in the print information, user information, ink purchase information, and notification information stored on its own terminal (S1216). Then, the utility 30 notifies the user by displaying the determined notification content, along with the printer information and ink information, on the ink information screen 702 displayed on the display 210 of its own terminal (1218).

[0104] Next, the specific processing details at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is executed will be explained with reference to the flowchart in Figure 13. Figure 13 is a flowchart showing the detailed processing routine of the notification process executed at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is executed in this embodiment. Figure 14 is a flowchart showing the processing routine of the notification execution process, which is a subroutine of the notification processing routine shown in Figure 13. The series of processes shown in the flowcharts of Figures 13 and 14 are performed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, which loads the program code stored in ROM 206 into RAM 204 and executes it. Alternatively, some or all of the functions of the steps in Figures 13 and 14 may be executed by hardware such as AISC or electrical circuits. In this explanation of the notification process, it will be assumed that utility 30, which is software executed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, performs the processing at each step.

[0105] When utility 30 receives notification from printer driver 24 to execute a print job (corresponding to S312), it starts the notification process. Once this notification process begins, utility 30 first obtains its own terminal information, specifically its own terminal's user ID and serial number (S1302). This S1302 corresponds to S314 in Figure 12. In S1302, utility 30 obtains its own terminal's user ID and serial number, which are stored in the terminal's memory.

[0106] The utility 30 then obtains printer information from the printer 14, including the printer model name and serial number, and ink information indicating the remaining ink levels of the printer 14 (S1304). This S1304 corresponds to S316 and S318 in Figure 12. Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining ink information, which is information on the remaining ink levels.

[0107] Next, the utility 30 sends print information, including terminal information and printer information, to the notification management server 18 (S1306). This S1306 corresponds to S320 in Figure 12. In other words, in S1306, the utility 30 creates print information including the terminal information obtained in S1302 and the printer information obtained in S1304, and sends this print information to the notification management server 18. When the notification management server 18 receives the print information, the print information held in the print information management unit 48 is updated with the received print information (corresponding to S322 in Figure 12). Then, if the terminal information included in the received print information is not included in the user information, the notification management server 18 adds the terminal information to the user information and updates the user information (corresponding to S324 in Figure 12).

[0108] Subsequently, the utility 30 saves the print information transmitted in S1306 to the memory area of ​​its own terminal and stores the saved date and time as update date and time information associated with the print information (S1308). This 1308 corresponds to S1202 in Figure 12. The utility 30 also obtains the update date and time information of user information, ink purchase information, and notification information stored on its own terminal (S1310). Furthermore, the utility 30 obtains the update date and time information of user information, ink purchase information, and notification information from the notification management server 18 (S1312). This 1312 corresponds to S1204 and S1206 in Figure 12. Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining terminal information of terminal devices that share the printer 14, purchase authority information which is information regarding whether or not there is permission to purchase ink, and notification information.

[0109] When utility 30 obtains update date and time information such as user information, it determines whether the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated (S1314). This S1314 corresponds to S1208 in Figure 12. In other words, in S1314, the utility compares the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information obtained in S1310 with the information obtained in S1312, and determines whether at least one piece of information is different. If the information obtained in S1310 and the information obtained in S1312 are all the same, S1314 determines that it has not been updated. On the other hand, if even one of the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information is different between the information obtained in S1310 and the information obtained in S1312, S1314 determines that it has been updated.

[0110] If, in S1314, it is determined that the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information in the notification management server 18 have not been updated, the process proceeds to S1320, which will be described later. Alternatively, if, in S1314, it is determined that the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated, the utility 30 obtains the updated information from the notification management server 18 (S1316). This S1316 corresponds to S1210 and S1212 in Figure 12. In other words, in S1316, the utility 30 obtains from the notification management server 18 the user information, ink information, and notification information that were determined to be different in S1310 from the information obtained in S1312.

[0111] Then, utility 30 saves the information acquired in S1316 to the memory area of ​​its own terminal (S1318). This S1318 corresponds to S1214 in Figure 12. In S1318, the update date and time information of the saved information is updated with the update date and time information acquired in S1312. In other words, in S1318, if, for example, notification information is updated on the own terminal, the update date and time information associated with the notification information is updated with the update date and time information acquired in S1312. Then, utility 30 determines the notification content based on the information stored on its own terminal and performs a notification execution process to notify the determined notification content (S1320), and terminates this notification process. This S1320 corresponds to S1216 and S1218 in Figure 12. Thus, in this embodiment, utility 30 functions as a notification means for determining the notification content.

[0112] In S1320, the notification execution process shown in Figure 14 is performed. When the notification execution process starts, first, utility 30 obtains user information stored on its own terminal (S1402). Also, utility 30 obtains the total number of terminals T from the terminal information included in the user information (S1404). In S1404, for example, the total number of terminal user IDs or the total number of terminal serial numbers in the terminal information of the user information is obtained.

[0113] Next, utility 30 determines whether the printer 14 available to its terminal is shared by multiple terminals (S1406). In S1406, it determines whether the total number T obtained in S1404 is 2 or more. If the total number T is 2 or more, it is determined that the printer 14 is shared by multiple terminals; if the total number T is not 2 or more, i.e., 1, it is determined that the printer 14 is not shared by multiple terminals.

[0114] In S1406, if it is determined that the printer 14 is not being used by multiple terminals, the process proceeds to S1412, which will be described later. Also, in S1406, if it is determined that the printer 14 is being used by multiple terminals, the utility 30 retrieves the ink purchase information stored on its own terminal (S1408). The utility 30 then determines whether or not there is a terminal 12 that purchased ink (S1410). In other words, in S1410, it is determined whether or not terminal information exists in the ink purchase information. If terminal information does not exist in the ink purchase information, it is determined that there is no terminal 12 that purchased ink; if terminal information exists, it is determined that there is a terminal 12 that purchased ink.

[0115] In S1410, if it is determined that there is no terminal 12 that has purchased ink, the utility 30 executes the first process (S1412) and sends a notification with the determined notification content (S1414). The specific processing content of the first process in S1412 is the same as the first process in S916 described in the first embodiment, except that it is executed by the utility 30 and not by the notification control unit 54, so a detailed explanation is omitted. That is, in the first process in S1412, the utility 30 executes each of the processes shown in Figure 10(a).

[0116] Furthermore, in S1410, if it is determined that there is a terminal 12 that has purchased ink, the utility 30 determines whether the user who owns the terminal has the authority to purchase ink (S1416). In S1416, it is determined whether the user ID of the terminal exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information. Therefore, in S1416, if the user ID of the terminal exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that the user who owns the terminal has the authority to purchase ink. Also, in S1416, if the user ID of the terminal does not exist in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that the user who owns the terminal does not have the authority to purchase ink.

[0117] In S1416, if it is determined that the terminal does not have the authority to purchase ink, the utility 30 executes a second process (S1418) and proceeds to S1414. The specific details of the second process in S1418 are the same as the second process in S924 described in the first embodiment, except that it is executed by the utility 30 instead of the notification control unit 54, so a detailed explanation is omitted. That is, in the second process of S1418, the utility 30 executes each of the processes shown in Figure 10(b).

[0118] Furthermore, in S1416, if it is determined that the user who owns the terminal has the authority to purchase ink, the utility 30 determines whether or not the terminal has ever been used to purchase ink (S1420). In S1420, it is determined whether or not the serial number of the terminal exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information. In other words, S1420 determines whether or not the terminal is usable to purchase ink. Therefore, in S1420, if the serial number of the terminal exists in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that the terminal has been used to purchase ink. Also, in S1420, if the serial number of the terminal does not exist in the terminal information of the ink purchase information, it is determined that the terminal has never been used to purchase ink.

[0119] In S1420, if it is determined that the terminal has never been used to purchase ink, the utility 30 executes a third process (S1422) and proceeds to S1414. The specific details of the third process in S1422 are the same as the third process in S928 described in the first embodiment, except that it is executed by the utility 30 instead of the notification control unit 54, so a detailed explanation is omitted. That is, in the third process in S1422, the utility 30 executes each of the processes shown in Figure 11(a).

[0120] In S1420, if it is determined that the terminal has been used to purchase ink, the utility 30 executes the fourth process (S1424) and proceeds to S1414. The specific details of the fourth process in S1424 are the same as the fourth process in S930 described in the first embodiment, except that it is executed by the utility 30 instead of the notification control unit 54, so a detailed explanation is omitted. That is, in the fourth process in S1424, the utility 30 executes each of the processes shown in Figure 11(b).

[0121] =Notification process when printing is not performed= Next, we will explain the notification process when printing is not performed. In the first embodiment, when printing is performed, the notification content is determined and notified to each terminal 12 of each user who shares the printer 14 that printed the document. In contrast, in this embodiment, as described above, when printing is performed, the notification content is determined and notified at the terminal 12 that requested (performed) the print job. In this embodiment, the notification content is determined and notified to each terminal 12 of each user who shares the printer 14 that printed the document, including the terminal 12 that requested the print job, by the notification process when printing is not performed.

[0122] When printing is not performed, a notification process is executed at predetermined intervals. These predetermined intervals may include, for example, every set time or when terminal 12 is started up. Specifically, when printing is not performed, a notification process is executed, for example, every hour. In this notification process, utility 30 checks the printing status with notification management server 18, and based on the results of this check, determines the notification content and sends the notification. Figure 15 shows the processing sequence of the notification process when printing is not performed in the printing system 10 of this embodiment.

[0123] When the notification process for when printing is not performed is initiated, the utility 30 first obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal as terminal information (S1502). In S1502, it obtains the user ID and serial number of terminal 12 stored in the terminal's memory area. Then, the utility 30 sends the terminal information obtained in S1502 to the notification management server 18 and requests the update date and time information of the print information of the printer 14 used by its own terminal (S1504), and obtains the response (S1506).

[0124] Next, utility 30 checks the update status of the print information (S1508). In S1508, it compares the update date and time information of the print information stored in printer 14, which was obtained in S1506, with the update date and time information of the print information stored in its own terminal. If in S1508 the print information has not been updated, that is, if the update date and time information obtained in S1506 matches the update date and time information of the print information stored in its own terminal, the notification process ends. In terminal 12, which most recently requested printing, the update date and time information of the print information in terminal 12 is updated during the notification process when printing is executed, so in S1508 the update date and time information obtained in S1506 matches the update date and time information stored in its own terminal.

[0125] Furthermore, if in S1508 it is determined that the print information has been updated, that is, if the update date and time information obtained in S1506 does not match the update date and time information of the print information stored on the terminal, the utility 30 requests the print information from the notification management server 18 (S1510). The utility 30 then obtains the response (S1512). In S1510, the utility 30 sends the terminal information of the terminal along with the above request. As a result, the notification management server 18, upon receiving the request, sends the requested information to the terminal 12 of the received terminal information.

[0126] Subsequently, the utility 30 associates the print information acquired in S1512 with the update date and time information acquired in S1506 and saves it to the memory area of ​​its own terminal (S1514). The utility 30 also requests the update date and time information for user information, ink purchase information, and notification information from the notification management server 18 (S1516) and obtains the response (S1518). In S1516, along with the above request, the utility 30 sends the terminal information of its own terminal. As a result, the notification management server 18, upon receiving the request, sends the requested information to the terminal 12 of the received terminal information. The utility 30 then checks the update status for each of the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information (S1520). In S1520, for each of the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information, the utility 30 compares the update date and time information acquired in S1518 with the update date and time information stored on its own terminal.

[0127] If S1520 determines that user information, ink purchase information, and notification information have not been updated, that is, if the update date and time information obtained in S1518 matches the update date and time information stored on the terminal, the process proceeds to S1528, which will be described later. Alternatively, if S1520 determines that at least one of the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information has been updated, the utility 30 requests the updated information from the notification management server 18 (S1522) and obtains the response (S1524).

[0128] Then, the utility 30 associates the information acquired in S1524 with the update date and time information acquired in S1518 and saves it to the device's memory (S1526). Furthermore, the utility 30 determines the notification content based on the print information, user information, ink purchase information, and notification settings stored in the device (S1528). Then, the utility 30 displays the determined notification content, along with the printer information and ink information, on the ink information screen 702 displayed on the device's display 210 and notifies the user (1530).

[0129] Next, the specific processing details at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is not performed will be explained with reference to the flowchart in Figure 16. Figure 16 is a flowchart detailing the processing routine of the notification process executed at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is not performed in this embodiment. The series of processes shown in the flowchart of Figure 16 are performed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, which loads the program code stored in ROM 206 into RAM 204 and executes it. Alternatively, some or all of the functions of the steps in Figure 16 may be executed by hardware such as an ASIC or electrical circuit. In this explanation of the notification process, it is assumed that utility 30, which is software executed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, performs the processing at each step.

[0130] When a predetermined time has elapsed, such as one hour after the notification process for when printing is not performed has finished, terminal 12 will start the notification process shown in Figure 16. When this notification process starts, utility 30 first obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal as terminal information (S1602). This S1602 corresponds to S1502 in Figure 15. Utility 30 also obtains the update date and time information of the print information stored on its own terminal (S1604). The print information stored on terminal 12 is associated with update date and time information that represents the date and time it was updated. Therefore, in S1604, utility 30 obtains the update date and time information that is stored in the terminal's memory area in association with the print information.

[0131] Next, utility 30 obtains update date and time information for print information from notification management server 18 (S1606). This S1606 corresponds to S1504 and S1506 in Figure 15. Then, utility 30 determines whether or not the print information has been updated (S1608). This S1608 corresponds to S1508 in Figure 15. In S1608, it is determined whether or not the update date and time information obtained in S1604 matches the update date and time information obtained in S1606. In S1608, if the update date and time information obtained in S1604 matches the update date and time information obtained in S1606, it is determined that the print information has not been updated; otherwise, it is determined that the print information has been updated.

[0132] In S1608, if it is determined that the print information has not been updated, this communication process is terminated. Also in S1608, if it is determined that the print information has been updated, the utility 30 obtains the print information from the notification management server 18 (S1610). The utility 30 then stores the obtained print information in the memory area of ​​its own terminal, associating it with the update date and time information obtained in S1606 (S1612). S1610 corresponds to S1510 and S1512 in Figure 15, and S1612 corresponds to S1514 in Figure 15. Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining ink information, which is information on the remaining amount of ink. The utility 30 then obtains user information, ink purchase information, and update date and time information of notification information stored in its own terminal (S1614). Furthermore, the utility 30 obtains user information, ink purchase information, and update date and time information of notification information from the notification management server 18 (S1616). This S1616 corresponds to S1516 and S1518 in Figure 15.

[0133] When utility 30 obtains update date and time information such as user information, it determines whether the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated (S1618). This S1618 corresponds to S1520 in Figure 15. In other words, in S1618, for each of the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information, the utility compares the information obtained in S1614 with the information obtained in S1616 and determines whether at least one piece of information is different. If the information obtained in S1614 and the information obtained in S1616 are all the same, S1618 determines that it has not been updated. On the other hand, if even one of the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information is different between the information obtained in S1614 and the information obtained in S1616, S1618 determines that it has been updated.

[0134] In S1618, if it is determined that the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information in the notification management server 18 have not been updated, the process proceeds to S1624, which will be described later. Also, if it is determined in S1618 that the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated, the utility 30 obtains the updated information from the notification management server 18 (S1620). S1620 corresponds to S1522 and S1524 in Figure 15. In other words, in S1620, the utility 30 obtains from the notification management server 18 the user information, ink purchase information, and notification information that were determined to be different in S1618 from the information obtained in S1614 and the information obtained in S1616. Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining terminal information of terminal devices that share the printer 14, purchase permission information which is information regarding whether or not there is permission to purchase ink, and notification information.

[0135] Then, utility 30 saves and updates the information acquired in S1620 in the storage area of ​​its own terminal (S1622). This S1622 corresponds to S1526 in Figure 15. In S1622, the update date and time information of the saved information is updated with the update date and time information acquired in S1618. In other words, in S1622, if, for example, ink purchase information is updated on the own terminal, the update date and time information associated with the ink purchase information is updated with the update date and time information of the ink purchase information acquired in S1618. After that, utility 30 performs a notification execution process based on the information stored on its own terminal (S1624) and terminates this notification process. This S1624 corresponds to S1528 and S1530 in Figure 15. Note that the specific processing content of the notification execution process in S1624 is the same as S1320 in the notification process when printing is executed, so a detailed explanation is omitted. Thus, in this embodiment, utility 30 functions as a notification means for determining the content of the notification.

[0136] As described above, in this embodiment, the terminal 12 determines the notification content and sends a notification based on print information, printer information, ink purchase information, notification settings, etc. This further reduces the processing load on the notification management server 18, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment described above.

[0137] (Third embodiment) Next, an information processing device according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 17 to 20. In the following description, components that are the same as or equivalent to those in the information processing device according to the first embodiment described above will be referred to with the same reference numerals as those used in the first embodiment, and their detailed explanation will be omitted.

[0138] In the third embodiment, the terminal 12 determines and notifies the user of information regarding the purchase of ink according to the notification conditions. Furthermore, the third embodiment differs from the second embodiment in that print information and user information are obtained from the printer 14. In other words, in the third embodiment, print information and user information, which were obtained from the notification management server 18 in the second embodiment, are obtained from the printer 14.

[0139] In this embodiment, each piece of information held by the terminal 12, printer 14, and notification management server 18, such as print information, user information, ink purchase information, ink discount information, and notification information, is associated with update date and time information. When the utility 30 obtains various types of information from the printer 14 and notification management server 18, it saves and updates this information, and saves the updated date and time as update date and time information.

[0140] <Notification processing in printing systems> In this embodiment, similar to the second embodiment, when printing is performed, the terminal 12 that performed the printing determines the notification content and sends the notification, and when printing is not performed, the above notification is sent to all terminals 12 that share the printer 14. The notification processing performed when printing is performed and when printing is not performed in this embodiment will be described in detail below.

[0141] =Notification process when printing is executed= Figure 17 shows the processing sequence for notification processing during print execution in the printing system 10 in this embodiment. In Figure 17, the same step numbers are used to indicate the same processing content as in the processing sequence in Figure 3. Therefore, in the following description, a detailed explanation of the processing with the same step numbers as in Figure 3 will be omitted. Also, in Figure 17, the processing after the user selects the "Purchase" button 720 or the "Order" button 816 on the ink information screen 702 is the same as S332 to S354 in Figure 3, so this processing is not shown in the illustration and its explanation is omitted in the following description.

[0142] In the notification process during print execution, when a user requests print in S302, a print job is generated and output in S304, print data is generated in S306, the print data is sent to printer 14 in S308, and printer 14 executes the print in S310. In addition, printer driver 24 notifies utility 30 that print has been executed in S312, and utility 30 obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal in S314.

[0143] Subsequently, the utility 30 sends its terminal information, namely the user ID and serial number obtained in S314, to the printer 14 (S1702). Upon receiving the terminal information, the printer 14 updates the print information (S1704), and if the received terminal information does not exist in the user information, it updates the user information (S1706). In the printer 14, the print information and user information are stored in a memory area such as the ROM 256, along with their respective update date and time information. Therefore, in S1704, the terminal information of the print information stored in the printer 14's memory area is updated, and the update date and time information of the print information is updated to reflect the date and time the update was performed. Also in S1704, the print information is updated to reflect the remaining ink level after printing is completed in the ink information. In S1706, it is determined whether the received terminal information exists in the terminal information of the user information. If it exists, the user information is not updated; otherwise, the received terminal information is added to the terminal information of the user information, and the user information is updated. Furthermore, the update date and time information of the user information is updated to reflect the date and time the user information was updated.

[0144] Furthermore, when the utility 30 transmits terminal information of its own terminal, it requests print information from the printer 14 (S1708) and obtains the response (S1710). In S1710, the printer 14 transmits the print information updated in S1704 and the update date and time information of the print information to the terminal 12 that requested the print information. Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as a means for obtaining ink information, which is information on the remaining amount of ink. The utility 30 then saves the print information obtained in S1710 along with the update date and time information to its own terminal (S1712).

[0145] Next, utility 30 requests user information update date and time information from printer 14 (S1714) and obtains the response (S1716). Then, utility 30 checks the update status of the user information (S1718). In S1718, utility 30 compares the user information update date and time information stored on its own terminal with the update date and time information obtained in S1716. If they are different, it is considered to have been updated; if they match, it is considered not to have been updated.

[0146] Then, if the user information has not been updated, the process proceeds to step 1726, which will be described later. If the user information has been updated, the utility 30 requests the user information from the printer 14 (S1720) and obtains the response (S1722). In this way, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as a means for obtaining terminal information of terminal devices that share the printer 14.

[0147] When utility 30 obtains user information in S1722, it saves the obtained user information to its own terminal (S1724). Subsequently, utility 30 sends printer information to notification management server 18 to request the update date and time information of the ink purchase information and notification information (S1726), and obtains the response (S1728). In S1726, printer information including the model name and serial number of printer 14 is sent to request ink purchase information including the printer information and notification information corresponding to the printer information.

[0148] When Utility 30 obtains the update date and time information for ink purchase information and notification information in S1728, it checks the update status of each (S1730). In S1730, it compares the update date and time information stored on the device with the update date and time information obtained in S1728 for both the ink purchase information and notification information. If the update date and time information on the device and the update date and time information obtained in S1728 are different, it is considered to have been updated; if they match, it is considered not to have been updated.

[0149] If it is determined that neither the ink purchase information nor the notification information has been updated, the process proceeds to S1738, which will be described later. If it is determined that at least one of the ink purchase information or the notification information has been updated, the utility 30 requests the notification management server 18 for the updated information (S1732) and obtains the response (S1734). The utility 30 then saves the information obtained in S1734 to its own terminal (S1736). Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining purchase permission information, which is information regarding whether or not the user has the right to purchase ink, and notification information.

[0150] Subsequently, the utility 30 determines the notification content based on the terminal information of its own terminal, and the print information, user information, ink purchase information, and notification settings included in the notification information stored on its own terminal (S1738). Then, the utility 30 displays the determined notification content, along with the printer information and ink information, on the ink information screen 702 displayed on the display 210 of its own terminal to notify the user (S1740).

[0151] Next, the specific processing details at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is executed will be explained with reference to the flowchart in Figure 18. Figure 18 is a flowchart showing the detailed processing routine of the notification process executed at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is executed in this embodiment. The series of processes shown in the flowchart of Figure 18 are performed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, which loads the program code stored in ROM 206 into RAM 204 and executes it. Alternatively, some or all of the functions of the steps in Figure 18 may be executed by hardware such as an ASIC or electrical circuit. In this explanation of the notification process, it will be assumed that utility 30, which is software executed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, performs the processing at each step.

[0152] When utility 30 receives notification from printer driver 24 to execute a print job (corresponding to S312), it starts the notification process. When this notification process starts, utility 30 first obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal as terminal information (S1802). S1302 corresponds to S314 in Figure 17. In S1802, utility 30 obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal, which are stored in the terminal's memory. Then, utility 30 sends the terminal information obtained in S1802 to printer 14 (S1804). S1804 corresponds to S1702 in Figure 17. Printer 14 updates the print information based on the received terminal information and updates the update date and time information of the print information to the date and time the update was performed. In addition, if the received terminal information does not exist in the user information stored in printer 14, printer 14 adds the terminal information to the user information and updates the user information, and updates the update date and time information of the user information to the date and time the update was performed.

[0153] Next, utility 30 obtains print information from printer 14 (S1806), saves the obtained print information to its own terminal, and updates the print information (S1808). S1806 corresponds to S1708 and S1710 in Figure 17, and S1808 corresponds to S1712. In S1808, utility 30 updates the print information as well as the update date and time information of the print information.

[0154] Subsequently, utility 30 obtains the update date and time information of the user information stored on its own terminal (S1810). Utility 30 also obtains the update date and time information of the user information from printer 14 (S1812). This S1810 corresponds to S1714 and S1716 in Figure 17. Then, utility 30 determines whether or not the user information in printer 14 has been updated (S1814). This S1814 corresponds to S1718 in Figure 17. In S1814, it is determined whether or not the update date and time information obtained in S1810 matches the update date and time information obtained in S1812. In S1814, if the update date and time information obtained in S1810 and the update date and time information obtained in S1812 do not match, it is determined that the information has been updated; if they match, it is determined that the information has not been updated.

[0155] If it is determined in S1814 that the user information in printer 14 has not been updated, the process proceeds to S1820, which will be described later. If it is determined in S1814 that the user information in printer 14 has been updated, the utility 30 retrieves the user information from printer 14 (S1816). This S1816 corresponds to S1720 and S1722 in Figure 17. The utility 30 then saves the user information retrieved in S1816 to its own terminal and updates the user information on its own terminal (S1818). In addition, in S1818, along with updating the user information, the update date and time information of the user information is updated with the update date and time information retrieved in S1812.

[0156] Next, utility 30 obtains the update date and time information for ink purchase information and notification information stored on its own terminal (S1820). Utility 30 also obtains the update date and time information for ink information and notification information from the notification management server 18 (S1822). This S1822 corresponds to S1726 and S1728 in Figure 17. Then, utility 30 determines whether or not the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 has been updated (S1824). This S1824 corresponds to S1730 in Figure 17.

[0157] In S1824, it is determined whether the update date and time information obtained in S1820 and the update date and time information obtained in S1822 match for both the ink purchase information and the notification information. In this determination, if the update date and time information obtained in S1820 and the update date and time information obtained in S1822 do not match for both the ink purchase information and the notification information, it is determined that the information has been updated, and if they match, it is determined that the information has not been updated. Furthermore, in S1824, if neither the ink purchase information nor the notification information has been updated, it is determined that the ink purchase information and the notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated. Also, in S1824, if at least one of the ink purchase information and the notification information has been updated, it is determined that the ink purchase information and the notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated.

[0158] If, in S1824, it is determined that the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 have not been updated, the process proceeds to S1830, which will be described later. Alternatively, if, in S1824, it is determined that the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated, the utility 30 obtains the updated information from the notification management server 18 (S1826). This S1826 corresponds to S1732 and S1734 in Figure 17. The utility 30 then saves the information obtained in S1826 to its own terminal (S1828). This S1828 corresponds to S1736 in Figure 17. In S1828, the utility 30 saves the information obtained in S1826 to its own terminal, updates the information, and updates the update date and time information of the information with the update date and time information obtained in S1822.

[0159] Subsequently, the utility 30 performs a notification execution process (S1830) and then terminates this notification process. This S1830 corresponds to S1738 and S1740 in Figure 17. Note that the specific processing details of the notification execution process in S1830 are the same as the notification execution process in S1320 in the second embodiment described above, so a detailed explanation is omitted. Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as a notification means for determining the notification content.

[0160] =Notification process when printing is not performed= Next, we will describe the notification process for when printing is not being performed. Similar to the second embodiment, this embodiment also sends a notification to each terminal 12 of each user sharing the printer 14 when printing is not being performed. When printing is not being performed, the notification process is executed at predetermined timings. These predetermined timings may be, for example, at predetermined intervals or when the terminal 12 is started up. Specifically, when printing is not being performed, for example, the notification process is executed every hour. In this notification process, the utility 30 checks the printing status of the printer 14, and based on the results of this check, determines the notification content and sends the notification. Figure 19 is a diagram showing the processing sequence of the notification process when printing is not being performed in the printing system 10 of this embodiment.

[0161] When the notification process for when printing is not performed is initiated, the utility 30 first requests the printer 14 for the update date and time information of the print information (S1902) and obtains the response (S1904). Then, the utility 30 checks the update status of the print information (S1906). In S1906, the utility 30 compares the update date and time information of the print information stored on its own terminal with the update date and time information obtained in S1904. If the update date and time information of the print information on its own terminal and the update date and time information obtained in S1904 are different, the utility 30 determines that the print information has been updated; if they match, the utility 30 determines that the print information has not been updated.

[0162] If the print information has not been updated, this notification process is terminated. If the print information has been updated, the utility 30 requests the printer 14 to provide the print information (S1908) and obtains the response (S1910). The utility 30 then saves the print information obtained in S1910 to its own terminal (S1912). In S1912, by saving the print information obtained in S1910 to its own terminal, the utility 30 updates the print information on its own terminal and also updates the update date and time information of the print information on its own terminal with the update date and time information obtained in S1904.

[0163] Next, utility 30 requests user information update date and time information from printer 14 (S1914) and obtains the response (S1916). Then, utility 30 checks the status of user information updates (S1918). In S1918, utility 30 compares the user information update date and time information stored on its own terminal with the update date and time information obtained in S1916. If the user information update date and time information on its own terminal and the update date and time information obtained in S1916 are different, it is determined that the user information has been updated; if they match, it is determined that the user information has been updated.

[0164] If the user information has not been updated, the process proceeds to S1926, which will be described later. If the user information has been updated, the utility 30 requests the user information from the printer 14 (S1920) and obtains the response (S1922). The utility 30 then saves the user information obtained in S1922 to its own terminal (S1924). In S1924, by saving the user information obtained in S1922 to its own terminal, the utility 30 updates the user information on its own terminal and also updates the update date and time information of the user information on its own terminal with the update date and time information obtained in S1916.

[0165] Subsequently, utility 30 requests update date and time information for ink purchase information and notification information from notification management server 18 (S1926) and obtains the response (S1928). Then, utility 30 checks the update status of ink purchase information and notification information (S1930). In S1930, utility 30 compares the respective update date and time information for ink purchase information and notification information stored on the terminal with the respective update date and time information for ink purchase information and notification information obtained in S1928. If the update date and time information stored on the terminal and the update date and time information obtained in S1928 for both ink purchase information and notification information match, then it is assumed that the ink purchase information and notification information have not been updated. If the update date and time information stored on the terminal and the update date and time information obtained in S1928 do not match for at least one of the ink purchase information and notification information, then it is assumed that the ink purchase information and notification information have been updated.

[0166] If the ink purchase information and notification information have not been updated, the process proceeds to S1938, which will be described later. If the ink purchase information and notification information have been updated, the utility 30 requests the notification management server 18 for the updated information from the ink purchase information and notification information (S1932) and obtains the response (S1934). The utility 30 then saves the information obtained in S1934 to its own terminal (S1936). In S1936, by saving the information obtained in S1934 to its own terminal, the information on the terminal is updated, and the update date and time information of the said information is updated with the update date and time information obtained in S1926.

[0167] The utility 30 then obtains the user ID and serial number of its own terminal as terminal information (S1938). Next, the utility 30 determines the content of the notification based on the terminal information of its own terminal and the notification settings in the print information, user information, ink purchase information, and notification information stored on its own terminal (S1940). After that, the utility 30 displays the determined notification content, along with the printer information and ink information, on the ink information screen 702 displayed on the display 210 of its own terminal as notification (S1942).

[0168] Next, the specific processing details at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is not performed will be explained with reference to the flowchart in Figure 20. Figure 20 is a flowchart showing the detailed processing routine of the notification process executed at terminal 12 during the notification process when printing is not performed. The series of processes shown in the flowchart of Figure 20 are performed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, which loads the program code stored in ROM 206 into RAM 204 and executes it. Alternatively, some or all of the functions of the steps in Figure 20 may be executed by hardware such as an ASIC or electrical circuit. In this explanation of the notification process, it will be assumed that utility 30, which is software executed by the CPU 202 at terminal 12, performs the processing at each step.

[0169] When a predetermined time has passed, such as one hour since the last notification process for non-printing was completed, terminal 12 will start the notification process. When this notification process starts, utility 30 first obtains the update date and time information of the print information stored on its own terminal (S2002). Utility 30 also obtains the update date and time information of the print information from printer 14 (S2004). This S2004 corresponds to S1902 and S1904 in Figure 19.

[0170] Then, utility 30 determines whether or not the print information in printer 14 has been updated (S2006). This S2006 corresponds to S1906 in Figure 19. In S2006, it is determined whether or not the update date and time information obtained in S2002 matches the update date and time information obtained in S2004. In S2006, if the update date and time information obtained in S2002 matches the update date and time information obtained in S2004, it is determined that the print information in printer 14 has not been updated; if they do not match, it is determined that the print information in printer 14 has been updated.

[0171] In S2006, if it is determined that the print information on printer 14 has not been updated, this communication process is terminated. Also, in S2006, if it is determined that the print information on printer 14 has been updated, utility 30 obtains the print information from printer 14 (S2008) and saves the obtained print information to its own terminal (S2010). S2008 corresponds to S1908 and S1910 in Figure 19, and S2010 corresponds to S1912 in Figure 19. Thus, in this embodiment, utility 30 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining ink information, which is information on the remaining amount of ink. In S2010, the print information obtained in S2008 is saved to the own terminal, the print information is updated, and the update date and time information of the print information is updated with the update date and time information obtained in S2004.

[0172] Next, utility 30 obtains the update date and time information of the user information stored on its own terminal (S2012). Utility 30 also obtains the update date and time information of the user information from printer 14 (S2014). This S2014 corresponds to S1914 and S1916 in Figure 19. Then, utility 30 determines whether or not the user information in printer 14 has been updated (S2016). This S2016 corresponds to S1918 in Figure 19. In S2016, it is determined whether or not the update date and time information obtained in S2012 matches the update date and time information obtained in S2014. In S2016, if the update date and time information obtained in S2012 and the update date and time information obtained in S2014 match, it is determined that the user information in printer 14 has not been updated; if they do not match, it is determined that the user information in printer 14 has been updated.

[0173] In S2016, if it is determined that the user information on printer 14 has not been updated, the process proceeds to S2022, which will be described later. Also, in S2016, if it is determined that the user information on printer 14 has been updated, utility 30 obtains the user information from printer 14 (S2018) and saves the obtained user information to its own terminal (S2020). S2018 corresponds to S1920 and S1922 in Figure 19, and S2020 corresponds to S1924 in Figure 19. Thus, in this embodiment, utility 30 functions as a means of obtaining terminal information of terminal devices that share printer 14. In S2020, the user information obtained in S2018 is saved to the own terminal and the user information is updated, and the update date and time information of the user information is updated with the update date and time information obtained in S2014.

[0174] Subsequently, utility 30 obtains the update date and time information for ink purchase information and notification information stored on its own terminal (S2022). Utility 30 also obtains the update date and time information for ink purchase information and notification information from the notification management server 18 (S2024). This S2024 corresponds to S1926 and S1928 in Figure 19. Then, utility 30 determines whether or not the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated (S2026). This S2026 corresponds to S1930 in Figure 19.

[0175] In S2026, it is determined whether the update date and time information obtained in S2022 matches the update date and time information obtained in S2024 for both the ink purchase information and the notification information. In S2026, if the update date and time information obtained in S2022 and the update date and time information obtained in S2024 match for both the ink purchase information and the notification information, it is determined that the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 have not been updated. In S2026, if the update date and time information obtained in S2022 and the update date and time information obtained in S2024 do not match for at least one of the ink purchase information and the notification information, it is determined that the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 have not been updated.

[0176] In S2026, if it is determined that the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 have not been updated, the process proceeds to S2032, which will be described later. Also, in S2026, if it is determined that the ink purchase information and notification information in the notification management server 18 have been updated, the utility 30 obtains the updated information from the notification management server 18 (S2028). This S2028 corresponds to S1932 and S1934 in Figure 19. Thus, in this embodiment, the utility 30 functions as an acquisition means for obtaining purchase permission information, which is information regarding whether or not there is permission to purchase ink, and notification information. In S2028, regarding the ink purchase information and notification information, the utility 30 obtains from the notification management server 18 information in which the update date and time information obtained in S2022 and the update date and time information obtained in S2024 did not match at the time of the determination in S2026.

[0177] Then, utility 30 saves the information acquired in S2028 to its own terminal (S2030). S2030 corresponds to S1936 in Figure 19. In S2030, utility 30 saves the information acquired in S2028 to its own terminal, updates the information, and updates the update date and time information of the information with the update date and time information acquired in S2024. After that, utility 30 acquires the user ID and serial number of its own terminal as terminal information (S2032). This S2032 corresponds to S1938 in Figure 19.

[0178] Then, utility 30 performs a notification execution process (S2034) and terminates this notification process. S2034 corresponds to S1940 and S1942 in Figure 19. Note that the specific processing content of the notification execution process in S2034 is the same as the notification execution process in S1320 in the second embodiment described above, so a detailed explanation is omitted. Thus, in this embodiment, utility 30 functions as a notification means for determining the notification content.

[0179] As described above, in this embodiment, the terminal 12 determines the notification content and sends a notification based on print information, printer information, ink purchase information, notification settings, etc. This makes it possible to obtain the same effects as in the second embodiment. In addition, in this embodiment, the terminal 12 obtains print information and user information from the printer 14. This makes it possible to further reduce the communication load on the notification management server compared to the second embodiment.

[0180] (Other embodiments) The above-described embodiments may be modified as shown in (1) to (5) below.

[0181] (1) In the above embodiment, the case in which the information processing device is applied to the printing system 10 was described as an example, but the technology relating to the information processing device described in the above embodiment can be applied to various known systems. For example, the technology described in the above embodiment can also be applied to a system in which each terminal of multiple users is connected by a telephone line and the amount of data communication generated by sending and receiving data via the telephone line between terminals is shared.

[0182] Specifically, in the data usage sharing system described above, data usage discount information can be appropriately notified to each terminal using notification settings, based on the terminal's data usage status and the terminal's data usage history when the data usage limit is reached. In this case, the system consists of, for example, a purchase management server, a notification management server, and multiple terminals. The multiple terminals are connected to each other via telephone lines.

[0183] Figure 21 shows an example of notification settings stored in the notification settings section of the notification management server. Figure 21 is a diagram showing an example of notification settings in another embodiment. In notification settings (1) and (2) of Figure 21, when a user with the authority to purchase data communication consumes their remaining data communication, the threshold for the remaining data communication amount at which discount information is notified is changed depending on whether the terminal used for the data communication by that user is the terminal used for the purchase or not. In addition, notification settings (2) and (3) change the timing of notification to the terminal used for purchasing data communication. As a result, discount information is not unnecessarily notified to terminals that are not used for the purchase, and discount information can be notified to the terminal used for the purchase at the appropriate time.

[0184] Furthermore, when a device consumes its remaining data allowance, the notification content is linked to "discount information" so that discount information is sent to the devices of all users who have the right to purchase data allowance. In notification settings (4) and (5), the threshold for the amount of data allowance at which discount information is sent is changed depending on whether the user who consumed the data allowance has the right to purchase data allowance. If a user has the right to purchase data allowance, they can check the discount information sent to their device when their data allowance is consumed and purchase data allowance immediately from that device if necessary. For this reason, in this case, discount information will not be sent to the devices of other users who have the right to purchase data allowance until the remaining data allowance (up to the limit) falls below 5%. In addition, in notification settings (6) and (7), if a user does not have the right to purchase data allowance (or has not been determined), a notification will be sent stating that a request to purchase data allowance is necessary, rather than discount information. This allows for appropriate notifications to be sent depending on whether the user has the right to purchase data allowance.

[0185] (2) In the above embodiment, the user's authority to purchase ink and the terminal 12 used for purchasing ink are determined by the ink purchase information, but the embodiment is not limited to this. The user's authority to purchase ink and the terminal 12 used for purchasing ink may be determined, for example, by the purchase history of the printer 14 or by the authority of the user account on the terminal.

[0186] (3) In the above embodiment, the printing system 10 is configured to allow ink to be purchased from the terminal 12, and the terminal 12 is configured to provide notifications regarding the remaining ink level and whether or not the user has the authority to purchase ink. However, the system is not limited to this configuration. In other words, the printing system 10 may also be configured to allow the purchase of consumables other than ink, such as printing media, print heads, waste ink tanks, batteries, etc. In this case, the terminal 12 is configured to provide notifications regarding the remaining amount of consumables, as well as whether or not the user has the authority to purchase those consumables.

[0187] (4) In the above embodiment, the notification content consisted of ink discount information, which is information about discounts applied when purchasing ink, and ink purchase request information, which is information prompting users authorized to make such purchases to purchase ink. However, it is not limited to this. That is, ink discount information may be replaced with various types of information available when purchasing ink, and ink purchase request information may be replaced with various types of information prompting the purchase of ink.

[0188] (5) The above embodiments and the various forms shown in (1) to (4) above may be combined as appropriate. The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that implements one or more of the functions of the above embodiments to a system or device via a network or recording medium, and by having one or more processors in the computer of that system or device read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that implements one or more functions. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0189] 12 Terminal devices 18. Notification Management Server 30 Utility 54 Notification Control Unit

Claims

1. An information processing device that provides notifications on terminal devices of users who share consumables, A first acquisition means for acquiring terminal information which is information about the terminal device including information about the user, A second acquisition means for acquiring remaining quantity information, which is information regarding the remaining quantity of the aforementioned consumables, A third acquisition means for acquiring purchase authority information, which is information relating to the purchase authority of the aforementioned consumables, A fourth acquisition means for acquiring the conditions for issuing a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, which are set using the terminal information, the remaining amount information, and the purchase authority information, and the content of the notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, which are set in association with the conditions. An information processing apparatus characterized by having: a determination means that determines whether the conditions are met based on the acquired terminal information, the acquired remaining amount information, and the acquired purchase authority information, and if the conditions are met, determines to send a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables with the contents set in association with the conditions.

2. The purchase authority information includes information about a user who has the authority to purchase the consumables and information about the terminal device that can be used to purchase the consumables. The aforementioned determination means is It has been decided that the first notice will be sent to users who have the authority to purchase the aforementioned consumables, as a notification regarding the purchase of the aforementioned consumables. The information processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that it decides to issue a second notice, different from the first notice, to users who do not have the authority to purchase the consumables, as a notice regarding the purchase of the consumables.

3. The first notice mentioned above is a notice concerning a discount on the consumables, The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that the second notice is a notice urging the user to purchase the consumables.

4. The aforementioned determination means is For terminal devices that cannot be used to purchase the aforementioned consumables, it is decided that a notification regarding the purchase of the aforementioned consumables will be sent when the remaining amount information falls below a first threshold. The information processing device according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, with respect to the terminal device that can be used to purchase the consumables, it is decided to issue a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables when the remaining amount information falls below a second threshold greater than the first threshold.

5. The system further includes a fifth acquisition means for acquiring information about the terminal device that has performed the process of consuming the aforementioned consumables, The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the determination means causes the timing of notification to differ between the terminal device that has performed the process of consuming the consumables and the terminal device that has not performed the process of consuming the consumables.

6. The aforementioned determination means is The terminal device that has performed the process of consuming the aforementioned consumables will be immediately notified. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that it notifies terminal devices that are not performing the process of consuming the aforementioned consumables when a predetermined time has elapsed.

7. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the aforementioned consumables are consumables used in a printer.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that the aforementioned consumable is ink.

9. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the consumables are the amount of data communication consumed by the terminal device.

10. An information processing method for an information processing device that provides notifications on a terminal device used by users who share consumables, A terminal information is obtained, which is information about the terminal device including information about the user. The remaining amount information, which is information regarding the remaining amount of the aforementioned consumables, is obtained. We obtain purchase authority information, which is information regarding the purchase authority of the aforementioned consumables. The conditions for issuing a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, set using the terminal information, the remaining battery information, and the purchase authorization information, and the content of the notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, set in association with those conditions, are obtained. An information processing method characterized by determining whether the conditions are met based on the acquired terminal information, the acquired remaining capacity information, and the acquired purchase authority information, and deciding to send a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables with the contents set in association with the conditions if the conditions are met.

11. A printer that prints on a print medium, A terminal device capable of issuing notifications and performing printing on the aforementioned printer, A printing system comprising a server that manages notifications to the terminal device, The aforementioned server, A first acquisition means for acquiring terminal information which is information about the terminal device including information about the user holding the terminal device, A second acquisition means for acquiring remaining quantity information, which is information regarding the remaining quantity of consumables for the aforementioned printer, A third acquisition means for acquiring purchase authority information, which is information relating to the purchase authority of the aforementioned consumables, A fourth acquisition means for acquiring the conditions for issuing a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, which are set using the terminal information, the remaining amount information, and the purchase authority information, and the content of the notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, which are set in association with the conditions. A printing system characterized by having: a determination means that determines whether the conditions are met based on the acquired terminal information, the acquired remaining amount information, and the acquired purchase authority information, and if the conditions are met, determines to send a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables with the contents set in association with the conditions.

12. When the process for consuming the consumables is executed, the server decides to issue a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables. The printing system according to claim 11, characterized in that the terminal device provides notification regarding the purchase of the consumables determined by the server.

13. A printer that prints on a print medium, A terminal device capable of issuing notifications and performing printing on the aforementioned printer, A printing system comprising a server for managing information, The aforementioned terminal device is A first acquisition means for acquiring terminal information which is information about the terminal device including information about the user holding the terminal device, A second acquisition means for acquiring remaining quantity information, which is information regarding the remaining quantity of consumables for the aforementioned printer, A third acquisition means for acquiring purchase authority information, which is information relating to the purchase authority of the aforementioned consumables, A fourth acquisition means for acquiring the conditions for issuing a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, which are set using the terminal information, the remaining amount information, and the purchase authority information, and the content of the notification regarding the purchase of the consumables, which are set in association with the conditions. A printing system characterized by having: a determination means that determines whether the conditions are met based on the acquired terminal information, the acquired remaining amount information, and the acquired purchase authority information, and if the conditions are met, determines to send a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables with the contents set in association with the conditions.

14. When a process for consuming the aforementioned consumables is executed, the terminal device that requested the process decides to issue a notification regarding the purchase of the aforementioned consumables, and issues a notification regarding the purchase of the aforementioned consumables. The printing system according to claim 13, characterized in that, when the process for consuming the consumables is not being performed, the system decides to issue a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables to each of the terminal devices at a predetermined time and issues a notification regarding the purchase of the consumables.

15. In the aforementioned terminal device, The first acquisition means acquires the terminal information from the server, The second acquisition means acquires the remaining amount information from the server, The third acquisition means acquires the purchase authority information from the server, The printing system according to claim 14, characterized in that the fourth acquisition means acquires the conditions and content from the server.

16. In the aforementioned terminal device, The first acquisition means acquires the terminal information from the printer, The second acquisition means acquires the remaining amount information from the printer, The third acquisition means acquires the purchase authority information from the server, The printing system according to claim 14, characterized in that the fourth acquisition means acquires the conditions and content from the server.

17. A program for causing a computer to function as an information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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