Systems, methods, programs, storage media

Abstract

To provide a technology that enables ordering of consumables used in a printing device registered in a system by voice instructions.SOLUTION: In a system, at least one server includes: an acquisition unit that acquires information on a remaining quantity of consumables of a printing device at a specific timing not in response to a voice inquiry from a user; and control means that controls, on the basis of the information on the remaining quantity of the consumables of the printing device acquired by the acquisition means, when a predetermined condition corresponding to the remaining quantity of the consumables of the printing device being low is satisfied, to transmit predetermined information for making a specific notification corresponding to the remaining quantity of the consumables of the printing device being low to a voice device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a system, a method, a program, and a storage medium.

Background Art

[0002] There is known a voice control system for controlling a printing device by voice. Patent Document 1 describes a technique for instructing voice-operated printing settings that a user operates during the printing process, such as setting the paper size.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Patent Document 1 describes that a user can instruct voice-operated changes to printing settings and printing execution, but does not mention ordering consumables used in the printing device registered in the system.

[0005] In view of the above points, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique that enables ordering of consumables used in a printing device registered in a system by voice instruction.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To solve the above problems, the present invention provides a system comprising at least one server capable of acquiring information about a printing device and communicating with an audio device, wherein the at least one server includes an acquisition means for acquiring information about the remaining amount of consumables of the printing device at a specific timing independent of a user's voice inquiry, and a control means for controlling the transmission of predetermined information to the audio device for making a specific voice notification corresponding to the low remaining amount of consumables of the printing device when predetermined conditions corresponding to the low remaining amount of consumables of the printing device are met, based on the information about the remaining amount of consumables of the printing device acquired by the acquisition means. The voice device is equipped with such a feature, and the specific notification is output audibly from the voice device in response to a predetermined inquiry made by the user after the voice device has received the predetermined information. It is characterized by the following: [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to order consumables used in a printing device registered in the system by voice command. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This diagram shows the configuration of the consumables management system. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a terminal device. [Figure 3] This is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of an audio device. [Figure 4] This is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a printing device. [Figure 5] Server hardware configuration (bloodsheet). [Figure 6] This figure shows the consumables information stored on the consumables management server. [Figure 7] This diagram shows consumable information stored on the printing device management server. [Figure 8] This diagram shows the sequence of events required to enable mutual access between servers. [Figure 9] This diagram shows the sequence of steps for registering the target printing device. [Figure 10] This flowchart shows the process of sending ink level information from the printer management server. [Figure 11] This flowchart shows the process for determining the remaining ink level in the consumables management server. [Figure 12] This diagram shows the sequence of events from placing an order to sending it to the consumables management server. [Figure 13] This is a flowchart showing the process of deleting information about a printing device. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The embodiments will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention as defined in the claims. While the embodiments describe multiple features, not all of these features are essential to the invention, and the features may be combined in any way. Furthermore, in the attached drawings, identical or similar configurations are given the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions are omitted.

[0010] [System Configuration] Figure 1 shows the configuration of the consumables management system in this embodiment. The consumables management system in this embodiment consists of a terminal device 101, a consumables management server 102, a voice device management server 103, a voice device 104, a printer management server 105, and a printer 106. In Figure 1, one voice device 103, one terminal device 101, and one printer 106 are shown, but in this embodiment, multiple units of each may be provided. That is, multiple terminal devices 101 and multiple voice devices 104 may be configured to communicate with the voice device management server 103. Also, multiple printers 106 may be configured to communicate with the printer management server 106.

[0011] The terminal device 101 is any information processing device such as a smartphone, PC (Personal Computer), tablet terminal, mobile phone, or PDA (Personal Digital Assistant). The voice device 104 is, for example, a smart speaker. The printing device 106 is a printer that forms (prints) an image on a recording medium such as printing paper by ejecting a recording material such as ink onto the recording medium. The printing device 106 may also be a multifunction printer (MFP) that integrates multiple functions such as copying, faxing, and printing. In this embodiment, the printing device 106 is a device that prints using an inkjet recording method, but it is not limited to this, and may also be a device that prints using an electrophotographic method or a thermal sublimation method, for example.

[0012] Terminal device 101 can communicate with consumables management server 102 via a network such as the Internet. Furthermore, terminal device 101 and voice device 104 can each communicate with voice device management server 103 via a network such as the Internet. Voice device management server 103 is a server that provides voice control services to realize a voice call interface with users, and manages the voice device 104 in association with terminal device 101. In other words, the voice device management server 103 has information on multiple voice devices 104 registered, and each voice device 104 is associated with information on one of the terminal devices 101 and user information for the voice control service.

[0013] The printing device 106 can communicate with the printing device management server 105 via a network such as the Internet. The printing device management server 105 is a server that provides printing device management services, managing the printing devices 106 of each user registered with the printing device management server 105. In other words, the printing device management server 105 has information on multiple printing devices 106, each associated with user information. For example, the printing device management server 105 acquires information on the remaining amount of consumables for the printing device and manages the operating status of the printing device.

[0014] The consumable management server 102 is a server that processes orders to a sales site (sales company) that deals with consumables such as ink cartridges according to instructions from the voice device management server 103.

[0015] In this embodiment, as long as the terminal device 101, the voice device 104, and the printing device 106 can be connected to the Internet, their forms are not limited. For example, they may be connected via an access point not shown in the figure. Note that the terminal device 101, the voice device 104, and the printing device 106 may be able to communicate with each other by being respectively connected to a local network via an access point not shown in the figure. Also, the network segments of the terminal device 101, the voice device 104, and the printing device 106 may be different from each other.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the terminal device 101. The terminal device 101 includes an input interface 201, a CPU 202, a ROM 203, a display unit 204, a RAM 205, an external storage device 206, a communication unit 207, and a short-range wireless communication unit 208. Each of the above blocks is connected to each other via, for example, an internal bus 209. Also, in the configuration of FIG. 2, a plurality of blocks may be configured as one block, or one block may be divided into two or more blocks.

[0017] The CPU 202 is the system control unit and is a processor that comprehensively controls the entire terminal device 101. The RAM 205 is composed of, for example, SRAM (Static RAM) that requires a backup power supply. Since the RAM 205 retains data using a primary battery for data backup (not shown), it is possible to store data such as program control variables without them being lost. The RAM 205 has a memory area for storing setting information and management data for the terminal device 101. The RAM 205 is also used as the main memory and work memory for the CPU 202. The ROM 203 stores fixed data such as control programs, data tables, and OS programs executed by the CPU 202. In this embodiment, the terminal device 101 has an application program for controlling the voice device 104 (voice control application) installed and stored in the ROM 203. The operation of the terminal device 101 in this embodiment is realized, for example, by the CPU 202 reading the program stored in the ROM 203 into the RAM 205 and executing it.

[0018] The display unit 204 is configured to include, for example, LEDs (light-emitting diodes) or LCDs (liquid crystal displays) and displays a screen based on various display data. The display unit 204 may also have the function of receiving various input operations from the user, for example, by being configured as a touch display. In other words, the display unit 204 is an interface for receiving data input and operation instructions from the user and may be configured as an operation panel including a physical keyboard, buttons, a touch panel, etc.

[0019] The communication unit 207 includes circuits and antennas for performing communication according to a predetermined wireless communication method. For example, the communication unit 207 can wirelessly connect to an external access point. The communication unit 207 may also operate as a temporary access point. The communication unit 207 may operate according to a wireless LAN wireless communication method (Wi-Fi) compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard series, or according to other wireless communication methods. The short-range wireless communication unit 208 performs short-range wireless communication with the terminal device 101 and other devices located within a certain short-range range. The short-range wireless communication unit 208 communicates using a different wireless communication method than the communication unit 207. For example, the short-range wireless communication unit 208 operates according to the Bluetooth® standard.

[0020] The terminal device 101 is not limited to the configuration shown in Figure 2, and may include blocks as appropriate according to the functions that the terminal device 101 can perform.

[0021] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of an audio device 104. The audio device 104 includes a speaker 301, a CPU 302, a ROM 303, a microphone 304, a RAM 305, an external storage device 306, a communication unit 307, and a short-range wireless communication unit 308. Each of the above blocks is interconnected, for example, via an internal bus 309. In the configuration of Figure 3, multiple blocks may be configured as a single block, or a single block may be divided into two or more blocks.

[0022] Speaker 301 provides audio output. CPU 302 is a system control unit and a processor that comprehensively controls the entire audio device 104. ROM 303 stores various data and programs such as control programs, data tables, and embedded OS (Operating System) programs executed by CPU 302. In this embodiment, each control program stored in ROM 303 is subject to software execution control such as scheduling, task switching, and interrupt processing under the management of the embedded OS stored in ROM 303. The operation of the audio device 104 in this embodiment is realized, for example, by CPU 302 reading a program stored in ROM 303 into RAM 305 and executing it. Microphone 304 receives sounds from the surroundings of the audio control device 104. For example, microphone 304 receives the voice spoken by the user. RAM 305 is composed of, for example, DRAM (Dynamic RAM) that requires a backup power supply. RAM 305 is used as the main memory and work memory of CPU 302. External storage device 306 stores application software.

[0023] The communication unit 307 includes circuits and antennas for performing communication according to a predetermined wireless communication method. For example, the communication unit 307 can wirelessly connect to an external access point. The communication unit 307 may also operate as a temporary access point. The communication unit 307 may operate according to a wireless LAN wireless communication method (Wi-Fi) compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard series, or according to other wireless communication methods. The short-range wireless communication unit 308 performs short-range wireless communication between the voice device 104 and other devices within a certain short-range range. The short-range wireless communication unit 308 communicates using a different wireless communication method than the communication unit 307. For example, the short-range wireless communication unit 308 operates according to the Bluetooth standard.

[0024] The voice device 104 is not limited to the configuration shown in Figure 3, and may include blocks as appropriate depending on the functions that the voice device 104 can perform.

[0025] Figure 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the printing device 106. Figure 4 shows an example where the printing device 106 is configured as a multifunction device. In the printing device 106, the printing function is realized by the printer unit 401. The scanning function is realized by the scanner unit 402, and the storage function is realized by the memory card mounting unit 403 and the memory card 404.

[0026] The printer unit 401 performs printing based on, for example, image data received from an external source or image data stored on the memory card 404. The printer unit 401 also stores consumable information such as ink levels and paper levels. The printing device 106 transmits this status information, such as ink levels, to the printing device management server 105. The scanner unit 402 optically reads a document placed on a document glass (not shown), converts it into electronic data, and further converts it into a specified file format to generate image data. The scanner unit 402 then transmits the generated image data to an external device via the network or stores it in a storage area such as an HDD (not shown). In the printing device 106, the copy function is achieved when the scanner unit 402 reads a document placed on the document glass, transfers the generated image data to the printer unit 401, and the printer unit 401 prints the image based on that image data onto printing paper.

[0027] Various file data is stored on the memory card 404 inserted in the memory card slot 403. This file data can be read and edited from an external device via the network. Furthermore, file data can be stored on the memory card 404 from an external device via the network.

[0028] Furthermore, the printing device 106 includes a CPU 405, program memory 406, work memory 407, display unit 408, operation unit 409, network communication unit 410, network connection unit 411, and flash memory 412. The CPU 405 is a processor for comprehensively controlling each part of the printing device 106. The program memory 406 is composed of ROM or the like and stores various program codes and applications 414 for communicating with the printing device management server 105. The applications 414 access the printer unit 401 to obtain consumable information such as ink information and paper information. The work memory 407 is composed of RAM or the like and temporarily stores or buffers image data and the like when each service is executed. In this embodiment, the operation of the printing device 106 is realized, for example, by the CPU 405 reading a program stored in the program memory 406 into the work memory 407 and executing it.

[0029] The display unit 408 includes, for example, LEDs (light-emitting diodes) and LCDs (liquid crystal displays) and displays a screen based on various display data. The operation unit 409 includes switches for the user to perform various input operations. The network communication unit 410 is connected to a network such as the Internet via the network connection unit 411 and performs various communications. The network communication unit 410 has a configuration that corresponds to the network medium and can perform communication via, for example, wired LAN or wireless LAN. For example, if the network communication unit 410 supports wired LAN, the network connection unit 411 is a connector for connecting a wired LAN cable. If the network communication unit 410 supports wireless LAN, the network connection unit 411 is an antenna. The network connection unit 411 may support both wired LAN and wireless LAN. In this embodiment, the network communication unit 410 supports, for example, wireless LAN and can connect to an access point according to a wireless LAN wireless communication method compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard series. The flash memory 412 is a non-volatile memory used to store image data and other data received by the network communication unit 410.

[0030] Each of the above blocks is interconnected, for example, via bus 413. Furthermore, in the configuration shown in Figure 4, multiple blocks may be configured as a single block, or a single block may be divided into two or more blocks. The printing device 106 is not limited to the configuration shown in Figure 4, and may include blocks as appropriate depending on the functions that the printing device 106 can perform.

[0031] Figure 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the consumables management server 102, the voice device management server 103, and the printing device management server 105. In this embodiment, each server is described as having the configuration shown in Figure 5 in common. However, the configuration may differ between servers depending on the function of each server. Also, in this example, the consumables management server 102, the voice device management server 103, and the printing device management server 105 are described as being composed of one server device (information processing device) each. However, in this embodiment, the functions of each server may be realized by the coordinated operation of multiple server devices. In this disclosure, both a configuration consisting of one server device and a configuration consisting of multiple server devices are described as "servers".

[0032] The CPU 501 is a processor for comprehensively controlling the entire installed device. The disk device 502 stores application programs 512, a database 513, the OS, and various files for the CPU 501 to read and execute. The external media reader 503 can read information such as files stored on external storage media such as SD cards. The memory 504 is composed of RAM and is used, for example, for temporary data storage and buffering by the CPU 501. In this embodiment, the operation of each server is realized, for example, by the CPU 501 of each server reading programs stored in the disk device 502 into the memory 504 and executing them.

[0033] The display unit 505 includes, for example, LEDs (light-emitting diodes) and LCDs (liquid crystal displays) and displays a screen based on various display data. The operation unit 506 includes, for example, a keyboard and mouse for the user to perform various input operations. The network communication unit 507 is connected to a network such as the Internet via the network connection unit 508 and performs various communications. The network communication unit 507 has a configuration that corresponds to the network medium and can perform communications via, for example, wired LAN or wireless LAN. For example, if the network communication unit 507 supports wired LAN, the network connection unit 508 is a connector for connecting a wired LAN cable. If the network communication unit 507 supports wireless LAN, the network connection unit 508 is an antenna. The network connection unit 508 may support both wired LAN and wireless LAN. The USB communication unit 510 (Universal Serial Bus) is connected to various peripheral devices via the USB connection unit 511 and can perform various communications according to the USB standard.

[0034] Each of the above blocks is interconnected, for example, via bus 509. In addition, in the configuration of Figure 5, multiple blocks may be configured as a single block, or one block may be divided into two or more blocks. The consumables management server 102, the voice device management server 103, and the printing device management server 105 are not limited to the configuration shown in Figure 5, and may include blocks as appropriate according to the functions that each server can perform.

[0035] Database 513 contains databases corresponding to the consumables management server 102, the voice device management server 103, and the printer management server 105. The consumables management server 102 contains a database corresponding to each consumable, as shown in Figure 6, which will be described later. The voice device management server 103 contains a database that links authentication information (first authentication information) for accessing the printer management server 105, information on the terminal device 101, login user information for the voice control service provided by the voice device management server 103, information on the voice device 104, and information on the printer 106. The printer management server 105 contains a database that links authentication information (second authentication information) for accessing the consumables management server 102, login user information for the printer management server 105, and information on the printer 106 corresponding to that login user. Furthermore, the first authentication information stored in the database of the voice device management server 103 is information issued by the printing device management server 105, and it is preferable that the printing device management server 105 also stores this issued first authentication information in its database. In this embodiment, by constructing such a database on each server, a voice ordering system (consumables management system) for consumables of printing devices managed by the printing device management system is realized. Hereinafter, users registered in the printing device management system provided by the printing device management server 105 may be specifically referred to as logged-in users. In this embodiment, logged-in users correspond to users of the voice device 104 and terminal device 101.

[0036] [Pre-registration process] In this embodiment of the consumables management system, when the remaining amount of consumables in the printer 106 falls below a threshold, the user receives an audible notification. The user can then order consumables by voice in response to the notification. In this embodiment, an ink cartridge is described as an example of a consumable for the printer 106. However, other consumables may be used; for example, copy paper may be used as a consumable for the printer 106. Furthermore, in this embodiment, an example of ordering from a sales company to which consumables have been ordered once will be described, so the case of a reorder will be explained.

[0037] The administrator of the consumables management system pre-registers the consumables information for the printer 106 in the consumables management server 102. Figure 6 shows an example of the information registered in the database 513 of the consumables management server 102. The consumables information 600 includes items 601 to 605. Item 601 indicates the order ID, which is a unique value assigned to each ink cartridge mounting location on the printer 106. Item 602 indicates the ink color, and item 603 indicates the product code of the ink cartridge. Item 605 indicates the model name of the printer 106.

[0038] For example, Figure 6 shows the order ID / color / product code information for black, cyan, magenta, and yellow ink cartridges that can be installed in the printer 106 with model name "AAAA". In other words, the printer 106 with model name "AAAA" is a printer that can be equipped with four ink tanks. Also, Figure 6 shows the order ID / color / product code information for pigment black, black, cyan, magenta, yellow, and gray ink cartridges that can be installed in the printer 106 with model name "BBBB". In other words, the printer 106 with model name "BBBB" is a printer that can be equipped with six ink tanks. Note that there are models of the printer 106 that can be equipped with both standard capacity ink tanks and high capacity ink tanks, and in that case, multiple product codes may be registered for the same order ID.

[0039] Item 604 indicates a threshold for determining the decrease in the ink level in the ink tank at the location where the ink cartridges of the printing device 106 are installed, and is set for each order ID. In Figure 6, the unit of the threshold is a percentage of the maximum capacity, but other units may be used as long as they are indicators of the remaining ink level. For example, volume (milliliters, etc.) may be used as the unit of the threshold. In this embodiment, a threshold is set for each order ID, so for example, by setting the threshold for black ink, which is consumed frequently, higher than the thresholds for other ink colors, it is possible to perform reorder processing earlier.

[0040] The consumable information 600 shown in Figure 6, which is pre-registered in the consumable management server 102 by the administrator of the consumable management system, is also registered in the database 513 of the printing device management server 105. In this case, the data format may differ as long as the correspondence between the printing device 106 and the order ID in the consumable information 600 is maintained.

[0041] Figure 7 shows an example of information registered in the printing device management server 105. The consumables information 700 shown in Figure 7 includes items 701 to 703. Item 701 indicates the model name and corresponds to the model name in item 605 in Figure 6. Item 703 indicates the order ID list. As shown in Figure 7, the order ID list lists the order IDs corresponding to the model name in item 605 in Figure 6. The consumables information 700 may include information not included in the consumables information 600, and in this embodiment, the consumables information 700 includes the information in item 702. Item 702 indicates ink destination information. Ink destination information refers to information indicating the sales area (country or region) of the ink cartridge. Based on the ink destination information, the printing device management server 105 determines, for example, whether the ink cartridge installed in the printing device 106 can be ordered using this consumables management system.

[0042] [Authentication information registration process] Figure 8 shows the sequence for enabling mutual access between the voice device management server 103 and the consumables management server 102 and the printer management server 105. First, the user uses a terminal device 101, which is pre-associated with the voice device 104 in the voice control system, to perform a process to obtain the first authentication information required to access the printer management server 105 from the voice device management server 103. That is, based on the user's instructions, the terminal device 101 requests the voice device management server 103 to obtain authorization from the printer management server 105 (S801). This user instruction for the authorization request may be executed on a screen provided by a local application installed on the terminal device 101, or on a web page screen provided by the voice device management server 103 via a web browser.

[0043] When the voice device management server 103 receives an authorization request from the terminal device 101 to the printer management server 105, it sends an authorization request to the authorization endpoint of the printer management server 105 (S802). Upon receiving the authorization request, the printer management server 105 sends authentication screen data to the terminal device 101 specified in the authorization request for authentication (S803). When the terminal device 101 receives the authentication screen data from the printer management server 105, it displays the authentication screen on the display unit 204.

[0044] The user enters their own authentication information, which is registered with the printer management server 105, on the authentication screen displayed on the display unit 204 of the terminal device 101. After entering the authentication information, the terminal device 101 transmits the entered authentication information to the printer management server 105 (S804). This transmission of authentication information signifies that the authorization request has been approved. The authentication information transmitted may include, for example, the user ID and password that are pre-registered for logging into the printer management service of the printer management server 105.

[0045] The printer management server 105 verifies the authentication information transmitted from the terminal device 101. If the verification is successful, the printer management server 105 sends a first authorization code to the voice device management server 103 (S805). The voice device management server 103 sends the authorization code received in S805 to the token endpoint of the printer management server 105 (S806). Upon receiving the authorization code in S806, the printer management server 105 issues first authentication information to the voice device management server 103 (S807). The first authentication information is information necessary for the voice device management server 103 to access the printer management server 105, such as an access token or a refresh token. Upon receiving the first authentication information in S807, the voice device management server 103 stores the first authentication information in the database 513, associating it with the information of the terminal device 101 and the voice device 104 (S808).

[0046] Next, the process of obtaining the second authentication information necessary for the printing device management server 105 to access the consumables management server 102 is executed. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the voice device management server 103 and the consumables management server 102 can use common authentication information. Therefore, when the voice device management server 103 becomes able to access the printing device management server 105, instead of the consumables management server 102 sending the authorization code to the printing device management server 105, the voice device management server 103 sends the authorization code to the printing device management server 105. In other words, after the voice device management server 103 saves the first authentication information in S808, it sends the second authorization code to the printing device management server 105 (S809).

[0047] The printer management server 105 transmits the second authorization code received from the voice device management server 103 to the consumables management server 102 (S810). If the authorization process is successfully completed in the consumables management server 102, the consumables management server 102 issues and transmits the second authentication information to the printer management server 105 (S811). The second authentication information is the authentication information required to access the consumables management server 102. The printer management server 105 stores the second authentication information transmitted from the consumables management server 102 in S811 in the database 513, associating it with the first authentication information and the login user information of the printer management server 105 (S812). The login user information is, for example, the user ID and password transmitted in S804. That is, in the database 513 of the printer management server 105, the first authentication information, the second authentication information, the login user information, and the information of the printer 106 corresponding to the login user are associated.

[0048] As a result, the voice device management server 103 can access the printing device management server 105 using the first authentication information, and the printing device management server 105 can access the consumables management server 102 using the second authentication information.

[0049] [Registration process of the printing device to the audio device management server 103] Next, the process of registering a printing device with the voice device management server 103 will be explained using Figure 9. Figure 9(a) is a sequence diagram showing the process of newly registering a printing device that will cooperate with the voice device management server 103 with the voice device management server 103. The process in Figure 9(a) is performed after the first authentication information is saved in the database 513 in S808. The voice device management server 103 queries the printing device management server 105 for the printing devices registered therein using the first authentication information (S901). The printing device management server 105 identifies the logged-in user of the printing device management server 105 based on the first authentication information sent from the voice device management server 103. In other words, it identifies the logged-in user account. Then, the printing device management server 105 obtains information on the target printing device 106 that is registered in association with the identified logged-in user (S902).

[0050] Here, the target printing device 106 is a printing device that is registered with the printing device management server 105 in association with the logged-in user of the printing device management server 105, and is also a printing device that is registered as a printing device actually used by the printing device management server 105 service. Therefore, if multiple printing devices are registered with the printing device management server 105, it is appropriate to obtain information on the printing device that is registered as a target for use by the printing device management server 105 service. The information on the target printing device 106 obtained in S902 includes identification information of the printing device such as the serial ID, the model name of the printing device, and information on the destination of consumables used in the printing device.

[0051] In this embodiment, the target printing device registered in the printing device management server 105 is basically the printing device that will be linked with the voice device management server 103. Furthermore, in this embodiment, it is preferable that the printing device linked with the voice device management server 103 is the same as the printing device registered in this consumables management system. Therefore, it is preferable to determine whether the target printing device registered in the printing device management server 105 is a model supported by the consumables management service of this embodiment. In other words, in S902, it is preferable to determine whether the target printing device is a supported model of the consumables management service, and if it is determined to be a supported model, to obtain information about the target printing device. If it is determined that it is not a supported model, the information about the target printing device is not obtained.

[0052] As mentioned above, it is possible that a single logged-in user may register multiple printers to the printer management server 105. For example, a single user may register 10 or more printers to the printer management server 105. In such cases, the printer management server 105 may time out if it attempts to retrieve information on all of those printers 106. Therefore, in this embodiment, for example, the printer management server 105 sets one of the multiple printers 106 corresponding to the logged-in user as the target printer 106. It then retrieves information on that set target printer. However, if there is no timeout issue, multiple target printers 106 may be registered. The selection of the target printer 106 may be performed, for example, by setting the logged-in user on the printer management server 105. Alternatively, the printer management server 105 may retrieve information on multiple registered printers 106 as the target printer 106, within the limits of what can be retrieved, such as within the timeout period.

[0053] Here, if the target printer 106 is already registered with another service that automatically orders consumables, registering it with the consumables management system of this embodiment may result in duplicate ink cartridge orders, contrary to the user's intention. Therefore, in this embodiment, at S903, the printer management server 105 determines whether the target printer 106 is registered with another consumables ordering system based on the registration history for each printer 106. In this example, the other consumables ordering system is a service that obtains consumable remaining quantity information from the printer management server 105, similar to the consumables ordering system of this embodiment.

[0054] If it is determined that the printer 106 is not registered in any other consumables ordering system, the printer management server 105 decides to send the acquired information about the target printer 106 to the voice device management server 103 in the subsequent S904. On the other hand, if it is determined that the printer 106 is registered in any other consumables ordering system, the printer management server 105 decides not to send the acquired information about the target printer 106 to the voice device management server 103 in the subsequent S904. In this embodiment, by providing such a determination configuration, it is possible to prevent duplicate orders of consumables. In other words, it is possible to prevent duplicate orders from two or more services based on the remaining quantity information of the same consumables acquired from the same printer management server 105. In S903, the following determination is made: The printer management server 105 compares the acquired information about the target printer 106 with the consumables information 700 in Figure 7. The printer management server 105 then determines whether the model name and ink destination information of the acquired target printer 106 match the consumables information 700 in Figure 7. If a match is determined, the printer management server 105 decides to send the acquired information about the target printer 106 to the voice device management server 103 in the subsequent S904 step. On the other hand, if a match is determined, the printer management server 105 decides not to send the acquired information about the target printer 106 to the voice device management server 103 in the subsequent S904 step.

[0055] In this embodiment, the printing device management server 105 acquires information about the printing device 106 corresponding to the logged-in user of the printing device management server 105 in response to an inquiry from the voice device management server 103. Based on the acquired information, it determines whether the device is already registered in another consumables ordering system and whether it matches the consumables information 700 that is stored in advance. Based on the result of these determinations, it decides whether to send the information in response to the inquiry from the voice device management server 103.

[0056] The printer management server 105 sends to the voice device management server 103 the serial ID of the printer 106 that has been determined to be the target of the voice device management server 103's inquiry, and a list of corresponding order IDs (S904). On the other hand, if it is determined that the printer 106 is not the target of the voice device management server 103's inquiry, the printer management server 105 does not send the serial ID and the list of corresponding order IDs. If there is no serial ID and list of corresponding order IDs to send, the printer management server 105 sends information to the voice device management server 103 indicating that there is no target printer 106 to register.

[0057] The voice device management server 103 receives and stores the serial ID of the target printer 106 and the corresponding order ID list transmitted from the printer management server 105 (S905). In S905, the voice device management server 103 associates the information of the terminal device 101 and the voice device 104 with the first authentication information and the serial ID of the target printer 106 and the corresponding order ID list and stores them in the database 513. This may also be done as an update of the information stored in the database 513 in S808. Through the process shown in Figure 9(a), the information of the terminal device 101, the information of the voice device 104, the first authentication information, and the information of the target printer 106 are associated in the database 513 of the voice device management server 103.

[0058] Next, we will explain the process of changing the target printing device. Figure 9(b) is a sequence diagram showing the process of registering the changed target printing device 106 with the audio device management server 103.

[0059] In cases where a logged-in user has registered multiple printers 106 with the printer management server 105, the user may change the target printer 106 in the printer management server 105. In that case, the printer management server 105 obtains information about the changed target printer 106 (S911). Then, similar to S903, the printer management server 105 determines, based on the obtained information about the target printer 106, whether it is already registered in another consumables ordering system or whether it matches the consumables information 700 (S912). Based on the result of this determination, it decides whether to send the information to the voice device management server 103.

[0060] The printer management server 105 transmits the serial ID of the printer 106 that has been determined to be the target of transmission to the voice device management server 103, as in S904, and the corresponding order ID list (S913). The voice device management server 103 then receives the serial ID of the printer 106 and the corresponding order ID list transmitted from the printer management server 105, as in S905, and saves it to its database (S914). As a result, the information in the database 513 saved in S905 is updated.

[0061] Thus, in this embodiment, if the target printing device 106 is changed from one of several printing devices by a logged-in user of the printing device management server 103, that change can be reflected in the voice device management server 103.

[0062] [Ink level information transmission process] Next, the process by which the printing device management server 105 transmits ink level information obtained from the printing device 106 to the consumables management server 102 will be explained with reference to Figure 10.

[0063] Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating the process by which the printer management server 105 transmits ink level information obtained from the printer 106 to the consumables management server 102. The process in Figure 10 is implemented, for example, by the CPU 501 of the printer management server 105 executing a program. Furthermore, the process in Figure 10 may be started, for example, when the printing process is executed on the printer 106, when the printer management server 105 obtains the ink level from the printer 106, or at a predetermined time.

[0064] The CPU 501 determines whether or not it has received ink level information from the printer 106 (S1001). The process in S1001 is repeated until it is determined that ink level information has been received. The ink level information received from the printer 106 includes the serial ID of the printer 106. If it is determined that ink level information has been received, the CPU 501 refers to the database 513 based on the serial ID of the printer 106 included in the ink level information and retrieves the login user information saved in S812 (S1002).

[0065] Then, the CPU 501 determines whether or not there is a second authentication information corresponding to the login user information obtained in S1002 (S1003). If it is determined that a second authentication information exists, the CPU 501 uses the second authentication information to send the serial ID received from the printer 106 and the ink level information for each order ID corresponding to the serial ID to the consumables management server 102 (S1004). After that, the process in Figure 10 ends. On the other hand, if it is determined in S1003 that there is no second authentication information (S1003), since the printer 106 is not registered with the voice device management server 103, the process in Figure 10 ends without sending to the consumables management server 102.

[0066] Thus, in this embodiment, the printing device management server 105 can be controlled not to send ink level information of printing devices 106 that are not registered with the voice device management server 103 to the consumables management server 102.

[0067] [Ink level notification and determination process] Next, we will explain the process by which the consumables management server 102, which receives ink level information from the printing device management server 105, determines the ink level and sends the ink level information to the voice device management server 103, with reference to Figure 11.

[0068] Figure 11 is a flowchart showing the process by which the consumables management server 102 receives ink level information from the printing device management server 105, determines the ink level, and transmits the ink level information to the voice device management server 103. The process in Figure 11 is realized, for example, by the CPU 501 of the consumables management server 105 executing a program.

[0069] The CPU 501 determines whether or not it has received ink level information from the printer management server 105 (S1101). The process in S1101 is repeated until it is determined that ink level information has been received. If it is determined that ink level information has been received, the CPU 501 performs the following processes for each order ID included in the received ink level information (S1102). That is, the processes in S1102 to S1106 are repeated for each ink cartridge of multiple ink colors.

[0070] The CPU 501 obtains the ink level threshold corresponding to the order ID from the consumable information 600 in Figure 6 (S1103). Then, the CPU 501 determines whether the ink level is below the threshold (S1104). If it is determined that the ink level is below the threshold, the CPU 501 sends the serial ID, ink color, order ID, ink level information, and a notification flag indicating that the user should be notified via the voice device 104 to the voice device management server 103 (S1105).

[0071] On the other hand, if S1104 determines that the ink level is not below the threshold (i.e., above the threshold), the CPU 501 sends the serial ID, ink color, order ID, and ink level information to the voice device management server 103 (S1106). At this time, a notification flag indicating that the user should not be notified via the voice device 104 may also be sent.

[0072] The above process is repeated for the number of order IDs (number of ink cartridges) included in the ink level information received from the printer management server 105. Once processing has been completed for all order IDs, the process shown in Figure 11 is terminated.

[0073] [Voice notification processing and order processing] Next, the process flow from when the voice device management server 103 notifies the user of low ink levels to when it instructs the consumables management server 102 to place an order will be explained with reference to Figure 12.

[0074] Figure 12 shows the sequence from when the voice device management server 103 notifies the user of low ink levels via a voice device and instructs the consumables management server 102 to place an order.

[0075] First, the voice device management server 103 receives the serial ID, ink color, order ID, and ink level information from the consumables management server 102. The voice device management server 103 then stores this received information as ink level information for the corresponding ink color ink cartridge in the printer 106 with the corresponding serial ID (S1201). If ink level information is already stored, it is updated with the newly received ink level information in S1201. The ink level information stored in S1201 may be used as display data showing the ink level of the printer 106, which can be viewed by the user on the terminal device 101, and may be transmitted to the terminal device 101.

[0076] If the ink level information received from the consumables management server 102 includes a notification flag indicating that the user should be notified, the voice device management server 103 creates message data to notify the user via the voice device 104 (S1202). The voice device management server 103 then sends the created message data to the voice device 104 (S1203). For example, message data is created to notify a user with a message such as, "The ink level for ~ is low. Would you like to purchase some?" The "~" part is replaced with a notification word such as "cyan" based on the ink color information received from the consumables management server 102.

[0077] The voice device 104 holds message data sent from the voice device management server 103. The user then inquires about the notification content by speaking to the voice device 104, for example, "What is the notification?" (S1204). Upon receiving the inquiry, the voice device 104 plays the message by outputting it as voice from the speaker 301 based on the message data it holds (S1205).

[0078] Upon hearing the message, the user speaks a voice command in response to the message played back in S1205, for example, "Purchase cyan" (S1206). The voice device 104 sends voice data indicating the content of the user's speech, which was input via microphone 304, to the voice device management server 103 (S1207).

[0079] The voice device management server 103 converts the voice data representing the user's speech content into text using ASR (Automatic Speech Recognition) processing. Then, based on the text data, the voice device management server 103 determines an action using NLU (Natural Language Understanding) processing. For example, if the text data is an instruction to purchase cyan, the action determined is to process an order for cyan. The voice device management server 103 then sends an order instruction for, for example, a cyan ink tank, along with the order ID, to the consumables management server 102 (S1208).

[0080] Based on the order ID sent in S1208, the consumables management server 102 identifies the corresponding ink product code from the consumables information 600 in Figure 6 and executes the order processing (S1209). The order processing may be performed within the consumables management server 102, or an order may be instructed to be placed with an external sales site.

[0081] In this embodiment, a flow was described in which the user is contacted via the voice device 104 when the ink level falls below a threshold, and an ink cartridge of the corresponding ink color is ordered if the user instructs an order. Here, the user may set up automatic ordering in advance on the terminal device 101. If automatic ordering is enabled, steps S1202 to S1207 are skipped in the sequence shown in Figure 12. In that case, the voice device management server 103 may create message data such as "A cyan ink cartridge has been ordered" and send it to the voice device 104. With such a configuration, the user can be made aware that an order has been automatically placed.

[0082] As described above, in this embodiment, the printing device management server 105 registers the target printing device 106 with the voice device management server 103, thereby enabling the voice device management server 103 to manage the printing device 106. When the ink level is low, the voice device 104 contacts the user of the terminal device 101, and either by user instruction or automatically, the consumables management server 102 can order a new ink cartridge.

[0083] [Process to delete information about the printing device] Next, we will explain the process of deleting information about a printer. If multiple printers are managed by a single logged-in user on the printer management server 105, the logged-in user may delete any of the printers. In that case, the printer will no longer be managed by the printer management server 105. Below, we will explain the process of deleting the information about printer 106 from the voice device management server 103 when a logged-in user deletes printer 106 from the printer management server 105, referring to Figure 13.

[0084] Figure 13 is a flowchart showing the process of deleting information about the printer 106, which was deleted by the printer management server 105, from the voice device management server 103. The process in Figure 13 is implemented, for example, by the CPU 501 of the voice device management server 103 executing a program.

[0085] The CPU 501 retrieves information on all printers 106 registered in the database 513, such as their serial IDs (S1301). Subsequent processing is performed for each retrieved serial ID (S1302). That is, processing S1302 to S1306 is repeated for the number of retrieved serial IDs.

[0086] Based on the acquired serial ID of the printer 106, the CPU 501 uses the first authentication information to query the printer management server 105 for information on the printer 106 already registered (S1303). Upon receiving the query, the printer management server 105 checks whether the printer 106 with the corresponding serial ID exists as a registered printer on the printer management server 105, and sends the result to the voice device management server 103.

[0087] The voice device management server 103 determines, based on the results sent from the printer management server 105, whether the printer 106 with the corresponding serial ID exists as a registered printer in the printer management server 105 (S1304). If it is determined that it exists, the voice device management server 103 instructs the printer management server 105 to send the ink level information of the printer 106 with the corresponding serial ID to the consumables management server 102 (S1305). Upon receiving this instruction, the printer management server 105 queries the printer 106 for the ink level and executes the process shown in Figure 10. Alternatively, instead of querying the printer 106 for the ink level, the printer management server 105 may send the ink level information previously received in S1001 and stored in the printer management server 105 to the consumables management server 102. On the other hand, if it is determined in S1304 that the device does not exist, the audio device management server 103 deletes the information of the printer 106 with the corresponding serial ID from the database 513 (S1306).

[0088] The above process is repeated for the number of serial IDs obtained. Once processing has been performed for all serial IDs, the process shown in Figure 13 is terminated. The process shown in Figure 13 may be executed at a predetermined frequency, for example, at a predetermined time during the day. With such a configuration, the information of the printer 106 registered in the voice device management server 103 and the information of the printer 106 registered in the printer management server 105 can be synchronized at an appropriate time.

[0089] <Other Embodiments> In the process shown in Figure 10, when the printer management server 105 receives ink level information from the printer 106, it sends the ink level information for all ink colors corresponding to the serial ID to the consumables management server 102. However, the ink level information may be transmitted using other configurations.

[0090] For example, the consumable information 700 in Figure 7, which is held by the printing device management server 105, may include the consumable information threshold 604 in Figure 6. Then, after S1003 in Figure 10, it is determined whether the ink level corresponding to each order ID has fallen below the threshold 604. In other words, the printing management server 105 itself may perform the ink level threshold determination. Then, in S1004, only the ink level information that has been determined to be below the threshold 604 is sent to the consumable management server 102. With such a configuration, the frequency of transmission to the consumable management server 102 can be reduced, and communication traffic on the network can be suppressed.

[0091] Alternatively, after S1003 in Figure 10, the amount of ink remaining corresponding to each order ID may be compared with the amount of ink remaining received in the previous S1001 to determine the decrease. As a result of the determination, only the amount of ink remaining that has decreased by a predetermined amount is sent to the consumables management server 102 in S1004. With such a configuration, the frequency of transmissions to the consumables management server 102 can be reduced, and communication traffic on the network can be suppressed.

[0092] Furthermore, if the system is configured to reduce the frequency of transmissions to the consumables management server 102 as described above, the processing of the consumables management server 102 from S1102 onwards in Figure 11 may be configured to only perform processing S1105, while skipping processing S1103, S1104, and S1106. Additionally, the printer management server 105 may be allowed to select whether to transmit ink level information for all ink colors or to configure the system to reduce the transmission frequency as described above. In this case, the printer management server 105 will transmit information about the selected transmission mode to the consumables management server 102. The consumables management server 102 controls the execution of processing S1103, S1104, and S1106 in Figure 11 according to the selected transmission mode.

[0093] Furthermore, the ink level information that the printing device management server 105 transmits to the consumables management server 102 may be a statistical value (e.g., an average value) of the ink level information acquired multiple times from the printing device 106 in S1001 of Figure 10. Such a configuration can improve the accuracy of the judgment when comparing with a threshold.

[0094] As described above, in this embodiment as well, it is possible to realize a consumables management system that enables voice notifications based on consumables information of the printing device managed by the printing device management server 105, and ordering of consumables according to the remaining amount of consumables.

[0095] Furthermore, the present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that implements one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or storage 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., an ASIC) that implements one or more functions.

[0096] The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, claims are attached to disclose the scope of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0097] 101 Terminal device: 102 Consumables management server: 103 Voice device management server: 104 Voice device: 105 Printer management server: 106 Printer: 202, 302, 405, 501 CPU

Claims

1. A system including at least one server, capable of obtaining information about a printing device, and capable of communicating with an audio device, The aforementioned at least one server is An acquisition means for acquiring information regarding the remaining amount of consumables of the printing device at a specific time, independent of user voice inquiries, The system includes a control means that controls the transmission of predetermined information to the voice device for providing a specific voice notification corresponding to a low level of consumables for the printing device, based on information regarding the remaining amount of consumables for the printing device acquired by the acquisition means, when predetermined conditions corresponding to a low level of consumables for the printing device are met. The system is characterized in that the aforementioned specific notification is output as an audio from the audio device in response to a predetermined inquiry made by the user after the audio device has received the predetermined information.

2. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that the control means controls the transmission of predetermined information to the voice device when the predetermined conditions are met, even without a voice inquiry from the user.

3. The system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the specific timing is at least one of the following: the timing when the printing process is performed in the printing device; the timing when the at least one server obtains information indicating the remaining amount of consumables from the printing device; or a predetermined time.

4. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the control means does not perform control to transmit the predetermined information to the voice device if the remaining amount of consumables of the printing device does not meet the predetermined conditions.

5. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the control that causes the predetermined information to be transmitted to the voice device is a control that transmits specific information to the voice device management server.

6. The system according to claim 5, characterized in that the specific information is information that represents to be notified to the user via the voice device.

7. The system according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, based on the fact that the voice device management server has received the specific information, the voice device management server transmits the predetermined information indicating a message for the specific notification to the voice device.

8. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that, in response to the specific notification being output by the voice device, the voice device receives a voice instruction from the user to order consumables, and the consumables order process is performed.

9. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the predetermined conditions include the condition that the remaining amount of consumables falls below a threshold.

10. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the account information for the voice control service provided by the voice device management server and the information of the printing device are pre-associated.

11. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the consumables are at least one of ink and paper.

12. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the predetermined inquiry is an inquiry for the user to confirm the content of a notification received by the voice device.

13. A method performed in a system that includes at least one server, is capable of obtaining information about a printing device, and is capable of communicating with an audio device, In the aforementioned at least one server, A process for acquiring information regarding the remaining amount of consumables for the printing device at a specific time, not based on a voice inquiry from the user, The control step includes controlling the transmission of predetermined information to the voice device for providing a specific voice notification corresponding to a low level of consumables for the printing device, based on the information regarding the remaining amount of consumables for the printing device acquired in the acquisition step, when predetermined conditions corresponding to a low level of consumables for the printing device are met. The method is characterized in that the specific notification is output by the voice device in response to a predetermined inquiry made by the user after the voice device has received the predetermined information.

14. A program for causing at least one computer to function as a means of the at least one server included in the system according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

15. A storage medium storing a program for operating at least one computer, as a means of the at least one server included in the system according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

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