Image forming system, method for controlling the image forming system, and control program

Abstract

This invention provides an image forming system, a control method for the image forming system, and a control program that prevent or suppress errors during the picking and packaging of flyers, and reduce the effort involved in creating sets of flyers. [Solution] The image forming system 500 includes control units 315 and 490 that control the output order in which the image forming apparatus 400, which generates printed materials to be shipped together with the product, outputs the printed materials. The control units 315 and 490 control the output order of the printed materials based on the fact that the product and the printed materials are shipped together.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming system, a control method for the image forming system, and a control program.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, BtoC (Business to Consumer) transactions through EC (Electric Commerce) sites have been on the increase. Products purchased through an EC site are packed in cardboard boxes or the like, or enclosed in envelopes at a logistics center and delivered to a consumer (orderer). At this time, printed materials such as leaflets related to the product are often sent together with the product. In relation to this, Patent Document 1 below discloses that when the inventory in an inventory shelf for managing the inventory of printed materials is less than the number of ordered units, a shipping operation is performed using printed materials printed by a printer.

[0003] Normally, the leaflets to be sent together with the product are specified for each product in advance by the brand owner (EC operator) who is the seller of the product and operates the EC site. Also, when there are a plurality of leaflets to be sent together with the product, the stacking order of the leaflets is also usually specified in advance by the EC operator.

[0004] Currently, among the leaflets that are printed in advance at a printing company or the like and stored in large quantities in the warehouse of the logistics center, an operator picks up the necessary leaflets according to the instructions of the EC operator and manually creates a set of leaflets stacked in the specified order. The created set of leaflets is packed together with the product or enclosed in the product at the time of shipping the product.

[0005] Furthermore, the content of the flyers sent to customers along with their orders, as well as the order in which the flyers are stacked, may be changed by the e-commerce business as needed. For example, some e-commerce businesses do not have physical stores and only interact with customers through their e-commerce sites. For such e-commerce businesses, it is expected that by changing the flyers included with each purchase of the same product and providing updated information to the customers to whom the flyers are sent, they can build or further deepen relationships with their customers. This gives e-commerce businesses the potential to acquire customers who purchase the same product multiple times, so-called repeat customers. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2010-257054 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] However, if the flyers included with each product or each customer's purchase frequency are changed before shipping, the workload for workers at the shipping site increases. Also, picking flyers individually along with the products at the time of shipping increases the possibility of errors and takes more time. Therefore, currently, for example, workers create sets of flyers in advance during their free time, based on the purchased products or purchase frequency, and pick the created sets at the same time as picking the products. While creating the flyer sets in advance makes the picking work easier for workers, they need to be recreated if the set of flyers included changes. Furthermore, if the set of flyers included changes, the flyers that cannot be reused must be discarded.

[0008] This invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. The main objective of this invention is to provide an image forming system, a control method for the image forming system, and a control program that can prevent or suppress the occurrence of work errors during the picking and packaging of flyers, and reduce the effort required to create sets of flyers. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The above objectives of the present invention are achieved by the following means.

[0010] (1) The image forming apparatus that generates printed materials to be sent together with the product includes a control unit that controls the output order in which the printed materials are output, and the control unit is Regarding the multiple printed materials sent together with the aforementioned product, the multiple printed materials are output based on the information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials when they are sent together, which is set for each shipment of the aforementioned product. An image forming system that controls the output order.

[0011] (2) The information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials is set for each product that is sent. , the image forming system described in (1) above.

[0012] (3) The information regarding the stacking order of the aforementioned multiple printed materials is set for each shipping destination. , the image forming system described in (1) or (2) above.

[0013] (4) The control unit, Based on information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials, images are formed on multiple recording media. Control the order, as described in (1) above. Or (2) The image forming system described.

[0014] (5) The control unit, Based on information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials, the ejection order of the multiple recording media is controlled. , the image forming system described in (4) above.

[0015] (6) The control unit is the product Select multiple print data files for each shipment. Selected multiple print data , written Determines the image formation order on the recording medium, as described above ( 1 The image forming system described in ).

[0016] (7) The control unit controls the product Select multiple print files for each shipment, and the selected multiple print files The ejection order of multiple recording media on which images have been formed is determined based on the above ( 1 ) or the image forming system described in (6).

[0017] (8) The control unit is for a product Regarding the image formation jobs used to generate multiple printed materials that will be sent together, the execution order of these jobs will be controlled based on information about the product. and is the image forming system described in the above ([[]] 1 ).

[0018] (9) The information relating to the product includes information relating to the location where the product is stored, and the control unit controls the execution order of the multiple image forming jobs based on the information relating to the location of the product. and is the image forming system described in the above (8).

[0019] (10) The control unit Among the multiple image formation jobs stored in the memory unit, the image formation jobs for generating printed materials to be sent together with the same product are executed consecutively. controls the image forming system described in the above (8) or (9).

[0020] (11) The control unit Multiple image formation jobs stored in the memory unit at a predetermined timing are classified into multiple groups, and image formation jobs that generate printed materials to be sent together with the same product are classified into the same group. is for a product 8) or (9) and is the image forming system described in the above (

[0021] (12) The control unit ensures that image forming jobs of the same group are executed consecutively. controls the image forming system described in the above (11).

[0022] (13) The information about the product includes information about the product's delivery carrier, and the control unit controls the execution order of the multiple image forming job based on the information about the product's delivery carrier, and is the image forming system described in the above ( 8 ).

[0023] (14) The control unit The system controls the execution of multiple image formation jobs stored in the memory unit so that those jobs that generate printed materials to be sent together with products delivered by the same delivery company are executed consecutively. is for a product 8 and is the image forming system described in the above ( 13 ) or (

[0024] (15) The control unit Multiple image formation jobs stored in the memory unit at a predetermined time are classified into multiple groups, and image formation jobs that generate printed materials to be sent together with products delivered by the same delivery company are classified into the same group. is for a product or (13) and is the image forming system described in the above (8)

[0025] (16) The control unit controls the image forming jobs of the same group to be executed consecutively. and is the image forming system described in the above ( 15 ).

[0026] (17) A control method for an image forming system having a control unit that controls the output order in which an image forming apparatus that generates printed materials to be sent with a product outputs the printed materials, the control unit comprising the step of controlling the output order in which a plurality of printed materials to be sent with the product are output based on information regarding the stacking order of the plurality of printed materials set for each shipment of the product. and is the image forming system Control method . <00001​ The information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials is set for each product that is sent. ,the above (17) The image forming system described Control method .

[0028] (19) The information regarding the stacking order of the aforementioned multiple printed materials is set for each shipping destination. , the image forming system described in (18) above Control method .

[0029] (20) The output includes image formation on each of the plurality of recording media by the image forming apparatus, and the controlling step controls the order in which images are formed on the plurality of recording media based on information regarding the stacking order of the plurality of printed materials, as described in (18) or (19) above. A method for controlling an image forming system. A method for controlling an image forming system. (21) The control method for an image forming system according to (18) or (19), wherein the output includes ejection of a plurality of recording media on which images have been formed by the image forming apparatus, and the control step controls the ejection order of the plurality of recording media based on information regarding the stacking order of the plurality of printed materials.

[0030] ( 22 ) Control method for the image forming system described in (17) or (18) above. A control program for executing processes that include the above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0031] According to the present invention, errors by workers in packaging during shipping can be prevented or reduced, and the effort required to create flyer sets in advance can be reduced. Furthermore, since only the necessary printed materials are generated, the amount of printed material discarded when the set of flyers included in the shipment is changed can be reduced. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0032] The advantages and features provided by one or more embodiments of the present invention will be better understood from the following detailed description and accompanying drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to define any limitations of the present invention. [Figure 1] This is a schematic block diagram illustrating an electronic commerce system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] This diagram illustrates the settings for the included flyer for product a1. [Figure 3] This diagram illustrates the settings for the included flyer for product a2. [Figure 4] This is a schematic diagram illustrating printed materials stacked in the output order specified by the enclosed flyer settings for product a2. [Figure 5] This diagram illustrates the setting of bundled items. [Figure 6] This is a block diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of an image forming system. [Figure 7] Figure 6 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the configuration of the print information acquisition unit. [Figure 8] This is a diagram illustrating a shipping instruction list. [Figure 9] This diagram illustrates a print instruction list for face-down output. [Figure 10] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the stacking order of printed materials based on the print instruction list in Figure 9. [Figure 11] This diagram illustrates a print instruction list for face-up output. [Figure 12] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the stacking order of printed materials based on the print instruction list in Figure 11. [Figure 13] This flowchart illustrates the procedure for controlling the order in which paper is output. [Figure 14] Figure 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the configuration of the image forming apparatus. [Figure 15] Figure 14 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the configuration of the control unit. [Figure 16] This is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure for printing flyers in the EC system of the first embodiment. [Figure 17] Figure 16 is a subroutine flowchart illustrating the details of the process (step S205) for receiving and executing a print job. [Figure 18] Figure 6 is a schematic block diagram showing a modified configuration of the print information acquisition unit. [Figure 19] This is a schematic diagram illustrating a pattern for the flyers included with the product. [Figure 20] As a comparative example, this is a schematic diagram illustrating a shelf with numerous boxes for storing flyers. [Figure 21] This is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure for printing flyers in the EC system of the second embodiment. [Figure 22]This is a subroutine flowchart illustrating the details of the process (step S206) for printing the document onto the paper shown in Figure 21. [Figure 23] This is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure for printing flyers in the EC system of the third embodiment. [Figure 24] Figure 23 is a subroutine flowchart illustrating the details of the process (step S207) for ejecting printed materials into the output tray. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0033] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. In the description of the drawings, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions are omitted. Also, the dimensional ratios in the drawings are exaggerated for illustrative purposes and may differ from the actual ratios.

[0034] <First Embodiment> (Example of an e-commerce system) Figure 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an e-commerce (EC) system according to the first embodiment. In this EC system, a customer (user) uses a customer terminal 10 to order goods from EC businesses A, B, or C. The figure illustrates the case where an order is placed with A from the customer terminal 10. Although not shown in the diagram, if the customer also orders goods from B and C, orders are similarly placed with B and C as well. Orders for goods are placed through the shopping cart systems installed in A, B, and C, respectively. The figure illustrates the case where A's goods are a1-a3, B's goods are b1 and b2, and C's goods are c1. Note that the display of the stock quantity for each product is omitted. The EC-specialized logistics center 30 is a logistics center specializing in EC. The inventory of each company's goods in warehouse 200 is managed by the warehouse management system 100. Goods are transported from A, B, and C to the EC-specialized logistics center 30 according to the remaining quantity of goods and replenished in warehouse 200.

[0035] The e-commerce-focused logistics center 30 is equipped with a warehouse management system 100, a warehouse 200, a printing support system 300, and an image forming apparatus 400 as components of the e-commerce system. The warehouse management system 100 and the printing support system 300 may be implemented by on-premise servers (computers) or by cloud servers.

[0036] When a customer places an order for a product, a picking list is printed from the image forming machine 400 at the e-commerce-focused logistics center 30 according to the order. The picking list, also called a shipping instruction sheet, is a list containing information necessary for the worker to perform the picking work (e.g., the storage location of the product, product code, quantity, etc.). The worker responsible for shipping the product checks the picking list, picks the product stored in the product storage area of ​​warehouse 200, obtains a printed flyer image of the product, inspects the product and the flyer, and then packs them into cardboard boxes. Note that product picking can also be performed by machine (e.g., material handling). Furthermore, the product flyer image is not limited to the flyer of the ordered product, but may include flyer images of related products and services.

[0037] Printed images of product flyers are discharged into the output tray of the image forming apparatus 400 in accordance with the timing of the worker's packaging of the products and printed materials. In this embodiment, the order in which the image forming apparatus 400 discharges the printed materials corresponds, for example, to the order in which multiple ordered products are packaged together with the printed materials.

[0038] E-commerce businesses A through C each have servers 21 through 23 installed as components of their e-commerce systems. The shopping cart system is implemented by servers 21 through 23.

[0039] The customer terminal 10, the warehouse management system 100 of the e-commerce specialized logistics center 30, the warehouse 200, the printing support system 300, the image forming apparatus 400, and the servers 21 to 23 at companies A to C constitute the e-commerce system in this embodiment.

[0040] (Customer terminal 10) The customer terminal 10 is, for example, a computer such as a personal computer, smartphone, or tablet that a customer uses to order products. The customer terminal 10 is equipped with input / output devices such as a touchscreen, keyboard, and mouse (not shown). For example, on a shopping site provided on the internet by an e-commerce business operator, the customer uses the input / output devices of the customer terminal 10 to perform operations such as searching for products, selecting products they wish to purchase, and deciding on a payment method.

[0041] (Servers 21-23) Servers 21-23 are computers installed in companies A-C, respectively, and each runs the shopping cart system, outputting a cart list in response to customer orders. The cart list includes information about the products ordered by the customer, customer name, address, and collection requests to the warehouse management system 100. The shopping cart system is a system that provides a mechanism for customers to order and pay for products over the internet. In the mechanism provided by the shopping cart system, customers search for products on e-commerce sites or mail-order sites, add the products they wish to purchase to their shopping cart, and proceed with the purchase procedure to order the products. Payment for the purchased products is made, for example, by credit card. In addition to these shopping cart and payment functions, the shopping cart system may also have order management functions, customer management functions, product management functions, sales promotion management functions, etc. Customers shop using a virtual shopping cart (basket) displayed on the screen of the customer terminal 10. For example, customers can select products by adding the products they wish to purchase to their shopping cart, just as they would when shopping in a physical store.

[0042] Servers 21-23 also generate product information and customer information from the information entered by the customer when ordering products. Hereinafter, product information will also be referred to as product information, and customer information as customer information. Product information includes product-specific information such as product name, serial number, and manufacturing date, as well as information about the product's location in warehouse 200 and the product's delivery company. Customer information includes information such as the customer's name, address, contact information, and the number of times each product has been purchased.

[0043] Furthermore, servers 21-23 transmit product flyer images and configuration information, pre-created by the e-commerce business operator, to the print support system 300. The configuration information includes settings for bundled flyers and bundled conditions. An overview of the bundled flyer settings and bundled conditions is described below.

[0044] [Included flyer settings] Figure 2 illustrates the enclosed flyer settings for product a1, and Figure 3 illustrates the enclosed flyer settings for product a2. The enclosed flyer settings include a combination of the original document for the flyer to be enclosed with the product and the printing specifications (print settings) used when printing that document. Print settings include, for example, the number of pages, the number of copies, the type of paper (recording medium), size, basis weight, single-sided / double-sided printing, post-processing (stapling, binding), and marking (barcode, QR code). Figure 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating printed materials stacked in the output order to which the enclosed flyer settings for product a2 are applied. The output order includes the image formation order and the output order, and the output order is the order in which the printed materials are discharged into the output tray of the image forming apparatus 400. As shown in Figures 2 and 3, e-commerce businesses set enclosed flyers for each product. In the enclosed flyer settings, the original document to be used for printing and the print settings used when printing that document are set together. Furthermore, when multiple flyers are enclosed together, the enclosed flyer settings are made considering the order in which customers will view them when they open the package. In the example shown in Figure 3, the flyers are stacked in the order of No. 4 to No. 1, so the order in which customers see the flyers when they open the package is, as shown in Figure 4, from top to bottom: message, cautionary notice, product a2 information, and regular notice. That is, the flyers are ejected from the output tray of the image forming apparatus 400 in the order of regular notice, product a2 information, cautionary notice, and message. The enclosed flyer settings are stored in the setting information storage unit 311, which will be described later, before the customer orders the product. In addition, the originals for each product are stored in the original database 320, which will be described later. The original product files can be, for example, text, PDF (Portable Document Format), Microsoft Word®, Microsoft Excel®, Microsoft PowerPoint®, or other document files.

[0045] [Settings for included items] Figure 5 illustrates the setting of bundled flyers. The bundled flyer setting is a setting that selects a bundled flyer setting that matches predetermined conditions from among multiple bundled flyer settings for each product. The predetermined conditions include, for example, the number of purchases, whether the customer is a member or not, and whether or not it is a recurring purchase. For example, in the example shown in Figure 5, for product a1, if it is the second recurring purchase, the bundled flyer setting No. 4, "product a1_2nd recurring purchase", is selected, and if it is the third recurring purchase, the bundled flyer setting No. 11, "product a1", is selected. The bundled flyer setting is also stored in the setting information storage unit 311 in advance before the customer places an order for the product.

[0046] (EC-focused logistics center 30) <Warehouse Management System 100> Let's refer to Figure 1 again for further explanation. The warehouse management system 100 is a WMS (Warehouse Management System) and has functions such as managing the inflow and outflow of goods to and from warehouse 200 and inventory management. When the warehouse management system 100 receives a shipping instruction, it generates a management number based on the cart list and information obtained from warehouse 200. The management number is a number that the warehouse management system 100 and the cart system manage in cooperation. Shipping instructions can be generated, for example, based on shipping requests that each cart system sends to the warehouse management system 100 when it receives an order from a customer. Shipping requests can be included, for example, in the cart list. The warehouse management system 100 generates a shipping list every few hours to a day that contains the management number and instructions (orders) regarding the goods to be retrieved from warehouse 200, the quantity of goods, etc. The shipping list includes information about the timing of goods shipment, such as the shipping date and time.

[0047] In the example shown in Figure 1, warehouse 200 contains goods a1-a3 transported from company A, goods b1 and b2 transported from company B, and goods c1 transported from company C. Warehouse 200 is equipped with sensors to detect the remaining quantity of goods, and information regarding the remaining quantity of goods is transmitted sequentially to the warehouse management system 100. For example, if the remaining quantity of goods stored in warehouse 200 becomes zero or very low, a signal requesting replenishment of goods may be sent from warehouse 200 to the warehouse management system 100.

[0048] <Image Forming System 500> Figure 6 is a block diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of the image forming system 500. The image forming system 500 includes a printing support system 300 and an image forming apparatus 400. The printing support system 300 is a system for supporting printing by the image forming apparatus 400. The printing support system 300, together with the image forming apparatus 400, constitutes the image forming system 500.

[0049] The print support system 300 generates print jobs (image formation jobs) based on the shipping instruction list, enclosed flyer settings, enclosed condition settings, cart list, and product flyer images. The print support system 300 includes a print information acquisition unit 310, a manuscript database 320, and a print job generation unit 330. After outlining these functions, the configuration of the print information acquisition unit 310 will be described in detail.

[0050] The print information acquisition unit 310 generates a print instruction list based on the shipping instruction list, enclosed flyer settings, enclosed condition settings, and cart list. The print instruction list is a list of combinations of document names (document file names) and print specifications (print settings), arranged in the order in which the documents are printed. The print information acquisition unit 310 also extracts product information and customer information from the cart list.

[0051] The document database 320 retrieves product flyer images from servers 21, 22, and 23, stores the product flyer images as documents linked to document names in the database. The document database 320 outputs document data corresponding to the document names entered from the print job generation unit 330. The print job generation unit 330 generates print jobs based on the print instruction list entered from the print information acquisition unit 310 and the document data entered from the document database 320.

[0052] [Print information acquisition unit 310] Figure 7 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the configuration of the print information acquisition unit 310 shown in Figure 6. The print information acquisition unit 310 includes a setting information storage unit 311, a cart list database 312, a print instruction list generation unit 313, and a product customer extraction unit 314.

[0053] [Shipping Instructions List] Figure 8 is an example of a shipping instruction list. The shipping instruction list is a list that includes items such as shipping request number, shipper name, carrier name, delivery date, desired delivery time, recipient name, and delivery address for packages scheduled for shipment from the orders listed on the shipping list. The shipping request number corresponds to a management number managed in conjunction with the warehouse management system 100 and the cart system. The shipping instruction list is created based on the shipping list, taking into consideration items such as shipping date and time, product type, quantity, carrier, and delivery destination, from the perspective of enabling efficient shipping operations such as product picking and loading onto trucks.

[0054] For example, in the shipping instruction list, in order to streamline shipping operations, the worker adds work batches to group together the shipping operations for multiple packages scheduled for shipment. The worker creates a shipping instruction list for each work batch and inputs it into the printing support system 300 (see Figure 1). For example, in the example in Figure 8, the work batch consists of 20240930-TEST-01~04, scheduled for shipment on September 30, 2024. As will be described later, the shipping instruction list can also be configured to be automatically created based on the shipping list.

[0055] For example, filtering the same type of product from the shipping list that is scheduled to be shipped today, and then sorting them by quantity, makes the picking process easier because the same product is picked up consecutively, and the same size cardboard boxes are packed together. Furthermore, grouping work batches by delivery company makes sorting for loading onto trucks easier. Even with the same delivery company, if different trucks are used for different destinations, grouping work batches by destination makes sorting for loading onto trucks easier. In the example shown in the diagram, shipments are scheduled for September 30, 2024, and work batches have been created for each delivery company. Specifically, in work batches 20240930-TEST-01~04, the delivery company is the same, "XX Transportation."

[0056] The configuration information storage unit 311 stores the packaged flyer settings and packaged condition settings entered from the respective servers 21 to 23 of companies A to C.

[0057] The cart list database 312 stores cart lists entered from the respective cart systems of companies A through C. The cart list database 312 outputs the cart list information stored in the database to the print instruction list generation unit 313 upon request. While the cart list information and the orders listed on the shipping list are not necessarily synchronized for ordered items, the cart list information can be read from the database by the print instruction list generation unit 313 at the necessary time. Since the cart system sends a shipping request to the warehouse management system 100 after receiving an order from a customer, all information corresponding to the orders listed on the shipping list is included in the cart list information.

[0058] [Print Instructions List] Figure 9 is an example of a print instruction list for face-down output, and Figure 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating the stacking order of printed materials based on the print instruction list in Figure 9. Furthermore, Figure 11 is an example of a print instruction list for face-up output, and Figure 12 is a schematic diagram illustrating the stacking order of printed materials based on the print instruction list in Figure 11.

[0059] The print instruction list generation unit 313 generates a print instruction list based on the shipping instruction list, the enclosed flyer settings, the enclosed conditions settings, and the cart list information. The print instruction list generation unit 313 uses the shipping request number from the shipping instruction list to retrieve the necessary information from the cart list information stored in the cart list database 312 and determines the enclosed conditions based on the enclosed conditions settings. This is because the shipping instruction list does not contain information about the products ordered by the customer, so it is not possible to determine the enclosed conditions based on the shipping instruction list alone.

[0060] The print instruction list generation unit 313 determines the items to be shipped for each order in the shipping instruction list based on the cart list information. As shown in Figure 9, the print instruction list generation unit 313 can, for example, select the enclosed flyer settings based on the enclosed conditions settings for the determined items and generate a print instruction list for face-down output. In the figure, for example, Nos. 1 to 3 correspond to the enclosed flyer settings when a member purchases item a1 for the second time, and Nos. 4 to 7 correspond to the enclosed flyer settings when a non-member purchases items a1 and a2 for the first time. Also, Nos. 8 to 10 correspond to the enclosed flyer settings when a non-member purchases item a2 for the first time, and Nos. 11 to 12 correspond to the enclosed flyer settings when a member purchases item a1 for the third time.

[0061] For example, as shown in Figure 10, by printing the documents in order from top to bottom in the print instruction list shown in Figure 9, face-down output can be achieved where the "Message" document is at the bottom and the "Product A1 Information" document is at the top.

[0062] Furthermore, the print instruction list generation unit 313 can determine the items to be shipped based on the cart list information and, for example, as shown in Figure 11, select the bundled flyer settings based on the bundled condition settings to generate a print instruction list for face-up output.

[0063] For example, as shown in Figure 12, by printing the documents in order from top to bottom in the print instruction list shown in Figure 11, a face-up output can be achieved in which the "Message" document is at the top and the "Product A1 Information" document is at the bottom.

[0064] Thus, when goods and printed materials are shipped together, the print instruction list generation unit 313 selects the enclosed flyer setting based on the enclosed conditions setting and generates a print instruction list in the order of the originals as defined by the selected enclosed flyer setting. In other words, the print instruction list generation unit 313 functions as a control unit that controls the output order of printed materials by generating a print instruction list that includes the order of the originals and controlling the order in which the originals are printed.

[0065] Figure 13 is a flowchart illustrating the procedure for controlling the output order of paper. The process shown in Figure 13 is achieved by the server of the print support system 300 executing a control program.

[0066] In this embodiment, the control unit controls the output order of the printed materials based on the fact that the product and the printed materials are shipped together. When the product and the printed materials are shipped together, a print job is generated based on the enclosed flyer setting selected according to the enclosed conditions setting. For example, the control unit recognizes (determines) that the product and the printed materials are shipped together when a print job is generated based on the enclosed flyer setting selected according to the enclosed conditions setting. Alternatively, the control unit may recognize (determine) that the product and the printed materials are shipped together based on the acceptance of a specific operation, such as launching a specific program or selecting an enclosed flyer mode.

[0067] As shown in Figure 13, when goods and printed materials are shipped together (step S101), the control unit controls the output order of the printed materials based on the state in which the printed materials are shipped together (step S102). The printed materials may consist of multiple sheets of paper, each with a different image. The state in which the printed materials are shipped together is, for example, the stacking order of the printed materials as shown in Figures 4, 10, and 12, and can be identified by product information or customer information. The stacking order of the printed materials corresponds to an order predetermined by the brand owner. Conventionally, workers created sets of flyers to be included in cardboard boxes, etc., according to a pattern table (see, for example, Figure 19) that showed the configuration of the flyers in accordance with the instructions of the brand owner. In this embodiment, instead of workers creating sets of flyers, the control unit controls the order in which the originals are printed or the order in which they are discharged to the output tray so that the stacking order of the flyer set is reproduced.

[0068] On the other hand, if the goods and printed materials are not shipped together, the control unit outputs them in the normal order (step S103). For example, the control unit outputs documents that are not shipped together with the goods, such as invoices and shipping lists, in the normal order.

[0069] As shown again in Figure 7, the product customer extraction unit 314 extracts product information and customer information from the cart list information and outputs them to the image forming apparatus 400.

[0070] <Image forming apparatus 400> Figure 14 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the configuration of the image forming apparatus 400 shown in Figure 1, and Figure 15 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the configuration of the control unit 490 shown in Figure 14. The image forming apparatus 400 receives a print job from the print support system 300 and forms (prints) an image on paper (recording medium). The print job includes, for example, print data and print settings in PDL (Page Description Language) format. The print data includes, for example, data consisting of the 1st to nth pages. In this embodiment, the image forming apparatus 400 generates printed materials that are shipped together with the product. Here, in this specification, shipping the product and printed materials together means shipping the printed materials together with the product, either in a package or enclosed.

[0071] The image forming apparatus 400 includes an image reading unit 410, an image processing unit 420, an image forming unit 430, a paper feeding unit 440, a paper transport unit 450, a fixing unit 460, a communication unit 470, an operation display unit 480, and a control unit 490. These components are connected to each other via an internal bus so that they can communicate with one another.

[0072] [Image reading unit 410] The image reading unit 410 comprises an optical system consisting of a mirror, a lens, and the like, and a reading sensor. The image reading unit 410 reads a document placed on the reading surface or a document transported by an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) and outputs an image signal.

[0073] [Image processing unit 420] The image processing unit 420 generates print image data based on the print settings and print data included in the print job received from the print support system 300 via the communication unit 470. More specifically, the image processing unit 420 analyzes the print job received from the print support system 300, performs processing such as color conversion, screening, and rasterization on each page of the print data, and generates print image data in bitmap format. The image processing unit 420 has a buffer (memory) for temporarily storing multiple print jobs received from the print support system 300. The image processing unit 420 also has an image memory for temporarily storing the generated print image data.

[0074] Furthermore, the image processing unit 420 performs various image processing operations on the image signal received from the image reading unit 410 to generate print image data. The generated print image data is transmitted to the image forming unit 430.

[0075] [Image forming unit 430] The image forming unit 430 forms an image on paper based on printed image data using a well-known image formation process, such as an electrophotographic method, which includes the steps of charging, exposure, development, and transfer. The image forming unit 430 is composed of a photosensitive drum as an image carrier and a charging unit, an optical writing unit, a developing device, and a transfer unit arranged around it.

[0076] The photoreceptor drum rotates at a predetermined speed by a drum motor (not shown). The charging unit includes corona discharge electrodes positioned around the photoreceptor drum, and charges the surface of the photoreceptor drum with the ions generated. The optical writing unit incorporates a scanning optical device and, based on the input print image data, exposes the charged photoreceptor drum, thereby lowering the potential of the exposed area and forming a charge pattern (electrostatic latent image) corresponding to the print image data. The developing unit develops the formed electrostatic latent image, visualizes it with toner, and forms a toner image. The transfer unit transfers the toner image on the photoreceptor drum to the paper.

[0077] [Paper feed section 440] The paper feeding unit 440 supplies paper as recording material to the image forming unit 430. The paper feeding unit 440 has an upper tray and a lower tray, and each tray can store paper of different sizes, such as A4 size and A3 size.

[0078] [Paper transport section 450] The paper transport unit 450 transports paper within the image forming apparatus 400. The paper transport unit 450 has a transport path and a plurality of transport roller pairs for transporting paper. The paper transport unit 450 also includes a paper inversion unit that inverts the front and back sides of the paper that has been fixed by the fixing unit 460 and discharges it. Furthermore, the paper transport unit 450 also includes a circulation transport unit that supplies the fixed paper back to the image forming unit 430. The control unit 490 controls the paper transport unit 450 so that the paper, which has been inverted by the paper inversion unit, is supplied back to the image forming unit 430 by the circulation transport unit, thereby forming an image on both sides of the paper.

[0079] The paper supplied from the paper feed unit 440 is transported along the transport path toward the image forming unit 430. The timing of the paper's transport to the transfer unit is controlled by the registration roller pair, which synchronizes with the toner image formed on the photoreceptor drum. The paper onto which the toner image has been transferred by the transfer unit is transported to the fuser unit 460. The paper onto which the image has been fixed in the fuser unit 460 is then transported to the circulation transport unit or discharged to the output tray.

[0080] Furthermore, the control unit 490 can control (change) the order in which paper is discharged to the output tray by controlling the paper transport unit 450 so that subsequent sheets of paper are discharged to the output tray first while the preceding sheets of paper are being circulated in the paper transport unit.

[0081] Furthermore, the paper transport unit 450 may have a temporary storage section for paper in the transport path. The temporary storage section may be installed, for example, in the transport path from the fuser unit 460 to the output tray. The control unit 490 controls the paper transport unit 450 so that while the preceding paper is being fixed and then moved to the temporary storage section, the subsequent paper is fixed by the fuser unit 460 and then discharged to the output tray first. This allows the paper transport unit 450 to control (change) the order in which paper is discharged to the output tray.

[0082] [Fixing section 460] The fuser unit 460 fixes the toner image formed on the paper. The fuser unit 460 comprises a hollow heating roller with a heater inside and a pressure roller facing the heating roller. The heating roller and the pressure roller are controlled to a predetermined temperature (e.g., 160°C or higher) by the heater, applying heat and pressure to the paper to fix the toner image.

[0083] [Communications Section 470] The communication unit 470 connects to, for example, a client terminal via a communication line and sends and receives data such as jobs.

[0084] [Operation display section 480] The operation display unit 480 has an input unit and an output unit. The input unit includes, for example, a keyboard and a touch screen, and is used for an operator to perform various instructions (inputs) such as character input, various settings, and start instructions. The output unit includes a display and is used to present to the operator the device configuration, the execution status of jobs, the conditions for post-processing, the output image, the occurrence status of abnormalities (jams) in paper conveyance, and the like.

[0085] [Control unit 490] The control unit 490 controls the image reading unit 410, the image processing unit 420, the image forming unit 430, the paper feeding unit 440, the paper conveyance unit 450, the fixing unit 460, the communication unit 470, and the operation display unit 480. As shown in FIG. 15, the control unit 490 includes a CPU 491, an auxiliary storage device 492, a RAM 493, and a ROM 494.

[0086] The CPU 491 controls each part of the image forming apparatus 400 by executing a control program for the image forming apparatus. The control program is stored in the auxiliary storage device 492 and is loaded into the RAM 493 when executed by the CPU 491. The auxiliary storage device 492 includes, for example, a large-capacity storage device such as a hard disk drive or a flash memory. The RAM 493 stores calculation results and the like associated with the execution of the CPU 491. The ROM 494 stores various parameters, various programs, and the like. The CPU 491 executes the above control program to realize various functions.

[0087] In the present embodiment, the control unit 490 controls the output order of printing materials by executing a control program. The output order of printing materials can be controlled by at least any one of the execution of a print job, the image formation (printing) on paper based on the print image data generated by the execution of the print job, or the discharge of the printed material, that is, the paper on which the image has been formed. Details of the control of the output order of printing materials will be described later.

[0088] <Leaflet printing method in the EC system> Figure 16 is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure for printing flyers in the EC system of the first embodiment. The following example illustrates the case where a customer orders product a1 from company A. The same applies when the customer orders other products from company A, or products from company B or C. The processing in step S201 in the figure is implemented by the server 21 of company A. The processing in steps S202 to S204 in the figure is implemented by the server of the EC-specialized logistics center 30. The processing in steps S205 to S207 in the figure is implemented by the CPU 491 executing a control program. Figure 17 is a subroutine flowchart illustrating the details of the process (step S205) of receiving and executing the print job in Figure 16.

[0089] As shown in Figure 16, the customer operates the customer terminal 10 to order product a1 on Company A's e-commerce site. The customer terminal 10 sends order information to Company A's shopping cart system. The order information may include, for example, the order date and time for product a1, product name, quantity, customer's name, address, contact information, delivery destination name, and delivery destination address.

[0090] Company A's shopping cart system accepts an order (step S201). Based on the received order information and production information for product a1 (e.g., manufacturing number, manufacturing date, production line, etc.), Company A's shopping cart system generates product information for product a1 and customer information. Company A's shopping cart system outputs a cart list containing the product information and customer information to the warehouse management system 100 and the printing support system 300.

[0091] When the warehouse management system 100 receives a shipping instruction, it generates a management number and creates a shipping list for the goods based on the cart list and information about the inventory items obtained from the warehouse 200. The worker then creates a shipping instruction list based on the shipping list and the management number.

[0092] Next, the print information acquisition unit 310 acquires the cart list (step S202). The acquired cart list is stored in the cart list database 312.

[0093] Next, the print instruction list generation unit 313 generates a print instruction list based on the shipping instruction list, enclosed flyer settings, enclosed condition settings, and cart list information (step S203). The shipping instruction list created by the operator is input to the print information acquisition unit 310. The enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings are transmitted from the server 21 to the print information acquisition unit 310 and are pre-stored in the setting information storage unit 311. The cart list information is obtained from the cart list database 312.

[0094] Next, the print job generation unit 330 generates a print job based on the print instruction list and the original data (step S204). More specifically, the print job generation unit 330 generates a print job using a print instruction list that includes the enclosed flyer settings selected by the enclosed conditions setting, and original data corresponding to the enclosed flyer settings. When the product and printed materials are shipped together, the print job generation unit 330 generates the print job in the order of the originals as defined by the enclosed flyer settings. The generated print job is sent to the image forming apparatus 400.

[0095] Next, the image processing unit 420 receives the print job through the communication unit 470 and stores the print job in a buffer. The image processing unit 420 executes the print job stored in the buffer (step S205). The control unit 490 can control the order in which the image processing unit 420 executes the print jobs to generate the printed materials to be shipped together with the product. This allows the control unit 490 to control the output order of the printed materials. Controlling the output order of the printed materials has the following advantages.

[0096] For example, identical items are likely to be stored in the same item storage area in warehouse 200 or in a nearby item storage area. Different items may also be stored in nearby item storage areas. When a worker picks multiple items in a single picking operation, it is more efficient to pick items from the same item storage area or a nearby item storage area rather than having to travel between distant item storage areas.

[0097] In light of these circumstances, the control unit 490 can control the execution order of print jobs based on the information in the shipping instruction list so that the order in which printed materials are discharged corresponds to the order in which workers can efficiently ship goods. For example, the control unit 490 can control the execution order of print jobs based on the information in the shipping instruction list so that the order in which printed materials are discharged corresponds to the order in which workers can efficiently pick goods. Furthermore, the control unit 490 can control the execution order of print jobs based on the information in the shipping instruction list so that the order in which printed materials are discharged corresponds to the order in which workers can efficiently load goods.

[0098] As shown in Figure 17, the control unit 490 determines whether it is necessary to change the execution order of the print jobs based on the information in the shipping instruction list (step S301), and if it is necessary to change the execution order of the print jobs (step S301: YES), it controls the execution order of the print jobs by the image processing unit 420. For example, the control unit 490 may control the execution order of the print jobs based on product information, customer information, or information related to shipping operations.

[0099] Product information may include at least one of the following: information about the type of product, information about the product storage location, and information about the product delivery company. Information about the type of product may include, for example, the name, type, and classification of the product, such as products a1-a3, b1, b2, c1. Information about the product storage location may include, for example, a unique code or name indicating the location, area, etc. For example, each product storage location may be assigned a code with a similar number or name to product storage locations that are close to each other. Information about the product delivery company may include a unique code or name indicating the delivery company.

[0100] The control unit 490 can, for example, control the execution of print jobs with the same or similar product information from among multiple print jobs stored in the buffer of the image processing unit 420 to run consecutively.

[0101] On the other hand, if the control unit 490 does not need to change the execution order of the print jobs (step S301: NO), it executes the print jobs in the normal order (step S303). That is, the control unit 490 controls the image processing unit 420 to execute the print jobs in the order stored in the buffer of the image processing unit 420.

[0102] Furthermore, the control unit 490 can classify multiple print jobs stored in the buffer of the image processing unit 420 into multiple groups based on category, and register the classified groups of print jobs. For example, the control unit 490 can classify print jobs using categories such as product type or delivery company. More specifically, the control unit 490 can classify print jobs that produce printed materials to be shipped together with products of the same type or products delivered by the same delivery company into the same group.

[0103] Furthermore, groups classified by one category can be further classified by another category to create additional groups. In other words, subgroups can be created from existing groups. For example, groups classified by delivery companies can be further classified by product type to create additional subgroups. By dividing multiple print jobs into groups (or subgroups) in this way, shipping operations related to the same category within each group (or subgroup) can be made more efficient. For example, within a group of unclassified print jobs classified by delivery company, at least the delivery companies are common, so the loading operations are expected to be more efficient. Furthermore, within a subgroup classified by product type in addition to delivery company, at least the delivery companies and product types are common, so the loading and picking operations are expected to be more efficient. Also, if the same category exists within a group (or subgroup), that category can be easily searched. The control unit 490 can control the image processing unit 420 so that print jobs in the same group (or subgroup) are executed consecutively.

[0104] Next, the image forming unit 430 prints the original document onto the paper (step S206). More specifically, the control unit 490 controls the image forming unit 430 to form an image on the paper based on the print image data generated by the image processing unit 420. In this embodiment, the control unit 490 forms the print image on the paper in the usual order. That is, the control unit 490 forms the print image on the paper in the order stored in the image memory of the image processing unit 420.

[0105] Next, the paper transport unit 450 discharges the printed material into the output tray (step S207). More specifically, the control unit 490 controls the paper transport unit 450 to discharge the printed material with the image into the output tray. In this embodiment, the control unit 490 normally discharges the printed material into the output tray. That is, the control unit 490 discharges the printed material into the output tray in the order in which it was printed.

[0106] Thus, in this embodiment, when goods and printed materials are shipped together, the control unit 490 can control the output order in which the image forming apparatus 400 outputs printed materials based on product information, customer information, or information related to the shipping process.

[0107] Although it was explained that the image formation order and the print output order will be performed as usual, even when changing the job execution order, the image formation order and the print output order may also be configured to be controlled based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings.

[0108] (modified version) The example described above illustrates a case where an operator filters the shipping list to show orders scheduled for shipment on a specific day (for example, today), creates a work batch for multiple scheduled shipments, and generates a shipping instruction list for each work batch. However, this embodiment is not limited to such cases; the printing support system 300 can also automatically create work batches from the shipping list of orders scheduled for shipment on a specific day and generate a shipping instruction list for each work batch.

[0109] Figure 18 is a schematic block diagram showing a modified configuration of the print information acquisition unit 310 shown in Figure 6. This modified print information acquisition unit 310 includes a setting information storage unit 311, a cart list database 312, a print instruction list generation unit 313, a shipping list import unit 315, a dispatch instruction list generation unit 316, and a dispatch information database 317. The shipping list import unit 315 imports the shipping list along with the management number from the warehouse management system 100, and transmits the imported shipping list and management number to the dispatch instruction list generation unit 316 and the dispatch information database 317.

[0110] [Shipping Instructions List] The shipping instruction list generation unit 316 generates a shipping instruction list based on the most recent shipping list and management number imported by the shipping list import unit 315 and the shipping list and management number already stored in the shipping information database 317. The shipping instruction list generation unit 316 may create a shipping instruction list, for example, according to the following procedure.

[0111] 1. The most recent shipping list imported by the shipping list import unit 315 and the shipping list in the shipping information database 317 are used to generate a list of products scheduled to be shipped today. This list is then divided into multiple lists based on the shipping carrier for each product.

[0112] 2. From the above list, which has been divided by delivery company, extract and group only the cases where only the same product was ordered.

[0113] 3. Sort each group in the above grouped list by the number of items.

[0114] 4. Set the standard number of items per work batch, the maximum (MAX) number of items per work batch, and the minimum (MIN) number of items per work batch.

[0115] 5. Divide the number of items in one work batch into predetermined batches.

[0116] For example, if the baseline number of cases is 100, the maximum number of cases is 150, and the minimum number of cases is 50, the cases will be divided as follows. If there are 95 shipments of product a1, then 95 shipments will be considered one work batch. If there are 145 shipments of product a1, then 145 shipments will be treated as one work batch. If there are 155 shipments of product a1, since 155 is greater than the maximum number of shipments, the 155 shipments are roughly divided into two batches of 78 and 77 shipments. · When the number of items of product a1 shipped is 30, the number of items shipped in sets of 2 is 15, and the number of items shipped in sets of 3 is 10, the sum of 30, 15, and 10 is 55. Since MIN quantity < 55 < MAX quantity, 55 items are taken as one work batch. · When there are 30 items of product a2 and 25 items of product c1, the sum of 30 and 25 is 55. Since MIN quantity < 55 < MAX quantity, 55 items, combining product a2 and product a3, are taken as one work batch.

[0117] Note that when printing based on the generated shipping instruction list, it is also possible to insert separator sheets between work batches so that the separation for each work batch is easy to understand.

[0118] (An example of a pattern table for flyers included with products) FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram illustrating a pattern table for flyers included with products. The pattern table is a table showing the flyer image for each page, the description of the image, the file name, and the stacking order of the pages. In the figure, a pattern table for flyers included with cat food is illustrated. According to the pattern table in the figure, it is described that the flyer is included with the product and sent to the customer at the first purchase of a regular purchase.

[0119] (Current shipping operation as a comparative example) FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram illustrating a shelf 610 on which a number of boxes 620 containing flyers are arranged. Currently, in the flyer storage area 600 of the EC-specialized logistics center 30, a shelf 610 is installed, and on this shelf 610, a number of boxes 620 containing flyers 700 are arranged side by side. When shipping a product, the operator picks up the flyer 700 from the shelf 610 where the corresponding flyer 700 is placed according to the product to be shipped and packs it together with the product.

[0120] However, the flyers 700 included with the product come in various patterns depending on the product, subscription status, and purchase frequency. Furthermore, if multiple flyers 700 are included, the stacking order is usually specified in advance by the brand owner. Workers manually pick the flyers 700 while referring to a pattern chart. Because the picking of flyers 700 is done manually, errors are prone to occur.

[0121] Furthermore, as mentioned above, currently, for example, workers create sets of flyers in advance during their free time, based on the purchased items and purchase frequency, and pick the created flyer sets along with the products. However, there are cases where the flyers included with products are changed depending on the product, subscription, purchase frequency, etc. Also, the flyers included may change frequently due to changes in seasons or product models. In such cases, the workload of workers at the shipping site increases. In addition, in such cases, flyers that can still be used after the change may be disassembled from the set and reused, but flyers that cannot be used must be discarded.

[0122] <Second Embodiment> In the first embodiment, the case was described in which the control unit 490 generates print jobs or groups of print jobs based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings to generate printed materials to be sent together with the product, and controls the output order of the printed materials. In the second embodiment, the case was described in which the control unit 490 controls the output order of the printed materials by controlling the order in which print images are formed on paper for multiple print jobs based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings. That is, in the second embodiment, instead of creating jobs based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings as in the first embodiment, the control unit 490 creates a set of enclosed flyers by changing the print order based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings. In the following, in order to avoid duplication of explanation, the explanation of the same configuration as in the first embodiment will be omitted or simplified.

[0123] Figure 21 is a flowchart illustrating the processing steps for printing flyers in the EC system of the second embodiment. The processing in steps S201 to S204 and S207 in Figure 21 is the same as the processing in steps S201 to S204 and S207 in Figure 16. Figure 22 is a subroutine flowchart illustrating the details of the process of printing the original document onto paper (step S206) in Figure 21.

[0124] (Step S205) As shown in Figure 21, the image processing unit 420 executes the print jobs stored in the buffer. In this embodiment, the control unit 490 executes the print jobs in the normal order. That is, the control unit 490 controls the image processing unit 420 to execute the print jobs in the order they are stored in the buffer of the image processing unit 420.

[0125] (Step S206) The image forming unit 430 prints the original document onto the paper. The control unit 490 controls the image forming unit 430 to form an image on the paper based on the print image data generated by the image processing unit 420. The control unit 490 controls the output order of the printed materials by controlling the order in which images are formed on multiple sheets of paper based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings.

[0126] More specifically, as shown in Figure 22, the control unit 490 determines whether it is necessary to change the order of image formation based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed conditions settings (step S401), and if it is necessary to change the order of image formation (step S401: YES), it controls the order of image formation (step S402). The control unit 490 controls the image forming unit 430 to form images on the paper in the order of the originals defined by the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed conditions settings. The control unit 490 can also control the order in which multiple print images selected based on product information are formed on the paper. Product information may include at least one of the following: information about the type of product, information about the location of the product, and information about the product delivery company. For example, the control unit 490 can control the printing of print images of print jobs with the same or similar product information from among multiple print images stored in the image memory of the image processing unit 420 to print them consecutively.

[0127] Furthermore, the control unit 490 can control the order in which multiple print images selected from multiple print image data are formed on paper, based on customer information or information related to shipping operations. For example, the control unit 490 can control the printing of print images from print jobs with the same or similar customer information, among multiple print images stored in the image memory of the image processing unit 420, in succession.

[0128] On the other hand, if there is no need to change the order of image formation (step S401: NO), the control unit 490 forms the print image on the paper in the normal order (step S403). That is, the control unit 490 forms the print image on the paper in the order stored in the image memory of the image processing unit 420.

[0129] Furthermore, not only the manuscripts for printed materials sent with the product, but also documents not sent with the product, such as shipping labels and shipping lists, may be printed together with the manuscripts. For example, if an invoice is included, printing the manuscript included in the enclosed flyer settings, along with the shipping label, shipping list, and invoice, together as a single document eliminates the need to reconcile the printed materials sent with the product.

[0130] <Third Embodiment> In the third embodiment, we will describe a case in which the control unit 490 controls the order in which printed materials are output by controlling the output order of multiple printed materials based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings. That is, in the third embodiment, instead of creating a job based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings as in the first embodiment, the control unit 490 creates a set of enclosed flyers by changing the output order of printed materials based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings. In the following, in order to avoid duplication of explanation, the explanation of the same configuration as in the first embodiment will be omitted or simplified.

[0131] Figure 23 is a flowchart illustrating the processing steps for printing flyers in the EC system of the third embodiment. The processing in steps S201 to S204 and S206 in Figure 23 is the same as the processing in steps S201 to S204 and S206 in Figure 16. Figure 24 is a subroutine flowchart illustrating the details of the process of ejecting the printed material to the output tray (step S207) in Figure 23.

[0132] (Step S205) As shown in Figure 23, the image processing unit 420 executes the print jobs stored in the buffer. In this embodiment, the control unit 490 executes the print jobs in the normal order. That is, the control unit 490 controls the image processing unit 420 to execute the print jobs in the order they are stored in the buffer of the image processing unit 420.

[0133] (Step S207) The paper transport unit 450 discharges the printed materials into the output tray. The control unit 490 controls the paper transport unit 450 to discharge the printed materials with images into the output tray. The control unit 490 controls the output order of the printed materials by controlling the discharge order of multiple printed materials based on the enclosed flyer settings.

[0134] More specifically, as shown in Figure 24, the control unit 490 determines whether it is necessary to change the order in which the printed materials are ejected based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed conditions settings (step S501), and if it is necessary to change the order in which the printed materials are ejected (step S501: YES), it controls the order in which the printed materials are ejected (step S502). The control unit 490 controls the paper transport unit 450 to eject the printed materials to the output tray in the order of the originals defined by the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed conditions settings. The control unit 490 can also control the ejection order of multiple sheets of paper on which images have been formed based on product information. Product information may include at least one of the following: information about the type of product, information about the location of the product, and information about the product's delivery company. The control unit 490 can, for example, control the ejection of printed materials from multiple print jobs stored in the buffer of the image processing unit 420 that have the same or similar product information, in succession.

[0135] Furthermore, the control unit 490 can control the order in which printed materials are ejected based on customer information or information related to shipping operations. For example, the control unit 490 can control the ejection of printed materials from among multiple print jobs stored in the buffer of the image processing unit 420 that have the same or similar customer information, in succession.

[0136] On the other hand, if the control unit 490 does not need to change the order in which the printed materials are ejected (step S501: NO), it ejects the printed materials to the output tray as usual (step S503). In other words, the control unit 490 ejects the printed materials to the output tray in the order in which they were printed.

[0137] (Effects of the image forming system 500 according to the first to third embodiments) The image forming system 500, the control method for the image forming system 500, and the control program according to the first to third embodiments have the following effects.

[0138] The printing support system 300 controls the output order in which the image forming apparatus 400 outputs printed materials, based on the fact that the goods and printed materials are shipped together. More specifically, when the goods and printed materials are shipped together, the print job generation unit 330 generates print jobs in the order of the originals specified by the pre-created enclosed flyer settings and enclosed conditions settings created by the e-commerce business operator. The image forming apparatus 400 prints images onto paper based on the print jobs generated by the print job generation unit 330 and discharges them into the output tray.

[0139] Furthermore, the control unit 490 can, by controlling the image forming unit 430, form print jobs generated without using the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings on paper in the order of the originals specified by the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings created in advance by the e-commerce business operator.

[0140] Furthermore, the control unit 490 controls the paper transport unit 450 to discharge the paper on which images have been formed by the image forming unit 430 into the output tray in the order of documents specified by the pre-created enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings created by the e-commerce business operator.

[0141] As a result, printed materials are discharged into the output tray in the order specified by the pre-created enclosed flyer settings and enclosed conditions settings by the e-commerce business operator. Therefore, it is possible to prevent or reduce errors in enclosed materials by workers during the shipping process, and the effort required for workers to prepare the flyer sets in advance is reduced. In addition, since the image forming apparatus 400 generates only the necessary printed materials based on the above print job, it is possible to reduce the amount of printed materials that are discarded when the set of enclosed flyers is changed.

[0142] Furthermore, the control unit 490 controls the execution order, the printing order of print images, or the order in which printed materials are discharged to the output tray for multiple print jobs that generate printed materials to be shipped together with the goods, based on the information in the shipping instruction list. For example, the control unit 490 controls the output order of printed materials by controlling the execution order of print jobs, the printing order of print images, or the order in which printed materials are discharged to the output tray, based on product information and / or customer information. More specifically, the control unit 490 creates work batches using the same delivery company or the same type of goods, and then executes the print jobs in the work batches consecutively, prints the print images of the print jobs, or discharges the printed materials. As a result, the image forming apparatus 400 can continuously discharge printed materials corresponding to the same delivery company or the same type of goods to the output tray. Therefore, the efficiency of shipping operations can be improved by continuously picking and acquiring the same type of goods, bundling each product with the printed materials, and continuously loading them onto trucks of the same delivery company.

[0143] As described above, the image forming system 500, the control method for the image forming system 500, and the control program have been explained in the embodiments. However, it goes without saying that the present invention can be appropriately added to, modified, and omitted by those skilled in the art within the scope of its technical concept.

[0144] For example, the printing support system 300 may generate shipping labels, delivery slips, and flyers by combining the entered shipping instruction list with information previously stored in the cart list database 312, etc., without using pre-created manuscript data (e.g., in PDF format).

[0145] Furthermore, two or more of the first to third embodiments can be combined and implemented. That is, the control unit 490 can also control the output order of printed materials by controlling at least two of the following based on the enclosed flyer settings and enclosed condition settings: the order in which the image processing unit 420 executes the print job, the order in which the image forming unit 430 forms the print image on the paper, and the order in which the paper transport unit 450 ejects the printed materials.

[0146] While embodiments of the present invention have been described and illustrated in detail, the disclosed embodiments are for illustrative purposes only and are not limiting. The scope of the present invention should be interpreted in accordance with the language of the appended claims. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0147] 10 Customer terminals, Servers 21-23 30 E-commerce-focused logistics centers, 100 Warehouse Management Systems, 200 warehouses, 300 Print Support Systems, 310 Print information acquisition unit, 311 Setting information storage unit, 312 Cart List Database, 313 Print instruction list generation unit, 314 Shipping list import unit, 316 Shipping instruction list generation unit, 317 Shipping Information Database, 320 Manuscript Database, 330 Print job generation unit, 400 Image forming apparatus, 410 Image reading unit, 420 Image Processing Unit, 430 Image forming unit, 440 Paper feed section, 450 Paper transport section, 460 Fixing section, 470 Communications Department, 480 Operation display section, 490 Control unit, 491 CPU, 492 Auxiliary storage, 493 RAM, 494 ROM, 500 image forming systems, 600 product storage area, 610 shelves, 630 boxes.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus that generates printed materials to be sent together with a product includes a control unit that controls the output order in which the printed materials are output. The control unit controls the output order in which multiple printed materials are output, based on information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials when they are shipped together with the product, which is set for each shipment of the product.

2. The image forming system according to Claim 1, wherein information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials is set for each product being sent.

3. The image forming system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials is set for each delivery destination of the product.

4. The image forming system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit controls the order in which images are formed on a plurality of recording media based on information regarding the stacking order of the plurality of printed materials.

5. The image forming system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit controls the ejection order of the plurality of recording media based on information regarding the stacking order of the plurality of printed materials.

6. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit selects a plurality of print data for each shipment of the product and determines the order in which the selected plurality of print data are formed on the recording medium.

7. The image forming system according to claim 1 or 6, wherein the control unit selects a plurality of print data for each shipment of the product and determines the order in which a plurality of recording media on which images have been formed have been ejected based on the selected plurality of print data.

8. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the execution order of multiple image forming jobs for generating multiple printed materials to be shipped together with the product, based on information about the product.

9. The information regarding the aforementioned product includes information regarding the location where the product is stored. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the control unit controls the execution order of the plurality of image forming jobs based on information regarding the location of the products.

10. The image forming system according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the control unit controls the execution of image forming jobs for generating printed materials to be shipped together with the same product, from among a plurality of image forming jobs stored in the storage unit.

11. The control unit, Multiple image formation jobs stored in the memory unit at a predetermined timing are classified into multiple groups. The image forming system according to claim 8 or 9, which classifies image forming jobs for generating printed materials to be shipped together with the same product into the same group.

12. The image forming system according to claim 11, wherein the control unit controls image forming jobs of the same group to be executed consecutively.

13. The information regarding the aforementioned product includes information regarding the product's delivery company. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the control unit controls the execution order of the plurality of image forming jobs based on information regarding the delivery company of the product.

14. The image forming system according to claim 8 or 13, wherein the control unit controls the execution of multiple image forming jobs stored in the memory unit so that image forming jobs for generating printed materials to be delivered together with goods delivered by the same delivery company are executed consecutively.

15. The control unit, Multiple image formation jobs stored in the memory unit at a predetermined timing are classified into multiple groups. The image forming system according to claim 8 or 13, which classifies image forming jobs for generating printed materials to be shipped together with goods delivered by the same delivery company into the same group.

16. The image forming system according to claim 15, wherein the control unit controls the image forming jobs of the same group to be executed consecutively.

17. A control method for an image forming system having a control unit that controls the output order in which an image forming apparatus that generates printed materials to be shipped together with a product outputs the printed materials, A control method for an image forming system, comprising the step of the control unit controlling the output order in which it outputs multiple printed materials, based on information regarding the stacking order of multiple printed materials set for each shipment of the product, for multiple printed materials shipped together with the product.

18. The control method for the image forming system according to claim 17, wherein information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials is set for each product being sent.

19. The control method for the image forming system according to claim 18, wherein information regarding the stacking order of the multiple printed materials is set for each delivery destination of the product.

20. The output includes image formation on each of the plurality of recording media by the image forming apparatus, The control step is to control the order in which images are formed on a plurality of recording media based on information regarding the stacking order of the plurality of printed materials, as described in claim 18 or 19.

21. The output includes the ejection of a plurality of recording media on which images have been formed by the image forming apparatus, The control step is to control the ejection order of a plurality of recording media based on information regarding the stacking order of the plurality of printed materials, as described in claim 18 or 19.

22. A control program for causing a computer to execute the control method described in claim 17 or 18.

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