Information processing device

Abstract

The present invention improves convenience by increasing an allowable printing amount even when information transmission / reception between a printing device and a server is impossible.　In the present invention, a CPU 310 of a mobile terminal 300 is configured so as to execute: a step S35 and a step S40 for determining whether information can be transmitted and received between a printer 200 and a management server 100; and a step S230 and a step S330 for, if it is determined that the information cannot be transmitted and received and that an allowable number of printed sheets is insufficient, transmitting an increase instruction to increase the allowable number of printed sheets to the printer 200 via a communication control unit 330, wherein the printer 200 is configured to be able to increase the allowable number of printed sheets in response to receiving the increase instruction from the management server 100 and to be able to increase the allowable number of printed sheets in response to receiving the increase instruction from the mobile terminal 300.

Description

Information processing device

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus that manages the print volume of a printing apparatus that allows printing by a user purchasing print authority.

[0002] A system is already known in which a server adds a guaranteed print volume corresponding to a printing authorization purchased based on a user's manual operation to a printing device's allowable print volume, and the printing device executes printing up to the allowable print volume after the addition. In such a system, a technology has been known in the past, for example, as described in Patent Document 1, in which even if a printing instruction is given for a print volume exceeding the allowable print volume, resulting in a shortage of the allowable print volume, the system allows printing within a predetermined range based on the user's usage history.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2023-125561

[0004] In the above-mentioned conventional technology, when the allowable print volume reaches zero, the printing device can continue printing within a predetermined range under the control of the server without the user having to purchase new printing authorization. However, the above-mentioned conventional technology does not take into consideration what to do if, for example, the printing device goes offline or some kind of problem occurs with the server, making it impossible to send and receive information between the printing device and the server.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing device that can increase the allowable printing volume and improve convenience even when information transmission and reception between the printing device and the server becomes impossible.

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an information processing device that manages the printing volume of the printing device, the information processing device having a communication unit capable of communicating with a printing device that is configured to be able to perform printing up to an allowable printing volume, that is configured to be able to increase the allowable printing volume based on a first increase instruction from a server in accordance with a guaranteed printing volume guaranteed by a printing authority obtained through purchase, and that is configured so that the allowable printing volume decreases in accordance with the amount of printing performed, and a control unit, the information processing device having such a communication unit and a control unit, the information processing device managing the printing volume of the printing device, the control unit being configured to perform a transmission / reception determination process that determines whether information transmission / reception between the printing device and the server is possible, and when the transmission / reception determination process determines that information transmission / reception is not possible and the allowable printing volume is insufficient, to send a second increase instruction to the printing device via the communication unit to increase the allowable printing volume, the information processing device being configured to be able to increase the allowable printing volume in response to receiving the first increase instruction from the server, and to increase the allowable printing volume in response to receiving the second increase instruction from the information processing device.

[0007] In the information processing device of the present invention, a control unit executes a transmission / reception determination process to determine whether information transmission / reception between the printing device and the server is possible. If it is determined that information transmission / reception is impossible and the allowable print volume is insufficient, the control unit executes an increase instruction transmission process to send a second increase instruction to the printing device via the communication unit to increase the allowable print volume. As a result, even if information transmission / reception between the printing device and the server is impossible and new printing authorization cannot be purchased, the allowable print volume of the printing device can be increased and printing can be performed by the printing device using the increased allowable print volume as an upper limit. According to the present invention, even if information transmission / reception between the printing device and the server is impossible, the allowable print volume can be increased, improving user convenience.

[0008] According to the present invention, even if the transmission and reception of information between the printing device and the server becomes impossible, the allowable printing volume can be increased, thereby improving convenience.

[0009] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the system configuration of a printing service providing system according to an embodiment; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a mobile terminal; FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of information transmission and reception in the printing service providing system during normal use; FIG. 3 is a diagram explaining specific parameter processing executed inside the printer for a prepaid printing service; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of information transmission and reception in the printing service providing system when server communication is disabled; FIG. 5 is a diagram explaining specific parameter processing when increasing the allowable number of prints by adding the total number of printable sheets; FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of information transmission and reception in the printing service providing system when server communication is restored; FIG. 7 is a diagram explaining specific parameter processing when increasing the allowable number of prints by allowing a minus of the margin threshold; FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing in detail the procedure executed by the CPU of the mobile terminal after an app is launched; FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing in detail the procedure executed by the CPU of the mobile terminal; FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing in detail the procedure for offline processing; FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing in detail the procedure for server down processing; FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of information transmission and reception in the printing service providing system when server communication is disabled when a health check server is provided.

[0010] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] <Outline of Print Service Providing System> FIG. 1 shows an example of the system configuration of a print service providing system according to one embodiment of the present invention. The print service providing system 1 provides a prepaid printing service in which a customer user pays a fee in advance to use the printing function of a printer 200. In FIG. 1, the print service providing system 1 includes a management server 100, a printer 200, a mobile terminal 300, and a transaction server 400. The management server 100, the printer 200, the mobile terminal 300, and the transaction server 400 are connected to a network NT including a mobile phone communication line and are capable of communicating with each other. The management server 100 is an example of a server, the printer 200 is an example of a printing device, and the mobile terminal 300 is an example of an information processing device.

[0012] <Management Server> The management server 100 is a server installed and managed by, for example, the manufacturer of the printer 200. As shown in Fig. 1, the management server 100 has a processor 110, a storage device 115, and a communication interface 190. The processor 110, the storage device 115, and the communication interface 190 are connected via a bus 105 so as to be able to send and receive data to and from each other.

[0013] The storage device 115 includes a volatile storage device 120 and a non-volatile storage device 130. The volatile storage device 120 is, for example, a DRAM, and stores various programs and data to be processed. The non-volatile storage device 130 is, for example, a hard disk drive or a solid state drive, and includes a program storage area 131 and a data storage area 132.

[0014] Various programs, including those related to the prepaid printing service, are stored in the program storage area 131. Various information related to users who have subscribed to the prepaid printing service and the printers 200 they use is stored in the data storage area 132.

[0015] The processor 110 is a device that performs data processing, such as a CPU, and executes various programs, including programs related to the prepaid printing service, stored in the program storage area 131. The processor 110 performs various processes, including data communication with the mobile terminal 300, printer 200, and transaction server 400, which are connected to the network NT. The processor 110 executes the purchase of printing authority by the printing service providing system 1 of this embodiment.

[0016] The communication interface 190 is a wired LAN interface or a wireless interface for communicating with other devices, and is connected to the network NT.

[0017] The storage device 115 is not limited to the configuration of the device elements described above, and may be configured, for example, by RAM, ROM, EEPROM, HDD, portable recording medium such as a USB memory that is detachably attached to the management server 100, a buffer provided in the processor 110, or a combination thereof. The storage device 115 may be a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium is a non-transitory medium. In addition to the above examples, non-transitory media also include recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs. A non-transitory medium is also a tangible medium. The same applies to the storage device 215 of the printer 200, which will be described later.

[0018] <Printer> The printer 200 is owned, for example, by a user who receives the prepaid printing service. As shown in Figure 1, the printer 200 has a processor 210, a storage device 215, a display unit 240, an operation unit 250, a communication interface 270, and a printing unit 290. The processor 210, storage device 215, display unit 240, operation unit 250, communication interface 270, and printing unit 290 are connected to each other via a bus 205 so that they can send and receive data.

[0019] The storage device 215 includes a volatile storage device 220 and a nonvolatile storage device 230. The volatile storage device 220 is, for example, a DRAM and includes an image data storage area 221 that stores image data to be printed. The nonvolatile storage device 230 is, for example, a flash memory and includes a program storage area 232 and a data storage area 233. Various programs related to the prepaid printing service are stored in the program storage area 232 as firmware, for example. The data storage area 233 stores various information related to the prepaid printing service, such as various parameters such as the total number of prints, the total number of printable sheets, and the allowable number of prints, which will be described later. Note that the parameter information related to the prepaid printing service will be described in detail below with reference to Figures 4, 6, and 8.

[0020] The processor 210 is a device that performs data processing, such as a CPU, and executes various programs stored in the program storage area 232.

[0021] The display unit 240 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, and is capable of displaying various types of information. The operation unit 250 is a device that accepts operations by the user. The user can input various instructions to the printer 200 by operating the operation unit 250. The communication interface 270 is a wired or wireless network interface for communicating with other devices, and is connected to the network NT and the mobile terminal 300.

[0022] The printing unit 290 prints an image on the transported paper using a predetermined method while removing and transporting paper from a paper feed tray using a transport mechanism (not shown). The printing method is not particularly limited, but inkjet or laser printing is used, for example. The printing unit 290 forms an image on the paper using ink from an ink cartridge or toner from a toner cartridge (not shown) in accordance with a print job sent from the mobile terminal 300 or a print job generated by the printing unit 290 itself based on operations on the operation unit 250.

[0023] <Mobile Terminal> Fig. 2 shows an example of the system configuration of the mobile terminal 300. The mobile terminal 300 is, for example, a portable terminal such as a smartphone owned by a user, and is connected to the network NT and the printer 200 via wireless communication. As shown in Fig. 2, the mobile terminal 300 has a CPU 310, a memory 320, a communication control unit 330 for connecting to the network NT and the printer 200 via wireless communication, a touch panel 340, and a large-capacity storage device 350.

[0024] The mass storage device 350 is, for example, a flash memory and includes a program storage area 351 and a data storage area 352. The program storage area 351 stores, for example, applications, programs based on the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 9 to 12 (described below). The CPU 310 executes the various programs stored in the program storage area 351. The CPU 310 executes various processes, including data communication with the management server 100 connected to the network NT. The CPU 310 also executes various processes, including data communication with the printer 200 connected via wireless communication, such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark) or Bluetooth (registered trademark). The data storage area 352 stores information such as a user ID issued based on the program or the printing service and used to identify the user corresponding to the mobile terminal 300. The CPU 310 and the programs stored in the program storage area 351 are an example of a control unit, and the communication control unit 330 is an example of a communication unit.

[0025] The mobile terminal 300 also displays various information and accepts various operations by the user on a touch panel 340 that integrally combines a liquid crystal display and a touch pad. The user can input various instructions to the mobile terminal 300 by operating the touch panel 340. The touch panel 340 is an example of a display unit and an operation unit.

[0026] Instead of a portable terminal, the mobile terminal 300 may be another information terminal such as a tablet computer or a desktop PC.

[0027] 1, the transaction server 400 is a server for performing online settlement via the network NT. The transaction server 400 has a processor, a storage device, and a communication interface for connecting to the network NT (not shown).

[0028] <Prepaid Printing Service During Normal Use> FIG. 3 shows a specific example of a prepaid printing service provided by the printing service providing system 1 of this embodiment during normal use.

[0029] In this embodiment, the printing service provided by the printing service providing system 1 is a prepaid printing service. The prepaid printing service is a service in which the number of pages charged for printing rights purchased in advance by a user through a purchase request by charging is added to the number of pages allowed to be printed by each target printer 200, and printing processing can be performed on the printer 200 up to the number of pages allowed to be printed.

[0030] The addition of the charge number to the allowable printable number is performed, for example, by the processor 110 of the management server 100 by updating the allowable printable number stored in the data storage area 132 for each individual printer 200. Furthermore, this addition information is also sent to the printer 200 via the network NT, and the allowable printable number stored separately in the data storage area 233 is synchronously updated.

[0031] Each time printing is performed on the printer 200 side, the processor 210 reduces the value of the allowable number of prints in the data memory area 233 by the number of prints, and this is sent to the management server 100 via the network NT, for example, at regular intervals, and the allowable number of prints in the data memory area 132 is updated synchronously.

[0032] In the prepaid printing service described above, when the printer 200 completes printing based on the allowable number of pages and the allowable number of pages, which is the upper limit of the number of pages that can be printed, reaches zero or falls below this limit, the user can recharge by completing a new purchase procedure. This adds up the purchased recharge amount, increasing the allowable number of pages, and allows printing to continue.

[0033] In the printing service providing system 1 of this embodiment, the printing authority can be purchased based on a user's purchase request. The purchase of printing authority based on the user's purchase request is executed when a purchase request for the printing authority is sent from the mobile terminal 300 to the management server 100 in response to the user's operation and accepted by the management server 100. The purchase of printing authority is executed at any timing desired by the user. At this time, the user selects one of several charge plans with different purchase quantities and purchase amounts, such as a charge of 50 sheets for 500 yen, 100 sheets for 900 yen, or 250 sheets for 2000 yen, and purchases the corresponding printing authority. The specific electronic payment process at the time of purchase is performed by the transaction server 400 in cooperation with the management server 100.

[0034] An example of specific parameter processing executed within printer 200 for the above-described prepaid printing service will now be described with reference to Figure 4. First, as shown in Figure 4(a), printer 200 stores parameters for the total number of pages printed M and the total number of pages that can be printed N in data storage area 233. Total number of pages printed M is a parameter that represents the total cumulative number of pages that the user of printer 200 has actually printed since subscribing to and starting use of the prepaid printing service, and is an important parameter for management purposes as the absolute usage amount of printer 200 by the user. Total number of pages that can be printed N is a parameter that represents the total cumulative number of pages that the user of printer 200 has actually purchased since subscribing to and starting use of the prepaid printing service.

[0035] The difference between the total number of prints M and the total number of printable sheets N corresponds to the allowable number of prints, and the user can continue printing as long as this allowable number of prints does not reach zero. A relatively low, fixed value, the margin threshold Th, is also set as a separate parameter. As the total number of prints M increases with use of the printer 200, when the total number of prints M reaches the value obtained by subtracting the margin threshold Th from the total number of printable sheets N at that time—in other words, when the allowable number of prints (N-M) becomes smaller than the margin threshold Th—the processor 210 of the printer 200 notifies the user that printing will soon be impossible to continue and encourages them to charge a new fee. However, this only notifies the user of the need for a new fee; printing itself continues until the allowable number of prints reaches zero.

[0036] On the other hand, if the user is charged under a charge plan that purchases a charge amount A, the charge amount A is added to the original total number of printable sheets N as shown in FIG. 4(b) to update it as the new total number of printable sheets N, and the new allowable number of printable sheets is calculated as the difference between the total number of printable sheets M at that time.

[0037] The above-mentioned allowable number of prints is an example of an allowable printing amount, and an example of a first increase instruction is an instruction output from the management server 100 to increase and update the allowable number of prints separately stored by the printer 200 so that it is synchronized with the allowable number of prints added by the management server 100 through a charge during normal use.

[0038] <Prepaid Printing Service When Server Communication is Unavailable> However, in the above-described prepaid printing service, in order for management server 100 to properly manage billing in accordance with the usage status of printer 200, it is a prerequisite that information can be normally sent and received between printer 200 and management server 100. Therefore, as shown in Figure 5, if printer 200 goes offline due to a failure in network NT, or if some kind of functional malfunction occurs in management server 100 and the server goes down, the user cannot purchase new printing authorization and cannot increase the printer 200's allowable print volume. This can lead to problems such as the inability to continue printing if the allowable print volume reaches zero during printing, or the inability to print a planned number of pages because the allowable print volume remaining before printing is too low.

[0039] In contrast, in this embodiment, if the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300 determines that information cannot be transmitted and received between the printer 200 and the management server 100 and the allowable number of prints is insufficient, the CPU 310 increases the allowable number of prints. In this case, the CPU 310 omits the charge in cooperation with the management server 100 or the transaction server 400, and the mobile terminal 300 internally processes the allowable number of prints to be increased by a temporary charge, and synchronizes the allowable number of prints with the printer 200. Then, after the temporary increase in the allowable number of prints, when the CPU 310 determines that information can be transmitted and received between the printer 200 and the management server 100, the mobile terminal 300 sends to the management server 100 a request to bill the user for the increase in the allowable number of prints resulting from the temporary charge.

[0040] Regardless of whether the mobile terminal 300 is offline or the server is down, it can always maintain a state in which it can send and receive information to and from the printer 200 via wireless communication such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark) or Bluetooth (registered trademark). At a predetermined timing, such as when a user issues a charge instruction, the mobile terminal 300 requests the printer 200 to confirm its connection status, and upon receiving this, the printer 200 itself checks the connection status with the management server 100. As a result, if the mobile terminal 300 receives a connection error response from the printer 200, it can recognize that the server communication failure has occurred.

[0041] Furthermore, the temporary increase in the allowable number of prints when communication with the server is unavailable, as described above, is a process that ultimately incurs costs, even though the charge for this will be made afterward. Therefore, it is desirable to notify the user of the occurrence of such a server communication unavailable state and the need for the temporary increase in the allowable number of prints, and to confirm whether or not to carry out the process, which will involve a subsequent charge.

[0042] FIG. 6 shows the specific parameter processing details for increasing the allowable print count within the printer 200 under management and instructions from the mobile terminal 300 so that printing can continue even when communication with the server is unavailable. In FIG. 6 , the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300 acquires the total print count N and the total print count M from the printer 200 at predetermined timing or intervals. When the allowable print count (N - M) falls below the margin threshold Th, the CPU 310 skips the normal purchase and billing procedure and adds a pre-set extra charge count a to the original total print count N to update the new total print count N. The allowable print count is then increased by calculating the difference between this updated total print count N and the total print count M at that time (see "Allowable print count (= (total print count N + extra charge count a) - total print count M)" in FIG. 5). In other words, this is equivalent to increasing the allowable print count by adding the unpurchased extra charge count to the purchased extra charge count. This process of increasing the allowable number of printed sheets is repeatedly executed internally by the mobile terminal 300 each time the allowable number of printed sheets (N-M) becomes smaller than the margin threshold Th while the server communication is still unavailable, an instruction is sent to the printer 200, and the number of times it is executed is stored.

[0043] When communication with the server is restored, as shown in Figure 7, the mobile terminal 300 requests the management server 100 to bill the user for the cumulative temporary charge amount, i.e., the cumulative charge amount equivalent to the sum of the temporary charge amount a for one time and the number of times the expansion process was performed. This allows the management server 100 to determine the cumulative temporary charge amount independently added by the mobile terminal 300 and the printer 200 while communication with the server was unavailable, i.e., the number of allowable prints not yet purchased, and to bill the user accordingly. It is desirable to set a certain upper limit on the cumulative temporary charge amount and the number of times the expansion process was performed. After the post-billing is performed, the system returns to the prepaid printing service for normal use shown in Figure 3.

[0044] Furthermore, if the cause of the server communication failure is a server down, it is highly likely that the system operator who manages the management server 100 is responsible, but if the cause is offline, it is highly likely that the user or the line provider is responsible rather than the system operator. For this reason, in this embodiment, from the perspective of the business model, the above-mentioned subsequent billing is carried out at a discounted price as an apology to the user only in the case of a server down, and no discount such as a discount is given in the case of an offline server.

[0045] Furthermore, the specific process for increasing the allowable number of prints when server communication is unavailable is not limited to adding the extra charge amount a to the total number of prints N as shown in FIG. 6 above. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 8, the allowable number of prints may be temporarily increased by allowing the margin threshold Th for the allowable number of prints to be set to a negative value. In other words, the printer 200 may charge the excess of the increased total number of prints M over the total number of prints N without updating the total number of prints N originally stored in the printer 200. In this case, both the allowable number of prints and the margin threshold Th become negative values ​​corresponding to the excess over the total number of prints M, and are increased and updated in units of a separately set, predetermined extra charge amount b. In this case, it is desirable to set a lower limit (an upper limit of the absolute value) for the negative value of the margin threshold Th.

[0046] Furthermore, as a process for increasing the allowable number of prints, the process of adding the temporary charge number a shown in Figure 6 and the process of allowing the allowable number of prints and a negative value of the margin threshold Th shown in Figure 8 are compatible, and the resulting processing effect is the same regardless of which is selected and executed. Therefore, in the example of this embodiment, if the cause is offline, the allowable number of prints is increased by adding the temporary charge number a, and if the cause is server down, the allowable number of prints is increased by allowing the allowable number of prints and a negative value of the margin threshold Th.

[0047] As described above, an instruction sent from the mobile terminal 300 to the printer 200 to increase the allowable number of printed sheets when communication with the server is unavailable is an example of a second increase instruction, and the information received by the mobile terminal 300 as a result of the printer 200 itself checking the connection status with the management server 100 is an example of health check information.

[0048] <Control Procedure> An example of the control procedure executed by the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300 to realize the above-described processing in this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts in Figures 9 to 12. When an application program for using the print service providing system 1 is launched on the mobile terminal 300, the flow in Figure 9 starts.

[0049] First, in step S5, the value of flag F is reset to 0. In step S10, the total number of printed sheets M and the total number of printable sheets N at that time are acquired from printer 200.

[0050] The process proceeds to step S15, where it is determined whether the allowable number of prints (N-M) is greater than the margin threshold Th. If the allowable number of prints (N-M) is greater than the margin threshold Th, the condition is met (S15: YES), and the process proceeds to step S20. In step S20, it is determined whether the value of flag F is 0. A value of 0 in flag F indicates that neither an increase in the allowable number of prints based on offline processing, which will be described later, nor an increase in the allowable number of prints based on server-down processing, which will be described later, has been executed. If F=0, the condition is met (S20: YES), and the process returns to step S10. If the determination in step S20 is that the value of flag F is other than 0 (S20: No), the process proceeds to step S25, where a connection confirmation request is sent to the printer 200 to confirm the connection status with the management server 100. The process then proceeds to step S105 in FIG. 10, which will be described later (see connector B in the figure).

[0051] If the determination in step S15 above is that the allowable number of prints (N-M) is equal to or less than the margin threshold Th, the condition is not satisfied (S15: NO), and the process proceeds to step S30, where a connection confirmation request is sent to the printer 200 to confirm the connection status with the management server 100. The process then proceeds to step S35, where it is determined whether the network NT is offline based on the printer 200's response to the connection confirmation request. If the network NT is offline, the printer 200 cannot send or receive information with the management server 100, and therefore cannot increase the allowable number of prints by, for example, charging the user's bill. If the network NT is offline, the condition is satisfied (S35: YES), and the offline processing in step S200 (see FIG. 11, described below) is executed, and the process returns to step S10.

[0052] If the network NT is online in step S35, the condition is not satisfied (S35: NO), and the process proceeds to step S40. In step S40, the control server 100 determines whether the management server 100 itself is in a server-down state, in which communication is not possible, based on the response from the printer 200 to the connection confirmation request. The server-down state is detected, for example, when the printer 200 sends a predetermined signal to the management server 100, but the printer 200 does not respond, even though the network NT is online. In the server-down state, the user cannot increase the allowable number of prints by charging a fee or the like using the same process as during normal use. If the server is down, the condition is satisfied (S40: YES), and the server-down process of step S300 (see FIG. 12, described below) is executed, and the process returns to step S10.

[0053] If the determination in step S40 above is that the management server 100 is in a communicable state, the determination is not satisfied (S40: NO), and the process proceeds to step S50. In step S50, it is determined whether the value of flag F is 0. If the value of flag F is other than 0, the determination is not satisfied (S50: NO), and the process proceeds to step S105 in FIG. 10 (see connector B in the figure), which will be described later. If F=0, the determination is satisfied (S50: YES), and the process proceeds to step S55. In step S55, it is determined whether a normal charge operation has been input by the user. If a charge operation has not been input by the user, the determination is not satisfied (S55: NO), and the process returns to step S10. On the other hand, if a charge operation has been input, the determination is satisfied (S55: YES), and the process proceeds to step S60. In step S60, the management server 100 is instructed to increase the allowable number of prints by adding the charge number A to the total number of printable sheets N, and in the next step S65, a request for a corresponding fee claim is sent to the management server 100, after which the process returns to step S10.

[0054] In step S105 of FIG. 10, the system determines whether the value of flag F is 1. This determines whether flag F is 1 (the allowable print count has been increased based on offline processing) or whether flag F is not 1, i.e., 2 (the allowable print count has been increased based on server down processing). If F=1, the condition is met (S105: YES), and the system proceeds to step S110. In step S110, if the offline state is maintained, the system returns to step S10 of FIG. 9 (see connector A in the figure). Once the printer 200 is restored to online status, the system proceeds to step S115. The printer 200 may check for online status continuously or at predetermined intervals. In step S115, the system sends a request to the management server 100 for a fee invoice corresponding to the accumulated temporary charge count (abbreviated as "accumulated amount a" in the figure). At this time, the touch panel 340 of the mobile terminal 300 may display a message indicating that the online status has been restored. Then, in the next step S120, the sending of the request for the expense claim in step S115 is repeated until it is confirmed that the user has paid the expense claim within the deadline. When payment has been confirmed, the process returns to step S5 (see connector C in the figure).

[0055] On the other hand, if the value of flag F is 2 (i.e., F=2) in step S105, the condition is not satisfied (S105: NO), and the process proceeds to step S130. If the server down state remains in step S130, the process returns to S10 in FIG. 9 (see connector A in the figure). When the state improves and the management server 100 returns to a communication-enabled state, the process proceeds to step S135. Note that the printer 200 may check the communication status of the management server 100 continuously or at predetermined intervals. In step S135, a request for a fee billing corresponding to the cumulative number of extra top-ups (abbreviated as "b cumulative amount" in the figure) is sent to the management server 100. At this time, the touch panel 340 of the mobile terminal 300 may display a message indicating that the management server 100 has been restored. In the next step S140, the request for a fee billing corresponding to the cumulative number of extra top-ups (b cumulative amount) is repeatedly sent to the management server 100. If the payment is confirmed, the process returns to step S5 (see connector C in the figure).

[0056] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing in detail the control procedure for the offline processing in step S200. In this FIG. 11, first, in step S205, a message is displayed on the touch panel 340 indicating that normal charging processing is not possible because the network NT is offline, and a message is displayed asking the user whether or not to perform a temporary charging with deferred billing as an alternative processing. Subsequently, in step S210, it is determined whether or not the user has entered an operation input via the touch panel 340 permitting the temporary charging. If an operation input not permitting the temporary charging has been entered, the determination is negative (S210: NO). In step S215, the temporary charging number a is set to 0, and the flow ends. On the other hand, if an operation input permitting the temporary charging has been entered, the determination is negative (S210: YES), and the flow proceeds to step S220.

[0057] In step S220, the temporary charge quantity a is set to Psmall, a quantity relatively smaller than the charge quantity for the regular charge plan, for example. In the next step S225, the temporary charge quantity is set to the regular price without applying the discount unit price. The processing in steps S220 and S225 is performed because the server communication failure occurred due to offline operation, and therefore preferential treatment for users is not necessary from a business model perspective. Next, the flow proceeds to step S230, where the printer 200 is instructed to increase the allowable number of prints by adding the temporary charge quantity a to the total number of printable sheets N. Then, in step S235, because the printer is now in a state where a temporary charge corresponding to the offline state can be performed, the value of flag F is set to 1 to indicate that the allowable number of prints has been increased based on offline processing. This flow then ends.

[0058] FIG. 12 is a flowchart detailing the control procedure for the server-down processing in step S300. In this FIG. 12, first, in step S305, a message is displayed on the touch panel 340 indicating that normal charging processing is not possible due to the management server 100 being down, and a message is displayed inquiring the user as to whether or not to perform a temporary charge with deferred billing as an alternative processing. Subsequently, in step S310, it is determined whether or not the user has entered an operation input via the touch panel 340 permitting the temporary charge. If an operation input not permitting the temporary charge has been entered, the determination is negative (S310: NO). In step S315, the temporary charge number b is set to 0, and the flow ends. On the other hand, if an operation input permitting the temporary charge has been entered, the determination is negative (S310: YES), and the flow proceeds to step S320.

[0059] In step S320, the extra charge quantity b is set to, for example, Plarge, which is relatively larger than the charge quantity for the regular charge plan. In step S325, a discount unit price is applied to the extra charge. These steps S320 and S325 are performed because the server downtime is likely the cause of the server communication failure, and the system operator is likely to be responsible. Therefore, preferential treatment for users is necessary from a business model perspective. Next, in step S330, the printer 200 is instructed to increase the allowable number of prints by subtracting the extra charge quantity b from the margin threshold Th for the allowable number of prints. Here, the margin threshold Th may be a negative value as a result of the subtraction. In step S335, because the system is now in a state where an extra charge corresponding to the server down condition can be executed, the value of flag F is set to 2 to indicate that the allowable number of prints has been increased based on the server down processing. This flow then ends.

[0060] In the above, steps S35 and S40 are an example of a transmission / reception determination process, steps S230 and S330 are an example of an increase instruction transmission process, steps S115 and S135 are an example of a billing request transmission process, and the processes of sending a connection status confirmation request to printer 200 and receiving a response in steps S30 and S25 are an example of a health check process.

[0061] <Effects of the Embodiment> As described above, in the mobile terminal 300 included in the print service providing system 1 of this embodiment, the CPU 310 executes steps S35 and S40 to determine whether information can be exchanged between the printer 200 and the management server 100. If it is determined that information exchange is not possible and the allowable number of prints is insufficient, the CPU 310 executes steps S230 and S330, and an increase instruction from the mobile terminal 300 to increase the allowable number of prints is sent to the printer 200. As a result, even if information exchange between the printer 200 and the management server 100 cannot be performed and new printing authorization cannot be purchased or charged, the allowable number of prints of the printer 200 can be increased, and printing can be performed by the printer 200 with the increased allowable number of prints as an upper limit.

[0062] According to this embodiment, even if the printer 200 and the management server 100 are unable to exchange information, the number of printable sheets can be increased, improving user convenience.

[0063] Furthermore, for example, if the printer 200 does not have a user interface that functions as a display unit and an operation unit, the configuration of this embodiment is particularly useful because the mobile terminal 300 equipped with the touch panel 340 can serve as the user interface of the printer 200.

[0064] Note that when the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300 sends an instruction to the printer 200 to temporarily increase the allowable number of prints in step S230 and step S330 when communication with the server is not possible, the CPU 310 may send an execution report to the management server 100. The process of sending the execution report in this case is an example of an execution report sending process.

[0065] Even if it is determined that information transmission between the printer 200 and the management server 100 is impossible when steps S35 and S40 following steps S230 and S330 are executed, there are cases where information transmission between the mobile terminal 300 and the management server 100 is possible via a separate mobile phone line or the like. In this example, in the process of transmitting the execution report, the execution reports of steps S230 and S330 are transmitted to the management server 100. As a result, the management server 100 can quickly know that the mobile terminal 300 has performed the transmission process for the increase instruction and that an increase instruction to increase the allowable number of prints has been transmitted to the printer 200, without waiting until information transmission with the printer 200 becomes possible.

[0066] Furthermore, particularly in this embodiment, while information cannot be sent or received between the printer 200 and the management server 100, even if the mobile terminal 300 sends a request to the management server 100 for financial coverage for the increase in the above-mentioned allowable number of printed sheets, the management server 100 cannot perform various confirmations with the printer 200 regarding the increase in the allowable number of printed sheets.

[0067] In the mobile terminal 300 of this embodiment, if it is determined in steps S35 and S40 that information transmission and reception between the printer 200 and the management server 100 is possible, the CPU 310 performs steps S115 and S135. In steps S115 and S135, a request for a fee invoice corresponding to the increase in the allowable number of prints is sent to the management server 100. The management server 100 can request the user to pay the corresponding financial burden by performing various checks on the printer 200 related to the increase in the allowable number of prints.

[0068] Note that the mobile terminal 300 may transmit the expense claim information corresponding to the increase in the allowable number of prints to an external device (not shown), such as a separate server, that can be connected to the management server 100, rather than directly to the management server 100. By executing the process of transmitting the billing information in this manner, the expense claim information corresponding to the instruction from the mobile terminal 300 to increase the allowable number of prints is transmitted not to the management server 100, but to a separate external device that can be connected to the management server 100. This allows the external device to transmit the expense claim information to the management server 100 at an appropriate time, freeing the mobile terminal 300 from processing related to the expense claim and allowing it to concentrate on other processing.

[0069] In this embodiment, particularly when the printer 200 is offline, upon receiving an instruction to increase the allowable number of prints from the mobile terminal 300, the printer 200 increases the allowable number of prints by adding the temporary charge number a, which is the allowable number of prints that have not been purchased, to the allowable number of prints that have been purchased. A request for a fee invoice corresponding to the allowable number of prints that have not been purchased is sent to the management server 100 in steps S115 and S135 executed by the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300.

[0070] According to this embodiment, even if information cannot be sent or received between the printer 200 and the management server 100 and new printing rights cannot be purchased, the number of allowable prints can be increased by adding the number of unpurchased temporary charge sheets a.

[0071] In this embodiment, particularly when the server is down, the printer 200 temporarily increases the allowable number of prints by allowing the margin threshold Th for the allowable number of prints to go down to a negative value in response to an increase instruction from the mobile terminal 300. In steps S115 and S135, a request for a fee claim that can resolve the insufficient allowable number of prints is sent from the mobile terminal 300 to the management server 100.

[0072] According to this embodiment, even if information cannot be sent and received between the printer 200 and the management server 100 and new printing rights cannot be purchased, the allowable number of prints can be increased by a method that allows the margin threshold Th for the allowable number of prints to be negative.

[0073] As described above, the two methods applied when increasing the allowable print quantity on the mobile terminal 300, i.e., the method of adding the temporary charge quantity a to the allowable print quantity and the method of allowing the margin threshold value Th for the allowable print quantity to go down to negative values, are compatible. Therefore, opposite methods may be applied in the offline state and the server down state, or only one method may be applied in both cases, or only the other method may be applied in both cases.

[0074] In this embodiment, in particular, steps S35 and S40 determine whether the printer 200 is offline or whether the management server 100 is in a server-down state where a functional failure has occurred. If at least the server is down, steps S230 and S330 are executed to increase the allowable number of prints. According to this embodiment, the allowable number of prints can be increased in the printer 200 at least when the server is down.

[0075] In particular, in this embodiment, health check information indicating whether the functions of the management server 100 are normal is acquired by executing steps S25 and S30 by the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300. As a result, in steps S35 and S40, the acquired health check information can be used to accurately and clearly determine whether a functional failure has occurred in the management server 100.

[0076] In this embodiment, the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300 acquires health check information from the printer 200 to detect whether the management server 100 is functioning normally. This allows the CPU 310 to acquire health check information for the communication path that should be used during normal use. Alternatively, the health check information may be acquired from the response status to a health check signal sent directly from the mobile terminal 300 to the management server 100.

[0077] Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 13 , health check information for the management server 100 may be obtained from a separately provided health check server 500. In this case, the health check server 500, which has the same functions as the management server 100, is connected to the mobile terminal 300 and the management server 100 via the network NT. When the mobile terminal 300 sends a request signal to the health check server 500 to check the operational status of the management server 100, the health check server 500 responds by checking the operational status of the management server 100 and, based on the results, returns health check information to the mobile terminal 300 indicating whether the server is down. This allows the mobile terminal 300 to reliably obtain health check information as long as the network NT is normally connected and online, regardless of the status of the management server 100. Therefore, the mobile terminal 300 can clearly determine whether it is online or offline.

[0078] Furthermore, particularly in this embodiment, in each of steps S205 and S305, the CPU 310 of the mobile terminal 300 displays on the touch panel 340 a message that the normal increase in the allowable number of prints cannot be performed and that the user is prompted to operate to determine whether to temporarily increase the allowable number of prints, and if an operation to temporarily increase the allowable number of prints is performed, an increase instruction is sent to the printer 200. In this way, in this embodiment, the printer 200 performs processing to increase the allowable number of prints temporarily based on the user's operation on the touch panel 340, making it possible to prevent the allowable number of prints from being increased against the user's wishes.

[0079] In the above embodiment, when server communication is unavailable, the user's mobile terminal 300 temporarily increases the allowable print count on behalf of the management server 100. Alternatively, if the management server 100 is down but the network NT itself is normally online, a separate external server, such as the health check server 500, may temporarily increase the allowable print count. In this case, the user can access the external server from a mobile terminal or general-purpose PC and temporarily increase the allowable print count for each printer 200 as a web service via a web application or the like (not shown). In this case, the external server or a combination of the external server and the mobile terminal 300 is an example of an information processing device.

[0080] In the above embodiment, two methods for increasing the allowable print count were shown: the process of adding the extra charge count a shown in Figure 6 above, and the process of allowing a negative value of the allowable print count and the margin threshold Th shown in Figure 8. In both cases, the upper limit of the increase was set using the separately set extra charge count a or extra charge count b. Alternatively, although not specifically shown, printing may be allowed regardless of the allowable print count within a separately set time range after a server communication failure is detected. This allows printing within a time limit, regardless of the allowable print count, when information cannot be exchanged between the printer 200 and the management server 100 and new printing authorization cannot be purchased.

[0081] Furthermore, in any of the above processes for increasing the allowable number of prints, rather than increasing the allowable number of prints in units of a predetermined number of sheets such as temporary charge number a or temporary charge number b, the process may be carried out on a pay-as-you-go basis, increasing the number of prints by the amount resulting when the user has finished all printing.

[0082] In the above embodiment, normal charging or increasing the allowable number of prints when communication with the server is disabled is only performed after it is detected in step S10 that the allowable number of prints has reached 0 during actual printing. Alternatively, the user may be able to check the allowable number of prints even when the printer is in standby mode and not printing, and may be able to initiate normal charging or increasing the allowable number of prints at will if the number of prints the user plans to make exceeds the allowable number of prints at that time (not shown).

[0083] Furthermore, in the above, the flowcharts shown in Figures 9, 10, 11, and 12 do not limit the present invention to the procedures shown in the flowcharts, and procedures may be added or deleted, or the order may be changed, etc., within the scope that does not deviate from the spirit and technical concept of the invention.

[0084] In addition to the above, the methods according to the above embodiments and modifications may be used in appropriate combination.

[0085] Although not specifically illustrated, the present invention can be implemented with various modifications within the scope of the invention.

[0086] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Printing service providing system 100 Management server (an example of a server) 200 Printer (an example of a printing device) 300 Mobile terminal (an example of an information processing device) 310 CPU (an example of a control unit) 330 Communication control unit (an example of a communication unit) 340 Touch panel (an example of a display unit, an operation unit) 400 Transaction server 500 Health check server NT Network

Claims

1. An information processing device having a communication unit capable of communicating with a printing device configured to be able to execute printing up to an allowable printing volume, configured to be able to increase the allowable printing volume based on a first increase instruction from a server in accordance with a guaranteed printing volume guaranteed by a printing authority purchased, and configured so that the allowable printing volume decreases in accordance with the amount of printing executed, and a control unit, which manages the printing volume of the printing device, wherein the control unit is configured to execute a transmission / reception determination process to determine whether information transmission / reception between the printing device and the server is possible, and when the transmission / reception determination process determines that information transmission / reception is not possible and the allowable printing volume is insufficient, an increase instruction sending process to send a second increase instruction to the printing device via the communication unit to increase the allowable printing volume, and the printing device is configured to be able to increase the allowable printing volume in response to receiving the first increase instruction from the server, and to increase the allowable printing volume in response to receiving the second increase instruction from the information processing device.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to execute an execution report transmission process for transmitting an execution report of the increase instruction transmission process to the server via the communication unit.

3. The information processing device of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to execute a billing request sending process to send a request for a fee bill corresponding to the increase in the allowable printing volume in the increase instruction sending process to the server via the communication unit after executing the increase instruction sending process.

4. The information processing device of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to: after the increase instruction sending process, execute a billing information sending process to send, via the communication unit, billing information corresponding to the second increase instruction of the allowable printing volume in the increase instruction sending process to an external device connectable to the server.

5. The information processing device of claim 3, wherein the printing device is configured to increase the allowable printing volume by adding the unpurchased allowable printing volume to the purchased allowable printing volume in response to receiving the second increase instruction, and the control unit is configured to send a request for cost billing corresponding to the unpurchased allowable printing volume to the server via the communication unit in the billing request sending process.

6. The information processing device of claim 3, wherein the printing device is configured to, upon receiving the second increase instruction, temporarily increase the allowable printing volume by allowing the threshold of the allowable printing volume to be increased to a negative value, and the control unit is configured to, in the billing request sending process, send a request for billing for expenses capable of resolving the insufficient state of the allowable printing volume to the server via the communication unit.

7. An information processing device as described in claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to determine, in the transmission / reception determination process, whether the printing device is offline or not and whether the server is experiencing a functional failure, and the increase instruction transmission process is executed when the transmission / reception determination process determines that at least the server is experiencing a functional failure.

8. The information processing device according to claim 7, wherein the control unit is further configured to: execute a health check process to obtain health check information indicating whether the server is functioning normally; and in the transmission / reception determination process, determine whether the server is experiencing a functional failure based on the health check information obtained in the health check process.

9. An information processing device as described in claim 8, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the health check process, obtain the health check information from a health check server that monitors whether the server is functioning normally, or obtain the health check information from the printing device that detects whether the server is functioning normally, or obtain the health check information from the server's response status to a health check signal sent to the server via the communication unit.

10. The information processing device according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit and an operation unit, wherein the control unit is configured to, during the increase instruction sending process, display on the display unit a message indicating that the normal increase in the allowable printing volume cannot be performed, display on the display unit a message requesting the user to operate the operation unit as to whether to temporarily increase the allowable printing volume, and when the operation is performed on the operation unit to temporarily increase the allowable printing volume, send the second increase instruction to the printing device.

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