Distribution information providing server and information distribution printing system

Abstract

The present invention addresses the problem of tabulating with the same level of promptness as that of a web display even in a case in which an advertisement based on bidding is printed. Provided is an advertisement provision server (100) that receives an advertisement image managed by an advertisement management server (500) and distributes the advertisement image to a printer (200). The advertisement provision server (100): transmits a bidding request for an advertisement image to the advertisement management server (500) (S5); determines an advertisement image of a successful bid from among the advertisement images received from the advertisement management server (500) in response to the transmitted bid request (S8); acquires the determined advertisement image (S20); distributes a distribution image for printing to a printer (200) with the distribution image thereof being based on the acquired advertisement image (S30); and after acquisition of the advertisement image (S20) and before distribution of the distribution image for printing (S30), transmits, to the advertisement management server (500), a billing notification for billing for compensation corresponding to the distribution of the distribution image for printing (S140).

Description

Information distribution server and information distribution printing system

[0001] The present invention relates to a distribution information providing server and an information distribution printing system that distributes distribution information to a destination printing device and prints the information.

[0002] Conventionally, as described in Patent Document 1, for example, a technique is known in which bids are solicited for advertisements to be attached to images of printed matter printed by a printing device, a target advertisement is determined based on the bidding results from multiple advertisers, and a charge is made corresponding to the bid amount for that advertisement.

[0003] JP 2010-140250 A

[0004] In the technology disclosed in the cited document 1, for example, depending on the circumstances, it may take a long time from the time of bidding until the successful advertisement is actually printed by the printing device. In this case, if the billing is performed when printing is completed, the advertiser of the advertisement cannot quickly count the completion of advertisement distribution and advertising costs, etc., which results in a problem of inferior responsiveness and usability compared to web advertisements, which can be counted in real time when display is completed.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a distribution information providing server and an information distribution printing system that can tally advertisements based on bids with the same responsiveness as web displays, even when printing advertisements based on bids.

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a distribution information providing server that includes a control unit and receives distribution information managed by a distribution information management server and distributes it to a printing device, wherein the control unit is configured to execute a request sending process that sends a bid request for distribution information to the distribution information management server, an information determination process that determines specific distribution information that will be a successful bid from the distribution information received from the distribution information management server in response to the bid request sent in the request sending process, a specific distribution information acquisition process that acquires the specific distribution information determined in the information determination process, a distribution process that distributes printable distribution information based on the specific distribution information acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process to the printing device, and a claim notice sending process that, after acquiring the specific distribution information in the specific distribution information acquisition process and before distributing the printable distribution information in the distribution process, sends a claim notice to the distribution information management server to claim a remuneration corresponding to the distribution of the printable distribution information.

[0007] In the present invention, bidding is conducted for distribution information to a printing device, and distribution and printing are performed according to the bidding results. A request transmission process executed by the control unit issues a bid request to a distribution information management server. In an information determination process, specific distribution information that wins the bid is determined from the distribution information received from the distribution information management server. The determined specific distribution information is acquired in a specific distribution information acquisition process. Print-ready distribution information based on the acquired specific distribution information is distributed to the printing device in a distribution process. In the present invention, a billing notice transmission process is performed by the control unit during the above flow, but before the printing device actually prints the print-ready distribution information. That is, after acquiring the specific distribution information in the specific distribution information acquisition process but before distributing the print-ready distribution information in the distribution process, the control unit transmits a billing notice to the distribution information management server to request a fee for the distribution. According to the present invention, since a billing notice arrives before actual printing is completed, the advertiser can consider the time as equivalent to printing completion, allowing them to quickly calculate the completion of advertisement distribution, advertising costs, etc., thereby improving convenience.

[0008] According to the present invention, even when a bid-based advertisement is printed, it is possible to perform tabulation with the same responsiveness as when it is displayed on the web.

[0009] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of an information delivery printing system according to an embodiment; FIG. 2 is a sequence flow showing an example of a process flow executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer; FIG. 3 is a sequence flow showing an example of a process flow executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a printer that has entered a blocked state; FIG. 5 is a sequence flow showing an example of a process flow executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer in a modified example in which blocking occurs after a billing notice is transmitted; and FIG. 6 is a sequence flow showing an example of a process flow executed by cooperation between an advertisement providing server, an advertisement management server, a terminal device, and a printer in a modified example in which blocking occurs when a bid request is transmitted.

[0010] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to an information distribution and printing system that distributes advertising information from a server to a printer and prints it.

[0011] <Overall Configuration of Information Distribution Printing System> Fig. 1 shows an example of the overall configuration of an information distribution printing system 1 according to an embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the information distribution printing system 1 includes an advertisement providing server (SSP: Supply Side Platform) 100, a printer 200, a terminal device 300, a user management server (DMP: Data Management Platform) 400, and an advertisement management server (DSP: Demand Side Platform) 500. The servers 100, 400, 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300 each include a communication unit and can communicate with each other via a network NT. The network NT includes at least one of the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), and a WAN (Wide Area Network). The communication unit may be configured to include multiple types of communication circuits for connecting to the network NT. In this case, a device connected to the network NT may communicate with multiple other devices using different communication circuits. In this embodiment, the multiple types of communication circuits are collectively referred to as the communication unit.

[0012] <Terminal Device> The terminal device 300 is, for example, a mobile terminal such as a smartphone owned by a user, and in this example, is connected to the network NT via wireless communication. The terminal device 300 may be any appropriate terminal other than the printer 200, such as a tablet PC, notebook PC, or desktop PC, in addition to a smartphone. Alternatively, the terminal device 300 may be a portable or stationary terminal provided in karaoke booths, various stores, and the like for song selection, menu selection, product browsing, and the like. The terminal device 300 includes a display unit, a control unit, an operation unit, a memory unit, a communication unit, and the like (not shown). Various programs are stored in the memory unit. The control unit executes the various programs stored in the memory unit. The various programs include programs that execute the processes shown in the flowcharts of Figures 2 and 3 (described below). The user can input various instructions to the terminal device 300 by operating the operation unit.

[0013] <User Management Server> The user management server 400 manages information about users via the terminal device 300. The user management server 400 includes a control unit, a storage unit, a communication unit, and the like, all of which are not shown.

[0014] <Advertisement Providing Server> The advertisement providing server 100 is a server installed and managed by, for example, the manufacturer of the printer 200. The advertisement providing server 100 receives an advertisement image from the advertisement management server 500 at a predetermined timing. The advertisement providing server 100 distributes the acquired advertisement image to the printer 200 and causes it to print. The advertisement providing server 100 is an example of a distribution information providing server, and the advertisement image is an example of distribution information.

[0015] In detail, the advertisement providing server 100 has a control unit 110, a storage unit 115, a communication unit 140, etc. The control unit 110, the storage unit 115, the communication unit 140, etc. are connected via a bus 105 so as to be able to send and receive information. The storage unit 115 is composed of, for example, a RAM, a ROM, an EEPROM, an HDD, etc. The storage unit 115 stores various programs 120 and various data 130. The various programs 120 include an information distribution program that executes the control contents of the advertisement providing server 100 shown in the flows in Figures 2 and 3 described below, and the various data 130 includes the printer ID of the printer 200, a user ID, an advertisement image, etc.

[0016] The control unit 110 is a device that processes data, and is, for example, a processor such as a CPU. The control unit 110 executes various programs stored in the storage unit 115. The control unit 110 performs various processes, including data communication with the printer 200, terminal device 300, user management server 400, and advertisement management server 500, which are connected to the network NT. The communication unit 140 includes hardware such as a NIC (Network Interface Card) for connecting to the Ethernet, is connected to the network NT, and communicates with the printer 200, terminal device 300, user management server 400, and advertisement management server 500.

[0017] <Advertising Management Server> The advertising management server 500 transmits an advertising image to be printed by the printer 200 to the advertising providing server 100. The advertising management server 500 has a control unit, a storage unit, a communication unit, etc. (not shown). In this example, the communication unit receives a bid request from the advertising providing server 100. Terminal devices or servers (not shown) of multiple advertisers are connected to the network NT. The control unit of the advertising management server 500 holds an auction in response to the bid request for advertising images submitted by these advertisers, and acquires suitable advertising images through bids for the auction. When a successful bid that meets the specified conditions of the auction is made, the control unit of the advertising management server 500 acquires the corresponding advertising image from the terminal device, etc., of the advertiser who is the successful bidder. The acquired advertising image is transmitted from the advertising management server 500 to the advertising providing server 100 via the communication unit, and then further transmitted from the advertising providing server 100 to the printer 200 for printing. The advertisement providing server 100 may acquire the advertisement image from the advertisement management server 500, or the advertisement management server 500 may acquire the advertisement image from another external server and transmit it to the advertisement providing server 100. The advertisement management server 500 is an example of a distribution information management server.

[0018] Each of the servers 100, 400, and 500 may be configured as a single "server," or may be configured as multiple servers. Alternatively, the functions of at least two of the servers 100, 400, and 500 may be provided by a single "server."

[0019] <Printer> The printer 200 is assigned the printer ID described above. The printer 200 has a control unit 210, a memory unit 215, a display unit 240, an operation unit 250, a communication unit 260, a printing unit 270, etc. The control unit 210, the memory unit 215, the display unit 240, the operation unit 250, the communication unit 260, and the printing unit 270 are connected via a bus 205 so as to be able to send and receive information. The printer 200 is an example of a printing device.

[0020] The storage unit 215 is configured with, for example, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, HDD, etc. The storage unit 215 stores various programs 220 and various data 230. The various programs 220 include, for example, programs for executing the control of the printer 200 according to the flows shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 described below. The various data 230 include the printer ID described above and advertising images received from the advertisement providing server 100, acquired from a terminal device of a successful bidder among the advertisers, and transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100. At least a portion of the various data may be stored in the storage unit 115 of the advertisement providing server 100. Alternatively, at least a portion of the original data may be stored in either the storage unit 215 of the printer 200 or the storage unit 115 of the advertisement providing server 100, and a copy of the original data may be stored in the other of the storage units.

[0021] The control unit 210 is a device that processes data, such as a processor such as a CPU. The control unit 210 executes various programs stored in the memory unit 215. In this example, the display unit 240 is a touch panel using a liquid crystal display, and the operation unit 250 is a touch sensor integrally provided on the front surface of the touch panel. That is, with various information displayed on the touch panel, the user can input various instructions, including print instructions, to the printer 200 by performing input operations using a keyboard, buttons, etc. displayed on the touch panel (see also FIG. 4 described below). The communication unit 260 is connected to the network NT and is capable of communication with the advertisement providing server 100, the advertisement management server 500, the user management server 400, and the terminal device 300. The printing unit 270 includes a print engine and forms and prints an image on the print paper using an inkjet method in this example while removing and transporting print paper from a paper tray using a transport mechanism (not shown). Note that a laser print engine may also be used.

[0022] The cartridge holder 280 is configured to be able to house cartridges 285. The cartridges 285 are configured with cartridges of multiple ink colors, such as cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. The cartridge holder 280 is provided with ink amount sensors (not shown) that can detect the remaining amount or consumed amount of each of the cartridges of the multiple ink colors using a known method.

[0023] The printing unit 270 performs printing processing while consuming ink from the cartridge 285. The reader / writer 290 is provided in the cartridge holder 280. The reader / writer 290 reads and writes cartridge information from an IC chip provided in the cartridge 285 housed in the cartridge holder 280. For example, the reader / writer 290 detects the type of cartridge 285 housed in the cartridge holder 280 by reading the cartridge information from the IC chip. Note that the amount of ink used or remaining in the cartridge 285 may also be detected by the above reading by the reader / writer 290.

[0024] <Features of the Embodiment> As described above, in this embodiment, an auction is held for an advertisement, and bids are solicited. If a successful bid is received from an advertiser that meets certain conditions, the successful advertisement image is delivered to the printer 200 and the advertisement is printed. In this case, depending on the circumstances, it may take a long time for the successful advertisement to be actually printed by the printer 200 after the bid is placed. In this case, if charges are made upon completion of printing, the advertiser of the advertisement cannot quickly count the completion of advertisement delivery and advertising costs, etc., resulting in a problem of poor responsiveness and usability compared to web advertising, which can be counted in real time upon completion of display. A feature of this embodiment is that, even when printing an advertisement based on a bid, counting can be performed with the same responsiveness as when displaying it on the web, thereby improving convenience. The details of this process are described below with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIGS. 2 and 3 are sequence flows illustrating control executed by the advertisement providing server 100, the advertisement management server 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300 in cooperation with each other.

[0025] 2 , first, in S5, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a bid request including a minimum bid price to the advertisement management server 500. The minimum bid price is, for example, uniquely determined in advance when soliciting bids for the advertisement image and is stored in the storage unit 115. In S5, the minimum bid price is determined based on the contents stored in the storage unit 115, and a bid request including the minimum bid price is transmitted to the advertisement management server 500. The process executed in S5 is an example of a request transmission process, and the control unit 110 that executes S5 is an example of a request transmission unit.

[0026] In response to the transmitted bid request, the advertisement management server 500 executes an auction for suitable advertisements and solicits bids. At this time, the bid request requests advertisement images that satisfy predetermined conditions, including a bid price equal to or higher than the minimum bid price.

[0027] In S7, the bidding results of the auction held in response to the bidding request sent in S5 are received from the advertising management server 500. If a bid fulfills the predetermined conditions requested in the bidding request, the received content includes the advertising image submitted by that bidder. If no bid fulfills the predetermined conditions requested in the bidding request, the received content includes a message to that effect.

[0028] In S8, it is determined whether or not there is a bid that satisfies the winning conditions based on the content received in S7, and the bid that satisfies the winning conditions is determined as the successful advertisement. The winning conditions may be, for example, the highest bid price. Alternatively, the winning condition may be the satisfaction of a predetermined condition requested in the bid request. The determined advertisement is an example of specific distribution information, the process executed in S8 is an example of information determination process, and the control unit 110 that executes S8 is an example of an information determination unit.

[0029] In S10, a "hold notice" is sent to the advertising management server 500 to notify the advertiser who submitted a bid that satisfies the bidding conditions, i.e., the successful bidder, that the bid content has been accepted and will be stored without being deleted. This hold notice is sent by the advertising management server 500 to the terminal device or the like of the successful bidder. Note that if there are multiple bids that satisfy the bidding conditions, multiple hold notices may be sent.

[0030] In S15, a "notice of defeat" is sent to the advertisement management server 500 to inform the advertiser who submitted a bid that does not satisfy the conditions for successful bidding, i.e., the non-successful bidder, that the bid content will not be adopted because there is another successful bidder. This notice of defeat is sent by the advertisement management server 500 to the terminal device or the like of the non-successful bidder. Note that if there are multiple bids that do not satisfy the conditions for successful bidding, multiple notices of defeat may be sent.

[0031] In S17, an advertising image request is sent to the advertising management server 500, requesting an advertising image of the successful bidder to whom the suspension notice was sent in S10. If there are multiple successful bidders, multiple advertising images may be requested. In response to the advertising image request, in S20, the advertising management server 500 sends an advertising image of the successful bidder, which is received and acquired by the advertisement providing server 100. The acquired advertising image is stored, for example, in the memory unit 115. The process executed in S20 is an example of a specific distribution information acquisition process, and the control unit 110 that executes S20 is an example of a specific distribution information acquisition unit.

[0032] In S21, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits to the printer 200 a block instruction to prohibit printing of any image other than a delivery image for printing (see S30 described below) based on the advertisement image acquired in S20. That is, as another feature of the present embodiment, when a delivery image for printing is predicted to be delivered to the printer 200, printing of any image other than the delivery image for printing is disabled, i.e., prohibited, in the printer 200. In this example, the "case when a delivery image for printing is predicted to be delivered to the printer 200" corresponds to the case when the advertisement image is received and acquired from the advertisement management server 500 in S20. The block instruction is an example of a disable instruction, the process executed in S21 is an example of a disable instruction transmission process, and the control unit 110 that executes S21 is an example of a disable processing unit.

[0033] When the printer 200 receives the block instruction of S21, the printer 200 transitions to a blocked state in S22, where printing other than the printing of the delivery image to be printed is disabled, i.e., prohibited. Then, in S23, a message indicating the transition to the blocked state is displayed. Specifically, for example, in response to a display signal output from the control unit 210 of the printer 200, a block notification screen 240A on the touch panel as shown in FIG. 4 is displayed on the display unit 240. In this example, the message "Preparing to print advertisement. Please try again after advertisement printing is complete" is displayed on the screen 240A. This notifies the printer 200 that the block instruction from the advertisement providing server 100 has transitioned to a blocked state, and that, as a result, normal printing instructions from the touch panel, i.e., printing instructions other than the delivery image to be printed, are not possible. Note that in addition to disabling printing based on touch panel operation, printing other than the delivery image to be printed from other terminals, including the terminal device 300, via the network NT may also be disabled. As for the mode of the notification, after the block instruction is issued as described above, the notification may be made without any particular user operation on the printer 200, or may be made in response to some operation on the printer 200. The control unit 210 of the printer 200 that executes S23 is an example of an invalidation notification unit.

[0034] Thereafter, in S140, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a billing notice to the advertisement management server 500 to request the successful bidder to pay a fee for printing the advertisement. In this manner, in this embodiment, the billing is performed after the successful bidder acquires the advertisement image in S20 described above and before transmitting the delivery image for printing in S30 described below. The process executed in S140 is an example of a billing notice transmission process, and the control unit 110 that executes S140 is an example of a billing notice unit.

[0035] In S145, the advertisement management server 500 receives the billing notice and transmits the billing notice to the terminal device or the like of the successful bidder.

[0036] Thereafter, in S24, the advertisement providing server 100 creates a print delivery image in which the information received in S20, including the advertisement image of the successful bidder, is arranged. The print delivery image may be the advertisement image itself acquired through bidding, or may have appropriate information added to it. For example, this also includes cases in which multiple advertisements are collectively distributed on a single print image. Instead of the advertisement providing server 100 creating the print delivery image, the advertisement management server 500 may create the print delivery image, and the advertisement providing server 100 may acquire the print delivery image. Instead of creating the print delivery image, print data for printing the print delivery image may be created in various page description languages. The process executed in S24 is an example of print delivery information generation processing.

[0037] In S25, the advertisement providing server 100 sets a deadline, which is one of the criteria for determining whether printing is successful or unsuccessful in the printer 200. In this embodiment, two types of deadlines are set: a first predetermined deadline and a second predetermined deadline by which the advertisement printing must be completed. For example, in cases where the value of the advertisement would drop significantly if printing is not completed within a certain time frame, such as in the case of a fresh food sales advertisement, the advertiser may have strict time constraints. In this embodiment, in order to accommodate this, in S25, the first predetermined deadline and the second predetermined deadline can be set as the time limit for completing advertisement printing in the printer 200. The different uses of the first predetermined deadline and the second predetermined deadline in the processing will be described later. Examples of setting the first predetermined deadline include, for example, setting it based on the remaining time, such as within 24 hours from the start of the timer counting in S27 described below, or setting it based on an end time, such as by 10:00 AM. The first predetermined deadline and the second predetermined deadline may be stored in the storage unit 115 in advance, or may be set in response to an instruction from the advertisement management server 500. Alternatively, the information may be added to the advertising image transmitted from the advertising management server 500 in S20. The first and second predetermined deadlines may be the same date and time, or the second predetermined deadline may be later than the first predetermined deadline. In S25, both the first and second predetermined deadlines may be set, or only one or two of them may be set.

[0038] In S27, the time count is started for the time limit set in S25.

[0039] In S30, a print instruction including the print delivery image created in S24 is delivered to printer 200. Note that this print instruction may include a command to stop the print process in printer 200 when a print cancel instruction is input in S97, S115, etc., described below, or when a printer error occurs in S75, described below. The process executed in S30 is an example of a delivery process.

[0040] In S35, the print instruction transmitted in S30 is received by the printer 200 and stored in the storage unit 215. Subsequently, the printing unit 270 starts printing the delivery image for printing included in the print instruction. In S30, the advertisement providing server 100 may transmit the delivery image for printing to the printer 200 via another relay device. Alternatively, instead of transmitting the delivery image for printing to the printer 200, the advertisement providing server 100 may transmit a page description language for printing the delivery image for printing or a link destination of the delivery image to the printer 200. If a link destination of the delivery image for printing is transmitted, the printer 200 accesses the link destination, acquires the delivery image for printing, and executes printing using the printing unit 270.

[0041] After S35, in S40, the advertisement providing server 100 starts a standby process for waiting for a print progress notification, which will be described later.

[0042] 3, in S45, the printer 200 determines whether printing of the delivery image for printing, including the advertisement image, started in S35 above, has been completed. If printing has been completed, a Yes determination is made and the process proceeds to S50, where the content of the print progress notification sent in S90, described below, is set to "printing successful." Thereafter, in S90, the print progress notification indicating "printing successful" is sent from the printer 200 and received by the advertisement providing server 100.

[0043] In the advertisement providing server 100, after the standby process is started in S40, the process proceeds to S95. In S95, it is determined whether the time elapsed since S27 reaches the first predetermined time limit set in S25 while the above-mentioned print progress notification has not been received, resulting in a timeout. For example, if the first predetermined time limit arrives before the print progress notification transmitted in S90 is received because the printing is not yet complete, S95 is determined to be Yes, and a print cancellation instruction is transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100 in S97 and received by the printer 200. After S97, the process proceeds to S120, which will be described later. Furthermore, if the user performs a print cancellation operation on the terminal device 300 while the printing is not yet complete, as described above, a corresponding print cancellation instruction is transmitted from the terminal device 300 in S65 and received by the printer 200.

[0044] In the printer 200, if a print cancel instruction is received in S97 or S65 as described above, S70 following S45 is judged as Yes, and processing proceeds to S80, which will be described later. In S80, to which processing proceeds when S70 is judged as Yes, the print delivery image received from the advertisement providing server 100 in S30 is deleted from the storage unit 215, and the print processing is stopped. The content of the print progress notification is then set to "print failed." Note that in this case, the print progress notification also includes information about the reason for the print failure, such as whether it was due to the first predetermined deadline or a user cancellation. If a print cancel instruction is not received, S70 is judged as No, and processing proceeds to S75. In S75, it is determined whether a printer error has occurred. A printer error is a state in which some kind of malfunction has occurred that makes it difficult to start or continue printing, such as a paper jam, ink consumables running out, an offline state in which the communication unit 260 of the printer 200 is not connected to the network NT, etc. If no printer error has occurred, S75 is judged as No, the process returns to S45, and printing continues until S45 is judged as Yes when printing is completed.

[0045] In S85, to which the process proceeds after S75 is judged as Yes, the content of the print progress notification is set to “printing incomplete.” In this case, the print progress notification also includes information about the printer error that caused the print incomplete, such as whether the print paper is jammed.

[0046] Thereafter, in S90 , a print progress notification indicating the progress of the process in the printer 200 , such as “printing successful”, “printing failed”, or “printing incomplete”, is sent from the printer 200 and received by the advertisement providing server 100 .

[0047] On the other hand, in the advertisement providing server 100, if the first predetermined deadline has not arrived in S95 above, a No determination is made, and the process proceeds to S100. In S100, the print progress notification transmitted from the printer 200 in S90 described above is received, and it is determined whether the time elapsed since S27 at the time of reception has reached the second predetermined deadline set in S25, resulting in a timeout. If the second predetermined deadline has arrived, a Yes determination is made in S100, and the process proceeds to S120, which will be described later. If the second predetermined deadline has not arrived, a No determination is made in S100, and the process proceeds to S110.

[0048] In S110, it is determined whether the print progress notification received from the printer 200 in S90 above is a notification indicating "printing incomplete." If the print progress notification is indicating "printing successful" or "printing failed," the determination is No, and processing proceeds to S117, which will be described later. If the print progress notification is indicating "printing incomplete," the determination is Yes, and in S115 a print cancellation instruction is sent from the advertisement providing server 100 and received by the printer 200. After S115, processing proceeds to S120, which will be described later. If the printer 200 receives a print cancellation instruction from the advertisement providing server 100 in S115, the delivery image to be printed sent in S30 is deleted from the storage unit 215, and the print processing is canceled. Then, the processing of the flow in FIG. 3 in the printer 200 ends.

[0049] In S117, it is determined whether the print progress notification received from printer 200 in S90 above was a notification indicating "printing failure." If the print progress notification indicates "printing failure," S117 is determined as Yes, and the process proceeds to S120, which will be described later. If the print progress notification indicates "printing success," the process proceeds to S150.

[0050] In S150, the advertisement providing server 100 links the print delivery image sent to the printer 200 in S30 with the printer ID of the corresponding printer 200, the user ID of the corresponding user, current time information, and the bidding conditions when the advertising image included in the print delivery image was won, and stores the results in the memory unit 115 as a success history.

[0051] Then, in S151, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits to the printer 200 an unblock instruction to instruct the printer 200 to release the blocked state based on the block instruction transmitted in S21, and the process ends. In this embodiment, after the transmission of the block instruction, the unblock instruction is transmitted when a predetermined condition is satisfied. In this example, the completion of printing of the successful bid advertisement image, specifically, the display of "printing successful," corresponds to an example of the predetermined condition being satisfied. Alternatively, the predetermined condition may be satisfied when an appropriate user operation is performed on the terminal device 300, or when a predetermined period of time has elapsed since S21. The unblock instruction is an example of an invalidation instruction, and the process executed in S151 is an example of an invalidation instruction transmission process.

[0052] When the unblock instruction is received in S151, the printer 200 releases the blocked state from S22 in S152 under the control of the control unit 210, the print invalidation is released, and printing of images other than the distribution image for printing becomes possible. Then, in S153, the display on the display unit 240 indicating the transition to the blocked state from S23 disappears. Then, the processing of the flow in FIG. 3 in the printer 200 ends.

[0053] On the other hand, in S120 following S97, S100, S115, and S117, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a successful bid cancellation notice to revoke the successful bid determined in S8, and the notice is received by the advertisement management server 500. The advertisement management server 500 notifies the advertiser who is the successful bidder for the advertisement of the cancellation of the successful bid.

[0054] In S130, the advertisement providing server 100 stores the print delivery image for which the successful bid was canceled in S120 as failure history in the memory unit 115, linking it to history information such as the successful bid conditions when the advertising image included in the print delivery image was successful, the aforementioned failure reason information, and the date and time of failure confirmation.

[0055] Thereafter, in S131, similar to S151 above, an unblock instruction is sent to instruct the release of the blocked state based on the block instruction sent in S21, and the process ends. This unblock instruction is also an example of an invalidation release instruction, and the process executed in S131 is also an example of an invalidation release instruction sending process.

[0056] When the printer 200 receives the unblock instruction of S131, the printer 200 unblocks the blocked state from S22 in S132 under the control of the control unit 210, the print invalidation is released, and printing of images other than the distribution image for printing becomes possible. Then, in S133, the display on the display unit 240 indicating the transition to the blocked state from S23 disappears. Then, the processing of the flow of FIG. 3 in the printer 200 ends.

[0057] <Effects of the Embodiment> As described above, in this embodiment, bidding is conducted for advertisements to be delivered to the printer 200, and advertisements are delivered to the printer 200 and printed according to the bidding results. In S5, executed by the control unit 110 of the advertisement providing server 100, a bid request is made to the advertisement management server 500, and in S8, an advertisement that wins the bid is determined from among the advertisement images received from the advertisement management server 500. In S20, executed by the control unit 110, the determined advertisement image is acquired, and a delivery image for printing based on the acquired advertisement image is delivered to the printer 200 in S30. In this embodiment, during the above flow, the control unit 110 transmits a billing notice in S140 before the printer 200 actually prints the delivery image for printing. That is, after acquiring the advertisement image in S20 and before delivering the delivery image for printing in S30, the control unit 110 transmits a billing notice to the advertisement management server 500 to request a fee corresponding to the delivery. According to this embodiment, the invoice for payment arrives before the actual printing is completed, so the advertiser can consider the printing to be equivalent to being completed at that point, and can quickly tally up the delivery and printing completion of the advertising image, advertising costs, etc., thereby improving convenience.

[0058] Furthermore, particularly in this embodiment, a delivery image for printing is generated in S24 based on the advertising image acquired in S20, and after S20 and before S24, a billing notice is sent to the advertising management server 500. By sending a billing notice to the advertising management server 500 after acquiring the advertising image in S20 and before generating the delivery image for printing, it is possible to reliably deliver a bill for remuneration to the advertiser before actual printing is completed.

[0059] Furthermore, in this embodiment, particularly when a delivery image to be printed is expected to be delivered to the printer 200, a block instruction is sent to the printer 200, disabling printing other than printing the delivery image to be printed. According to this embodiment, the printer 200 is prohibited from printing other images than the delivery image to be printed, and the delivery image to be printed is given top priority.

[0060] In particular, in this embodiment, when the successful bid advertisement image is acquired in S20, the user can be notified that the printer 200 is in a state in which printing other than the distribution image for printing is prohibited.

[0061] In particular, in this embodiment, after the block instruction is sent in S21, when a predetermined condition is satisfied, an unblock instruction is sent in S151 to unblock printer 200 from the blocked state based on the block instruction. According to this embodiment, even if printer 200 enters a blocked state in which printing other than the delivery image to be printed is prohibited based on the block instruction as described above, if a predetermined condition is subsequently satisfied, the block is unblocked and printer 200 can return to a normal state in which printing other than the delivery image to be printed is possible.

[0062] In particular, in this embodiment, the user can be notified by a display on the display unit 240 in S23 that the printing unit 270 is in a state where printing other than distribution images for printing based on advertising images is prohibited based on the block instruction.

[0063] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and technical concept of the present invention. Such modifications will be described below in order. The same reference numerals will be used to designate parts equivalent to those in the above-described embodiment, and descriptions thereof will be omitted or simplified as appropriate.

[0064] (1) Case where blocking is performed after a billing notice is transmitted In the above embodiment, a block instruction is transmitted to the printer 200 when an advertising image is received and acquired from the advertising management server 500 in S20 as a case where "a print delivery image is predicted to be delivered to the printer 200," but this is not limited to this. In this modified example, a block instruction is transmitted at a different timing.

[0065] FIG. 5 is a sequence flow corresponding to FIG. 2 of the above embodiment, showing control executed by cooperation between the advertisement providing server 100, advertisement management server 500, printer 200, and terminal device 300 in this modified example.

[0066] 5, in this modification, S21, S22, and S23 of FIG. 2 are omitted, and instead, S141, S142, and S143, which are similar processing contents, are added after S140. That is, in the advertisement providing server 100, after a billing notice is sent to the advertisement management server 500 in S140, a block instruction is sent to the printer 200 in the newly added S141 to prohibit printing of any image other than the distribution image for printing based on the advertisement image acquired in S20. The processing executed in S141 is an example of an invalidation instruction sending processing in this modification, and the control unit 110 that executes S141 is an example of an invalidation processing unit in this modification.

[0067] When the block instruction of S141 is received, the printer 200 transitions to a blocked state in S142, and printing other than printing of the distribution image for printing is disabled, i.e., prohibited. Then, in S143, a message indicating that the printer 200 has transitioned to the blocked state is displayed. The control unit 210 of the printer 200 that executes S143 is an example of a disablement notification unit in this modified example.

[0068] The subsequent processes in the advertisement providing server 100 from S25 onwards, the processes in the printer 200 from S35 onwards, etc. are the same as those in FIG. 2 described above, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

[0069] According to this modified example, when a billing notice is sent in S140 to request compensation for the distribution of the advertising image, the user can be notified that the printer 200 is in a state in which printing other than the distribution image for printing is prohibited.

[0070] (2) Case where blocking is performed when a bid request is transmitted In this modified example, a block instruction is transmitted at yet another timing, that is, "when a delivery image for printing is predicted to be delivered to the printer 200." Figure 6 is a sequence flow corresponding to Figure 2 of the above embodiment and Figure 5 of modified example (1), which shows control executed by cooperation between the advertisement providing server 100, the advertisement management server 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300 in this modified example.

[0071] 6, in this modification, S21, S22, and S23 of FIG. 2 are omitted, and instead, S11, S12, and S13, which are similar processing contents, are added after S5. That is, in the advertisement providing server 100, after a bid request is transmitted to the advertisement management server 500 in S5, a block instruction is transmitted to the printer 200 in the newly added S11 to prohibit printing of any image other than a delivery image for printing based on the advertisement image to be acquired in S20 (described later). The processing executed in S11 is an example of an invalidation instruction transmission processing in this modification, and the control unit 110 that executes S11 is an example of an invalidation processing unit in this modification.

[0072] When the block instruction of S11 is received, the printer 200 transitions to a blocked state in S12, and printing other than printing of the distribution image for printing is disabled, i.e., prohibited. Then, in S13, a message indicating that the printer 200 has transitioned to the blocked state is displayed. The control unit 210 of the printer 200 that executes S13 is an example of a disablement notification unit in this modified example.

[0073] The subsequent processes in the advertisement providing server 100 from S8 onwards, the processes in the advertisement management server 500 from S20 onwards, and the processes in the printer 200 from S35 onwards are the same as those in FIG. 2 described above, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0074] According to this modification, when the bid request is sent to the advertisement management server 500 in S5, the user can be notified that the printer 200 is in a state in which printing other than the distribution image for printing is prohibited.

[0075] (3) Alternatively, for example, in S97 and S115, instead of sending a print cancel instruction from the advertisement providing server 100, the print instruction of S30 may be sent again to the printer 200 a predetermined number of times or for a predetermined period of time. Alternatively, the print instruction may be sent repeatedly to the printer 200 until the advertisement providing server 100 receives a print progress notification indicating successful printing.

[0076] In the above description, as an example, the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a successful bid cancellation notice as successful bid withdrawal information to the advertisement management server 500 in S120 without invoicing the advertisement management server 500 in S140. However, this is not limiting. For example, if the above-mentioned expenses have been invoiced and the payment for the expenses has already been made by an external server, an instruction to refund the expenses may be transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 as successful bid withdrawal information. Alternatively, instead of this refund instruction, a compensation instruction to reduce other invoice amounts to be collected from the external server may be transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 as successful bid withdrawal information. Alternatively, if the above-mentioned expenses have been invoiced but the payment for the expenses has not yet been made by the external server, an instruction to suspend the payment may be transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 as successful bid withdrawal information. In either case, the transmission process performed by the advertisement providing server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 is an example of information transmission process. Although the above description has been given taking as an example a case where the transmission process of the successful bid withdrawal information is performed in real time each time a successful bid advertisement is determined in S8 of Fig. 2, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the successful bid withdrawal information may be transmitted by tallying and collectively collectively at a predetermined time interval, such as once at the beginning of each month.

[0077] In the above, the advertisement providing server 100, the terminal device 300, and the printer 200 perform each process to deliver the advertisement image, but which device (the advertisement providing server 100, the terminal device 300, or the printer 200) performs each process, i.e., how the roles are divided, can be freely changed as appropriate. For example, it is possible for the printer 200 to perform all of the processes.

[0078] Furthermore, the sequence flows shown in Figures 2, 3, 5, and 6 do not limit the present invention to the procedures shown in the above flows, and steps may be added, deleted, or the order may be changed within the scope that does not deviate from the spirit and technical concept of the invention.

[0079] In addition to the above, the methods according to the above embodiments and modifications may be used in appropriate combination.

[0080] Although not specifically illustrated, the present invention can be implemented with various modifications within the scope of the invention.

[0081] 1 Information distribution printing system 100 Advertisement providing server (an example of a distribution providing server) 110 Control unit 115 Storage unit 200 Printer (an example of a printing device) 500 Advertisement management server (an example of a distribution management server)

Claims

1. A distribution information providing server having a control unit that receives distribution information managed by a distribution information management server and distributes it to a printing device, wherein the control unit is configured to execute: a request sending process that sends a bid request for distribution information to the distribution information management server; an information determination process that determines specific distribution information that will be a successful bid from the distribution information received from the distribution information management server in response to the bid request sent in the request sending process; a specific distribution information acquisition process that acquires the specific distribution information determined in the information determination process; a distribution process that distributes printable distribution information based on the specific distribution information acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process to the printing device; and a claim notice sending process that, after acquiring the specific distribution information in the specific distribution information acquisition process and before distributing the printable distribution information in the distribution process, sends a claim notice to the distribution information management server to claim a remuneration corresponding to the distribution of the printable distribution information.

2. The distribution information providing server according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit is further configured to execute a print distribution information generation process that generates the print distribution information based on the specific distribution information acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process, and in the billing notice sending process, the billing notice is sent to the distribution information management server after the specific distribution information is acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process and before the print distribution information generation process.

3. The distribution information providing server according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to execute an invalidation instruction sending process for sending an invalidation instruction to the printing device to invalidate printing other than printing of the distribution information to be printed in the printing device when it is predicted that the distribution information to be printed will be distributed to the printing device.

4. The distribution information providing server according to claim 3, wherein the case where the print distribution information is predicted to be distributed to the printing device is when the specific distribution information is acquired in the specific distribution information acquisition process.

5. A distribution information providing server as described in claim 3, wherein the case where the print distribution information is predicted to be distributed to the printing device is when the billing notice is sent to the distribution information management server in the billing notice sending process.

6. The control unit of the distribution information providing server of claim 3 predicts that the print distribution information will be distributed to the printing device when the bid request is sent to the distribution information management server in the request sending process.

7. The distribution information providing server of claim 3, wherein the control unit is further configured to execute an invalidation cancellation instruction sending process for sending an invalidation cancellation instruction to the printing device to cancel the invalidation in the printing device based on the invalidation instruction when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the invalidation instruction is sent.

8. An information distribution printing system comprising: a request sending unit that sends a bid request for distribution information; an information determination unit that determines specific distribution information that will be a successful bid from the distribution information received in response to the bid request sent by the request sending unit; a specific distribution information acquisition unit that acquires the specific distribution information determined by the information determination unit; a printing unit that prints an image based on the specific distribution information acquired by the specific distribution information acquisition unit; and a claim notification unit that sends a claim notification to request a fee for printing the image after the specific distribution information acquisition unit acquires the specific distribution information and before the printing unit prints the image based on the specific distribution information.

9. An information distribution printing system as described in claim 8, further comprising an invalidation processing unit that, when printing of the image based on the specific distribution information in the printing unit is predicted, invalidates printing in the printing unit other than printing of the image based on the specific distribution information.

10. An information distribution printing system as described in claim 9, further comprising: an invalidation notification unit that transmits an invalidation notification informing that printing other than printing of the image based on the specific distribution information in the printing unit has been invalidated by the invalidation processing unit.

Images