Image Forming Apparatus Job Interface with Restricted Editing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional image forming apparatuses connected to networks lack adequate security measures to prevent unauthorized access and display of confidential job information, allowing users to inadvertently reveal sensitive details about registered jobs.
Innovation Solution
A user interface that acquires and edits job information, limiting specific items from being edited or displayed, ensuring that only authorized users can access and modify their own job information, incorporating a job information acquisition unit, editing function selection unit, and job information display unit to restrict access and visibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If all job information is displayed together for sorting and editing, then the execution sequence can be managed, but security is compromised as confidential documents can be accessed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments job information display by user, showing only the user's own job information rather than all jobs. This segmentation prevents users from viewing confidential documents belonging to other users while still allowing effective job management and sorting for their own jobs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different display qualities to different users - each user sees only their own job information with full editing capabilities, while other users' information is completely hidden. This local quality approach ensures security without compromising the operational effectiveness for authorized users.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If job information is limited according to confirming person, then security is improved, but execution sequence of limited jobs is revealed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the harmful element (execution sequence information of other users' jobs) from the display. By showing only the current user's jobs, the execution sequence of other users' confidential jobs cannot be inferred, eliminating the security vulnerability while preserving necessary job management functionality.
3Ease of operation
If sorting function is applied to all job information, then jobs can be organized by execution sequence, but security is compromised as all job information becomes visible
Solution Approach 1:
The sorting function is segmented to operate only on the current user's job information. This allows effective organization and management of the user's own jobs by execution sequence while completely excluding other users' confidential job information from the sorting process and display.
Data Source
AI summary
A user interface which displays information regarding a job registered in an image forming apparatus includes a job information acquisition unit which acquires information regarding the job, an editing function selection unit which acquires selection of an editing function to the information regarding the job by a user, a job information editing unit which carries out the selected editing function to the information regarding the job, limiting the editing of a predetermined item of the information regarding the job, and a job information display unit which displays the edited job information.