Printer Expendable Amount Deriving Unit for Ad Cost Reimbursement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face excessive costs for printing advertisements due to the high consumption of expendable items like ink and paper, especially when printing variable-sized images, as existing systems lack precise tracking and reimbursement mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A contents providing system that includes a communication unit, print control unit, and expendable amount deriving unit to accurately measure and store the amount of expendable items used for printing advertisement images based on their size, allowing for precise cost calculation and reimbursement to users.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the printer prints contents data from Internet sites including advertisements, then the user can obtain variety of information in printed material form, but the cost for advertisement printing is excessively burdened to the user
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback by having the printer automatically transmit print status information (including image size and position data) back to the contents providing site. This enables the site to calculate and reimburse actual expendable item consumption based on real printing data, resolving the contradiction by making cost burden proportional to actual usage while maintaining ease of information access
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the parameter of cost calculation from fixed per-print charges to variable charges based on actual image size and position. By analyzing the print status information to determine the area of advertisement images, the system dynamically adjusts cost reimbursement parameters to match actual consumable usage, thereby reducing user burden while preserving operational ease
2Adaptability or versatility
If the printer prints advertisement images of various sizes, then the advertisement can adapt to different content requirements, but the existing system cannot precisely track and reimburse expendable item consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The printer transmits detailed print status information including image size and position data back to the contents providing site. This feedback mechanism enables precise measurement of actual advertisement image consumption, allowing the system to accurately track expendable item usage for variable-sized images and provide corresponding reimbursement
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces manual estimation of advertisement consumption with automated digital measurement. By using print status information containing image position and size data, the system digitally calculates the area of advertisement images and determines expendable item consumption accordingly, achieving precise tracking without mechanical complexity
Data Source
AI summary
A contents providing system includes a communication unit, a print control unit, an expendable amount deriving unit and an expendable amount storing control unit. The communication unit communicates with a contents server having contents data. The print control unit controls a printer to print the contents data and output a printed material imaging the contents data if the communication unit receives the contents data from the contents server. The expendable amount deriving unit derives an amount of an expendable item required for imaging the contents data in the printer. The expendable amount deriving unit derives the amount of the expendable item in accordance with a size of an image printed by the printer. The expendable amount storing control unit stores information representing the amount of the expendable item derived by the expendable amount deriving unit in a memory unit.