JP2002342061A - Image forming system and method, computer readable recording medium having the program recorded thereon, image forming apparatus and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent secret leakage even when data stored in an image forming apparatus are referred to. SOLUTION: When printing ciphered printing data transmitted to the image forming apparatus, a deciphering key to be used for deciphering them is requested to a host device (S308 and S309), the deciphering processing of the printing data is performed by using the key (S310) and a printing processing is carried out (S311).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an image forming system comprising a host device having a print data security function and an image forming apparatus, a method thereof, and an image forming apparatus constituting the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 09-223061 proposes that as a means for preventing the leakage of confidential print data, if the data is confidential data, the data is deleted after execution of the processing. . (Prior art 1) In this conventional data erasing, only FAT, which is index information for managing data storage position and the like, is erased, but confidentiality is enhanced by erasing the data itself. . Also, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 06-124178
In the official gazette, the encrypted print data includes a user ID,
It has been proposed that a key code and an encryption ID are added to the data and transmitted to the printer, and the printer decrypts and prints the print data encrypted based on the user ID and the like. (Prior art 2)

[0003]

However, in the prior art 1, there is a problem that the confidential information may be leaked when the print data is stored in the spool until the print processing is executed. . Further, in the above-mentioned prior art 2, since the data necessary for decryption is added to the encrypted data, if the data is decrypted by taking out a device for storing the encrypted data, for example,
There is a problem that it may be decrypted.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming system capable of preventing confidential leakage even when data stored in an image forming apparatus is referred to, a method thereof, and a method thereof Is to provide an image forming apparatus.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an image forming system according to claim 1 comprises at least one host device and at least one image forming device. An image forming system capable of communicating with a wireless or wired network, wherein the host device encrypts print data and generates a decryption key thereof,
A print request unit for adding a job ID for specifying the encrypted print data to the image forming apparatus and transmitting the job data to the image forming apparatus; and a decryption key storage for storing the job ID and the decryption key in association with each other. Means for searching the decryption key storage means based on the job ID received from the image forming apparatus, and transmitting a corresponding decryption key to the image forming apparatus. A data storage means for storing the encrypted print data received from the host device and the job ID in association with each other;
And a decryption key requesting unit for requesting the decryption key by transmitting the encrypted print data corresponding to the decryption key based on the decryption key received from the host device. And a printing means for forming the image. As a result, since the decryption key used for decrypting the encrypted print data does not exist in the image forming apparatus until immediately before printing, the image forming apparatus main body or its data storage means is stolen or printed via the network. Even if the data is peeped, a higher level of confidentiality can be maintained.
In addition, in the image forming system according to the second aspect, the print request unit of the host device specifies a confidential number that specifies a user who has output the encrypted print data. And transmits the confidential number to the image forming apparatus, and the data storage unit associates the confidential No. with the encrypted print data. And the decryption key requesting means sends the confidential number from the input means provided in the image forming apparatus. The job ID corresponding to the input is retrieved from the data storage means and transmitted. As a result, the confidential No. The user who knows the print data, for example, the user who output the print data, prints the data only by directly operating the image forming apparatus. Leakage of confidential information can be prevented, and confidentiality can be increased. According to a third aspect of the present invention, the image forming system according to the first aspect is regarded as an image forming method. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus constituting the image forming system according to the first aspect. According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the image forming apparatus constituting the image forming system according to the first aspect is regarded as a program executed by the image forming apparatus. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the host device constituting the image forming system according to the first aspect is regarded as a computer-readable recording medium for recording a program executed by the host device.

[0005]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings to provide an understanding of the present invention. It should be noted that the following embodiments are examples embodying the present invention, and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. Here, FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printer and a personal computer that constitute the image forming system A according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a process from print job generation to printing in the image forming system A according to the embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure up to reception, FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a printing process in the image forming system A according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure in the image forming system A according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a completion process after printing is completed. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a data configuration of a print job transmitted from a personal computer constituting the image forming system A according to the embodiment of the present invention.

First, referring to FIG. 1, the present image forming system A
Will be described. In the image forming system A, a printer 1 as an example of an image forming apparatus and a personal computer 2 as an example of a host device are communicably connected by a LAN 3. Here, the image forming apparatus constituting the image forming system A is the printer 1 as an example, but the image forming apparatus to which the present invention can be applied includes a copying machine, a facsimile, and the like. Similarly, the host device is exemplified by the personal computer 2, but the host device to which the present invention can be applied may be a portable terminal such as an electronic organizer or a workstation. (Personal computer 2) The personal computer 2 includes an operation display unit 20 including a CRT display and a keyboard, a network interface 21 for controlling communication with the printer 1, and a data storage unit 22 such as a hard disk.
And a control unit 23 including an MPU, a main memory, and peripheral devices thereof. The detailed configuration of the personal computer 2 is a well-known configuration and will not be described here. Only the printer driver 24 that controls a print request to the printer 1 will be described below in detail. The printer driver 24 is a program that is installed in the data storage unit 22 and is developed in the main memory of the control unit 23 when the personal computer 2 is started.
As shown in FIG. 1, the printer driver 24 includes a job generation function 25, an encryption function 26, a print request function 27,
It has a decryption key transmission function 28 and a job deletion function 29. When the user of the personal computer 2 inputs a command to print data such as a document through various application programs installed on the personal computer 2, the job generating function 25 performs printing including the print data. This function generates a print job as request information. As shown in FIG. 5, the print job 30 is
And a confidential number that identifies the user of the personal computer 2 that has input the print command.
, Encryption / non-encryption information indicating whether or not the added print data has been encrypted, a host address specifying the personal computer 2 that has transmitted the print job 30, and the print data. The job ID is used to identify each print job 30, and is automatically generated by the job generation function 25. The confidential N
o. Is, for example, a user ID or the like that specifies the user, and is set by the user from the operation display unit 20 or is not set (the user is confidential No.
If you do not wish to enter the
A predetermined initial value such as "FFFF" is automatically set. The host address is information in which address information uniquely identifying each personal computer is set in each personal computer 2 in advance. When the user has input that the print data is encrypted, an identifier indicating that encryption is performed is stored, and otherwise, an identifier indicating that encryption is not performed is stored. In the case of, the print data is processed by the encryption function 26 described later, and the encrypted data obtained thereby is used as the print data.
When the job generation function 25 requests to encrypt the print data, the print data is encrypted and a decryption key required to decrypt the encrypted print data is generated. is there. The encryption method includes, for example, DES (Data Encryption Standard)
An algorithm or the like is conceivable, but another method may be used. The print request function 27 is a function of transmitting a print job 30 to the printer 1 and storing the job ID included in the print job 30 and the decryption key in the data storage unit 22 in association with each other. The decryption key transmission function 28
In response to a later-described decryption key request notification transmitted from the printer 1 by designating the job ID,
Is a function of reading out the decryption key corresponding to the job ID from the data storage unit 22 and transmitting the decryption key to the printer 1 together with the job ID. The job deletion function 29 is a function for deleting the decryption key corresponding to the job ID from the data storage unit 22 in response to a print end notification transmitted from the printer 1 by specifying the job ID. It is.

(Printer 1) The printer 1 includes an operation display unit 10 such as a liquid crystal touch panel, a network I / F 11 for controlling communication of the LAN 3, a data storage unit 12 as a storage device such as a hard disk, and various types of printing. The control unit 13 includes a control unit 13 for performing control and an image forming unit 14 for forming an image such as toner on a recording medium such as paper. The control unit 13 includes an MPU (not shown), a main memory, and peripheral devices thereof. The MPU is configured to execute a print reception function 15, a decryption key request function 16, and a decryption function 17, the print output function 18 is configured to be executed. These functions may be configured to be executed by individual circuits. Although the printer 1 has other components related to image formation, these components are known and will not be described here. When the print accepting function 15 receives the print job 30 from the personal computer 2, the print accepting function 15
0 is sequentially registered in the data storage unit 12.
At this time, the confidential number is assigned to the print job 30. Is specified (not a predetermined initial value), the print job 30 is registered in a predetermined normal job area of the data storage unit 12, otherwise, the print job 30 is stored in a predetermined confidential job area. register. The print output function 18 is a function of outputting the print job 30 stored in the data storage unit 12 to the image forming unit 14 while sequentially converting the print job 30 into image data. At this time, the confidential number is displayed on the operation display unit 10. Is input, the confidential number is input. And the same confidential No. If the print job 30 registered in the confidential job area is not included, the print job 30 registered in the normal job area is read. That is, the print job 30 registered in the confidential job area includes the confidential job No. contained therein. Is printed only when the user who knows the user (the user who has output the print job 30) directly operates the printer 2. Further, when the print job 30 is encrypted (the encryption presence / absence information indicates that encryption is present), the job ID included in the print job 30 is delivered to the decryption function 17 and the Is requested to decode the print data, and the decoded data is converted into the image data. further,
When the transmission of the image data to the image forming unit 14 is completed, the job ID corresponding to the transmission of the image data is transferred to the print end notification function 19. The decryption function 17
The job ID obtained from the print output function 18 is transferred to the decryption key request function 16, the corresponding decryption key is requested, and based on the decryption key obtained from the decryption request function 16, the printing This is a function for decrypting the encrypted print data in the data storage unit 12 corresponding to the job ID obtained from the output function 18 and transferring the decrypted print data to the print output function 18. The decryption key request function 16 reads the host address corresponding to the job ID from the data storage unit 12 based on the job ID obtained from the decryption function 17 and sends the read host address to the personal computer 2 specified by the host address. , A function of transmitting the decryption key request notification. The decryption key request notification includes a predetermined decryption key request code indicating that the decryption key is required, and the job ID obtained from the decryption function 17. Further, the decryption key received from the personal computer 2 is delivered to the decryption unit. At this time, the confidential number is displayed on the operation display unit 10. It is determined whether or not the confidential No. has been input. Handover. The print end notification function 19 transmits the print end notification including the job ID obtained from the print output function 18 and a predetermined print end code indicating that printing has ended to the personal computer 2, This function notifies that the printing of the job has been completed.

(Print Job Generation-Print Acceptance) Next, FIG.
The processing procedure from generation of the print job 30 by the personal computer 2 to acceptance of the print by the printer 1 will be described with reference to FIG. Hereinafter, S101, S102,... Represent each processing procedure (step). At the start of FIG. 2, print data such as a document file is generated, and the confidential It is assumed that necessary input by the user, such as the input of a print command, has already been made via the operation display unit 20 and a print command has been input. First, in the personal computer 2, the job ID for specifying each print command is generated in S101, and the process proceeds to S102. In S102, the confidential No. is added to the print data. It is determined whether or not an input to add the confidential No. has been made. Is acquired (S103), and the process proceeds to S105. Otherwise, S1
04 and the confidential No. Is the initial value (for example, "F
FFF "), the process proceeds to S105. S1
In step 05, it is determined whether or not the input for encrypting the print data has been made. If the input for encrypting has been made, the encryption of the print data is performed by the predetermined encryption method. (S106), and
The decryption key generated by the encryption is the job I
After being stored in the data storage unit 22 in association with D, the process proceeds to S108. If it is determined in S105 that the input to perform the encryption has not been made, the process directly proceeds to S108. In S108, the job ID and the confidential No. After the print job 30 including the encryption / non-encryption information and the print data is transmitted to the printer 1, the process ends. The above processing is executed every time a print command is input by the user. S101 to S105 are performed by the print job generation function 25, and S106 is performed by the encryption function 2.
6, S107 to S108 are respectively executed by the print request function 27.

On the other hand, the printer 1 is in a waiting state for receiving the print job 30. Then, when the print job 30 is received (S201), the process proceeds to S202, and the confidential No. included in the print job 30 is changed. Is specified (whether the value is not the initial value). Here, the confidential No. Is determined to be designated, the print job 30 is registered in the confidential job area (S204); otherwise, the print job 30 is registered in the normal job area (S203), and the process ends. . The above processing is executed each time the print job 30 is received, and S201 to S204 are executed by the print accepting function 15.

(Print Process) Next, the print process of the print job 30 received by the printer 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The printing process described below is started when the print job 30 is stored in the data storage unit 12, and is sequentially repeated until the print job 30 in the data storage unit 12 is exhausted. When the print job 30 exists in the data storage unit 12, first, S
In 301, it is determined whether or not printing is being performed based on, for example, a busy signal output by the image forming unit 14 during printing. If it is determined that printing is being performed, the process waits (loops) until printing is completed. If it is determined in S301 that printing is not being performed (printing has been completed), the process proceeds to S302. In S302, the confidential number by the user is displayed on the operation display unit 10. Is determined, and if it is determined that the input has been made, S3
Move to 04. In S304, the confidential job area is referred to, and the inputted confidential No. is input. The same confidential No. as above. The print job 30 that includes
Move to 6. In S306, the corresponding print job 3
If it is determined that 0 exists, the print job 3
The printing process is executed in step S307 for 0. S3
06, it is determined that the corresponding print job 30 does not exist. Is discarded and S30
It returns to the process of 1. In S302, the confidential number. If it is determined that is not input, the normal job area is referred to, and it is determined whether or not the print job 30 exists there. (S305) Here, if the print job 30 exists, the printing process is executed for the first registered print job 30 after S307. In S305, the print job 30
If it is determined that does not exist, the process returns to S301. In S307, it is determined whether or not the data is encrypted based on the encryption presence / absence information included in the print job 30. If the data is not encrypted, the process proceeds to S311 and is included in the print job 30. The print data is directly output to the image forming unit 14 and printed.
If it is determined in step S307 that the print job 30 is encrypted, the process advances to step S308.
The decryption key request notification is transmitted to the personal computer 2. Further, when the decryption key is received from the personal computer 2 in S309, the print data included in the print job 30 is decrypted using the decryption key, and the decrypted print data is output to the image forming unit 14 and printed. S301 to S30
7 and S311 are executed by the print output function 18, the processing of S308 and S309 are executed by the decryption key requesting function 16, and the processing of S310 is executed by the decryption function 17.

On the other hand, when the personal computer 2 receives the decryption key request notification from the printer (S40).
1) In response, the data storage unit 22 is searched (S402), and the corresponding decryption key is read and returned to the printer 1. (S403) These processes of S401 to S403 are executed by the encryption key transmitting function 28. As described above, the decryption key used to decrypt the encrypted print job 30 is:
Since the printer 1 does not exist in the printer 1 until immediately before printing, the printer 1 or its data storage device 12 is stolen while the encrypted (desired to be confidential) print data is stored, or the print job 30 is transmitted via the network. A higher level of confidentiality is possible, even if peeped. Further, the confidential No. With the processing function of (1), the user who has output the print data can print the data only by directly operating the printer 1. Leakage of confidential information can be prevented, and confidentiality can be increased. The confidential No. Even if the printer does not have a function of controlling the printing of the print job 30, the decryption key does not exist on the printer side except during printing, so that confidential leakage can be prevented even if the data storage unit is referred to. No matter what.

(Print Completion Processing) Next, the print completion processing after printing is completed will be described with reference to FIG. When the output of the image data to the image forming unit 14 is completed on the printer 1 side, the printing end notification including the corresponding job ID is transmitted to the personal computer in S501, and then the corresponding printing is performed in S502. The job 30 is deleted from the data storage unit 12, and the process ends. The processing of S501 and S502 is executed by the print end notification function 19. On the other hand, upon receiving the print end notification (S601), the personal computer 2 determines whether or not the decryption key corresponding to the job ID included in the print end notification exists in the data storage unit 22. Is determined (S602), and if there is, the decryption key is deleted and the process ends. If not, the process ends. The processing of S601 to S603 is executed by the job deletion function 29. As a result of the print completion processing, all the data for which printing has been completed, including the decryption key, is deleted, and the confidentiality is further improved.

[0013]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Even if data stored in the image forming apparatus is referred to, confidential leakage can be prevented. Further, the confidential No. By controlling printing, the printed matter can be prevented from being seen by others, and the confidentiality can be further improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an image forming system A according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printer and a personal computer that constitute a computer.

FIG. 2 is an image forming system A according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure from generation of a print job to reception of a print in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an image forming system A according to the embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a printing process in FIG.

FIG. 4 is an image forming system A according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a completion process after printing is completed in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a data configuration of a print job transmitted from a personal computer configuring the image forming system A according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printer 2 ... Personal computer 3 ... LAN10, 20 ... Operation display part 11, 21 ... Network interface 12, 22 ... Data storage part 13, 23 ... Control part 14 ... Image forming part 15 ... Print reception function 16 ... Decryption key request Function 17 ... Decryption function 18 ... Print output function 19 ... Print end notification function 24 ... Printer driver 25 ... Job generation function 26 ... Encryption function 27 ... Print request function 28 ... Decryption key transmission function 29 ... Job deletion function 30 ... Print job S101, S102, ... step

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An image forming system in which at least one host device and at least one image forming device can communicate with each other, the host device encrypts print data and generates a decryption key for the print data. A print request unit for adding a job ID for specifying the encrypted print data to the image forming apparatus and transmitting the job ID to the image forming apparatus; and a decryption unit for storing the job ID and the decryption key in association with each other. Key storage means,
A decryption key transmitting unit that searches the decryption key storage unit based on the job ID received from the image forming apparatus and transmits a corresponding decryption key to the image forming apparatus; A forming apparatus configured to transmit the encrypted print data and the job ID received from the host apparatus;
A data storage unit that stores the job IDs in association with each other, a decryption key requesting unit that requests the decryption key by transmitting the job ID to the host device, and a decryption key that is received from the host device. And a printing means for decoding the encrypted print data corresponding thereto and forming an image on a recording medium. 2. The print request means of the host device,
A confidential No. identifying the user who has output the encrypted print data. And transmits the confidential number to the image forming apparatus, and the data storage unit associates the confidential No. with the encrypted print data. And the decryption key requesting means sends the confidential number from the input means provided in the image forming apparatus. 2. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the job ID corresponding to the job ID is retrieved from the data storage unit and transmitted. 3. An image forming method in an image forming system in which at least one host device and at least one image forming device can communicate with each other, wherein the host device encrypts print data and uses a decryption key for the print data. An encryption procedure to be generated, a print request procedure to add a job ID for specifying the encrypted print data to transmit the encrypted print data to the image forming apparatus, and associate the job ID with the decryption key. A decryption key storing procedure for storing the decryption key in the storage unit, and searching the pre-storage unit based on the job ID received from the image forming apparatus, and transmitting the corresponding decryption key to the image forming apparatus. Executing a key transmission procedure, and
A print accepting procedure for storing the encrypted print data received from the host device and the job ID in a storage unit in association with each other, and transmitting the job ID to the host device to store the decryption key. Based on the decryption key request procedure requested and the decryption key received from the host device by the decryption key request procedure, decrypt the corresponding encrypted print data to form an image on a recording medium. And an image forming method. 4. An image forming apparatus capable of communicating with a host device, wherein the data storage means stores the encrypted print data received from the host device and a job ID for specifying the encrypted print data in association with each other; A decryption key requesting unit for transmitting the job ID to the apparatus and requesting a decryption key for the encrypted print data; and a cipher corresponding to the decryption key based on the decryption key received from the host apparatus. An image forming apparatus comprising: a printing unit that decodes the converted print data to form an image on a recording medium. 5. A program for an image forming apparatus capable of communicating with a host device, wherein the encrypted print data received from the host device and a job ID for specifying the encrypted print data are stored in a storage unit in association with each other. A decryption key requesting procedure for transmitting the job ID to the host device and requesting a decryption key for the encrypted print data; and a decryption key received from the host device. And a printing procedure for decrypting the encrypted print data and forming an image on a recording medium corresponding to the decrypted print data. 6. A computer-readable recording medium in which a program to be executed by a computer constituting an image forming system capable of communicating with one or more computers and one or more image forming apparatuses is recorded. An encryption procedure for encrypting the print data and generating a decryption key thereof;
A print request procedure for adding a job ID specifying the job ID and transmitting the job ID to the image forming apparatus, a decryption key storing procedure for storing the job ID and the decryption key in a storage device in association with each other, The job I received from the device
A computer-readable recording medium storing a program for executing a decryption key transmission procedure of searching the storage unit based on D and transmitting the corresponding decryption key to the image forming apparatus.