JP2008159022A - Order supporting system, order supporting apparatus, device monitoring apparatus, order supporting method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an order supporting system simplifying the replenishing operation of consumption articles of the device. <P>SOLUTION: This order supporting system comprises an device monitoring apparatus that acquires device information on the device to be monitored from the devices connected to network and state information of the consumption articles, determines shortage of the consumption articles based on the state information of the consumption articles, and transmits the device information about the consumption articles whose shortage is determined and the state information of the consumption articles to an order supporting apparatus, and the order supporting apparatus that receives the device information about the consumption articles whose shortage is determined and the state information, prepares an E-mail with a URL showing a Web page for ordering the consumption articles related to the state information, and transmits it to a mail address previously associated to the device and registered. The order supporting system has a first determining means for determining whether the device is to be supported by a maintenance contract for replenishing the consumption articles. The device determined to be supported by the maintenance contract is not monitored. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ordering support system, an ordering support apparatus, an equipment monitoring apparatus, an ordering support method, and a program, and more particularly, an ordering support system, an ordering support apparatus, an equipment monitoring apparatus, an ordering support method, and a program that support ordering of consumables for equipment. About.

  A company office is connected to a plurality of devices such as a printer, a copier, a facsimile machine, or a multi-function machine that realizes these functions in a single housing via a network.

  All of the above-mentioned devices are provided with consumables that are consumed by using the device, and their functions are maintained by appropriately replacing the consumables. For example, in the case of a printer, toner, a fixing unit, a waste toner bottle, a photoconductor, a developer, or the like is equivalent, and these are generally called supplies.

Since it is difficult to identify the consumption level of the supply from the outside of the device, the user recognizes that the toner has run out when the printing is instructed and an error is notified, and the toner is replaced. In order to reduce such work by the user, technology that detects the life of the supply inside the device, displays information about the supply on the operation panel and prints on paper, and a signal that indicates that the device itself needs to replace the supply. A technique has been proposed in which maintenance is sent to the office where the equipment is installed and a supply is automatically ordered according to the remaining amount of the supply.
JP-A-10-198236 JP 2003-345560 A GB Patent Publication No. GB 2341698

  However, even if the life of the supply is detected, if the user himself or herself performs subsequent supply ordering or supply replacement, the ordering procedure must be performed after accurately confirming the model number of the supply to be replaced. For this reason, the user is forced to perform complicated work before ordering the supply. In addition, even when it is desired to place an order first, there is a problem that the orderable time depends on the business hours of the business office of the ordering party depending on the business day, business hours, etc. of the ordering party. There was also a problem that personnel costs and delivery costs related to ordering increased.

  In general, various types of devices are arranged in the office, but the supply mode may differ depending on the devices. For example, it is not necessary to pay a purchase fee each time supply is supplied for a multifunction device by entering into a maintenance contract that includes delivery costs for supply shipments. However, for a single device such as a facsimile, printer, scanner, or copier, supply replacement This is the case when the user confirms the necessary supplies and places an order each time. In this case, according to the technology that automatically orders the supply as described above, it is possible to save the trouble of ordering the supply every time the supply is replaced, but it is necessary to purchase the equipment supported by the maintenance contract. There was a risk that double purchases would occur due to the purchase of supplies that did not exist.

  The present invention has been made in view of at least one of the above-mentioned problems, and an order support system, an order support apparatus, an apparatus monitoring apparatus, an order support method, and an order support system capable of simplifying the supply work of consumables for equipment. The purpose is to provide a program.

  Therefore, in order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention acquires device information and consumable status information of a device to be monitored from devices connected to a network, and stores consumable status information from the consumable status information. A device monitoring device that determines the shortage, transmits device information related to the consumables determined to be insufficient and state information of the consumables to the ordering support device, and includes device information related to the consumables determined to be insufficient and the status information. The order support apparatus that receives and creates an e-mail containing a URL indicating a Web page for ordering consumables according to the status information, and transmits the e-mail to an e-mail address registered in advance associated with the device; An order support system comprising: first determination means for determining whether the device is a device that can be a target of a maintenance contract related to supply of consumables; Device is determined to be about target which may be device is characterized in that not the monitoring target.

  Such an ordering support system can simplify the replenishment work of the consumables of the equipment.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an ordering support system, an ordering support apparatus, an equipment monitoring apparatus, an ordering support method, and a program that can simplify the replenishment work of equipment consumables.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of an ordering support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the order support system 1 includes an order support server 10, a client PC 20, devices 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d, and the like (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “device 30”) as components. The ordering support server 10 is installed at an ordering site (supplier side of the consumables of the device 30, for example, the manufacturer of the device 30), and the client PC and the device 30 are user sites (the user side of the device 30, for example, the office Etc.). The order support server 10 and the client PC 20 are connected by a wide area network such as the Internet. Further, the client 20 and the device 30 are connected via a network (whether wired or wireless) such as a LAN (Local Area Network) provided at the user site.

  The device 30 is, for example, a device (image forming apparatus) that forms an image by consuming toner, ink, or the like, such as a general printer or a multifunction device. In the present embodiment, the device 30 corresponds to MIB (Management Information Base), and can respond to an MIB information acquisition request received via a network based on SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol). is there. In the present embodiment, the device 30 can detect the status information of the consumables. The status information may be qualitative (normal / near end / end) or quantitative (100%, 90%,... 10%, 0%). .

  The client PC 20 is a general-purpose computer, and the monitoring program 21 is installed. The monitoring program 21 may be installed from a recording medium 502 such as a CD-ROM, or may be downloaded via a network. As will be described later, in the present embodiment, it is downloaded via the network 40.

  In FIG. 1, the monitoring program 21 includes a UI application 211 and a monitoring service 212. The UI application 211 is an application that is started as a separate process from the monitoring service 212 and provides a GUI (Graphical User Interface) regarding the function of the monitoring service 212. The UI application 211 displays, for example, a screen for setting setting information for the monitoring service 212, a screen for displaying device information acquired by the monitoring service 212, and the like.

  The monitoring service 212 is a program that is activated as a daemon process, and is loaded into the memory of the client PC 20 and processed by the CPU, thereby causing the client PC 20 to execute the following functions. FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining an overview of functions that the monitoring service causes the client PC to execute.

  The client PC 20 periodically acquires device information (MIB information) from each device 30 based on the monitoring service 212 (S301). The device information includes information (status information) for identifying the status of the consumables used by the device 30, for example, toner status and total counter value (total number of printed sheets). In addition, information indicating the state of other consumables, specifically, a fixing unit, a waste toner bottle, a photoconductor, a developer, or the like may be included. As a result of the acquisition, when the status information of the consumables included in the device information is qualitative information (that is, normal / near end / end) (“qualitative information” in S302), near end or end information (hereinafter, “ (Generally referred to as “end”) (Yes in S303), it is determined that the consumable is insufficient (S304), and the device information of the device 30 is transmitted to the ordering support server 10 (S305). On the other hand, as a result of acquiring the device information, if the state information is quantitative information (that is, 100%, 90%,... 10%, 0%) (“quantitative information” in S302), a predetermined information It is checked whether it is below the threshold (30% or less) (S306), and if it is below (Yes in S306), it is determined that the consumable is insufficient (S304), and the device information of the device 30 is stored in the ordering support server 10. (S305).

  In this embodiment, an example in which the client PC 20 detects a shortage of consumables will be described. However, the order support server 10 may perform the detection. In this case, the client PC 20 transmits the device information of all the devices 30 to the ordering support server 10. Therefore, from the viewpoint of reducing the network load, it is preferable to transmit only the device information of the device in which the shortage is detected in the client PC 20 to the ordering support server 10 as in the present embodiment.

  The client PC 20 is also installed with a mailer for sending and receiving e-mails, a web browser for browsing web pages, and the like.

  The ordering support server 10 is a general-purpose computer, has a function as a Web server, and has an ordering support program 11 installed. The order support program 11 may be installed from a recording medium 501 such as a CD-ROM, or may be downloaded via a network.

  The order support program 11 is loaded into the memory of the order support server 10 and processed by the CPU, thereby causing the order support server 10 to execute the following functions. In other words, based on the order support program 11, the e-mail creating means of the order support server 10 promotes the supply of the missing consumables (hereinafter referred to as “supply”) based on the device information received from the client PC 20. An e-mail to be created is sent to a pre-registered user's e-mail address. The e-mail describes the URL for the supply ordering Web page (hereinafter referred to as “supply ordering page”) determined to be insufficient. The order support server 10 also returns a supply order page in response to an HTTP request transmitted based on the click of the URL, and further receives a supply order request based on the supply order page. In response to the supply order request, the order support server 10 transmits a supply order instruction to an article order management system (not shown).

  The order support server 10 also includes a device information table 12, a supply information table 13, and the like. Details of the device information table 12 and the supply information table 13 will be described later.

  Hereinafter, the processing procedure of the order support system 1 of FIG. 1 will be described. A user who purchases the device 30 from a dealer concludes a registration contract for the order support system 1 with the dealer. The user who has concluded the registration contract first performs user registration as shown in FIG. As will become clear from the following description, the user can expect to reduce the cost of supply replenishment work by using the order support system 1. That expectation is an incentive for the user to conclude the registration contract.

  FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram for explaining a processing procedure at the time of user registration in the ordering support system. In FIG. 3, the Web browser 22 is a general-purpose Web browser installed on the client PC 20. The mailer 23 is a general-purpose mailer installed on the client PC 20.

  First, the user obtains an ID (hereinafter referred to as “access ID”) for accessing the ordering support server 10 and a URL of the ordering support server 10 at the time of the registration contract from the seller, and the URL is sent to the Web browser. 22 is input. When the access ID is requested in response to the URL input, and the access ID is properly input, a web page for user registration (hereinafter referred to as “user registration page”) is received from the ordering support server 10. It is transmitted to the Web browser 22 (S11). The web browser 22 that has received the user registration page displays the user registration page.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the user registration page. In the description of FIG. 4, the numbers in parentheses correspond to the reference numbers in the figure. As shown in FIG. 4, in the user registration page 220, the user's name (221), postal code (222), address (223), company name (224), department name (225), telephone number (226) are displayed. In addition to basic information such as FAX number (227) and e-mail address (228), the postal code, address, company name, department name, etc. (231) of the delivery destination of the supply when ordering the supply, sales The trader ID (232) can be input. Here, the dealer ID is the ID of the dealer with whom the user has concluded the registration contract, and is notified from the dealer at the time of the registration contract.

  When the user inputs necessary items on the user registration page 220 and clicks the registration button 233, the Web browser 22 transmits an HTTP request for requesting user registration to the ordering support server 10 (S12). The HTTP request includes input information to the user registration page 220 (hereinafter referred to as “user information” including the seller ID).

  When receiving the HTTP request, the order support program 11 of the order support server 10 registers the user information included in the HTTP request in a predetermined database (hereinafter referred to as “user database”) (S13). When registering user information, the ordering support program 11 determines whether or not the seller ID included in the user information is entered in the ordering support server 10, and if so, the user ID for the user is entered. And generate or number a password. Furthermore, the user ID and password are also included in the user information and registered in the user database.

  Subsequently, the ordering support program 11 is an electronic device in which the URL to the Web page (hereinafter referred to as “download page”) for executing the download of the monitoring program 21, the generated user ID, password, and the like are described in the text. A mail (hereinafter referred to as “installation information notification mail”) is transmitted to the user's mail address (S14). In addition, the order support program 11 transmits a Web page that displays a message indicating that the installation information notification mail has been transmitted, to the Web browser 22 by including it in the HTTP response to the HTTP request in step S12. The user can know that the installation information notification mail has been transmitted to himself / herself through the Web page. Then, by browsing the installation information notification mail by the mailer 23, it is possible to confirm the URL of the download page, the user ID and password assigned to the user, and the like.

  Note that the notification of the URL or the like of the download page is not necessarily required by e-mail. For example, in step S14, a download page may be returned instead of a Web page that displays a message indicating that an installation information notification mail has been transmitted. However, if the download page is returned at the timing of step S14, it is necessary to continue the installation process as it is. On the other hand, according to the installation information notification mail, the installation is performed at the convenience of the user after receiving the mail. This is convenient for the user in that the work can be performed. Further, these pieces of information may be sent by FAX or mail.

  When the user clicks the URL of the download page described in the installation information notification mail, the mailer 23 activates the Web browser 22 using the URL as an argument. When activated, the web browser 22 displays a download page based on the URL. When the user clicks the download destination URL on the download page, the Web browser 22 transmits a download request for the monitoring program 21 to the ordering support server 10 (S15). In response to the request, the order support program 11 transfers the installation package of the monitoring program 21 stored in the order support server 10 to the client PC 20 (S16).

  The user activates the installer 25 included in the downloaded installation package (S17). When the installer 25 is activated, the installer 25 requests the user to input the user ID and password notified in the installation information notification mail. When the user inputs the user ID and password, the installer 25 transmits the input user ID and password to the ordering support server 10 and requests user authentication (S18). The input user ID and password are also stored and managed in the client PC 20.

  The order support program 11 authenticates the user by collating the user ID and password transmitted from the installer 25 with the user ID and password registered in the user database (S19). The order support program 11 returns an authentication result to the installer 25 (S20). The installer 25 executes the installation of the monitoring program 21 only when the authentication is successful (S21), and stops the installation when the authentication fails.

  By performing the installation only when the user is authenticated, for example, it is possible to prevent the installation by the user who obtained the installation package illegally. The monitoring program 21 communicates with the order support program 11 via a network. Therefore, user authentication at the time of installation is also effective in preventing the unauthorized user from using the monitoring program 21 and suppressing attacks on the ordering support server 10 via the network.

  When the installation is normally performed, the monitoring service 212 of the monitoring program 21 starts operating on the client PC 20. First, the monitoring service 212 searches for the devices 30 connected to the network 50 (S22), and information (for example, device serial numbers, MAC addresses, model (model) names, vendor names) of all the searched devices 30. Information including (device manufacturer name), device category, etc. (hereinafter referred to as “searched device information”) is transmitted to the ordering support server 10 (S23). Here, the device category refers to the type of device when the device is classified from the viewpoint of function, such as a printer, a facsimile machine, or a multi function peripheral (MFP). The search for the device 30 and the acquisition of the search device information in the above can be performed using a known technique such as acquiring MIB (Management Information Base) information based on SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol). For example, when using the MIB information, the category of the device can be identified by referring to the hrResourceIndex (1.3.6.1.2.1.25.3.2.1.1.x) of the HostResource MIB.

  The order support program 11 registers the received search device information in the device information table 12 (S24).

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the device information table. As shown in FIG. 5, the device information table 12 includes a MAC address, a vendor name, a model name, a serial number, a monitoring flag, a remark, a maintenance contract number, a maintenance person contact address, and a supply status for each searched device 30. And a mail flag and the like are registered and managed, and are built on a storage device such as a hard disk of the ordering support server 10. The MAC address, the vendor name, the model name, and the serial number that are included in the search device information are registered as they are. Other IP addresses are also registered, but are omitted for convenience in the figure.

  The monitoring flag is flag information indicating whether or not the monitoring service 212 is a monitoring target, and “Yes” is registered for the monitoring target, and “No” is registered when the monitoring service is not the monitoring target. As a monitoring flag, “Yes” is registered as an initial value. Alternatively, the initial value may be a NULL (empty) value. However, for the device 30 whose category is MFP, “No” is registered as the initial value of the monitoring flag. The reason why “No” is registered in the case of a multi-function peripheral is that, in general, in the case of a multi-function peripheral, there is a high possibility that a maintenance contract has been concluded (subject to a maintenance contract).

  Here, the maintenance contract is different from the registration contract to the ordering support system 1 described above. The maintenance contract is, for example, a contract in which supply of supply is guaranteed without paying a new fee if a fee of an amount set in the contract is paid periodically (monthly or yearly etc.). On the other hand, the ordering support system 1 is a system that supports work for supply ordering. When a supply is ordered based on the ordering support system 1, the price of the supply is charged regardless of whether there is a maintenance contract. The Therefore, if an order is placed by the order support system 1 for the supply of the equipment 30 that is the subject of the maintenance contract, there may be a problem that the user is charged for a price that does not need to be paid. . However, as will be apparent from the following description, it is not possible to place an order for supplies by the ordering support system 1 for the devices 30 that are not monitored. Therefore, the possibility of duplicate billing is reduced by excluding MFPs that have a high possibility of having a maintenance contract (can be a target of the maintenance contract) from the monitoring targets. In the device information table 12 of FIG. 5, the case where the device 30 (model A7200) in the first row is a multifunction device is taken as an example. Therefore, the initial value of the monitoring flag of “Model A7200” is set to “No”.

  When MIB information is used as the search device information, whether or not the category of the device 30 is a multifunction device may be referred to the value of hrDeviceIndex. If this value is “3” indicating “copy”, it may be determined as a multifunction device. Alternatively, when “1” indicating “printer” and “5” indicating “scanner” are included in this value, it may be determined as a multi-function peripheral.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the category that can be the target of the maintenance contract is a multifunction peripheral is taken as an example, but when the device of another category can also be the target of the maintenance contract, the device related to the other category The initial value of the 30 monitoring flags may also be “No”. In addition, when it is possible to identify the possibility of a maintenance contract based on other attributes (values acquired from the device) other than the category, for example, the model (model), etc., the maintenance contract Devices that may be targeted may be identified.

  In the device information table 12, remarks, maintenance contract numbers, and contact information for maintenance personnel are items for which values are input by the user in the processing described later. In the remarks, information to be associated with the device is registered according to the user's discretion. The maintenance contract number is a number assigned to each maintenance contract for identifying each maintenance contract. The maintenance staff contact information is a contact information (for example, an e-mail address or a telephone number) of the maintenance staff in the maintenance contract.

  The supply status is an item in which information for identifying the supply status is registered. In the present embodiment, N (Normal), Ne (Near End), or E (End) is registered. The initial value may be “N” or a NULL value. The mail flag will be described later.

  Subsequently, the ordering support program 11 transmits the URL of a Web page (hereinafter referred to as “searched device list page”) for displaying a list of searched device information to the monitoring service 212 (S25). The monitoring service 212 activates the Web browser 22 using the received URL as an argument (S26). When activated, the Web browser 22 transmits an HTTP request for requesting a search device list page to the ordering support server 10 based on the URL specified in the argument (S27). In response to the received HTTP request, the ordering support program 11 creates a search device information list page based on information registered in the device information table 12, and returns the search device information list page to the Web browser 22 ( S28).

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the search device list page. In the description of FIG. 6, the numbers in parentheses correspond to the reference numbers in the figure. As shown in FIG. 6, the search device list page 240 displays a serial number, a MAC address, an IP address, a model name, a vendor name, and the like for each searched device 30. The search device list page 240 further includes a column (241) for inputting remarks for each device 30, and a check button for selecting whether or not to be monitored by the monitoring service 212 (whether monitoring is necessary). (242) and columns (243, 244) for inputting a maintenance contract number and a contact person for maintenance personnel are provided. That is, the user performs input of remarks for each device 30 and selection as to whether or not to be monitored on the search device list page 240. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that a check target is selected when the check button 242 is checked. The initial state of the check button 242 corresponds to the value of the monitoring target flag in the device information report table 12. That is, when the order support program 11 creates the search device list page 240, the order support program 11 sets the state of the check button 242 based on the value of the monitoring flag in the device information table 12. Therefore, in the search device list page 240, the check button corresponding to the device 30 in the first row (the model A7200 that is likely to have a maintenance contract) is not checked. In addition, in order that the user can easily identify that the device (model A7200) is likely to be a target of the maintenance contract, the row related to the device is displayed in a different color from the other rows. May be.

  In the remarks column 241, it is possible to freely input information by the user. In the remarks column 241, for example, information that assists the replacement work of the supply such as the location of the device 30 may be input. In the maintenance contract number column 243 and the maintenance person contact address field 244, the maintenance contract number and the maintenance person contact address are input for the device 30 with which the maintenance contract is made. For example, for a device for which the check button 242 is not checked, or a device related to a row displayed in a different color, the user can easily recognize that a maintenance contract is likely to be made. . Therefore, the presence / absence of a maintenance contract is confirmed for the device, and if a maintenance contract is concluded, the respective information is entered in the field. In the present embodiment, the maintenance contract number and the contact information of the maintenance staff are collectively referred to as “maintenance contract information”.

  The entered maintenance contract information is meaningful when the device 30 is monitored (when the check button 242 is checked). Therefore, the check button 242 corresponding to the device 30 may be automatically checked according to the input of the maintenance contract information. Alternatively, for a line for which the check button 242 is not checked, the maintenance contract information input field may be grayed out, and when the check button 242 is checked, input to the input field may be enabled. Even if the device 30 with the maintenance contract is set as the monitoring target, it is possible to prevent the supply charge from being duplicated for the device 30 with the maintenance contract by the processing described later.

  When the user inputs remarks for each device 30 and selects whether or not monitoring is required on the search device list page 240, and inputs maintenance contract information as necessary, the user clicks the send button 245. The Web browser 22 transmits to the ordering support server 10 an HTTP request that requests remarks on each device 30, necessity of monitoring, and registration of maintenance contract information (S29). Based on the received HTTP request, the order support program 11 additionally registers the remarks of each device 30, necessity of monitoring, and maintenance contract information in the device information table 12 (S30). That is, regarding the “monitoring flag” in the device information table 12, “Yes” is registered for devices that are monitored, and “No” is registered for devices that are not monitored.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a device information table in which necessity of monitoring and remarks are registered. The device information table 12 of FIG. 7 shows an example in which arrangement information such as “Omori 4F” is registered in the remarks of the entry on the first line. As for the monitoring flag, an example is shown in which the devices related to the entries in the 1st to 4th rows are set as monitoring targets, and the devices related to the entries in the 5th to 7th rows are excluded from the monitoring targets. In addition, for the device related to the entry on the first line, an example is shown in which the maintenance contract number and the contact information for the person in charge of maintenance are registered.

  Thus, the process at the time of user registration ends. Note that the monitoring program 21 may add a device to be monitored other than at the time of installation, for example, by registering device search information and displaying a search device list page by a user's menu selection.

  Thereafter, the monitoring service 212 automatically repeats (for example, periodically) the search for the devices 30 connected to the network 50 (S31). The monitoring service 212 transmits the retrieved device information of the retrieved device to the ordering support server 10 (S32). The order support program 11 updates the device information table 12 based on the received search device information (S33). The configuration of the network 50 is periodically inspected, and the device information table 12 is updated based on the inspection result, so that there is a possibility that a deviation occurs between the contents of the device information table 12 and the configuration of the network 50. Can be lowered.

  Details of the device information table update process executed in step S33 will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining a device information table update process by the order support program. Upon receiving the search device information, the order support program 11 authenticates the user based on the user ID and password transmitted from the monitoring service 212 together with the search device information (S331). If the user is authenticated (Yes in S331), the processing from step S332 is performed for each device included in the search device information.

  First, one device is a processing target (hereinafter, the processing target device is referred to as “current device”) (S333), and the current device is a newly searched device (hereinafter referred to as “new device”). It is determined whether or not (S334). This determination is made based on whether or not there is an entry having the MAC address in the device information table 12 using the MAC address of the current device as a key. If there is no entry, it is determined that the current device is a new device.

  If it is determined that the current device is a new device (Yes in S334), the category of the current device is determined from the viewpoint of the possibility of a maintenance contract for the current device (S335). In the present embodiment, an example in which the possibility of a maintenance contract is high for a multifunction peripheral is taken as an example. Therefore, it is determined here whether or not it is a multifunction peripheral. If the current device is other than the multifunction device (“non-multifunction device” in S335), the current device entry is registered in the device information table 12 (S336). At this time, the current device is to be monitored. That is, “Yes” is registered in the monitoring flag of the newly added entry. In the automatic process, the order support program 11 automatically sets the monitoring flag to “Yes” because there is no appropriate timing for inquiring the user as to whether or not a new device is to be monitored. Here, “Yes” instead of “No” means that the user has installed the monitoring program 21 because he / she wants to monitor the supply of the device 30 connected to the network 50. This is because, based on the intention, it is considered appropriate that new devices be monitored by default. In addition, the ordering site can expect sales promotion of supply by monitoring as many devices as possible.

  On the other hand, when the current device is a multifunction device (“multifunction device” in S335), the current device entry is registered in the device information table 12, but “No” is registered in the monitoring flag of the entry (S337). This is to prevent redundant billing of the supply price in relation to the maintenance contract.

  In step S334, when an entry having the MAC address of the current device already exists (No in S334), it is determined whether the vendor name and model name of the entry match the vendor name and model name of the current device. (S338). This determination is based on the fact that the identity of the device is not necessarily guaranteed only by matching the MAC addresses. That is, there may be a type of device in which the MAC address is acquired from the network card. However, since the network card may be replaced with another device, the identification of the device by the MAC address is not necessarily perfect. Because.

  If at least one of the vendor name and model name does not match the entry that matches the MAC address of the current device (Yes in S338), the mismatched part of the entry is updated, and the monitoring flag is set to “Yes”. (S339). For example, FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of updating the device information table when there is an entry whose model name does not match.

  FIG. 9 shows an update example when the model names of the entries on the fifth line do not match. That is, the model name in the entry on the fifth line is changed to the model name included in the search device information of the current device, and the monitoring flag is set to “Yes”. The reason why the monitoring flag is set to “Yes” is that it is considered appropriate to treat such a device as a new device.

  On the other hand, if an entry having the MAC address of the current device already exists (No in S334), and the vendor name and model name of the entry match the vendor name and model name of the current device (No in S338). ), It is determined that the current device is a device already registered in the entry. However, if there is a change in some attributes (for example, serial number) of the current device, the item corresponding to the some attribute in the entry is updated (S340). However, the monitoring flag is not changed. That is, even if “No”, it is left as it is. The reason why the monitoring flag that is set to “No” is automatically changed is contrary to the intention of the user who consciously removes the device from the monitoring target.

  When the processing from step S333 to S340 is completed for all devices included in the search device information (Yes in S332), the monitoring service 212 is returned to the effect that registration of the search device information is successful (S341), and the processing is terminated. . If user authentication fails (No in S331), the device information table 12 is not updated and error information is returned to the monitoring service 212 (S342).

  In the above description, the example in which the maintenance contract information is input by the user on the search device list page 240 has been described. However, for example, when the search device information is registered in the device information table 12 in step S24 of FIG. 3, the order support program 11 stores the maintenance contract information of each device 30 included in the search device information. It may be acquired from a customer management database (not shown) and the acquired maintenance contract information may be registered in the device information table 12. At this time, the monitoring flag of the device 30 in which the maintenance contract information is registered may be “Yes”. The search for the maintenance contract information from the customer management database may be performed using information that can uniquely identify each device 30 such as a serial number or a MAC address of each device 30 as a key. If uniqueness cannot be guaranteed with only one piece of information, the model name, vendor name, etc. may be combined to provide a search key.

  The order support program 11 displays the maintenance contract number and the maintenance person contact address in the maintenance contract number field 243 and the maintenance person contact field 244 for the equipment 30 whose maintenance contract information is registered in the equipment information table 12. The search device list page 240 (FIG. 6) is created so that the check button 242 is checked. When the search device list page 240 created in this way is displayed by the Web browser 22, since the maintenance contract information is displayed in advance, the user does not need to check whether there is a maintenance contract for each device 30. .

  Similarly, when registering the search device information of the device 30 determined as a multifunction device in step S337 in FIG. 8 in the device information table 12, the order support program 11 includes each device 30 included in the search device information. Maintenance contract information may be acquired from the customer management database, and the acquired maintenance contract information may be registered in the device information table 12.

  The determination as to whether or not each device 30 is a multifunction device (that is, determination as to whether or not each device 30 is a device subject to a maintenance contract) is performed by the client PC 20 instead of the order support server 10. Also good. For example, when transmitting the search device information to the ordering support server 10 in step S23 of FIG. 3, the monitoring program 21 determines whether each device is a multifunction device, and includes the determination result in the search device information. May be transmitted.

  Next, a processing procedure of the ordering support system 1 when the state of the device 30 is monitored by the monitoring program 21 (monitoring service 212) installed in the client PC 20 will be described. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram for explaining a processing procedure during device monitoring in the ordering support system.

  The monitoring service 212 inquires a list of devices 30 (hereinafter referred to as “monitoring devices”) to be monitored to the ordering support server 11 when the device status monitoring time is reached repeatedly (for example, periodically) (S101). ). The ordering support program 11 lists monitoring devices based on the monitoring flag of the device information table 12, and returns a list of registered information (monitoring device list) of the listed monitoring devices to the monitoring service 212 (S102). In addition to the device status monitoring time, the monitoring service 212 may perform device monitoring by, for example, user menu selection. As described above, the monitoring service 212 does not manage whether or not each device is a monitoring target, and identifies the monitoring device by making an inquiry to the order support server 11 side. With this configuration, it is possible to simplify the implementation of the monitoring service 212 and reduce the processing load.

  When the monitoring service list is received, the monitoring service 212 updates the cache table based on the monitoring device list (S103). Here, the cache table is a table for the monitoring service 212 to manage the status of the supply of the monitoring device, and is constructed on the memory of the client PC 20, for example.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a cache table. As shown in FIG. 11, the cache table 27 is a table in which a MAC address, a vendor name, a model name, a serial number, a remark, a monitoring state, a supply status, a notification flag, and the like are registered and held for each monitoring device. . In step S103, the MAC address, vendor name, model name, serial number, and remarks are registered or updated based on the received monitoring device list. For example, when the entry related to the same MAC address as the monitoring device included in the received monitoring device list does not exist in the cache table 27, the monitoring service 212 newly adds the entry related to the monitoring device to the cache table 27. to add. Further, if there is an entry related to the same MAC address, but other information (vendor name, model name, serial number, or remarks) is different, the different information is updated for the entry. If an entry having a MAC address not included in the monitoring device list exists in the cache table 27, the monitoring service 212 deletes the entry. That is, the cache table 27 holds entries only for devices that are currently monitored devices. In the cache table 27, the monitoring state, the supply status, and the notification flag are items that are updated by processing described later, and the contents thereof will be described each time.

  Subsequently, the monitoring service 212 inquires MIB information as device information to the device 30 (monitoring device) entered in the cache table 27 based on SNMP (S104). The MIB information to be inquired includes at least toner status information, and may also include other supply status information. Each device 30 returns the MIB information to be inquired to the monitoring service 212 (S105).

  In the implementation of the present invention, the device information is not necessarily limited to MIB information, and the protocol for inquiring device information is not limited to SNMP, but the vendor of each device 30 differs by using a standardized technique. However, it is preferable to use standard techniques such as MIB and SNMP from the viewpoint that device information can be acquired by the same procedure.

  When the acquisition (polling) of device information from all the monitoring devices is completed, the monitoring service 212 updates the monitoring status, supply status, and notification flag of the cache table 27 based on the device information (S106). As for the monitoring status, “OK” is registered for an entry related to a device for which acquisition of device information is successful, and “NG” is registered for an entry related to a device that has failed. As for the supply status, supply status information such as a toner status included in the acquired device information is registered. When the value of the supply status changes, “not notified” is registered in the notification flag. That is, the monitoring service 212 compares the supply status registered in the cache table 27 before the update with the status information of the supply included in the newly acquired device information, thereby changing the supply status. The notification flag of the entry in the cache table 27 is set to “Not notified” for the supply that has been detected and the change in state is detected. The notification flag is used to determine whether or not the supply status change has been notified to the ordering support program 11.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of updating the cache table based on the polling result of the device information. FIG. 12 shows an update example from the state of FIG. That is, for the entry in the first row, the supply status has changed from “normal” (not in shortage) to “near end” (near end). Therefore, the value of the notification flag is updated to “not notified”. Similarly, regarding the entry in the fourth row, since the supply status has changed from “near end” to “end” (end), the value of the notification flag is updated to “not notified”. On the other hand, since the supply status has not changed in the entries in the third and fifth lines, the value of the notification flag is not updated. Further, the entry in the second row has a monitoring state “NG”. This is because acquisition of device information from the device 30 related to the entry has failed. In this case, the values of the supply status and the notification flag are not updated.

  Subsequently, the monitoring service 212 generates state change notification information based on the updated cache table 27 (S107). The monitoring service 212 generates state change notification information regarding the device related to the entry whose notification flag value is “Not notified” in the cache table 27. Therefore, based on the cache table 27 in FIG. 12, state change notification information is generated for the devices related to the entries in the first, third, and fourth lines.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the state change notification information. In FIG. 13, the state change notification information is composed of header information and device information.

  The header information includes date and time, user ID, password, and the like. The date and time is the date and time when device information is transferred. The user ID and password are a user ID and password that are input and stored when the monitoring program 21 is installed. That is, the header information is not information acquired from the device 30.

  The device information is synonymous with the device information described above. That is, it is information acquired as MIB information from the device 30, and includes the vendor name, model name (model name), serial number, MAC address, IP address, toner ID (information for identifying the toner bottle, In the case of color, a toner ID is assigned for each color, and in the case of monochrome, one is assigned), toner name, toner status, toner level, toner name (character string), toner name (Code), and total counter Including values. These are defined as public MIB (standard MIB), and are information that can be acquired from any device regardless of the vendor.

  The toner status is information indicating a toner state. The total counter value is information indicating the total number of printed sheets. Therefore, the monitoring service 212 detects the toner end based on the toner status. Further, the degree of wear of the photoconductor, the fixing unit, the developer, and the like is determined based on the total count value. However, with the toner status in the standard MIB, it is not possible to specify the color of the toner that has ended.

  Therefore, the device information in the present embodiment further includes a monochrome counter value, a color counter value, a cyan counter value, a magenta counter value, a black counter value, a red counter value, and the like. These are uniquely defined as a private MIB (extended MIB).

  For example, in the present embodiment, if only the device 30 of the manufacturer A supports these extended MIBs, these values are stored in the device information for the device 30 of the manufacturer A, but the manufacturer A These values are empty in the device information for the other devices 30.

  For example, the monochrome counter value is the number of printed sheets by monochrome printing. The color counter value is the number of printed sheets by color printing. Further, the cyan counter value, the magenta counter value, the black counter value, and the red counter value are the number of printed sheets using the toner of each color. Therefore, if it is the apparatus 30 of the manufacturer A, it becomes possible to detect the end for every color.

  In the cache table 27 shown in FIG. 12 and the like, one entry is assigned to each monitoring device for convenience, but management of a plurality of supply states (for example, toner status and total counter value of each CMYK) is managed. If so, an entry may be assigned for each supply. Further, the information included in the state change notification information is not limited to what can be shown in FIG. 13, and may be determined as appropriate.

  Subsequently, the monitoring service 212 transmits the generated state change notification information to the order support program 11 (S108). In addition, it is preferable from the viewpoint of reducing the communication load that the state change notification information is transmitted from each device simultaneously (in a single message). This is because the overhead can be reduced compared to the case where each device transmits a separate message.

  The ordering support program 11 that has received the state change notification information performs processing such as updating the device information table based on the state change notification information and determining a device for which supply is insufficient (S109). Details of the processing in this step will be described later.

  Subsequently, the ordering support program 11 creates a Web page for ordering the missing supply (hereinafter referred to as “ordering page”) and notifies the shortage of the supply by an e-mail (hereinafter referred to as “insufficient”). Is created and sent to the user's email address (S110). The URL of the ordering page is described in the shortage notification mail. Each shortage notification mail is given an ID (hereinafter referred to as “mail ID”), together with the mail ID, for identifying the device 30 such as the serial number of the device 30 that is the subject of the shortage notification mail. Information, information for identifying a user such as a user ID or a mail address, transmission date and time, and the like are stored as a transmission history of the shortage notification mail.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a shortage notification mail. In the shortage notification mail 250 shown in FIG. 14, the character string enclosed in <> indicates not the specific value but the content of the information described at the location.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the mail address of the user related to the state change notification information is designated as the destination of the shortage notification mail 250. The user's e-mail address may be specified by searching the user database using the user ID and password included in the state change notification information as keys. This is because an email address is registered in the user database together with a user ID and a password at the time of user registration.

  The title of the shortage notification mail 250 describes a title indicating that the mail is a shortage notification mail. In the body of the shortage notification mail 250, information related to the device related to the state change notification information, information related to the shortage supply, URL of the ordering page, and the like are described.

  The information about the device includes the vendor name, model name, and remarks of the device. These pieces of information may be acquired from the device information table 12 using the serial number, MAC address, or IP address included in the state change notification information as a key. In addition, the information regarding the missing supply includes, for example, a toner status, a toner ID, a toner name, and the like included in the state change notification information when the supply is toner. In addition, when a plurality of supplies in one device 30 are simultaneously short, a mail including information indicating a shortage of the plurality of supplies is created in one shortage notification mail 250, and the shortage of the plurality of supplies is notified. The

  After sending the shortage notification mail 250, the ordering support program 11 returns a processing result of a series of processes (transmission of the shortage notification mail 250, etc.) according to the reception of the state change notification information (S108) to the monitoring service 212 (S111). ). When the processing result indicates the normal end of processing (that is, when the state change notification information is processed normally), the monitoring service 212 sets “not notified” to “not notified” for the notification flag of the cache table 27. Update to “Notified” (S112).

  FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of updating the cache table when the state change notification information is normally processed. FIG. 15 shows an update example from FIG. In the cache table 27 of FIG. 15, the notification flag of the entries in the first, third, and fourth lines is updated from “not notified” to “notified”. By updating the value of the notification flag in this manner, it is possible to prevent the state change notification information from being transmitted twice with respect to the state change of the normally processed supply. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the amount of communication and to suppress double transmission of the shortage notification mail 250.

  A user who has viewed the shortage notification mail 250 by the mailer 23 in the client PC 20 can recognize the shortage of supply even when printing or the like is not being executed. Further, if the location of the device 30 is input as a remark, the location of the device 30 can be easily specified by the information.

  When the user clicks on the URL of the ordering page described in the shortage notification mail 250, the mailer 23 activates the Web browser 22 with the clicked URL as an argument. When activated, the Web browser 22 transmits an HTTP request for requesting an order page based on the URL specified in the argument to the order support server 10 (S113). In response to the received HTTP request, the order support program 11 returns an order page to the Web browser 22 (S114). The web browser 22 displays the received ordering page.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the ordering page. In FIG. 16, the order page 260 displays information (manufacturer (vendor) name, model name, serial number, remarks (arrangement position)) related to equipment for which supply is insufficient in the area 261. In addition, in the area 262, the names of the missing supplies are displayed. In the area 262, a list of various supplies corresponding to the device is displayed, and each order can be placed. That is, for each supply, the product name (name) is displayed, and the quantity to be purchased can be input. As indicated by reference numeral 2621, the necessary quantity is input in advance and displayed for the missing supply. In addition, each product name has a link to a Web page that displays a summary description of the product. Further, in the area 263, the past purchase history of the user is displayed. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the user from purchasing redundantly.

  The purchase history is registered for each user in the user database. That is, when a product is ordered via the order page 260, information on the ordered product is additionally registered in the user database.

  Incidentally, the ordering page 260 in FIG. 16 is notified that the yellow toner is insufficient. As described above, the missing toner color cannot be specified by the standard MIB alone. Therefore, the ordering page 260 in FIG. 16 shows the result determined based on the information registered in the extended MIB. In this way, manufacturers that deploy the ordering support system 1 can differentiate themselves from other companies in the services on the ordering support system 1 by means of the extended MIB that they define. That is, if the toner end of the device 30 of another company is detected, the order page 260 is not specified and notified until the color. Note that the supply of the device 30 of the other company may be excluded from the ordering target by the ordering support system 1 in the first place, but in consideration of the convenience of the user, in this embodiment, the supply of the supply of the device 30 of the other company is considered. Ordering is also possible.

  When the user clicks the order button 2622 on the order page 260, the Web browser 22 transmits an HTTP request for requesting the order of the product to the order support server 10 (S115).

  In response to the HTTP request, the order support program 11 records information for providing a part of the profit based on the order request to the seller associated with the user (S116). Specifically, a database (hereinafter referred to as a “seller database”) that manages the sales of supplies by the order support system 1 is constructed for each orderer, and the sales of the seller database depend on the current ordering. The contents of the order (for example, the order amount) are recorded. Note that the seller creates an entry in the seller database by concluding a contract for participation in the order support system 1 with the manufacturer. Also, a seller ID is given, and the seller is identified on the ordering support system 1 by the seller ID. In step S116, the identification of the user related to the received HTTP request is performed by, for example, associating the session ID with the web browser 22 and the user ID, and specifying the user ID from the session ID based on the association. You can do that.

  The ordering support program 11 further instructs the article ordering management system to instruct the ordering. This instruction includes information on the delivery destination registered in the user database. When the order is instructed to the article ordering support system, the ordered product is actually delivered to the user. Further, when the purchase price is paid by the user, it is recorded in the seller database that the sales based on the current order are confirmed. By determining whether or not the sales, the manufacturer may provide allowances such as sales promotion money to the seller according to the sales.

  Next, details of the process of step S109 in FIG. 10 will be described. 17 and 18 are flowcharts for explaining processing based on state change notification information by the ordering support program.

  When the status change notification information is received, the order support program 11 authenticates the user based on the user ID and password transmitted from the monitoring service 212 together with the status change notification information (S401). When the user is authenticated (Yes in S401), the processing from step S402 is performed for each device for which the state change notification information is received.

  First, one device is set as a processing target (hereinafter, the processing target device is referred to as “current device”) (S403), and it is determined whether or not the current device is registered in the device information table 12 (S404). . This determination may be made based on whether or not there is an entry having the MAC address in the device information table 12 using the MAC address of the current device as a key. If the current device is not registered (No in S404), the current device entry is registered in the device information table 12 (S405). At this time, the current device is to be monitored. If it is determined that the current device is registered based on the MAC address, the processing described in S338 to S340 in FIG. 8 may be performed.

  Subsequently, the status information of the supply of the current device included in the state change notification information is reflected (transcribed) in the status of the device information table 12 (S406). Subsequently, based on the status of the current device registered in the device information table 12, a supply that is insufficient for the current device (that is, a supply with a status of “Ne” (near end) or “E” (end)). Whether or not there is is determined (S407). If there is an insufficient supply (Yes in S407), it is determined whether or not the value of the mail flag of the entry related to the current device (hereinafter referred to as “current entry”) in the device information table 12 is “Yes”. (S408). Here, the mail flag is a flag that is set to “Yes” when the shortage notification mail 250 is transmitted. That is, the mail flag value “Yes” means that the shortage notification mail 250 has been transmitted in the past for the current device.

  When the mail flag is “Yes” (Yes in S408), a duplicate transmission check of the shortage notification mail 250 is performed (S409). Here, the duplicate transmission check is a process for determining whether or not there is a possibility that the shortage notification mail 250 having the same contents has been transmitted in the past, and details of the process contents will be described later. In the duplicate transmission check, if the possibility of duplicate transmission is low and it is determined that the shortage notification mail 250 is to be transmitted (“transmit” in S409), the process proceeds to step S410 in FIG. 18 and maintenance contract information is acquired from the current entry. However, the maintenance contract information may be acquired by making an inquiry to the customer management database instead of from the current entry. In this case, registration of the maintenance contract information in the device information table 12 is not necessarily executed before step S410.

  When at least one of the maintenance contract number and the maintenance person contact address is acquired from the current entry (Yes in S411), it is determined whether the maintenance person contact address is an e-mail address (S412). The determination as to whether or not it is an email address may be made based on the characteristics of the email address, such as whether or not the character string registered as the contact person for the maintenance staff includes “@ (at mark)”.

  If the maintenance person contact address is an e-mail address (Yes in S412), a maintenance information notification e-mail addressed to the e-mail address (to the maintenance person) is created (S413).

  FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an example of a maintenance information notification mail addressed to a maintenance person. In the maintenance information communication mail 270 shown in FIG. 19, the character string enclosed in <> indicates not the specific value but the content of the information described at the relevant location.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the mail address of the maintenance person is designated as the destination of the maintenance information communication mail 270. In the title, a title indicating that the mail is a maintenance information contact mail is described. In the main text, maintenance contract information, information on devices, information on missing supplies, and the like are described.

  On the other hand, if the maintenance person contact is not an email address (No in S412), or if the maintenance person contact is not registered (No in S412), a maintenance information notification mail addressed to the user is created (S414). .

  FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating an example of a maintenance information notification mail addressed to the user. In the maintenance information contact mail 280 shown in FIG. 20, the character string enclosed in <> indicates not the specific value but the content of the information described at the relevant location.

  As shown in FIG. 20, the user's mail address is designated as the destination of the maintenance information contact mail 280. The user's e-mail address may be specified by searching the user database using the user ID and password included in the state change notification information as keys. In the title, a title indicating that the mail is a maintenance information contact mail is described. In the main text, information on devices, information on missing supplies, maintenance contract information, and the like are described.

  Subsequent to step S413 or S414, the mail flag is set to “Yes” (S415), and the maintenance information contact mail 270 or 280 is transmitted.

  As described above, the maintenance information communication mail 270 or 280 for notifying the shortage notification mail 250 and the maintenance contract information and the supply shortage is not a maintenance person or user for the device 30 with the maintenance contract. Sent to. Therefore, the maintenance staff or user can recognize that the supply of the device 30 is insufficient by referring to the maintenance information communication mail 270 or 280. When the maintenance information contact mail 270 is sent to the maintenance person, the maintenance person contacts the user and quickly performs the supply of the supply based on the maintenance contract, thereby appropriately performing the service for the customer. Can do. When the maintenance information contact mail 280 is transmitted to the user, the user can request supply of the supply based on the maintenance contract by contacting the maintenance staff. Note that the URL for the ordering page 260 is not described in the maintenance contract information contact mail 280. Therefore, a supply is not ordered by the ordering page 260 separately from the maintenance contract. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the supply charge from being duplicated.

  On the other hand, in step S411, if the maintenance contract number and the contact information for the maintenance staff are not registered in the current entry (No in S411), information on the missing supply (model number, etc.) is searched from the supply information table 13 ( S417), it is determined whether or not the information of the missing supply is registered in the supply information table 13 (S418). Here, the supply information table 13 is a table in which a list of supplies targeted for service in the ordering support system 1 is registered, and is constructed on a storage device such as a hard disk of the ordering support server 10. In the supply information table 13, in order to avoid duplication between the order support system 1 and the maintenance contract, information on supplies used for devices (multifunction peripherals) belonging to a category that can be a maintenance contract target is not registered. In other words, the determination process in step S418 determines whether there is a maintenance contract for the current device when the maintenance device information is not registered in the current device and the current device is a monitoring target. It means to judge.

  If the information of the missing supply is registered in the supply information table 13 (Yes in S418), it is unlikely that the current device is subject to the maintenance contract. Therefore, the mail flag is set to “Yes” (S419), and the shortage notification mail 250 regarding the current device is transmitted (S420). This process corresponds to step S110 in FIG. If a plurality of insufficient supplies are detected in step S407, a single shortage notification mail 250 is transmitted for the plurality of supplies collectively. Therefore, the number of shortage notification emails 250 transmitted to the user can be reduced, and the complexity and the like given to the user can be reduced.

  On the other hand, if the information of the missing supply is not registered in the supply information table 13, the current device is likely to be the target of the maintenance contract, so the lack notification mail 250 is not transmitted. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a duplicate charge for the supply price related to the current device.

  Returning to step S409 in FIG. If it is determined in the duplicate transmission check in step S409 that there is a high possibility of duplicate transmission and the shortage notification mail 250 is not transmitted (“not transmitted” in S409 in FIG. 17), the shortage notification mail is not transmitted and the current device is not transmitted. The process related to is terminated.

  On the other hand, if the mail flag is “No” (Yes in S408), there is no possibility of the shortage notification mail 250 being duplicated, so the duplicate transmission check is not performed and the mail flag is set to “Yes” (S419). Transmit (S420).

  If it is determined in S407 that no supply is deficient for the current device, it is not necessary to send a shortage notification mail. Therefore, the mail flag is set to “No” and the shortage notification mail is not sent. The process related to the device ends.

  When the processing from step S403 to S421 is completed for all the devices for which the state change notification information is received (Yes in S402), it returns to the monitoring service 212 that the state change notification information has been processed normally (S422). The process ends. This process corresponds to step S111 in FIG. If user authentication fails (No in S401), the device information table 12 is not updated, and error information is returned to the monitoring service 212 (S423).

  Next, details of the duplicate transmission check of the shortage notification mail in step S409 in FIG. 17 will be described. FIG. 21 is a diagram for explaining a process for checking duplicate transmission of a shortage notification mail. The significance of this process will be described.

  Since the monitoring service 212 transmits the state change notification information based on the notification flag of the cache table 27, the monitoring service 212 does not basically transmit the same state change notification information twice. However, for example, for toner, the toner end may be detected when the toner still remains in the toner bottle. In such a case, if the user attaches the toner bottle after shaking the toner bottle, the toner end may be detected again for the same toner after a while. In such a case, since the notification flag changes from “end” to “normal” and then changes to “end” again, the monitoring service 212 again sets the toner end even though the toner bottle has not been replaced. It is conceivable to transmit state change notification information for notification. In this case, it is conceivable that the shortage notification is transmitted to the user in duplicate, and if the user is not aware of the overlap, he / she places a duplicate order. Therefore, in order to avoid the occurrence of such a situation, the ordering support program 11 performs the following processing.

  First, based on the serial number of the device 30 included in the state change notification information received from the monitoring service 212, the date and time of the shortage notification email last transmitted (previous) with respect to the device 30 from the transmission history of the shortage notification email. Is checked (S201).

  When the transmission history does not include the transmission record of the shortage notification mail for the device 30 (Yes in S202), it is determined to transmit the shortage notification mail (S203). This is because the device 30 has never transmitted a shortage notification mail so far, and therefore there is no possibility that the shortage notification emails overlap.

  If the transmission history includes a shortage notification mail transmission record for the device 30 (No in S202), it is determined whether or not a predetermined period has elapsed from the transmission date and time of the last shortage notification mail transmitted. (S204). If the predetermined period has elapsed, it is determined that the shortage notification mail is transmitted (S203), and if it has not elapsed, it is determined that there is a possibility of duplication and the shortage notification mail is not transmitted (S205).

  21 shows an example of determination based on the passage of time. For example, if a total counter is recorded as a transmission history and the difference of the total counter is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, a shortage notification is performed. You may not send mail. Further, all the transmission history may be deleted every fixed time, and when the transmission history includes a transmission record of a shortage notification mail for the same device 30, the shortage notification mail may not be transmitted. .

  Next, functions of the UI application 211 in the monitoring program 21 will be described. The UI application 211 displays a screen (hereinafter referred to as “setting screen”) for setting setting information (for example, a period for acquiring device information) for the monitoring service 212 and device monitoring information by the monitoring service 212. This is a program for displaying the screen (hereinafter referred to as “monitoring screen”).

  The UI application 211 displays, for example, the following setting screen in response to an instruction from the user. FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the setting screen. In the setting screen 220 of FIG. 22, the monitoring service 212 can set the period for polling device information from the monitoring device (reference number 221) and the cycle for automatically searching for devices on the network 50 (reference number 222). it can. The former is a cycle for executing step S104 in FIG. The latter is a cycle for executing step S31 of FIG. For the latter, the setting value can be invalidated in the check box 223. That is, when the check box 223 is unchecked, the automatic search for the device 30 is not performed.

  Also, the UI application 211 displays, for example, the following monitoring screen in response to an instruction from the user. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the monitoring screen. A monitoring screen 230 in FIG. 23 is a screen on which the UI application 211 displays information acquired from the cache table 27. Therefore, the monitoring screen 230 displays information managed in the cache table 27, that is, the vendor name, model name, serial number, supply status, remarks, and the like for each monitoring device. The monitoring screen 230 allows the user to check the supply status of each monitoring device at an arbitrary timing. The “?” Mark indicated by reference number 231 indicates that polling of device information has failed for a device with the mark. For example, such a state may occur when the device is not activated or disconnected from the network 50.

  As described above, according to the ordering support system 1 in the embodiment of the present invention, convenience or benefit is provided to each of the user (customer), the seller, and the manufacturer of the device 30. be able to.

  That is, a shortage of supply of the device 30 is automatically detected, and a shortage notification mail is automatically transmitted to the user's terminal. As a result, the user can display the ordering page 260 by clicking on the URL described in the shortage notification mail, and can easily place an order for the missing supplies through the ordering page 260. Therefore, it is possible to save labor for the user himself / herself to specify a supply corresponding to the device 30 or to go to a mass retailer for purchase, and to reduce supply procurement costs.

  Further, with respect to the seller, a part of the revenue from the supply can be acquired, and the revenue source can be expanded.

  In addition, for a manufacturer, it is possible to give an incentive to the seller to sell the manufacturer's device in preference to the device of the other manufacturer, or an incentive to the user to purchase the manufacturer's device. That is, when the supply sold through the order support system 1 is made by the manufacturer, the return rate is higher than when the other company's supply is sold, or when the supply is from another company's supply. If 0 is set to 0, the seller can enjoy more profits from selling the supply by selling the product of the manufacturer. In addition, the user can be expected to receive detailed services such as being able to specify the color of the insufficient toner, for example, by purchasing the device of the manufacturer.

  Furthermore, the manufacturer can estimate the usage period of each device 30 to some extent by accumulating user device information. As a result, it is possible to effectively cooperate with new sales activities such as promotion of replacement by purchase.

  In addition, according to the order support system 1 in the embodiment of the present invention, when there is a device with a maintenance contract, it is possible to appropriately avoid a duplicate charge for the supply of the device.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the registration contract of the order support system 1 with the user is a trader who sells the device has been described as an example. However, the registration contract is not necessarily concluded with the user. The other party is not limited to the person who sold the device. Even if the device is not sold, the manufacturer may be given a seller ID in the ordering support system 1. In this case, the trader can receive a return of profits from the sale of the supply via the order support system 1 regardless of the sale of the device.

  As mentioned above, although the Example of this invention was explained in full detail, this invention is not limited to the specific embodiment which concerns, In the range of the summary of this invention described in the claim, various deformation | transformation * It can be changed.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of the order support system in embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the outline | summary of the function which a monitoring service makes a client PC perform. It is a sequence diagram for demonstrating the process sequence at the time of user registration in an order assistance system. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a user registration page. It is a figure which shows the structural example of an apparatus information table. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a search apparatus list page. It is a figure which shows the example of the apparatus information table in which the necessity of monitoring and remarks were registered. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the update process of the apparatus information table by an order assistance program. It is a figure which shows the example of an update of an apparatus information table when the entry in which a model name does not correspond exists. It is a sequence diagram for demonstrating the process sequence at the time of apparatus monitoring in an order assistance system. It is a figure which shows the structural example of a cache table. It is a figure which shows the example of an update of the cache table based on the polling result of apparatus information. It is a figure which shows the structural example of state change notification information. It is a figure which shows the example of a lack notification mail. It is a figure which shows the example of an update of a cache table when state change notification information is processed normally. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of an order page. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the process based on the state change notification information by an order assistance program. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the process based on the state change notification information by an order assistance program. It is a figure which shows the example of the maintenance information notification mail addressed to a maintenance person. It is a figure which shows the example of the maintenance information communication mail addressed to a user. It is a figure for demonstrating the duplication transmission check process of a shortage notification mail. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a setting screen. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a monitoring screen.

Explanation of symbols

1 Order Support System 10 Order Support Server 11 Order Support Program 12 Device Information Table 13 Supply Information Table 20 Client PC
21 Monitoring program 30, 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d Device 40, 50 Network 211 UI application 212 Monitoring service 501, 502 Recording medium

Claims (24)

Acquire device information and status information of consumables from the devices connected to the network, determine the shortage of consumables from the status information of the consumables, and determine that the consumables are insufficient A device monitoring device that transmits device information and consumable status information to the ordering support device;
The device information and the status information relating to the consumables determined to be insufficient are received, and an e-mail containing a URL indicating a Web page for ordering consumables related to the status information is created and associated with the device in advance. An ordering support system comprising the ordering support device that transmits to a registered e-mail address,
First determining means for determining whether or not the device is a device that can be a target of a maintenance contract related to supply of consumables;
An ordering support system characterized in that a device determined to be a device that can be a target of the maintenance contract is not a monitoring target.   The order support system according to claim 1, wherein the order support apparatus includes the first determination unit.   3. The order support system according to claim 1, wherein the first determination unit determines whether the device is a device that can be a target of a maintenance contract based on an attribute of the device. The device monitoring apparatus allows the user to select whether or not to make the monitoring target for each device,
The order support system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when a device that can be a target of the maintenance contract is selected as the monitoring target, the device is the monitoring target. The device monitoring device causes a user to input information related to the maintenance contract for the device subject to the maintenance contract, and transmits information related to the maintenance contract to the ordering support device.
The order support apparatus includes maintenance contract information management means for managing information related to the maintenance contract for each of the devices;
A second determination unit that determines whether the device related to the consumable determined to be insufficient is a device that is a target of the maintenance contract, based on the maintenance contract information management unit;
5. The ordering support system according to claim 4, wherein the electronic mail is not transmitted with respect to the device determined to be the object of the maintenance contract. The ordering support apparatus includes a maintenance contract information acquisition unit that acquires information on the maintenance contract from a computer that manages information on the maintenance contract for each device.
Second determining means for determining whether the device related to the consumable determined to be insufficient is a device that is a target of the maintenance contract, based on information related to the maintenance contract;
5. The ordering support system according to claim 4, wherein the electronic mail is not transmitted with respect to the device determined to be the object of the maintenance contract. The ordering support apparatus transmits the e-mail when the consumables determined to be insufficient are registered in a consumables list management unit that manages consumables list information,
The order support system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the consumables list management means does not register consumables to be used for devices that can be a target of the maintenance contract.   The ordering support device creates a second e-mail in which information related to the maintenance contract and information related to the consumables determined to be deficient are created for the equipment that can be the target of the maintenance contract. The order support system according to any one of claims 5 to 7, further comprising an e-mail creating unit, wherein the second e-mail is transmitted to an e-mail address included in the information on the maintenance contract.   9. The ordering support system according to claim 8, wherein the e-mail address included in the information on the maintenance contract is an e-mail address of a maintenance person in the maintenance contract.   When the email address of the person in charge of maintenance is not included in the information on the maintenance contract, the second electronic mail is registered in the email address registered in advance with the device related to the consumables determined to be insufficient. 10. The ordering support system according to claim 9, wherein an e-mail is transmitted.   The order support system according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the URL of the Web page is not described in the second electronic mail.   The order support apparatus in the order support system as described in any one of Claims 1 thru | or 11.   The apparatus monitoring apparatus in the order support system as described in any one of Claims 1 thru | or 11. An ordering support method executed by a computer,
The device information of the device to be monitored and the status information of the consumables are acquired from the devices connected to the network, and the device monitoring device that determines the shortage of consumables from the status information of the consumables is determined to be insufficient. Status information receiving procedure for receiving device information on consumables and status information of consumables;
A mail sending procedure for creating an e-mail containing a URL indicating a web page for ordering consumables according to the received status information, and sending the e-mail to a mail address registered in advance associated with the device;
A first determination procedure for determining whether a device connected to the network is a device that can be a target of a maintenance contract related to supply of consumables,
The order support method according to claim 1, wherein a device that is determined to be a target of the maintenance contract in the first determination procedure is set as the monitoring target by the device monitoring apparatus.   3. The order support method according to claim 1, wherein the first determination procedure determines whether or not the device is a device that can be a maintenance contract based on an attribute of the device. Let the user select whether to be the monitoring target for each device,
16. The ordering support method according to claim 14, wherein when a device that can be a target of the maintenance contract is selected as the monitoring target, the device is set as the monitoring target. A maintenance contract information input procedure for allowing a user to input information related to the maintenance contract for the device that is the target of the maintenance contract;
Maintenance contract information management procedure for managing information on the maintenance contract for each device;
A second determination procedure for determining, based on information managed in the maintenance contract information management procedure, whether a device related to the consumable determined to be insufficient is a device subject to the maintenance contract; Have
17. The ordering support method according to claim 16, wherein the electronic mail is not transmitted with respect to a device determined to be a target of the maintenance contract. A maintenance contract information acquisition procedure for acquiring information on the maintenance contract from a computer that manages information on the maintenance contract for each device;
A second determination procedure for determining whether a device related to the consumable determined to be insufficient is a device that is a target of the maintenance contract, based on information on the maintenance contract;
17. The ordering support method according to claim 16, wherein the electronic mail is not transmitted with respect to a device determined to be a target of the maintenance contract. The ordering support apparatus transmits the e-mail when the consumables determined to be insufficient are registered in a consumables list management unit that manages consumables list information,
The order support method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the consumables list management means does not register consumables used for the equipment that can be a target of the maintenance contract. A maintenance information contact email creation procedure for creating a second e-mail in which information on the maintenance contract and information on the consumables determined to be insufficient is described for the equipment that can be the target of the maintenance contract. ,
The order support method according to any one of claims 14 to 19, wherein the second e-mail is transmitted to an e-mail address included in the information related to the maintenance contract.   21. The ordering support method according to claim 20, wherein the e-mail address included in the information on the maintenance contract is an e-mail address of a maintenance person in the maintenance contract.   When the email address of the person in charge of maintenance is not included in the information on the maintenance contract, the second electronic mail is registered in the email address registered in advance with the device related to the consumables determined to be insufficient. The order support method according to claim 21, wherein an e-mail is transmitted.   23. The order support method according to claim 20, wherein the URL of the Web page is not described in the second electronic mail.   A program for causing a computer to execute the ordering support method according to any one of claims 14 to 23.

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