JP2016076011A - Electronic equipment and display control method in electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide electronic equipment and a display control method in the electronic equipment capable of recording history information related to display processing for allowing a display unit to display a screen in at least one display mode among a plurality of display modes.SOLUTION: Display processing for requesting URL acquired from a management server 40, and for allowing a browser 34 in a compound machine 20 to start, and for allowing a display unit 232 to display a browser screen is handled as a browser display job. A job management unit 35 manages the priority order and state of the job of each operation such as printing, scanning, copy and FAX. Each job is executed by starting corresponding units among a print control unit 371, a copy control unit 372, a scan control unit 373, an FAX control unit 374 and a second display control unit 375. A history management unit 36 records the history information (log information) of the job.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic device having a display unit and a display control method in the electronic device.

  Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose a multifunction peripheral (an example of an electronic device) having a web browser function. Such a multi-function peripheral can execute various processes such as printing, copying, and scanning. In addition, the control device of such a multifunction machine is provided with a microcomputer (control circuit) having a CPU and a memory. For example, when printing is requested by the user, printing is performed on the paper by controlling the driving of the printing unit by such a microcomputer.

  In addition, a display unit is provided in the user interface of the multifunction peripheral. This display unit is a screen created by a management server that can display a native screen that is a screen prepared in advance by the control device of the multifunction device or a screen created by the control device, or that can communicate with the multifunction device. It is possible to display a browser screen. For example, a menu image, a status notification image, various message screen information, and the like are displayed on the display unit of the multifunction machine.

  Further, in the printing apparatus described in Patent Document 3, when print command data is received from any one of a plurality of external devices, a job is displayed in the print history list of the flash ROM after printing based on the print command data is completed. History information in which the ID or the attribute information to be printed is associated with the printing result (success / failure) is stored.

JP 2014-48746 A JP 2010-3101 A JP 2012-192575 A

  By the way, when displaying the browser screen on the display unit, the microcomputer receives (downloads) the browser screen information, which is information related to the browser screen, from the server, and the microcomputer displays the browser screen based on the browser screen information on the display unit. Will be allowed to. In this way, the history information (log) of the process that is performed by the microcomputer, such as printing, copying, and scanning, is recorded, but the menu screen, status notification screen, various message screens, etc. are displayed on the display unit. The history information of the display control when it was made was not recorded.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device and a display control method for the electronic device that can record history information related to display processing to be displayed on a display unit in at least one display mode among a plurality of display modes. .

Hereinafter, means for solving the above-described problems and the effects thereof will be described.
An electronic device that solves the above problems is an electronic device that is used in connection with a server, and includes a display unit that displays a screen, a communication unit that performs communication via a network, a processing unit that processes a job, and a job A history management unit that records history information on the display unit and a control unit that controls a display mode to be displayed on the display unit, and the control unit performs display processing in at least one display mode of the display modes. This is executed as a job processed by a copy.

  According to this configuration, display processing in at least one of the display modes is executed as a job processed by the processing unit. Therefore, the history of display processing in at least one display mode can be recorded as job history information by the history management unit.

  In the electronic apparatus, the processing unit has an exclusive control function between jobs to be executed, and executes a display process in another display mode while a job related to the display process in the at least one display mode is being executed. Is preferably limited.

  According to this configuration, using the exclusive control function of the processing unit, execution of display processing in other display modes is restricted while a job related to display processing in at least one display mode is being executed. Therefore, it is possible to avoid unintentionally switching to another display mode when executing the display process as a job.

  In the electronic apparatus, the processing unit includes an exclusive control function between jobs to be executed, and during execution of a job related to display processing in the at least one display mode, other processing jobs unnecessary in the display mode are included. It is preferable to limit execution.

  According to this configuration, during execution of a job related to display processing in at least one display mode using the exclusive control function of the processing unit, execution of other jobs unnecessary in the display mode is restricted. Therefore, it is possible to relatively easily avoid execution of other unnecessary jobs in the display mode by using the exclusive control function of the processing unit.

  The electronic apparatus further includes a user interface including a plurality of operation keys, and the processing unit operates at least one of the plurality of operation keys in association with a job related to display processing in at least one of the display modes. It is preferable to set the validity / invalidity of the key.

  According to this configuration, in the case of at least one display mode, the processing unit sets validity / invalidity of at least one operation key associated with a job related to display processing in the display mode. For this reason, at least one operation key can be appropriately set to be valid / invalid according to the display mode.

  In the electronic device, the processing unit executes a plurality of display processes in a plurality of jobs in the at least one display mode, and the validity / invalidity of at least one operation key is set in association with each of the plurality of jobs. It is preferable.

  According to this configuration, a plurality of display processes are executed by a plurality of jobs in at least one display mode. Valid / invalid of at least one operation key is set in association with each of the plurality of jobs. In one display mode, it is possible to switch between valid / invalid setting of the operation key for each of a plurality of display processes. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an inappropriate operation from being performed because an unnecessary operation key is valid, or to facilitate an input operation by enabling a specific operation key.

  In the electronic device, in the at least one display mode, it is preferable that a key function different from the other display modes is assigned to at least one operation key among the operation keys set to be effective.

  According to this configuration, in at least one display mode, a key function different from that of the other display modes is assigned to at least one of the operation keys that are enabled in association with a job related to display processing. Therefore, the convenience of operation using the operation keys is enhanced by using an appropriate key function corresponding to the display mode.

  In the electronic device, as the display mode, a first display mode for displaying a native screen based on screen information stored in advance in the electronic device, and a second display for displaying a browser screen based on browser screen information received from the server through the network. Preferably including a display mode.

  According to this configuration, in the first display mode, a native screen based on screen information stored in advance in the electronic device is displayed, and in the second display mode, a browser screen based on browser screen information received from the server through the network is displayed. . For example, in the second display mode, the server can appropriately update the browser screen information. For example, when the electronic device is applied to a billing service, a browser screen suitable for the billing service can be displayed on the display unit in the second display mode.

  In the display control method for an electronic device that solves the above-described problem, a display control method for controlling a display mode to be displayed on a display unit of an electronic device that is used in connection with a server, the screen information being used in at least one display mode A communication step of acquiring the information from the server via a network, a display processing step of executing a display process for displaying a browser screen based on the screen information on a display unit as a job, and history information of a job related to the display process And a history recording step for recording. According to this method, the same effect as that of the above-described electrical apparatus can be obtained.

The lineblock diagram showing the outline of the processing management system in one embodiment. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a user interface of a multifunction machine. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of the multifunction machine. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating functional configurations of a multifunction peripheral and a management server. The schematic diagram which shows UI table. The schematic diagram which shows a login screen. The schematic diagram which shows a process selection screen. The schematic diagram which shows a job list screen. The schematic diagram which shows a condition selection screen. The schematic diagram which shows an input screen. The flowchart which shows the switching processing procedure from a native screen to a browser screen. The flowchart which shows the switching process procedure between browser screens. The flowchart which shows the switching processing procedure from a browser screen to a native screen.

Hereinafter, an embodiment that embodies an electronic device and a display control method in the electronic device will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 illustrates a processing management system 10 including a multifunction machine 20 which is an example of an electronic device. As shown in FIG. 1, the processing management system 10 includes a management server 40 and a plurality of multifunction devices 20 that can communicate with the management server 40 through a network 11 such as a LAN (Local Area Network). In addition, an information terminal 12 used by a user is connected to the network 11 in the processing management system 10.

  The multifunction machine 20 includes an inkjet printing unit 21 that prints on a medium such as paper, a scanning unit 22 that reads an image stored on the medium, a user interface 23, and a control device 24. Note that the printing method by the printing unit 21 may be a method other than the ink jet method, such as a dot impact method, a laser method, and a heat sensitive method, as long as printing on a medium is possible.

  Processes that can be executed by the multifunction device 20 include printing, copying, scanning, and facsimile (hereinafter referred to as “FAX”). For example, when a user operates the information terminal 12 to request printing, a print job is transmitted from the information terminal 12 to the management server 40. When a print job is transmitted from the management server 40 to any one of the multifunction devices 20, the multifunction device performs printing based on the print job.

  Note that printing is processing based on a print job received from the management server 40 and is an example of “reception required processing” based on information received from the management server 40. On the other hand, processing other than printing, that is, copying, scanning, and FAX is an example of “reception unnecessary processing” that does not require reception of information from the management server 40.

  When processing such as printing or copying is executed in the multifunction device 20, usage information that is information related to the processing is transmitted from the multifunction device 20 to the management server 40. This usage information includes the number of media on which printing (or copying) has been performed, information on the user who has requested execution of the processing, and the like. Such usage information is managed by the management server 40. The processing management system 10 uses the usage information managed by the management server 40 to provide, for example, a billing service for each user or for each group of a plurality of users.

Next, the user interface 23 of the multifunction machine 20 will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the user interface 23 includes an operation unit 231 that receives an input operation by a user, a display unit 232, and a reception unit 233 that reads user information registered in an authentication card. The operation unit 231 includes a touch panel 23A attached to the display unit 232 and a plurality of push button hard keys 23B. In FIG. 2, the touch panel 23A is shown by a two-dot chain line.

  The input information resulting from the operation of the operation unit 231 by the user and the user information read by the receiving unit 233 are input to the control device 24 of the multifunction machine 20 via the user interface 23. For example, when “print” on the display unit 232 is touched, panel operation information, which is information related to the operation of the touch panel 23A, is input as input information to the control device 24, and the control device 24 is requested to print by the user. Can be detected. On the other hand, when the hard key 23B is operated, key operation information that is information related to the operation of the hard key 23B is input to the control device 24 as input information. Similarly, when “copy”, “scan”, and “FAX” on the display unit 232 are touched, the control device 24 can detect that each processing is requested by the user.

  The printing includes “PC printing” for printing a document or an image based on print data from an information terminal 12 (for example, a personal computer (PC)) on the network 11. Further, the multifunction device 20 is provided with a card slot, a USB port, and a wireless LAN interface (all not shown). “Memory printing” for reading and printing image data from a memory card connected to the card slot, “USB printing” for reading and printing image data from an external storage device (for example, USB memory) connected to the USB port, wireless LAN “Wireless printing” that wirelessly receives and prints image data or the like from a portable information terminal via an interface is also possible. Examples of the portable information terminal used at this time include a smartphone and a mobile phone. In the MFP 20 of the present embodiment, printing (for example, PC printing), copying, scanning, FAX, USB printing, memory printing, and wireless printing are executed as jobs to be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the hard key 23B includes a power key 81, a home key 82, a back key 83, a numeric key 84, a copy key 85 (start key), a stop key 86, a reset key 87, and an interrupt key 88. A plurality of operation keys 81 to 88, etc. are included. The power key 81 is operated when turning on / off the power of the multifunction machine 20, and the home key 82 is operated when returning the display unit 232 to the process selection screen B1 (main menu screen) (see FIG. 7) which is a home screen. Is done. Further, the back key 83 is operated when returning to the previous process, and the numeric keypad 84 is operated when inputting a number. The stop key 86 is operated when the process is stopped, the reset key 87 is operated when the process is reset, and the interrupt key 88 is operated when interrupting the process during another process.

  User information is information (for example, user ID etc.) which specifies a user who owns an authentication card. The input information resulting from the operation of the operation unit 231 by the user and the user information read by the receiving unit 233 are input to the control device 24 of the multifunction machine 20 via the user interface 23.

  In the processing management system 10 according to the present embodiment, the user information registered in the authentication card is read by the reception unit 233 of the multifunction device 20 to log in to the multifunction device 20 and the user uses the multifunction device 20. It is possible to do. Among the functions of the multifunction device 20 such as printing, copying, scanning, and faxing, only at least one function permitted by the multifunction device 20 set individually for each read user information can be used. Become. Further, even when the MFP 20 is logged in, if a predetermined time elapses without any operation or communication between the MFP 20 and the management server 40 is disabled, the MFP 20 You are automatically logged off from 20.

Next, the control device 24 of the multifunction machine 20 will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the control device 24 includes a multi-core processor. Of the plurality (two in this example) of control circuits 50 and 60 constituting the control device 24, the first control circuit 50 controls the multifunction device 20, and the second control circuit 60 It manages communication with the management server 40. Each of these control circuits 50 and 60 is configured to be able to input and output information.

  For example, when a print request is input from the user interface 23, the first control circuit 50 controls the printing unit 21 to execute printing on the medium. For example, when a copy request is input from the user interface 23, the first control circuit 50 controls the printing unit 21 and the scanning unit 22 to execute copying. Further, when the hard key 23B of the operation unit 231 of the user interface 23 is operated, key operation information that is information related to the operation of the hard key 23B is input to the first control circuit 50 as input information.

  The first control circuit 50 includes a CPU 51, an ASIC 52, a RAM 53, a nonvolatile memory 54, and a VRAM 55. “ASIC” is an abbreviation for “Application Specific IC”, and “VRAM” is an abbreviation for “Video Random Access Memory”. The nonvolatile memory 54 stores various programs executed by the CPU 51 and necessary setting data. The RAM 53 temporarily stores data such as programs executed by the CPU 51 and various calculation results. The VRAM 55 stores screen information (hereinafter also referred to as “native screen information”) that is information related to a native screen, which is a screen displayed on the display unit 232 by the first control circuit 50. As will be described in detail later, the native screen is a screen prepared by the multifunction device 20, and includes a screen prepared in advance by the multifunction device 20 and a screen created by the first control circuit 50.

  The second control circuit 60 includes a CPU 61, a RAM 62, a nonvolatile memory 63 and a VRAM 64. The nonvolatile memory 63 stores various programs executed by the CPU 61 and necessary setting data. The RAM 62 temporarily stores data such as programs executed by the CPU 61 and various calculation results. The VRAM 64 stores screen information (hereinafter also referred to as “browser screen information”) that is information related to the browser screen, which is a screen displayed on the display unit 232 by the second control circuit 60. The browser screen information is screen information received (downloaded) from the management server 40, and the browser screen information received from the management server 40 is stored in the VRAM 64 in the second control circuit 60.

  Further, when the touch panel 23A of the operation unit 231 of the user interface 23 is operated, panel operation information that is information related to the operation of the touch panel 23A is input to the second control circuit 60. Then, the second control circuit 60 transmits the input panel operation information to the management server 40 or outputs it to the first control circuit 50.

  Further, the control device 24 has a VRAM 70 separately from the VRAM 55 of the first control circuit 50 and the VRAM 64 of the second control circuit 60. The VRAM 70 stores screen information related to the screen displayed on the display unit 232. Such a VRAM 70 can be accessed by both the first control circuit 50 and the second control circuit 60. The first control circuit 50 and the second control circuit 60 have a display control driver for controlling the display unit 232. Therefore, in the MFP 20 of the present embodiment, display control of the native screen by the first control circuit 50 and display control of the browser screen by the second control circuit 60 are possible.

  Specifically, the first control circuit 50 determines which control circuit is to execute display control. That is, the first control circuit 50 manages the control right of the display unit 232. For example, when the first control circuit 50 has the control right, the first control circuit 50 stores the native screen information in the VRAM 70 and displays the native screen based on the native screen information on the display unit 232. Let On the other hand, when the second control circuit 60 receives the control right from the first control circuit 50, that is, when the display control by the second control circuit 60 is permitted by the first control circuit, the second control circuit 60 The circuit 60 receives browser screen information from the management server 40 and stores the browser screen information in the VRAM 70. Then, the second control circuit 60 causes the display unit 232 to display a browser screen based on the browser screen information stored in the VRAM 70.

  In this way, the control device 24 selects one of the first control circuit 50 and the second control circuit 60 when displaying the screen on the display unit 232, thereby displaying the native screen on the display unit 232. The mode (first display mode) and the display mode (second display mode) for displaying the browser screen are controlled.

Next, a functional configuration of the control device 24 of the multifunction machine 20 will be described with reference to FIG.
As illustrated in FIG. 4, the control device 24 of the multifunction machine 20 includes a UI control unit 31, a device-side communication unit 32 as an example of a communication unit, and API control as a functional unit configured by at least one of software and hardware. A unit 33, a browser 34, a job management unit 35 as an example of a processing unit, a history management unit 36, a control unit 37, and a UI table 38. The “UI” is an abbreviation for “User Interface”. The “API” is an abbreviation for “Application Programming Interface”.

  The UI control unit 31 performs display control of the display unit 232 of the user interface 23 and receives information input from the user interface 23, that is, the input information and user information described above. That is, the UI control unit 31 outputs the user information to the device side communication unit 32 when user information is input from the reception unit 233. In addition, the UI control unit 31 determines the output side of the input information input from the operation unit 231 to the device side communication unit 32 or the job management unit 35. Then, the UI control unit 31 outputs the input information to the determined output destination.

  In addition, the UI control unit 31 displays a native screen that is a screen prepared or created by the control device 24 of the multifunction device 20 in the first display mode. The UI control unit 31 includes a first display control unit 311, and performs display control for causing the display unit 232 to display the native screen by the first display control unit 311. Further, the UI control unit 31 causes the display unit 232 to display the browser screen in the second display mode in which information related to the browser screen, which is a screen created by the management server 40, is input from the device-side communication unit 32.

  The device-side communication unit 32 manages communication with the management server 40 via the network 11. In other words, when user information is input from the UI control unit 31, the device side communication unit 32 transmits this user information to the management server 40. Further, when input information is input from the UI control unit 31, the device-side communication unit 32 requests information (for example, browser display job or browser screen information) from the management server 40, and receives information corresponding to the request. . Further, the device-side communication unit 32 receives information (for example, reception information such as a print job, a scan job, and a FAX job) from the management server 40. Then, the device-side communication unit 32 appropriately outputs the received information to at least one of the UI control unit 31, the API control unit 33, and the job management unit 35. The browser display job is a job for displaying a browser screen on the display unit 232.

  The API control unit 33 is activated based on information (for example, an API request) from the management server 40, and performs a predetermined process by executing a predetermined program requested. The API control unit 33 performs processing for starting the browser 34 as one of predetermined processing.

  The browser 34 generates a browser screen based on browser screen information from the management server 40. The browser 34 acquires (downloads) browser screen information from a storage location in the management server 40 indicated by a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) designated by a second display control unit 375 described later, and based on the browser screen information. A browser screen is displayed on the display unit 232.

  The job management unit 35 manages jobs based on input information from the UI control unit 31 and jobs based on information received from the management server 40. The job management unit 35 includes an exclusive control unit 351 and a state management unit 352. The job management unit 35 has a scheduler function and manages the execution order of received jobs. The job management unit 35 instructs the control unit 37 to execute the job having the highest priority.

  As illustrated in FIG. 4, the control unit 37 includes a plurality of control units 371 to 375 that are selectively activated to execute a job. That is, the control unit 37 includes a print control unit 371, a copy control unit 372, a scan control unit 373, a FAX control unit 374, a second display control unit 375, and the like. The print control unit 371 executes a print job, and the copy control unit 372 executes a scan job. The scan control unit 373 executes a scan job, and the FAX control unit 374 executes a FAX job. Further, the second display control unit 375 executes a browser display job. Here, the job includes a job based on information received from the management server 40 and a job based on input information from the operation unit 231. The print jobs include a normal print job (PC print job) based on information received from the management server 40, a memory print job, a USB print job, and a wireless print job based on input information from the operation unit 231. Further, the FAX job and the scan job include a job based on information received from the management server 40 and a job based on input information from the operation unit 231. Since the copy function is instructed using the operation unit 231 of the multifunction machine 20, the copy job is a job based on input information from the operation unit 231. In the present embodiment, the first display control unit 311 that performs display processing of the native screen in the first display mode and the second display control unit 375 that performs display processing of the browser screen in the second display mode by handling the job, An example of a control unit that controls the display mode is configured.

  The job management unit 35 instructs the control unit 37 to execute a job, thereby activating the control unit 371 to 375 in the control unit 37 corresponding to the job to be executed. When the job management unit 35 selects a job to be executed, the exclusive control unit 351 performs exclusive control between jobs. In the exclusive control unit 351, combinations of jobs that cannot be executed simultaneously are registered in advance. The exclusive control unit 351 performs exclusive control between jobs with reference to the registered content. For example, printing and scanning cannot be performed at the same time due to memory capacity, and are subject to exclusive control.

  The exclusive control unit 351 also performs exclusive control between a process that is not handled as a job and the job. In the exclusive control unit 351, a combination of a process and a job that cannot be executed simultaneously is registered as an exclusive control target. For example, a native screen display process, which is one of the processes not handled as a job, and a browser screen display process (browser display job) handled as a job are subject to exclusive control. That is, the first display mode and the second display mode are subject to exclusive control, and are switched between the first display mode and the second display mode, triggered by the establishment of a predetermined condition such as login or logout. The display process in the second display mode is restricted during the first display mode, while the process in the first display mode is restricted during the second display mode. In addition, since the browser is connected to the management server 40 during the display of the browser, the connection with other devices such as a personal computer and a portable terminal is excluded. Furthermore, since the management server 40 is connected in the second display mode, the execution of copy jobs when functioning as the multifunction device 20 stand-alone is restricted as other unnecessary jobs in the second display mode.

  Further, the job management unit 35 manages the job status (Wait, Ready, Run, etc.) by the status management unit 352. When the job management unit 35 receives a notification as a job switching event, the job management unit 35 refers to the status of each job managed by the status management unit 352 and a priority management table (not shown), and determines the priority of the jobs in the Ready state. Instruct the execution of the highest job. Among the control units 371 to 375 in the control unit 37, the control unit corresponding to the job is activated. Note that combinations of jobs that are not subject to exclusive control in the job management unit 35 are executed at the same time. For example, the native screen display process and each job can be executed simultaneously.

  The history management unit 36 stores history information (log information) related to the job in a predetermined storage area of a memory (for example, the nonvolatile memory 54). The history information includes job start time, end time, success / failure information, job status, job content, and the like. The contents of the job include “number of printed sheets”, “paper size”, “color / gray scale”, “print mode”, etc. for the print job. Examples of scan jobs include “number of scans” and “scan size”. As for the copy job, “number of copies”, “paper size”, and the like can be given. Further, for FAX jobs, “FAX number”, “FAX transmission time”, and the like can be given.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the UI table 38 is table data including a plurality of types of UI function settings (UI setting information) in which valid / invalid of the hard key 23B and key functions are set in association with each job. The job management unit 35 refers to the UI table 38 to acquire UI setting information corresponding to the job, and sends the acquired UI setting information to the UI control unit 31. The UI control unit 31 sets valid / invalid and key functions of the operation keys 81 to 88 and the like constituting the hard key 23B based on the acquired UI setting information. Details of the UI table 38 will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the management server 40 includes a server-side communication unit 41, an authentication management unit 42, a job storage unit 43, and a screen creation application as functional units configured by at least one of software and hardware. 44.

  The server-side communication unit 41 manages communication with the multifunction machine 20 and the information terminal 12 on the network 11. When the management server 40 receives user information (for example, a user ID) and a password from the multifunction machine 20, the authentication management unit 42 performs an authentication process based on these information. That is, the authentication management unit 42 refers to a user table (not shown) based on an account specified from the user information and the like, and permits login if the user is registered in advance. The management server 40 refers to an authorized function table (not shown) based on the account specified from the user information, and is authorized by the account user among the functions such as PC printing, scanning, and FAX. Grasp the function.

  Jobs such as a print job, a scan job, and a FAX job sent from the information terminal 12 are stored in the job storage unit 43 in association with a user (for example, an account) of the information terminal 12. In addition, the management server 40 transmits a job to the multi-function device 20 through the server-side communication unit 41. Further, the browser screen information created by the screen creation application 44 is transmitted to the multifunction device 20. When the screen creation application 44 receives a PC print request from the multifunction device 20, the screen creation application 44 creates job list screen information for displaying a list of print jobs related to the user who has logged in the multifunction device 20. .

  Next, the UI table 38 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the UI table 38 is associated with UI function settings for each job. The UI function settings include valid / invalid settings of the keys 81 to 88 and key function settings. In the present embodiment, a plurality of display processes are performed in the second display mode, and each display process is handled as a browser display job. As shown in FIG. 5, first to Nth browser display jobs are prepared in association with each of the N types of display processes handled in the second display mode. In the browser display job, display processing for displaying at least one browser screen with common key validity / invalidity and key function assignment is treated as a common browser display job. In the example shown in FIG. 5, N types of browser display jobs having different key validity / invalidity and key function assignment are prepared. First to Nth UIs are set in association with each of the first to Nth browser display jobs. UI function settings are also set for jobs performed in the multifunction machine 20. In the UI table 38, a print job, a copy job, a scan job, a FAX job, and the like are set, and a print UI, a copy UI, a scan UI, and a FAX UI are set in association with these jobs. .

  In FIG. 5, key settings are shown as the contents of each UI function setting corresponding to each job. In the key setting, valid / invalid setting contents are shown in the left column for each of the keys 81 to 88, and key function contents assigned to the right column are shown. In FIG. 5, “◯” is valid and “x” is invalid. When a normal function is always assigned to a valid key, it is indicated by “−”. When a key function other than the normal function is assigned, it is indicated by 2 bits as an example, and a maximum of 4 types of key functions can be assigned. For example, “00” is a normal function, “01” is a first key function other than the normal function, “10” is a second key function other than the normal function, and “11” is a normal function. A third key function other than is assigned. As shown in FIG. 5, for example, in the second browser display job, the key function “01” different from the normal function “00” assigned in the first display mode is assigned as the key function of the stop key 86. Similarly, for example, in the third browser display job, the key function “11” different from the key function “00” or “01” assigned in the first display mode is assigned as the key function of the copy key 85.

  As shown in FIG. 5, for example, when the first UI corresponding to the first browser display job is set, the power key 81 and the home key 82 are enabled and the other keys are disabled. , 82 are assigned normal functions. When the second UI corresponding to the second browser display job is set, the keys 81 to 83 and 86 are enabled, the other keys 84 and 85 are disabled, and the keys 81 to 81 among the keys set to be enabled are set. A normal function is assigned to 83 and a first key function is assigned to the key 86. Further, when the third UI corresponding to the third browser display job is set, the keys 81 to 85 are enabled and the other stop keys 86 are disabled, and the keys 81 to 84 among the keys set to be effective are normally set. A function is assigned, and a third key function is assigned to the copy key 85. When the third browser screen is displayed on the display unit 232 by the execution of the third browser display job, the third UI corresponding to this job is set and the numeric keypad 84 becomes valid. Input operation becomes easier.

  The UI control unit 31 acquires UI setting information acquired from the job management unit 35 by referring to the UI table 38 based on the browser display job at that time, and based on the acquired UI setting information. A UI setting process is performed for enabling / disabling the keys 81 to 88 of the operation unit 231 and assigning key functions. For example, in the case of the first browser display job, as shown in the UI table 38 of FIG. 5, the key control function 31 assigns each key valid / invalid setting and valid key based on the first UI setting information. The setting content of the first UI is set. In the example of FIG. 5, the power key 81 and the home key 82 are valid, the other keys 83 to 86 are invalid, and normal functions are assigned to the valid keys 81 and 82. The process selection screen B1 is an example of a screen displayed in the first browser display job. If the UI setting contents are the same, the same first browser display job is used for other screens. For example, when the lower selection screen when an item other than copy in the processing selection screen B1 is selected is displayed in the browser, the UI setting content is the same as that in the processing selection screen B1, so the first browser display job is used. Is done. As described above, the browser display job is not necessarily associated with each screen, but is prepared for each different UI setting content.

Next, screens displayed on the display unit 232 of the multifunction machine 20 will be described with reference to FIGS.
The screen shown in FIG. 6 is a login screen N1 displayed to prompt login to the multifunction device 20 when the multifunction device 20 is logged off. The login screen N1 is a native screen prepared in advance in the control device 24 of the multifunction machine 20.

  The screen illustrated in FIG. 7 is an example of a process selection screen B1 when the multifunction device 20 and the management server 40 can communicate and the user is logged in to the multifunction device 20. In addition to “print”, “copy”, “scan”, and “FAX”, “other” is displayed on the process selection screen B1 in a selectable manner. When “others” is selected on the process selection screen B1, various maintenance and settings of the multifunction machine 20 are possible. The process selection screen B1 is a browser screen created by the management server 40.

  Incidentally, when “print” is selected on the process selection screen B1, the second control circuit 60 transmits a message to that effect to the management server 40. Then, the management server 40 creates a screen for displaying a list of print jobs that can be printed, and transmits browser screen information (for example, information including an HTML file and an image file) related to the screen to the multi-function device 20. Further, when a process that uses the multifunction device 20 in a stand-alone manner independent of the management server 40 is selected on the process selection screen B1, the second control circuit 60 informs the first control circuit. Output to 50. Then, the first control circuit 50 causes the display unit 232 to display a screen for prompting the user to set the execution condition of the selected process.

  The screen illustrated in FIG. 8 is an example of a screen when “print” is selected on the process selection screen B1. This screen is an example of a job list screen B2 that displays a list of print jobs that can be selected by the user. For example, when “first print job” is selected on the job list screen B2, the second control circuit 60 requests the management server 40 for the first print job. When the first print job is received from the management server 40, the first print job is output from the device side communication unit 32 of the second control circuit 60 to the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50. . Then, the job management unit 35 in the first control circuit 50 instructs the control unit 37 to execute printing based on the first print job. The job list screen B2 is a browser screen created by the management server 40.

  The screen illustrated in FIG. 9 is an example of a screen when “copy” is selected on the process selection screen B1. This screen is a condition selection screen N2 that prompts the user to select various conditions (magnification, paper size, etc.) when executing copying. At this time, the content selected on the condition selection screen N <b> 2 is input to the first control circuit 50 via the second control circuit 60. When all the conditions are selected, the first control circuit 50 performs copying. The condition selection screen N2 that prompts the user to select an execution condition for processing that is handled in a stand-alone manner of the multifunction device 20 such as copying is a native screen prepared in advance in the multifunction device 20.

  The screen shown in FIG. 10 is an input screen B3 including an input box 80 for inputting numbers (including some alphanumeric characters) such as the amount of money, the number of printed sheets, and the usage time. When the user performs a balance inquiry or a message indicating that the balance has been reduced is displayed on the display unit 232, if the user performs an operation to make a deposit, the message is displayed on the display unit 232. In this case, the input screen B3 functions as a deposit screen. Such an input screen B3 is a browser screen created by the management server 40.

  In the present embodiment, display processing for displaying the browser screens shown in FIGS. 7, 8, and 10 on the display unit 232 of the multi-function device 20 is executed as a job. Then, in the browser display job, browser screen information for displaying the browser screen is requested to the management server 40, and the requested browser screen information is received from the management server 40.

Next, the operation of the multifunction machine 20 will be described.
Next, an example of a processing procedure when the screen displayed on the display unit 232 is switched from the native screen to the browser screen in response to a request from the management server 40 will be described with reference to a flowchart illustrated in FIG. For example, before the user logs in, a login screen N1 that prompts the user to log in as shown in FIG. 6 is displayed. This login screen N1 is a native screen. The user inputs the user ID and password by touching the authentication card on the reception unit 233 of the user interface 23 or switching to an input screen (not shown) that is another native screen and performing a key input operation. The multi-function device 20 requests login by transmitting the input user ID and password to the management server 40.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the management server 40 that has received the login request performs an authentication process based on the user ID and password received together with the request, and if the login is permitted as a result of the authentication process, the browser A browser display job requesting switching to the screen is transmitted to the multi-function device 20 (step S1-11). At this time, a browser activation instruction and a screen switching permission request are transmitted together with the browser display job. The browser display job data includes a URL indicating the storage location of browser screen information.

  The UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50 that has received the screen switching permission request performs switching permission determination for determining whether or not to permit screen switching from the native screen to the browser screen (step S3-11). When screen switching is permitted, switching from the native screen to the browser screen is permitted via the device-side communication unit 32 of the second control circuit 60 in response to an instruction from the UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50. Is transmitted to the management server 40 (step S2-11). The management server 40 that has accepted the permission to switch the screen creates browser screen information (step S1-12). At this time, the management server 40 activates the screen creation application 44 and uses the screen creation application 44 to generate a plurality of browser screens displayed on the display unit 232 when the multifunction peripheral is in the second display mode. Create browser screen information.

  Also, the UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50 ends the display control for displaying the native screen on the display unit 232 (step S3-12). For example, the UI control unit 31 terminates the display control application and saves the native screen information from the VRAM 70 to its own VRAM 55. Further, the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50 instructs the second display control unit 375 of the second control circuit 60 to execute the browser display job (step S3-13).

  Then, in the second control circuit 60, the second display control unit 375 executes the browser display job, and the API control unit 33 first activates the browser 34 (S2-12). Subsequently, the second display control unit 375 requests the browser screen information from the management server 40 by specifying the URL previously obtained from the management server 40 (step S2-13). At this time, the second display control unit 375 requests browser screen information by designating the URL previously received from the management server 40. The management server 40 that has received this request transmits one browser screen information requested by designating the URL from the plurality of browser screen information previously created in step S1-12 to the multi-function device 20 (step S1-1). 13). The browser screen information is received (downloaded) by the device-side communication unit 32 of the multifunction machine 20 and sent to the second display control unit 375 of the second control circuit 60. The activation of the browser 34 (S2-12) may be performed in a browser display job executed by the second display control unit 375. In the present embodiment, the process in which the MFP 20 acquires the browser screen information by the process in step S1-13 corresponds to an example of a communication step.

  The second display control unit 375 causes the browser 34 to display the received browser screen information on the display unit 232. At this time, the browser 34 analyzes the layout based on the browser screen information and generates browser screen data. The second display control unit 375 moves the browser screen data once stored in the VRAM 64 of the second control circuit 60 to the VRAM 70, whereby a browser screen based on the browser screen data is displayed on the display unit 232 (step S2- 14). At the time of login, a processing selection screen B1 shown in FIG. 7 is displayed on the display unit 232 as a browser screen. In the present embodiment, the process in step S2-14 corresponds to an example of a display process step.

  On the other hand, the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50 that permits screen switching before and after the display of the browser screen refers to the UI table 38 based on the browser display job at that time, and operates the keys of the operation unit 231. UI setting processing for setting the UI corresponding to the browser display job is performed (step S3-14). For example, in the case of the first browser display job, the UI control unit 31 sets the first UI as shown in the UI table 38 of FIG. As a result, the setting contents of the first UI are set as the valid / invalid setting of each key constituting the operation unit 231 and the key function assigned to the valid key. In the example of FIG. 5, the power key 81 and the home key 82 are valid, and the other keys 83 to 86 are invalidated. The process selection screen B1 is an example of a screen displayed in the first browser display job. If the UI setting contents are the same, the same first browser display job is used for other screens. For example, when displaying a lower selection screen when an item other than copy on the processing selection screen B1 is selected, the first browser display job is used, and the same UI setting contents as the processing selection screen B1 are set. The As described above, the browser display job is not necessarily associated with each screen, but is prepared for each different UI setting content.

  After completing the UI setting process, the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50 instructs the history management unit 36 to perform log recording processing for recording history information (log information) of the browser display job. The history management unit 36 performs log recording processing for recording history information (log information) including history such as the status and start of the browser display job, the display start time of the browser screen, and the content of the browser screen (step S3-15). . The history information is written in a predetermined storage area of the nonvolatile memory 54 by the history management unit 36. In the present embodiment, the process of step S3-15 corresponds to an example of a history recording step.

  Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 12, the browser screen displayed on the display unit 232 in response to a request from the first control circuit 50 by the user operating the browser screen (touch panel 23 </ b> A) or the key of the operation unit 231. An example of a processing procedure when switching to another browser screen will be described. When it is necessary to switch the processing selection screen B1 (an example of the browser screen) displayed on the display unit 232 to another browser screen, the browser screen is switched according to the processing procedure described with reference to FIG. The operation unit 231 is operated by the user under a situation where the browser screen is displayed on the display unit 232. When the first control circuit 50 receives an operation signal from the operation, the first control circuit 50 detects the operation as an operation indicating a browser screen switching request (S3-21). For example, when the user selects “print” by operating the operation unit 231 under the state where the process selection screen B1 shown in FIG. 7 is displayed on the display unit 232, a request for switching to a browser screen related to printing is made. Detected as an operation.

  As shown in FIG. 12, in the multifunction device 20, when the first control circuit 50 detects an operation requesting switching to the browser screen (step S3-21), the first control circuit 50 notifies the second control circuit 60 of the request. To do. Further, the second control circuit 60 transmits a request for switching to the browser screen to the management server 40 (step S2-21). The management server 40 transmits a browser display job to the multi-function device 20 as a response to the request for switching to the browser screen (step S1-21). At this time, a screen switching permission request is transmitted together with the browser display job. The browser display job data includes a URL indicating the storage location of browser screen information.

  The UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50 that has received the screen switching permission request performs switching permission determination for determining whether or not to permit screen switching from the native screen to the browser screen (step S3-22). When permitting screen switching, switching from the browser screen to another browser screen is permitted via the device-side communication unit 32 of the second control circuit 60 in response to an instruction from the UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50. To the management server 40 (step S2-22). The management server 40 that has accepted the permission to switch the screen creates browser screen information (step S1-22). At this time, the management server 40 activates the screen creation application 44 and uses the screen creation application 44 to generate a plurality of browser screens displayed on the display unit 232 when the multifunction peripheral is in the second display mode. Create browser screen information.

  In the MFP 20 that has received the browser display job, the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50 manages the browser display job. Specifically, the status management unit 352 manages the job status. The exclusive control unit 351 performs exclusive control between jobs and exclusive control between processing and jobs. When the browser display job can be executed, the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50 instructs the second display control unit 375 of the second control circuit 60 to execute the browser display job (step S3- 23).

  Then, the second display control unit 375 is activated, and the second display control unit 375 starts executing the instructed browser display job. First, the second display control unit 375 requests the browser screen information from the management server 40 by specifying the URL previously obtained from the management server 40 (step S2-23). The management server 40 transmits browser screen information (for example, information including an HTML file and an image file) specified by the URL among the plurality of browser screen information created in step S1-22 to the multi-function device 20 (step S1). -23). The browser screen information is received (downloaded) by the device-side communication unit 32 of the second control circuit 60 in the multifunction device 20 and sent to the second display control unit 375 of the second control circuit 60. In the present embodiment, the process in which the multifunction machine 20 acquires the browser screen information by the process in step S1-23 corresponds to an example of a communication step.

  Then, the second display control unit 375 of the second control circuit 60 causes the browser 34 to display the received browser screen information on the display unit 232. At this time, the browser 34 analyzes the layout based on the browser screen information and generates browser screen data. The second display control unit 375 stores the browser screen data in the VRAM 64 of the second control circuit 60, and further moves the browser screen data from the VRAM 64 to the VRAM 70. As a result, a browser screen based on the browser screen data stored in the VRAM 70 is displayed on the display unit 232 (step S2-24).

  For example, the MFP 20 receives browser screen information from the management server 40 that enables the browser 34 to generate the job list screen B2 shown in FIG. By storing the job list screen data generated by the browser 34 from the browser screen information in the VRAM 70, the display content of the display unit 232 is changed from the processing selection screen B1 which is one of the browser screens to one of the other browser screens. The screen is switched to a certain job list screen B2. Further, for example, the user selects “Others” on the process selection screen B1 shown in FIG. 7, and further selects an item that requires input such as a user ID, a password, or a deposit amount on the next screen. In this case, the MFP 20 receives from the management server 40 browser screen information that allows the browser 34 to generate the input screen B3 shown in FIG. Alternatively, when the management server 40 determines that the balance on the billing service is insufficient from the processing conditions (the number of processed sheets, etc.) input by the user through the operation unit 231 to the multifunction device 20, the same input sent from the management server 40 The multi-function device 20 receives browser screen information for screen display. The second display control unit 375 causes the browser 34 to generate browser screen data for the input screen B3 shown in FIG. 10 based on the browser screen information, and moves the browser screen data from the VRAM 64 to the VRAM 70. As a result, the display content of the display unit 232 is switched from the process selection screen B1 to the input screen B3. In the present embodiment, the process of step S2-24 corresponds to an example of a display process step.

  On the other hand, in the first control circuit 50, after receiving the browser display job, the UI control unit 31 refers to the UI table 38 (FIG. 5) and performs UI setting processing corresponding to the browser display job (step S3-24). ). For example, the browser display job for displaying the job list screen B2 is the second browser display job in the UI table 38 shown in FIG. In this example, the power key 81, the home key 82, the back key 83, the stop key 86, and the like in the operation unit 231 are enabled, and the numeric keypad 84 and the copy key 85 are disabled. Of the valid keys 81 to 83, 86, normal functions are assigned to the keys 81 to 83, and the normal function used for the job in the first display mode and other browser display jobs is assigned to the stop key 86. Different key functions are assigned. For example, the browser display job for displaying the input screen B3 is the third browser display job in the UI table 38 shown in FIG. In this example, the operation keys 81 to 85 including the numeric keypad 84 in the operation unit 231 are enabled, and the stop key 86 is disabled. Further, among the effective operation keys, normal functions are assigned to the operation keys 81 to 84, and a key function different from the normal function used in the job or the like in the first display mode is assigned to the copy key 85. Thus, when the input screen B3 is displayed, the numeric keypad 84 is enabled with the normal function. Therefore, the user can easily input numbers and the like in the input box 80 in the input screen B3 by operating the numeric keypad 84.

  In the first control circuit 50, the history management unit 36 includes history information (log information) including history such as the status and start / end of the browser display job, display start time and display end time of the browser screen, and contents of the browser screen. ) Is recorded (step S3-25). The history information is written in a predetermined storage area of the nonvolatile memory 54 by the history management unit 36. In the present embodiment, the process of step S3-25 corresponds to an example of a history recording step.

  Next, a processing procedure when switching from the browser screen to the native screen will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Processing described with reference to FIG. 13 when a copy is selected by the user operating the copy key 85 under the situation where the processing selection screen B1 (an example of a browser screen) is displayed on the display unit 232. The screen can be switched in the procedure.

  As illustrated in FIG. 13, in the multifunction device 20, when the UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50 detects an operation requesting switching to the native screen, the request is notified to the second control circuit 60. (Step S3-31). Further, the second control circuit 60 transmits a request for permission to switch to the native screen to the management server 40 via the device-side communication unit 32 (step S2-31). The management server 40 transmits to the multi-function device 20 that the switch to the native screen is permitted (step S1-31). The transmission content at this time includes a screen switching permission request.

  The UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50 that has received the screen switching permission request performs switching permission determination for determining whether or not to permit screen switching from the browser screen to the native screen (step S3-32). When the screen switching is permitted, switching from the browser screen to the native screen is permitted via the device side communication unit 32 of the second control circuit 60 according to an instruction from the UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50. Is transmitted to the management server 40 (step S2-32). The management server 40 that has received the permission to switch the screen manages the switching from the browser screen to the native screen.

  As a result of switching permission determination, permission to switch to the native screen is also sent to the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50. When the job management unit 35 receives information indicating that the screen switching to the native screen is permitted, the job management unit 35 instructs the second display control unit 375 of the second control circuit 60 to end the browser display job (step S3-33).

  When receiving the job end instruction, second display control unit 375 of second control circuit 60 ends the browser display job (step S2-33). Specifically, the second display control unit 375 terminates the browser 34 that has been activated to display the browser screen on the display unit 232, and saves the browser screen information stored in the VRAM 70 in its own VRAM 64. Then, the second display control unit 375 of the second control circuit 60 notifies the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50 of the end of the browser display job (step S2-34). Thereby, the control right for displaying the screen on the display unit 232 is returned from the second display control unit 375 to the first display control unit 311 in the UI control unit 31, and the display control by the first display control unit 311 is permitted. The

  When the job management unit 35 of the first control circuit 50 receives notification that the browser display job is finished, the job management unit 35 instructs the history management unit 36 to perform log recording processing for recording history information (log information) of the browser display job. The history management unit 36 performs log recording processing for recording history information (log information) including history such as the status and end of the browser display job, the display end time of the browser screen, and the content of the browser screen (step S3-34). . The history information is written in a predetermined storage area of the nonvolatile memory 54 by the history management unit 36.

  Subsequently, the first display control unit 311 in the UI control unit 31 of the first control circuit 50 displays a native screen (step S3-35). Specifically, the first display control unit 311 activates a display control application for displaying the native screen on the display unit 232. Subsequently, the first display control unit 311 stores, for example, native screen information related to the condition selection screen N2 (see FIG. 9) in the VRAM 70. As a result, the native screen based on the native screen information is displayed on the display unit 232 (step S3-35). In this example, a condition selection screen N2 shown in FIG. 9 is displayed as a native screen. In this way, the display content of the display unit 232 is switched from the process selection screen B1, which is one of the browser screens, to the condition selection screen N2, which is one of the native screens.

According to the embodiment described in detail above, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) Display processing in at least one of the display modes (second display mode in this example) is performed by a control unit 37 (an example of a processing unit) that executes a job under the management of the job management unit 35. It is executed as a job to be processed. Therefore, the history of display processing in at least one display mode (second mode) can be recorded by the history management unit 36 as job history information.

  (2) A job related to display processing in at least one display mode (second display mode in this example) using the exclusive control function of the exclusive control unit 351 included in the job management unit 35 constituting an example of the processing unit. During execution, execution of display processing in another display mode (the first display mode in this example) is restricted. Therefore, it is possible to avoid unintentionally switching to another display mode when executing the display process as a job.

  (3) Using the exclusive control function of the exclusive control unit 351 included in the job management unit 35 that constitutes an example of the processing unit, the job related to the display processing in at least one display mode (second display mode in this example) During execution, execution of other unnecessary jobs in the display mode is restricted. Therefore, it is possible to relatively easily avoid execution of other unnecessary jobs in the display mode by using the exclusive control function of the exclusive control unit 351. For example, an external device that uses a wired or wireless line unrelated to the LAN managed by the management server 40, such as printing from a USB memory, printing through a USB cable, memory printing, and printing from a portable information terminal (for example, a smartphone). The print job based on the data from can be prevented from being performed simultaneously with the browser display job by exclusive control.

  (4) When at least one display mode (in this example, the second display mode) is set by the UI control unit 31, the operation keys 81 through the UI settings associated with the job related to the display process in the second display mode. The validity / invalidity of at least one operation key among 88 and the like is set. Therefore, it is possible to switch between valid / invalid setting of the operation key according to the screen for each display job. That is, an appropriate operation key is enabled according to the screen for each display job, and an inappropriate operation key is disabled. Therefore, the user can efficiently perform an input operation using an appropriate operation key corresponding to the displayed screen.

  (5) In at least one display mode (second display mode in this example), each of a plurality of display processes is executed as a job. Valid / invalid of at least one operation key is set in association with each of the plurality of jobs. In one display mode, it is possible to switch between valid / invalid setting of the operation key for each of a plurality of display processes. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an inappropriate operation from being performed because an unnecessary operation key is valid, or to facilitate an input operation by enabling a specific operation key.

  (6) In at least one display mode (second display mode in this example), at least one of the operation keys enabled in association with the job related to display processing is different from the other display modes. A function is assigned. Therefore, the convenience of operation using the operation keys can be enhanced by using an appropriate key function corresponding to the screen for each display job.

  (7) In the first display mode, a native screen based on screen information stored in advance in the multi-function device 20 is displayed. In the second display mode, a browser screen based on browser screen information received from the management server 40 through the network 11 is displayed. The For example, in the second display mode, the management server 40 can update the browser screen information as appropriate. For example, when the multifunction machine 20 is applied to a charging service, a browser screen suitable for the charging service can be displayed on the display unit 232 in the second display mode.

In addition, the said embodiment can also be changed into the following forms.
The operation unit 231 only needs to include at least one of a touch panel attached to the display unit 232 and a push button type hard key. The operation unit 231 may be, for example, only a touch panel or only a hard key. In the case of only the touch panel, although the hard key UI cannot be set, the display processing of the browser screen can be handled as a job (browser display job) and history information regarding the display processing can be recorded. Further, in the case of using only hard keys, it is possible to record history information related to browser screen display processing (browser display job), and it is possible to perform UI settings for different hard keys for each display job.

  Display processing in one second display mode among a plurality of display modes is processed as a job, but M (N is 2 or more satisfying M <N) among N (N is a natural number of 3 or more) display modes The display process may be executed as a job in the display mode of (natural number), or the display process may be executed as a job in all of the plurality of display modes. Further, jobs may be set one by one in association with each screen displayed on the display unit 232 in the second display mode. Further, only one display mode may be prepared for the multifunction peripheral. Furthermore, a configuration may be adopted in which some display processes among a plurality of display processes in one display mode are handled as jobs, and some other display processes are not handled as jobs.

  Instead of setting different display jobs for a plurality of display processes belonging to a common display mode, a single display job common to a plurality of display processes belonging to a common display mode may be set. In this case, for example, on all screens in the second display mode, all the operation keys that are valid in the operation unit 231 are common and the key functions assigned to the valid operation keys are all the same.

  The UI setting process may be a UI setting process in which only the function for switching the validity / invalidity of the keys constituting the operation unit according to the job is removed, and the function for switching the key function to be assigned according to the job is eliminated. On the other hand, the UI setting process may be such that only the function for switching the assigned key function according to the job is used, and the setting for switching the validity / invalidity of the key according to the job is eliminated. Further, the UI setting function for setting keys (valid / invalid setting and key function setting) in association with the job may be eliminated.

  The plurality of display modes are not limited to a configuration including a display mode for displaying a native screen and a display mode for displaying a browser screen. For example, the display mode may be switched for each connected server among a plurality of servers. In this case, a plurality of display modes for displaying the browser screen may be prepared.

  The screen displayed by the display process executed as a job is not limited to the browser screen displayed by the browser 34. A screen in which an image file is displayed by an image playback application without using a browser may be used. For example, the server may display an image on the display unit 232 by transmitting an image file to the multifunction peripheral and opening the image file received by the multifunction peripheral 20 with an image reproduction application.

-Although the control apparatus 24 was the structure provided with the 1st control circuit 50 and the 2nd control circuit, the structure only provided with one control circuit may be sufficient.
-A communication part may be not only a wired system but a wireless system. As a wireless communication unit, for example, a wireless LAN (for example, IEEE802.11 series (“Wi-Fi” (registered trademark) as an example)), Bluetooth (registered trademark) communication unit, infrared communication unit, or the like can be employed.

  Each functional unit constructed in the control device 24 of the multi-function device 20 is realized by software by the CPUs 51 and 61 that execute the program, or by hardware by an electronic circuit such as the ASIC 52, or software and hardware It may be realized by the cooperation.

  The printing unit 21 of the multifunction device 20 which is an example of the electronic device is not limited to the ink jet method as long as it can print on a medium such as paper, and may be a laser method or a dot impact method. The printing unit 21 may be a serial printer, a lateral printer, or a line printer.

  The electronic device is not limited to a multi-function peripheral, and may be a printer (printing apparatus) having only a printing function and not having scanning, copying, and FAX functions. Any electronic device having a display unit and having a plurality of display modes may be used. For example, a digital camera, a music playback device, an image playback device, a scanner, a projector, or the like may be used.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Processing management system, 11 ... Network, 20 ... Multifunction machine as an example of electronic equipment, 23 ... User interface, 231 ... Operation part, 232 ... Display part, 24 ... Control apparatus, 31 ... UI control part, 311 ... Control First display control unit constituting an example of a unit, 32... Device side communication unit as an example of a communication unit, 34... Browser, 35... Job management unit as an example of a processing unit, 351. Management unit 36 ... History management unit 37 37 Control unit 371 Print control unit 372 Copy control unit 373 Scan control unit 374 FAX control unit 375 Second display constituting an example of the control unit Control unit, 38 ... UI table, 40 ... management server as an example of server, 44 ... image creation application, 50 ... first control circuit, 54 ... example of memory To non-volatile memory, 60 ... second control circuit, 81 to 88 ... operation key, N1 ... login screen, B1 ... processing selection screen, B2 ... job list screen, N2 ... condition selection screen, B3 ... input screen.

Claims (8)

An electronic device used in connection with a server,
A display for displaying a screen;
A communication unit that performs communication via a network;
A processing unit for processing jobs;
A history management unit that records history information about the job;
A control unit for controlling a display mode to be displayed on the display unit,
The electronic device is characterized in that the control unit executes display processing in at least one of the display modes as a job to be processed by the processing unit.   The processing unit has an exclusive control function between jobs to be executed, and restricts execution of display processing in other display modes while executing a job related to display processing in the at least one display mode. The electronic device according to claim 1.   The processing unit has an exclusive control function between jobs to be executed, and restricts execution of other jobs unnecessary in the display mode during execution of a job related to display processing in the at least one display mode. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein: A user interface including a plurality of operation keys;
The processing unit sets validity / invalidity of at least one operation key among the plurality of operation keys in association with a job related to display processing in at least one of the display modes. 4. The electronic device according to any one of 3.   The processing unit executes a plurality of display processes in a plurality of jobs in the at least one display mode, and the validity / invalidity of at least one operation key is set in association with each of the plurality of jobs. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   6. The electronic apparatus according to claim 4, wherein, in the at least one display mode, a key function different from that of the other display modes is assigned to at least one of the operation keys set as valid. .   The display mode includes a first display mode for displaying a native screen based on screen information stored in advance in the electronic device, and a second display mode for displaying a browser screen based on browser screen information received from the server through the network. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein A display control method for controlling a display mode to be displayed on a display unit of an electronic device used in connection with a server,
A communication step for acquiring screen information used in at least one display mode from a server via a network;
A display processing step for executing, as a job, display processing for displaying a screen based on the screen information on a display unit;
A display control method in an electronic device, comprising: a history recording step of recording history information of a job related to the display processing in a memory.