JP4347645B2 - Remote management system and its communication device, control method, and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a communication device having a function of performing processing corresponding to a request received from an external device (for example , returning a response ) , such a communication device, and a remote management intermediary device connected thereto The present invention relates to a remote management system for a communication device constituted by a management device connected thereto, a method for controlling the communication device as described above, and a program executed by a computer that controls the communication device.

Conventionally, image processing devices such as printers, facsimile (FAX) devices, digital copiers, scanner devices, digital multifunction devices, etc. with communication functions, network home appliances, vending machines, medical equipment, power supply devices, air conditioning systems, A communication device (electronic device) that has a communication function (communication means) in a metering system for gas, water, electricity, etc. is a managed device, and a management device (external device) of a service center (management center) is a public line, etc. A remote management system for remotely managing these managed devices via a communication line (which may be a dedicated line) has been proposed.
Alternatively, if the managed device does not have a communication function, or if the managed device does not have a function for communicating with the management device even if it has a communication function, the managed device communicates with the management device. A remote management system is also proposed in which a remote management intermediary device (hereinafter also referred to simply as “mediation device”) having a possible communication function is connected via a communication line, and the management device remotely manages the managed device via the communication line and the intermediary device. Has been.

For example, when the managed apparatus is an image forming apparatus (image processing apparatus) such as a digital copying machine, an intermediary apparatus (line adapter) is installed together with the image forming apparatus in a customer's office or the like, and the image forming apparatus and service are provided. 2. Description of the Related Art An image forming apparatus management system is known in which a management apparatus (monitoring terminal apparatus) in a center can communicate with a public line and an intermediary apparatus, and the management apparatus manages the state of a customer's image forming apparatus. (See Patent Document 1)
JP-A-6-237330

  According to such an image forming apparatus management system, the service center side can easily grasp the state of the customer's image forming apparatus, so that the image forming apparatus may fail or the life of parts may be approaching. If the remaining amount of consumables is low, contact the customer to warn them, dispatch a service person to repair, accept orders for consumables, etc. easily or automatically Therefore, it is possible to reduce labor required for maintenance of the image forming apparatus.

By the way, an image forming apparatus used for constructing such an image forming apparatus management system has a function for communicating with the management apparatus (1) to (4) below at the time of shipment from the factory. CSS function) is disabled, and communication with the management apparatus is disabled.
(1) If the CSS function is enabled before shipment from the factory, a communication error may occur that cannot be communicated with the management device even if appropriate settings and connections are not made after installation at the customer site. For this reason, it may be misidentified that an abnormality has occurred in communication with the management apparatus, and a warning (message display, e-mail, etc.) may be erroneously issued.
(2) Since it is difficult to perform setting work after installation of an intermediary device corresponding to the CSS function (an image forming apparatus having the function of an intermediary device), the customer himself is prevented from installing the intermediary device.

(3) Maintenance contracts may differ depending on the customer, and the CSS function must not be operated in areas where the CSS function usage contract is not made or where the service is not provided in the first place. There has been a demand to sell an image forming apparatus having a common function.
(4) Since the customer's telephone line is used for communication with the management apparatus, it is necessary to enable the CSS function to avoid occupying the line.

In order to enable the CSS function of the image forming apparatus, it is necessary to enable the CSS function to be able to communicate with the management apparatus after the image forming apparatus is installed in the customer's office or the like. It was done in the following procedure.
That is, first, an image forming apparatus having a CSS function is purchased, a service person visits a customer who has a contract for using the CSS function, and the CSS function is enabled by the setting mode (SP mode) for the service person of the image forming apparatus. Set to. After the service person contacts the service center by telephone or the like, the image forming apparatus is operated to confirm the connection with the management apparatus of the service center. If the connection confirmation is successful, the service center contacts the service person to inform the customer, and the customer's image forming apparatus and the service center management apparatus can thereafter communicate.

For this reason, in order to install an image forming apparatus having a CSS function at the customer site and to enable the CSS function (communication function with the management device), a service person is dispatched to the customer site each time and the CSS function is provided one by one. There is a problem that it is necessary to perform work for making the system effective, which requires labor and cost.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and can be automatically enabled only when one or a plurality of communication devices installed at a customer's site require a communication function with an external device. The purpose is to do so.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a communication apparatus (electronic apparatus) such as an image forming apparatus, a communication apparatus remote management system including the communication apparatus, a remote management intermediary apparatus, and a management apparatus, and the communication apparatus. And a program for executing functions necessary for a computer that controls the communication apparatus (functions according to the present invention).
The communication device according to the invention of claim 1 is a communication unit that communicates with an external device, a request processing unit that performs processing corresponding to the request with respect to a request received from the external device via the communication unit, A setting information storage unit for storing setting information for setting the request processing unit to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the request processing unit is not permitted; and a predetermined information received from the external device In response to the request , the setting information is updated to setting information for changing the request processing unit from the standby state to the valid state, and the standby setting unit responds to the predetermined request. When the setting information is updated to the setting information for setting the request processing means to the valid state, the address information of the transmission source of the request included in the predetermined request is used as communication destination information. And a communication destination information storage means for storing said request processing means, after which the communication destination information is stored by the communication destination information memory means, the identification information of the communication device with respect to the source of the predetermined request Means for transmitting a setting change notification including: a means for determining whether or not processing corresponding to the request is performed based on the setting information when a request other than the predetermined request is received from the external device ; have a, the standby setting means for transmission of the setting change notification to the originator of the predetermined request by the request processing unit, when receiving the setting notification from the originator, the setting information The request processing means is updated to setting information for setting the standby state to the valid state .

If the communication device according to the invention of claim 2 determines in the communication device of claim 1 that the request processing means performs processing corresponding to the request when the received request is an information acquisition request, The information of the communication device is returned.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication apparatus according to the first or second aspect , wherein the request processing means is incapable of invalidating a function for a request other than the predetermined request in the standby state. A means for returning a response is provided.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the request processing means responds only to a request received from a transmission source related to the communication destination information. When it is determined that the processing to be performed is performed, a response corresponding to the request is returned.
A communication device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the communication device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the request processing means stores communication destination information other than the standby state and in the communication destination information storage means. In the state, when the predetermined request is received from a device other than the external device related to the communication destination information, there is provided means for returning a response indicating that the function is in an invalid state.

A communication apparatus according to a sixth aspect of the present invention provides the communication apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein when the predetermined setting request is received from the external apparatus to the standby setting means, the setting information is received as the request information. Means for updating the processing means to the setting information for setting the standby state is provided.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein whether or not the request processing means performs processing corresponding to the request received from the external apparatus. Immediately after that, the determination is made with reference to the setting information at that time.
A communication device according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is the communication device according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, wherein the request received by the communication means is described in a structured language format.

The remote management system for a communication device according to the invention of claim 9 is a remote management system for a communication device comprising one or more communication devices and an external device connected directly or indirectly to the communication device. The external device is connected to the communication device via a network, and includes a remote management intermediary device having request transmission means for transmitting various requests to the communication device, and is connected to the remote management mediation device via the Internet. A management device that manages the communication device connected to the remote management mediation device by causing the management mediation device to transmit the various requests, and the communication device communicates with the external device, In response to a request received from the external device via the communication means, a request processing means for performing processing corresponding to the request, and the request processing means, A setting information storage unit that stores setting information for setting the enable state or not permitted, the standby state is allowed to perform the processing corresponding to the determined, in accordance with a predetermined request received from the external device, the The setting information is updated to setting information for changing the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state, and the setting information is processed by the standby setting means in response to the predetermined request. Communication destination information storage means for storing address information of the transmission source of the request included in the predetermined request as communication destination information when the setting information is updated to the above-mentioned valid state. , containing the said request processing means of the communication device, after which the communication destination information is stored by the communication destination information memory means, the identification information of the communication device with respect to the source of the predetermined request And means for transmitting the setting change notification, if a request other than the predetermined request from the external device, and means for determining based on whether or not to perform a process corresponding to the request to the setting information The setting information when the standby setting means of the communication device receives the setting notification from the transmission source in response to the transmission of the setting change notification to the transmission source of the predetermined request by the request processing means. Is a means for updating the request processing means to setting information for setting the standby state to the valid state .

A remote management system for a communication device according to a tenth aspect of the invention is the remote management system for a communication device according to the ninth aspect , wherein the request transmission means of the remote management mediating device periodically sends the predetermined request to the communication device. Is to send.
A remote management system for a communication device according to an invention of claim 11 is the remote management system for a communication device according to claim 9 or 10 , wherein the remote management mediating device includes an operation unit for inputting various instructions, and the remote management mediating device. The request transmission means transmits the predetermined request to the communication device in accordance with an instruction from the operation unit.
A remote management system for a communication device according to a twelfth aspect of the invention is the remote management system for a communication device according to any one of the ninth to eleventh aspects, wherein identification information of the communication device to be managed by itself is stored in the remote management mediating device When the request transmission unit of the remote management mediating apparatus transmits the predetermined request, the storage unit is configured to transmit only to the communication apparatus corresponding to the identification information.

A remote management system for a communication device according to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention is the remote management system for a communication device according to any one of the ninth to twelfth aspects, wherein the request processing means is changed from the standby state to the valid state in the communication device. Means for performing a communication test with the management device via the remote management mediating device when the setting information is updated.
A remote management system for a communication device according to a fourteenth aspect of the invention is the remote management system for a communication device according to any one of the ninth to thirteenth aspects, wherein a predetermined request from the external device is sent to the standby setting means of the communication device. When received, the information processing apparatus includes means for updating the setting information to setting information for setting the request processing means to the standby state.

A remote management system for a communication apparatus according to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention is a remote management system comprising one or more communication apparatuses and request transmission means connected to the communication apparatuses via a network and transmitting various requests to the communication apparatus. Consists of an intermediary device and a management device that is connected to the remote management mediation device via the Internet and manages the communication device connected to the remote management mediation device by causing the remote management mediation device to transmit the various requests. A communication apparatus remote management system, wherein the remote management intermediary apparatus is provided with a transmission request presence / absence inquiry means for inquiring whether or not there is a transmission request to the management apparatus periodically. In response to the transmission request inquiry to the management apparatus by the transmission request presence / absence inquiry means, the request transmission means of the mediating apparatus Only when a request is received from the communication device, the request is transmitted to the communication device, the communication device communicates with the remote management mediation device, and the remote management mediation device via the communication device. Request processing means for performing processing corresponding to the request and a request processing means set to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the request is not permitted. Setting information storage means for storing setting information for performing the setting, and setting information for changing the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state in response to a predetermined request received from the management device the standby setting means and,該待machine setting means for updating the said setting information in response to the predetermined request is updating the request processing unit to the setting information to the valid state To provided a communication destination information storage means for storing the source address information of the request contained in the predetermined request as the communication destination information, to the request processing means of the communication device, the communication destination information memory Means for transmitting a setting change notification including identification information of the communication device to a transmission source of the predetermined request after the communication destination information is stored by the device, and a request other than the predetermined request from the management device And determining whether to perform processing corresponding to the request based on the setting information, and setting the standby setting unit of the communication device to the predetermined request by the request processing unit. In response to the transmission of the setting change notification to the originator of the request, when the setting notice is received from the originator, the setting information is set to set the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state. information It is a means to update .

According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication device control method comprising: a communication unit that communicates with an external device; and a request process that performs a process corresponding to the request with respect to a request received from the external device via the communication unit. And a setting information storage means for storing setting information for setting the request processing means to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the request processing means is not permitted. If the predetermined request is received from the external device and the standby state is received, the address information of the transmission source of the request included in the predetermined request is stored as communication destination information. after, to the request processing unit transmits a setting change notification including the identification information of the communication device with respect to the source of the predetermined request, when receiving the setting notification from the originator, the setting information The request processing unit together with causing the operation of updating the setting information for setting to the valid state from the standby state, when receiving a request other than the predetermined request from said external device, corresponding to the request An operation for determining whether or not to perform processing based on the setting information is performed.
The communication control method according to the invention of claim 17, in the control method of a communication apparatus according to claim 16, the upper Symbol request processing unit, only to request received from a source according to the communication destination information, the request When it is determined that the processing corresponding to is performed, a response corresponding to the request is returned.

The program according to the invention of claim 18 responds to a request received from the external device via the communication means to a computer that controls the communication device provided with communication means for communicating with the external device. A request processing function that performs processing, and a setting information storage function that stores setting information for setting the request processing function to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which it is not permitted. A standby setting function for updating the setting information from the standby state to the valid state according to a predetermined request received from the external device; and the standby setting unit. In response to the predetermined request, the setting information is included in the predetermined request when the setting information for updating the request processing unit to the valid state is updated. A program for realizing the communication destination information memory function for storing the source address information of the request as a communication destination information, to the request processing function, the communication destination information stored by the communication destination information storage function After that, when a request other than the predetermined request is received from the external device , a function for transmitting a setting change notification including the identification information of the communication device to the source of the predetermined request, and responding to the request A function for determining whether or not to perform processing to be performed based on the setting information, the standby setting function for the transmission of the setting change notification to the source of the predetermined request by the request processing function, When the setting notification is received from the transmission source, the setting information is updated to setting information for setting the request processing function from the standby state to the valid state .
Program according to the invention of claim 19, in the program of claim 18, the upper Symbol request processing function is obtained by only function that returns a valid response to the request received from the source according to the communication destination information .

According to the communication device, the remote management system of the communication device, and the control method of the communication device according to the present invention, the setting can be automatically changed when necessary to enable the communication function with the external device. In such a case, the communication function can be disabled, and the operation of incorporating the device into the remote management system (for enabling communication with an external device) can be performed very easily.
According to the program of the present invention, the operation and function of such a communication device can be realized by causing the computer to control the communication device, and the same effect can be obtained.

Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.
First, a configuration example of a remote management system in which a communication device according to the present invention is a managed device will be described.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the configuration of the remote management system. Here, for convenience of explanation, a communication device (electronic device) having a communication function and managed by a management device is referred to as a “managed device”.

  This remote management system includes image forming devices such as printers, fax machines, digital copiers, digital multifunction peripherals, and scanners, network home appliances, vending machines, medical equipment, power supplies, air conditioning systems, gas This is a management system in which an electronic device having a communication function in a metering system such as water and electricity is a managed device 10 (10a, 10b, 10c, 10d, 10e, 10f). As an external device connected to the managed device 10 (as viewed from the managed device side), an intermediary device that is a remote management mediation device connected to the managed device 10 via a network such as a LAN (local area network). 101 (101a, 101b, 101c), and a management device 102 functioning as a server device connected to the mediation device 101 via the Internet 103. The management device 102 is connected to each managed device 10 via the mediation device 101. Can be centrally managed remotely. The managed device 10 and the intermediary device 101 are installed in an office on the device user (user) side, and the management device 102 is installed in a service center (management center).

Here, in order to realize a service (NRS) remotely managed by the management apparatus 102 using a new method, an intermediary apparatus 101 in which software corresponding to NRS is installed in a network such as a LAN on the device user side, and a target device. A management device 10 is connected. The intermediary device 101 and the managed device 10 are also equipped with software corresponding to CSS in order to realize a service (CSS) that is managed remotely by the management device 102 using a conventional method. In order to realize the NRS, the mediation device 101 and the managed device 10 may be initially installed as in the case of realizing the CSS. A dedicated line may be used instead of the public line.
The public line (or dedicated line) includes an analog line, an ADSL line, a digital line (ISDN line), a fixed telephone line such as a fiber optic line, and a mobile telephone line such as a mobile phone line and a PHS line.

The connection between the mediation apparatus 101 and the managed apparatus 10 is not limited to the network, but is performed by serial connection conforming to the RS-485 standard, parallel connection conforming to the SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) standard, or the like. Also good. For example, in the case of the RS-485 standard, up to five managed devices 10 can be connected to the intermediary device 101 in series.
Further, the intermediary device 101 and the managed device 10 have various hierarchical structures depending on the usage environment.

  For example, in the installation environment A shown in FIG. 1, the intermediary device 101a capable of establishing a direct connection with the management device 102 using the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) has a simple hierarchical structure in which the managed devices 10a and 10b follow. However, since the four managed devices 10 are installed in the installation environment B shown in the figure, the load increases only by installing one intermediary device 101. Therefore, the intermediary device 101b capable of establishing a direct connection with the management device 102 by HTTP follows not only the managed devices 10c and 10d but also another intermediary device 101c, and the intermediary device 101c uses the managed devices 10e and 10f. Furthermore, a hierarchical structure is formed in which it can be followed. In this case, the information issued from the management device 102 for remotely managing the managed devices 10e and 10f is managed by the managed device 10e or 10f via the mediation device 101b and the mediation device 101c which is a lower node. Will be reached.

Further, as in the installation environment C, managed devices with an intermediary function (hereinafter also simply referred to as “managed devices”) 11a and 11b in which the managed device 10 is also provided with the functions of the intermediary device 101 are separately provided as intermediary devices. You may make it connect with the management apparatus 102 by the internet 103 not through.
Although not shown, the managed device 10 can be further connected to the lower level of the managed device 11 with a mediation function.
In each of the installation environments A, B, and C, a firewall 104 (104a, 104b, 104c) is installed in consideration of security. The firewall 104 is configured by a proxy server.
Further, a terminal device such as a personal computer or other electronic device (external device) can be connected to each managed device 10 or 11 via a network.

In such a remote management system, the intermediary device 101 has an application program for control management of the managed device 10 connected thereto.
The management apparatus 102 is mounted with an application program for performing control management of each intermediary apparatus 101 and further performing control management of the managed apparatus 10 via the intermediary apparatus 101. Then, each of these nodes in this remote management system including the managed device 10 transmits a “request” which is a request for processing for a method of the application program to be implemented by RPC (remote procedure call). The “response” that is the result of the processed processing can be acquired.

That is, the intermediary device 101 or the managed device 10 connected thereto can generate a request to the management device 102 and pass it to the management device 102 to obtain a response to this request, while the management device 102 A request to the mediating apparatus 101 is generated and delivered to the mediating apparatus 101, and a response to the request can be acquired. This request includes causing the mediation device 101 to transmit various requests to the managed device 10 and obtaining a response from the managed device 10 via the mediation device 101.
In order to realize RPC, known protocols (communication standards) such as SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol), HTTP, FTP (File Transfer Protocol), COM (Component Object Model), CORBA (Common Object Request Broker Architecture), etc. , Technology, specifications, etc. can be used.

The transmission / reception data transmission / reception model is shown in the conceptual diagram of FIG. In this figure, the presence of the firewall 104 is not considered.
(A) is a case where a request to the management apparatus 102 has occurred in the managed apparatus 10. In this case, the managed device 10 generates a managed device-side request “a”, and the management device 102 that has received this request via the mediation device 101 returns a response “a” to this request. A case where there are a plurality of mediation apparatuses 101 shown in the figure can also be assumed (installation environment B shown in FIG. 1). Note that (A) shows a case in which not only the response a but also a response delay notification a ′ is returned. When the management apparatus 102 receives a managed apparatus side request via the intermediary apparatus 101 and determines that the response to the request cannot be returned immediately, it notifies the response delay notification and temporarily disconnects the connection state. This is because the response to the request is delivered again at the next connection.

  (B) is a case where a request for the managed device 10 has occurred in the management device 102. In this case, the management apparatus 102 generates a management apparatus side request b, and the managed apparatus 10 that has received the request via the mediation apparatus 101 returns a response b to the request. Even in the case of (B), the response delay notification b ′ is returned in the same manner as in the case of (A) when the response cannot be returned immediately.

Next, the physical configuration of the management device 102 shown in FIG. 1 will be briefly described. The management device 102 includes a control device including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, a database, a modem, a proxy server, and the like. Has been. The configuration will be described later in detail.
Furthermore, the physical configuration of the mediation apparatus 101 shown in FIG. 1 will be briefly described. The mediation apparatus 101 is configured by a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, a nonvolatile memory, a PHY (physical media interface), and the like. The configuration will be described later in detail.
In addition, for the managed device 11 with an intermediary function, these units may be simply added to the managed device 10 in order to realize the function of the intermediary device 101, but the CPU, ROM, and RAM provided in the managed device 10 The functions of the intermediary device 101 can be realized by causing the CPU to execute appropriate applications and program modules using hardware resources such as the above.

Hereinafter, as a more specific example of the remote management system shown in FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus management system which is a remote management system using an image forming apparatus which is a communication apparatus according to the present invention as a managed apparatus will be described. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the configuration of the image forming apparatus management system. The managed apparatus 10 is an image forming apparatus 100, the managed function-equipped managed apparatus 11 is an image forming apparatus with an intermediary function (hereinafter simply referred to as an image forming apparatus 100). The only difference from FIG. 1 is that the configuration is changed to 110 (also referred to as “image forming apparatus”), and thus the description of the overall configuration of the system is omitted.
The image forming apparatus 100 is a digital multi-function peripheral having functions such as copying, facsimile, and scanner, and a function for communicating with an external apparatus, and is equipped with an application program for providing services related to these functions. It is. The image forming apparatus with a mediation function 110 is obtained by adding the functions of the mediation apparatus 101 to the image forming apparatus 100.

The physical configuration of such an image forming apparatus 100 (or 110) will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a physical configuration in the image forming apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus 100 includes a controller board 200, an HDD (hard disk drive) 201, an NV-RAM (nonvolatile RAM) 202, a PI (personal interface) board 203, a PHY (physical media interface) 204, An operation panel 205, a plotter / scanner engine board 206, a power supply unit 207, a finisher 208, an ADF (automatic document feeder) 209, a paper feed bank 210, and other peripheral devices 211 are provided. Each of these units is a hardware resource in the image forming apparatus 100.

Here, the controller board 200 corresponds to a control unit, includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and controls each function via a PCI-BUS (Peripheral Components Interconnect-Bus) 212. The HDD 201 corresponds to a storage unit. The NV-RAM 202 is a non-volatile memory corresponding to the storage means, and corresponds to a flash memory, for example.
Further, the PI board 203 and the PHY 204 correspond to communication means and are used for communication with the outside, and correspond to, for example, a communication board. The PI board 203 has an interface conforming to the RS485 standard, and is connected to a public line via a line adapter. As described above, the image forming apparatus 100 and the mediation apparatus 101 can be connected using the PI board 203. The PHY 204 is an interface for communicating with an external device via a network.

Here, ENGRDY in the figure is a signal line for notifying the controller board 200 that various initial settings on the engine unit side have been completed and preparation for transmission / reception of commands with the controller board 200 is completed. PWRCTL is a signal line for controlling power supply to the engine unit from the controller board 200 side. The operation of these signal lines will be described later.
The operation panel 205 includes an operation unit that inputs various instructions by a user operation, and a display unit that displays a setting state, an operation state, and the like of the image forming apparatus 100.

Next, the software configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 (or 110) will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a software configuration of the image forming apparatus 100.
The software configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 includes an application module layer, a service module layer, and a general-purpose OS layer. The programs constituting these software are stored in the HDD 201 or the RAM on the controller board 200, read as necessary, and executed by the CPU on the controller board 200. The CPU can implement each function according to the present invention by executing these programs as necessary.

  The software of the application module layer is configured by a program for causing the CPU to function as a plurality of application control means (process execution means) that realizes a predetermined function by operating hardware resources. A CPU is interposed between the hardware resource and each application control means, accepting operation requests for hardware resources from a plurality of application control means, arbitration of the operation requests, and execution control of operations based on the operation requests. It is comprised by the program for functioning as a service control means (process execution means) which performs.

Of these functions, a method for realizing a function related to communication with the management apparatus 102 (function as a communication unit) differs between the image forming apparatus 100 and the image forming apparatus 110. That is, since the image forming apparatus 110 has the function of the mediation apparatus 101, the function related to the communication with the management apparatus 102 can be realized by executing the corresponding program by the CPU. In the case of the image forming apparatus 100, functions related to communication with the management apparatus 102 can be realized by executing a corresponding program by the CPU and using the mediation apparatus 101.
In addition, the image forming apparatus 100 includes an event detection unit including sensors in an engine unit including a scanner engine and a plotter engine. An event such as an abnormality can be detected by this event detection means.

  The service module layer includes an operation control service (OCS) 300, an engine control service (ECS) 301, a memory control service (MCS) 302, a network control service (NCS) 303, a fax control service (FCS) 304, a system control service ( SCS) 306, system resource manager (SRM) 307, image memory handler (IMH) 308, delivery control service (DCS) 316, and user control service (UCS) 317 are implemented. The application module layer includes an NRS application (hereinafter simply referred to as “NRS”) 305, a CSS application (hereinafter simply referred to as “CSS”) 315, a copy application 309, a fax application 310, a printer application 311, a scanner application 312, and a net file. An application 313 and a web application 314 are installed. Furthermore, a general-purpose OS 320 is mounted on the general-purpose OS layer.

These will be described in further detail.
The OCS 300 is a module that controls the operation panel 205.
The ECS 301 is a module that controls engine units such as hardware resources.
The MCS 302 is a module that performs memory control. For example, the MCS 302 acquires and releases an image memory, uses the HDD 201, and the like.
The NCS 303 is a module that performs mediation between the network and each application program in the application module layer.
The FCS 304 is a module that performs facsimile transmission / reception, facsimile reading, facsimile reception printing, and the like.

The SCS 306 is a module that performs start management and end management of each application program in the application module layer according to the content of the command.
The SRM 307 is a module that controls the system and manages resources.
The IMH 308 is a module that manages a memory for temporarily storing image data.
The DCS 316 is a module for transmitting / receiving an image file or the like stored in a memory on the HDD 201 or the controller board 200 using SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) or FTP (File Transfer Protocol).
The UCS 317 is a module that manages user information such as destination information and address information registered by a user (device user).

Each of the NRS 305 and the CSS 315 is a module that summarizes functions related to remote management (functions related to communication with the management apparatus 102) using different methods.
The copy application 309 is an application program for realizing a copy service.
The fax application 310 is an application program for realizing a fax service.

The printer application 311 is an application program for realizing a printer service.
The scanner application 312 is an application program for realizing a scanner service.
The net file application 313 is an application program for realizing a net file service.
The web application 314 is an application program for realizing a web service.
The general-purpose OS 320 can use an operating system such as UNIX (registered trademark), Linux (registered trademark), or Windows (registered trademark). The operating system manages the processing for executing the service module layer and application module layer programs. Here, if UNIX or Linux is used, the safety due to open source is ensured, and there are advantages such as easy source code acquisition.

Here, the operation of the above-described ENGRDY signal and PWRCTL signal will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 6A shows an example of the operation of the ENGRDY signal and the PWRCTL signal when the device starts up. When the main power switch (AC-POWER-SW) is turned ON, power is supplied from the AC-POWER (AC100V) power supply unit to the power supply unit (main power supply) 207 (the AC power supply is turned ON). Then, power supply from the power supply unit 207 to the entire apparatus including the controller board 200 is started, and at the same time, the ENGRDY signal becomes High. In this state, communication with the engine unit is not possible. This is because the initial setting on the engine unit side is not completed. Then, when the initial setting on the engine unit side is completed after a certain period of time and the ENGRDY signal becomes Low, communication with the engine unit side becomes possible.

  Next, FIG. 5B shows an example of the operation of the ENGRDY signal and the PWRCTL signal when the mode is shifted to the energy saving mode. When the power supply unit 207 is in an ON state (during power supply from the power supply unit 207 to the entire apparatus), for example, an operation of a soft power key (not shown) on the operation panel 205 is instructed to stop power supply to the engine unit that is a hard unit. Then, the PWRCTL signal is turned OFF by the controller board 200 in order to shift to the energy saving mode. At the same time, power supply from the power supply unit 207 to the engine unit is stopped. Along with this, the ENGRDY signal becomes High and shifts to the energy saving mode. Next, the case of returning from the energy saving mode is shown in FIG.

  FIG. 3C shows an example of the operation of the ENGRDY signal and the PWRCTL signal when returning from the energy saving mode. When returning from the energy saving mode (B), for example, an operation to release power supply to the engine unit is instructed by operating a soft power key, and the controller board 200 turns on the PWRCTL signal. At the same time, the power supply stop from the power supply unit 207 to the engine unit is released. However, as shown in (A) above, until the initial setting on the engine unit side is completed, the ENGRDY signal is in a high state, and when the initial setting is completed, communication with the engine unit side becomes possible. Become.

Next, the internal configuration of the NRS module included in the software configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 described above will be further described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the NRS 305. As shown in the figure, the NRS 305 performs processing between the SCS 306 and the NCS 303. The web server function unit 500 performs response processing related to a request received from the outside. The request here may be a SOAP request by SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) described in XML (Extensible Markup Language) format which is a structured language, for example. The web client function unit 501 performs processing for issuing an external request. The libsoap 502 is a library that processes SOAP, and the libxml 503 is a library that processes data described in the XML format. Also, libwwww 504 is a library that processes HTTP, and libgw_ncs 505 is a library that performs processing with the NCS 303.
Then, the CPU on the controller board 200 executes such NRS 305 to issue a request processing means for returning a valid response to a request received from an external device via the PHY 204, or an external request. Request issuing means, standby setting means for setting a standby state that does not return a valid response to a received request until an activation operation is performed, and communication destination information storage means for storing address information in the storage means as communication destination information Realize the function.

Next, the physical configuration of the mediation apparatus 101 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the mediation apparatus 101.
As described above, the intermediary device 101 is installed in the office of a user of a device, and includes a CPU 52, SDRAM 53, flash memory 54 (nonvolatile memory), internal clock (real-time clock circuit) 55, Op-Port. (Operation unit connection port) 56, PHY 57, modem 58, HDD control unit 59, expansion I / F 60, RS232 I / F 61, RS485 I / F 62, HDD 63, and the like. The mediation apparatus 101 is connected to the CE terminal 105 and the image forming apparatus 100 on the network via the PHY 57. The image forming apparatus 100 can also be connected via the RS232 I / F 61 and the RS485 I / F 62, but this I / F is not used here. A DRAM or SRAM may be used instead of the SDRAM 53. Further, instead of the flash memory 54, another nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM may be used.

Next, the software configuration of the mediation apparatus 101 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of the mediation apparatus 101.
As shown in FIG. 9, the software in the intermediary device 101 includes three layers: an application layer 70, a service layer 80, and a protocol layer 90. The programs constituting these software are stored in the HDD 63, SDRAM 53, or flash memory 54 as storage means, read out as necessary, and executed by the CPU 52. The CPU 52 executes these programs as necessary and controls the apparatus, thereby realizing the functions according to the present invention (functions as request transmission means and transmission request presence / absence inquiry means).

In this software, the application layer 70 has a device control method group 71 and an NRS application method group 72.
The device control method group 71 includes methods for management object information setting, device setting, firmware update, polling setting change, log output, and start processing, and is a managed device including processing according to the features of the present invention. This is a program for performing information management, communication settings, and the like of the image forming apparatus 100.
The NRS application method group 72 includes log collection, firmware download, device command execution, device setting change, supply notification, abnormality notification, device activation / introduction, and device life / death confirmation methods, and various notifications from the image forming apparatus 100. Or a request for causing the image forming apparatus 100 to perform an operation in accordance with a request from the management apparatus 102.

Next, the service layer 80 includes a security service 81, a connection device communication service 82, a management device communication service 83, and a scheduler service 84.
The security service 81 is a module that generates and executes a job for preventing or preventing unauthorized outflow of internal information or the like to the outside.
The connection-device communication service 82 searches for a device that is a target of information acquisition, manages connection with the target device, transmits / receives a file, in order to exchange information with a network connection device connected to the mediation apparatus 101. This module generates and executes jobs such as parameter management and APL management.
The management apparatus communication service 83 is a module that generates and executes jobs such as command reception, file transmission / reception, information request, and information transmission (information notification) with the management apparatus 102.

The scheduler service 84 is a module that deploys a remote control application based on predetermined set time information.
The next protocol layer 90 includes methods for generating and executing a job for exchanging information using a protocol corresponding to an information transmission / reception target. In other words, SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol), HTTP, HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Security), FTP, etc. used as lower protocols can be controlled so that it can be widely applied to the communication environment of network connection devices via the network. Have a good method.

Next, the physical configuration of the management apparatus 102 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a physical configuration of the management apparatus 102.
The management device 102 includes a modem 601, a communication terminal 602, a proxy server 603, an operator terminal 604, a database 605, a control device 606, and the like.
The modem 601 manages communication with the mediation apparatus 101 (or the image forming apparatus 110) on the device user side (for example, the user destination using the image forming apparatus) via a public line, and modulates and demodulates data to be transmitted and received To do. The modem 601 and a communication terminal 602, which will be described later, serve as communication means.
The communication terminal 602 controls communication by the modem 601.
Data is transmitted to and received from the line adapter and the intermediary device 101 via the public line.

The proxy server 603 performs communication (data transmission / reception) and security management with the mediation apparatus 101 on the user (device user) side via the Internet 103. The proxy server 603 also functions as a communication unit.
The operator terminal 604 is a terminal operated by a center operator who is an administrator of the service center. The operator terminal 604 accepts input of various data by an operation on an input unit such as a keyboard or a pointing device (mouse, etc.) by the center operator. Information to be notified to the operator is displayed on the display unit. The input data includes, for example, customer information such as an IP address and a call destination telephone number used when the mediation apparatus 101 or the image forming apparatus 110 on each user side communicates with the management apparatus 102.

The database 605 exists in a storage device such as an HDD (hard disk device) of a server (not shown), and the IP addresses and telephone numbers of the mediation device 101 and the image forming device 110 on each user side, and data (information) received from these devices. Various data such as data input from the operator terminal 604, a model database, a customer database, and a program according to the present invention are stored.
The control device 606 includes a microcomputer including a CPU, ROM, RAM, and the like (not shown), and controls the entire management device 102 in an integrated manner. The CPU executes the above-described program as necessary, and uses the modem 601, the communication terminal 602, the proxy server 603, the operator terminal 604, or the database 605, thereby enabling the function (request transmission means as the request transmission means). Function).

Based on the above-described configuration, an example of a communication sequence for data transmission / reception performed in the image forming apparatus management system of FIG. 3 will be described. Note that the processing shown below is actually executed by the CPU operating in accordance with the program, but for the sake of explanation, it is assumed that the program executes the processing. Thereafter, the same applies to the case where the program is described as performing some processing.
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communication sequence for data transmission / reception performed between the management apparatus 102, the intermediary apparatus 101, and the image forming apparatus 100 illustrated in FIG.

  In this example, first, the mediation apparatus 101 polls the management apparatus 102 via the Internet 103 (inquiry whether there is a transmission request) (S601). That is, a polling SOAP message with an identifier that is identification information of itself is generated (the polling information is converted into an XML format that is a structured language format), and an HTTP message (including the SOAP message is included) based on the SOAP message. HTTP message) is generated and transmitted to the management apparatus 102 via the Internet 103. As shown in FIG. 3, since the firewall 104 is provided between the mediation device 101 and the management device 102, a communication session cannot be established from the management device 102 to the mediation device 101. Even if it is desired to send a request from the mediating apparatus 101 (or the image forming apparatus 100 via the mediating apparatus 101), it is necessary to wait for polling (inquiry about whether there is a transmission request) from the mediating apparatus 101 in this way. is there. If there is no firewall 104, polling is not necessary.

  When the management apparatus 102 receives the HTTP message (HTTP request) from the mediation apparatus 101, the management apparatus 102 generates an HTTP message (HTTP response) including a SOAP message of information indicating a charging counter (counter information) acquisition request, and transmits it to the Internet 103. It is transmitted as a response to polling to the corresponding mediation apparatus 101 (source of the received SOAP message) via S (S602). At this time, the corresponding intermediary device 101 is recognized based on the identifier added to the SOAP message in the received HTTP message. In this way, if it is a response (HTTP response) to communication (HTTP request) from the inside of the firewall 104, data can be transmitted from the outside of the firewall 104 to the inside.

When the intermediary device 101 receives the HTTP message from the management device 102, the mediation device 101 generates a SOAP message of information indicating a charging counter acquisition request based on the HTTP message, and the image forming device connected to itself via the network It transmits to 100 NRSs 305 (S603).
The NRS 305 notifies the SCS 306 of a charging counter acquisition request described in the SOAP message received from the mediation apparatus 101 (S604).
Upon receiving a charge counter acquisition request notification from the NRS 305, the SCS 306 reads the charge counter data stored in the NV-RAM 202 (or HDD 201) (S605). Then, the read accounting counter data (response data) is delivered to the NRS 305 (S606).

When the NRS 305 receives (acquires) billing counter data (counter information indicating the counter value) from the SCS 306, the NRS 305 generates a SOAP message of the data (converts the received data into an XML format that is a structured language format). Then, it is transmitted to the mediation apparatus 101 via the network (S607).
When the mediation device 101 receives the SOAP message of the billing counter data from the NRS 305, the mediation device 101 generates an HTTP message based on the SOAP message and transmits it to the management device 102 via the Internet 103 (S608).
Thus, data transmission / reception is performed by the communication sequence.

Next, unlike FIG. 11 described above, an example of a communication sequence when data is transmitted from the image forming apparatus 100 to the management apparatus 102 via the mediation apparatus 101 will be described.
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communication sequence when data is transmitted from the image forming apparatus 100 to the management apparatus 102.
In this example, the OCS 300 first notifies the SCS 306 that a user call key (not shown) on the operation panel 205 has been pressed (S701).
Upon receiving notification from the OCS 300 that the user call key has been pressed, the SCS 306 notifies the NRS 305 of a user call request (S702).

Upon receiving the user call request notification from the SCS 306, the NRS 305 generates a SOAP message of user call information notifying the user call and transmits it to the mediation apparatus 101 via the network (S703).
When the mediation apparatus 101 receives the SOAP message of the user call information from the NRS 305, it adds an identifier that is its identification information to the SOAP message, generates an HTTP message based on the SOAP message, and manages it via the Internet 103. A user call is made to the device 102. That is, an HTTP message including a SOAP message of user call information with its own identifier added is reported to the management apparatus 102 via the Internet 103 (S704). In this case, since the transmission is from the inside to the outside of the firewall 104, the mediation apparatus 101 can transmit data by creating a session toward the management apparatus 102 itself.
Here, the pattern after the process of step S704 will be described separately in the following (A) to (C).

First, in (A), the management apparatus 102 receives an HTTP message including a SOAP message of user call information from the user's mediation apparatus 101, and if the reception ends normally, that fact (user call is If the call result indicating success) does not end normally (abnormally ends), an HTTP message including a SOAP message with information indicating the call result indicating that the user call has failed is generated. Then, it is transmitted as a response to the reporting intermediary apparatus 101 via the Internet 103 (S705).
When the intermediary device 101 receives an HTTP message including a SOAP message indicating information on the call result from the management device 102, the mediation device 101 generates a SOAP message indicating information on the call result based on the HTTP message, and sends it to the user call via the network. The image is transmitted to the NRS 305 of the image forming apparatus 100 whose key is pressed (S706).

When the NRS 305 receives a SOAP message of information indicating the call result from the mediation apparatus 101, the NRS 305 interprets (determines) the call result indicated by the SOAP message and notifies the SCS 306 of it (S707).
When the SCS 306 receives the call result, it delivers it to the OCS 300.
When the OCS 300 receives the call result from the SCS 306, the OCS 300 displays a message on the operation panel 205 indicating the content, that is, whether the user call is successful or unsuccessful (S708).

Next, in (B), when the intermediary device 101 determines that there is no response from the management device 102 after a predetermined time (a predetermined time set in advance), a call result indicating that the user call has failed is displayed. A SOAP message with the indicated information is generated and transmitted to the NRS 305 (S709).
When the NRS 305 receives a SOAP message indicating information indicating a call result indicating failure, the NRS 305 interprets the call result indicating failure described in the SOAP message and notifies the SCS 306 of the result (S710).
When the SCS 306 receives the call result from the NRS 305, the SCS 306 delivers it to the OCS 300.

When the OCS 300 receives the call result from the SCS 306, the OCS 300 displays the content, that is, a message indicating that the user call has failed on the character display on the operation panel 205 (S711).
Next, in (C), when the NRS 305 determines that there is no response from the mediation apparatus 101 even after the specified time has elapsed, the NRS 305 notifies the SCS 306 of a call result indicating that the user call has failed (S712).
When the SCS 306 receives the call result from the NRS 305, the SCS 306 delivers it to the OCS 300.
When the OCS 300 receives the call result from the SCS 306, the OCS 300 displays the content, that is, a message indicating that the user call has failed on the character display on the operation panel 205 (S713).

  Here, in order to transmit data from the management apparatus 102 to the mediation apparatus 101 (or the image forming apparatus 100 via the mediation apparatus 101) over the firewall 104, the data is transmitted in the form of a response to the HTTP request from the mediation apparatus 101. However, the means for going beyond the firewall 104 is not limited to this example. For example, using the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), the management apparatus 102 sends a mail describing or attaching data to be transmitted. Transmission to the mediation apparatus 101 is also conceivable. However, HTTP is superior in terms of reliability.

  Here, in the image forming apparatus 100, a CPU that controls each hardware resource including the plotter engine and the operation panel 205 monitors the state of each hardware resource, and a predetermined error such as an abnormality is detected with any of the hardware resources. When an event occurs, the event is detected, and different processing is performed depending on the type of the event. Therefore, information serving as a reference for determining the type of event is necessary, and the example of FIG. 13 is a table data indicating an example of information (reference information) used as a reference for determining the type of event (abnormality). The structure is shown. Here, “SC (Service Man Call)” corresponds to “abnormal”. As shown in the figure, the type is determined by the detected SC. Therefore, each type will be described.

“Type A” indicates that the user cannot cancel (cannot be used) by displaying the SC on the operation panel 205 and cannot be used, and “SC reset” from the management apparatus 102 cannot be performed. For example, a fixing SC.
“Type B” is an SC that cannot use only a specific function in which an abnormality is detected (detected). The SC display is not displayed on the operation panel 205 during normal use, but the SC display is performed on the operation panel 205 only when a function in which an abnormality is detected is selected. For example, this corresponds to the case where the duplex mode is selected when the duplex unit is abnormal.
“Type C” does not display on the operation panel 205 even when an SC occurs, and only logs the occurrence of an SC internally. For example, the case where communication becomes impossible corresponds.

  In “Type D”, an SC is displayed on the operation panel 205 to prohibit use, but the main power supply (power supply unit 207) is turned off / on (operation to turn it off once and turn it on again) or the software power key. The SC is canceled by this operation. There may be a case where the SC is detected again after the main power is turned on (power is turned on) and is not canceled apparently. For example, a motor abnormality corresponds to this. The reference information for the determination may be stored in a predetermined storage area of the NV-RAM 202 (or HDD 201) described above. It should be noted that events such as scanner engine SC and plotter engine SC are also handled as events of different types.

Next, the embodiment in the image forming apparatus 100 and the image forming apparatus management system described above, that is, the operation that characterizes the present invention and the configuration for realizing the operation will be specifically described with reference to FIGS. explain. The image forming apparatus 110 also performs the operations that characterize the present invention. However, since the operation is the same as that of the image forming apparatus 100, description thereof is omitted here.
As described above, the image forming apparatus 100 includes both a communication unit corresponding to a public line and a communication unit corresponding to Internet communication.
Then, the image forming apparatus 100 is connected to the mediation apparatus 101 via a network such as a remote management (remote service: RS) by a CSS system that communicates with the mediation apparatus 101 and the management apparatus 102 via a public line, and a network such as a LAN. It is configured to be an object of remote management by the NRS method that communicates with the management apparatus 102 via the mediation apparatus 101 and the Internet 103. Since the image forming apparatus 110 has the function of the mediation apparatus 101, the image forming apparatus 110 has the same configuration.

Specifically, as a program for transmitting information such as the status of the device in response to a request from the management device 102, or notifying the management device 102 when an abnormality occurs in the device, A CSS 315 compatible with the CSS system and an NRS 305 compatible with the NRS system are provided.
The NCS 303 passes the request received via the public line to the SCS 306 via the CSS 315 and the request received via the network such as the Internet 103 or the LAN to the SCS 306 via the NRS 305 as shown in FIG. When a request is issued from the image forming apparatus 100 side, the data is transferred from the SCS 306 to the NCS 303 on the contrary. Then, the SCS 306 controls the validity / invalidity of the functions of the CSS 315 and the NRS 305 according to the setting of the apparatus, thereby selectively supporting both types of remote management.
What is provided to perform this setting is an RS state setting register (hereinafter, the setting contents of this register are referred to as “RS state setting”). The four states shown in Table 1 can be set by the RS state setting register.

“Invalid” indicates that both CSS 315 and NRS 305 functions are disabled, “CSS” indicates that only CSS 315 functions are enabled, NRS 305 functions are disabled, and “NRS enabled” indicates CSS 315 functions. Is disabled and the function of the NRS 305 is enabled. “Waiting for NRS setting” will be described later.
Note that the invalidation of the function does not necessarily mean that no operation is performed, and includes a case where a response indicating that the function is invalid is returned in response to the received request. Further, as described above, the CPU on the controller board 200 realizes functions as request processing means and request issuing means by executing the NRS 305, so disabling the functions of the NRS 305 disables the functions of these means. Will do.

Here, the relationship between the process including the RS state setting (NRS validation) and the communication operation via the network will be described. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communication sequence for explaining the relationship.
First, when the image forming apparatus 100 receives a device status acquisition request from the intermediary device 101 in a state where the RS status setting is not “NRS enabled”, for example, as shown in FIG. First, an NG (failure) response is returned as a response (device status acquisition response) indicating that the function of the NRS 305 is invalid. By doing so, the mediation apparatus 101 that is the transmission source of the request cannot obtain a normal response not because a communication error occurs or the target image forming apparatus 100 is not connected in the first place. It can be recognized that this is because the image forming apparatus 100 disables the function of the NRS 305. Even when a request for using the function of the NRS 305 other than the device status acquisition request is received, the same processing as described above can be performed. A request to use the function of the NRS 305 is generated when an operation (processing) is performed on the NRS 305.

Further, in the state where the RS state setting is not “NRS valid”, for example, as shown in FIG. 14B, even when a serviceman call (SC) occurrence notification is received from the SCS 306, the SC notification is issued to the mediation apparatus 101. Not performed. Even when a request (notification) using the function of the NRS 305 other than the SC occurrence notification is received, the same processing as described above can be performed.
As described above, when the RS state setting is not “NRS valid”, the image forming apparatus 100 does not return a valid response to the request received from the external apparatus, and performs a request or a report from the image forming apparatus 100 side. Absent.

On the other hand, when the RS state setting is set to “NRS enabled” by an enabling operation described later, a request or notification (notification) is made from the image forming apparatus 100 side, for example, as shown in FIG. An operation is performed in which a communication test call request for a communication test is transmitted to the mediation apparatus 101 and the result is received as a response. For example, as shown in FIG. 14D, when a serviceman call (SC) occurrence notification is received from the SCS 306, an SC notification is issued to the mediation apparatus 101, and the result is received as a response. It is also possible to send a request to use the function of the NRS 305 other than the communication test call request or the SC occurrence notification to the mediation apparatus 101.
Furthermore, an operation of returning a valid response to the request received from the external device is also performed. For example, as shown in FIG. 14E, when a device status acquisition request is received, information indicating the device status or the like is displayed in the SCS 306. Acquisition is executed, and the result is returned as a device status acquisition response (success).

Conversely, as in another example shown in FIG. 15, when the RS state setting is not “NRS valid” by setting the RS state setting to “wait for NRS setting” by a standby setting operation described later, As shown in (C) and (D), thereafter, no request or notification is made from the image forming apparatus 100 side, and an operation for returning a valid response to the request received from the external apparatus is not performed.
Note that there is a time lag between receiving a request and sending a response, and the RS state setting may be changed during that time, but whether or not to return a valid response to the request is immediately after receiving the request. The determination is made with reference to the RS state setting at that time. FIG. 16 shows an example of such a case.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 16A, for the device status acquisition request received when the RS status setting is “NRS enabled”, even if the NRS 305 is invalidated before the response, as shown in FIG. Returns a valid response to. The request to invalidate the NRS 305 is generated only by a key operation on the operation panel 205 by the user. A request for changing the RS state setting to “wait for NRS setting” can be generated by a key operation on the operation panel 205. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 16B, a failure response is returned for the jam log information acquisition request received after setting the RS state setting to “NRS setting waiting” other than “NRS valid”, for example.

By the way, a feature of the present invention is that a setting state of “Waiting for NRS setting” is provided for RS state setting. This state is a waiting state for waiting for the setting necessary for receiving the remote management by the NRS method by connecting to the image forming apparatus management system shown in FIG. 3, and both the functions of the CSS 315 and the NRS 305 are disabled. When the predetermined request (for example, device search request) is received from the intermediary device 101 shown in FIG. 3, the RS operation setting function is changed to “NRS valid” to enable the NRS operation (function). Is to do.
The RS status setting register described above is provided in the NV-RAM 202 (which may be the HDD 201) shown in FIG. When the RS state setting register is set to “wait for NRS setting”, this CPU functions as a standby setting unit.

Hereinafter, processing when the image forming apparatus 100 receives a request from an external apparatus, including the above-described necessary setting operation, will be described. 17 to 19 are flowcharts showing this processing, and the processing shown in these flowcharts is processing according to an embodiment of the control method of the communication apparatus according to the present invention. Here, an operation related to NRS remote management will be described.
The CPU provided in the controller board 200 of the image forming apparatus 100 always executes the NRS 305 shown in FIG. And when these are received, the process shown to the flowchart of FIG. 17 will be started.

First, the received content is checked in step S1. If it is a device search request, the process proceeds to step S2. The device search request is a command for the mediation apparatus 101 to request a search for the image forming apparatus 100 to be managed connected to itself.
In step S2, the RS state setting is checked. If it is “waiting for NRS setting”, the process proceeds to step S3.

In step S3, the IP address of the mediation apparatus 101 that is the transmission source of the device search request is stored in the NV-RAM 202 as communication destination information. The device search request is a kind of request issued by the mediation apparatus 101 to the image forming apparatus 100, and is transferred as a SOAP request (SOAP message) described in the XML format. Since the IP address is also included as information, it may be extracted and stored by referring to the tag. In this process, the NV-RAM 202 functions as a communication destination information storage unit.
By this processing, the mediation device 101 that is the transmission source of the device search request is recognized as a mediation device that should mediate connection to the management device 102.

In the next step S4, a device search response, which is a response to the device search request, is transmitted “success” to the intermediary device 101.
In step S5, a setting change notification is also transmitted, and the process is temporarily terminated. This setting change notification is a notification indicating that the content of the information (communication destination information) of the image forming apparatus 100 that is the communication destination of the mediation apparatus 101 has been changed, but the image forming apparatus 100 under the management of the NRS method Every time a setting is changed, the mediation apparatus 101 is notified that the setting has been changed, and this notification is also performed as part of the notification. The setting change notification may be included in the response to the device search request.
Here, a format example of a device search request and a device search response transmitted as a SOAP request is shown in FIGS. 20 and 21, respectively.

On the other hand, if the RS status setting is “invalid” or “CSS” in step S2, the function of the NRS 305 is invalid, and the process proceeds to step S7, and “failure” indicating that in response to the device search request. The response (device search response) is transmitted and the process is terminated.
If the RS state setting is “NRS enabled” in step S2, the process proceeds to step S6, where the IP address of the mediation apparatus that is the transmission source of the device search request is compared with the IP address stored as communication destination information. To do.
If they match, the transmission source intermediary device has already been set as the communication destination, so the process proceeds to step S4 to transmit a response to the device search request with “success”, and the following processing is performed. The process may be omitted and the process may be terminated.

  If they do not match in step S6, it means that a device search request has been received from a mediation device different from the mediation device that has already been set as the communication destination, but one mediation device 101 for each image forming device 100 is received. In order to construct a monitoring system by setting, in such a case, a “failure” response is returned in step S7 as in the case where the function of the NRS 305 is disabled, and the process is terminated.

If the received content is a setting notification in step S1, the process proceeds to step S8. Upon receiving the setting change notification transmitted by the image forming apparatus 100 in step S5, the mediation apparatus 101 transmits a notification indicating that the image forming apparatus 100 is recognized as a management target to the image forming apparatus 100. It is a setting notification. The setting notification is a command that the mediation apparatus 101 requests the image forming apparatus 100 to be managed to enter into the management of the management apparatus 102 through itself. Since this setting notification is also transmitted here as a SOAP request like other requests, it can also be regarded as a kind of request.
In step S8, the setting of the RS state setting register is changed from “Waiting for NRS setting” to “NRS valid”. At this time, the image forming apparatus 100 becomes a management target apparatus by the management apparatus 102, and thereafter, a normal response can be returned to the received request, and requests and notifications can be transmitted to the external apparatus. It becomes like this.

  Next, in order to confirm whether or not these pieces of information can be normally transmitted and received, a communication test is performed with the management apparatus 102 in step S9. However, it does not directly communicate with the management apparatus 102, but transmits a request to the intermediary apparatus 101 to perform a communication test with the management apparatus 102, and the intermediary apparatus 101 performs a test to the management apparatus 102 accordingly. The procedure is such that a request is transmitted and a response from the management apparatus 102 returned to the request is received from the mediation apparatus 101. Accordingly, only the mediating apparatus 101 is the direct transmission / reception partner of the image forming apparatus.

A server device having a request transmission / reception function is provided in place of the management device 102 to transmit / receive a request to / from the mediation device, and the management device 102 is connected to such a server device via a public line or a LAN, for example. You may make it provide. In such a case, a test request is further transmitted from the server device to the management device 102, and a response from the management device 102 is received via the server device and the mediation device 101.
When the response is received, the result of the communication test is displayed on the operation panel 205 or notified to the administrator by e-mail, and the process ends. At this time, if the result is successful, there is no problem. However, in the case of failure, the problem is solved by automatically performing a countermeasure process or asking the user for a countermeasure.

If the received content is a standby setting request in step S1, the process proceeds to step S10 in FIG. Here, the standby setting request is a command that the intermediary apparatus 101 requests the image forming apparatus 100 under management of the management apparatus 102 through itself to move out of management. The image forming apparatus 100 is used when the image forming apparatus 100 is placed under the management of the management apparatus 102 via another intermediary apparatus 101.
In step S10, the RS state setting is checked. If “NRS is valid”, the process proceeds to step S11.
In step S11, the setting of the RS state setting register is changed from “NRS valid” to “NRS setting wait”. At this time, the image forming apparatus 100 becomes an apparatus that is not managed by the management apparatus 102 and returns a normal response to a request received thereafter, or transmits a request or notification to an external apparatus. There is no longer to do. In step S11, the IP address stored as the communication destination information may be erased at the same time.

In the next step S12, a response to the standby setting request is returned as “success”, and the process ends. Here, the response is returned because the standby setting request is received before the setting of the RS state setting register is set to “wait for NRS setting”. At this time, since the RS state setting is already “waiting for NRS setting”, the setting change notification is not separately transmitted, but the content may be included in the standby setting response.
If the RS status setting is “invalid”, “CSS” or “waiting for NRS setting” in step S10, the function of the NRS 305 is invalid, and the process proceeds to step S13 to indicate that in response to the device search request. A “failure” response is transmitted, and the process ends.

  If the received content is not any of the device search request, the setting notification, and the standby setting request in step S1, the process proceeds to step S14 in FIG. 19 to check the RS state setting in the same manner as in step S2, and “NRS valid”. If so, the process proceeds to step S15 to perform a normal process for the request and the process ends. This processing is, for example, a response to the charging counter acquisition request described with reference to FIG. 8, and transmits the request contents to the SCS 306, which issues and executes a request to an application or module that requires the SCS 306. The result is returned to NRS 305.

If the setting other than “NRS valid” is set in step S14, the function of the NRS 305 is invalid. Therefore, in step S16, a “failure” response indicating that is transmitted, and the process is terminated.
Prior to the processing shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, the request source IP address is compared with the IP address stored as communication destination information in the same manner as in step S6 in FIG. It is advisable to process the request and return a “failure” response if they do not match.
In the processing shown in the above flowchart, the processing of steps S3 to S5 when a device search request is received and the processing of step S8 when a setting notification is received thereafter are validation operations.
In the operations of steps S10 to S12 in FIG. 18, the CPU provided in the controller board 200 functions as a standby setting unit.

By the way, when the image forming apparatus management system as shown in FIG. 3 is configured and the image forming apparatus is managed by the NRS method, the image forming apparatus 100 and the mediating apparatus 101 are first connected to the LAN in an appropriate order. At the time of connection, the mediation apparatus 101 stores the identification information of the image forming apparatus to be managed as kitting information. FIG. 22 shows an example of identification information. For example, the model number and IP address of the image forming apparatus to be managed may be stored. This identification information is basically stored in advance before shipment according to the contents of the remote service contract or the like, but may be added or changed after installation. In addition, a range in which a user (device user) or a serviceman (CE) transmits a device search request to the mediation apparatus 101 may be specified by an IP address or the like.
The RS status register in the image forming apparatus 100 is set to “wait for NRS setting” at the time of installation.

  When the intermediary device 101 is connected to a LAN (network), an instruction from the operation unit connected to the Op-Port 56 shown in FIG. The device search request including its own IP address information is transmitted to the IP address stored as the identification information in accordance with the above key operation), and the device of that IP address is managed by the management device 102 through itself. Try to put in.

FIG. 23 is a diagram showing a detailed example of a communication sequence for enabling NRS between the image forming apparatus 100 and the mediating apparatus 101 in this case, and shows details of a portion surrounded by a broken line in FIG. .
When the mediation apparatus 101 makes a device search request as described above in step S101, the image forming apparatus 100 that has received the request performs the processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 17 and stores the IP address included in the device search request. A device search response (S102) and a setting change notification (S103) are sent to the IP address intermediary device.
Among these, the setting change notification includes the model number, IP address, device ID, and the like of the image forming apparatus 100. Therefore, the information is compared with the identification information of the image forming apparatus 100 to be managed on the mediating apparatus side. If they match, the partner that sent the device search request is authenticated as a management target, and a setting notification is sent in step S104.

When receiving this, the image forming apparatus 100 performs the processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 17 again, and this time changes the setting of the RS state setting register from “Waiting for NRS setting” to “NRS valid”. At this point, the image forming apparatus 100 becomes a management target of the management apparatus 102 via the mediation apparatus 101. That is, it is incorporated in the image forming apparatus management system.
Thereafter, a communication test call request shown in step S105 is performed as a communication test, and when the success response is received in step S106, the process ends.
As described above, by using the device search request described above, it is possible to perform processing for automatically incorporating the image forming apparatus 100 into the image forming apparatus management system.

On the other hand, when the image forming apparatus 100 that has been once managed by the management apparatus 102 is removed, it is clarified that the image forming apparatus 100 is no longer managed, and the image forming apparatus 100 is managed again. In order to enable easy integration as described above, the intermediary apparatus 101 transmits a standby setting request to the target image forming apparatus 100 to return the apparatus to a standby state. Try. Even when another mediating apparatus 101 is set as a communication destination of the image forming apparatus 100 and the image forming apparatus 100 is to be managed by the management apparatus 102 via the other mediating apparatus 101, this is not changed as described above. Since setting cannot be performed, a standby setting request is transmitted in the same manner.
Here, when the image forming apparatus 100 is under the management of the management apparatus 102, the NRS state setting is “NRS valid”.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing a detailed example of a communication sequence for standby setting between the image forming apparatus 100 and the mediating apparatus 101 in this case, and shows details of a portion surrounded by a broken line in FIG.
That is, when the mediation apparatus 101 makes a standby setting request as described above in step S111, the image forming apparatus 100 that has received the request performs the processing shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 17 and 18, and sets the NRS state setting to “wait for NRS setting”. In step S112, the standby setting response is transmitted to the mediation apparatus 101 that transmitted the request, and the process ends. As described above, the image forming apparatus 100 is removed from the management system.
As described above, by using the standby setting request described above, it is possible to perform processing for removing the image forming apparatus 100 from the image forming apparatus management system. At this time, the communication function with the external apparatus (function of NRS 305) is validated by a predetermined request such as the above-described device search request in the same procedure as when the image forming apparatus 100 is incorporated for the first time, and the image forming apparatus management system It can be returned to a state where it can be incorporated.
The standby setting request may be manually instructed and transmitted to the mediation apparatus 101, or the mediation apparatus 101 may be automatically transmitted in response to a predetermined trigger. Further, it is preferable not to transmit a predetermined request such as a device search request to the image forming apparatus 100 that has transmitted the standby setting request.

  As described above, in the image forming apparatus of this embodiment, the standby state is provided in the NRS 305, and the setting of “wait for NRS setting” is enabled. When incorporating (connecting) to the system, the setting of the image forming apparatus can be automatically changed to enable the function of the NRS 305 by simply connecting the mediation apparatus and the image forming apparatus via a network such as a LAN. Therefore, the operation of incorporating the image forming apparatus into the management system can be easily performed. In addition, it is not necessary for the service person to visit and work for a long time at that time, and the service cost related to the management system can be reduced. This effect is particularly exhibited when a large number of image forming apparatuses are incorporated into the management system at once.

On the other hand, in the state of “waiting for NRS setting”, the image forming apparatus does not attempt to send a request or report by itself, so even if no intermediary apparatus is provided, an error due to the absence of a communication partner does not occur. Operations other than the management system can be performed normally. Further, since an NG response is returned for a request other than the request that triggers the activation of NRS, even when connected to the same network as the mediation device, it can be kept out of the management system. .
Further, since a predetermined request from an external device is used as a trigger for NRS validation, it is possible to prompt the image forming apparatus to validate NRS with information in a format similar to that used for the management operation in the management system.

  In addition, when a predetermined request from an external device is received, the RS state setting is returned to “Waiting for NRS setting”. In addition to the above effects, the device can be easily relocated and the management system can be reorganized. be able to. In other words, after receiving the above-described standby setting request, the image forming apparatus can be incorporated into the management system in the same procedure as that for the initial connection. By transmitting a predetermined request, setting that places the image forming apparatus under the management of the management apparatus via another intermediary apparatus can be easily performed automatically from the intermediary apparatus side. In this case, when the image forming apparatus is once removed from the management system, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of inconveniences such as misrecognizing that communication with the mediating apparatus has become impossible and giving a warning or the like. it can. The same applies to the case where the image forming apparatus is physically or logically removed from the network, for example.

Further, since the intermediary device issues a predetermined request such as a device search request periodically (at predetermined intervals), even when a new image forming apparatus is added, the apparatus is easily incorporated into the management system. be able to. If a predetermined request is issued in accordance with an instruction from the operation unit by the user, the NRS function of the image forming apparatus can be validated without waiting for the elapse of a predetermined time, and the image forming apparatus can be incorporated into the management system.
In addition, if a communication test with a management device is performed after NRS is enabled, it is confirmed whether communication necessary for management can be normally performed and the reliability of the system is improved. Can do.

When the mediation device is provided in a plurality of stages as in the installation environment B of FIG. 3, the vertical relationship between the mediation devices can be set in the same manner as in the case of the image forming apparatus. In this case, it is assumed that not only the image forming apparatus to be managed but also identification information of the lower intermediate apparatus is stored in the upper intermediate apparatus.
The identification information of the image forming apparatus stored in the mediating apparatus may be used as the IP address search range. In this case, when a device search request is made, a device that is transmitted by multicast to the range, refers to a device search response or a setting change notification returned from the image forming apparatus, and is placed under control by the user May be selected.

In addition, the IP address of the mediation device is manually specified as communication destination information on the image forming device side, the RS state setting register is changed to “NRS enabled”, and the image forming device can be operated without waiting for a request from the mediation device side. You may enable it to be integrated in a management system.
Furthermore, the efficiency of the network traffic is not good, but contrary to the case described above, when the image forming apparatus issues a search request to the mediation apparatus and an appropriate response is obtained, “NRS valid” It can also be considered.
Further, a predetermined request such as a device search request can be transmitted from the management device to the image forming device via the mediation device. In this case, the management device polls from the mediation device (inquiry about whether there is a transmission request). ), The image forming apparatus can receive the request via the mediation apparatus by transmitting the request.

  Here, in the above-described embodiments, the image forming apparatus having the communication function has been described as an example of the communication apparatus (electronic apparatus) according to the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and has the communication function. Applicable to various communication devices with communication functions, including network home appliances, vending machines, medical equipment, power supply devices, air conditioning systems, gas / water / electric metering systems, and computers that can be connected to the network. is there. Even when these communication devices are managed devices, the remote management system can be operated in the same manner as described above. Further, with regard to the remote management system of the communication device, the configuration of the communication device, the mediation device, and the management device and their connection form are not limited to the above embodiments.

Further, the program according to the present invention provides a computer that controls a communication apparatus such as the above-described image forming apparatus provided with a communication unit that communicates with an external apparatus as various functions according to the present invention, that is, as a request processing unit and a standby setting unit. This is a program for realizing a function and further a communication destination information storage means (a function as a means for storing address information in the storage means as communication destination information). Such effects can be obtained.
Such a program may be stored in a storage means such as a ROM or HDD provided in the computer from the beginning, but a non-volatile recording such as a CD-ROM or flexible disk, SRAM, EEPROM, memory card or the like as a recording medium. It can also be recorded on a medium (memory) and provided. Each procedure described above can be executed by installing a program recorded in the memory in a computer and causing the CPU to execute the program, or causing the CPU to read and execute the program from the memory.
Furthermore, it is also possible to download and execute an external device that is connected to a network and includes a recording medium that records the program, or an external device that stores the program in the storage unit.

  The present invention is applicable to network home appliances, vending machines, medical equipment, power supply devices, air conditioning systems, various communication devices such as gas / water / electricity measuring systems and computers, and computers that control the communication devices. .

It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of a structure of the remote management system of the communication apparatus of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the data transmission / reception model in the remote management system. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an image forming apparatus management system which is an example of a communication apparatus management system according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a physical configuration example of the image forming apparatus in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration example of the image forming apparatus. 6 is a diagram for explaining an ENGRDY signal and a PWRCTL signal in the image forming apparatus. FIG.

2 is a functional block diagram illustrating a configuration of an NRS module in the image forming apparatus. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware structural example of the mediation apparatus of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the software structural example of the mediation apparatus. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a physical configuration example of the management apparatus 102 in FIG. 3. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a communication sequence for explaining data transmission / reception performed in the image forming apparatus remote management system shown in FIG. 3. It is a figure which shows an example of the other communication sequence.

It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the table of the information used as the reference | standard for determining the kind of abnormality. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a communication sequence for explaining data transmission / reception between an image forming apparatus and an intermediary apparatus in the image forming apparatus management system shown in FIG. 3. It is a figure which shows an example of the other communication sequence. It is a figure which shows an example of the further another communication sequence. It is a flowchart which shows an example of a communication sequence when the image forming apparatus which is an example of the communication apparatus of this invention receives the request | requirement from an external device. FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing processing subsequent to FIG. 17.

It is a flowchart which shows the process of another part of the continuation of FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of a format of the apparatus search request | requirement transmitted as a SOAP request. It is a figure which shows the example of a format of the apparatus search response transmitted as a SOAP request. It is a figure which shows the example of the identification information of the image forming apparatus which the mediation apparatus of FIG. 3 should manage itself. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communication sequence for explaining data communication between an image forming apparatus and an intermediary apparatus when the intermediary apparatus transmits a device search request to the image forming apparatus. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communication sequence for explaining data communication between the image forming apparatus and the mediating apparatus when the mediating apparatus transmits a standby setting request to the image forming apparatus. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

10: Managed device 11: Managed device with mediation function 52: CPU 53: SDRAM 54: Flash memory 55: Internal clock 56: Op-Port 57, 204: PHY 58, 601: Modem 59: HDD control unit 63, 201 : HDD 70: Application layer 80: Service layer 90: Protocol layer 100: Image forming apparatus 101: Mediating apparatus 102: Management apparatus 103: Internet 104: Firewall 105: CE terminal 110: Image forming apparatus with mediating function 202: NV-RAM 205: Operation panel 206: Plotter / scanner engine board 300: OCS 301: ECS 302: MCS 303: NCS 304: FCS 305: NRS 306: SCS 30 : SRM 308: IMH 309: Copy application 310: Fax application 311: Printer application 312: Scanner application 313: Net file application 314: Web application 315: CSS 316: DCS 320: General-purpose OS 603: Proxy server 604: Operator terminal 605 : Database 606: Control device

Claims (19)

A communication means for communicating with an external device;
Request processing means for performing processing corresponding to the request with respect to the request received from the external device via the communication means;
Setting information storage means for storing setting information for setting the request processing means to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the request processing means is not permitted;
In response to a predetermined request received from the external device, the setting information is updated to setting information for changing the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state; standby setting means ;
When the setting information is updated to the setting information for setting the request processing means in the valid state in response to the predetermined request by the standby setting means, the request setting included in the predetermined request Communication destination information storage means for storing address information of the sender as communication destination information ,
The request processing means, after the communication destination information is stored by the communication destination information storage means, a means for transmitting a setting change notification including identification information of the communication device to a transmission source of the predetermined request; if a request other than said predetermined request from said external device, have a means for determining based on whether or not to perform a process corresponding to the request to the setting information,
In response to transmission of the setting change notification from the request processing unit to the transmission source of the predetermined request, the standby setting unit receives the setting information from the transmission source when the setting notification is received from the transmission source. A communication apparatus, comprising: means for updating the setting information for setting from the standby state to the valid state . The communication device according to claim 1 .
When the received request is an information acquisition request, the request processing unit returns information of the communication device when determining that the processing corresponding to the request is performed. The communication device according to claim 1 or 2 ,
The request processing means has means for returning a response indicating that the function is in an invalid state for a request other than the predetermined request in the standby state. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
The request processing means returns a response corresponding to the request when it is determined that the processing corresponding to the request is performed only for the request received from the transmission source related to the communication destination information. Communication device. The communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
The request processing unit functions when the predetermined request is received from a device other than the external device related to the communication destination information in a state other than the standby state and the communication destination information is stored in the communication destination information storage unit. A communication apparatus comprising means for returning a response to the effect that is in an invalid state. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
The standby setting means has means for updating the setting information to setting information for setting the request processing means to the standby state when a predetermined request is received from the external device. Communication device. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 ,
The request processing means determines whether or not to perform processing corresponding to a request received from the external device by referring to the setting information at that time immediately after receiving the request. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 7 ,
The request received by the communication means is described in a structured language format. A communication device remote management system comprising one or more communication devices and an external device directly or indirectly connected to the communication device,
The external device is connected to the communication device via a network, and includes a remote management intermediary device having request transmission means for transmitting various requests to the communication device, and is connected to the remote management mediation device via the Internet. A management device that manages the communication device connected to the remote management mediation device by causing the mediation device to transmit the various requests;
Communication means for communicating with the external device, request processing means for performing processing corresponding to the request with respect to a request received from the external device via the communication means, and the request processing means In response to a predetermined request received from the external device , and setting information storage means for storing setting information for setting a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the processing corresponding to the request is not permitted The setting information is updated to setting information for changing the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state, and the setting information is received by the standby setting means in response to the predetermined request. When the request processing means is updated to the setting information for setting the valid state, the address information of the transmission source of the request included in the predetermined request is stored as communication destination information. A target information storage means is provided,
The request processing unit of the communication device transmits a setting change notification including identification information of the communication device to the transmission source of the predetermined request after the communication destination information is stored by the communication destination information storage unit. means for, when receiving a request other than said predetermined request from said external device, have a means for determining based on whether or not to perform a process corresponding to the request to the setting information,
In response to transmission of the setting change notification from the request processing unit to the source of the predetermined request by the request processing unit, the standby setting unit of the communication apparatus receives the setting information when the setting notification is received from the source. A remote management system for a communication apparatus, characterized in that the request processing means is updated to setting information for setting from the standby state to the valid state . In the remote management system of the communication apparatus of Claim 9 ,
A remote management system for a communication apparatus, wherein the request transmission means of the remote management mediating apparatus periodically transmits the predetermined request to the communication apparatus. In the remote management system of the communication apparatus of Claim 9 or 10 ,
The remote management mediating device includes an operation unit for inputting various instructions,
The request transmission means of the remote management mediating apparatus transmits the predetermined request to the communication apparatus according to an instruction from the operation unit. In the remote management system of the communication apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 11 ,
The remote management intermediary device is provided with storage means for storing identification information of a communication device to be managed by itself,
The request management means of the remote management intermediary device, when transmitting the predetermined request, transmits only to the communication device corresponding to the identification information. In the remote management system of the communication apparatus as described in any one of Claims 9 thru | or 12 ,
Means for performing a communication test with the management apparatus via the remote management intermediary apparatus when the request processing means is updated to the setting information for changing the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state. A remote management system for a communication device, characterized by comprising: In the remote management system of the communication apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 13 ,
The standby setting means of the communication device has means for updating the setting information to setting information for setting the request processing means to the standby state when a predetermined request is received from the external device. A remote management system for a communication device. One or more communication devices, a remote management intermediary device connected to the communication device by a network and having a request transmission means for transmitting various requests to the communication device, and connected to the remote management mediation device via the Internet A remote management system for a communication device configured by a management device for managing the communication device connected to the remote management mediation device by causing the remote management mediation device to transmit the various requests,
The remote management intermediary device is provided with a transmission request presence / absence inquiry means for inquiring whether there is a transmission request periodically with respect to the management device,
The request transmission unit of the remote management intermediary device transmits the request to the communication device only when a request is received from the management device in response to the transmission request inquiry to the management device by the transmission request presence / absence inquiry unit. Means to send to
A communication means for communicating with the remote management mediating apparatus in the communication device; a request processing means for performing processing corresponding to the request with respect to a request received from the remote management mediating apparatus via the communication means; A setting information storage unit for storing setting information for setting the request processing unit to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the request processing unit is not permitted; and a predetermined information received from the management device In response to the request , the setting information is updated to setting information for changing the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state, and the standby setting means responds to the predetermined request. When the setting information is updated to the setting information for setting the request processing means to the valid state, the address information of the source of the request included in the predetermined request is set as communication destination information. And a communication destination information storage means is provided for and stored,
The request processing unit of the communication device transmits a setting change notification including identification information of the communication device to the transmission source of the predetermined request after the communication destination information is stored by the communication destination information storage unit. It means for, when receiving a request other than the predetermined request from the management apparatus, have a means for determining based on whether or not to perform a process corresponding to the request to the setting information,
In response to transmission of the setting change notification from the request processing unit to the source of the predetermined request by the request processing unit, the standby setting unit of the communication apparatus receives the setting information when the setting notification is received from the source. A remote management system for a communication apparatus, characterized in that the request processing means is updated to setting information for setting from the standby state to the valid state . A communication means for communicating with an external device;
Request processing means for performing processing corresponding to the request with respect to the request received from the external device via the communication means;
A control method for a communication apparatus, comprising: setting information storage means for storing setting information for setting the request processing means to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the request processing means is not permitted. Because
When a predetermined request is received from the external device, if it is in the standby state, the request processing unit stores address information of the transmission source of the request included in the predetermined request as communication destination information. When the setting change notification including identification information of the communication device is transmitted to the transmission source of the predetermined request, and the setting notification is received from the transmission source, the setting information is transmitted to the request processing unit. Whether to update the setting information for setting to the valid state from the standby state , and whether to perform processing corresponding to the request when a request other than the predetermined request is received from the external device A control method for a communication apparatus, characterized in that an operation is performed to determine the control based on the setting information. The communication device control method according to claim 16 ,
The request processing unit is configured to cause a response corresponding to the request to be returned when it is determined that the process corresponding to the request is performed only for the request received from the transmission source related to the communication destination information. Method for controlling a communication device. In a computer that controls a communication device including a communication unit that communicates with an external device,
A request processing function for performing processing corresponding to the request with respect to the request received from the external device via the communication unit;
A setting information storage function for storing setting information for setting the request processing function to a valid state in which processing corresponding to the request is permitted or a standby state in which the request processing function is not permitted;
In response to a predetermined request received from the external device, the setting information is updated to setting information for changing the request processing means from the standby state to the valid state ; and
When the setting information is updated to the setting information for setting the request processing means in the valid state in response to the predetermined request by the standby setting means, the request setting included in the predetermined request A program for realizing a communication destination information storage function that stores address information of a transmission source as communication destination information ,
The request processing function is a function of transmitting a setting change notification including identification information of the communication device to a transmission source of the predetermined request after the communication destination information is stored by the communication destination information storage function. if a request other than said predetermined request from said external device, possess a function of determining on the basis of whether or not to perform a process corresponding to the request to the setting information,
In response to transmission of the setting change notification to the source of the predetermined request by the request processing function, the standby setting function receives the setting information from the source when the setting change notification is received. A program for updating a function to setting information for setting the function from the standby state to the valid state . The program according to claim 18 , wherein
The request processing function is a function that returns a valid response only to a request received from a transmission source related to the communication destination information.

Images