JP2002251274A - Printing management system for copyrighted matter and its method and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mechanism for grasping the normal printing situation of a copyrighted matter, and for preventing any disadvantage from being imposed on either a creator or a user at the time of selling a copyrighted matter integrated into an electronic file to a user. SOLUTION: A contents vender 2 generates print control information for making a copyrighted matter described in a print mole 1 printable by an external printing device, for example, the printer of a user 4, and transmits this print control information to the external printing device. At that time, the number of times of generation of the print control information and/or the number of times of transmission to the external printing device is accumulated in the print mole 1. Then, the number of times of normal printing of the copyrighted matter can be specified based on the accumulated result. The result of the sales of the copyrighted matter is retrieved from the number of times of normal printing. When the same contents are ordered from the same user 4 within a prescribed time, it is recognized that the printing control information is not normally transmitted, and the copyrighted matter is re-transmitted.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a print management technique for printing an electronic file of a literary work on an external printer via a communication path, and more particularly, to preventing loss of the creator's interest. About the mechanism for

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION With the development of printing technology, printers capable of printing with high resolution and printing with a texture that can be distinguished from photographs have appeared on the market in recent years. Print size is from postcard size, A2 version, A1 version, A0 version, B
It is possible to handle up to large format such as 1st edition and B0 edition. Various types of print media such as plain paper and special paper as well as cloth and resin are prepared, and an environment in which various forms of printed matter can be printed by a printer according to the application has been prepared.

One of the advantages of using a printer for a printing machine is that the labor and cost for printing a so-called single item are relatively small. One of the advantages of using a printer is that the expression contents and layout of printing can be freely edited afterward, and that the advertisement information and the like can be superimposedly printed afterward.

Recently, there are many people who create works such as photographs and illustrations. Such a work is usually published in the form of a publication such as a photo book or an illustration book, and many similar works are printed and sold. Sometimes posters and publications printed with movie scenes have commercial value.
However, such publications and the like are usually only seen by users who consciously search for them. In addition, in the case of making a publication, since the contents to be published are carefully selected in consideration of sales and the like, the creator of the work is not of a nature that can easily announce his or her own work.
In many cases, the size of a publication or the like is fixed, and a situation that is not always attractive to a user occurs.

[0005] Recently, it is often practiced to construct a virtual shop on a wide area network such as the Internet and provide various services. There is a finding that the above problem can be solved by using such network technology and virtual store construction technology.
That is, the work can be converted into an electronic file, made printable by a printer, and sold as a product through a virtual store, so that the work can be easily presented to the creator to more users. Provide an environment.

[0006] However, in the case of selling an electronic file of a work to a user through a virtual store, the following new problem arises. (1) When printing a copyrighted work using a printer owned by the user, depending on the printer, any number of sheets can be printed with a single purchase. In addition, since the file is an electronic file, copying with the same quality is easy, and illegal distribution of a copyrighted work is likely to occur. This makes it difficult for the creator of the copyrighted work to secure a profit that should be properly received, and gives a sense of resistance to using the virtual store. (2) Since the virtual store and the user are connected by a communication channel, the copyrighted work may not reach the user for some reason. Since the user pays for the purchase of the copyrighted work, only disadvantages remain for the user. This gives a sense of resistance to accessing a virtual store and purchasing a copyrighted work. In order to be able to handle more copyrighted works in a virtual store continuously, it is necessary to solve such a problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such a background, and an object of the present invention is to grasp a normal printing situation of a copyrighted work when selling the work in an electronic file to a user. Another object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism that does not disadvantage the creator of the work or the user.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides an input means for inputting an electronic file of a literary work, and an inputting means for making the input literary work printable by an external printing apparatus. A print control information generating unit that generates print control information; a communication unit that sends the generated print control information to the external printing device via a communication path; and a communication unit that sends the print control information to the external printing device. A print status management means for recording information indicating a print status in a predetermined memory area and specifying a normal print count of the work based on the record information in the memory area; I do. With such a print management system, the profit to be received by the creator of the work can be made objective, so that disadvantages to the creator are prevented from occurring.

[0009] The external printing device can be either a printing device of a consumer who prints in the printing mode by himself or a printing device of an agency that performs printing in the printing mode on behalf of the consumer. . In this case, the print control information generating means is configured to generate the print control information so as to have a structure that can be decoded by a specific external printing device determined in response to a request from a consumer.

[0010] For the convenience of the consumer when purchasing the work, the advertisement information may be superimposed and printed on the work. Alternatively, an advertising medium having copyright may be printed. Since the advertising cost can be collected from the advertiser, the profit that the purchase price of the copyrighted work (or the advertising medium) is low is provided to the consumer.

From the viewpoint of copyright holder protection, a means for adding information on the copyright of the work to the print control information in a form readable only by specific software is further provided. This makes it easier to detect unauthorized distribution. It also leads to measures to deter illegal distribution.

From the viewpoint of ensuring security, the apparatus further comprises means for encrypting and encapsulating the print control information and means for issuing a key for restoring the encrypted and encapsulated print control information under predetermined conditions. , The decryption key is sent to the consumer.

[0013] A means for making the literary work editable from an external system by utilizing the characteristics of the electronic file is further provided, and a print form in which the contents edited by the external system are reflected is realized on the external printing apparatus. Print control information is generated. As a result, a highly original printed matter can be provided to the user.

Monitoring means for monitoring the elapse of time after the start of transmission of the print control information and the presence / absence of a request for retransmission of the print control information in order to efficiently estimate whether or not the copyrighted work has correctly arrived at the consumer; Is configured to respond to the retransmission request only when the same transmission destination requests the same content before the predetermined time elapses.

A predetermined control signal may be added to the print control information to guarantee a predetermined number of times of printing by the external printing apparatus. The control signal in this case is, for example, an active signal for maintaining the data structure of the print control information in the external printing device for a predetermined time, or the data structure of the print control information in the external printing device for a predetermined number of times. Is an active signal for maintaining only the number of prints.

The printing status management means manages information representing the printing status by various methods. For example, the number of times that the print control information is generated and / or the number of times that the print control information is transmitted to an external printing apparatus are recorded in the memory area as information indicating the printing status. In a case where the communication unit and the external printing apparatus each have a function of performing bidirectional communication with a counterpart, a print status management unit transmits information indicating a print status caused by the transmitted print control information to the communication unit. And the received information is recorded in the memory area. In the case where the number of normally printed sheets is directly managed, the information is received each time printing is normally completed by the external printing apparatus. It is preferable that the information sent from the external printing device to the communication unit is encrypted information.

The print control information may have a structure in which the use of the print control information is permitted only after the completion of one printing, only on condition that predetermined permission information (ID, code) is present. In this case, the apparatus further comprises permission information generating means for transmitting the permission information to the requested external printing apparatus,
Configure a print management system.

The present invention also provides a method executed on a computer having a communication means for communicating with an external printing device. The method includes the steps of: inputting a work in an electronic file; and generating print control information for enabling the work to be printed in a predetermined print form on the external printing device using the input electronic file. Transmitting the generated print control information to the external printing device via a communication path, and storing information indicating a printing status of the external printing device resulting from the transmission of the print control information in a predetermined memory area. And estimating the number of normal printings of the work based on the recording information in the memory area. In a preferred embodiment of the method, the computer is connected to a wide area network, a sample of a plurality of types of works is presented to a consumer, and any one of the works is specified by a request from the consumer. To

According to the present invention, there is also provided a computer provided with a communication means for communicating with an external printing apparatus, a process of inputting a literary work which has been converted into an electronic file, and using the input electronic file. Generating print control information for enabling printing in a predetermined print mode, transmitting the generated print control information to an external printing device via a communication path, and transmitting the print control information. A program for executing a process of recording information representing the printing status of the external printing device in a predetermined memory area, and a process of estimating the normal number of times of printing of the literary work based on the recording information in the memory area is recorded. And a computer-readable recording medium.

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described in which the present invention is applied to a print management system for a literary work using a virtual shopping street built on the Internet web.
A place for opening a plurality of virtual stores is formed in the virtual store town. Each virtual store provides a service relating to printing of a copyrighted work to an end user (hereinafter simply referred to as a “user”) as a consumer. In this embodiment, the services provided by the virtual store include a service for delivering a copyrighted work to a user having a printer and a service for receiving a printing agent using a high-quality printer for large format printing and receiving a delivery of a printed medium. And an advertisement reception service by superimposing and printing the advertisement information on the copyrighted work. Hereinafter, the virtual mall in the present embodiment is referred to as a “print mall”. Also, in this specification, of the services provided in the print mall, the service of distributing the copyrighted work and the service of receiving the printing agency and receiving the delivery of the printed medium are treated as “goods” for convenience, and the service for the user is provided. Is referred to as “sale”, and receiving the service and receiving the service from the user is referred to as “purchase” of the product.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the operation of a print mall according to an embodiment of the present invention. The print mall 1 provides each of the content vendors 2 (sellers of electronic filed works, in the illustrated example, companies A, B, and C) with a place for opening the above-mentioned virtual store, Support the maintenance and operation of the virtual store. In addition, the advertiser accepts (pays) advertisement information to be superimposed when printing a copyrighted work. The content vendors 2 each have an information processing terminal connected to the print mall 1, and the information processing terminals include:
Works (A1 to A1) received online or offline (storage of a recording medium such as a magneto-optical disk) via the information processing terminal of the content holder 3 that is the creator of the work.
3, B1, B2, C1, C2). In the following description, a copyrighted work created as an electronic file is referred to as “image content”. Content vendor 2
Publishes the image content in its own virtual store in the print mall 1 as appropriate, and receives the corresponding goods from the print mall 1 when the posted image content or its printed matter is sold to the user 4. Content holder 3
Receives a predetermined reward from the content vendor 2 for providing the copyrighted work.

An information processing terminal of the output center 5 is connected to the print mall 1. The output center 5 is a printing institution equipped with articles obtained from the merchandise vendor 7, for example, a plurality of types of printers including a high-quality printer for large format printing, supplies, panels, foreheads, and the like. Provide printing services and value-added services.
The information processing terminal of the output center 5 includes a delivery center 6.
Is connected to the distribution center 6 and the user 4 of the print medium after printing (including options) is
Arrange delivery for. The user 4 can arbitrarily designate the delivery destination and delivery conditions of the print medium at the time of member registration or use of the store.

The merchandise vendor 7 is an organization that sells printers, supplies, panels, amounts, and the like to the output center 5 and users, and has an information processing terminal connected to the print mall 1. In the information processing terminal, a home page is displayed in which both or one of the introduction information of the article being handled and the order form of the article is displayed. This website has an Internet address (URL)
Is assigned, and the user 4 can access at any time.

The user 4 becomes a member by registering his / her personal information and information for settlement, and can purchase goods in the print mall 1 through his / her information processing terminal. At the time of product purchase, a search is made from a plurality of virtual stores in the print mall 1 as to whether or not the desired image content is available. If there is the desired image content, a payment is made and the order is placed. There are two types of orders from the user 4 to the print mall 1 (virtual store). In one mode, the user 4 downloads image content to his or her information processing terminal and prints it using his or her own printer. The order is made for the image content, and the billing is also made for each image content. In another mode, the user 4 requests the output center 5 to apply for options such as image content printing, panel attachment, and framed printing, and receives a print medium via the delivery center 6. In the latter case, it is possible to designate various value-added services, for example, printing in a poster type, printing in a calendar type, framed printing, and the like. Will receive. The charge is the sum of the image content and the amount according to the cost of the service.

The image contents sold at the virtual store are:
The content vendor 2 can select an arbitrary one and update it at an arbitrary time. At this time, for example, the model of the printer and the type of the print medium can be designated so that the print quality of a certain level or more can be obtained. In addition, data relating to copyright is embedded for each work. However, whether or not the image content can be posted in the store is to be evaluated at a certain level on the print mall 1 side.

<Print Mall> Next, a configuration example of the print mall 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the print mall 1 according to the present embodiment includes a member management server 11, an authoring server 12, a search processing server 13,
It comprises an order processing server 14, a settlement processing server 15, a print management server 16, a store management server 17, a content management server 18, and a content DB (DB is abbreviated to a database, the same applies hereinafter) 19, and these are connected to the Internet N1 via an intranet N2. Connected to The Internet N1 includes an information processing terminal operated by the user 4, an information processing terminal at the output center 5, an information processing terminal at the delivery center 6,
In addition to the information processing terminal of the product vendor 7, an external settlement institution system (credit institution system, bank system, etc.) and other content servers used by the user 4 and the content vendor 2 are connected in a form capable of two-way communication.

Each server 11-18 and content DB1
Reference numeral 9 denotes that a processor (CPU) of a server body, which is an example of a general-purpose computer system, reads and executes a program recorded on a fixed disk, a portable disk, or another computer-readable recording medium. Is realized by: In this example, a distributed processing mode in which a plurality of servers 11 to 18 and the content DB 19 are linked will be described. However, it goes without saying that a mode in which the functions of some or all servers and the content DB 19 are integrated can be adopted. .

(Member Management Server) Member Management Server 11
Manages the user 4 as a member. As shown in FIG. 3, the user management unit 111 receives a member registration by the user 4 and sends registration information to a request source as necessary. It has a user information file 112 for recording and a purchase history file 113 for recording the purchase history of the product by the user 4. When the user 4 uses a prepaid money system in which a usage fee is paid in advance, a prepaid system is provided in the member management server 11, and the prepaid money is managed for each user. By the member registration, the user 4 can purchase a product or have the print medium delivered to the registered destination.

(Authoring Server) The authoring server 12 assists in accepting the upload of image content from the content vendor 2 and evaluates whether the accepted image content can be posted in a store. In addition, it manages copyright-related data for the image content, a printer model and a print medium for maintaining print quality. For this purpose, as shown in FIG. 4, there are provided functional blocks of a data reception unit 121, an initial registration unit 122, an evaluation processing unit 123, a content ID management unit 124, an image management unit 125, and a content-related data management unit 126. .

The data receiving unit 121 uploads basic data of image contents (title of image contents, name of copyright holder, creation date, etc.), data such as printer ink recommended for use in printing, and frameable In that case, data indicating the format and size of the amount, other data for specifying the quality after printing, search keywords, genres,
An input such as a price is received through a data input unit such as a keyboard. The initial registration unit 122 is a content vendor 2
Generates an initial registration screen for image content to be presented to the user. The content vendor 2 inputs the basic data and the like through the initial registration screen. The evaluation processing unit 123 evaluates, for each image content, whether a predetermined evaluation criterion, for example, resolution, color tone, or the like, reaches a predetermined print quality criterion, whether posting in a virtual store does not violate public order and morals, and the like. The image content that reaches the evaluation criterion is output to an image processing unit that performs thumbnailing, image compression (such as JPEG imaging), and the like. Content ID management unit 124
For example, when image content is received from an image processing unit, the image content is managed by adding identification information (content ID) to the image content. The content-related data management unit 126 includes an image content file ID for storing image content, a file type for identifying a file type, an image size ID for identifying an image size, a storage destination of a layout at the time of printing, and the like. Is received via the data receiving unit 121, and the content D is received together with the image content and its file size.
Register in B19. When the registration processing of the uploaded image content is completed, information indicating "image upload completed" is presented to the uploader (usually, the content vendor 2).

(Search processing server) Search processing server 13
Is designed to enable the user 4 to search for the image contents desired by the user among the image contents sold in the virtual store, and to include means for detecting which image content the user 4 has selected. The search process is performed by the user 4 in units of some small functions, and each makes an inquiry to the content DB 19 or another server based on the received search conditions. The search result is displayed by, for example, a predetermined number of thumbnails. The user 4 confirms the content of the image by previewing the thumbnail of the favorite image content from the search result. In the preview display, detailed contents of the image content and detailed information on purchase are displayed.

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of the search processing server 13. The search processing server 13 includes a keyword search processing unit 131 for performing a search based on a keyword set for each image, and a genre for performing a hierarchical search from a genre (painting / photo / illustration ...) set for each image. A search processing unit 132, a use search processing unit 133 that performs a search from use flags (calendar / postcard / framed,...) Set for each image, and a store search processing unit 134 that performs a search from stores that provide images. , The entire information that is associated with the image and is considered necessary for the search (for example, keyword /
(Genre / image price / ...), a power search search processing unit 135 for performing a simultaneous search, a store genre search processing unit 136 for performing a hierarchical search using store genre names defined in stores, and setting for each image The in-store keyword search processing unit 137 that performs a search on the in-store image based on the keyword thus obtained, and the in-store genre search processing unit 138 that performs a hierarchical search on the in-store image from the genre set for each image , An in-store use search processing unit 139 that searches for in-store images from use flags set for each image, a search engine SP, and a keep list processing unit KL.

As shown in FIG. 6, the keep list processing unit KL performs a process of temporarily saving (adding / deleting) an image which the user 4 likes in the image search to the keep list. The keep list is a list constructed on the non-volatile memory, and the one selected last time is stored at the next login. If the previously selected item is a so-called limited-time item, it is stored in this keep list until the time limit expires. In this point, it is different from the "shopping cart" prepared in normal online shopping.

(Order Processing Server) Order Processing Server 14
Comprises means for specifying a point in time at which an order from user 4 has been received, means for clocking at least the date and time effective at each virtual store, and means for holding information on the user 4 who has placed the order. The date and time received and the elapsed time from that date are specified. Then, the information is transmitted to the processing server 15 as order data together with the order content.

(Payment Processing Server) Payment Processing Server 15
Performs processing related to charging, billing, and collection of the product sold by each virtual store to the user 4, and payment to the content vendor 2 that operates the virtual store. FIG.
It is a functional block diagram of this settlement processing server 15. The payment processing server 15 determines a charging amount based on order data received from the order processing server 14 or the like.
51, a billing processing unit 152 that performs billing processing for the user 4 who placed the order when the billing amount is determined, and an amount collected for the content vendor when the billing amount is collected from the user 4. Has a collection processing unit 154 that pays for goods corresponding to.

When the user 4 has paid the prepaid money to the prepaid system, the billing processing unit 153 performs a process of subtracting the corresponding fee from the prepaid DB 153 in which the situation is recorded, and notifies the user 4 of the fact. Collection processing unit 154
Periodically reads necessary information from the payment institution DB 155 that manages information on the payment institution system (including the address of the payment institution system and information on whether or not a fee has been received from the user 4), and reads the information for each virtual store or content. Aggregate the payment amount for each vendor, and pay the aggregated amount.

In order to know detailed information on the order data, the billing processing unit 151 stores the member management server 11, the search processing server 13, the print processing server 16,
The necessary information is exchanged with the store management server 17. The charging unit 151 includes a charging unit price table T1 that defines a charging unit price for the provided service, and various adjustment amount tables T2 to T6 for increasing or decreasing the charging unit price. The price presented to the user 4 at each virtual store is an amount obtained by adjusting the charging unit price by various adjustment amounts.

Basically, the charging unit price table T1 contains the unit price of the content determined by the content vendor 2 which operates each virtual store based on the request of the content holder 3, and the paper size of the sheet commonly defined in the print mall 1. The unit price for each type and size, and the option price such as the frame are recorded. The unit price of the content is referred to when printing is performed by the printer of the user 4. The unit price for each type and size of paper is referred to for cost calculation when the output center 5 performs printing substitution, and usually includes the content unit price. Note that unit prices for paper and foreclosure can also be determined for each virtual store.

In the adjustment amount table T2, adjustment amounts using the date and time at the time of order from each user 4 and the elapsed time therefrom as parameters are recorded in an updatable manner. For example, when the charging process for re-ordering the same content by the same user within a certain period from the time of order is stopped, if the order is made at a certain time (seasonal year such as New Year's card), the display unit price is 10%.
%, A fixed amount regardless of how many sheets are printed during a predetermined period, or a fixed amount regardless of how many sheets are printed until a specific date and time, the first arrival X ( (X is a natural number other than 0). This is used when a fixed amount is printed regardless of how many sheets are printed. The adjustment amount table T3 is
For example, the contents of profit distribution between the manager of the print mall 1 and the virtual store, the output center 5, and the delivery center 6 when printing is performed at the output center are recorded. Although the fee structure is complicatedly adjusted, the user 4 can see only two types of price systems, the content price and the delivery fee. The adjustment amount table T4 also has a property similar to that of T3, and records, for example, a variation of a charge system in the case of set sale (image content and amount). In the adjustment amount table T5, adjustment amounts according to the circumstances of each virtual store are recorded in an updatable manner. Adjustment amount table T
In 6, an adjustment amount according to the circumstances of the entire print mall 1 is renewably recorded. The circumstances of the virtual store include, for example, of the above-described contents recorded in the adjustment amount table T2, the circumstances uniquely determined by the operator of the virtual store and the circumstances of the entire print mall 1 include the adjustment amount table T2. In addition to the circumstances, all services are called 1 bargain sale
For example, the reduction is 0%, a free image corner is provided only for a certain period, or a special plan for billing is performed for the entire mall.

(Print Processing Server) Print Processing Server 16
Is a print status management process for enabling normal printing of an image content ordered by the user 4 (including a value-added service such as a frame), a process of managing the number of normally printed images, and a process for the image content. It manages copyright-related data, manages delivery slips, and monitors the status of each process. For this purpose, the print processing server 16
, The print instruction management unit 161, the print control information generation unit 162, the distribution process monitoring unit 163, the encryption processing unit 1
64, an edit processing unit 165, and a work management DB 166.

The print instruction management section 161 controls the processing of the entire print processing server. Specifically, the print instruction management unit 1
61 outputs a print instruction to the information processing terminal of the output center 5 or the information processing terminal of the user 4 based on instruction data received from input means such as a keyboard or data input from the order processing server 14 or the like; Work management DB 164
To control the recording of data into and reading from data. Also, if necessary, in response to a reprint request from the information processing terminal of the user 4, permission information (ID, code) to be described later is generated.

The print control information generating section 162 generates print control information for enabling image contents to be printed by various printers under the control of the print instruction managing section 161. The print control information is prepared for each image content, and is a content in which the content provider considers the printer model, printing paper, and ink designated to obtain the desired print quality. Other types of printers cannot print image content based on this print control information. The model of the printer for each image content is not necessarily limited to one model, but is preferably specified in such a form that it can be substituted for this model, or otherwise.

The conversion of the image contents into the print control information having such a data structure is performed through the Internet N1. Therefore, it is necessary to maintain the security. The print quality of the image contents depends on the printer model. This is because it may not be maintained at a certain level or more, and it is necessary to avoid such a situation, and that a content provider may specify a print mode. As described above, the form in which the printing is actually performed by the print control information includes the case where the printing is performed using the printer held by the user 4 and the case where the printer provided in the output center 5 is used. For this reason, the print control information generation unit 162 receives from the print instruction management unit 161 an instruction on which print mode to print, and according to the instruction,
Generate print control information having a structure suitable for the target printer.

The print control information generation unit 162 also has a function of making the print control information have a data structure such that the advertisement information is superimposed and printed when the advertisement information requested by the advertiser is superimposed on the image content. Have.

As a general rule, one normal print is guaranteed for the image content due to one generation and transmission of the print control information. Therefore, in the present embodiment, one of the following two modes can be adopted.
In the first mode, the print control information generation unit 162 adds a predetermined control signal to the print control information, so that a print destination information is printed a predetermined number of times, for example, once print control information is transmitted. This is a mode that guarantees printing a predetermined number of times or exceptionally. This can be realized by making the control signal an active signal for maintaining the print control information sent to the destination printer for a predetermined time or a predetermined number of times, for example, an executable program. In the second mode, after the printing of the print control information is completed once on the printer side, the use of the print control information is permitted only on condition that the permission information (ID, code) is present (for example,
(The data for the permission information disappears after the printing is completed.) In this embodiment, a reprint request from the transmission destination of the print control information is received, and when it is determined that the request is valid, the print instruction management unit 161 generates permission information (ID and code) and transmits the permission information (ID and code) to the reprint request source. Will be sent to The user 4 can select which form to adopt.

The distribution status monitoring unit 163 monitors the distribution status of the print control information and the like generated by the print control information generation unit 162 and distributed from the print instruction management unit 161 and the response status from the distribution destination. Specifically, the distribution status monitoring unit 16
Reference numeral 3 denotes the number of times of generation of the print control information generated by the print control information generation unit 162, the number of transmissions to the external printing apparatus by the print instruction management unit 61 via the Internet N1, or both when the permission information is transmitted. The number of times is accumulated in a predetermined memory area. When a print status (for example, normal print end) or a permission information request due to the print control information is received from the distribution destination, the information is accumulated.
Based on this accumulated value, it is possible to know how well the print control information has been printed at the distribution destination. The distribution status monitoring unit 163 has a function of monitoring the elapse of time after the start of transmission of the print control information and the presence / absence of a request for retransmission of the print control information. When there is a request for resending the print control information of the content, an instruction is sent to the print instruction management unit 161 to respond to the resend request. In this case, the number of times of generation and transmission of the accumulated print control information is reduced by one. The time for responding to the retransmission request differs depending on the size of the print control information. That is, the print control information becomes longer as the size of the print control information becomes larger. This is a function based on the fact that a retransmission request is issued within the time that would have taken if distribution was successful, and it is presumed that the distribution destination could not normally receive it.

The encryption processing unit 164 is provided in the print processing server 16 from the viewpoint of further improving security. The cryptographic processing unit 164 cryptographically encapsulates the print instruction and the print control information, and the user 4 who has completed the payment process.
Only the key information is printed using the key information only once (or a plurality of sheets in the period). In addition, from the viewpoint of protecting the copyright of the image content, the encryption processing unit 164 is configured to clarify the copyright-related information by inserting an invisible code into the image content. Specifically, a process of adding copyright-related information of the image content to be distributed to the image content in a form that can be decrypted only by specific software is performed. Furthermore, when the information indicating the printing status or the permission information is transmitted in an encrypted form from the user 4 or the information processing terminal of the output center 5, a function of decrypting the encrypted printing status and transmitting it to the distribution status monitoring unit 163 is provided. Also have.

The edit processing unit 165 is provided in the print processing server 16 to reflect the editing operation of the user on the image content to be distributed. The editing processing unit 165 provides the user with an environment in which the user can edit the image content selected by the user. At this time, a thumbnail of the image content may be used to improve the data transfer speed. Then, an instruction is sent to the print control information generation unit 162 so that the editing result of the user operation is reflected on the image content.

In the work management DB 166, data having the contents shown in FIG. That is, the order date, order number, customer name, image ID, image title, image printing (print size), type of amount, presence / absence of delivery slip printing, and completion of work are recorded. The work status of services related to printing can all be grasped by displaying data recorded in the work management DB 166 on a display (not shown).

(Store Management Server) Store Management Server 17
Provides various functions in the print mall 1 so that the content vendor 2 can open and operate a virtual store. As shown in FIG. An operator management unit 171 that registers information of the vendor 3 in the operator information DB 172, a template HTML file 174 storing a template for creating a store page, and an arbitrary template read from the template HTML file 174. And a store page edit receiving unit 173 for receiving the customization of the store and recording the customized template in the store page DB 175.
Store page using user 4 in template 175
And a store page display control unit 176 for displaying the information on the display of the information processing terminal.

The store management server 17 also includes a store operation management section 177 for managing the upload status of image content and condition information for maintaining the print quality of each image content at a constant level for each virtual store. Access management unit 178 that manages the status of access to content
And a results management unit 179 that manages sales results for each virtual store based on data processed by the payment processing server 15,
An advertisement information management unit 180 that manages advertisement information requested from the advertisement requester server, and analyzes standard information such as a transaction history and an access log of image content in the mall to generate standard marketing information and the like; A standard information analyzer 18 for outputting this to an output means such as a display or a printer.
1 and an atypical information analysis unit 182 that generates atypical marketing information by analyzing the atypical information generated in each virtual store and outputs the generated information to an output unit.

In the template HTML file 174, a template with a low customization level and a template with a high customization level are prepared.
In the former, the page structure and layout are fixed, and a page for a virtual store can be created simply by inputting simple characters and symbols (logo, shop introduction, etc.) and embedding the image content to be provided. Things. The latter allows the operator to freely determine the page configuration and layout. In any case, the virtual shop can be opened simply by uploading the created one to an area accessible by the user 4.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a virtual shop page created in this way. In a predetermined area of the page, a virtual shop name, a list of selectable search functions, and thumbnails of image contents that can be provided are introduced. The information to be introduced is information managed by the store operation management unit 177. The HTML pages are hierarchical. For example, when the user 4 wants to preview a desired image content, the user clicks a thumbnail of the image content with a pointing device of his / her own information processing terminal.
Thereby, the preview screen (page) as shown in FIG.
Is displayed on the display of the information processing terminal. FIG. 12 is an enlarged view of a thumbnail, an image name, a store name, a memo for image introduction, and an article for maintaining the quality of the image content after printing at the quality desired by the content holder 3 or the content vendor 2. Introduces printer models, printing paper quality, and options.

<Operation Form> Next, an operation form of the print molding 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a procedure for distributing image contents from a virtual store, FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a procedure for a user 4 to search for and select a desired image content, and FIG. 15 is a case where layout processing for printing is performed. FIG.

Referring to FIG. 13, first, print molding 1
To post a sample of image content (Step S1)
01). The posting of the sample is performed for each virtual store. Therefore, the print mall 1 prepares a TOP page in which an arbitrary one can be narrowed down from all the virtual stores.

Next, the image content selected by the user 4 is specified (step S102). The specification of the image content is performed as follows. That is, user 4
Accesses the TOP page of the print mall 1 by inputting a URL from its own information processing terminal connected to the Internet, as shown in FIG. 14 (P101). A search area for narrowing down desired image contents is formed on the TOP page. When searching by store category (movie store / animation store / ...) or by store keyword (store name), the corresponding store list screen is displayed on the display of the information processing terminal of the user 4. Is performed (P102). When the user 4 finds a virtual store that handles the target image content, the virtual store is selected from the store list screen. Thereby, the TOP page of the store is displayed (P104). The TOP page of the store is shown in FIG.
It is something like When the user 4 searches by image category, a subcategory list of the lower layer is displayed (P103), and when a specific subcategory is selected, a thumbnail of the image content is displayed (P10).
5). When the user 4 searches using the image keyword, the thumbnail is immediately displayed. The user 4 can search for the application (poster print / calendar print / ...) from the TOP page. In any case, the thumbnail is displayed as in the case of the image keyword search (P10).
6, P107), only images that can be used as posters are displayed for poster printing, and only images that can be used as calendars are displayed for calendar printing. Thereafter, when the user 4 wants to preview, a preview screen on which an enlarged image of a thumbnail, recommended printing supplies (such as a printer), a price, and the like are displayed is displayed (P108). The preview screen is, for example, as shown in FIG. If there is a keep list already specified for the user 4, the keep list is displayed (P109). When ordering image contents from the preview screen, or when ordering from the keep list being displayed, the member is authenticated (P110), and if NG, the process proceeds to the member registration process. If authenticated (OK), it is added to the keep list (P111).

When the image content in the keep list is specified, the image content is stored in the content DB 19.
And input (step S103). Here, when the user 4 performs a layout process for printing, the user 4 can perform the layout process according to the procedure of FIG. The layout process is a process that is started as needed when the user 4 adds a comment to a specific area of the image content, for example. In this process, the image editor can be started from the displayed keep list, preview screen, and other pages on which thumbnails are displayed (P201). The image editor may be prepared on the virtual shop side and automatically started, or may be prepared on the information processing terminal side of the user 4 and manually started by the user 4. The image content corresponding to the thumbnail is taken into this image editor (P202), one desired image is selected, and then the printing paper, the number thereof, the output location of the image content or the printer model are selected (P20).
3). When requesting the output center 5 to print the image content, the user directly selects either the print / simple layout image setting (P204) and decides whether to purchase the image content. On the other hand, when printing is performed by the printer of the user 4, one of the print / simple layout setting / free layout setting is selected as it is (P2
05, P206), after performing test printing as necessary (P207), it is determined whether or not to purchase the image content. In either case, membership is required to purchase. If the member has not been registered at that time, the process proceeds to the member registration process (in the case of NG), and if the authentication is OK, the process proceeds to the settlement method selection process. If the user has already logged in, the member authentication is bypassed.

The settlement method selection process is performed according to the procedure shown in FIG. As a result of the member authentication, even if it is NG, the member registration is performed (P209), and the settlement method can be selected by confirming the registered contents (P210).
When the user 4 selects the mode of printing with the printer at hand, the payment amount is determined by the settlement processing server 15. When the user 4 requests the output center 5 to perform a printing proxy and selects an option (frame mounting or the like) (P301), the billing amount is determined in consideration of the option. Thereafter, the user 4 selects a payment method for settlement. When requesting the output center 5 for the printing agency, the payment means can select any of credit, bank transfer, advance payment, cash on delivery, and receipt / payment of the printing medium by the convenience store (P303). When the payment means is selected, an order confirmation notification is immediately sent. In particular,
A message such as “OK” is displayed on the display of the information processing terminal of the user 4. The payment means when the user 4 selects printing with the printer at hand is either credit or prepaid (P305). When the payment means is selected, a print instruction screen, for example, a message "Please print" is displayed on the display of the information processing terminal of the user 4 (P307).

After the display by P303 or P30
When the user 4 starts printing based on the display of 7,
Generate print control information for sale (step S10)
4). When the advertisement information is superimposed and printed, at this point, print control information that enables superimposed printing is generated. When printing a large-sized advertisement medium such as an advertisement poster, print control information for that is generated. The same applies to the case of cryptographic encapsulation. Thereafter, transmission of print control information for distribution is started (step S105). When the transmission is started, the monitoring of the distribution status is started in synchronization with the transmission (step S106). Specifically, for each image content (or for each size of the corresponding print control information)
It is monitored whether or not there is an order with the same contents within the predetermined time (step S107). If there is an order, it is presumed that the print control information has not normally arrived at the user 4 side for some reason.
The processing after step 105 is repeated (step S107: YE
S). If there is no order of the same content, it is considered that the print control information has been normally received, and the monitoring of the distribution status of the image content is finished (step S107: NO, S
108), and record the distribution status thus far (step S)
109).

When all the print control information reaches the information processing terminal of the user 4 normally, a print screen is displayed on the display and the print control information is output to the printer. When the print control information is encrypted, the key information sent from the virtual store of the print mall 1 is read in advance upon the arrival of the print control information, and the print control information is restored. Is displayed and output to the printer. In this way, user 4
A print medium on which desired image content is printed can be obtained through the handheld printer. If the control signal for one-time printing is added to the print control information, the data structure of the print control information changes at the time when the print medium is normally printed, so that subsequent printing cannot be performed. . The same applies to a case where printing of only a predetermined number of sheets is permitted. When a reprint request is made, the data structure is restored by requesting permission information and receiving it. The fact that the permission information has been transferred is also recorded as information indicating the distribution status.

In the print mall 1, the sales results are totaled for each fixed period, and how many image contents are sold and how many are printed are determined by how many times the print control information is generated and transmitted. Or, how many times the permission information has been transmitted can be specified. These numbers can be easily obtained from the distribution status recorded as described above. Therefore, not only the virtual store that is the content vendor 2 but also the content holder 3 that has created the image content can objectively receive the profit to be received.

The present embodiment is as described above. However, the print processing server 1 transmits the print control information to the destination printer.
6 (for example, a printer driver) or firmware for performing bidirectional communication with the print control information generation unit 16 (print instruction management unit 161).
Every time the normal printing based on the print control information transmitted from the printer 2 is completed, the printer driver or firmware of the printer sends data indicating the completion of the printing to the print processing server 16, thereby specifying the number of normal printing. You may do so. In this case, preferably, the data indicating the end of the normal printing is encrypted so that the user 4 cannot be involved. Further, in the present embodiment, the image content has been described as an example of a literary work, but the present invention can be applied to any printable literary work regardless of its type, such as document data and score data. Can be.

[0063]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, it is possible to quantify how well a work is printed by objective numerical data or the like. Can identify the benefits that they should receive. Since it is assured that the copyrighted work is normally printed for the consumer, it is possible to pay the price and prevent a situation in which the copyrighted work cannot be printed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a concept of an operation mode of a print mall to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is an overall configuration diagram of a print mall according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of a member management server according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the authoring server according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of a search processing server according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing processing contents of a keep list processing unit.

FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram of a settlement processing server according to the embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a functional block diagram of a print processing server according to the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of contents of a work management DB provided in the print processing server.

FIG. 10 is a functional block diagram of a store management server according to the embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a layout example of a top page of a virtual store.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a preview screen.

FIG. 13 is a processing procedure diagram of an image content distribution service in a print mall.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a procedure in which a user searches for and selects a desired image content.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of a procedure when performing a layout process for printing.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a procedure from selection of a settlement method to actual printing.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Print mall 2 Content vendor which operates virtual store 3 Content holder which produces content 4 User who purchases content 5 Output center which performs printing agency 6 Delivery center which distributes print media 7 Merchandise vendor which handles goods such as amount 11 Member management server 12 Authoring server 13 Search processing server 14 Order processing server 15 Payment processing server 16 Print processing server 17 Store management server 18 Content management server 19 Content DB

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G06F 17/60 512 G06F 17/60 512 ZEC ZEC

Claims (20)

[Claims] An input unit for inputting a work in an electronic file, a print control information generating unit for generating print control information for enabling the input work to be printed by an external printing apparatus, Communication means for sending the print control information to the external printing device via a communication path, and information indicating a printing status of the external printing device resulting from sending the print control information in a predetermined memory area. A print status management means for specifying the number of times of normal printing of the work based on the recording information in the memory area. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the external printing apparatus is a printing apparatus of a consumer who performs printing in the printing mode by itself, or a printing apparatus of an agency that performs printing in the printing mode on behalf of the consumer. The print control information generating unit generates the print control information so that the print control information can be decoded by a specific external printing device determined in response to a request from the consumer. A print management system as described. 3. The print control information generating means generates print control information for controlling the external printing apparatus such that advertisement information is superimposed on the work and printed. The print management system according to claim 2. 4. The print control information generating means generates print control information for controlling the external printing device so that the advertisement medium having the copyright property is printed. The print management system according to claim 2. 5. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a unit for adding information on a copyright of the work to the print control information in a form readable only by specific software. Print management system. 6. A printing apparatus further comprising: means for encrypting and encapsulating the print control information; and means for issuing key information for restoring the encrypted and encapsulated print control information under predetermined conditions, wherein the key information is The print management system according to claim 2, wherein the print management system is configured to be sent to a consumer. 7. The external printing apparatus further comprises means for enabling the work to be edited from an external system, wherein the print control information generating means displays a print mode on which the content edited by the external system is reflected on the external printing apparatus. The print management system according to claim 1, wherein the print management information is configured to be generated. 8. A monitoring means for monitoring the passage of time after the start of transmission of the print control information and the presence / absence of a request for retransmission of the print control information. The print management system according to claim 1, wherein the print management system is configured to respond to the retransmission request only when the retransmission request is made. 9. The print information generating unit is configured to add a predetermined control signal to the print control information to guarantee a predetermined number of times of printing by the external printing apparatus. Item 7. The print management system according to Item 1. 10. The print management system according to claim 9, wherein the control signal is an active signal for maintaining a data structure of the print control information in the external printing apparatus for a predetermined time. 11. The print management according to claim 9, wherein the control signal is an active signal for maintaining a data structure of the print control information in the external printing apparatus for a predetermined number of times of printing. system. 12. The printing status management means may record the number of times of generation of the printing control information and / or the number of times of sending printing control information to an external printing apparatus in the memory area as information representing the printing status. The print management system according to claim 1, wherein: 13. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit and the external printing device have a function of performing bidirectional communication with a partner. The print management system according to claim 1, wherein information representing a situation is received from the external printing apparatus via the communication unit, and the received information is recorded in the memory area. 14. The print management system according to claim 13, wherein said print status management means receives said information each time printing is normally completed by an external printing apparatus. 15. The print management system according to claim 13, wherein information sent from said external printing device to said communication means is encrypted information. 16. The printing control information according to claim 13, wherein the printing control information has a structure in which use of the printing control information is permitted only after completion of one printing, only on condition that predetermined permission information is present. 15. The print management system according to item 15. 17. The print management system according to claim 16, further comprising permission information generating means for transmitting the permission information to a requested external printing device. 18. A method executed by a computer having a communication means for communicating with an external printing apparatus, the method comprising the steps of: inputting a work in an electronic file; and using the input electronic file. Generating print control information for enabling the copyrighted work to be printed in a predetermined print form by the external printing device, and transmitting the generated print control information to the external printing device via a communication path. And recording information indicating a printing status of the external printing device resulting from the transmission of the print control information in a predetermined memory area, and normal printing of the work based on the recording information in the memory area. A print management method for a copyrighted work, characterized by estimating the number of times. 19. A computer, wherein the computer is connected to a wide area network, a plurality of samples of the work are presented to a consumer, and any of the works is specified by a request from the consumer. The print management method according to claim 18, wherein: 20. A computer provided with a communication means for communicating with an external printing apparatus, a process of inputting a copyrighted work in an electronic file, and printing the copyrighted work using an input electronic file in a predetermined manner. Generating print control information for enabling printing in a form, transmitting the generated print control information to an external printing device via a communication path, and transmitting the print control information to the external printing device due to the transmission of the print control information. A computer-readable program recorded with a program for executing a process of recording information representing a printing situation in a predetermined memory area, and a process of estimating a normal number of times of printing of the work based on the recorded information in the memory area; Possible recording medium.