JP2003162400A - Image output device management system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable a remote maintenance considering the constitution of every image output device and the error history of the image output device until the present time when executing remote maintenance of the image output device for photograph development and printing service shops or the like. <P>SOLUTION: In an image output device management system where a monitoring center 1 and an image output device 2 are connected via a network 3 and the monitoring center 1 manages the image output device 2, the image output device 2 has a memory to memorize error log information, and the monitoring center 1 changes, modifies, or upgrades a control software stored in the image output device 2 based on the error log information obtained from the image output device 2. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image output device management system for performing remote maintenance of an image output device installed in a photo DP store, a medical institution, a printing place or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Photo DP stores, medical institutions, printing houses, etc.
An image output device is installed. For example, the image output device is a photo print output device, a so-called photo DP shop device, a device that edits or records an image in relation to creation of a printed matter, and a medical diagnostic image on a monitor or a hard copy. It is a device for displaying, recording, and outputting.

An image output device installed in a photo DP store will be described below as a typical example. The use of this image output device differs for each user, and the difference in local weather conditions and the quality of water used. The setting of the image output device is often different depending on the situation.

Further, there is a difference in order tendency between the owner and the client at the photo DP store, and a difference between old and new of each unit of the photo DP store and a version of an application used.

[0005]

Therefore, the image output device in the photo DP store is a complicated task because maintenance needs to reflect the circumstances of each user.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and when performing remote maintenance of an image output device such as a photo DP shop, the configuration of each image output device and the present image output device have been up to now. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image output device management system capable of executing remote maintenance in consideration of error history and the like.

[0007]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and to achieve the object, the present invention has the following constitution.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an image output device management system in which a monitoring center and an image output device are connected via a network, and the image output device is managed by the monitoring center. The device has a memory for storing error log information, the monitoring center, based on the error log information obtained from the image output device,
An image output device management system, characterized in that control software in the image output device is changed, modified, or upgraded. ].

According to the first aspect of the invention, the monitoring center executes the remote maintenance by changing, modifying, or upgrading the control software in the image output device based on the error log information. You can

According to a second aspect of the present invention, "the image output device transmits the error log information in response to a request from the monitoring center to periodically transmit the error log information. Image output device management system. ].

According to the second aspect of the present invention, for example, the error log information is periodically obtained from a plurality of image output devices at the same time to perform remote maintenance, so that the cause and location of the error can be determined. This can be known in advance, and more accurate remote maintenance can be efficiently performed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, "the image output device transmits the error log information in response to a request from the monitoring center to transmit the error log information as needed. Image output device management system. ].

According to the third aspect of the present invention, for example, when it becomes necessary to urgently perform remote maintenance from the error log information from another image output device, the error log information is issued as necessary. Therefore, remote maintenance can be performed more efficiently.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the image output device management system according to the first aspect, wherein the image output device periodically transmits error log information to the monitoring center. ].

According to the invention described in claim 4, error log information can be periodically transmitted to the monitoring center depending on the circumstances of the image output device side, and remote maintenance can be reliably executed.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the image output apparatus management system according to the first aspect, wherein the image output apparatus transmits error log information to the monitoring center as needed. ].

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, if a large amount of print processing is expected in a short time, if necessary due to the circumstances of the image output device side, and if an error occurs, it is necessary to do so. , It is possible to report error log information to the monitoring center in advance and execute remote maintenance.

The invention according to claim 6 is that "the image output device transmits the error log information to the monitoring center at a timing in accordance with accumulated content data of the error log information. Device management system. ].

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, the error log information is transmitted to the monitoring center at a timing according to the content accumulation data of the error log information on the image output device side, and when a serious error occurs, Can promptly report error log information to the monitoring center and execute remote maintenance.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of an image output device management system of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

The image output device management system according to this embodiment will be described with respect to an image output device installed in a photo DP store, but it can be similarly applied to an image output device installed in a medical institution, a printing place or the like. However, the use of this image output device varies depending on each user or each device, and the image output device is often set differently due to the difference in weather conditions in the area where the image output device is installed.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image output device management system.

In the image output device management system of this embodiment, the monitoring center 1 and the plurality of image output devices 2 are connected via the network 3, and the monitoring center 1 manages the plurality of image output devices 2. As the network 3, for example, a communication network such as the Internet or an analog public line is used.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the monitoring center and the image output device.

The image output device 2 of this embodiment is provided with a control unit 20 for controlling the whole. The control unit 20 controls operations such as the image input unit 21, the exposure unit 22, and the print unit 23.

The image input unit 21 reads, for example, a developed negative film image, the exposure unit 22 exposes the read image on photographic paper, and the print unit 23 develops the image-exposed photographic paper. To create a print.

The control unit 20 includes a CPU 20a and a memory 20b, and software is installed in the memory 20b. The CPU 20a executes the software to perform a desired operation by control. Further, the control unit 20 stores the error history generated inside the image output device 2 in the internal memory 20b, and the stored information is referred to as "error log information".

Here, the log describes information indicating the operating state of the image output device in terms of time and code, and is sequentially added, deleted, and updated.

A control unit (CP) and a film scanner unit (F which constitutes the image input unit 21 are described below.
The example of the log produced | generated between S) is shown.

2000/05/06 00: 10: 20.00 CP-FS: NT00000 No error in CP-FS communication 2000/05/06 00: 10: 25.00 CP-FS: WA00001 Code in CP-FS communication Warning of 00001 2000/05/06 00: 10: 30.00 CP-FS: SE00001 Serious error of code 00001 in communication between CP and FS 2000/05/06 00: 10: 30.30 FS: SE00007 Critical in FS unit Error code 00007 Here, the first term indicates the date, and the second term indicates the time. (What time, how many minutes, how many seconds) Next, the communication relation is shown, and CP-FS shows the data transmission from the control unit to the film scanner unit. After the colon, it shows the status of the control unit and film scanner unit such as NT (no trouble), WA (warning), ER (error), SE (serious error), and the last five digits indicate the location and contents. .

For example, NT00000 has no problem,
NT00001 is shown as being scanned, NT00002 is being conveyed, etc., WA00001 has a minor problem during scanning, and ER00001 is being stopped due to a serious problem such as a jam. SE00001 can be defined such that a signal input in the scan state cannot be obtained. Depending on the generation code, it is also possible to detect the failure of the image output device.

The image input unit 21 includes a CPU 21a.
And a memory 21b, and the exposure unit 22 includes a C
The PU 22a and the memory 22b are provided, and the print unit 23 is provided with the CPU 23a and the memory 23b. Software is installed in each of the memories 21b, 22b, and 23b, and the CPU 21a,
22a and 23a execute software to perform a desired operation under control.

In this embodiment, the image input unit 2
1, the exposure unit 22 and the print unit 23 each include a CPU and a memory.
And a CPU provided in the control unit 20 without a memory
It may be controlled by software for overall control by the memory 20a and the memory 20b.

The monitoring center 1 of this embodiment has a control unit 10. The control unit 10 includes a CPU 1
0a and the memory 10b are controlled by the software for overall control.

The control unit 10 of the monitoring center 1 and the control unit 20 of the image output device 2 are provided with communication means 10c and 20c for connecting to the network 3, and the monitoring center 1 is connected using the communication means 10c and 20c. And the image output device 2 are communicated.

The image output device 2 has a memory 20b for storing error log information, and the monitoring center 1 detects a failure of the image output device 2 based on the error log information obtained from the image output device 2 by communication. When making a determination and performing remote maintenance, remote maintenance can be performed in consideration of the configuration of each image output device 2, the error history of the image output device 2 up to the present time, and the like.

The monitoring center 1 changes, corrects, or upgrades the control software in the image output apparatus 1 based on the error log information, and executes remote maintenance.

The image output device 2 transmits the error log information in response to a request from the monitoring center 1 for periodical transmission, and periodically obtains the error log information from the circumstances of the monitoring center side to execute remote maintenance. . Due to the circumstances on the monitoring center side, error log information is periodically obtained, for example, from a plurality of image output devices 2 at the same time, so that an error is likely to occur and predetermined software does not work well together. Further, under certain conditions, it is possible to understand a case where the operation of a certain device is disordered and the isomorphism becomes a problem. As a result, even when the software is upgraded, compatibility that causes trouble can be avoided, and more accurate remote maintenance can be efficiently executed.

Further, the image output device 2 can be sent in response to a request from the monitoring center 1 to send error log information as needed, and the error can be promptly made as needed depending on the circumstances of the monitoring center 1. Obtain log information and perform remote maintenance. If necessary depending on the circumstances of the monitoring center 1 side, for example, when performing remote maintenance from error log information from another image output device 2,
By obtaining the error log information from the image output device 2, the remote maintenance can be executed more efficiently. Since the software forming the image output device 2 and the special operation tendency due to the combination of the devices can be grasped, a preferable type can be selected even when the device unit is replaced for improving the function.

Further, the image output apparatus 2 may periodically send the error log information to the monitoring center 1 without request from the monitoring center 1, and the image output apparatus 2 may periodically send the error log information. Then, the error log information can be transmitted to the monitoring center 1, and the monitoring center 1 can perform remote maintenance.

Further, the image output device 2 may transmit the error log information to the monitoring center 1 as needed without depending on the request from the monitoring center 1. For example, when a large amount of print processing is expected in a short time, and when an error occurs, it is possible to report error log information to the monitoring center 1 in advance and perform remote maintenance.

Further, the image output device 2 is arranged so that the monitoring center 1 can operate at a timing corresponding to the content accumulated data of the error log information.
The error log information can be promptly reported to the monitoring center 1 and remote maintenance can be executed when a serious error occurs.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing a regular error log inspection operation.

In step a1, the monitoring center 1
Periodically sends a message requesting error log information to the image output device 2. In step a2, the image output device 2 sends the error log information to the network 3
To the monitoring center 1, and the monitoring center 1 receives the error log information.

At step a3, the monitoring center 1 analyzes the error log information, and at step a4, it is judged from the error log information whether or not the error is a level required to upgrade the software version, and the error is found. In that case, the process proceeds to step a5.

At step a5, a judgment routine is executed based on the analysis result of the error log information as to whether or not the current software needs to be replaced. At step a6, it is judged whether the replacement or switching is necessary. If replacement or switching is required, the optimum software is presented in step a7, the cost is recorded in step a8, the version is selected (step a9), the version is upgraded to the optimum software, and the error log is displayed. Information is accumulated (step a10).

In step a4, if no error is found, the process proceeds to step a10 and ends.

If it is unknown at step a6 whether replacement or switching is necessary, the monitoring center 1 displays the error log information found. The operator of the monitoring center 1 sees the display and determines the predetermined image output device 2
To know that an error has occurred (step a1
1). The operator informs the maintenance department of the content of the error, and the maintenance department selects the optimum software, repairs the image output device 2 (step a12), and shifts to step a10 to make an error. Log information is accumulated.

In this way, the monitoring center 1 regularly collects error log information, and as a result, the monitoring center 1
The error history of the image output device 2 can be known.

In this embodiment, since the error log information of the image output device 2 is known, it is possible to identify the faulty part in consideration of the errors that have occurred in the image output device 2 so far. is there. Further, when similar errors occur frequently, it is possible that the previous repair was not performed well, and it is possible to determine that the repair method needs to be reviewed.

Since the image output device 2 is equipped with different environments and different parts and applications depending on each installation place and user, different abnormalities are exhibited individually. Depending on the photo DP store, it is possible that non-genuine processing agents are used or that print papers from different manufacturers are used, resulting in different symptoms. By grasping this symptom in the monitoring center 1, the problem can be solved by changing or correcting a part of the current parts, application software or sequence software, or switching to a new version of software.

The actual cause is sought based on the status of the error log information and its history, and the software is changed to the optimum software after grasping the status. This software can be changed, modified, switched, or upgraded by remote control.

As a modified example, it is also preferable that a computer, not a human being, requests the matter to be dealt with based on the analysis result of the error log information.

In the embodiment, the monitoring center 1 periodically adopts a configuration for requesting the error log information from the image output device 2. However, the image output device 2 itself does not wait for the request from the monitoring center 1. The error log information may be voluntarily and periodically transmitted to the monitoring center 1.

It is also preferable that the image output device 2 reports the occurrence of an error to the monitoring center 1 at an arbitrary timing. For example, when the image output device 2 itself detects a serious error, it is desirable to promptly report.

First, the monitoring center 1 can present the optimum software conversion from the error log information, or a plurality of them can be presented together with the cost. Monitoring center 1
An eclectic system in which the operator or the user of the image output device 2 makes a final decision is also possible.

[0057]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the monitoring center determines the occurrence of a failure of the image output device based on the error log information, and thus the image output device of a photo DP shop or the like. When performing remote maintenance of
Remote maintenance can be performed by changing, modifying, or upgrading the control software in the image output device at the monitoring center in consideration of the configuration of each image output device and the error history of the image output device up to the present. Can be executed.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, for example, the cause and location of an error are easily known in advance by periodically obtaining error log information from a plurality of image output devices and performing remote maintenance. Therefore, more accurate remote maintenance can be efficiently performed.

According to the third aspect of the invention, for example, when it is necessary to urgently perform remote maintenance from error log information from another image output device, the error log information is obtained as necessary. Thus, remote maintenance can be executed more efficiently.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the error log information can be periodically transmitted to the monitoring center depending on the circumstances of the image output apparatus side, and the remote maintenance can be surely executed.

According to the invention described in claim 5, when a large amount of print processing is expected, for example, in a short time when there is a need for an error due to the circumstances of the image output apparatus side, if an error occurs, etc. Error log information can be reported to the monitoring center and remote maintenance can be executed.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, the error log information is transmitted to the monitoring center at a timing according to the content accumulated data of the error log information on the image output device side, and when a serious error occurs, promptly The error log information can be reported to the monitoring center and remote maintenance can be executed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image output device management system.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a monitoring center and an image output device.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a periodical inspection operation of error log information.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 monitoring center 2 Image output device 3 network 20 control unit 21 Image input unit 22 Exposure unit 23 Print unit

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Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An image output device management system in which a monitoring center and an image output device are connected via a network, and the monitoring center manages the image output device, wherein the image output device stores error log information. An image output device management system having a memory, wherein the monitoring center changes, modifies, or upgrades the control software in the image output device based on error log information obtained from the image output device. system. 2. The image output device management system according to claim 1, wherein the image output device transmits the error log information in response to a request from the monitoring center to periodically transmit the error log information. 3. The image output apparatus management system according to claim 1, wherein the image output apparatus transmits the error log information in response to a request from the monitoring center to transmit error log information as needed. 4. The image output device management system according to claim 1, wherein the image output device periodically transmits error log information to the monitoring center. 5. The image output device management system according to claim 1, wherein the image output device transmits error log information to the monitoring center when necessary. 6. The image output apparatus management system according to claim 1, wherein the image output apparatus transmits the error log information to the monitoring center at a timing corresponding to the accumulated content data of the error log information.