JP2004302906A - Printing system, and control method and program therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printing system to be managed by a management server which never puts the management server side at a serious disadvantage even if the connection with the management server is interrupted, and a control method and program therefor. <P>SOLUTION: In a photographic studio system 10, when a print server 20 succeeds the connection with the management server 70 before the count value of counting the frequency of printing operations of printers 40 and 50 reaches a predetermined time, the count value is set to zero. Therefore, printing operation of the printers 40 and 50 is not restricted. However, if the connection of the print server 20 with the management server 70 remains interrupted, the count value reaches the predetermined value. Therefore, the printing operation of the printers 40 and 50 are restricted. Accordingly, since the printers 40 and 50 cannot be made to perform printing operation over a long period if the connection with the management server 70 remains interrupted in the photographic studio system 10, the management server side never incurs a serious disadvantage. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a printing system capable of transmitting a printer usage status to a management server that manages the usage status of the printer via an electric communication line, a control method therefor, and a program therefor.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a print system, a print server that transmits a printer usage status to a management server that manages the usage status of a printer through a network and receives a print job from a client computer is connected to the print server, and printing is performed by the print server. A printer having two printers to which job processing is assigned is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). The print system is installed in a plurality of photo studios, and the management server receives the usage status of the printer from the print server of the print system installed in the photo studio for each photo studio, and receives the usage status. Set the billing amount according to and charge.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2003-44255 A (FIG. 2)
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, in such a print system, it is premised that the print server transmits the usage status of the printer to the management server. Then, based on this premise, the management server sets and charges a billing amount according to the usage status of the printer to each photo studio. However, for some reason, the printer of the print system may continue to operate without transmitting the use status of the printer from the print system to the management server. In such a case, since the management server cannot set a charge for the photo studio, the operator of the management server suffers a great disadvantage. In some cases, the photographer (user) of the photo studio may not notice that the usage status of the printer has not been transmitted from the print system to the management server.
[0005]
The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and in a print system managed by a management server, a print system in which the management server does not suffer a great disadvantage even if the connection with the management server is interrupted, Another object is to provide a control method and a program therefor. Another object of the present invention is to provide a print system, a control method thereof, and a program thereof, in which a user can easily notice that a problem has occurred in the system when the connection with the management server is interrupted.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems and Their Functions and Effects]
The printing system, its control method, and its program of the present invention employ the following means in order to achieve at least one of the above objects.
[0007]
The print system according to the present invention is capable of transmitting the use state of the printer to a management server that manages the use state of the printer through an electric communication line,
Counting means for counting the number of printing operations of the printer,
Count value determining means for determining whether the count value counted by the counting means has reached a predetermined value,
A print operation restricting unit that restricts a printing operation of the printer when the count value is determined to have reached a predetermined value by the count value determining unit;
Connection determination means for determining whether or not the connection with the management server was successful;
Count value setting means for setting the count value to any value before reaching the predetermined value when it is determined that the connection with the management server is successful by the connection determining means;
It is provided with.
[0008]
In this printing system, the number of printing operations of the printer is counted, and when the counted value reaches a predetermined value, the printing operation of the printer is limited. Is set to that value. In other words, if the connection with the management server succeeds before the count value of the number of printing operations of the printer reaches the predetermined value, the count value is set to any value before reaching the predetermined value. The operation is not limited, but if the connection with the management server is interrupted, the count value reaches a predetermined value, and the printing operation of the printer is limited. As described above, since the printer cannot perform the printing operation for a long time while the connection with the management server is interrupted, the management server does not suffer a great disadvantage. In addition, since the printing operation of the printer is restricted, the user tends to notice that some trouble has occurred in the system.
[0009]
The printing system of the present invention includes an error output unit that outputs a printing error when the count value determination unit determines that the count value has reached a predetermined value instead of or in addition to the print operation restriction unit. You may. In this case, a print error is output if the connection with the management server is interrupted, and the user is expected to make a connection between the system and the management server in response to the print error. You will not suffer. Further, the output of the print error makes it easy for the user to notice that some trouble has occurred in the system. Note that, in addition to outputting a print error, a message prompting connection with the management server may be output.
[0010]
In the print system of the present invention, the count value setting means may set the count value to zero when the connection determination means determines that the connection with the management server has been successful. This allows the printer to perform the printing operation until the number of times of the printing operation reaches the predetermined value again after the connection with the management server succeeds.
[0011]
The print system of the present invention may include an automatic connection trial unit that attempts to connect to the management server via the telecommunication line at system startup and at predetermined time intervals after system startup. In this case, since the connection with the management server is automatically attempted, the user does not need to perform the connection operation between the print system and the management server by himself. In the print system of the present invention employing this aspect, the count value determination unit determines whether the count value has reached the predetermined value set based on an upper limit number of sheets that can be printed by the printer within the predetermined time. May be determined. Since the upper limit number of sheets that can be printed by the printer within a predetermined time is determined empirically or by the capability of the printer, it does not mean that the count value has reached the predetermined value set based on the upper limit number of sheets even after the predetermined time has elapsed. It can be considered that it was not connected to the management server. Alternatively, the count value determining means may determine whether or not the count value has reached the predetermined value set based on an upper limit number of sheets that can be printed by the user within the predetermined time. Since the upper limit number of sheets that can be printed by the user within the predetermined time can be estimated from the past use results of the user and the like, the fact that the count value has reached the predetermined value set based on the upper limit number of sheets does not mean that the predetermined time has elapsed. It can be considered that it was not connected to the management server. Alternatively, a predetermined time updating unit that updates the predetermined time according to the frequency of printing by the printer by the user may be provided.For example, if the frequency of printing by the user is low, the predetermined time is set longer, If the frequency is high, the predetermined time may be set shorter. This makes it possible to restrict the printing operation of the printer at an appropriate timing in accordance with the frequency with which the user prints after the connection with the management server is interrupted.
[0012]
In the print system of the present invention, the connection determination unit may determine that the connection with the management server has been successful when the use status of the printer has been successfully transmitted to the management server via the telecommunication line. . In this way, it is possible to prevent the printing operation of the printer from being restricted after the management server receives the usage status of the printer and manages the printing system.
[0013]
The print system of the present invention may include a manual connection attempt unit that attempts to connect to the management server via the telecommunication line in response to a command issued at an arbitrary timing from a user. This allows the user to connect the print system to the management server at an arbitrary timing so that the printing operation of the printer is not restricted.
[0014]
A print system according to the present invention is a print system including a printer that prints on a print medium and a print server that can transmit the use state of the printer to a management server that manages the use state of the printer via an electric communication line. ,
The printer is
Counting means for counting the number of printing operations for each printing operation;
Count value determining means for determining whether the count value counted by the counting means has reached a predetermined value,
A print operation restricting unit that restricts a printing operation of the printer when the count value is determined to have reached a predetermined value by the count value determining unit;
With
The print server,
Connection determination means for determining whether or not the connection with the management server was successful;
When the connection determining unit determines that the connection with the management server is successful, a command to output a command to the printer so that the count value of the counting unit is set to any value before reaching the predetermined value. Output means and
May be provided.
[0015]
In this printing system, if the connection with the management server succeeds before the count value of the number of printing operations of the printer reaches the predetermined value, the count value is set to any value before reaching the predetermined value. The printing operation of the printer is not limited, but if the connection with the management server is interrupted, the count value reaches a predetermined value, and the printing operation of the printer is limited. As described above, since the printer cannot perform the printing operation for a long time while the connection with the management server is interrupted, the management server does not suffer a great disadvantage. In addition, since the printing operation of the printer is restricted, the user tends to notice that some trouble has occurred in the system.
[0016]
In the printing system, the printer may include an error output unit that outputs a printing error when the count value determination unit determines that the count value has reached a predetermined value, instead of or in addition to the print operation restriction unit. You may have. Further, the print server may include an automatic connection attempt unit that attempts to connect to the management server via the telecommunication line at system startup and at predetermined time intervals after system startup. At this time, the predetermined value may be set based on an upper limit number of sheets that the printer can print within the predetermined time, or may be set based on an upper limit number of sheets that the user can print within the predetermined time. Alternatively, the predetermined time may be updated in accordance with the frequency with which the user prints on the printer. Further, the print server may include a manual connection attempt unit that attempts to connect to the management server via the telecommunication line in response to a command issued at an arbitrary timing from a user. Furthermore, the command output unit provided in the print server, when the connection determination unit determines that the connection with the management server is successful, instructs the printer to set the count value of the counting unit to zero. May be output, and the connection determination unit provided in the print server, when the use status of the printer is successfully transmitted to the management server through the telecommunication line, the connection with the management server succeeds. It may be determined that it has been done.
[0017]
A print system control method according to the present invention is a method for controlling, by one or a plurality of computers, a print system capable of transmitting the use state of a printer to a management server that manages the use state of the printer through an electric communication line.
(A) a counting step in which the computer counts the number of printing operations of the printer;
(B) a count value determining step in which the computer determines whether or not the count value counted in the counting step has reached a predetermined value;
(C) an operation limiting step in which the computer restricts a printing operation of the printer when it is determined in the count value determining step that the count value has reached a predetermined value;
(D) a connection determination step in which the computer determines whether connection to the management server has been successful;
(E) a counting value setting step in which the computer sets the counting value to any value before reaching the predetermined value when it is determined in the connection determining step that the connection with the management server is successful;
Is included.
[0018]
In this control method, if the connection with the management server succeeds before the count value of the number of printing operations of the printer reaches the predetermined value, the count value is set to any value before reaching the predetermined value. The printing operation of the printer is not limited, but if the connection with the management server is interrupted, the count value reaches a predetermined value, and the printing operation of the printer is limited. As described above, since the printer cannot perform the printing operation for a long time while the connection with the management server is interrupted, the management server does not suffer a great disadvantage. In addition, since the printing operation of the printer is restricted, the user tends to notice that some trouble has occurred in the system.
[0019]
Note that the print system in this print system control method may include various components provided in the print system described above before describing this control method. Before describing the method, the method may include steps for realizing the functions of the printing system described above.
[0020]
Further, the present invention may be a program for causing one or a plurality of computers to realize each step of the above-described print system control method. The program may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium (for example, a hard disk, a ROM, an FD, a CD, a DVD, or the like), or may be transmitted from a computer via a transmission medium (a communication network such as the Internet or a LAN). It may be distributed to another computer, or transmitted and received in any other form. If this program is executed by one computer or a plurality of computers execute each step in a shared manner, the same effects as those of the above-described print system control method can be obtained.
[0021]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram schematically showing a configuration of a photo studio system 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a photo studio system 10 according to the present embodiment includes a print server 20 capable of communicating with a management server 70 through the Internet 80, which is an electric communication line, and a client PC 60 that outputs a print job to the print server 20. And two printers 40 and 50 to which a print job process is assigned by the print server 20. Here, the two printers 40 and 50 are housed in the same housing as the print server 20, and the printer 40 is installed on the upper stage and the printer 50 is installed on the lower stage. For this reason, the upper printer 40 and the lower printer 50 may also be referred to below. “PC” is an abbreviation for personal computer.
[0022]
The print server 20 includes a CPU 21 for executing various arithmetic processing, a ROM 22 in which a group of programs for setting hardware and the like are recorded, and a RAM 23 for temporarily recording data when the CPU 21 executes various arithmetic processing. , A clock generator 24 for generating an operation clock, a video board 25 having a display connector to which a display 27 is connected, a LAN board 26 to which a LAN cable 16 for constructing a LAN is connected, and various devices. An input / output controller 31 for connection and control is connected via a bus 29. In the print server 20, a hard disk 28 is connected via an input / output controller 31, and two printers 40 and 50 are connected via USB terminals. The print server 20 is connected to the client PC 60 and the router 14 via the LAN cable 16 connected to the LAN board 26, and is connected from the router 14 to the management server 70 via the Internet 80.
[0023]
The hard disk 28 of the print server 20 stores a job folder 28a for storing various data included in a print instruction from the client PC 60 as a print job, and a database of status histories of the printers 40 and 50 and a history of print jobs as a printer usage status. A printer usage database 28b storing various programs, a program folder 28c storing various programs, and an upper spooler 28d holding two print jobs of a print job being executed and a print job scheduled to be printed next for the upper printer 40 as a spool. The lower printer 50 is provided with a lower spooler 28e that holds two print jobs, ie, a print job being printed and a print job to be printed next, as spools. Among them, the job folder 28a stores various data included in the print command, that is, a job script including a printer designation and a paper type, a layout script including items necessary for determining a print layout, and a photo frame of the layout. The embedded image data, the ICC profile attached to the image data, and the like are stored as a print job. Further, the printer usage status database 28b includes statuses relating to the upper printer 40 such as operating status such as the number of reciprocations of the inkjet head 45c, error occurrence status such as occurrence of paper jam, and consumables status such as the remaining ink amount of the ink cartridge 45b. The history of the usage status, the history of the similar status regarding the lower printer 50, and the history of the print job stored in the job folder 28a are stored in a database. Further, a color correction table is stored in the program folder 28c from the printer driver for controlling the upper printer 40, the printer driver for controlling the lower printer 50, and the ICC profile of the printer to be used and the ICC profile attached to the image data. Includes a color converter that generates and performs color correction of image data, a print control execution program that controls execution of print commands, a log upload program that uploads logs to the management server 70, and a web browser that browses various information. Have been.
[0024]
Each of the upper printer 40 and the lower printer 50 is an ink jet printer of the same model using a pigment-based ink, and has a performance of outputting a printed matter having high image quality and extremely high light resistance. Since the upper printer 40 and the lower printer 50 have the same configuration, the configuration of the upper printer 40 will be described below, and the description of the lower printer 50 will be omitted. The upper printer 40 includes a CPU 41 for executing various arithmetic processes, a ROM 42 in which a group of programs for performing hardware settings and the like are recorded, and a RAM 43 for temporarily recording data when the CPU 41 executes various arithmetic processes. A credit counter 44, which is set to an initial value at the time of shipment from the factory and is decremented by one each time a printing operation is performed, and a printer engine 45 for executing color printing are connected via a bus 46. The printer engine 45 includes an ink cartridge 45b mounted on a carriage 45a that moves in a horizontal direction, an ink jet head 45c provided below the ink cartridge 45b, and ejects ink onto the paper M, and rotates the paper M by rotating. A roller 45d for feeding the print position of the inkjet head 45c is provided. The ink cartridge 45b of this embodiment is a cartridge for color printing in which cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K) pigment inks are stored for each color. In FIG. 1, only the credit counter 54 is shown in the block of the lower printer 50 for the sake of convenience.
[0025]
The client PC 60 is connected to the print server 20 and the router 14 via the LAN cable 16, and is connected from the router 14 to the management server 70 via the Internet 80. The client PC 60 can be connected to a digital still camera (DSC) 62 via a USB terminal, and transmits a print job for printing image data captured by the DSC 62 or image data to which retouching or the like has been performed to the LAN cable 16. To the print server 20. Further, the client PC 60 has a function of logging in to the management server 70 via a web browser and having the web browser provide various information in the photo studio system 10.
[0026]
The management server 70 plays a role of centrally managing the operating states of the photo studio systems 10 installed in many photo studios, and is installed in a location different from the photo studios. The management server 70 is communicably connected to the print server 20 and the client PC 60 of each photo studio system 10 via the Internet 80, and has an internal configuration such as a CPU for executing various arithmetic processing and hardware settings. A ROM in which a group of programs is recorded, a RAM for temporarily recording data when the CPU executes various arithmetic processes, a hard disk in which various databases are stored, and the like are provided. Further, the management server 70 has a function of collecting various information from the print server 20 of each photo studio system 10, storing the information in a database of the management server 70, and managing the collected information. Specifically, the management server 70 calculates the consumption of consumables such as paper and ink in the photo studio based on various information of each photo studio, and arranges the distribution of the consumables to each photo studio. It also has functions for billing and billing. Further, the management server 70 has a function of providing various information of the photo studio stored in the database of the management server 70 to the web browser when logged in from the client PC 60 of each photo studio through a web browser. I have.
[0027]
Next, an example of printing image data in the photo studio system 10 of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. After photographing a desired photographing target using the DSC 62, the cameraman makes a USB connection to the client PC 60, and moves or copies desired image data from an image recording medium built in the DSC 62 to the hard disk of the client PC 60. . As a result, the hard disk of the client PC 60 stores various image data. The photographer turns on the print button after retouching the image data using the function of the photo retouching software in the client PC 60 or determining the layout of the image data on the paper using the layout editing function. Then, a print command is output from the client PC 60 to the print server 20. The print server 20 stores each data included in the print command output from the client PC 60 as a print job waiting for printing in the job folder 28a. Each print job is given a unique job ID as shown in FIG. 2, and each job ID is associated with a page number and the number of copies. For example, in FIG. 2, two copies of the first page and the second page are printed, that is, a total of four sheets are printed with the job ID “00100”, and one copy of the first page and the second page are printed, that is, two sheets with the job ID “00101” Printing is performed, and three copies of the first page, that is, three sheets are printed with the job ID “00102”. Further, the CPU 21 of the print server 20 reads out the print command output processing routine shown in FIG. 3 from the program folder 28c and executes it. When this routine is started, the CPU 21 first reads a print waiting job stored in the job folder 28a according to the availability of the upper spooler 28d and the lower spooler 28e, and sends the read job to either the upper spooler 28d or the lower spooler 28e. It is determined whether to allocate (step S100). After the assignment, the image data included in the print job is color-corrected by the color converter (step S110), and the image data after the color correction is converted into CMYK color data and halftone processed by the printer driver of the printer used this time. And the like to create RAW data that can be interpreted by the printer (step S120), store the created RAW data as a spool in the spooler of the printer used this time (step S130), and output the RAW data to the printer used this time Then (step S140), this routine ends. As a result, the printers 40 and 50 print predetermined image data on predetermined paper in a predetermined layout based on the print job. Since the printers 40 and 50 transmit the status to the print server 20 every time the print job processing is completed as described later (see step S250 in FIG. 4), the print server 20 responds to the status reception timing. To execute the print command execution processing routine.
[0028]
Next, the operation of the upper printer 40 in the photo studio system 10 of the present embodiment, in particular, the print operation monitoring process and the credit reset process of the upper printer 40 will be described. Although the description of the operation of the lower printer 50 is omitted, the same operation as that of the upper printer 40 is performed.
[0029]
FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a printing operation monitoring routine executed by the CPU 41 of the upper printer 40. This routine is stored in the ROM 42, read out by the CPU 41 every predetermined time (for example, every several msec), and repeatedly executed. When the printing operation monitoring routine is executed, the CPU 41 of the upper printer 40 first determines whether a printing operation flag provided in a predetermined area of the RAM 43 is on or off (step S200). This print operation flag is a flag that is set to ON when the upper printer 40 is performing a print operation, and is set to OFF when the upper printer 40 is not performing a print operation. Here, the printing operation refers to an operation from the start of feeding of one sheet to the completion of discharge, and it does not matter whether or not printing is actually executed.
[0030]
When the printing operation flag is ON in step S200, it is determined whether or not the printing operation in progress is completed (step S210), and when the printing operation is not completed, this routine is terminated as it is. On the other hand, when the printing operation is completed in step S210, the printing operation flag is set to off (step S220), the value of the credit counter 44 is decremented by 1 (step S230), and the processing of the current print job is completed. It is determined whether or not this is the case (step S240). If the processing of the current print job is not completed, the process directly proceeds to step S252, and if the processing of the current print job is completed, the status of the upper printer 40 is transmitted to the print server 20. (Step S250), and then the process proceeds to step S252. Then, in a step S252, it is determined whether or not the value of the credit counter 44 has become zero. Here, the credit counter 44 is a counter that is set to an initial value at the time of shipment from the factory and is decremented by one each time a printing operation is performed. Since the credit counter 44 is a down counter, a value obtained by subtracting the current value from the initial value corresponds to a count value of the number of printing operations, that is, an actually measured value of the number of printing operations. If the value of the credit counter 44 is not zero in step S252, this routine is terminated as it is. If the value of the credit counter 44 is zero, the out-of-credit flag is set to ON (step S254), and this routine is terminated. . Here, the out-of-credit flag is a flag that is set to ON when the value of the credit counter 44 is zero, and is set to OFF otherwise.
[0031]
On the other hand, when the printing operation flag is off in step S200, that is, when the printing operation is not being performed, it is determined whether or not it is the time to start a new printing operation (step S260). It is determined whether the switch is on (step S270). When the out-of-credit flag is off at step S270, the value of the credit counter 44 is 1 or more, so that a new printing operation is started and the printing operation flag is set to on (step S280). To end. On the other hand, when the out-of-credit flag is ON at step S270, the value of the credit counter 44 is zero, so that a new printing operation is prohibited and a printing error is output to the print server 20 or the client PC 60 (step S290). ), And terminate this routine. The print server 20 or the client PC 60 that has input the print error displays or outputs a message indicating that the print server 20 is connected to the management server 70 together with the print error message. On this occasion, the user often performs an input operation to connect the print server 20 to the management server 70 via the Internet 80.
[0032]
FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a credit reset processing routine executed by the CPU 41 of the upper printer 40. This routine is stored in the ROM 42, read out by the CPU 41 at predetermined time intervals (for example, every several msec), and repeatedly executed. When the credit reset processing routine is executed, the CPU 41 of the upper printer 40 first determines whether a credit reset command has been received from the print server 20 (step S300). This credit reset command is a command transmitted from the print server 20 when the print server 20 has successfully connected to the management server 70 (see step S430 in FIG. 6 described later). When the credit reset command is received in step S300, the value of the credit counter 44 is returned to the initial value (step S310), and the out-of-credit flag provided in a predetermined area of the RAM 43 is turned off (step S320). Then, when the credit reset command has not been received in step S300 or after the out-of-credit flag is turned off in step S320, this routine ends.
[0033]
Here, the initial value of the credit counter 44 is set based on the log upload timing of the print server 20. Specifically, the time interval between the time when the print server 20 uploads the log information to the management server 70 and the time when the next log information is uploaded is a predetermined interval time (12 hours in the present embodiment). Obtains the maximum number of sheets physically printable by the upper printer 40. For example, a time required to print standard image data in A4 size is calculated, and a maximum interval is obtained by dividing a predetermined interval time by the calculated time. Then, in order to actually print in a size smaller than the A4 size or print image data smaller than the standard image data, an initial value is set by adding a marginal number considering the above to the maximum number. I have. Therefore, in the upper printer 40, when the initial value is set in the credit counter 44, the printing operation can be executed by the number of times of the initial value thereafter.
[0034]
Next, the operation of the print server 20 in the photo studio system 10 of the present embodiment, particularly, the operation of uploading a log indicating the usage status of the printers 40 and 50 to the management server 70 will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a log transmission processing routine executed by the CPU 21 of the print server 20. This routine is stored in the program folder 28c, read out by the CPU 21 every predetermined time (for example, every several msec), and repeatedly executed. When this log transmission processing routine is executed, the CPU 21 of the print server 20 first determines whether or not the current time is the log transmission timing (step S400). Here, the log transmission timing is when the print server 20 is activated or when a predetermined interval time elapses after the activation. In the present embodiment, the interval time is set to 12 hours as described above.
[0035]
If the current time is the log transmission timing in step S400, an attempt is made to connect to the management server 70 via the Internet 80 (step S410). Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the connection with the management server 70 is successful (step S420). When the connection with the management server 70 is successful, the credit reset for returning the values of the credit counters 44 and 54 to the initial values is performed. The command is transmitted to the printers 40 and 50 (step S430). As a result, the printer 40 returns the value of the credit counter 44 to the initial value in step 310 of the above-described credit reset processing routine. The same applies to the printer 50. Subsequently, the CPU 21 of the print server 20 transmits the history of the status of the printers 40 and 50 and the history of the print job stored in the printer usage database 28b to the management server 70 as log information (step S440), and completes the transmission. Thereafter, the connection with the management server 70 is disconnected (step S450). However, in step S440, only the content that has not been transmitted to the management server 70 is transmitted as log information. The management server 70 that has received the log information calculates the consumption amount of consumables such as paper and ink in the photo studio based on the log information, and arranges the distribution of the consumables to the photo studio, billing, etc. I do. On the other hand, if the connection with the management server 70 has not been successful in step S420, it is determined whether or not the connection has not succeeded continuously for a predetermined number of times (m times) (step S460). If the number of times of unsuccessful connection is less than m, the process returns to step S410 to try to connect to the management server 70 again, while if the number of times of unsuccessful connection reaches m, the LAN cable 16 Due to a possible problem such as disconnection of the router or a stop of the router 14, a message indicating that the connection to the management server 70 cannot be established is displayed on the display 27 (step S470). Then, when the current time is not the log transmission timing in step S400, after disconnecting the connection with the management server 70 in step S450, or after displaying on the display 27 in step S470, this routine ends. The print server 20 obtains a status from the printer 40 or 50 each time the printer 40 or 50 finishes processing the print job (see step S250 in FIG. 4) and stores the status in the printer usage database 28b. Further, the user can try to connect the print server 20 to the management server 70 at an arbitrary timing.
[0036]
By executing the three flowcharts of FIGS. 4 to 6 described above, the photo studio system 10 prints image data as follows. That is, the credit counter 44 of the printer 40 is set to an initial value at the time of shipment from the factory. When the printer 40 executes the print operation monitoring process routine in accordance with the printing of the image data, the value of the credit counter 44 is decremented by one each time the print operation is completed, so that the value approaches zero as the number of printed sheets increases. Go. On the other hand, the print server 20 executes the log transmission processing routine, and outputs a credit reset command to the printer 40 when the log transmission timing comes and the connection with the management server 70 succeeds. Then, the printer 40 executes a credit reset process, and returns the value of the credit counter 44 to the initial value. In this manner, the printer 40 returns the value of the credit counter 44 to the initial value as long as the print server 20 successfully connects to the management server 70 at the log transmission timing. The value of the credit counter 44 does not become zero, and the printing operation can be continuously performed. On the other hand, if the print server 20 fails to connect to the management server 70 at the log transmission timing, the printer 40 does not return the value of the credit counter 44 to the initial value, and thus executes the print operation monitoring routine. Meanwhile, the value of the credit counter 44 becomes zero, and the out-of-credit flag is turned on. As a result, the next time the printing operation monitoring routine is executed, the printer 40 will not start the printing operation. However, if the print server 20 succeeds in connecting to the management server 70 even after the credit depletion flag is turned on, a credit reset command is output to the printer 40, the value of the credit counter 44 returns to the initial value, and the credit depletion occurs. Since the flag is turned off, the printer 40 resumes the printing operation. The printer 50 operates in the same manner.
[0037]
Here, the correspondence between the components of the present embodiment and the components of the present invention will be clarified. The credit counters 44 and 54 of the printers 40 and 50 of the present embodiment correspond to the counting means of the present invention, and the CPU 41 of the printer 40 and the CPU (not shown) of the printer 50 include the counting value determining means, the printing operation limiting means, The CPU 21 of the print server 20 corresponds to a numerical value setting unit and an error output unit, and corresponds to a connection determination unit, an automatic connection execution unit, and a command output unit. In the present embodiment, an example of the print system control method of the present invention is also clarified by describing the operation of the photo studio system 10.
[0038]
According to the photo studio system 10 of the present embodiment described above, the connection between the print server 20 and the management server 70 remains disconnected, that is, the management server 70 cannot grasp the usage status of the printers 40 and 50. Since the printers 40 and 50 cannot perform the printing operation for a long time, the operator of the management server 70 does not suffer a great disadvantage. Further, since an error message is output to the print server 20 or the client PC 60, it is expected that the user will connect the print server 20 and the management server 70 with the error message. Does not suffer any major disadvantage. Further, the printing operation of the printers 40 and 50 is restricted, or an error message is output, so that the user can easily notice that some trouble has occurred in the system. Furthermore, when the print server 20 succeeds in connecting to the management server 70, the printers 40 and 50 return the values of the credit counters 44 and 54 to the initial values. Times, the printers 40 and 50 can perform the printing operation.
[0039]
Then, the print server 20 automatically tries to connect to the management server 70 via the Internet 18 at the time of system startup or at predetermined intervals after the system startup. The connection operation need not be performed. Since the initial values set in the credit counters 44 and 54 are values obtained by adding a marginal number to the maximum number of sheets that can be printed by the printers 40 and 50 within a predetermined interval time, the credit counters 44 and 54 reach zero. That is, it can be considered that the print server 20 has not been connected to the management server 70 even if the predetermined interval time has elapsed. Further, the print server 20 attempts to connect to the management server 70 via the Internet 80 in response to a command issued from the user at an arbitrary timing, so that the printing operation of the printer is not restricted at an arbitrary timing. it can.
[0040]
It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment at all, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented in various modes as long as it belongs to the technical scope of the present invention.
[0041]
For example, in the above-described embodiment, the printing operation is defined as an operation from the start of sheet feeding of one sheet to the completion of discharge, regardless of whether printing is actually executed. However, it may be defined as an operation from the start of sheet feeding of one sheet to the completion of discharge, and an operation when printing is actually executed.
[0042]
In the above-described embodiment, the value of the credit counter 44 is returned to the initial value (the count value of the number of printing operations is returned to zero) in step S310 of the credit reset processing routine. The value may be set to a value smaller than the initial value instead of the value. In this case, when the connection between the print server 20 and the management server 70 succeeds, the number of print operations permitted within a predetermined interval time becomes smaller than the initial number, but the printers 40 and 50 can continue the print operation.
[0043]
Further, in the above-described embodiment, the down counter is used as the credit counters 44 and 54, but an up counter that is incremented by one every time the number of printing operations is counted may be used. In this case, the value of the up counter is set to zero in step S310 of the credit reset processing routine, and when the value of the up counter reaches a predetermined value (the initial value in the above-described embodiment) in step S252 of the printing operation monitoring routine. The out-of-credit flag may be turned on. In the down counter, the value obtained by subtracting the counter value from the initial value (predetermined value) is the count value of the number of printing operations, whereas in the up counter, the counter value is the count value of the number of printing operations as it is.
[0044]
Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, as the initial value of the credit counters 44 and 54, a value obtained by adding a marginal number to the maximum number of sheets physically printable by each of the printers 40 and 50 within a predetermined interval time is employed. Alternatively, the user may empirically determine the frequency of printing by each of the printers 40 and 50 within a predetermined interval time, and employ a value corresponding to the frequency. For example, if the printing frequency of the user is equivalent to a case where printing is performed at 30% of the maximum capacity of each printer 40, 50, a case where each printer 40, 50 performs printing at 30% of the maximum capacity within a predetermined interval time. A value obtained by adding a margin to the number of prints may be adopted. Alternatively, the length of the predetermined interval time may be updated according to the printing frequency of the user. For example, the interval time may be set longer if the user does not print frequently with the printer, and the interval time may be set shorter if the frequency is high. In this way, the printing operation of the printers 40 and 50 can be restricted at an appropriate timing according to the frequency of printing on the printers 40 and 50 by the user after the connection with the management server 70 is interrupted.
[0045]
In the above-described embodiment, the credit reset command is output to the printers 40 and 50 when the print server 20 succeeds in connecting to the management server 70. However, the print server 20 succeeds in connecting to the management server 70 and A credit reset command may be output to the printers 40 and 50 when the printer usage status (status history and print job history) is successfully transmitted to the management server 70. In this way, since the management server 70 receives the status of use of the printer and becomes able to manage the photo studio system 10 so that the printing operation of the printer is not restricted, the management server suffers a great disadvantage. There is no.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a schematic configuration of a photo studio system 10.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a part of the content of a print job.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a print command output processing routine.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a printing operation monitoring routine.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a credit reset processing routine.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a log transmission processing routine.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 Photo Studio System, 14 Router, 16 LAN Cable, 18 Internet, 20 Print Server, 21 CPU, 22 ROM, 23 RAM, 24 Clock Generator, 25 Video Board, 26 LAN Board, 27 Display, 28 Hard Disk, 28a Job Folder, 28b Printer usage database, 29 bus, 31 input / output controller, 40 upper printer, 41 CPU, 42 ROM, 43 RAM, 44 credit counter, 45 printer engine, 46 bus, 50 lower printer, 54 credit counter, 60 client PC, 70 Management server.

Claims (12)

A print system capable of transmitting the usage status of the printer to a management server that manages the usage status of the printer via a telecommunication line,
Counting means for counting the number of printing operations of the printer,
Count value determining means for determining whether the count value counted by the counting means has reached a predetermined value,
A print operation restricting unit that restricts a printing operation of the printer when the count value is determined to have reached a predetermined value by the count value determining unit;
Connection determination means for determining whether or not the connection with the management server was successful;
And a count value setting unit that sets the count value to any value before reaching the predetermined value when the connection determination unit determines that the connection with the management server is successful. The print system according to claim 1, wherein
A printing system comprising: an error output unit that outputs a printing error when the count value determination unit determines that the count value has reached a predetermined value, instead of or in addition to the print operation restriction unit. The print system according to claim 1, wherein the count value setting unit sets the count value to zero when the connection determination unit determines that the connection with the management server is successful. 4. The print system according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A print system comprising automatic connection trial means for trialing connection with the management server via the telecommunication line at system startup and at predetermined time intervals after system startup. The printing system according to claim 4, wherein the count value determining unit determines whether the count value has reached the predetermined value set based on an upper limit number of sheets that can be printed by the printer within the predetermined time. . The print system according to claim 4, wherein the count value determining unit determines whether the count value has reached the predetermined value set based on an upper limit number of sheets that can be printed by the user within the predetermined time. The printing system according to claim 4, wherein
A print system comprising a predetermined time update unit for updating the predetermined time according to a frequency at which a user performs printing on the printer. 8. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the connection determination unit determines that the connection with the management server is successful when the use status of the printer is successfully transmitted to the management server via the telecommunication line. 9. Print system. The print system according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
A print system comprising a manual connection attempt unit for trying to connect to the management server via the telecommunication line in response to a command issued at an arbitrary timing from a user. A print system comprising: a printer that prints on a print medium; and a print server that can transmit the use state of the printer to a management server that manages the use state of the printer via an electric communication line.
The printer is
Counting means for counting the number of printing operations for each printing operation;
Count value determining means for determining whether the count value counted by the counting means has reached a predetermined value,
A print operation restricting unit that restricts a printing operation of the printer when the count value is determined to have reached a predetermined value by the count value determining unit;
With
The print server,
Connection determination means for determining whether or not the connection with the management server was successful;
When the connection determining unit determines that the connection with the management server is successful, a command to output a command to the printer so that the count value of the counting unit is set to any value before reaching the predetermined value. Output means,
Printing system. A method for controlling a printing system capable of transmitting the usage status of a printer to a management server that manages the usage status of the printer via an electric communication line by one or a plurality of computers,
(A) a counting step in which the computer counts the number of printing operations of the printer;
(B) a count value determining step in which the computer determines whether or not the count value counted in the counting step has reached a predetermined value;
(C) an operation limiting step in which the computer restricts a printing operation of the printer when it is determined in the count value determining step that the count value has reached a predetermined value;
(D) a connection determination step in which the computer determines whether connection to the management server has been successful;
(E) when the connection determination step determines that the connection with the management server is successful, the computer sets the count value to any value before reaching the predetermined value. Print system control method. A program for causing one or more computers to realize each step of the print system control method according to claim 11.

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