JP2005228252A - Service processor and cooperative processing system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a service processor and a cooperative processing system which can transmit cooperation information with high certainty, and can perform cooperative processing efficiently. <P>SOLUTION: A system performs cooperative processing of a series of service by executing sequentially services based on an instruction sheet by each service processor 20 by transmitting sequentially the instruction sheet to make each service cooperate between service processors 20 which provides each service. Attribute information for specifying service processor 20 which performs each service is described on every service on the transmitted instruction sheet. The service processor 20 retrieves a service processors 20 based on attribute information for specifying the service processor 20 which renders next service in the received instruction sheet when transmitting the instruction sheet to the next service processor 20, and decides destination. The service processor 20 transmits the instruction sheet to the decided destination. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a service processing apparatus and a cooperation processing system, and is particularly suitable for use in a document processing network system in which various devices are connected to each other via a network and services provided by the devices are cooperated to process a document. The present invention relates to a service processing apparatus and a cooperation processing system.

  As a technology related to a distributed processing system that executes a series of processes by linking programs and services (functions) distributed over a network, the input / output functions and programs that operate on each device connected to the network are There is known a network cooperation device that transmits cooperation processing data between cooperation devices according to a processing order when combining processing is performed according to a usage method (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Specifically, in an office environment, etc., scanners, facsimile machines, copiers, or multifunction machines combining these, personal computers, mail servers, etc. are connected to each other via a network, and services provided by each device are linked. A distributed processing type document processing network system that processes document data. In such a document processing network system, linkage processing is performed by sequentially transmitting linkage information including linkage relationships and input / output information of each service between devices that provide services.
JP 2001-306534 A

  However, in the conventional document processing network system, the device to which the next link information is to be transmitted is designated in advance in the link information. Therefore, if an error occurs during the link processing, the link processing is performed on the device in which the error has occurred. There is a problem that it stops. Even if there is a device on the network that can provide services in place of the device in which the error occurred, cooperation information will not be sent to devices other than those specified in advance, so that the cooperation processing will not be interrupted. I can't. In addition, when a heavy load is applied to a device in the middle of a cooperation process, there is also a problem that the time required for the whole cooperation process becomes long because the processing is delayed by the device.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a service processing apparatus and a cooperation processing system that can transmit cooperation information with high certainty and efficiently perform cooperation processing. To do.

  In order to achieve the above object, the service processing apparatus of the present invention designates processing information for cooperatively processing a service for performing predetermined processing on document data and a service processing apparatus for performing each of the linked services. Receiving means for receiving cooperation information including attribute information for processing, service processing means for performing a predetermined service based on processing information in the cooperation information received by the receiving means, and cooperation information received by the receiving means A service processing device is searched based on attribute information for designating a service processing device that performs a service next to the service performed by the service processing means, and the cooperation information is transmitted from the searched service processing device. Determining means for determining a transmission destination, and transmitting means for transmitting the cooperation information to the transmission destination determined by the determining means; Eteiru.

  That is, the service processing apparatus cooperates and processes a service for performing predetermined processing on document data by transmitting and receiving cooperation information to and from other service processing apparatuses. The cooperation information includes processing information for cooperatively processing services that perform predetermined processing on document data, and attribute information for designating each service processing device that performs each of the linked services. Yes. The receiving means of the service processing device receives the cooperation information. The service processing means performs a predetermined service based on the processing information in the cooperation information received by the receiving means.

  The determining unit searches for the service processing device based on attribute information for designating a service processing device that performs a service next to the service performed by the service processing unit in the cooperation information received by the receiving unit. Here, the attribute information refers to information that can designate the service processing device, such as the function, capability (performance), and installation location of the service processing device. However, information unique to each service processing device is not included.

  Further, the determining means determines a transmission destination to which the cooperation information is transmitted from the searched service processing apparatus. The transmission unit transmits the cooperation information to the transmission destination determined by the determination unit.

  As described above, the service processing device is searched based on the attribute information, and the transmission destination of the cooperation information is determined from the searched service processing device. Therefore, the service processing device suitable for performing the service is more flexible. The link information can be transmitted to the network, and the link information can be transmitted with high certainty and efficiently compared with the case where the destination service processing apparatus is designated in advance.

  The determining means determines the one service processing apparatus as a transmission destination when there is one searched service processing apparatus, and determines the plurality of service processing apparatuses when there are a plurality of searched service processing apparatuses. At least one of the service processing apparatuses can be determined as a transmission destination. That is, when there are a plurality of searched service processing apparatuses, it is possible to select (determine) a suitable apparatus as a transmission destination.

  For example, when there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determination means sends the service processing device having the highest priority among the searched service processing devices according to a predetermined priority. You may make it determine as.

  The priority order may be determined according to, for example, the distance of the installation location and the capability, or may be determined according to the current load state of each service processing device.

  In addition, the determining means, when the transmitted cooperation information is not received by the destination service processing device, is the most out of the searched service processing devices except the destination service processing device. It is also possible to determine a service processing apparatus having a high priority as a transmission destination.

  For example, when the transmission destination service processing apparatus is not activated or when an error occurs in the transmission destination, the transmission destination service processing apparatus cannot receive the cooperation information. Therefore, in such a case, the linkage information can be transmitted with high reliability by setting another service processing device searched based on the attribute information as the transmission destination.

  Furthermore, when the plurality of service processing devices searched for is the plurality of service processing devices, the determining means is configured to set the plurality of service processing devices so that the next service is distributed and processed by the plurality of service processing devices. You may make it determine as a transmission destination.

  Note that the distribution ratio may be equal, or the distribution ratio may be varied according to the capability or operation rate of each searched service processing apparatus.

  In addition, when there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determining unit obtains an operating state of each of the searched service processing devices and performs the next service from the operating state. Service processing devices that are determined not to be able to be deleted can be excluded from the transmission destination.

  The operating state can include, for example, whether or not the service processing apparatus is activated, the processing time of the service being processed and waiting for processing, the reservation state of the service designated by the time, and the like.

  In addition, the cooperative processing system of the present invention is a cooperative processing system including a plurality of service processing devices and a search device, and the service processing device performs processing information and each service linked to the service processing device. Receiving means for receiving cooperation information including attribute information for designating each of them, service processing means for performing a predetermined service based on processing information in the cooperation information received by the receiving means, and the search device On the other hand, the attribute information for designating the service processing apparatus that performs the service next to the service performed by the service processing means in the cooperation information received by the receiving means is transmitted and the transmission destination of the cooperation information is searched. A search request for instructing the search request and acquiring a search result for the search request from the search device; Transmitting means for transmitting the cooperation information to the transmission destination indicated in the search result, and the search device transmits the attribute information transmitted from the service processing device in response to a search request from the service processing device. The service processing device is searched based on the service information, the determination unit determines the transmission destination of the linkage information from the searched service processing device, and the transmission destination determined by the determination unit is used as a search result for the search request. Search result transmission means for transmitting to the processing device.

  That is, in the cooperative processing system of the present invention, the search device has a determination unit that searches and determines the transmission destination of the cooperative information, and the service processing device transmits the cooperative information by making a search request to the search device. Get the destination.

  Even with such a configuration, cooperation information can be transmitted more flexibly to a service processing apparatus suitable for performing a service, and more reliable than when a destination service processing apparatus is designated in advance. Cooperation information can be transmitted highly and cooperation processing can be performed efficiently.

  In the above-described cooperative processing system, when there is one searched service processing device, the determining unit determines the one service processing device as a transmission destination, and the searched service processing devices include a plurality of service processing devices. In this case, at least one of the plurality of service processing devices can be determined as a transmission destination.

  Further, when there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determining means sends the service processing device having the highest priority among the searched service processing devices according to a predetermined priority. Can be determined as

  In addition, when the transmitted cooperation information is not received by the transmission destination service processing apparatus, the acquisition unit re-sends the search apparatus so as to perform a search excluding the transmission destination service processing apparatus. In response to a re-search request from the service processing device, the determination means performs a service process with the highest priority among the searched service processing devices except for the service processing device of the transmission destination. You may make it determine an apparatus as a transmission destination.

  In addition, when there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determination unit transmits the plurality of service processing devices so that the next service is distributed and processed by the plurality of service processing devices. It may be determined as a destination.

  In addition, when there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determining unit obtains an operating state of each of the searched service processing devices and performs the next service from the operating state. Service processing devices that are determined not to be able to be deleted can be excluded from the transmission destination.

  In other words, the determination unit configuring the cooperative processing system of the present invention can act in the same manner as the determination unit configuring the service processing apparatus of the present invention.

  As described above, the service processing apparatus and the cooperation processing system according to the present invention search and determine the transmission destination to which the cooperation information is transmitted using the attribute information included in the cooperation information. An excellent effect is achieved in that information can be transmitted and cooperative processing can be performed efficiently.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1A is a block diagram showing a configuration of a document processing system 10 according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

  The document processing system 10 is a system in which various services and applications are connected via a network 12. Here, the service refers to a function that can be used with respect to a document, and includes, for example, copying, printing, scanning, facsimile transmission / reception, mail delivery, OCR (Optical Character Recognition) processing, noise removal processing, and the like.

  As illustrated, the document processing system 10 includes a plurality of service processing apparatuses 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d that provide one or a plurality of services, and a search server 40 that searches for service processing apparatuses that can provide the services. I have. In the following, when the service processing devices are described without particular distinction, the suffix at the end of the code is omitted and referred to as the service processing device 20.

  In the document processing system 10, as shown in FIG. 1B, instructions for linking the services (corresponding to the linkage information of the present invention) are sequentially transmitted between the service processing devices 20 that provide the services. As a result, the services based on the instructions are sequentially executed in each service processing device 20, and a linkage process of a series of services (herein, the series of services are referred to as a job flow or simply a flow) is performed.

  Here, cooperation means that there is a relationship between services such that a result of a certain service determines a service to be activated later or influences the operation of the subsequent service.

  Also, the instruction sheet refers to data composed of various information for linking each service. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the instruction sheet. As shown in the figure, the instruction flow describes a job flow for cooperatively processing the three services 1, 2, and 3. Further, for each service, input / output information, service start time, service contents, etc. Information on the processing contents to be included and attribute information for designating a service processing apparatus that performs each service are described. In addition, the instruction sheet has an instruction sheet ID unique to each instruction sheet. Each service processing device 20 can identify each instruction by the instruction ID. Furthermore, although not shown, the instruction sheet also describes the processing time limit of the entire job flow.

  In the present embodiment, each service processing device 20 makes a search request to instruct the search server 40 to search for the destination of the instruction sheet, and the search server 40 instructs the search server 40 according to the search request from the service processing device 20. The transmission destination of the document is searched, and the search result is transmitted to the service processing apparatus 20 of the request source. Each service processing device 20 transmits an instruction to the destination service processing device indicated in the search result. As a result, the instructions are sequentially transmitted between the service processing devices 20.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the service processing apparatus 20. The service processing device 20 includes a control unit 50, and a graphic user interface (GUI) 52, a communication control unit 54, a service processing unit 56, and a memory 58 are connected to the control unit 50.

  The control unit 50 is composed of a microcomputer including a CPU and a ROM (not shown), and controls the overall operation of the service processing apparatus 20. A ROM (not shown) of the control unit 50 stores a cooperative processing routine program for exchanging instructions and document data to be processed with other service processing apparatuses 20. Details of the processing by this program will be described later.

  The GUI 52 is composed of, for example, a touch panel and buttons, and displays the contents of the instruction sheet, or a predetermined operation is performed by the user.

  The communication control unit 54 includes a reception unit and a transmission unit, and is connected to the network 12 to exchange various information and data with other service processing devices 20 and the search server 40. Specifically, instructions and service processing results are transmitted / received to / from other service processing apparatuses 20, a search request signal for the instruction transmission destination is transmitted to the search server 40, and the search server The search result is received from 40.

  The service processing unit 56 executes a service that can be provided based on the instruction sheet.

  The memory 58 stores the instruction sheet received by the communication control unit 54 and the document data to be processed. The instruction document and the document data to be processed are deleted by the control unit 50 when the normal service end notification is received.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the search server 40. The search server 40 includes a control unit 70, a communication control unit 72, and a service storage unit 74.

  The communication control unit 72 is connected to the network 12 and controls communication with each service processing device 20. Specifically, the search request signal from the service processing device 20 is received together with the attribute information, and the search result is transmitted to the requesting service processing device 20.

  The service storage unit 74 stores attribute information of each service processing device 20. Here, the functions (for example, a print function, a copy function, an image composition function, etc.) possessed by each service processing device 20, the capabilities (color / monochrome, printing speed, security level, etc.), operation rate, installation of each service processing device 20 The location, network address, management department, supported communication protocol information, etc. are stored.

  The control unit 70 is composed of a microcomputer including a CPU and a ROM (not shown). The CPU instructs when a search request is received from the service processing device 20 by the search processing main routine and subroutine program stored in the ROM. The transmission destination of the document is searched, and processing for transmitting the search result to the service processing apparatus 20 that is the request source is executed.

  Hereinafter, the cooperation process of the service processing apparatus 20 will be described in detail. Here, since the document data to be processed is transferred together with the instruction sheet, the description of the exchange of the document data is omitted.

  First, in any one of the plurality of service processing devices 20 connected to the network 12, an instruction book stored in a memory (not shown) is selected, and cooperative processing is started. Specifically, a list of instructions stored in a memory (not shown) is displayed on the GUI 52, and one or more instructions are selected by a user operation. When the current time becomes the start time of the flow described in the instruction sheet, the linkage process of the flow described in the selected instruction sheet is started, and the instruction sheets are sequentially added based on the attribute information in the instruction sheet. Communicated.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a cooperation processing routine performed by the service processing apparatus 20.

  In step 100, it is determined whether an instruction has been received. If it is determined that the instruction is received, in step 102, the service processing unit 56 performs the corresponding service in the job flow of the instruction according to the received instruction.

  In step 104, the attribute information for designating the next service request destination (that is, the service processing apparatus performing the next service) is read from the instruction sheet. For example, taking the instruction sheet of FIG. 2 as an example, if the service performed by the service processing unit 56 is the service 1, the attribute information of the service 2 that is the next service of the service 1 is read. Here, the attribute information includes any information of function, capability, operation rate, installation location, management department, and communication protocol.

  In step 106, the read attribute information is transmitted to the search server 40, and a search request signal for the next service transmission destination is transmitted.

  In step 108, it is determined whether a search result is received from the search server 40. The standby state is continued until the search result is received. If it is determined in step 108 that the search result has been received, in step 110, an instruction sheet is transmitted to the transmission destination indicated in the search result.

  Next, the search process in the search server 40 will be described in detail. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a main routine of search processing performed by the search server 40.

  In step 200, it is determined whether a search request signal is received together with attribute information. If it is determined that it has been received, device selection processing is performed in step 202.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a device search processing subroutine performed in step 202. In step 300, the service processing apparatus 20 is searched based on the received attribute information. Specifically, the service processing device 20 is extracted by comparing the attribute information stored in the service storage unit 74 with the received attribute information. For example, when the received attribute information includes function information, management department information, and communication protocol information, the service processing apparatus 20 having the same function as the received attribute information function is used. Thus, the service processing apparatus 20 having the same management department and supporting the same communication protocol is searched. If the received attribute information includes installation location information, it is possible to search for a service processing device 20 that is the same as the installation location or that is installed within a predetermined range from the installation location. .

  In step 302, it is determined whether a plurality of service processing apparatuses 20 have been searched. When it is determined that a plurality of search is not performed, that is, when the number of searched service processing devices 20 is one, the service processing device 20 is uniquely determined as a transmission destination of the instruction sheet.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 302 that a plurality of searches have been performed, the search results are sorted in step 304 according to a predetermined priority order. Here, the priority order is determined according to the attribute information, and the priority order information is preset in the search server 40. For example, the service processing device 20 that is closer to the service processing device 20 that issued the search request signal may have a higher priority, or the service processing device 20 having a higher capability may have a higher priority. Also good. As a result of the sorting, the service processing device 20 with the highest priority is determined as the transmission destination.

  When the device search is completed by the subroutine, in the main routine of FIG. 6, in step 204, the determined transmission destination is transmitted as a search result. The sort results are stored in a memory (not shown) until a notification that the transmission of the instruction sheet is completed from the service processing apparatus 20 that is the search request source, or until a predetermined time elapses.

  As a result, the service processing apparatus 20 that has made the search request can acquire the search result, and can transmit an instruction to the destination service processing apparatus 20 indicated in the search result ( Step 110 of FIG. If the transmission of the instruction is completed normally, a notification of transmission completion is transmitted from the service processing device 20 to the search server 40.

  Here, if the destination service processing device 20 is not activated or the instruction sheet is not received due to a failure of the device or the like, although not shown, the transmission source service processing device 20 is omitted. Can make a re-search request to the search server 40. The search server 40 that has received the re-search request refers to the memory (not shown), and if there is one service processing device 20 searched by the previous search request, designates the service processing device 20 that performs the next service. A notification indicating that there is no service processing device 20 that matches the attribute information to be transmitted is transmitted. Further, if there are a plurality of service processing devices 20 searched by the previous search request, the service processing device having the highest priority is obtained from the result sorted according to the priority order, except for the transmission destination from which the instruction is not received. 20 is determined as a transmission destination, and the transmission destination is transmitted as a search result. Thereby, the service processing apparatus 20 can transmit the instruction sheet to an alternative transmission destination.

  Here, the search server 40 has been described with respect to an example in which, when there are a plurality of searched service processing devices 20, the destination having the highest priority among the plurality of service processing devices 20 is transmitted as a search result. The result sorted according to the above may be transmitted as a search result. As a result, the service processing device 20 transmits data in order from the service processing device 20 with the highest priority until the transmission is normally completed based on the sorted result without making a re-search request to the search server 40. You can change the destination and send instructions.

  As described above, since the instruction sheet is transmitted to the transmission destination searched and determined based on the attribute information, the cooperation information can be transmitted with high certainty and the cooperation process can be performed smoothly.

  In other words, when the service processing apparatus that performs the next service is fixed and predetermined in the instruction sheet as in the past, the cooperation processing is interrupted if the service processing apparatus is not operating, As in the present invention, by searching for the transmission destination based on the attribute information, it is possible to search for a service processing apparatus that can perform the next service. Since the instruction sheet can be transmitted to another service processing apparatus (and an operating service processing apparatus) that can perform alternative processing, it is possible to prevent the cooperation process from being interrupted.

  Further, since the transmission destination can be specified at the attribute level, it is not necessary to specify the transmission destination when creating the instruction, and the instruction can be easily created.

  In the above embodiment, when a plurality of service processing devices 20 are searched based on the attribute information, the service processing device 20 with the highest priority is determined as the transmission destination, and an instruction is sent to the transmission destination. The example of transmission has been described. However, if the next service can be distributedly processed by a plurality of service processing devices 20, an instruction can be transmitted to the plurality of searched service processing devices 20. . In this case, information on the next service (in the example of the instruction sheet shown in FIG. 2, information on the processing content of the next service) is also transmitted together with the search request signal and attribute information.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a device search processing subroutine when a plurality of service processing devices 20 are set as transmission destinations. In FIG. 8, the same steps as those in FIG. 7 are denoted by the same step numbers as those in FIG.

  If it is determined in step 302 that there is only one service processing device 20 that has been searched, the service processing device 20 is uniquely determined as the destination of the instruction sheet, so the processing in steps 310 to 314 is performed. I will not. On the other hand, if it is determined that there are a plurality of searched service processing devices 20, in step 310, the next service can be parallelized, that is, the next service is paralleled by the plurality of service processing devices 20. Determine whether the service can be distributed. Whether or not the service can be parallelized is set in advance for each type of service. For example, services such as copying and printing are preset as services that can be parallelized.

  If it is determined in step 310 that parallelization is not possible, in step 314, sorting is performed according to a predetermined priority order to determine a transmission destination. This process is performed in the same manner as the process in step 304 above.

  If it is determined in step 310 that parallel processing is possible, in step 312, each searched service processing device 20 is determined as a transmission destination of the instruction sheet. Here, the dispersion ratio is assumed to be equal. For example, in the case where the next service is a service that prints 200 copies based on document data, assuming that four service processing devices 20 are searched, each service processing device 20 prints 50 copies each. Distribute the processing of the services equally.

  The search server 40 transmits the destination determined as described above to the service processing apparatus 20 that is the search request source (FIG. 6, step 204). When the service processing device 20 receives the search result, the service processing device 20 changes the description of the processing content information of the next service in the instruction so that the next service is distributedly processed by the plurality of service processing devices 20 from the search result. (In the above-described example, the number of copies is changed from 200 to 50), the instructions are copied by the number of destinations, and the instructions are transmitted to each of the plurality of service processing devices 20 indicated in the search results. (FIG. 5, step 110).

  In this way, by determining a plurality of service processing devices 20 searched based on attribute information as transmission destinations and transmitting instructions so that the next service is distributedly processed by the plurality of service processing devices 20 The time required for the cooperation process can be shortened, and the process becomes efficient.

  In the above description, an example in which the next service is uniformly distributed by the plurality of service processing apparatuses 20 has been described. However, each service processing apparatus 20 may perform processing by changing the distribution ratio.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a device search processing subroutine when a plurality of service processing devices 20 are transmission destinations and the distribution ratio of each service processing device 20 is changed. In FIG. 9, steps that perform the same processing as in FIG. 8 are assigned the same step numbers as in FIG. 8, and descriptions thereof are omitted.

If it is determined in step 310 that parallelization is possible, a distribution ratio is calculated for each service processing device 20 in step 320. Specifically, it is calculated from the attribute information capability and availability information of each service processing device 20 stored in the service storage unit 74. Here, a case will be described as an example where two service processing devices 20a and 20b are searched from the attribute information. When the capacity (printing speed) of the service processing apparatus 20a is 20 ppm and the operation rate is 10%, the capacity of the service processing apparatus 20b is 30 ppm and the operation ratio is 60%, the dispersion ratio is calculated as follows. To do.
Service processing device 20a: (1-0.1) × 20 = 18
Service processing device 20b: (1-0.6) × 30 = 12.
In step 322, the searched service processing apparatuses 20a and 20b are determined as transmission destinations of the next service. The dispersion ratio follows the above calculated ratio.

  The search server 40 transmits the distribution ratio calculated together with the transmission destination determined as described above to the service processing device 20 that is the search request source (FIG. 6, step 204). When the service processing device 20 receives the search result, the service processing device 20 describes the processing content information of the next service in the instruction sheet so that the next service is distributedly processed by the plurality of service processing devices 20a and 20b. change.

In the above-described example, when the number of copies is 200, the number of copies to be printed by the service processing apparatuses 20a and 20b is derived from the received distribution ratio as follows.
Service processing device 20a: 200 × 18 / (18 + 12) = 120 copies Service processing device 20b: 200 × 12 / (18 + 12) = 80 copies The search request source service processing device 20 copies instructions for the number of destinations. Then, the number of print copies described in the instruction sheet transmitted to the service processing device 20a is changed to 120 copies, and the number of print copies described in the instruction sheet transmitted to the service processing device 20b is changed to 80 copies. It transmits to apparatus 20a, 20b (Figure 110, step 110).

  In this way, by calculating the distribution ratio for each service processing device 20 and transmitting instructions so that the distributed processing is performed at the calculated distribution ratio, processing is performed according to the capabilities of each service processing device 20. Since it can be distributed, the time required for cooperative processing can be shortened, and the processing becomes efficient.

  In the above description, an example in which any one or all of the searched service processing devices 20 are determined as transmission destinations has been described. However, depending on the operating state of each service processing device 20, a service processing device that is inappropriate as a transmission destination. You may make it exclude 20 from a search result.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a device search processing subroutine in the case of performing processing for excluding the service processing device 20 inappropriate as a transmission destination from the transmission destination in addition to the processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. In FIG. 10, steps that perform the same processing as in FIG. 7 are assigned the same step numbers as in FIG. 7, and descriptions thereof are omitted.

  If it is determined in step 302 that the searched service processing apparatus 20 is one, the processes in steps 330 to 334 are not performed. On the other hand, if it is determined that there are a plurality of retrieved service processing devices 20, the current status of each retrieved service processing device 20 is acquired in step 330. Specifically, information on the processing content of the service being processed and waiting for processing is acquired from each service processing device 20. In step 332, using the acquired information, it is determined whether or not each service processing device 20 can perform the next service, and the service processing device 20 determined to be unable to perform the next service is searched. Exclude from results.

  For example, the processing time of the job being processed and the job waiting to be processed is determined based on the acquired processing content information of the service being processed and waiting for processing and the capability of each service processing device 20 stored in the service storage unit 74. The time until each service processing device 20 becomes available is calculated from the calculation result. Furthermore, for devices whose calculated time exceeds the threshold, it can be determined that the next service cannot be performed, and is excluded from the search results. The threshold can be set in advance, or the processing time of the entire corresponding job flow can be acquired from the service processing apparatus 20 that is the search request source, and the processing time can be used as the threshold.

  Further, when there is a service (for example, time-designated printing) whose processing time is specified among the services waiting for processing acquired from the service processing devices 20, the processing of the time and the next service is performed. If the time overlaps, it may be determined that the next service cannot be performed, and the service processing apparatus 20 may be excluded from the search result.

  In step 336, the remaining service processing devices 20 are sorted according to a predetermined priority order to determine a transmission destination.

  In this way, based on the operating state of each service processing device 20, the service processing device 20 that is inappropriate as the transmission destination, that is, the service processing device 20 that is determined to be unable to perform the next service is excluded from the transmission destination. As a result, the instruction sheet can be transmitted to the service processing apparatus 20 that is most suitable as an apparatus for performing the next service, so that the cooperation process can be performed smoothly and efficiently without interruption.

  Note that the processing of steps 330 to 332 is added to the flowcharts of FIGS. 8 and 9, and even when the next service is distributed, the service processing apparatus 20 inappropriate as a transmission destination is excluded from the transmission destination. You can also

[Second Embodiment]
In the first embodiment described above, an example in which the search server 40 searches for the instruction destination is described. However, the service processing apparatus searches for the instruction destination without using the search server 40. Thus, the transmission destination may be determined.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the service processing apparatus 30 according to the present embodiment. The service processing apparatus 30 of the present embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment except that the service storage unit 74 provided in the search server 40 of the first embodiment is provided in the service processing apparatus 30. It is the same structure as the service processing apparatus 20 of the form.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a cooperation processing routine performed by the service processing apparatus 30 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 12, steps that perform the same processing as in FIG. 5 are assigned the same step numbers as in FIG. 5, and descriptions thereof are omitted.

  In step 104, the attribute information for designating the transmission destination of the next service is read out, and in step 105, a device search processing subroutine is executed. Since this device search processing subroutine is the same as the device search processing subroutine of step 202 described in the first embodiment, a description thereof will be omitted.

  In step 110, an instruction is transmitted to the transmission destination searched and determined in step 105.

  Also in this embodiment, the same effect as in the first embodiment can be obtained. Furthermore, in this embodiment, transmission of a search request signal and attribute information to the search server 40, and transmission of information on the next service used for determining whether or not parallelization in step 310 of FIGS. 8 and 9 is performed. It can be unnecessary.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various design changes can be made within the scope described in the claims.

  For example, a search level may be specified in each piece of attribute information for specifying a service processing apparatus that performs each service in the instruction sheet. For example, when the attribute information in the instruction includes information on the function, management department, and communication protocol, for example, the search level is set to the required level for the function and communication protocol, and the search level is set for the management department. Is specified as an optional level. As a result, a service processing apparatus having the same function as that specified in the instruction sheet and supporting the same communication protocol is searched. In addition, if there is a service processing apparatus with the same management department among service processing apparatuses that satisfy the attribute information of the required level, the service processing apparatus is searched as a suitable service processing apparatus as a transmission destination. Is not present on the network, a service processing apparatus that satisfies only essential level attribute information is searched for as a transmission destination candidate. Thereby, it is possible to search for a more suitable service processing apparatus. When the destination is finally determined from the retrieved service processing apparatus, the same processing as in each of the above embodiments may be performed.

  Even if it is such a structure, while being able to acquire the effect similar to the said embodiment, a transmission destination can be searched and determined more flexibly.

FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a document processing system according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating a cooperation state of each service processing apparatus. . It is a figure which shows an example of a structure of an instruction document. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the service processing apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a search server. It is the flowchart which showed the cooperation processing routine performed with the service processing apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the main routine of the search process performed with a search server. It is the flowchart which showed the apparatus search processing subroutine. It is the flowchart which showed the modification of the apparatus search processing subroutine. It is the flowchart which showed the modification of the apparatus search processing subroutine. It is the flowchart which showed the modification of the apparatus search processing subroutine. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the service processing apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the cooperation processing routine performed with the service processing apparatus of 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

20, 30 Service processing device 40 Search server 50 Control unit 52 GUI
54 communication control unit 56 service processing unit 58 memory 70 control unit 72 communication control unit 74 service storage unit

Claims (12)

Receiving means for receiving cooperation information including processing information for cooperatively processing a service that performs predetermined processing on document data and attribute information for designating each of the service processing devices that perform the linked services; ,
Service processing means for performing a predetermined service based on the processing information in the cooperation information received by the receiving means;
The service processing apparatus is searched based on attribute information for designating a service processing apparatus that performs a service next to the service performed by the service processing means in the cooperation information received by the receiving means, and the searched service Determining means for determining a transmission destination for transmitting the cooperation information from a processing device;
Transmitting means for transmitting the cooperation information to the transmission destination determined by the determining means;
A service processing apparatus.   The determining means determines the one service processing apparatus as a transmission destination when there is one searched service processing apparatus, and determines the plurality of services when there are a plurality of searched service processing apparatuses. The service processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the processing apparatuses is determined as a transmission destination.   In the case where there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determining means determines a service processing device having the highest priority among the searched service processing devices as a transmission destination according to a predetermined priority order. The service processing apparatus according to claim 2.   If the transmitted cooperation information is not received by the transmission destination service processing device, the determination means has the highest priority except for the transmission destination service processing device among the searched service processing devices. The service processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a service processing apparatus having a higher value is determined as a transmission destination.   In the case where there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determination means uses the plurality of service processing devices as a transmission destination so that the next service is distributed and processed by the plurality of service processing devices. The service processing device according to claim 2, wherein the service processing device is determined.   In the case where there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determining means obtains the operating status of each of the searched service processing devices and cannot perform the next service from the operating status. 6. The service processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the service processing apparatus determined to be excluded from the transmission destination. A cooperative processing system including a plurality of service processing devices and a search device,
The service processing device includes:
Receiving means for receiving cooperation information including processing information and attribute information for designating each service processing apparatus that performs the associated services;
Service processing means for performing a predetermined service based on the processing information in the cooperation information received by the receiving means;
Attribute information for designating a service processing apparatus that performs a service next to the service performed by the service processing means in the cooperation information received by the receiving means is sent to the search device and the cooperation information An acquisition means for performing a search request for instructing a search for a transmission destination, and acquiring a search result for the search request from the search device;
A transmission unit that transmits the cooperation information to the transmission destination indicated in the search result acquired by the acquisition unit;
Have
The search device includes:
In response to a search request from the service processing device, the service processing device is searched based on the attribute information transmitted from the service processing device, and the transmission destination of the cooperation information is determined from the searched service processing device Means,
Search result transmission means for transmitting the transmission destination determined by the determination means to the service processing apparatus as a search result for the search request;
A collaborative processing system.   The determining means determines the one service processing apparatus as a transmission destination when there is one searched service processing apparatus, and determines the plurality of services when there are a plurality of searched service processing apparatuses. The cooperative processing system according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the processing devices is determined as a transmission destination.   In the case where there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determining means determines a service processing device having the highest priority among the searched service processing devices as a transmission destination according to a predetermined priority order. The cooperative processing system according to claim 8. The acquisition means, when the transmitted cooperation information is not received by the transmission destination service processing device, requests the re-search to search the search device except for the transmission destination service processing device. And
In response to a re-search request from the service processing device, the determination means sets the service processing device with the highest priority among the searched service processing devices as the transmission destination except for the service processing device of the transmission destination. The cooperative processing system according to claim 9, which is determined.   In the case where there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determination means uses the plurality of service processing devices as a transmission destination so that the next service is distributed and processed by the plurality of service processing devices. 9. The cooperative processing system according to claim 8, wherein the cooperative processing system is determined.   In the case where there are a plurality of searched service processing devices, the determining means obtains the operating status of each of the searched service processing devices and cannot perform the next service from the operating status. The cooperative processing system according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein a service processing device determined to be excluded from the transmission destination.

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