JP2006134045A - Public printing system and method for public printing service - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent falsification of billing information in a public printing system by causing a server and a driver or the like that manage billing to communicate with each other during printing, for the collation of the number of uses and/or the sum of money. <P>SOLUTION: The system comprises a billing management server for managing billing and a printer driver that executes a printing process by communicating with the billing management server during printing. In the system, the printer driver sends a print job to a printer server while in communication with the billing management server. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a public print system that performs printing for a fee according to an amount paid in advance, and a public print service method using the same.

In a so-called public print system or public print service method that executes printing from a user's terminal and obtains an output result from a printing device installed in the shop, as a method of payment adjustment, a method of paying a printing fee at the shop, When printing from a user's terminal, a payment processing method using a credit card number is used. In addition, a so-called prepaid public print system or public print service method that can perform printing within the range of a prepaid fee includes a method of distributing a print processing program including information on the paid fee. (See Patent Document 1)
JP2003-330896

  In the conventional public print system or public print service method, it is necessary to pay a charge for each printing. For this reason, the payment method at the shop requires the delivery of cash, etc., and in the method of payment by credit card from the user's terminal, the personal information including the credit card number input to the terminal is charged through a communication line such as the Internet. There is a security problem because communication is performed with an information processing apparatus that performs processing. In addition, a so-called prepaid public print system or public print service method capable of printing within the range of a prepaid fee includes a method of distributing a print processing program including information on the paid fee. In this case, it is not possible to add a fee when the printing balance is less than the printing fee to be printed, and there is a risk of unauthorized use due to methods such as falsifying fee information in the print processing program. is there.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and provides a convenience to the user by providing a prepaid public print system or public print service method capable of performing printing within the range of a fee paid in advance. Its purpose is to solve security problems and prevent unauthorized use of print processing programs.

  A billing information processing apparatus that manages the number of outputs that can be printed according to the amount paid in advance, a means for generating print data that can be output by a printing apparatus provided in the shop, and an information processing apparatus that manages the number of outputs Means for inputting identification information used for the communication, and means for generating print data if the means for generating the print data communicates with the billing information processing apparatus for managing the number of times of output and is within the allowable number of times of output. Since the information processing apparatus includes the printing apparatus that receives the print data from the information processing apparatus and outputs the print data, the user can perform printing according to the amount paid in advance.

  Also, a billing information processing device that manages the amount paid in advance and the billing amount for printing, a means for generating print data that can be output by the printing device provided in the shop, and a billing information processing that manages the number of times of output In the means for inputting identification information used for communication with the apparatus and the means for generating the print data, a data format (so-called intermediate code) in a format different from the print data to be finally transmitted to the printing apparatus is used. A spool unit for temporarily storing the data, and a despooling unit capable of generating print data to be finally transmitted to the printing apparatus from data temporarily stored in the intermediate code format; and temporarily stored in the intermediate code format A means for determining a charging fee for printing from the collected data and communication with the charging information processing apparatus, and the determined charging fee can be settled In this case, the information processing apparatus includes a processing unit that generates print data, and a printing apparatus that receives the print data from the information processing apparatus and outputs the print data. It is possible to print within the range of the amount.

  An information processing apparatus comprising: means for inputting identification information used for communication with the billing information processing apparatus; means for inputting a plurality of identification information; and means for communicating with the billing information processing apparatus from the plurality of identification information; In addition, it is characterized by having a billing information processing apparatus having means for performing a settlement process according to a paid amount related to a plurality of identification information for settlement of a billing fee, so that even when the user has insufficient balance Thus, printing can be performed within the total range of the newly paid fee.

  As described above, according to the present invention, by using a prepaid public print system or a public print service method that can perform printing a number of times corresponding to a prepaid fee, the user pays a fee for each printing. Convenience is improved because it is necessary. Further, since it is not necessary to input personal information such as a credit card number in order to perform payment processing from the terminal, there is no risk of leakage of personal information. In addition, it is possible to prevent unauthorized use such as falsification of the printable frequency information in the print processing program.

  Furthermore, according to another invention, it is possible to perform a billing process with a fee according to the print contents.

  According to still another invention, even when the balance of the fee paid in advance is smaller than the charging fee for the printing to be performed, it is possible to perform printing by adding the balance.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a print control apparatus (printer driver) as a print data output control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, an authentication key sent by the print data output control apparatus via the Internet, and the acquired authentication key. Overview of a printing system configured by using a billing information processing apparatus (center server) that performs payment processing from a printer, a print server that acquires print data transmitted from the print data output control apparatus, and a printing apparatus (printer) The configuration is shown.

  This public print system is composed of the components described below. 10 is a customer who orders printing (hereinafter referred to as a user), 11 is a computer terminal 11 for placing a print order, 20 is a network such as the Internet, 30 is a center server, 40 and 50 are shops, and 12 is a computer terminal 11 An application that operates above, 13 is a printer driver that operates on the computer terminal 11, 14 is a print data transfer unit that transmits print data generated by the printer driver to the printer server of the shop, and 15 is a document that is desired to be printed. Receives the authentication key sent from the printer driver and manages the number of prints based on the authentication key, 41 is a print server for controlling print data of the document, and 42 is for operating the print server The operation unit 43 prints the print data. A printer. The print server 41, the operation unit 42, and the printer 43 are provided in the shop 40, and a plurality of shops having the same configuration as the shop 40 can exist as shown in the shop 50.

  FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the computer terminal 11 in more detail than FIG. The computer terminal 11 reads a document to be printed as shown in 15 from the outside, and converts the image data generated by the application software 12 having the function of processing the information and the like into the print command of the printer 43. The printer driver 13 is provided.

  In response to the print request from the application software 12, the printer driver 13 uses the recognition key input in advance by the user, and determines whether the number of times of printing is within the number of times that can be output set according to the amount of money that has been received in advance. A billing processing unit 131 that performs inquiring processing and a print data generation unit 133 that generates print data when printing is possible are provided. The generated print data is sent to the print data transfer unit 14 and is sent to the print server 41 via the network 20.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of the embodiment of the present invention.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of a user interface for inputting an authentication key possessed by the printer driver 13. Prior to printing, the user 10 inputs an authentication key to the printer driver using a user interface as shown in the figure. Here, this authentication key is a 20-digit key issued at the time of depositing the usage fee by the user 10 in advance according to a predetermined procedure prior to using the public print system.

  FIG. 5 is a print job confirmation screen presented on the computer terminal 11 when printing is performed.

  FIG. 6 is an example of correspondence data between the authentication key managed by the center server 30 and the remaining number of printable times.

  In the following, details of the present embodiment will be described in order with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In FIG. 1, a user starts application software 12 that operates on a computer terminal 11, and an FD (floppy (registered trademark) disk), an HD (hard disk), a CD-ROM, and a DVD provided in the computer terminal 11. Are read into the application software 12 from a recording medium such as a recording medium or a web server via a network, and interactive processing for information processing, editing, and print ordering is performed. The user can input an authentication key necessary for a print order in advance on the user interface displayed by the printer driver 13 shown in FIG. When the user starts the printing process using the application software 12, the application sequentially performs the printing process for the contents of the document through the printing API provided by the OS until the printing is completed.

  This process will be described with reference to FIG. The printer driver 13 receives the print processing request from the application software 12 via the print API provided by the OS as described above, and proceeds with the processing. First, when a print start request is received, an inquiry is made to the center server as to whether it is within the printable number of times using the authentication key input by the user in the user interface shown in FIG. 4 (S301). The center server obtains the authentication key, searches for correspondence data between the authentication key managed in the center server and the remaining printable number of times, and reduces the remaining printable number of times of the corresponding authentication key by 1 (S302). At this time, if the corresponding authentication key is not found, or if the remaining printable count is smaller than 1, the remaining printable count is not subtracted, and the remaining printable count is processed as -1. Next, the remaining printable number of times corresponding to the authentication key is transmitted to the printer driver, and the printer driver acquires the transmitted remaining printable number of times (S303). If the received remaining number of prints is 0 or more, it is determined that printing is possible (S304), and the process proceeds to S305. Otherwise, the print process is regarded as an error and the print process is regarded as an error (S320). The process ends. If printing is possible, a print command is acquired from the application software 12 via GDI (Graphics Device Interface), which is a part of the functions provided by the OS, and a print job is generated (S305). The generated print job is transmitted to the print server 41 (S306). When the print job is transmitted, the user as shown in FIG. 5 presents information necessary for receiving the printed matter at the shop (S307). The print data transmitted to the print server 41 is printed by the printer 43 (S308). In this way, the user 10 goes to the shop 40 designated when the computer terminal 11 makes a print request, and inputs the JOB ID shown in FIG. 5 from the operation unit 42 of the print server 41 installed in the shop 40. Thus, the printed matter requested from the printer 43 is received.

  Another embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 7 is an extension of the configuration of the computer terminal 11 shown in FIG. 2, and a charging fee calculation unit 132 for newly calculating a charging fee is provided.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of this embodiment.

  FIG. 9 is a print job confirmation screen presented on the computer terminal 11 when printing is performed.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of correspondence data between the authentication key managed by the center server 30 and the remaining amount.

  Next, the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. As in the above-described embodiment, the printer driver 13 receives a print processing request from the application 12 via the print API provided by the OS, and proceeds with the processing. First, the printer driver 13 spools a print processing request from an application in a unique intermediate format (S801). Thereafter, the final output result is determined from the contents of the spool, and the printing fee corresponding to the output result is calculated (S802). Although details are not specifically described here, the calculation of the printing fee includes the paper type (Media), the paper size (Paper size), the duplex (Duplex), the finishing (Finishing), the number of copies (Number of Pages), and the number of printed pages. The printing fee is calculated from information such as (Impression Count), number of printed pages (Number of Pages), page layout (Page Layout), and the like. Next, the calculated charging fee and the recognition key are transmitted to the center server 30, and the center server receives the transmitted information (S803). Based on the received authentication key, the center server searches the correspondence data between the authentication key and the remaining amount shown in FIG. 10, and reduces the billing fee from the remaining amount of the corresponding key (S804). The center server transmits the settlement result for the authentication key to the printer driver, and the printer driver 13 acquires the transmitted settlement result (S805). In the settlement process in S804, if the corresponding authentication key is not found or the remaining amount is smaller than the billing fee, the remaining amount is not subtracted, and the process in S805 returns a result that cannot be settled. . The printer driver 13 determines the settlement result (S806). If the settlement is not successful, the printer driver 13 performs error processing indicating that printing is not possible (S820), and ends the printing process. When the payment is completed, a print job is generated from the spool data (S807), and the print job is transmitted to the print server (S808). Thereafter, the user interface for confirming the print job as shown in FIG. 9 is displayed (S809), and the print data transmitted to the print server 41 is printed by the printer 43 (S810). In this way, the user 10 goes to the shop 40 designated when the computer terminal 11 makes a print request, and inputs the JOB ID shown in FIG. 5 from the operation unit 42 of the print server 41 installed in the shop 40. Thus, the printed matter requested from the printer 43 is received.

  According to another embodiment, a user interface for inputting a sub-authentication key together with an authentication key as shown in FIG. 11 is provided, and if the settlement process cannot be settled with the balance for the authentication key, Check out the balance for the sub-authentication key.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a public print system in an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the computer terminal which comprises some public print systems in the Example of this invention. The processing flow shows an embodiment of the present invention. 4 shows an example of a user interface for inputting an authentication key according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 shows an example of a user interface for confirming a print job in an embodiment of the present invention. 4 shows authentication keys managed by the center server and data of the remaining number of printable times in the embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the computer terminal which comprises some public print systems in the Example of this invention. The processing flow shown in the embodiment of the present invention is shown. 3 shows an example of a user interface for confirming a print job in an embodiment of the present invention. The authentication key managed in the center server in the Example of this invention and the data of the remaining amount are shown. 4 shows an example of a user interface for inputting an authentication key and a sub-authentication key in an embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 User 11 Computer terminal 12 Application software 13 Printer driver 14 Print data transfer part 15 Document 20 Network 30 Center server 40 Shop 41 Print server 42 Operation part 43 Printer

Claims (6)

A billing information processing device that manages the number of times that printing can be performed according to the amount paid in advance;
Means for generating print data that can be output by a printing device provided in the shop;
Means for inputting identification information used for communication with an information processing apparatus for managing the number of outputs;
An information processing apparatus comprising: a means for generating the print data, communicating with a billing information processing apparatus that manages the number of times of output; and means for generating print data if the number is within the number of times that can be output; and printing from the information processing apparatus A public printing system characterized by having a printing device that receives data and outputs it. A billing information processing apparatus for managing a prepaid amount and a print billing amount;
Means for generating print data that can be output by a printing device provided in the shop;
Means for inputting identification information used for communication with the billing information processing apparatus for managing the number of outputs;
The means for generating print data comprises spool means for temporarily storing data in a data format (so-called intermediate code) that is different from the print data that is finally transmitted to the printing apparatus. Despooling means capable of generating print data to be finally transmitted to the printing apparatus from the temporarily stored data;
Means for determining a charging fee for printing from data temporarily stored in the intermediate code format;
An information processing apparatus comprising: means for communicating with the charging information processing apparatus and generating print data when the determined charging fee can be settled;
A public printing system comprising a printing device that receives print data from the information processing device and outputs the print data.   An information processing apparatus comprising: means for inputting identification information used for communication with a billing information processing apparatus; means for inputting a plurality of identification information; and means for communicating with the billing information processing apparatus from the plurality of identification information; 3. The public print system according to claim 2, further comprising a billing information processing apparatus including means for performing settlement processing according to a paid amount related to a plurality of identification information for settlement of charges. A billing information processing device that manages the number of output times that can be printed according to the amount paid in advance;
Means for generating print data that can be output by a printing device provided in the shop;
Means for inputting identification information used for communication with an information processing apparatus that manages the number of times of output;
An information processing apparatus comprising: a means for generating the print data, communicating with a billing information processing apparatus for managing the number of output times; A public print service method comprising a printing device that receives data and outputs the data. A billing information processing apparatus for managing a prepaid amount and a print billing amount;
Means for generating print data that can be output by a printing device provided in the shop;
Means for inputting identification information used for communication with the billing information processing apparatus for managing the number of outputs;
The means for generating print data comprises spool means for temporarily storing data in a data format (so-called intermediate code) that is different from the print data that is finally transmitted to the printing apparatus. Despooling means capable of generating print data to be finally transmitted to the printing apparatus from the temporarily stored data;
Means for determining a charging fee for printing from data temporarily stored in the intermediate code format;
An information processing apparatus comprising: means for communicating with the charging information processing apparatus and generating print data when the determined charging fee can be settled;
A public print service method comprising: a printing apparatus that receives print data from the information processing apparatus and outputs the print data.   An information processing apparatus comprising: means for inputting identification information used for communication with a billing information processing apparatus; means for inputting a plurality of identification information; and means for communicating with the billing information processing apparatus from the plurality of identification information; 6. The public print service method according to claim 5, further comprising a billing information processing apparatus including means for performing settlement processing according to a paid amount related to a plurality of identification information for settlement of charges.

Images