JP2007053558A - Composite machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a composite machine with which an application program of plug-in can be utilized, after being customized freely, in matching with the purpose of each user. <P>SOLUTION: When some user and other user log in a composite machine and utilize common applications, the common applications are actuated in parallel and image processing jobs designated by respective users are executed individually. When the application utilized is not a common application but is a non-common application, it is newly installed on a hard disk. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a multifunction peripheral that provides various image processing services such as a printer, a copy, a scan, and a facsimile.

Many multifunction devices are preinstalled with various service application programs that provide image processing services such as a printer application, a copy application, a scan application, and a facsimile application, and these service application programs respond to instructions from the user. Various image processing services by generating jobs and controlling hardware resources under arbitration by an OS (Operating System).
In addition, this type of MFP can use optional functions that cannot be realized with preinstalled service application programs by installing plug-ins such as OCR (Optical Character Recognition) programs later. (For this type of technology, see Patent Documents 1 to 3).
JP-A-2005-044000 JP-A-10-333891 JP-A-11-2127770

By the way, the above-mentioned multifunction peripheral is installed in a convenience store, etc., and is opened to an unspecified number of users, and the multifunction peripheral is customized with a plug-in application program that matches each user's purpose and used. Realization is desired.
However, it is not preferable for each user to use another application program as it is for customizing the multifunction peripheral from the viewpoint of confidentiality and the storage capacity of the multifunction peripheral itself.
The present invention has been devised under such a background, and the plug-in application program is freely customized according to each user's purpose while considering confidentiality and finite storage capacity. The purpose is to provide a multifunction device that can be used above.

  A multifunction peripheral according to a preferred aspect of the present invention includes a storage unit for installing a shared application program, which is an application program that can be commonly used by a plurality of users, and a shared application program installed in the storage unit in parallel. And a platform that individually executes various image processing jobs according to the instructions of the respective users using the activated shared application.

  In this aspect, an accepting unit that accepts login operations and logout operations to a user's own device by a plurality of users, and an application that can be selected by the user when the login operation is accepted from a user with the accepting unit A login time processing means for presenting various types of programs, and when the type of the shared application program is selected by the user from among the various types presented, the shared application program of the selected type is already installed in the storage means First judging means for judging whether or not the shared application program is installed and activated, and when the first judging means judges that the shared application program is already installed and activated in the storage means, the shared application program The above Installation means for newly installing in a free area of the means, and when the accepting means accepts a logout operation from the user, all or part of the shared application program installed in the storage means is uninstalled and a predetermined logout is performed. Logout processing means for performing processing may be further provided.

  Further, when the type of a non-shared application program that is not a shared application program is selected by the certain user from among the various types presented, the installation unit stores the selected type of application program in a free area of the storage unit. You may make it install newly.

  The system further comprises second determination means for determining whether or not each of the one or more program modules forming the selected type of application program is already installed in the storage means. When the second determination unit determines that all or a part of one or more program modules forming the program are not yet installed in the storage unit, a program module that is not installed is installed in the storage unit It may be.

  Installed in the storage means when the capacity of the free space of the storage means falls below a predetermined value, when the acceptance means accepts a logout operation from the user, or when a predetermined time length has elapsed An erasing unit for erasing all or part of the application program may be further provided.

  Further, the erasing unit may individually count the activation frequency of each application program stored in the storage unit, and may delete the application programs in order from the least activated frequency.

  Each program module forming the application program stored in the storage means may be individually counted and deleted in order from the application program that reduces the total amount of program modules to be deleted.

  In addition, an application program having a high activation frequency may be installed in the storage unit in advance.

  The installation unit may read the selected type of application program from an information storage medium storing various types of application programs and install the application program in the storage unit.

  The installation means may receive the selected type of application program from a server device storing various types of application programs and install the application program in the storage means.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a multi-function machine that allows a plug-in application program to be customized and used according to the purpose of each user.

(Embodiment of the Invention)
An embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The image processing service system according to the present embodiment provides the following four services by a multifunction peripheral installed in a store such as a convenience store.
(1) Scan Service This is a service for converting an image scanned from a paper medium into image data and storing it in a recording medium.
(2) Copy service This is a service for generating a copy by printing an image scanned from a paper medium on one or more other paper media.
(3) FAX service This is to print the image transmitted via the telephone line to the address of its own device on a paper medium and output it, and to scan the image scanned from the paper medium to the external address via the telephone line It is a service transmitted by.
(4) Print service This is a service for printing an image transmitted to the address of its own device via a network on a paper medium and outputting it.
Note that these four services are provided only to users who have previously performed offline service subscription procedures. Then, an IC card storing a user ID for identifying each user is distributed to each user who has performed the subscription application procedure.

  FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image processing service system according to the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, this system is formed by connecting a plurality of multifunction peripherals 10 and a server device 20 via a network 90.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a schematic hardware configuration of the multifunction machine 10. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the multifunction machine 10 includes a scan device 11, a print device 12, a communication device 13, a user interface (hereinafter referred to as “UI”) device 14, a control unit 15, and a hard disk 16.
The scan device 11 is a generic name for a group of devices mounted to realize image scan control, such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) and a light source.
The print device 12 is a generic name for a group of devices mounted to realize image print control, such as a photosensitive drum and a charger.
The communication device 13 is a generic name for a group of devices such as a modem and various interface units that are mounted to realize communication control with an external node.
The UI device 14 is a generic name for a group of devices mounted to realize UI control, such as a touch panel and a touch screen display. The UI device 14 includes an IC card reader that reads a user ID from each user's IC card.

The control unit 15 includes a RAM, a ROM, a CPU, and the like.
In addition to an operating system (hereinafter referred to as “OS”), the hard disk 16 includes four application programs (hereinafter referred to as “basic applications”) including a scan service application, a copy service application, a FAX service application, and a print service application. Called) is pre-installed. The OS and basic application stored in the hard disk 16 are activated by the control unit 15. Here, “activation” in the present embodiment means reading the program code into the RAM of the same unit 15 so that the CPU of the control unit 15 can interpret it.

  The control unit 15 that activates the OS and the basic application drives the device according to an image processing job that is a collection of processes for providing various image processing services. For example, when a user instructs scanning of a document via the UI device 14, a scan job that is one of image processing jobs is generated, and an instruction is transmitted from the OS to execute the job, and a predetermined scan device or the like is specified. The device is driven. In the following description, each device, control unit 15, OS, and basic application installed to execute the image processing job are collectively referred to as “platform”.

The hard disk 16 stores an execution result management database 16a and a setting management database 16b.
The execution result management database 16a is an aggregate of a plurality of records each corresponding to a user who has logged in to the own device up to a predetermined time before (for example, “2 hours ago”). Each record constituting this database has two fields of “user index” and “job execution result”. In the “user index” field, user IDs of users who have logged in to their own devices (including users who have already logged out) up to a predetermined time before are stored. In the “job execution result” field, data obtained as an execution result of an image processing job according to an instruction of each logged-in user (for example, image file data obtained as an execution result of a scan job) is stored. In this embodiment, after a user who has logged in to the multifunction peripheral 10 gives an instruction for an image processing job and logs out before the execution result is obtained, the execution result of the job can be acquired when the user logs in again later. It has become. In the “Job Execution Result” field, data obtained as an execution result of the image processing job is stored until the user who logged out without obtaining the result of the image processing job related to his / her instruction is logged in again. Will be. If there is no re-login for a predetermined time length, the record itself storing the execution result data is deleted from the execution result management database 16a.

  The setting management database 16b is an aggregate of a plurality of records each corresponding to a user who has logged in to his / her device and has not uninstalled the plug-in application used by himself / herself at the time of login. Each record constituting this database has two fields of “user index” and “setting history”. A user ID is stored in the “user index” field. In the “setting history” field, an application ID indicating the type of a plug-in application installed for use by the user and a pair of setting data indicating the contents of various settings made by the user for the application are stored. . The plug-in application and its settings will be described later.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a schematic hardware configuration of the server device 20. As shown in the figure, the server device 20 includes a control unit 21, a hard disk 22, and a communication interface 23.
The control unit 21 includes a CPU, RAM, and ROM.
The hard disk 22 stores a license management database 22a and an application database 22b.

  The license management database 22a is an aggregate of a plurality of records each corresponding to each user. Each of the records forming this database has three fields of “user index”, “purchased application”, and “login flag”. The user ID of each user is stored in the “user index” field. The “purchased application” field stores application IDs of one or a plurality of plug-in applications that each user has purchased in advance through an offline procedure. In the “logged-in flag” field, data “1” representing that when the user is logged in to any one of the MFPs 10 is stored.

  The application database 22b is a collection of a plurality of records each corresponding to a plug-in application. The plug-in application is an application program that is downloaded in accordance with a user's customization operation in order to expand the function of the basic application of the multifunction machine 10.

Several plug-in applications prepared in the application database 22b of the server device 20 will be exemplified.
a Logo Composition Application This plug-in application extends the function of the copy service application, and synthesizes a predetermined logo (for example, a company logo) on an image scanned by the application and then prints it on a paper medium.
b OCR Application This plug-in application extends the function of the scan service application, and stores text data obtained by performing character recognition processing on image data of an image scanned by the application in a recording medium.
c Document Transfer Application This plug-in application extends the function of the scan service application, and transmits the image data of the image scanned by the application to the address specified by the user via the network 90 according to a specific protocol. .

These various plug-in applications can be set by the user after being installed in the multifunction machine 10. For example, in the case of a logo composition application, it is left to the user to set the logo composition position to be the upper part, the lower part, the left part, or the right part of the paper medium. .
Each record forming the application database 22b has two fields of “application index” and “application data”. The application ID of each plug-in application is stored in the “application index” field. In the “application data” field, plug-in application data is stored.

Here, the plug-in application is of a type that can be activated in parallel by the platform of the multi-function peripheral 10, that is, one plug-in application installed on the hard disk 16 is read into different areas of the RAM in the control unit 15 to perform multitasking. There are types that can be processed and types that cannot be activated. In the case of the latter type of plug-in application, it is necessary to individually install the same plug-in application in another area of the hard disk 16 when it is used by a plurality of users. In the following description, the former type of plug-in application is appropriately referred to as “shared application”, and the latter type of plug-in application is appropriately referred to as “non-shared application”.
The plug-in application stored in each record of this database is installed in the hard disk 16 according to the customization operation of the user who has logged in the multifunction machine 10 and is uninstalled when the user logs out. If the same plug-in application is activated to execute an image processing job according to another user's instruction, it is left in the MFP 10 without being uninstalled. Details will be described later in the explanation of operation.

4 to 7 are flowcharts showing the operation of this embodiment.
The process shown in the figure is started when a user visits a store where the multifunction device 10 is installed and causes the IC card reader of the multifunction device 10 to read the user ID of his / her IC card.
When the IC card reader reads the user ID, the control unit 15 of the multi-function peripheral 10 determines whether or not a record having the user ID stored in the “user index” field is in the execution result management database 16a (S100).
If the user has logged in before the predetermined time, and logged out without obtaining the execution result of the image processing job related to the instruction at the time of login, the determination result of this step is “YES”, Otherwise, the determination result in this step is “NO”.

In step 100, the control unit 15 that has determined that there is a record storing the user ID reads out and outputs the execution result data stored in the “job execution result” field of the record (S110). For example, if an image file obtained as a result of executing a scan job is stored, the image file is read and stored in an information storage medium prepared by the user.
In step 100, the control unit 15 that has determined that there is no record storing the user ID proceeds to the next step without executing step 110.

Subsequently, the control unit 15 transmits a login procedure request including the user ID read by the IC card reader to the server device 20 (S120).
Upon receiving the login procedure request, the control unit 21 of the server device 20 determines whether or not there is a record in the license management database 22a in which the user ID included in the procedure request is stored in the “user index” field (S130).

In step 130, the control unit 21 that has determined that there is no record storing the user ID transmits a login rejection response to the multifunction machine 10 (S 140). The control unit 15 of the multifunction machine 10 that has received the login rejection response displays a message indicating that the login is rejected on the touch screen display (S150).
On the other hand, in step 130, the control unit 21 that has determined that there is a record storing the user ID writes “1” data in the “login flag” field of the record, and then combines the login completion response. It transmits to the machine 10 (S160).

Upon receiving the login completion response, the control unit 15 of the MFP 10 determines whether or not there is a record in the setting management database 16b in which the user ID read by the IC card reader is stored in the “user index” field (S170).
If the plug-in application used when the user logged in in the past has not been uninstalled, the determination result of this step is “YES”, otherwise the determination result of this step is “NO”. become.

  In step 170, the control unit 15 having determined that there is a record storing the user ID displays an application restart inquiry screen on the touch screen display (S180). In the upper part of the application restart inquiry screen, a message with the content “A program of the application used before remains. Would you like to restart this application?” Is displayed. Below that, buttons labeled “Restart” and “Do not restart” are displayed.

  When it is determined in step 170 that there is no record storing the user ID, or when the “do not restart” button is selected in step 180, the control unit 15 displays the customization inquiry screen on the touch screen display. (S190). In the upper part of this screen, a message “Do you want to customize the service contents by installing the application again?” Is displayed. Furthermore, buttons labeled “customize” or “not customize” are displayed below the buttons.

The user who refers to the customization inquiry screen selects any button.
When the “customize” button is selected, the control unit 15 transmits an application presentation request including the user ID read by the IC card reader to the server device 20 (S200).
Upon receiving the application presentation request, the control unit 21 of the server device 20 identifies a record in which the user ID included in the application presentation request is stored in the “user index” field from the license management database 22a. All application IDs stored in the field of “completed application” are read (S210).

The control unit 21 transmits an application presentation response including the application ID read in step 210 to the multifunction machine 10 (S220).
The control unit 15 of the multifunction machine 10 that has received the application presentation response displays an application presentation screen obtained by embedding the application ID included in the application presentation response in a predetermined template on the touch screen display (S230).
In the upper part of the application display screen, a message with the content “The types of applications you can use are as follows. Please select the application to be installed.” Is displayed. Below that, application IDs of one or more plug-in applications are presented as a list.

The user who refers to the application presentation screen selects one or a plurality of application IDs on the list.
When the application ID is selected by the user, the control unit 15 of the multifunction machine 10 transmits a download request including the selected application ID to the server device 20 (S240).
The control unit 21 of the server device 20 that has received the download request identifies the record in which the application ID included in the download request is stored in the “application index” field from the application database 22b, and the “application data” of the identified record. The plug-in application stored in the field is read (S250).

The control unit 21 transmits the plug-in application read in step 250 to the multi function device 10 (S260).
The control unit 15 of the MFP 10 that has received the plug-in application determines whether the plug-in application is a shared application or a non-shared application (S270).
In step 270, the control unit 15 that determines that the plug-in application received from the server device 20 is a shared application determines whether or not the same application as the plug-in application has already been installed and activated in the hard disk 16. (S280).

When it is determined in step 270 that the plug-in application received from the server device 20 is a non-shared application, or in step 280, the same application as the plug-in application received from the server device 20 is installed in the hard disk 16. If it is determined that the plug-in application is activated, the control unit 15 installs the plug-in application in the free space of the hard disk 16 (S290).
In step 280, the control unit 15 that has determined that the plug-in application received from the server device 20 is installed on the hard disk 16 but has not been activated does not execute step 290 and does not install the received plug-in application. Continue to the next step.

The control unit 15 activates the plug-in application installed on the hard disk 16 (S300).
Here, when the same plug-in application received is installed and activated, the control unit 15 activates the plug-in application in parallel. That is, the same plug-in application is newly read into another area of the RAM.

On the other hand, when the “restart” button is selected on the application restart inquiry screen displayed in step 180, the control unit 15 records in the setting management database 16b corresponding to the user ID read by the IC card reader. After reading the application ID / setting data pair from the “setting history” field, the record is deleted from the database (S310).
The control unit 15 activates the plug-in application corresponding to the application ID read in step 310, and further restores the setting contents according to the setting data read in the same step (S320). When the “Restart” button is selected on the application restart inquiry screen, the plug-in application used when the user who made the selection previously logged in remains on the hard disk 16 without being uninstalled. Therefore, it is possible to restore the setting contents by starting immediately without performing a new installation.

The control unit 15 that has activated the plug-in application in step 300 or 320 displays the service menu screen on the touch screen display (S330). On the service menu screen, buttons labeled “scan service”, “copy service”, “fax service”, and “print service” are displayed, and below that, a button labeled “logout” is displayed. The
If the “do not customize” button is selected on the customization inquiry screen displayed in step 190, the process proceeds to step 330 without executing steps 200 to 320, and the service menu screen is displayed.

When the user selects a service button on the service menu screen, the control unit 15 displays a service-specific interface screen of the selected service on the touch screen display (S340).
The display contents of the interface screen for each service differ depending on the selected service. For example, in the case of the interface screen for each service of the scan service, in addition to a button for instructing the start of scanning, a setting column such as resolution is displayed. If the interface screen is provided for each service of the copy service, a setting field for the number of copies, magnification, paper size, etc. is provided in addition to a button for instructing the start of copying. Further, the “customize” button is selected on the customization inquiry screen, and the processing from step 180 to step 300 is executed, or the “restart” button is selected on the application restart inquiry screen and step 310 is executed. If step 320 is executed, the type of the plug-in application activated in step 300 or 320 such as “logo synthesis application”, “OCR application”, “document transfer application” is the interface screen for each service. Is also displayed.

  When the service-specific interface screen is displayed, the user causes the platform to execute various image processing jobs by operating the touch panel or the touch screen display. At this time, if the type of the plug-in application is displayed on the service-specific interface screen, various settings such as adjusting the logo synthesis position are made as appropriate (if restored in step 320, the resetting is It is also possible to execute an image processing job using the function of the plug-in application.

  Regardless of whether or not the execution result of the image processing job according to his / her instruction is completed and the execution result is obtained, the user can perform a logout operation at an arbitrary timing. The logout operation is performed by selecting the “Logout” button on the screen after the display content of the touchscreen display is changed to the service menu screen by operating the touch panel or the touchscreen display.

When a logout operation is performed by the user, the control unit 15 of the multifunction machine 10 determines whether or not an image processing job according to the user's instruction is being executed (S350).
In step 350, the control unit 15 having determined that the image processing job is being executed adds one record to the execution result management database 16a (S360).
Subsequently, the control unit 15 stores the user ID read by the IC card reader in the “user index” field of the record added in step 360 (S370).

Subsequently, the control unit 15 displays a message “There is a job currently being executed. The execution result of this job can be obtained by logging in again within XX hours” on the touch screen display. It is displayed (S380).
In step 310, the control unit 15 having determined that the image processing job has not been executed ends the plug-in application activated in step 300 or 320 (S390). That is, the plug-in application to be terminated is deleted from the RAM of the control unit 15.

The control unit 15 determines whether or not the plug-in application terminated in Step 390 is a shared application (S400).
In step 400, the control unit 15 having determined that the plug-in application is a shared application determines whether the plug-in application has been activated in parallel (S410). That is, it is determined whether or not the same plug-in application has been read out to another area of the RAM.

  When it is determined in step 400 that the plug-in application is not a shared application, or when it is determined in step 410 that the plug-in application has not been activated in parallel, the control unit 15 displays an uninstallation inquiry screen. Is displayed on the touch screen display (S420). On the uninstallation screen inquiry screen, the message “You can uninstall the application you have used. Do you want to uninstall?” Is displayed, and below that, “Uninstall” and “Uninstall” A button labeled "Do not install" is displayed. That is, when the plug-in application used by the user who logs out is a shared application, the uninstallation inquiry is performed only when there is no conflict with the execution of the image processing job according to the instruction of another user.

The user who refers to this screen selects any button. If you plan to use the same plug-in application by logging in again within the specified time, or if you want to eliminate the waiting time required to complete the uninstallation, select “Do not uninstall” while using the plug you used. If the in-module contains data that requires confidentiality, select “Uninstall”.
When “Uninstall” is selected, the control unit 15 of the MFP 10 uninstalls the plug-in application terminated in step 390 from the hard disk 16 (S430).

When it is determined in step 410 that the application has been activated in parallel, or when “Do not uninstall” is selected in step 420, the control unit 15 records in the setting management database 16b. Is added (S440).
The control unit 15 stores the user ID read by the ID card reader in the “user index” field of the record added in step 440 and the application ID of the plug-in application terminated in step 390 and the plug-in application. A pair of setting data indicating the setting contents (for example, setting such as a logo composition position) that the user has performed is stored in the “setting history” field (S450).

In step 430, when the plug-in application is uninstalled according to the selection on the uninstallation inquiry screen, the control unit 15 proceeds to the next step without executing steps 440 and 450.
The control unit 15 transmits a logout procedure request including the user ID read by the IC card reader to the server device 20 (S460). If a message indicating that the execution result of the job currently being executed can be acquired at the time of re-login is displayed in step 380, the process immediately proceeds to step 460 without performing the subsequent processing.

Upon receiving the logout procedure request, the control unit 15 of the server device 20 identifies a record in which the user ID included in the logout procedure request is stored in the “user index” field from the license management database 22a. After erasing the data “1” written in the “middle flag” field, a logout completion response is transmitted to the multifunction machine 10 (S470).
Upon receiving the logout completion response, the control unit 15 of the multifunction machine 10 displays a message indicating that the logout procedure is completed on the touch screen display (S480).

  According to the present embodiment described above, even if the user who has logged in to the multifunction machine 10 logs out without obtaining the execution result of the image processing job according to his / her instruction, the control unit 15 continues to process the image processing job. The data obtained as a result of the execution is stored in the execution result management database 16a. Then, the data stored in the database is output when the user logs in again. Therefore, after a user who has logged in to the multifunction device 10 instructs an image processing job, the multifunction device 10 can be used for other users while logging out until the execution result of the job is obtained. Therefore, the use of the multifunction machine 10 can be made efficient.

When the user logs out while the plug-in application used by a certain user is not uninstalled and remains in the multifunction peripheral 10, the control unit 15 sets setting data indicating various setting contents of the plug-in application by the user Is stored in the setting management database 16b. When the user logs in again and uses the same plug-in application, the setting contents set at the previous login are restored using the setting data in the setting management database 16b. Accordingly, the user who uses the same plug-in application many times does not have to be forced to set it every time the user logs in to the multifunction device 10, so that the use of the multifunction device 10 can be made more efficient.
Furthermore, when the plug-in application provided for use by a plurality of users is a shared application, they are started individually, so that each of the plurality of users can use the application in an independent environment. be able to.

Here, an example of efficient use of the multifunction machine 10 by a plurality of users will be described with reference to FIG.
In FIG. 8, first, the user A logs in to the multifunction machine 10 (operation 1).
User A instructs installation of the plug-in application α, which is one of the non-shared applications (operation 2). As a result, the plug-in application α is installed in the free space of the hard disk 16 of the multifunction machine 10.

User A sets plug-in application α in accordance with his / her purpose of use, and then instructs execution of image processing job a (operation 3). Thereby, the multifunction machine 10 executes the image processing job a, and outputs the execution result when the execution is completed.
After the execution result of the image processing job a is output, the user A logs out from the multifunction machine 10 without uninstalling the plug-in application α (operation 4). As a result, the plug-in application α is left on the hard disk 16 of the multifunction machine 10 and setting data indicating the setting contents is stored in the setting management database 16b.

Next, the user B logs in to the multifunction machine 10 (operation 5).
User B instructs installation of the plug-in application β, which is one of the non-shared applications (operation 6). As a result, the plug-in application β is installed in an empty area of the hard disk 16 of the multifunction machine 10 (an area different from the area where the plug-in application α is installed).
User B sets plug-in application β according to his / her purpose of use, and then instructs execution of image processing job b (operation 7). Thereby, the multifunction machine 10 executes the image processing job b, and outputs the execution result when the execution is completed.
After obtaining the execution result of the image processing job b, the user B uninstalls the plug-in application β and then logs out from the multifunction machine 10 (operation 8).

Next, the user A logs in to the multifunction machine 10 again (operation 9).
The user A instructs to restart the plug-in application α used at the previous login (operation 10). As a result, the MFP 10 restarts the plug-in application α remaining on the hard disk 16, and further restores the setting contents from the setting data in the setting management database 16b. Accordingly, the user A can immediately issue a new image processing job instruction without setting the plug-in application α again.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention can be modified in various ways.
In the above embodiment, the plug-in application used by the user is uninstalled from the hard disk 16 only when consent is obtained from the uninstallation inquiry screen displayed when the user logs out from the multifunction device. As a result, many plug-in applications are accumulated in the hard disk 16 and the storage capacity thereof may be insufficient. On the other hand, when the free area of the hard disk 16 falls below a predetermined value, all or part of the installed plug-in application may be deleted. The plug-in application can be deleted not only when the free space falls below a predetermined value, but also whenever the logged-in user logs out, or every predetermined time length regardless of the user's login or logout. You may do it.

Furthermore, when a plurality of plug-in applications are installed in the hard disk 16, it is preferable to select a plug-in application with a low importance according to a predetermined standard from them and delete them sequentially. For example, the usage frequency of each plug-in application may be aggregated individually and deleted in ascending order of usage frequency, or there may be duplication among program modules that respectively form a plurality of plug-in applications. In some cases, the priority order of deletion may be determined so that more plug-in applications can be used and the number of program modules to be deleted is as large as possible.
The multi-function device 10 in the above-described embodiment downloads an application from the server device 20 and installs it on the hard disk 22. On the other hand, a device such as a DVD drive may be mounted on the multifunction device 10, and the user may bring a DVD disk storing the application into the DVD drive of the multifunction device 10 for installation.

In the above embodiment, the basic application is preinstalled on the hard disk 16 of the multifunction machine 10, and the plug-in application is installed later according to each user's selection. On the other hand, it is not necessary to pre-install all the applications corresponding to the basic applications, and some of them may be installed according to the user's selection. For example, two types of print service applications, version A and version B, are prepared in the server device 20, and either one version of the print service application is downloaded from the server device 20 and installed according to the user's selection. You may make it do. In short, if an application running on the platform is installed according to the customization of the logged-in user and is uninstalled when the user logs out, the application to be pre-installed as part of the platform Any content is acceptable.
In the above-described embodiment, the basic application is preinstalled in the multifunction machine 10, while the plug-in application is installed later according to the user's customization operation. On the other hand, a plug-in application that is frequently used may be preinstalled in the multifunction machine 10 together with the basic application.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image processing service system. FIG. 2 is a schematic hardware configuration diagram of a multifunction machine. It is a hardware schematic block diagram of a server apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the utilization aspect of the multifunction device by multiple users.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Scan device, 12 ... Print device, 13 ... Communication device, 14 ... Device, 14 ... UI device, 15, 21 ... Control part, 16, 22 ... Hard disk, 20 ... Server apparatus, 23 ... Communication interface, 90 ... Network

Claims (10)

Storage means for installing a shared application program, which is an application program that can be commonly used by a plurality of users;
A multi-function peripheral comprising: a platform that activates the shared application program installed in the storage means in parallel, and individually executes various image processing jobs according to instructions of the users using the activated shared application. The multifunction device according to claim 1,
Accepting means for accepting login operations and logout operations to the own device by a plurality of users;
When a login operation is received from a user with the reception unit, a login time processing unit that performs a predetermined login operation and presents various types of application programs that can be selected by the user;
When a type of a shared application program is selected by the user from among the various types presented, a first determination is made as to whether or not a shared application program of the selected type is already installed and activated in the storage means Judgment means,
Installation means for newly installing the shared application program in a free area of the storage means when the first determination means determines that the shared application program is already installed and activated in the storage means;
And a logout time processing means for uninstalling all or part of the shared application program installed in the storage means and performing a predetermined logout process when the accepting means accepts a logout operation from the user. Machine. The multifunction device according to claim 2,
The installation means includes
When a type of a non-shared application program that is not a shared application program is selected by the certain user from among the various types presented, the application program of the selected type is newly installed in a free area of the storage unit. Multifunction machine. The multifunction device according to claim 3,
A second determination means for determining whether or not each of one or a plurality of program modules forming the selected type of application program is already installed in the storage means;
The installation means includes
When the second determining means determines that all or a part of one or a plurality of program modules forming the program module is not yet installed in the storage means, the program module that is not installed is installed in the storage means. A multi-function machine characterized by The multifunction device according to claim 1, wherein:
Installed in the storage means when the capacity of the free space of the storage means falls below a predetermined value, when the accepting means accepts a logout operation from the user, or when a predetermined time length has elapsed A multi-function machine further comprising erasing means for erasing all or part of an application program. The multifunction device according to claim 5,
The erasing means includes
A multi-function device, wherein the activation frequency of each application program stored in the storage means is individually counted and deleted in order from the application program with the lowest activation frequency. The multifunction device according to claim 5,
A multi-function machine, wherein each program module forming an application program stored in the storage means is individually aggregated and deleted in order from an application program that reduces the total amount of program modules to be deleted. The multifunction device according to claim 5,
An application program having a high activation frequency is preinstalled in the storage unit. The multifunction device according to claim 1, wherein:
The installation means includes
A multifunction device, wherein the selected type of application program is read from an information storage medium storing each type of application program and installed in the storage means. The multifunction device according to claim 1, wherein:
The installation means includes
A multifunction device, wherein the selected type of application program is received from a server device storing each type of application program and installed in the storage means.

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