JP2008221626A - Image forming apparatus, and method and processing program for identifying person carrying away output matter - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus capable of identifying a person carrying away output matter, by using a user's job output history as a clue, even under the condition that others' job output histories cannot be checked from an operation panel section. <P>SOLUTION: This image forming apparatus receives instructions from the user having the output matter carried away, so as to extract job history information which the user desires to extract, from all pieces of job history information stored in a storage means, and display it on a display means. When a job is identified from the displayed job history information by the user, a job, the predetermined condition of which is associated with the job identified from all the pieces of job history information, is selected by a job selecting means, so that the user of the selected job can be notified of a predetermined message. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus applied to an MFP (Multi Function Peripherals) connected to a plurality of user terminals, an output object taker specifying method and the specifying processing program implemented in the image forming apparatus.

  In a company, office, or the like, a job processing system is generally constructed by connecting a plurality of user terminals to an image forming apparatus such as an MFP via a network such as a LAN.

  By the way, when a user causes a print job to be processed by the image forming apparatus, the user may forget to take out the output material (print document) discharged on the paper discharge tray. If it is left as it is, the user who next output a job using the image forming apparatus may accidentally take the left output together with his / her output.

  On the other hand, conventionally, in order to reliably manage recording paper left on the paper discharge tray, the number of print papers left on the paper discharge tray using an IC tag and the related user are displayed, and a predetermined period of time is displayed. There has been proposed a technique of transmitting an e-mail with a content that calls attention to a user who has not removed his / her printing paper even after the elapse of time (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In addition, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) on the output tray is used to identify the user (or host device) who has left the printed product while it is still on the output tray and to give an accurate warning. A technique has been proposed in which the RFID of the last discharged sheet is read by a reader, and a warning is given to the user terminal that the printed matter is left when a predetermined time has passed without any change in the reading (see FIG. For example, see Patent Document 2).
JP 2004-223966 A JP 2005-178191 A

  By the way, if the printed matter that was misplaced on the paper discharge tray is taken away by another person, if the user can relatively easily check the output history of the other user from the operation panel, the user can check the output history. It is possible to grasp where the printed matter is taken away.

  However, in recent years, with the increase in personal information protection, it is foreseen that the output history of others cannot be easily confirmed from the operation panel unit of the image forming apparatus.

  For this reason, when the discharged output is taken away by another person, it is difficult to specify the person who has taken away the output under a situation where the output history of the other person cannot be easily seen. If it becomes impossible to retrieve the output product, it is necessary to perform double printing without stopping, which causes problems such as wasting output paper.

  On the other hand, in both of the above prior arts, both of them “warn a neglected printed matter”, so that someone else's print paper left on the paper discharge tray can be taken away by another person. Then, it is difficult to take back the printing paper. In addition, the IC tag can specify the output person, but cannot specify other than the output person.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and even in a situation where the job output history of another person cannot be confirmed, an image that can identify a person who may have taken away the output product based on his job output history It is an object of the present invention to provide a forming apparatus, an output material taker identifying method, and an output material take away person identifying processing program.

The above problem is solved by the following means.
(1) An authentication unit that performs authentication for logging in by a user, a storage unit that stores history information of an executed print job, and the logged-in user among job history information stored in the storage unit Display means for displaying the job history information, a designation means for the user to designate a job to be inquired from among the displayed job history information, and all job history information stored in the storage means Selecting means for selecting a job connected to the designated inquiry target job, and notification means for notifying an instructor of the job selected by the selection means An image forming apparatus.
(2) The image forming apparatus according to (1), wherein the job connected to the designated job is a job output to at least the same paper discharge tray as the output of the designated job.
(3) A job connected to the designated job is a job existing between a job to be inquired designated by the user and a job designated by the same user immediately before the job, or A job that exists between the job to be inquired and a job instructed by the same user one job after that job, or a job instructed by the same user immediately before the job to be inquired, and 2. The image forming apparatus according to item 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is at least one of jobs existing between a job instructed by the same user after the job to be inquired.
(4) The image forming apparatus according to any one of items 1 to 3, further comprising a setting unit that allows a user to set a job selection range by the selection unit.
(5) When the output of the job to be inquired is returned by the instructor of the job notified of the inquiry message, the above-mentioned item 1 is provided with a return notification means for notifying the user who made the inquiry to that effect. The image forming apparatus according to any one of?
(6) The step of performing authentication for the user to log in, the step of storing the history information of the executed print job in the storage unit, and the log-in of the job history information stored in the storage unit A step of displaying job history information of the user on the display means, a step of accepting designation of a job to be inquired by the user from the displayed job history information, and all job histories stored in the storage means A step of selecting a job connected to the inquiry target job from the information, and a step of notifying an instructor of the job selected by the selection means of an inquiry message. The method of identifying the output taker.
(7) The step of performing authentication for the user to log in, the step of storing the history information of the executed print job in the storage unit, and the log-in of the job history information stored in the storage unit A step of displaying job history information of the user on the display means, a step of accepting designation of a job to be inquired by the user from the displayed job history information, and all job histories stored in the storage means An image forming apparatus comprising: a step of selecting a job connected to the designated inquiry target job from information; and a step of notifying an inquiry message to an instructor of the job selected by the selection unit. Output takeover identification processing program to be executed by a computer.

  According to the invention of (1), the job history information of the logged-in user is displayed from the job history information stored in the storage means, and when the user designates the job to be inquired from among the job history information, the storage means A job that is connected to the specified job to be inquired is selected from all the job history information stored in. Then, an inquiry message is notified to the instructor of the selected job. That is, by selecting a job that is connected to the job to be inquired, it is possible to identify the instructor of the job as a person who may have taken away the output. Therefore, even if a device such as an IC tag is not separately introduced and the personal information is protected without displaying other person's job history, an inquiry is made to the target person to retrieve his output. It becomes possible.

  According to the invention of (2), it is possible to identify an instructor of a job output to at least the same paper discharge tray as the output of the designated job as a person who may have taken the output.

  According to the invention of the preceding item (3), a job that exists between a job to be inquired and a job instructed by the same user immediately before that job, or one job to be inquired and one job from that job A job that exists between a job instructed by the same user later, a job instructed by the same user immediately before the job to be inquired, and the same user after the job to be inquired by the same user An instructor of at least one of the jobs existing between the instructed job can be specified as a person who may have taken the output.

  According to the invention of (4), the user who has taken away the output can set the job selection range by the selection means and thus the range of the person who may have taken away the output.

  According to the invention of the preceding paragraph (5), when the output of the job to be inquired is returned by the instructor of the job notified of the inquiry message, the fact is notified to the user who made the inquiry. The user can know that the output has been returned.

  According to the invention of the preceding paragraph (6), there is a possibility that an output product may be taken away without installing a device such as an IC tag or the like, while protecting personal information without displaying another person's job history. A certain person can be specified, and by making an inquiry to the specified person, his output can be retrieved.

  According to the invention of the preceding paragraph (7), there is a possibility that an output product may have been taken away without installing a device such as an IC tag or the like, while protecting personal information without displaying another person's job history. It is possible to cause the computer of the image forming apparatus to execute a process of identifying a certain person and making an inquiry to the identified person.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a job processing system to which an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

  1, the job processing system includes a plurality of MFPs 100 and 100 as an example of an image forming apparatus and a plurality of personal computers (PCs) 200 and 200 as user terminals. The PCs 200 and 200 are connected via a network N such as a LAN.

  A user assigned with the PC 200 transmits a print job from the PC 200 to the MFP 100, and the MFP 100 processes the received print job and outputs an output product (printing paper or the like).

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of MFP 100.

  2, the MFP 100 includes a CPU 101, a ROM 102, a RAM 103, a storage unit 104, an operation panel unit 105, an image reading unit 106, a printing unit 107, a network interface unit 108, and a data reading unit 109. ROM 102, RAM 103, storage unit 104, operation panel unit 105, image reading unit 106, printing unit 107, network interface unit 108, data reading unit 109, and the like are connected to CPU 101 via PCI bus 111. Has been.

  The CPU 101 controls the overall operation of the MFP 100.

  The ROM 102 is a memory that stores an operation program for the CPU 101.

  The RAM 103 is a memory that provides an operation area when the CPU 101 executes a program.

  The storage unit 104 is composed of, for example, a hard disk, and stores various data and applications, and all executed job histories as shown in FIG.

  The operation panel unit 105 includes a key input unit (not shown), a display unit 105a (shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C) made of a touch panel type liquid crystal, and the like.

  The image reading unit 106 includes an automatic document feeder (ADF) (not shown) and the like, and reads a document image and converts it into image data.

  The printing unit 107 prints the image data read by the image reading unit 106 in accordance with the job condition designated by the user or the print job data transmitted from the PC 200 on a sheet and outputs it.

  The network interface unit 108 functions as a communication unit that transmits and receives data to and from the PC 200 that is a user terminal, and includes a transmission unit and a reception unit (not shown).

  The data reading unit 109 reads data on a recording medium 300 such as a floppy disk or a CD-ROM.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of MFP 100.

  In FIG. 3, functions of the MFP 100 include a user authentication registration unit 11, a user authentication control unit 12, a history storage unit 13, a history display unit 14, a history control unit 15, an inquiry processing unit 16, and the like. Is controlled by an overall control unit 17 comprising the CPU 101.

  The user authentication registration unit 11 performs registration management of the user contact information (e-mail address, IP address, etc.) together with the user ID and password necessary for authentication.

  The user authentication control unit 12 performs user authentication when a user ID and password are input when the user logs in to the MFP 100.

  The history storage unit 13 stores job output history information for all users. All job history information is stored in the HDD 104 serving as the storage unit.

  The history display unit 14 displays job history information as shown in FIG. 6 for each authenticated user. The job history information is displayed on the display unit 105a (FIGS. 4A to 4C) of the operation panel unit 105.

  The history control unit 15 selects a job connected to the job designated by the user from the displayed job history information of the user.

  The inquiry processing unit 16 notifies a predetermined inquiry message to an execution instructor of the job selected by the history control unit 15.

  Next, an algorithm for the user who has taken away the output on the paper discharge tray of MFP 100 to identify a person to be inquired (a person who may have taken away the output) will be described.

  After specifying the job to be inquired, the user can determine whether the narrowing range is “wide” or “normal” by using the “wide” button and the “normal” button as setting means displayed on the display screen of the operation panel unit 105. select. Then, the MFP 1 narrows down one step or two steps from all job history information held in the storage unit 104, and specifies a person to be inquired.

When “wide area” is selected, the first stage is narrowed down and an inquiry is made. Wide area means making an inquiry to a wider range and more inquiry objects. When “normal” is pressed, the second-stage narrowing is further performed as necessary from the first-stage narrowing in the case of “wide area”. The narrowing of the second stage is determined by each item or combination.
[Narrowing down the first stage]
At least one of the following extractions is performed from the history information of all jobs, and an inquiry is made to the job execution instructor of the extracted history information.
(1) Only jobs output to the same paper discharge tray as the inquiry target job are extracted from all job history information held by the MFP 100.
(2) Jobs with only one output are excluded.
(3) Classification by “inquiry target” button: The extracted data is classified by “all”, “first half”, and “second half” (see display screen D2 in FIG. 4B).

・ In the case of "All", do not change (do nothing)
-"First half": Jobs after the job to be inquired are targeted.

In the case of “second half”: the job preceding the job to be inquired is targeted.
(4) From the previous self job to the job to be inquired, from the inquired job to the next self job, or from the self job immediately before the inquired job Up to your own job.
[Second-stage refinement]
There is at least one of the following as further narrowing down the target person who has been narrowed down in the first stage.
(1) Immediately before and after: An inquiry is made to the person who was output immediately before and after the job to be inquired.
(2) Between the specified number of times before and after: An inquiry is made with respect to five jobs before and after the job to be inquired.
(3) Specified time before and after: An inquiry is made for one hour before and after the job to be inquired.
(4) Entrapment by the same person: When the object is interleaved before and after the job to be inquired, the person is always inquired.
(5) Multiple outputs: When the same person is outputting more than 5 jobs out of 10 jobs before and after the job to be inquired, the person is inquired.
(6) Specified time: If the same person is outputting one hour before and after the job to be inquired, the person is inquired.
(7) An inquiry is always made for an interrupt print job.

  4A to 4C show screens displayed on the display unit 105a of the operation panel unit 105 when the user who has removed the output product makes an inquiry.

  FIG. 4A shows a screen D <b> 1 displayed when the user logs in to MFP 100.

  In this screen D1, in addition to the “job confirmation” column, a user name input column X and a password input column Y are displayed.

  FIG. 4B shows a job history information display screen D2 after authentication of a user who has entered a user name and password.

About two-thirds of the left side of the screen D2 is an information display area 105b, and the right side is a button display area 105c related to “inquiry” and a button display area 105d related to “return”. It has become.
<< Information Display Area 105b >>
A list of job history information (“issuer”, “document name”, “registration time”, “document”, “number of copies”, “execution result”, etc.) and an inquiry when the “inquiry list” button T is pressed Information can be displayed. Another display example of the job history list is shown in FIG.
<< Button Display Area 105c Related to "Inquiry">>
A button is displayed for narrowing down the target person when making an inquiry about the printed paper (document) that is the removed output. That is, as shown in FIG. 4B, a “first half” button O, an “all” button P, a “second half” button Q, and a “wide area” button M and a “normal” button for setting an inquiry target range. "Button N is displayed. Each button has the following functions.
(1) “First half” button: indicates that the removed print paper was the first half. An inquiry is made for a job output after the job selected by the user.
(2) “All” button: indicates that all of the printed paper has been taken away. An inquiry is made regardless of before or after the job selected by the user.
(3) “Second half” button: indicates that the printed paper taken away was the second half. An inquiry is made for a job output before the job selected by the user.
(4) “Normal” button: The inquiry target is narrowed down to two levels and an inquiry is made.
(5) “Wide area” button: Performs inquiry up to one level of narrowing down.
<< Button display area 105d for return >>
There are an “inquiry list” button T and a “return” button R. Each button T, R then has a function.
(1) “Inquiry List” button: Information related to an inquiry as shown in FIG. 7 is displayed in a list in the information display area 105b. In FIG. 7, security is ensured by hiding the user name so that the inquiry from the user is not disclosed to a third party.
(2) “Return” button: A button for notifying the inquiry person selected from the “inquiry list” that the person has been returned.

  FIG. 4C shows a screen D3 displayed when a job is selected from the “history list” and the “detail” button W on the display screen D2 in FIG. 4B is pressed, and is designated. The details of the selected job are displayed.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a process for identifying a person who may have taken away when the output of user A is taken away from the paper discharge lay of MFP 100.

  8, in step S1, user A inputs a user ID and password from operation panel unit 105 of MFP 100. In step S2, authentication control unit 12 in MFP 100 authenticates the input user ID and password. Perform the confirmation process.

  In step S3, when the user A presses the “list” button Z on the display screen (FIG. 4A) on the operation panel unit 105, the CPU 101 of the MFP 100 is as shown in FIG. 5 held by the MFP 100 in step S4. From all the job history information, history information for only the user A as shown in FIG. 6 is displayed in a list on the display screen D2 (FIG. 4B) of the display unit 105a of the operation panel unit 105.

  In step S5, the user selects the job from which the output is removed from the list of job history information for user A only, and displays “first half” and “all” displayed on the display screen D2 of the operation panel unit 105. ”,“ Second half ”,“ normal ”,“ wide area ”, etc., are pressed down.

  In step S6, the CPU 101 accepts this, and from all the job history information held by the MFP 100, the type of the narrow-down button pressed in step S5 and the above-described inquiry target person (possibility of having taken away the output product). Based on an algorithm for identifying a certain person), the history information of the job to be inquired is extracted.

  Next, in step S7, the CPU 101 identifies the user who instructed the job from the extracted job history information, determines the contact information of the identified user from the database (DB) of the user authentication registration unit 11, and makes an inquiry. Do. The inquiry method may be performed by pop-up display on the screen of the PC 200 which is a user terminal, or if it is within a specified time after making an inquiry, it is displayed on the operation panel unit 105 when logging in to the MFP 100 next time. Also good. It may be performed by e-mail.

  In step S <b> 8, when the user who took away the output product returns the output product, the user logs in to the MFP 100 and presses the “inquiry list” button T on the operation panel unit 105. In step S <b> 9, the CPU 101 of the MFP 100 displays a list of inquired jobs (shown in FIG. 7) on the operation panel unit 105.

  In step S10, when the user selects a corresponding inquiry from the list of jobs displayed on the operation panel unit 105 and presses the “return” button R, in step S11, the CPU 101 of the MFP 100 determines the person who made the inquiry ( After the user A) is notified that it has been returned, the process ends.

  In this way, when the user's output is taken away, the user extracts his / her job information from all the job history information stored in the storage unit 104 and displays it by a predetermined operation of the user. When the user designates a job in which the output is removed from the displayed history information displayed on the panel unit 105, a job having a connection with this job is automatically selected by the CPU 101, and an instruction to execute the selected job A person is identified as a person who may have taken the output, and an inquiry is made to the execution supporter. Therefore, even if it is not possible to see other person's history information on the operation panel unit 105, it is possible to make an inquiry to the job execution instructor, and thereby to recover the output of the user.

  In addition, when the output of the job to be inquired is returned by the instructor of the job that has been notified of the inquiry message, the user who made the inquiry is notified of this, so the user returns the output. I can know that.

Next, an example in which the person to be inquired is specified when another user takes away his / her own printing paper (output) that has been left on the paper discharge tray and forgotten to be removed will be described.
(Specific example 1)
Of all the saved job history information shown in FIG. 9, all the output items of “test 12.txt” of user A shown in job number 12 are carried away, and “wide area” button M is clicked from display screen D2 of FIG. 4B. An embodiment for selecting and inquiring will be described.
(1) User A inputs a user ID and password from the display screen D1 shown in FIG.
(2) After login, the user A presses the “list” button Z.

On the display screen D2 in FIG. 4B, the history information of the jobs that the user A himself / herself has instructed to execute as shown in FIG. 10 is displayed as a list.
(3) If necessary, the user A clicks the “detail” button W and confirms the output contents for each job. Then, the removed job is selected. Here, the history of the job number 12 is selected, the “wide area” button M is pressed, and the “all” button P is pressed.
(4) Jobs are extracted from the job history information of all users stored in the MFP 100 based on the above-described algorithm for identifying the person to be inquired (output object taker).

FIG. 11 shows job history information after extraction. In this example, only the job output to the same paper discharge tray (main tray in this example) as the inquiry target job is extracted, the job with only one output sheet is excluded, and one of the inquiry target jobs is also selected. From the previous user A job to the next user A job is targeted.
(5) The inquiry target person is specified from the extracted job history information. This time, the persons to be inquired are B, C, and E.
(6) The contact information of the person to be inquired is checked against the database of the user authentication registration unit 11 and determined.
(7) An inquiry is notified to the confirmed contact by a pop-up dialog or the like.
(8) As shown in FIG. 15A, an inquiry message is displayed on the display screen of each of the users B, C, and E together with an inquiry number, inquiry date and time, output time, output tray, output size, and the like. The inquiry message also displays the location of the MFP that lost the output.
(9) Assume that the output of user A that was accidentally taken away by user B is returned to the installation location of MFP 100.
(10) User B logs in to MFP 100 and selects “inquiry list” button T on display screen D2 shown in FIG.
(11) Then. An inquiry list as shown in FIG. 7 is displayed.
(12) User B selects the corresponding inquiry from the displayed inquiry list and presses “Return” button R.
(13) Based on the information of the selected inquiry, a return notification is made in a pop-up dialog to the PC 200 of the person who made the inquiry (user A). Since the user PC 200 may not be usable, a return notification may be displayed on the operation panel unit 105 or may be notified by e-mail or the like.
(Specific example 2)
Of all the job history information stored in the MFP 1 shown in FIG. 12, the “first half” of the output of “test 10.txt” of the user B of job number 10 is taken away, and the display shown in FIG. A specific example will be described in which an inquiry is made by selecting the “normal” button N from the screen D2.
(1) User B inputs the user ID and password from the display screen D1 shown in FIG.
(2) After the authentication login, the user B presses the “list” button Z.

On the display screen D2 in FIG. 4B, the history information of the jobs that the user B himself / herself has instructed to execute as shown in FIG. 13 is displayed in a list.
(3) If necessary, the user B clicks the “detail” button W and confirms the output contents of each job. Then, the removed job is selected. Here, the history of the job number 10 is selected, the “wide area” button M is pressed, and the “first half” button O is pressed.
(4) Jobs are extracted from the history information of all users stored in the MFP 100 based on the above-described algorithm for identifying the person to be inquired (output object taker).

FIG. 14 shows job history information after extraction. In this example, only jobs that have been output to the same paper discharge tray as the inquiry target job (tray 2 in this example) are extracted.
(5) The inquiry target person is specified from the extracted job history information. This time, the persons to be inquired are A, D, and E. Here, it is assumed that the user E has taken away the output.
(6) The contact information of the person to be inquired is checked against the database of the user authentication registration unit 11 and determined.
(7) An inquiry is notified to the confirmed contact by a pop-up dialog or the like.

At this time, it is assumed that the user E is in a state where network communication cannot be established.
(8) The inquiry message shown in FIG. 15A is displayed on the display screens of the PCs 200 of the users A and D, respectively.

  For user E, after the next login to MFP 100, an inquiry message as shown in FIG. 15B is displayed on operation panel unit 105.

The message may be set within one hour after the user makes an inquiry, and the message may not be displayed if it exceeds one hour.
(9) User E returns the printed matter of user A that was taken away by mistake to the place where MFP 100 is installed.
(10) The user E selects the “inquiry list” button T on the display screen D2 shown in FIG.
(11) An inquiry list is displayed.
(12) The user E selects a corresponding inquiry from the displayed inquiry list and presses a “return” button R.
(13) Based on the selected inquiry information, a return notification is sent to the PC 200 of the person who made the inquiry (user B) in a pop-up dialog. A return notification may be displayed on the operation panel unit 105 or may be notified by e-mail or the like.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a job processing system in which an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is used. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of an MFP as an image forming apparatus. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the MFP. FIG. (A) is a plan view showing a screen displayed on the operation panel unit when the user logs in to the MFP, and (B) shows user-specific job history information after authentication of the user who inputs the user name and password. FIG. 8C is a plan view showing a screen displayed on the operation panel unit when a history is selected from the “history list” and a “detail” button is pressed. is there. 6 is a table showing an example of all job history information held by the MFP. 4B is a table showing an example of job history information of user A displayed in the display area of the screen of FIG. 4B. It is a table | surface which shows the "inquiry list" displayed on the display area of the screen of FIG. 4B. 6 is a flowchart showing processing for identifying a person to be inquired by a user who has taken his / her output from a paper discharge ray of the MFP. 6 is a table showing all job history information held by the MFP in the first embodiment. 6 is a table showing job history information of a user in Embodiment 1. In Example 1, it is a table | surface which shows an "inquiry list." 10 is a table showing all job history information held by the MFP in Embodiment 2. In Example 2, it is a table | surface which shows a user's job history information. In Example 2, it is a table | surface which shows an "inquiry list". (A) is a diagram showing an “inquiry dialog” pop-up displayed on the user terminal, and (B) is a diagram showing an “inquiry message” displayed on the operation panel unit of the MFP.

Explanation of symbols

12 User Authentication Control Unit 15 History Control Unit 16 Inquiry Processing Unit 100 Image Forming Apparatus (MFP)
101 CPU (selection means, notification means)
104 storage unit 105 operation panel unit (notification means)
105a Display unit

Claims (7)

An authentication means for authenticating the user to log in;
Storage means for storing history information of executed print jobs;
Display means for displaying the job history information of the logged-in user from among the job history information stored in the storage means;
A designation means for the user to designate a job to be inquired from among the displayed job history information;
Selecting means for selecting a job connected to the designated job to be inquired from among all job history information stored in the storage means;
Notification means for notifying the instructor of the job selected by the selection means;
An image forming apparatus comprising:   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the job connected to the designated job is a job output to at least the same paper discharge tray as an output product of the designated job.   The job connected to the designated job is a job that exists between a job to be inquired designated by the user and a job instructed by the same user immediately before that job, or the object to be inquired. Existing job and a job specified by the same user one job after that job, or a job specified by the same user immediately before the inquiry target job, and the inquiry target job The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is at least one of jobs that exist between a job designated by the same user one job after the job.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a setting unit that allows a user to set a job selection range by the selection unit.   5. A return notification means for notifying a user who has made an inquiry when an output of a job to be inquired is returned by the instructor of the job notified of the inquiry message. The image forming apparatus according to any one of the above. Authenticating the user to log in;
Storing history information of the executed print job in a storage means;
Displaying job history information of the logged-in user on display means from among job history information stored in the storage means;
A step of accepting designation of a job to be inquired by a user from the displayed job history information;
Selecting a job connected to the inquiry target job from all the job history information stored in the storage unit;
Notifying the instructor of the job selected by the selection means;
A method for identifying an output taker characterized by comprising: Authenticating the user to log in;
Storing history information of the executed print job in a storage means;
Displaying job history information of the logged-in user on display means from among job history information stored in the storage means;
A step of accepting designation of a job to be inquired by a user from the displayed job history information;
Selecting a job connected to the designated inquiry target job from all the job history information stored in the storage means;
Notifying the instructor of the job selected by the selection means;
Is an output material take-out person identification processing program for causing the computer of the image forming apparatus to execute.

Images