JP2010170256A - Device control system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem of device base monitoring equipment, which makes the device transmit information via a web service not only in a polling form in order to increase the number of monitoring object devices, that when collecting information from the device, the acquirable information is not uniform either for the case of acquiring in the polling form or the case of using the web service, that thus in such a condition, it may be necessary to consider the connection form of each device according to the information acquirable by the device and that it may be necessary for a service person to determine the connection form between the base monitoring equipment and each device while additionally considering the difference of the information acquirable by the device and advantage of the service, thus solve the determination of the connection form very difficult problem. <P>SOLUTION: The base monitoring equipment collects a supported communication method and the acquirable information of the device registered in a monitoring device list, and determines the communication method so that the information acquirable based on the predetermined priority should be effective in performing maintenance services. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a device management method of a device management system using network communication, a system thereof, and a management apparatus. In particular, the present invention relates to a determination method for determining a communication method based on the function and priority of a device, and an application program for realizing the same, regarding network communication between a site monitoring apparatus and a device when monitoring a device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a maintenance system is known in which a management server is installed on the Internet and a customer's device is managed via a network. In this conventional maintenance system, for example, information such as the device status and the number of prints is collected by the site monitoring apparatus installed in the customer's network and transmitted to the management server on the Internet. .

  Recently, in order for the site monitoring apparatus to collect device information, not only data is collected by polling, but also information is collected from the device to the site monitoring apparatus using technologies such as Web services. This is because, in order to increase the number of supported base monitoring devices, rather than using the polling method that requires a load, the device performs processing on a part of the monitoring process, so that the base in terms of processing and communication This is because the load on the monitoring device can be suppressed.

  With this background, there are many older devices that are generally monitored by polling, and the connection format in which devices voluntarily send information through Web services is an information collection method supported by relatively new devices. It is. In addition, there is a difference in the amount of information that can be collected due to the difference in communication methods through polling and Web services. The site monitoring device supports both communication methods for device monitoring. However, because there is an upper limit on the number of monitoring devices, the upper limit on the number of devices that can be monitored by polling and monitoring by Web services In many cases, there is an upper limit on the number of devices that can be created.

  In such an environment, it is necessary to consider the connection format of each device in accordance with information that can be acquired from the device. However, since it is necessary for the service person to determine the connection type between the site monitoring device and each device, considering the difference in information that can be acquired by each device and the service merit, the determination of the connection type is very There was a problem that it was difficult.

  For example, in order to determine the communication format of 3000 monitoring target devices, it is very difficult to determine the optimal communication format of all the monitoring target devices from the communication format and acquirable information.

In the conventional device monitoring method, there is a method in which a transmission interrupt is generated based on a high priority of information that can be acquired from a device, and a device having a priority is transmitted first.
Patent Registration No. 03673653

  However, in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, it is effective when data with high priority is preferentially transmitted, but the information amount and importance of information that can be acquired from a plurality of devices cannot be maximized.

  In view of the above-described conventional problems, the present invention determines a connection format for optimizing the amount of information and importance of information that can be acquired from a plurality of monitoring devices by using device functions and priority data. A device management method, a system thereof, and a management apparatus are provided.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a device management system according to the present invention includes a managed device connected via a network and a base monitoring device that monitors one or more managed devices. In the management system, the site monitoring device (101) includes a first storage unit (503) for storing a monitoring target device list, a second storage unit (508) for storing priority master data of monitoring information, Collecting means (504) that collects the communication methods supported by the monitored device and information that can be acquired (including functions), and stores the communication methods supported by the monitored device and information that can be acquired in a table A third storage means, a supported communication method, obtainable information, and a determination means (507, S909) for determining the communication method from the priority order master data. Device (100), characterized in that it has a response means for responding the can provide information and communication methods that support from the local monitoring apparatus to the inquiry, the.

  Information that can be acquired from a monitoring device is maintained from the viewpoint of the amount of information and importance. By determining the communication method suitable for the service, the information necessary for maintenance is optimized even in systems with limited resources. Will be able to.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Configuration example of device management system of this embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a connection relationship in a network between a copying machine, a remote monitoring device, and a management server according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 100 denotes an MFP (Multi Function Printer) or SFP (Single Function Printer) connected to the customer's intranet 103. These devices having functions such as printing and copying are called devices here. Reference numeral 102 denotes a site monitoring apparatus that monitors a plurality of devices 100 within the intranet 103. In addition, the intranet 103 is provided with a firewall 102 that is a connection point with the Internet 104. The firewall 102 can prevent inappropriate network access from the outside.

  The site monitoring apparatus 101 collects various operation mode settings of the device 100, operation information such as counter values and operation logs, and failure information such as hardware failures and frequent jams via the intranet 103. There are two communication formats for communication between the site monitoring apparatus 101 and the device 100. One is an information collection method in which the base monitoring apparatus 101 polls the device 100 using SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) or a unique protocol. The other is a method in which the site monitoring apparatus 101 provides a service using a Web service or a unique protocol, and collects information by receiving information transmitted from the device.

  The site monitoring device 101 is shown as a general PC (personal computer) in the drawing, but refers to a device that runs a monitoring program. In addition to a PC, a monitoring program can be installed on dedicated hardware or devices. it can. Here, there is no limitation on the form of the site monitoring device.

  Reference numeral 105 denotes a management server. The management server 105 collects and manages device information by communicating with the site monitoring apparatus 101 installed on the customer's intranet 103 via the Internet 104. The site monitoring apparatus 101 transmits the collected status and maintenance information of each device to the management server 105 on the Internet 104. The management server has services such as report display of a billing counter, notification of failure events such as errors and alarms, calculation of the degree of wear of devices, and management of the number of toner stocks.

  A myriad of different customer networks similar to the intranet 103 are connected to the Internet 104.

<Example of device configuration of this embodiment>
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the device 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  In the figure, reference numeral 250 denotes an automatic document feeder (DF), 202 denotes a scanner, and the scanner 202 includes a document illumination lamp 203, a scanning mirror 204, and the like.

  The automatic document feeder 250 conveys documents one by one from the last page onto the platen glass 201 and discharges the documents after the document reading operation is completed. The document conveyed on the platen glass 201 is scanned back and forth by a scanner 202 driven by a motor (not shown), and the reflected light is transmitted through the lens 207 via the scanning mirrors 204 to 206, and is stored in the image sensor unit 208. An image is formed on the CCD sensor. Reference numeral 209 denotes an exposure control unit composed of a laser, a polygon scanner, etc., which converts the laser light 219, which is converted into an electrical signal by the image sensor unit 208 and modulated based on the image signal subjected to predetermined image processing, to the photosensitive drum. Irradiate 211.

  Around the photosensitive drum 211, a primary charger 212, a developing device 213, a transfer charger 216, a pre-exposure lamp 214, and a cleaning device 215 are provided. In the image forming unit 210, the photosensitive drum 211 is rotated in the direction of the arrow by a motor (not shown), and after being charged to a desired potential by the primary charger 212, the laser beam 219 from the exposure control unit 209 is obtained. And an electrostatic latent image is formed thereon. The electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 211 is developed by the developing unit 213 and visualized as a toner image.

  On the other hand, transfer paper fed from cassette decks 221 to 222 and upper and lower cassettes 223 to 224 by pickup rollers 225 to 228 is fed to transfer belt 234 by paper feed rollers 229 to 232 and registration rollers 233. The toner image visualized in the process is transferred onto the transfer paper by the transfer charger 216. A multi-manual feed 251 capable of accommodating 100 transfer sheets is also provided.

  After the toner image is transferred, the residual toner is cleaned by the cleaner 215 from the photosensitive drum 211, and the residual charge is erased by the pre-exposure lamp 214. The transferred transfer paper is separated from the photosensitive drum 211 by the separation charger 217 and conveyed to the fixing device 235 by the transfer belt 234. In the fixing device 235, the toner image is fixed by pressurization and heating, and is discharged out of the device 100 by the discharge roller 236.

  Reference numeral 237 denotes a paper discharge flapper that switches between the transport path 238 side and the discharge path 243 side. A lower conveyance path 240 guides the transfer paper fed from the paper discharge roller 236 upside down through the reverse path 239 and into the refeed path 241. Further, the transfer paper fed from the left cassette deck 222 by the paper feed roller 230 is also guided to the refeed path 241. Reference numeral 242 denotes a refeed roller that refeeds the transfer sheet to the image forming unit 210. A discharge roller 244 is disposed in the vicinity of the paper discharge flapper 237, and discharges the transfer paper switched to the discharge path 243 side by the paper discharge flapper 237.

  During double-sided recording (double-sided copying), the paper discharge flapper 237 is raised upward, and the copied transfer paper is guided to the paper re-feeding path 241 via the transport path 238, the reverse path 239, and the lower transport path 240. At this time, the transfer paper is completely pulled out of the conveyance path 238 by the reverse roller 245 at the rear end, and is drawn into the reverse path 239 to the position where the transfer paper is bitten by the reverse roller 245, and the reverse roller 245 is reversed. It is sent out to the conveyance path 240.

  When the transfer paper is reversed and discharged from the device 100, the paper discharge flapper 237 is lifted upward, and is drawn into the reverse path 239 by the reverse roller 245 until the rear end of the transfer paper remains in the transport path 238. Further, by rotating the reverse roller 245 in the reverse direction, the transfer paper is turned over and sent to the discharge roller 244 side.

  Reference numeral 260 denotes a paper discharge processing apparatus that aligns and closes the transfer paper discharged from the device 100. In this apparatus, transfer sheets discharged one by one are stacked on the processing tray 264 and aligned. When part of the image formation is completed, the transfer sheet bundle is stapled and discharged to the discharge tray 262 or 263.

  The vertical movement of the paper discharge tray 263 is controlled by a motor (not shown). The paper discharge tray 263 moves to the position of the processing tray 264 before the image forming operation starts, and the height of the paper surface increases as the transferred transfer paper is stacked. Move to the processing tray 264 position. Reference numeral 268 denotes a tray lower limit sensor that detects the lower limit of the paper discharge tray 263, and detects this when approximately 2000 transfer sheets are stacked on the paper discharge tray 263.

  Reference numeral 261 denotes a paper tray on which separator sheets to be inserted between the discharged transfer sheets are stacked. Reference numeral 265 denotes a Z-folding machine that Z-folds the discharged transfer sheets. Reference numeral 266 denotes a bookbinding machine that performs bookbinding by collectively folding a part of the discharged transfer paper and performing stapling, and the bound paper bundle is discharged to a discharge tray 267.

  Various sensors (not shown) are arranged in various places in the cross-sectional view, and are used for toner exhaustion, document jam, transfer paper remaining amount, transfer paper jam, development-related consumable member remaining amount, document illumination lamp failure, and various other types. Detect mechanical troubles. In addition to event information such as troubles, the site monitoring apparatus 101 monitors the device 100 by collecting status information such as the number of print outputs and internally output logs via the network.

<Configuration Example of Device Control Unit of this Embodiment>
FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the control unit in the device.

  The control unit of the device 100 mainly performs program control processing such as printing and scanning, and controls other applications such as a device monitoring program. In response to the inquiry from the site monitoring apparatus 101, the device 100 performs processing so that the control unit retrieves the maintenance information from the storage unit and responds. In addition, when the maintenance information is transmitted using the service provision of the site monitoring device 101, the maintenance information of the device 100 is generated in a predetermined communication format in the control unit, and transmitted to the site monitoring device 101. Process.

  Each component of the control unit is connected to a system bus 316 and an image bus 317. The ROM 304 stores a device control program and a device monitoring program and is executed by the CPU 307. The RAM 305 is a work memory area for executing a program, and is also an image memory for temporarily storing device status information and image data necessary for monitoring by the device monitoring program. The storage device 306 is a nonvolatile storage device, and stores various operation mode settings, counter values, operation logs, and the like that need to be retained even after the device 100 is restarted.

  A network I / F 302 is an interface unit for connecting to a LAN, and communicates with the site monitoring apparatus 101 via the LAN. Line I / F unit 303 is connected to an ISDN or public telephone network, controlled by a communication control program in ROM 304, and transmits / receives data to / from a remote terminal via ISDN I / F, modem, and NCU (Network Control Unit) I do. The line I / F unit 303 is also used for facsimile transmission / reception. The operation unit 301 includes display means and key input means, which are controlled by the CPU 307. The operator gives various setting instructions and operation / stop instructions regarding scanner reading and print output through the key input means.

  The above devices are arranged on the system bus 316. The IO control unit 308 is a bus bridge for connecting the system bus 316 and an image bus 317 that transfers image data at high speed. The image bus 317 is configured by a PCI bus or IEEE1394. The following devices are arranged on the image bus 317. The digital I / F unit 311 connects the reader unit 315 or the printer unit 314 of the device and the control unit, and performs synchronous / asynchronous conversion of image data. In addition, information detected by the above-described various sensors arranged at various locations in the reader unit 315 and the printer unit 314 flows to the system bus 316 via the digital I / F unit 311 and the IO control unit 308. An image processing unit 309 performs correction / processing / editing on input and output image data. The image rotation unit 310 rotates image data. The image compression / decompression unit 312 performs compression / decompression processing of JPEG for multi-valued image data and JBIG / MMR / MR / MH for binary image data. The image density conversion unit 313 performs resolution conversion and the like on the output image data.

  By the control program executed by the CPU 307, the CPU 307 reads the operation information and failure information such as the counter value and operation log in the storage device 306, and sends the status information of the device 100 to the site monitoring apparatus 101 via the network I / F 302. Send.

<Configuration example of the control unit of the site monitoring apparatus of this embodiment>
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the site monitoring apparatus 101 in FIG.

  The site monitoring apparatus 101 has a configuration included in a general information processing apparatus. That is, in addition to the bus 401, the CPU 402, the ROM 403, and the RM 404, a network I / F 405, a display control unit 406, a display device 409, an input control unit 407, input devices 410 and 411, and a storage device 408 are provided.

  The bus 401 is a common signal path for transferring data between components constituting the site monitoring apparatus 101 in FIG. The RAM 404 is a storage means that can electrically store information and is rewritable. Acquired data and data to be transmitted are expanded here and converted into a predetermined form. The storage device 408 is a nonvolatile storage unit that can electrically rewrite information and can store information even when the power is lost. In addition to the OS that controls the hardware, the storage device 408 stores a list of devices 100 to be monitored by the site monitoring device 101 and an access program for acquiring maintenance information from the devices 100. ing. Further, a resident program for receiving maintenance information from the device 100, a transmission program for transmitting the acquired maintenance information to the management server 105, and the like are also stored in the same manner.

  A network I / F 405 is an interface for exchanging information with the outside via a network. The CPU 402 controls the respective component parts 403 to 411 individually or in an integrated manner, and collects maintenance information of the device 100 via the network I / F 405 based on a program and schedule stored in the storage device 408. . The site monitoring apparatus 101 has two types of communication methods for acquiring maintenance information.

  One is a communication method that polls the device 100 at a predetermined schedule time and acquires maintenance information based on its own monitoring program. The other is a communication method for receiving maintenance information transmitted from the device 100 by starting a resident program and providing a network service. When polling is performed, maintenance information is acquired via the network I / F 405 by the CPU 402 executing an access program to the device 100 recorded in the storage device 408 on a predetermined schedule. The acquired maintenance information is expanded in the ROM 404, converted into a predetermined format, and recorded in the storage device 408. When providing a network service, the CPU 402 executes a resident program recorded in the storage device 408, thereby starting a service for accepting communication processing of the device 100 from the Network I / F 405. When the device 100 transmits maintenance information to the site monitoring apparatus 101 in accordance with a predetermined program process, through this service, the site monitoring apparatus 101 expands the maintenance information into the RAM 404, converts it into a predetermined format, and converts it into a storage device 408. To record.

  The maintenance information collected by each communication method is transmitted to the management server 105 via the network I / F 405 by processing of a transmission program transmitted to the management server 105 recorded in the storage device 408.

<Software configuration example of base monitoring apparatus of this embodiment>
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the function of an application program for determining an appropriate communication method for each device 100 listed in the monitoring device list in the site monitoring apparatus 101. The application program includes a monitoring device list input unit 501 that receives device list registration from the user. Here, the user inputs a device list in which a plurality of monitoring devices including information such as device identifiers and network identifiers are registered.

  The application program stores the monitoring device list input from the monitoring device list input unit 501 in the device data storage unit 503 via the device data input / output unit 502.

  Further, the application program includes a support information collection unit 504 for collecting support information such as what communication function the monitoring target device 100 supports and what kind of maintenance information can be provided. The support information collection unit 504 receives device information in the monitoring device list from the device data input / output unit, and collects support information from the device 100 via the communication I / F unit 505 that communicates with the device 100. The collected support information is stored in the device data storage unit 503 via the device data input / output unit 502 again.

  When the support information collection unit 504 completes the collection of support information, the communication method determination unit 506 determines the communication method of the device 100 registered in the monitoring device list. For this purpose, the monitoring device list to which the support information collected by the support information collecting unit 504 is added via the device data input / output unit 502 is received. The communication method determination unit 506 passes the monitoring device list to which the support information is added to the communication priority determination unit 507. Here, based on the priority order stored in the priority order data storage unit and the support information, data serving as an index as to whether each device should communicate by the polling method or via the network service is used. Digitize and determine priority. All the monitoring device lists that have been subjected to the priority determination are returned from the communication priority determination unit 507 to the communication method 506 determination unit with the priority result added. The communication method determination unit determines the communication method for each monitoring device, including the limited number of monitoring supported by the site monitoring apparatus 101. Then, the monitoring device list determined by the communication method is stored in the device data storage unit 503 through the device data input / output unit 502 together with the determination result. In addition, description is abbreviate | omitted about the storage process of the device status data at the time of normal device monitoring, and the collection process to service information.

<Example of the monitoring device list of the site monitoring apparatus of this embodiment>
FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically showing information of a monitoring device list stored in the site monitoring apparatus.

  In the monitoring device list, the device ID indicates a device identifier, and the IP address indicates a network identifier. These pieces of information are input by the user from the monitoring device list input 501 in FIG. However, the monitoring device list may be created / input by the base monitoring apparatus 101 searching the network, and is not limited to being input by the user.

  "Accounting counter", "Function details counter", "Firmware", "Error / alarm jam", "Environment log", "Department counter", "Device linkage function", "Web service connection function", "License information", "Device setting information" "Color information" and "Hard disk information" indicate device functions related to device maintenance, in addition to the information types that can be collected as maintenance information by the site monitoring apparatus 101. The “Web service function” here refers to a function that allows the site monitoring apparatus 101 to use the network service function provided. The device function related to device maintenance refers to, for example, a device cooperation function. This refers to a function that enables cooperation between devices, such as using a scanned data on one device and printing using the print function of another device. “Polling only / department counter” indicates that the information can be acquired only when the communication method is used for polling. As described above, information that can be acquired at the time of polling may be different from information that can be acquired when a communication method using a Web service is performed. These pieces of information have different importance depending on the maintenance contract and service form. For example, under a certain contract, when investigating the cause of a failure that occurs when a device is linked, it may be more desirable that device setting information for both linked devices can be obtained. . Further, under a certain contract, a customer may prioritize the acquisition of a department counter with an emphasis on the department counter.

  Supporting the collection information and functions of the devices in the monitoring device list is collected from each device via the network by the support information collection unit 504 in FIG. Collectable information and support function information of all devices are stored in the device data storage unit 503.

<Example of communication priority order data of the site monitoring apparatus of this embodiment>
FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing communication priority order data stored in the site monitoring apparatus 101.

  In the priority order data, there are information that can be acquired and information that cannot be acquired depending on the communication method. The information transmission method using the network service of the site monitoring apparatus 101 is relatively new and can acquire various types of information compared to polling. Although it is easy to implement on a device, there are information that can be acquired and information that cannot be acquired depending on the grade of the device. For example, a high-grade copier equipped with a large liquid crystal panel is equipped with a Web browser and the like, and license acquisition communication is required to use this application. In addition, device cooperation functions are added from the middle range to the high range. In this way, it is possible to clearly define priorities in the maintenance collection information itself, such as collection data directly related to the functions provided to the user and hard disk information that transmits statistical information of bad sectors that have become unusable. it can. The site monitoring apparatus 101 assigns priority values to these data depending on the communication method as numerical values and stores them as communication priority data.

<Example of communication priority determination of base monitoring apparatus of this embodiment>
FIG. 8 is a diagram schematically showing data obtained by performing communication priority determination from the monitoring device list stored in the site monitoring apparatus 101.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram in which the priority of communication priority defined in FIG. 7 is assigned to the monitoring device list to which the support information added in FIG. 6 is added. “Billing counter”, “Function details counter”, “Firmware”, “Error / alarm jam”, and “Environment log” are the same regardless of the collection communication method. Since it can be acquired, it does not affect communication priority calculation. The obtainable information and support function of each device are replaced with the priority values shown in FIG. 7 and added for each device, thereby calculating the final device communication priority in the table in FIG. For example, for Device.3, "Polling only / Department counter" (-3) + "Device linkage function" (2) + "Web service only / License information" (5) + "Web service only / Color information" (1) + “Web service only / hard disk information” (1) = “priority” (6). This priority calculation process is performed by the communication priority determining unit 507 in FIG. After that, it is determined as a device that uses the communication method using the network service until the upper limit of the number of supported devices is reached from the communication priority of each device in order of priority, or until there is no more than 1 priority. Do.

<Operation example of management server of this embodiment>
Based on the above configuration, an operation example of the site monitoring apparatus 101 of the present embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing processing until the site monitoring apparatus 101 receives a monitoring device list from a user or a device search application and determines a communication method for each device in the monitoring device list. This flowchart is a communication method determination process of the site monitoring apparatus 101, and is stored in one of the storage means of the ROM 403, the RAM 404, and the storage device 408 shown in FIG.

  In step S901, the site monitoring apparatus 101 receives an input of a monitoring device list. When the input is completed, the process proceeds to step S902 to perform information collection processing through the network. This is a process performed by the support information collection unit of FIG. 5 and is a process of collecting support information for each device in accordance with the monitoring device list input in S901. The processing result here is the same as the table described in FIG. When this process is completed, the process proceeds to step S903, and the communication method priority of the monitoring device is calculated from the priority order data. This is a process performed by the communication priority determination unit in FIG. 5 and calculates the communication priority of each device from the monitoring device list to which the support information created in S902 is added and the priority data. is there. The processing result here is the same as the table described in FIG. When this process is completed, the process proceeds to step S904, where the monitoring device list is sorted in order from the device with the highest communication priority, and preparations for determining the communication method are made.

  After that, step S905 is initialization of the determination process, and the Nth device is acquired from the monitoring device list and prepared for determination. In step S906, it is confirmed that the device N is not the last device, and when the last device determination has already been completed, the program is controlled to end as a program process. If it is determined that the Nth device is not the last device yet, the process proceeds to step S907. In step S907, it is further confirmed whether the connection upper limit in the Web service has been reached. The Web service is a network service provided by the site monitoring apparatus 101, and here refers to a communication method. The device determines whether to transmit maintenance information using a Web service type communication method or to transmit maintenance information using a polling type communication method. Here, if the upper limit of the number of supported Web service connections has been reached, the process proceeds to step S913, and all the Nth and subsequent devices are confirmed as a polling format. If the upper limit number of Web services has not been reached in S907, the process proceeds to step S908. In step S908, it is determined whether the communication priority of the target device is 1 or more. The determination here is that the Web service acquisition method is superior when the priority is 1 or more. For example, when comparing information that can be acquired only by polling with information that can be acquired only by Web services, there are cases where it is more businessly advantageous to acquire by polling. In such a case, even if the device itself has a Web service connection function, if it is determined by priority, acquisition by polling may be advantageous. If it is determined that the priority is less than 1, the process proceeds to step S911, and it is confirmed whether all subsequent devices may be set as polling communication. Even when all devices after this are set to the polling communication method, if the supported number limit is not reached, the process proceeds to step S913, and all the Nth device and subsequent devices are determined as the polling communication method. If it is determined in step S911 that all devices after the Nth device have been set to the polling format, the upper limit of the polling format is reached, the process proceeds to step S912. In step S912, it is determined whether the Nth device has a Web service communication function. If the Nth device does not have a Web service connection function, the process proceeds to step S913, and the Nth and subsequent devices are determined as the polling communication method until the upper limit of the number of polling connections is reached. Here, although explanation is omitted in the flowchart, if neither connection is determined by the connection function of the device or the number of registered devices, it will be considered as an error that the spec of the base monitoring device 101 is over to the user. indicate. Then, when the process of step S913 ends, the determination process ends. If it is determined in step S912 that the Nth device is capable of Web service communication, the process advances to step S909. In step S909, the communication method of the Nth device is determined as a Web service, and the process proceeds to step S910. In step S910, the N + 1th target is moved from the Nth target, the N + 1th target is set as a new N, and the process proceeds to step S906.

  By performing the above processing, the site monitoring apparatus 101 can determine the communication connection method for all devices from the support information in the monitoring device list.

It is a figure which shows the connection relation via the network with the device of this embodiment, a base monitoring apparatus, and a management server. It is a figure which shows the hardware structural example of the device of this embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of the hardware controller of the device of this embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware structural example of the base monitoring apparatus of this embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the example of a software function structure of the base monitoring apparatus of this embodiment. It is an example of a monitoring device list managed by the site monitoring apparatus of this embodiment, and is a diagram showing data types and functions supported by each device. It is an example of the master data showing the priority used for the determination of the connection format managed by the site monitoring apparatus of this embodiment, and is a diagram showing the priority of supported data types and functions. It is an example of the table data used in order for the site monitoring apparatus of this embodiment to determine the connection type of a monitoring device, and is a figure showing the connection priority of a device. It is a flowchart showing the flow in which the base monitoring apparatus of this embodiment determines the connection format of a device.

Claims (2)

In a device management system comprising a managed device to be managed and a base monitoring device that monitors one or more managed devices connected via a network,
The site monitoring device (101)
First storage means for storing the monitored device list ((503),
A second storage means (508) for storing master data representing the priority of the monitoring information;
A collection means (504) for collecting function information supported by the monitored device;
The monitoring device list stored by the first storage unit from the function information supported by the device collected by the collection unit and the master data indicating the priority stored by the second storage unit Determining means (507, S909) for determining the communication method of each device described in
The managed device (100) is:
A device management system comprising: a communication method supported by a site monitoring apparatus; and response means for responding to an inquiry about information that can be provided. The collecting means is
The device management system according to claim 1, wherein the device management system is a collection unit that collects a connection type supported by the monitoring target device, a type of information that can be transmitted, and a function related to maintenance.