JP2011048433A - Device management system, method of managing device, and device management support device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and properly perform processing required for completing device management without dispatching any maintenance personnel. <P>SOLUTION: A device management system 1 includes a network board 24 for supporting management of a multifunction machine 2 and a management server 3 for managing the multifunction machine 2. The network board 24 includes: a communication processing section 25 for acquiring management information of the multifunction machine 2 to transmit it to the management server 3 and receiving the management term of the multifunction machine 2 from the management server 3; a contract term determination section 26 for determining whether the management term has expired or not based on the management term; and an operation control section 28 for completing transmission of management information to the management server 3 by the communication processing section 25 when it is determined that the management term has expired. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a device management system for managing a device that executes a predetermined process.

  For example, a multifunction device (an example of a device) having a copy function, a printer function, a scanner function, a FAX function, etc. is connected to a management server via a network, and the paper used for processing in the multifunction device is sent to the management server. A system is known that enables management management of MFPs and billing management for MFPs and maintenance management of MFPs by sending management information including the number of printers, toner usage, and error information. ing. As such a system, a system using a monitoring device for a network device is known (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  For example, in the system for managing a multifunction device as described above, a user (for example, a company) using the multifunction device is different from a provider (for example, a company) that provides a service for managing the multifunction device. It is common. Therefore, when actually operating this system, a contract is signed between the provider and the user to agree to send the management information of the user's MFP to the management server on the provider side. It is common. In this contract, a management deadline is determined, and after the deadline has passed, it is necessary to stop sending the management information of the multifunction peripheral to the management server. Currently, at the end of the management deadline, a service person visits the user side of the multifunction device to cancel the setting for transmitting management information from the multifunction device to the management server.

JP 2007-122479 A

  As described above, at the time when the management of the multifunction device is finished, it is necessary for the service person to go to the user side of the multifunction device to make settings. For this reason, there exists a problem that the cost for dispatching a service person to the user side will be applied.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of easily and appropriately performing settings and the like necessary for termination of device management without dispatching a service person. There is to do.

  To achieve the above object, a device management system according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a device management support apparatus that supports management of a device that executes predetermined processing, and a management server that manages the device. A device management support apparatus, comprising: a management information acquisition unit that acquires management information necessary for managing a device from the device; a management information transmission unit that transmits management information to a management server; Time limit determination information receiving means for receiving time limit determination information for determining the elapse of the management time limit from the management server, and determination means for determining whether or not the device management time limit has passed based on the time limit determination information; When the management means determines that the management time limit has passed, the management information transmission means transmits management information to the management server. And a management control unit to end.

  According to the device management system, the time limit determination information for determining the elapse of the device management time limit is received from the management server, and based on the time limit determination information, it is determined whether the device management time limit has passed, When it is determined that the management time limit has passed, the transmission of management information to the management server is terminated. For this reason, it is possible to appropriately prevent the management information from being transmitted from the device to the management server without setting by the service person when the management time limit has elapsed.

  In the device management system, the management server includes a time limit determination information transmitting unit that transmits a response to communication from the device management support device including the time limit determination information corresponding to the device to the device management support device. The receiving means may receive a response including the time limit judgment information. According to the device management system, since the time limit judgment information is received from the response to the communication from the device management support apparatus, for example, an external apparatus spontaneously generates between the device management support apparatus and the management server. Even if a firewall for blocking the communication is provided, the time limit judgment information can be received without any trouble.

  In the device management system, the determination information transmission unit may transmit the response when the management information is received to the device management support apparatus including the time limit determination information corresponding to the device. According to such a device management system, the deadline determination information is received as a response to the transmission of the management information that needs to be transmitted, so that the amount of communication for acquiring the deadline determination information can be suppressed.

  In the device management system, the time limit determination information is time limit information indicating a control time limit, and the device management support apparatus further includes a time limit information storage unit that stores the time limit information received by the time limit determination information reception unit, The determination unit may determine whether or not the management time limit indicated by the time limit information has elapsed at the present time. According to such a device management system, the device management support apparatus can determine the elapse of the management time limit based on the time limit information in the time limit information storage means, for example, at a time when communication with the management server is not possible. In addition, it is possible to appropriately determine the expiration of the management deadline.

  In the device management system, the determination unit may determine the elapse of the management time limit based on the time limit information stored in the time limit information storage unit when the device is started up. According to the device management system, it is possible to appropriately determine whether the management time limit has elapsed when the device is started up, and appropriately prevent management information from being transmitted after the management time limit has elapsed.

  In the device management system, the device management support apparatus may include an updating unit that updates the term information in the term information storage unit when the term information is received. According to such a device management system, when the time limit information managed by the management server is updated, it can be appropriately reflected in the time limit information storage means.

  In the device management system, the time limit determination information receiving unit may receive the time limit determination information from the management server when the device is started up. According to such a device management system, the latest time limit judgment information can be acquired from the management server when the device is started up, and the elapse of the management time limit can be appropriately determined.

  In the device management system, the management control unit causes the management information acquisition unit to acquire state information indicating the current state of the device before terminating the transmission of management information, and causes the management information transmission unit to May be transmitted to the management server. According to the device management system, it is possible to appropriately grasp the state of the device when the management time limit has passed. For this reason, when an inquiry about a device or the like occurs thereafter, an appropriate response can be made.

  To achieve the above object, a device management method according to a second aspect of the present invention includes a device management support apparatus that supports management of a device that executes predetermined processing, and a management server that manages the device. A device management method by a management system, wherein a management information acquisition unit of a device management support apparatus acquires management information necessary for managing a device from the device, and management information of the device management support apparatus The transmission means transmits the management information to the management server, and the deadline determination information receiving means of the device management support apparatus receives the deadline determination information for determining whether the management deadline of the device has elapsed from the management server. The deadline information receiving step and the device management support device judgment means determine whether the device is based on the deadline judgment information. A determination step for determining whether or not the management deadline has passed, and when the management control means of the device management support apparatus determines that the management deadline has passed, the management information transmission means A management control step for terminating transmission of management information to the server.

  According to the device management method, the time limit determination information for determining the elapse of the device management time limit is received from the management server, and based on the time limit determination information, it is determined whether the device management time limit has passed, When it is determined that the management time limit has passed, the transmission of management information to the management server is terminated. For this reason, it is possible to appropriately prevent the management information from being transmitted from the device to the management server without setting by the service person when the management time limit has elapsed.

  To achieve the above object, a device management support apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention is a device management support apparatus that supports management of a device that executes a predetermined process, and that is necessary for managing the device. Management information acquisition means for acquiring information from the device, management information transmission means for transmitting management information to the management server, and deadline determination information for receiving deadline determination information for determining whether the management deadline of the device has elapsed from the management server A receiving means; a judging means for judging whether or not a device management deadline has passed based on the deadline judgment information; and a management information sending means when the judging means judges that the management deadline has passed. Management control means for terminating transmission of the management information to the management server.

  According to the device management support apparatus, the time limit determination information for determining the elapse of the device management time limit is received from the management server, and based on the time limit determination information, it is determined whether or not the device management time limit has passed. When it is determined that the management deadline has passed, the transmission of management information to the management server is terminated. For this reason, it is possible to appropriately prevent the management information from being transmitted from the device to the management server without setting by the service person when the management time limit has elapsed.

It is a functional block diagram of the device management system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining an example of contract information concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart of the contract management process which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiments described below do not limit the invention according to the claims, and all the elements and combinations described in the embodiments are essential for the solution of the invention. Is not limited.

  First, a device management system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a functional configuration diagram of a device management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The device management system 1 includes a multifunction device 2 and a management server 3 as examples of devices. The MFP 2 is connected to the management server 3 via a LAN (Local Area Network) 4 on the user side of the MFP 2 and the Internet 5. A firewall 6 for restricting communication is provided between the LAN 4 and the Internet 5. The firewall 6 enables communication according to a protocol such as HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) or HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol over Secure Socket Layer) from the LAN 4 side and a response thereof, and blocks communication caused by an external device. Like to do. For this reason, data cannot be voluntarily transmitted from the management server 3 to the MFP 2.
The multifunction machine 2 includes a multifunction machine engine 21, a control unit 22, a multifunction machine information storage unit 23, and a network board 24 as an example of a device management support apparatus.

  The multi-function engine 21 has, for example, a mechanism for executing a copy function for copying a document, a printer function for forming an image on a sheet, a scanner function for reading a document to generate image data, a FAX function for transmitting a document by facsimile, and the like. Part. The control unit 22 controls the entire multifunction device 2. For example, the control unit 22 controls the multifunction machine engine 21 to exhibit each function. The control unit 22 stores state information indicating various states in the multifunction device 2, for example, the number of printed sheets, the remaining amount of toner, the configuration of the multifunction device 2, information on errors that have occurred, and the like in the multifunction device information storage unit 23. To do. The network board 24 includes a communication processing unit 25 as an example of a management information acquisition unit, a management information transmission unit, and a deadline determination information reception unit, a contract deadline determination unit 26 as an example of a determination unit and an update unit, and a deadline information storage. It has a contract term storage unit 27 as an example of means, and an operation control unit 28 as an example of management control means.

  The communication processing unit 25 receives print data from a terminal (not shown) via the LAN 4 and passes it to the control unit 22. The communication processing unit 25 stores state information stored in the multifunction device information storage unit 23 from the control unit 22 at a predetermined time, for example, when the multifunction device 2 is started up, every time a predetermined time elapses, or every time printing is completed. Management information (for example, paper usage amount, toner usage amount) is transmitted to the management server 3 together with the SN (serial number) of the multifunction device 2. In the present embodiment, the communication processing unit 25 transmits management information to the management server 3 according to HTTP. The management information transmitted from the communication processing unit 25 passes through the firewall 6 and is received by the management server 3. In addition, the communication processing unit 25 receives a response to the transmission of management information from the management server 3. Note that a response from the management server 3 to the transmission of management information can pass through the firewall 6. In the present embodiment, the response includes a contract expiration date (time limit determination information: time limit information) for determining whether or not the management time limit (contract time limit) of the MFP 2 has elapsed. The communication processing unit 25 extracts the contract expiration date from the response and passes it to the contract expiration determination unit 26.

  The contract expiration date determination unit 26 stores the contract expiration date received from the communication processing unit 25 in the contract expiration date storage unit 27. Whether the contract expiration date has passed by acquiring the current date from the control unit 22 or an external device and comparing it with the contract expiration date stored in the contract expiration storage unit 27. Judge whether or not. When it is determined that the contract expiration date has passed, the contract expiration determination unit 26 notifies the operation control unit 28 to that effect.

  When the operation control unit 28 receives a notification from the contract expiration date determination unit 26 that it has been determined that the contract expiration date has passed, the operation control unit 28 transmits the status information of the MFP information storage unit 23 from the control unit 22 to the communication processing unit 25. The management server 3 transmits the status information together with an end notification for starting the process for terminating the transmission of the management information, and then acquires the management information by the communication processing unit 25 and transmits the management information to the management server 3 End. Thereby, it can prevent appropriately that management information is transmitted to the management server 3 after this.

  The management server 3 includes a communication processing unit 31, an input receiving unit 32, a contract management unit 33, and a contract information storage unit 34 as an example of a term determination information transmission unit.

  The communication processing unit 31 receives management information from the multi-function device 2 (network board 24) via the Internet 5 and passes it to the contract management unit 33. Further, when receiving the management information from the multifunction device 2, the communication processing unit 31 includes the contract expiration date received from the contract management unit 33 in the response to the management information, and the multifunction device 2 (network To the board 24). Further, the communication processing unit 31 receives the status information and the end notification from the multifunction machine 2 and passes them to the contract management unit 33. The input reception unit 32 receives contract information to be added or changed from the administrator of the management server 3 and notifies the contract management unit 33 of the contract information. The contract information to be added or changed includes the SN of the MFP and the contract expiration date.

  When the contract management unit 33 receives the contract information from the input reception unit 32, the contract management unit 33 stores the contract information in the contract information storage unit 34. Further, the contract management unit 33 stores the management information received from the communication processing unit 31 in a storage unit (not shown), and performs billing processing based on the management information. In addition, the contract management unit 33 stores the status information received from the communication processing unit 31 in a storage unit (not shown), and informs that the contract information of the corresponding MFP 2 in the contract information storage unit 34 has received an end notification. sign up. According to the status information, the configuration of the MFP 2 when the contract period elapses, the remaining amount of toner, and the like can be grasped. For this reason, it is possible to respond to various inquiries to the multi-function device 2 in the following, and it can also be used when considering maintenance on the multi-function device 2 in the following. Further, the contract management unit 33 acquires the contract expiration date of the MFP 2 corresponding to the SN transmitted together with the management information from the contract information storage unit 34 and passes it to the communication processing unit 31. The contract information storage unit 34 stores contract information.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of contract information according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The contract information includes the serial number of the multifunction device 2, the contract termination time limit of the corresponding multifunction device 2, and the presence / absence of termination notification. In the present embodiment, the contract expiration date is the contract expiration date. The presence / absence of end notification stores information indicating whether or not an end notification indicating that the process of terminating the transmission of management information (end processing) has started has been received. In the figure, "Yes" is set when it is received. Based on the presence / absence of the end notification, it can be determined whether or not the end processing has been started in the multifunction device 2. Further, if the management information is transmitted from the multifunction device 2 in which “present” is set as the presence / absence of the termination notification, it can be understood that the termination processing has not been normally terminated in the multifunction device 2.

  Next, the operation in the device management system 1 will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart of contract management processing according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  When the multifunction device 2 is started up, the communication processing unit 25 acquires management information and transmits the management information to the management server 3. A response to this is received from the management server 3, a contract expiration date is acquired from the received response, and is passed to the contract expiration determination unit 26. On the other hand, when communication with the management server 3 is not possible, the contract expiration date determination unit 26 acquires the contract expiration date from the contract expiration date storage unit 27 (step S1). Next, the contract expiration date determination unit 26 acquires the current date, determines whether it is within a predetermined number of days (for example, within 5 days) until the contract ends (contract expiration date) (step S2), and within the predetermined number of days If not, the process proceeds to step S4 without doing anything, while if it is within the predetermined number of days, a notification is sent to the user to confirm that the contract has ended, for example, a display unit (not shown) of the multifunction device 2 (Step S3), and the process proceeds to step S4.

  Next, in step S4, the contract expiration date determination unit 26 determines whether the contract has ended, that is, whether or not the contract expiration date has passed, and determines that the contract expiration date has not elapsed. In (Step S4: NO), a temporary standby is performed (Step S5), and the process proceeds to Step S1.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the contract expiration date has passed (step S4: YES), the operation control unit 28 is notified of this, and the operation control unit 28 causes the communication processing unit 25 to acquire the status information. Then, an end notification indicating that the stop process is being executed together with the status information is transmitted to the management server 3 (step S6). Next, the operation control unit 28 ends (stops) the function of transmitting the management information by the communication processing unit 25 (step S7), sets the settings relating to the transmission of management information to the initial state (step S8), and ends the process. . Thereby, the operations of the contract term determination unit 26 and the operation control unit 28 are also stopped. In this way, when the contract expiration date has passed, it is possible to appropriately stop the management information from being transmitted to the management server 3 thereafter.

  Although the present invention has been described based on the embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be applied to various other modes.

  For example, in the above embodiment, when it is determined that the contract is terminated, the transmission of the management information is stopped without confirming with the user, but the present invention is not limited to this, and when it is determined that the contract is terminated. The user may confirm whether or not the transmission of management information may be stopped, and the transmission of the management information may be stopped when permission from the user is obtained. In the above embodiment, the MFP 2 determines whether or not the management deadline has passed based on the contract deadline date. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the management server 3 sets the management deadline. It is determined whether or not the time limit has passed, and information indicating whether or not the management time limit has passed is transmitted as time limit determination information to the MFP 2 (network board 24), and the contract time limit determination unit 26 is based on the time limit determination information. It may be determined whether or not the management deadline has passed.

  In the above-described embodiment, the management information of the MFP 2 is acquired and transmitted, the time limit determination information is received, the function of determining whether or not the management time limit has passed, and when the management time limit has passed. Although an example in which a functional unit having a function of terminating transmission of management information is built in the network board 24 of the multifunction device 2 is shown, the present invention is not limited to this, and other configurations externally attached to the network board 24 Thus, these functional units may be realized, or these functional units may be realized by the control unit 22 or the like that controls the multifunction device 2, or by a PC (Personal Computer) in the LAN 4. These functional units may be realized.

  In the above embodiment, the contract expiration date in units of days is used as the period information as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the contract expiration month in units of months may be used. It may be the contract expiration date and time. In the above embodiment, an example in which the firewall 6 exists has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the firewall may not be provided. In this case, the time limit judgment information may be transmitted spontaneously from the management server 3. Further, in the above-described embodiment, information that can grasp whether the function of transmitting the management information to the management server 3 is valid or invalid may be displayed on a display unit (not shown) of the multifunction machine 2. In the above embodiment, the transmission of management information is stopped immediately after determining the expiration date of the contract. For example, if there is a print job being executed at this time, the print job is related to the print job. After transmitting the management information, the transmission of the management information may be stopped. In the above-described embodiment, the multifunction device is described as an example of the device. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be a device such as a printer or a scanner.

1 device management system, 2 MFP, 3 management server, 4 LAN, 5 Internet, 6 firewall, 21 MFP engine, 22 control unit, 23 MFP information storage unit, 24 network board, 25 communication processing unit, 26 contract term Judgment part, 27 Contract term storage part, 28 Operation control part, 31 Communication processing part, 32 Input reception part, 33 Contract management part, 34 Contract information storage part.

Claims (10)

A device management support apparatus comprising a device management support apparatus that supports management of a device that executes predetermined processing, and a management server that manages the device,
The device management support apparatus includes:
Management information acquisition means for acquiring management information necessary for managing the device from the device;
Management information transmitting means for transmitting the management information to the management server;
Time limit determination information receiving means for receiving time limit determination information for determining the elapse of the management time limit of the device from the management server;
Determining means for determining whether or not the management time limit of the device has passed based on the time limit determination information;
And a management control unit that terminates transmission of the management information to the management server by the management information transmission unit when the determination unit determines that the management time limit has passed. The management server is
In response to the communication from the device management support apparatus, it has time limit determination information transmission means for transmitting to the device management support apparatus including the time limit determination information corresponding to the device,
The device management system according to claim 1, wherein the time limit determination information receiving unit receives a response including the time limit determination information. The device management system according to claim 2, wherein the determination information transmission unit transmits the response when the management information is received, including the time limit determination information corresponding to the device, to the device management support apparatus. The time limit judgment information is time limit information indicating the management time limit,
The device management support apparatus includes:
It further has time limit information storage means for storing the time limit information received by the time limit judgment information receiving means,
The device management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not a management time limit indicated by the time limit information has elapsed at the present time. The device management system according to claim 4, wherein when the device is started up, the determination unit determines the elapse of a management time limit based on the time limit information stored in the time limit information storage unit. The device management support apparatus includes:
The device management system according to claim 4, further comprising an updating unit that updates the deadline information in the deadline information storage unit when the deadline information is received. The deadline determination information receiving means includes
The device management system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein when the device is started up, the time limit judgment information is received from the management server. The management control unit causes the management information acquisition unit to acquire state information indicating the current state of the device before terminating transmission of the management information, and causes the management information transmission unit to transmit the state information to the management information transmission unit. The device management system according to claim 1, wherein the device management system is transmitted to a management server. A device management method by a device management system comprising: a device management support apparatus that supports management of a device that executes a predetermined process; and a management server that manages the device,
A management information acquisition step in which the management information acquisition unit of the device management support apparatus acquires management information necessary for managing the device from the device;
A management information transmitting means for transmitting the management information to the management server;
A deadline information receiving step in which the deadline judgment information receiving means of the device management support apparatus receives deadline judgment information for judging whether the management deadline of the device has passed, from the management server;
A determination step of determining whether the device management support apparatus has passed a management time limit of the device based on the time limit determination information;
Management control for terminating the transmission of the management information to the management server by the management information transmitting means when the management control means of the device management support apparatus determines that the management time limit has passed by the determining means A device management method. A device management support apparatus that supports management of a device that executes predetermined processing,
Management information acquisition means for acquiring management information necessary for managing the device from the device;
Management information transmitting means for transmitting the management information to a management server;
Time limit determination information receiving means for receiving time limit determination information for determining the elapse of the management time limit of the device from the management server;
Based on the time limit determination information, a determination unit that determines whether or not the management time limit of the device has passed,
A device management support apparatus comprising: a management control unit that terminates transmission of the management information to the management server by the management information transmission unit when it is determined by the determination unit that the management time limit has passed.

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