JP2011048648A - System and program for management of image processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system for management of an image processing apparatus, capable of performing painstaking management. <P>SOLUTION: The management system includes: at least one image processing apparatus (image forming apparatus PR1 to PR3) connected through a communication means (network N); an authentication means (authentication server SA1) for authenticating a user in each image processing apparatus; an addition means (set value addition part 10) which when authentication by the authentication means succeeds, adds a predetermined set value to a use limit value for limiting the usage of the image processing apparatus allocated to the user corresponding to the authentication; and a management means (management part 11) for managing the image processing of image information by the image processing apparatus based on the use limit value to which the predetermined set value is added. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus management system and an image processing apparatus management program.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is a management system that manages the usage status of a plurality of image processing apparatuses such as printers and scanners connected to a network such as a LAN, and various techniques relating to this management system have been proposed.

  For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-323324, in a device management apparatus, an operation authority setting unit that sets an operation authority for a user's device and an operation authority related to the device to be applied to a plurality of specific users are limited. There has been disclosed a technology having restriction rule setting means for setting restriction rules for performing operation, and operation authority restriction means for restricting the user's authority to operate the device.

JP 2007-323324 A

  It is an object of the present invention to provide an image processing apparatus management system and an image processing apparatus management program capable of performing fine management.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, an image processing apparatus management system according to claim 1 authenticates at least one image processing apparatus connected via communication means and a user for each image processing apparatus. When authentication by the authentication unit and authentication by the authentication unit is successful, a predetermined set value is added to a use limit value that is assigned to a user corresponding to the authentication and limits the amount of use of the image processing apparatus. The image processing apparatus includes an addition unit and a management unit that manages image processing of image information by the image processing device based on the use limit value to which the predetermined setting value is added.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a management system for an image processing apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the management means is short of the use limit value after the addition by the addition means during the processing of the image information. If it is determined, the adding means causes the setting value to be re-added to the use limit value.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a management system for an image processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect of the present invention, wherein the management means performs processing after the processing of the image information and after addition by the addition means. When it is determined that the use limit value has a remaining amount, the remaining amount is subtracted from the use limit value.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image processing apparatus management system according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the predetermined set value is changed according to a processing speed of the image processing apparatus. It is characterized by being.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus management system according to the third aspect, the predetermined set value is changed in accordance with the remaining amount.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a management system for an image processing apparatus, wherein the predetermined set value is changed according to a use history of the image processing apparatus. It is characterized by being.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus management system according to any one of the first to third aspects, the predetermined setting value is changed according to the attribute of the image information. It is characterized by that.

  An image processing apparatus management program according to an eighth aspect of the present invention provides an authentication process for authenticating a user for each image processing apparatus, and the image processing apparatus corresponding to authentication when the authentication is successful in the authentication process. An addition process for adding a predetermined set value to a use limit value that is assigned to the user and limits the amount of use of the image processing apparatus, and the use limit value is added to the predetermined set value On the basis of the above, a management process for managing the image processing of the image information by the image processing apparatus is executed by the calculation means.

  According to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

  In other words, according to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a management system for an image processing apparatus capable of performing fine management using a use limit value added with a predetermined set value.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an image processing apparatus management system capable of performing finer management by re-adding the set value to the use limit value.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an image processing apparatus management system capable of subtracting the remaining amount from the use limit value and performing finer management.

  According to the invention described in claim 4, it is possible to provide an image processing apparatus management system capable of performing finer management by changing a predetermined set value according to the processing speed of the image processing apparatus. .

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a management system for an image processing apparatus capable of performing finer management by changing a predetermined set value in accordance with the remaining amount.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an image processing apparatus management system capable of performing finer management by changing predetermined setting values according to the use history of the image processing apparatus. .

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a management system for an image processing apparatus capable of performing finer management by changing predetermined setting values in accordance with attributes of image information.

  According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a management program for an image processing apparatus capable of performing fine management using a use limit value added with a predetermined set value.

It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of management system S1 of the image processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of management system S1 of the image processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a table | surface which shows the example of user registration information. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of an authentication information input screen. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process in management system S1 of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of an increment and a decrement process. It is a flowchart which shows the other flow of the process in management system S1 of an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the server side in the case of determining the increment number by the authentication server SA1 side. It is a flowchart which shows the other process sequence of an increment and a decrement process. It is a table | surface which shows the example of a reference table.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment as an example of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Here, in the accompanying drawings, the same reference numerals are given to the same members, and duplicate descriptions are omitted. In addition, since description here is the best form by which this invention is implemented, this invention is not limited to the said form.

  An image processing apparatus management system S1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the image processing apparatus management system S1 includes three image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3 as a kind of image processing apparatus connected via a network N such as a LAN, and a personal computer. And two information processing apparatuses PC1 and PC2, and an authentication server SA1 (an example of an authentication unit) that authenticates users of the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3.

  The number of connections of the image forming apparatus, the information processing apparatus, and the authentication server is arbitrary.

  In the example shown in FIG. 1, it is assumed that PR1 is a color printer and PR2 and PR3 are monochrome printers.

  In order to restrict the use of the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3 connected to the network N, usable user (user) information and function restriction information (usage restriction value, etc.) for each user are registered in the authentication server SA1. Has been.

  FIG. 2 shows a functional configuration of the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3, but illustration and description of configurations not related to the present invention are omitted.

  Each of the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3 is preset to a use limit value that is assigned to a user corresponding to the authentication and limits the amount of use of the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3 when the authentication by the authentication server SA1 is successful. Based on a set value adding unit 10 (an example of an adding unit) that adds the set values that have been set, and a use limit value to which a predetermined set value has been added, image processing (image processing) of image information by the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3 A management unit 11 (an example of a management unit) that manages a forming process, that is, a printing process.

  When each management unit 11 determines that the use limit value after the addition by the set value addition unit 10 is insufficient during the processing of the image information, the setting value addition unit 10 re-adds the set value to the use limit value. I do. As a result, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the use limit value is insufficient during printing and the printing process is interrupted, thereby improving the convenience for the user and more delicate management for each user.

  In addition, when each management unit 11 determines that there is a remaining amount in the use limit value after the addition by the setting value addition unit 10 after processing the image information, the management unit 11 subtracts the remaining amount from the use limit value. Also do. Thereby, it is avoided to give an extra use authority for each user, and finer management is performed for each user.

  Further, the predetermined set value may be changed according to the processing speed of the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3. For example, it is conceivable to increase the predetermined setting value for a user who uses a model with a relatively high processing speed, and decrease the predetermined setting value for a user who uses a model with a relatively low processing speed.

  Further, the predetermined set value may be changed according to the remaining amount of the use limit value determined by each management unit 11. For example, when the remaining amount is large, it is conceivable that the predetermined setting value is decreased, and when the remaining amount is small, the predetermined setting value is increased.

  The predetermined setting value may be changed according to the usage history of the image forming apparatuses PR1 to PR3 (for example, the usage history for each user or the usage history of the group to which the user belongs).

  Furthermore, the predetermined setting value is changed according to the attribute of the image information (for example, the attribute regarding whether or not the data is document data, image data, or photo data, or the attribute distinguished by the extension of the data). You may make it do. For example, for users who handle a large amount of document data that can be printed in a relatively short time, the preset value is increased, and for users who handle a large amount of image data or photo data that requires a relatively long time for printing processing. It is conceivable to reduce the predetermined set value.

  Needless to say, the method of increasing or decreasing the set value set in advance can be freely changed depending on the method of operation of the management system S1 of the image processing apparatus.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of user registration information stored in the authentication server SA1.

  The registered user information includes a user ID as user authentication information, a password, affiliation group information, color printing permission information, color and monochrome printable upper limit page number information, and the like.

  In addition, usage record information for each user is also managed in order to limit the maximum number of print pages.

  Examples of the authentication software running on the authentication server SA1 include LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) used for managing employee information, customer information, resident information, and the like.

  Here, LDAP is a type of protocol for accessing a directory database in a TCP / IP network such as the Internet or an intranet.

  The directory service is a service that manages information related to the mail address and environment of a user who uses the network, and the information is retrieved from the user name.

  Next, the flow of printing processing in the basic authentication mode will be described using an example of printing from the information processing apparatus PC1 to the image forming apparatus (color printer) PR1 with reference to FIGS.

  First, the user of the image forming apparatus PR1 inputs a user ID and a password as information necessary for authentication from the property screen (authentication information input screen as shown in FIG. 4) of the printer driver installed in the information processing apparatus PC1. To do.

  The authentication information input here is held in the information processing apparatus PC1, and thereafter is added to the print data every time a print instruction is issued, and used for authentication processing on the image forming apparatus PR1 and the authentication server SA1 side.

  Next, the flow of the printing process will be described with reference to the basic flow of FIG.

  When the information processing apparatus PC1 issues a print instruction, print data is transmitted to the image forming apparatus PR1.

  Prior to the printing process, the image forming apparatus PR1 acquires the authentication information added to the print data and issues an authentication request to the authentication server SA1.

  The authentication server SA1 performs user authentication processing based on pre-registered user information.

  If the user is a registered user, the authentication success is notified, and if the user is an unregistered user or an invalid password, the authentication failure is notified (returned) to the requesting image forming apparatus PR1.

  Next, processing between the image forming apparatus PR1 and the authentication server SA1 will be described.

  When the authentication is successful, that is, when it is confirmed that the user is a registered user, the image forming apparatus PR1 determines the authentication server by the same number of pages as the PPM (page per minute) value indicating its own printing speed performance. A request is made to increment (add) the printing result value of the corresponding user on SA1 (an example of a usage limit value that limits the usage amount of the image processing apparatus (both color and black and white)).

  In general, print data generation on the information processing apparatus PC1 and print data analysis processing and print processing of the image forming apparatus PR1 are performed in parallel, so that the total number of pages of the print job cannot be determined at the time of authentication.

For this reason, in this embodiment, the number of pages of a certain amount in advance (an example of a preset set value)
In this embodiment, PPM indicating the print speed performance is used as a guideline in order to reduce and keep constant the network traffic between the image forming apparatus PR1 and the authentication server SA1.

  Here, with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 6, the processing procedure of the increment / decrement process executed after the authentication is completed in the management system S1 of the image processing apparatus will be described.

  First, in step S10, a request for pre-incrementing the page count for the number of PPMs is requested, and the process proceeds to step S11.

  In step S11, it is determined whether or not the increment is successful. If “No”, the process proceeds to step S18, an unavailable error is notified, and the process proceeds to step S16.

  That is, if one page could not be incremented, it means that there is no number of usable pages for the requesting user, and the process ends with an error because it cannot be used.

  On the other hand, if “Yes” in step S11, the process proceeds to step S12.

  In step S12, the pre-incremented count value (counter) is temporarily managed in the internal memory, and the process proceeds to step S13 to execute print processing.

  Each time printing is performed, the above-mentioned temporary count value is subtracted, and if there is no subsequent page, the authentication server SA1 is requested to decrement (subtract) by the remaining number of the internal temporary counter at that time (step S14). ~ 16).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S15 that there is a subsequent page, the printing process is continued. However, when the remaining number of the internal temporary counter becomes zero in the determination in step S17, the authentication server SA1 has the number of PPMs. Request the increment again.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 7, a process will be briefly described when print requests from a plurality of devices to the same user are generated at the same time.

  If a sufficient remaining number can be secured for each increment request from the monochrome printer PR2 (PR3) and the color printer PR1, normal processing is performed.

  On the other hand, even when the increment request fails, when another device is in use, depending on the decrement result, the increment may be successful by making a retry request (see FIG. 7).

  For this reason, in the management system S1 of the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, when the result of the increment request is successful with less than the requested number, or when the requested number is a result that matches the available number, the monochrome that is used in advance. The printer PR2 (PR3) sets a flag indicating that it is in use to the authentication server SA1.

  In this case, the color printer PR1 to be used later executes retry control based on the fact that user information is being used.

  The pre-increment number may be determined on each device side as described above. However, the increment request from a plurality of devices may be centrally managed by determining on the authentication server SA1 side.

  Here, the following flowchart of FIG. 8 shows a processing procedure on the server side when the increment number is determined on the authentication server SA1 side.

  In step S20, an increment request is accepted from the monochrome printer PR2 (PR3) and the color printer PR1, and the process proceeds to step S21.

  In step S21, the PPM of the request source is acquired and the process proceeds to step S22.

  In step S22, it is determined whether or not the remaining number is greater than or equal to PPM. If “Yes”, the remaining number is incremented and the process proceeds to step S24.

  On the other hand, if “No” is determined in step S22, the process proceeds to step S25, the number of PPM is incremented, and the process proceeds to step S24.

  In step S24, the monochrome printer PR2 (PR3) and the color printer PR1 are notified of the increment result.

  Next, an example of another processing procedure of the increment / decrement process executed in the management system S1 of the image processing apparatus will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S30, the process proceeds to step S31 with reference to the number of remaining available pages.

  In step S31, the increment number is determined by referring to the table, and the process proceeds to step S32.

  In step S32, an increment is requested and the process proceeds to step S33.

  In step S33, it is determined whether or not the increment is successful. If “No”, the process proceeds to step S40, an unavailable error is notified, and the process proceeds to step S38.

  On the other hand, in the case of “Yes”, the pre-incremented count value (counter) is temporarily managed in the internal memory, and the process proceeds to step S13 to execute the printing process.

  Each time printing is performed, the above-described temporary count value is subtracted, and if there is no subsequent page, the authentication server SA1 is requested to decrement (subtract) by the remaining number of internal temporary counters at that time (step S34). ~ 36).

  If it is determined in step S37 that the subsequent page exists, the printing process is continued. However, when the remaining number of the internal temporary counter becomes zero in the determination in step S39, the remaining usable number is referred again.

  That is, prior to determining the increment number at the time of the increment request after successful authentication, the image forming apparatus PR1 refers to the authentication server SA1 for information on the number of remaining printable pages for the user.

  The correspondence relationship between the remaining number range and the increment request number is stored as table information in advance, and the increment request number is determined by referring to the table.

  According to this example, the exclusive state due to contention of requests from a plurality of devices is avoided by reducing the number of increment pages as the number of remaining pages decreases.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of a reference table.

  Further, instead of the method of referring to the reference table, it may be calculated based on a calculation formula corresponding to the number of remaining pages.

  Although the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiments, the embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative in all respects and are not limited to the disclosed technology. Should not be considered. That is, the technical scope of the present invention should not be construed restrictively based on the description in the above embodiment, but should be construed according to the description of the scope of claims. All modifications that fall within the scope of the claims and the equivalent technology are included.

  For example, prior to determining the increment number at the time of the increment request after successful authentication, the image forming apparatus PR1 calculates the past print average page number of the user from the job history information of the device, and uses the average page number as the increment request number. The authentication server SA1 may be requested.

  Further, prior to determining the increment number at the time of an increment request after successful authentication, the image forming apparatus PR1 may determine the increment request number based on the creation source application information of the job and make a request to the authentication server SA1. .

  For example, a print job created by a document creation application represented by Word (trademark of Microsoft Corporation), which is a kind of word processor software, has a large number of pages, and photo processing application software represented by Photoshop (trademark of Adobe Corporation). The number of pages may be estimated based on the characteristics of the application software, for example, the print job created in step 1 is a single page.

  When using a program, it can be provided via a network or stored in a recording medium such as a CD-ROM.

  That is, the predetermined program including the image processing program is not limited to being recorded in a storage device such as a hard disk as a recording medium, and the predetermined program can be provided as follows.

  For example, a predetermined program may be stored in the ROM, and the CPU may load the predetermined program from the ROM to the main storage device and execute it.

  The predetermined program may be stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as a DVD-ROM, a CD-ROM, an MO (magneto-optical disk), a flexible disk, and distributed.

  Further, the image forming apparatus or the like is connected to a server apparatus or a host computer via a communication line (for example, the Internet), and after the predetermined program is downloaded from the server apparatus or the host computer, the predetermined program is executed. You may do it. In this case, examples of the download destination of the predetermined program include a memory such as a RAM and a storage device (recording medium) such as a hard disk.

  The image processing apparatus management system and the image processing apparatus management program according to the present invention can be applied to a scanner, a printer, a multifunction peripheral, and the like.

S1 Image Processing Device Management System PR1, PR2, PR3 Image Forming Device PC1 Information Processing Device SA1 Authentication Server 10 Setting Value Adder 11 Management Unit N Network

Claims (8)

At least one image processing apparatus connected via communication means;
An authentication means for authenticating a user for each image processing apparatus;
When the authentication by the authentication unit is successful, an addition unit that adds a predetermined setting value to a use limit value that is assigned to a user corresponding to the authentication and limits the usage amount of the image processing apparatus;
Management means for managing image processing of image information by the image processing device based on the use limit value added with the predetermined setting value;
An image processing apparatus management system comprising: The management means includes
During the processing of the image information, when it is determined that the use limit value after addition by the addition unit is insufficient, the addition unit causes the setting value to be re-added to the use limit value. The image processing apparatus management system according to claim 1. The management means includes
2. After the processing of the image information, if it is determined that there is a remaining amount in the use limit value after addition by the adding means, the remaining amount is subtracted from the use limit value. Or the management system of the image processing apparatus in any one of Claim 2.   The image processing apparatus management system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined set value is changed according to a processing speed of the image processing apparatus.   The image processing apparatus management system according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined set value is changed according to the remaining amount.   The image processing apparatus management system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined setting value is changed according to a use history of the image processing apparatus.   4. The image processing apparatus management system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined setting value is changed according to an attribute of the image information. 5. An authentication process for authenticating a user for each image processing apparatus;
When authentication in the authentication process is successful, a predetermined set value is added to a use limit value that is assigned to a user of the image processing apparatus corresponding to authentication and limits the amount of use of the image processing apparatus. An addition process to
A management process for managing image processing of image information by the image processing device based on the use limit value added with the predetermined setting value;
A management program for an image processing apparatus, characterized by causing an arithmetic means to execute.

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