JP2013214198A - Print server and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent degradation of working efficiency of a user when a print rule that specifies an image forming device, in which a print failure has occurred, as an output target exists.SOLUTION: A print server 2 stores rule information 8, in which a plurality of print rules for determining one image forming device 4 being an output destination of image data out of a plurality of image forming devices 4a to 4c are specified. When detecting a failure in any of the plurality of image forming devices 4a to 4c, the print server 2 extracts, on the basis of a result of the detection, a print rule specifying the image forming device 4, in which the failure has occurred, as an output destination. Then, the printer server 2 notifies either one or both of a manager M who manages the print rules and a user who uses information processing device 3, of the extracted print rule.

Description

  The present invention relates to a print server and a program, and more particularly, to a print server control technique for distributing and outputting input image data to one image forming apparatus among a plurality of image forming apparatuses connected to a network.

  Conventionally, in order to improve user workability at the time of printing, a technique for automatically determining a printer capable of printing out image data among a plurality of printers has been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1). According to this prior art, it is possible to prevent the user from erroneously selecting a printer that cannot print out image data, so that the user's workability can be improved. Further, in the related art, when a plurality of printers that are output candidates are detected, the user is allowed to select one of the plurality of printers. In the prior art, when one printer is selected, a print setting dialog box is displayed on the display to allow the user to make various print settings.

JP 2007-179328 A

  When the user can freely set the print settings when performing print output with the automatically identified printer as in the above prior art, for example, a printer with a higher printing cost than other printers can be selected, There is a possibility that print settings such as color printing and single-sided printing, which have relatively high printing costs, may be performed, and there is a problem that cost reduction cannot be realized.

  On the other hand, in recent years, from the viewpoint of cost reduction or workflow efficiency mentioned above, a print rule is set in the print server in advance, and when the print server inputs image data, the print rule is set based on the print rule. A technique for outputting image data to an output destination and executing print output is becoming widespread. For example, when a plurality of printers are connected to the network in the office, the print server applies one printing rule to the image data input via the network as one output destination among the plurality of printers. decide. At this time, for example, if a print rule that specifies that the input image data is a color image or a monochrome image is output to the monochrome printer is applied, the image data is output from the print server to the monochrome printer. Become so. Therefore, even if the image data is a color image, monochrome printing is performed by the monochrome printer, and the printing cost can be reduced as compared with the case of performing color printing. Such an output form based on a print rule is called rule-based printing, and has an advantage that the user can perform the print setting by himself so that the work efficiency is improved.

  On the other hand, in the output form based on rule-based printing, the following problems occur when a printing failure occurs in the image forming apparatus specified as the output destination. For example, if a print failure has occurred in the above-described monochrome printer, even if the print server determines the monochrome printer as an output destination by applying a print rule, the monochrome printer may print out due to the print failure. It is not possible to print errors. Therefore, the print server holds image data for a long time until the monochrome printer is restored. In this case, the user has to wait for a long time until printing output becomes possible in the monochrome printer, resulting in a problem that the working efficiency is remarkably lowered.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and prevents a user's work efficiency from being lowered even when a print failure occurs in an image forming apparatus registered as an output destination in a print rule. It is an object of the present invention to provide a print server and a program that can be used.

  In order to achieve the above object, an invention according to claim 1 is a print server, wherein image data input means for inputting image data output from an information processing apparatus, and image data input by the image data input means are provided. A storage unit that stores a plurality of printing rules for determining one image forming apparatus that is an output destination of the image data based on the plurality of image forming apparatuses, and is stored in the storage unit when the image data is input. Applying one printing rule among a plurality of printing rules to determine the one image forming apparatus that is the output destination of the image data; and based on the determination result by the printing rule applying unit An output unit that outputs image data to one image forming apparatus; a fault detection unit that detects a fault occurring in any of the plurality of image forming apparatuses; Based on the detection result by the failure detection unit, a print rule extraction unit that extracts a print rule that defines an image forming apparatus in which a failure has occurred as an output destination, and a print rule extracted by the extraction unit, And a notification means for notifying one or both of an administrator who manages the print rules and a user who uses the information processing apparatus.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the print server according to the first aspect, the print server further includes a print rule update unit configured to change a print rule setting stored in the storage unit based on a setting change instruction from an administrator. It is the structure characterized by these.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the print server according to the second aspect, the notifying unit changes the output destination defined in the print rule from a faulty image forming apparatus to a faultless image forming apparatus. In this configuration, the administrator is further notified of the setting change proposal.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the print server according to the second or third aspect, at least one of the plurality of print rules further defines an output mode at the time of print output in the image forming apparatus serving as an output destination. The failure detection means identifies a failure in the image forming apparatus based on failure information from the image forming apparatus defined as an output destination in the print rule that defines the output mode, and the failure When the image forming apparatus cannot output in the output mode, the output unit specifies another output mode that can be output while avoiding the failure, and the notification unit is based on the specified result by the failure detection unit In this configuration, the manager is further notified of a setting change proposal for the output mode.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the print server according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the failure detection means determines whether or not a failure has occurred in each of the plurality of image forming apparatuses at regular intervals. And the notification means notifies the administrator of a print rule that defines the image forming apparatus as an output destination at a timing when the failure detection means detects the occurrence of a failure in the image forming apparatus. It is the structure to do.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the print server according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, each of the plurality of printing rules is an output destination of the image data corresponding to an image attribute of the image data. The notification means further notifies the user of a setting change proposal to an image attribute that conforms to a print rule that is an output destination of the image forming apparatus in which no failure has occurred. It is the structure characterized by these.

  According to a seventh aspect of the invention, in the print server according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, at least two of the plurality of printing rules define the same image forming apparatus as an output destination, and an image Different output modes are defined corresponding to the image attributes of the data, and the failure detection unit is configured to output from the image forming apparatus defined as the same output destination in a plurality of printing rules defining the output mode. A fault different from the print rule that specifies an output mode that cannot be output due to the fault among the plurality of print rules that specify an output mode, while identifying a fault in the image forming apparatus based on the fault information The notification means passes a proposal for changing the setting of the image attribute to the image rule conforming to the printing rule specified by the failure detection means to the user. A construction which is characterized in that.

  The invention according to claim 8 stores a plurality of printing rules for determining one image forming apparatus as an output destination of image data among a plurality of image forming apparatuses based on image data input from the information processing apparatus. A program executed in a print server comprising storage means, wherein the print server stores image data input means for inputting image data output from an information processing apparatus, and stored in the storage means when image data is input Applying one print rule among a plurality of print rules to determine the one image forming apparatus that is the output destination of the image data, the print rule applying means, and the one based on the determination result by the print rule applying means Output means for outputting image data to the image forming apparatus, and detecting a failure occurring in any of the plurality of image forming apparatuses Based on the detection result of the failure detection unit, the failure detection unit, the print rule extraction unit that extracts the print rule that defines the image forming apparatus in which the failure has occurred as the output destination, and the extraction unit extracts The printing rule is made to function as notifying means for notifying one or both of an administrator who manages the printing rule and a user who uses the information processing apparatus.

  According to the present invention, the administrator or the user is notified of the printing rule that defines the image forming apparatus in which the printing failure has occurred as the output destination. Measures can be taken early. As a result, it is possible to prevent the user from waiting for a long time until the faulty image forming apparatus is restored, thereby preventing the user's work efficiency from being lowered.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a print control system. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of rule information stored in advance in a print server. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a processing concept when a print rule is applied in a print server to automatically advance print output processing. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a print server. FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration realized in a print server. It is a conceptual diagram of a process in case a guidance screen is notified to an administrator in a print control system. It is a figure which shows an example of the first guidance screen notified to an administrator or a user. It is a figure which shows an example of the next guidance screen notified to an administrator following the guidance screen of FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a processing concept when a print rule is applied in a print server to automatically advance print output processing. It is a conceptual diagram of a process in the case where a guidance screen is first notified to a user in the print control system. It is a figure which shows an example of the next guidance screen notified to a user following the guidance screen of FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a processing concept when a print rule is applied in a print server to automatically advance print output processing. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure performed in a print server. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure performed in a print server.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the embodiments described below, members that are common to each other are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions thereof are omitted.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a print control system 1 according to the present embodiment. The print control system 1 includes a print server 2, an information processing device 3m used by an administrator M, a plurality of information processing devices 3Aa to 3Cb assigned to a plurality of users Aa to Cb, and a plurality of image forming units. The devices 4a to 4c are connected to a network 5 such as a LAN (Local Area Network).

  The manager M is a system manager who manages the print control system 1, for example, and manages print rules to be described later. Each of the users Aa to Cb performs editing of a document or the like using any of the information processing apparatuses 3Aa to 3Cb assigned to the user Aa to Cb, and issues a print instruction for the document. In addition, each of the users Aa to Cb is located in, for example, different offices, floors, or living rooms in one company, and is managed in groups by the manager M described above. FIG. 1 illustrates a case where a plurality of users are classified into groups A to C. That is, users Aa and Ab belong to group A, users Ba and Bb belong to group B, and users Ca and Cb belong to group C.

  In the following description, when it is not necessary to distinguish the users Aa to Cb, they are simply referred to as “users”, and similarly, the image forming apparatuses 4 a to 4 c are also referred to as “image forming apparatuses 4”. Further, the information processing devices 3Aa to 3Cb used by the user and the information processing device 3m used by the administrator M have basically the same configuration. This will be referred to as “device 3”. The basic configuration of the information processing apparatus 3 is mainly described for the information processing apparatuses 3Aa to 3Cb used by the user, and the information processing apparatus 3m used by the administrator M is the information processing apparatus 3Aa used by the user. Only the configuration different from 3Cb will be described.

  The information processing apparatus 3 is configured by, for example, a general personal computer. The information processing apparatus 3 includes an operation input unit that detects an operation instruction by a user, and a display unit that displays various information based on an operation instruction detected by the operation input unit, data input from the outside, or the like. The information processing apparatus 3 transmits image data to the print server 2 based on the detection result by the operation input unit. For example, the information processing apparatus 3 displays various images on the display unit based on an operation instruction by the user, and generates image data based on the display image when detecting a print instruction by the user in that state, via the network 5. Send to the print server 2.

  When the image data transmitted from the information processing apparatus 3 is input, the print server 2 is configured to distribute the image data to any one of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c and output the image data. When the image data is input, the print server 2 specifies to which group the user who issued the image data belongs. For example, the print server 2 stores user management information in which a correspondence relationship between each user, a group to which each user belongs, and the information processing apparatus 3 used by each user is recorded in a predetermined storage area. When the image data is input, the print server 2 specifies the information processing apparatus 3 that issued the image data, and specifies the image data issuer user and the issuer group based on the user management information.

  The print server 2 selects and specifies the output destination of the input image data from the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4 a to 4 c connected to the network 5. Here, the print server 2 includes a storage device 7 constituted by a hard disk device or the like, and rule information 8 is stored in the storage device 7 in advance. The rule information 8 is information for registering a plurality of printing rules. When the print server 2 receives the image data, the print server 2 reads the rule information 8 and applies one of the plurality of print rules based on the received image data. Then, the print server 2 determines one image forming apparatus 4 as an output destination of the image data based on the printing rule application result, and outputs the image data to the image forming apparatus 4.

  The image forming apparatus 4 is an apparatus that acquires image data from the print server 2 and performs printout based on the image data. When the image forming apparatus 4 receives the image data, for example, after performing RIP (Raster Image Processing) processing on the image data, the image forming apparatus 4 is configured to perform print output by performing image formation on a print sheet or the like. Such an image forming apparatus 4 may be an apparatus having only a print function for performing print output, or is configured as an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral) having a scan function, a FAX function, etc. in addition to the print function. It may be a device. In the following, a case where the image forming apparatus 4 is configured by an MFP will be exemplified.

  The information processing apparatus 3m used by the administrator M is equipped with a function for managing print rules in addition to the functions of the information processing apparatus 3 used by the user. That is, in the information processing apparatus 3m, a management program for managing printing rules such as creation, editing, registration, and deletion of printing rules is installed in advance, and by starting the management program, the administrator M A print rule can be created or edited based on its own operation instruction. For example, when the information processing apparatus 3m detects a print rule registration instruction newly created by the administrator M in a state where the management program is activated, the information processing apparatus 3m prints the rule information 8 stored in the print server 2 in the rule information 8 stored therein. Register a new rule. Further, when the information processing apparatus 3m detects an instruction to change the printing rule by the administrator M, the information processing apparatus 3m overwrites and saves the corrected printing rule in the rule information 8.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the rule information 8 stored in advance in the print server 2. In the rule information 8 shown in FIG. 2, five printing rules are registered. These printing rules are created in advance by the administrator M and registered in the rule information 8. However, the number of registered printing rules is not limited to the example in the figure.

  Each of the printing rules registered in the rule information 8 includes an input rule in which a condition for applying the printing rule is defined in accordance with input image data, and an image specified by applying the printing rule. An application result in which data processing contents are defined is registered. In FIG. 2, “-” is recorded for items in which conditions and processing contents are not defined in each print rule. In the input rule, a group to which the user who issued the image data belongs and an image attribute indicating the color / monochrome attribute of the image data are registered. In the application result, one image forming apparatus 4 (output destination MFP) that is an output destination of the image data and an output mode in the image forming apparatus 4 are registered.

  Based on the input image data, the print server 2 identifies one print rule that matches the input rule among the plurality of print rules registered in the rule information 8. In other words, the print server 2 specifies the issuer user of the input image data, and specifies the group to which the issuer user belongs. Further, the print server 2 analyzes the image data and specifies an image attribute indicating whether the image data is color or monochrome. Then, the print server 2 identifies a print rule in which an input rule that matches the identification result is defined. Subsequently, the print server 2 determines one image forming apparatus 4 as an output destination of the image data and an output mode of the image data according to the application result of the print rule.

  For example, the print rule of rule No. 1 has two input rules for applying the print rule: the image data issuer user belongs to group A, and the image attribute of the image data is color. A condition is defined. Therefore, when the print server 2 receives image data that meets these two conditions, the print server 2 applies the printing rule of rule No1 to the image data.

  Further, in the print rule of rule No1, the output destination of the image data is the MFPa (that is, the image forming apparatus 4a in FIG. 1) as the processing contents of the image data specified by applying the print rule, Two processing contents are defined that the output mode of the image data is color print output. Therefore, the print server 2 determines the processing contents as described above when the print rule of rule No. 1 is applied to the received image data.

  As an example different from the above, only the group type is registered in the input rule and no image attribute is registered in the print rule of rule No3. In this case, when image data from a user belonging to group B is input, the printing rule of rule No. 3 is applied regardless of the image attribute. Therefore, when the print server 2 applies the print rule of rule No. 3 to the received image data, the print server 2 determines that the output destination of the image data is MFPb (image forming apparatus 4b shown in FIG. 1). However, the printing rule shown in the figure is an example, and the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the input rule may be registered for each user instead of for each group. In addition to the color / monochrome printing shown in the example, various printing modes such as single-sided printing, double-sided printing, and Nin1 printing in which a plurality of pages are assigned to one side of printing paper may be registered in the output mode column. In addition to such printing modes, bookbinding modes such as punching and stapling at the time of printing output may be registered.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a processing concept when the print rules 2 and 3 described above are applied in the print server 2. Of the users Aa and Ab belonging to the group A, for example, the user Aa operates the information processing apparatus 3Aa to edit the document, and issues a print instruction for the document.

  At this time, in the present embodiment, as described above, the print server 2 automatically determines output settings such as the image forming apparatus 4 that is the output destination and the output mode based on the print rules, so the user performs output settings. There is no need. Therefore, when the information processing apparatus 3 detects a print instruction by the user, the information processing apparatus 3 outputs the image data designated by the user to the print server 2 without causing the user to make an output setting.

  As a specific configuration, a program for transmitting image data to the print server 2 is stored in the information processing apparatus 3 in advance. This program is a program for transmitting image data to the print server 2 mainly based on a user's print instruction, and is different from a general printer driver that allows the user to make output settings. Although it is possible to implement a function like the above program in the printer driver, for the sake of brevity, in the following description, the printer driver is not installed in the information processing apparatus 3, and information processing is performed by the above program. The case where the apparatus 3 operates is illustrated.

  The information processing apparatus 3 functions as an image data transmission unit by activating the program when the power is turned on, for example. The information processing apparatus 3 transmits the image data to the print server 2 when detecting a print instruction of the image data by the user. For example, when it is detected that the print button embedded in the toolbar of the document editing screen is selected by the user while the information processing device 3 is displaying the document editing screen, the information processing device 3 Transmits the image data based on the document to the print server 2 immediately without causing the user to set the output.

  When the print server 2 receives the image data D1 output from the information processing apparatus 3Aa as described above, the print server 2 determines one print rule among a plurality of print rules based on the image data D1. In the example shown in FIG. 3, since the issuer of the image data D1 is group A and the image attribute of the image data D1 is color, the print server 2 applies the print rule of rule No1 (see FIG. 2), The image forming apparatus 4a is specified as the output destination of the image data D1. Then, the print server 2 outputs the image data D1 to the specified image forming apparatus 4a. Further, the print server 2 outputs the image data D1 including a color print instruction in accordance with the output mode of rule No1. Thereby, even if both color printing and monochrome printing can be executed in the image forming apparatus 4a, color printing output based on the image data D1 is performed.

  Apart from the above, an example in which, among the users Ba and Bb belonging to the group B, for example, the user Ba issues a document transmission instruction will be described. In this case, the information processing apparatus 3Ba outputs image data D2 based on the document to the print server 2. When the print server 2 inputs the image data D2, the print server 2 applies the print rule of rule No. 3 to transfer the image data D2 to the image forming apparatus 4b, which is a monochrome printer, regardless of the image attribute of the image data D2. Output. Thereby, in the image forming apparatus 4b, monochrome print output based on the image data D2 is performed. In the following, when it is not necessary to distinguish the image data D1 and D2, they are simply referred to as “image data”.

  By the way, when a print failure has occurred in any of the image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c, if an output destination is simply determined based on the print rule, image data is transmitted to the image forming apparatus 4 in which the print failure has occurred. This can cause a problem. For example, when a print failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4a, when the image data D1 from the user Aa is input in the same manner as described above, the print server 2 applies the print rule of rule No1 to generate a print failure. The image data D1 is output to the image forming apparatus 4a. Since the image forming apparatus 4a cannot print out the image data D1 due to the printing failure, a printing error occurs.

  In this case, the user may change the print rule so that the image data D1 can be printed out. However, the print rule is defined for the purpose of improving the efficiency of the workflow and reducing the printing cost. Therefore, the above-mentioned purpose is lost if the user changes easily. Therefore, in general, only the administrator has the authority to change the setting of the printing rule, and the user cannot change the setting. Therefore, also in this embodiment, the management program described above is installed only in the information processing device 3m used by the administrator M, and is not installed in the information processing devices 3Aa to 3Cb used by each user. Therefore, in this case, after the user Aa reports the printing failure to the administrator M, the user Aa waits until the administrator M changes the printing rule of the rule No1, or the printing failure in the image forming apparatus 4a is recovered. I will wait until you do. In the former case, it takes time for the user Aa to report to the administrator M, and when the administrator M also changes the printing rule, the printing rule that defines the image forming apparatus 4 having a printing failure as an output destination is used. Since it is necessary to find out by yourself, it becomes troublesome. Further, when a large number of printing rules are registered in the rule information 8, it takes time for the manager M to search for a printing rule to be changed. Therefore, there is a possibility that the user Aa will wait for a long time. is there. Also in the latter case, if the recovery of the image forming apparatus 4a takes a long time, the user Aa will wait for that long.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, when one or a plurality of image forming apparatuses 4 among the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c have a printing failure as described above, the print server 2 has the printing trouble. The image forming apparatus 4 is specified, and a printing rule in which the specified image forming apparatus 4 is defined as an output destination is specified. Then, the print server 2 notifies the printing rule to one or both of the administrator M and the user. As a result, the manager M or the user can grasp that a print failure has occurred in any of the image forming apparatuses 4, and at the same time have a defective print rule, that is, an image formation in which a print failure has occurred. Since the apparatus 4 can grasp the print rule as the output destination, an avoidance measure can be taken at an early stage. For example, the manager M changes the output destination defined in the printing rule. In this case, the administrator M does not need to find out the defective print rule as described above, and can complete the change of the print rule at an early stage. As a result, print output is performed early in the image forming apparatus 4 as a new output destination, so that the user does not have to wait for a long time. In addition, the user who has received the notification relies on the manager M for avoidance measures for avoiding a defective print rule and applying another print rule, such as changing the image attribute of the image data. Therefore, it is possible to print out at an early stage. Hereinafter, the print server 2 that operates as described above will be described in detail.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the print server 2. As shown in FIG. 4, the print server 2 includes a control unit 15, a network interface 16, and the storage device 7 described above, which can input and output data to and from each other via a data bus 23. It is a configuration.

  The control unit 15 includes a CPU 15a and a memory 15b. The CPU 15a reads and executes the program 18 stored in advance in the storage device 7. The program 18 is a program for causing the control unit 15 to function as various processing units described later. The memory 15b stores temporary data and the like when the CPU 15a executes processing based on the program 18. The network interface 16 is for connecting the information processing apparatus 3 to the network 5. The storage device 7 is a non-volatile storage unit configured by, for example, a hard disk device. The storage device 7 stores the above-described program 18 and rule information 8 in advance. The storage device 7 is provided with a data storage unit 20 for storing image data input from the information processing device 3.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration realized by the CPU 15 a executing the program 18. For example, the print server 2 functions as each processing unit shown in FIG. 5 by executing the program 18 when the power is turned on. That is, the CPU 15 a functions as the communication unit 31, rule application unit 32, print job generation unit 33, failure detection unit 34, notification unit 36, and rule update unit 37. In addition, the failure detection unit 34 includes an extraction unit 35.

  The communication unit 31 is a processing unit that performs data communication with the information processing apparatus 3 and the image forming apparatus 4 via the network interface 16. For example, the communication unit 31 inputs image data transmitted from the information processing apparatus 3 and stores the image data in the data storage unit 20. At this time, the communication unit 31 functions as an image data input unit. Further, the communication unit 31 outputs a print job generated by a print job generation unit 33 described later to one of the image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c. At this time, the communication unit 31 functions as an output unit.

  The rule application unit 32 is a processing unit that identifies one image forming apparatus 4 serving as an output destination by applying a print rule to image data input by the communication unit 31. That is, when the image data is stored in the data storage unit 20 by the communication unit 31 as described above, the rule application unit 32 specifies the issuer user of the image data, analyzes the image data, and analyzes the image data. Identify attributes. Then, the rule application unit 32 reads the rule information 8 from the storage device 7 and identifies one print rule that matches the group to which the user who issued the image data belongs and the image attribute. When the printing rule is specified, the image forming apparatus 4 defined as the output destination in the printing rule is specified. At this time, the rule application unit 32 specifies an output mode defined in the specified print rule. In the example of FIG. 2, the output modes of the rules No. 2 and No. 3 are not defined. In such a case, the rule application unit 32 uses the monochrome printing machine as the image forming apparatus 4b serving as the output destination. The output mode corresponding to the functional characteristics of the image forming apparatus 4b may be automatically determined to specify the monochrome print output as the output mode.

  The print job generation unit 33 is a processing unit that generates a print job based on image data. That is, when the rule application unit 32 determines the image forming apparatus 4 that is the output destination and the output mode, the print job generation unit 33 reads the image data from the data storage unit 20 and outputs the image data. A print job specifying the image forming apparatus 4 and the output mode is generated. For example, when the rule application unit 32 applies the rule No1 print rule, the print job generation unit 33 specifies a print job in which the image forming apparatus 4 is specified as an output destination and color printing is specified as an output mode. Generate. Then, the print job generation unit 33 outputs the print job to the communication unit 31.

  When receiving the print job from the print job generation unit 33, the communication unit 31 outputs the print job via the network 5 to the image forming apparatus 4 designated as the output destination. As a result, print output based on the image data is performed in the image forming apparatus 4 serving as an output destination.

  The failure detection unit 34 is a processing unit that detects a printing failure that occurs in any of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c. As an example of a technique for detecting the occurrence of a failure in the image forming apparatus 4, the failure detection unit 34 transmits a transmission request for failure information to each of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c at regular intervals. The failure occurrence is detected by receiving failure information from each of the image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c.

  Specifically, when each of the image forming apparatuses 4 a to 4 c receives the failure information transmission request from the print server 2, the image forming apparatuses 4 a to 4 c return the presence or absence of the failure to the print server 2 according to the state of the apparatus at that time. That is, the image forming apparatus 4 generates information indicating “no failure” and outputs the information to the print server 2 when no failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4 itself. On the other hand, when a failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4, the image forming apparatus 4 generates failure information including information indicating “failure” and detailed information regarding details of the print failure, and outputs the failure information to the print server 2. To do. The detailed information includes, for example, specific trouble contents related to print output such as out of color or monochrome toner, out of paper, and paper jam. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the failure information may include a failure content related to bookbinding processing such as “no staple staple remaining”.

  Here, for example, if the power of the image forming apparatus 4 is down or a communication failure has occurred, the above method cannot be used because data communication between the image forming apparatus 4 and the print server 2 cannot be performed. Accordingly, when the failure detection unit 34 is in a state in which data communication with the image forming apparatus 4 cannot be performed, when the communication establishment with the image forming apparatus 4 is attempted for a predetermined time and a time-out occurs, the failure detecting unit 34 notifies the image forming apparatus 4. It may be determined that a printing failure has occurred.

  The failure detection unit 34 detects a printing failure in the image forming apparatus 4 based on the failure information from the image forming apparatus 4 as described above. If the failure detection unit 34 detects a failure in the image forming apparatus 4, the extraction unit 35 functions next. The extraction unit 35 is a processing unit that extracts, from the rule information 8, a print rule that is an output destination of the image forming apparatus 4 in which a failure has occurred. That is, the extraction unit 35 reads and searches the rule information 8 stored in the storage device 7 when the failure detection unit 34 identifies the image forming apparatus 4 in which the printing failure has occurred as described above. As a result, the printing rule that specifies the image forming apparatus 4 in which the printing failure has occurred as the output destination is extracted from the plurality of printing rules registered in the rule information 8. In addition, the extraction unit 35 may extract a plurality of printing rules that are output destinations by the image forming apparatus 4 in which a printing failure has occurred.

  If at least one print rule is extracted by the extraction unit 35, then the notification unit 36 functions. The notification unit 36 is a processing unit that notifies one or both of the administrator M and the user of the print rule extracted by the extraction unit 35. Whether the notification destination is one or both is arbitrary and is set in advance by the administrator M or the like. Then, the notification unit 36 notifies the print rule to a preset notification destination.

  At this time, the notification unit 36 preferably performs the notification at a timing when the failure detection unit 34 detects the occurrence of the failure. That is, in the present embodiment, the occurrence of a failure is detected at regular intervals, so that notification is made at the timing when the failure is detected, so that the administrator M can create a faulty print rule in real time when the failure is detected. I can grasp it. As a result, the manager M can start the printing rule update operation at an early stage. In addition, the user can grasp the printing rule in which the trouble has occurred at an early stage, and can change the image attribute to avoid the printing rule and apply another printing rule. In either case, since print output is performed based on a print instruction issued by the user thereafter, it is possible to prevent the user's work efficiency from being lowered.

  When the notification destination is set to the manager M, the notification unit 36 generates a guidance screen for notifying the printing rule when the extraction rule is extracted by the extraction unit 35, and manages the guidance screen. To the information processing device 3m used by the person M. Thereby, the information processing apparatus 3m pops up the guidance screen on the display unit. An example of a specific configuration for pop-up displaying a guidance screen in the information processing device 3 is, for example, the above-described program stored in the information processing device 3 has a function of performing display control of the guidance screen. Has been implemented. When the information processing apparatus 3 receives the guidance screen from the print server 2 while the program is being executed, the information processing apparatus 3 pops up the guidance screen on the display unit. Further, as an example different from the pop-up display, the guidance screen may be transmitted to a mobile terminal such as a smartphone held by the administrator M, or the above notification is sent by e-mail transmission to the e-mail address of the administrator M. You can go.

  Even when the notification destination is set for the user, basically the same as described above, and the guidance screen is displayed in a pop-up on the information processing apparatus 3 used by the user. The notification screen may be notified to all users when there are multiple users. In such a case, the above notification is also given to users who are not related to defective print rules. It will be broken. Therefore, when the notification destination is set to the user, the users who are the notification target may be all users who belong to the group registered in the input rule in the defective print rule. As a result, only the user related to the defective print rule is notified, so that it is not necessary to bother other users. Further, as will be described later, it is possible to make a notification so as to be notified when image data is received. In such a case, it is preferable to notify only the user who transmitted the image data.

  The rule update unit 37 is a processing unit that updates the rule information 8 based on a setting change instruction from the administrator M. When the setting update instruction from the information processing apparatus 3m used by the administrator M is input, the rule update unit 37 overwrites and registers the new setting in the print rule included in the rule information 8 based on the setting change instruction. . Therefore, if the administrator M gives an instruction to change the output destination stipulated in the defective printing rule to the image forming apparatus 4 that does not have a printing failure, the printing rule that does not have the defective printing rule from the previous defective printing rule. Can be rewritten. As a result, the setting is changed to a printing rule whose output destination is the image forming apparatus 4 in which no printing failure has occurred, so that the image data to be input thereafter forms an image forming a new output destination according to the changed printing rule. Transmitted to the device 4. Since the image output is normally performed in the image forming apparatus 4, the user can obtain the printed matter.

  Next, an example of a specific operation executed by each processing unit configured as described above will be described. In the following, the case where the notification destination is set to the administrator M will be described first, and then the case where the notification destination is set to the user will be described.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically illustrating a process when the manager M is notified of the guidance screen T1. As shown in FIG. 6, for example, when a printing failure occurs in the image forming apparatus 4a, the print server 2 detects the failure. Then, the print server 2 refers to the rule information 8 stored in the storage device 7, and specifies the print rule that is the output destination of the image forming apparatus 4a in which the print failure has occurred. Taking the rule information 8 shown in FIG. 2 as an example, the print server 2 specifies the print rule of rule No1 that defines the image forming apparatus 4a as an output destination. In this case, the print server 2 generates a guidance screen T1 based on the printing rule and outputs it to the information processing apparatus 3m used by the manager M.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a guidance screen T1 displayed on the information processing apparatus 3m used by the administrator M. In the guidance screen T1 shown in FIG. 7, the printing rule of rule No1 is displayed in which the image forming apparatus 4a in which the printing failure has occurred is the output destination. As a result, the manager M can grasp the occurrence of a failure in the image forming apparatus 4a and can check the print rule in which a failure has occurred due to the failure. As a result, the manager M does not have to search for a faulty print rule among a plurality of print rules, and can therefore take an early countermeasure. Further, as shown in the figure, in this embodiment, the print server 2 automatically determines whether there is a workaround so that the administrator M does not have to make a workaround by himself / herself. The print server 2 generates a guidance screen T1 including information indicating “There is a workaround”. On the other hand, when the avoidance measure cannot be detected, the print server 2 generates a guidance screen T1 including information indicating “no avoidance measure”.

  Next, a method for specifying a workaround will be described. For example, in the print server 2, the failure detection unit 34 determines whether or not there is an alternative machine capable of performing print output in place of the image forming apparatus 4 in which the failure has occurred. Is determined to have “a workaround”. Specifically, the failure detection unit 34 detects the image forming devices 4b and 4c having no printing failure based on the failure information from the image forming devices 4a to 4c. 4c is specified as an alternative machine. At this time, the failure detection unit 34 may simply specify the image forming apparatus 4 having no print failure as an alternative machine regardless of the output mode defined in the faulty printing rule, and print in the output mode. The image forming apparatus 4 that can output the image may be preferentially specified as an alternative device. Further, when a plurality of alternative machines are specified as described above, the failure detection unit 34 may specify one alternative machine based on a preset priority order. In this case, the priority order may be increased in order from the image forming apparatus 4 installed near the image forming apparatus 4a in which the printing failure has occurred. In the following, for the sake of brevity, a case where only the image forming apparatus 4b is specified as an alternative machine will be exemplified.

  FIG. 7 illustrates a case where a workaround is specified as described above, and a radio button for alternatively selecting whether to check the workaround is displayed on the guidance screen T1. Has been. When the OK button T1a is selected and operated with “Check” checked, the information processing apparatus 3 transmits the operation information to the print server 2, whereby the communication unit 31 in the print server 2 is transmitted. Detects the operation information. In the print server 2, when the notification unit 36 detects the operation information via the communication unit 31, the notification unit 36 changes the guidance screen T <b> 1 to the next screen.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a guidance screen T2 that is the next screen with respect to the guidance screen T1 in FIG. The guidance screen T2 has a screen configuration that specifically guides the manager M about the workaround specified as described above. That is, as shown in FIG. 8, on the guidance screen T2, the output destination is changed from the image forming apparatus 4a (MFPa) having a printing fault to the image forming apparatus 4b (MFPb) having no printing fault identified as the substitute machine. A setting change proposal is displayed. If a plurality of alternative machines are specified, the print server 2 displays a plurality of setting change proposals for which the plurality of alternative machines are output destinations, and selects one setting change proposal for the administrator M. You may let them. In addition, when generating the guidance screen T2, the notification unit 36 may highlight a portion that is a setting change target, as illustrated in the figure.

  Here, the failure detection unit 34 may perform the following process before the notification unit 36 generates the guidance screen T2. In other words, the failure detection unit 34 specifies an output mode defined in the defective print rule, and determines whether or not the alternative device can print out the output mode. When the notification unit 36 can print out the output mode in the alternative device based on the determination result by the failure detection unit 34, the notification unit 36 records the output mode in the setting change proposal and displays the guidance screen T2. Generate. This makes it possible to perform print output with minimal rule change. However, when the image forming apparatus 4b, which is a monochrome printing machine, is used as an alternative machine as in the present embodiment, it is not possible to perform color printing output defined as an output mode in the printing rule of rule No1. Since it is possible, the notification unit 36 records “-” in the column of the output mode of the setting change proposal.

  In addition, a radio button for alternatively selecting whether or not to accept the change of the printing rule is displayed on the guidance screen T2. When the OK button T2a is selected and operated with “Accept” checked, the print rule 2 is overwritten and saved in the print server 2. Specifically, when the administrator M selects and operates the OK button T2a for the guidance screen T2, the information processing apparatus 3m sends a setting change instruction P1 based on the selection operation to the print server 2 as shown in FIG. Output. A setting change instruction P1 from the information processing apparatus 3m is input to the print rule update unit 37 via the communication unit 31 in the print server 2. At this time, the print rule update unit 37 overwrites and saves the defective print rule stored in the storage device 7 with the new print rule based on the setting change instruction P1. In the above example, the print rule update unit 37 overwrites and saves a new print rule whose output destination is the image forming apparatus 4 b with respect to the print rule of rule No 1 stored in the storage device 7. In this way, as shown in the drawing, the storage device 7 is in a state where the updated rule information 8 is stored.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically showing the processing content of the image data D1 input by the print server 2 after the rule information 8 has been updated by the administrator M. As shown in FIG. 9, for example, when the user Aa issues a print instruction for the color image data D1, the print server 2 inputs the image data D1 from the information processing apparatus 3m. As described above, in the updated printing rule, the output destination of the image data D1 whose issue source is group A and color is changed to the image forming apparatus 4b. Therefore, the print server 2 transmits the image data D1 to the image forming apparatus 4b. As a result, the user Aa can obtain a printed matter printed out in the image forming apparatus 4b. However, in this case, the user Aa may move to the image forming apparatus 4a as usual without knowing that the printing rule has been changed by the manager M and wait for print output. In the above example, monochrome printing is performed. Therefore, when the user Aa issues the image data D1 with the intention of performing color printing as usual, there is a possibility that the user Aa does not comply with the intention. . Therefore, the print server 2 may store the print rule change history in a predetermined storage area when the output destination is changed by changing the print rule or the output mode is changed. good. When the print server 2 inputs the image data D1, the print server 2 refers to the change history, and confirms that the output destination and output mode of the print rule (rule No1) corresponding to the image data D1 have been changed in the past. If it is detected, before outputting the image data D1 to the alternative machine, the user Aa that issued the image data D1 confirms whether printing output is possible, and based on the confirmation result, Printing output may be performed.

  By the way, in the above description, a guidance example has been described in which the image forming apparatus 4 serving as an output destination is changed to an alternative machine when guiding a print rule setting change proposal. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is possible to perform print output by changing the output mode in the image forming apparatus 4 in which the printing failure has occurred without changing the output image forming apparatus 4 to an alternative machine. In such a case, such a setting change proposal may be guided. In other words, the user can acquire the printed matter from the normal image forming apparatus 4 by guiding the setting change proposal so that the same image forming apparatus 4 performs print output before and after the print rule setting change. become. Specific processing will be described below.

  When the failure detection unit 34 detects the occurrence of a failure in the image forming apparatus 4, the failure detection unit 34 specifies a print rule that defines the image forming apparatus 4 as an output destination in the same manner as described above. Further, the failure detection unit specifies a print failure in the image forming apparatus 4 based on the details of the print failure included in the failure information. For example, the failure detection unit 34 specifies that the color toner has run out in the image forming apparatus 4a.

  Next, the failure detection unit 34 determines whether or not the print output in the output mode specified by the specified print rule cannot be executed due to the print failure. For example, the output mode of rule No1 is defined as color print output. If the fault content in the image forming apparatus 4a is out of color toner, color print output cannot be executed due to the print fault. Further, even when the print failure is in a state where the print output itself cannot be performed, such as out of paper or a paper jam, the failure detection unit 34 cannot execute the print output in the output mode defined in the print rule. Judge. As described above, when the output mode specified in the print rule to be determined becomes unexecutable due to a print failure, the failure detection unit 34 can output the output while avoiding the print failure. The presence / absence of an output mode is determined. For example, if the printing failure is out of color toner, it may be possible to perform monochrome print output by using monochrome toner even if color print output cannot be performed. In such a case, even in the image forming apparatus 4a in which a printing failure has occurred, if the output mode is changed to monochrome printing, printing output becomes possible, so the failure detection unit 34 is defined in the printing rule. It is specified that the output mode can be changed from the previous color print output to a monochrome print output which is another output mode capable of print output.

  When a different output mode is specified by the failure detection unit 34 as described above, the notification unit 36 records a setting change plan that defines the other output mode on the guidance screen T2 to process information of the manager M. It is displayed on the device 3m. The subsequent processing is the same as described above, and when the administrator M accepts the setting change proposal, the print rule update unit 37 overwrites and saves the print rule after the setting change. In this case, the output mode in the printing rule of rule No. 1 is changed to “monochrome printing”. As a result, for example, the color image data D1 issued by the user Aa is printed in monochrome in the same image forming apparatus 4a before and after the change of the printing rule. As a result, the user Aa can conveniently acquire his / her printed matter with the usual image forming apparatus 4a. If both the setting change proposal for changing the output mode and the setting change proposal for changing the output destination image forming apparatus 4a are detected, either one of the setting change proposals is selected based on the previous setting. Guidance may be provided, or both may be guided and the manager M may select one setting change plan.

  Next, a case where the user is notified of the guidance screens T1 and T2 will be described. The guidance screens T1 and T2 may be notified only to the manager M or only to the user. In the former case, if the manager M is absent, the printing rule is not changed for a long time. There is a possibility that the user may wait for a long time until print output is possible. In the latter case, for example, the user always needs to create a document with consideration of a workaround such as setting the image attribute to monochrome until the image forming apparatus 4 with the printing failure is restored, so that the user may feel annoyed. There is sex. Therefore, the notification destination is preferably set for both the manager M and the user.

  However, if the manager M and the user are notified of the guidance screens T1 and T2 at the same time as the failure occurrence detection timing described above, the user who is not scheduled to print at that time has no interest in the notification and immediately forgets the notification content. There is a possibility. Thereafter, there is a possibility that the user cannot perform print output without knowing the avoidance measures after, for example, entering the print instruction. Therefore, it is preferable that the notification timing to the user is a timing when the user gives a print instruction. Accordingly, the user can grasp a defective print rule when issuing a print instruction, and thus can take a workaround. On the other hand, the administrator M is a person who manages the printing rules and has the authority to change the printing rules. Therefore, the administrator M is more important in notifying the administrator M than the user without such authority. The degree is higher than the notification to the user. Further, if the administrator M can change the setting of the printing rule at an early stage, it is not necessary for the user to perform an avoidance measure after that. Therefore, the notification to the administrator M is preferably as early as possible. That is, it is preferable that the notification timing to the manager M is the timing when the printing failure is detected by the failure detection unit 34 as described above. By setting the notification timing to the administrator M and the notification timing to the user as described above, it is possible to expect an early improvement measure by the administrator M, and it is still managed when the user issues a print instruction. When no improvement measures are taken by the administrator M, the user himself / herself can take the improvement measures without relying on the manager M. In the following, such preferred forms will be exemplified. However, this does not mean that the notification timing to the user and the notification timing to the manager M are simultaneous.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing processing when notifying the user of the guidance screens T1 and T2. As shown in the figure, for example, when the user Aa issues a print instruction for the color image data D1, the image data D1 from the information processing apparatus 3m is input to the print server 2 in the same manner as described above. The print server 2 specifies a print rule to be applied based on the image data D1. In the example of the rule information 8 shown in FIG. 2, since the image data issuer is the group A and the attribute of the image data D1 is color, the print rule of rule No1 is specified.

  When the print rule is specified, the print server 2 determines whether or not a print failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4a defined as an output destination in the print rule. Specifically, in the print server 2, the failure detection unit 34 makes the above determination based on the latest failure information acquired from the image forming apparatus 4a at regular intervals. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the failure detection unit 34 transmits failure information to the image forming apparatus 4a serving as an output destination by applying a print rule to the image data D1 at the timing when the image data D1 is input. The above determination may be made based on the failure information acquired by making a request and responding by the image forming apparatus 4a.

  When the print server 2 detects a print fault in the image forming apparatus 4a based on the fault information acquired as described above, the print server 2 specifies the notification destination of the print rule (rule No1) that is the output destination. . This notification destination may be all users Aa to Cb, or may be all users Aa and Ab belonging to the issue group A of the image data D1. However, if the guidance screen T1 is notified to a user other than the user Aa who is affected by the printing failure at that time, there is a possibility that a user other than the user Aa may feel annoyed. Therefore, in this case, the print server 2 may specify only the user Aa who is the issue source of the image data D1 as the notification destination. In the following, a case where only the user Aa is the notification destination will be exemplified.

  When the print server 2 specifies the notification destination as described above, the print server 2 notifies the notification destination of the guidance screens T1 and T2. That is, the print server 2 generates a guide screen T1 (FIG. 7) having the same screen configuration as described above, and pops up the guide screen T1 on the information processing apparatus 3Aa used by the user Aa. In this case as well, the print server 2 determines whether or not a workaround exists, and if there is a workaround, further notifies the guidance screen T2 indicating the workaround. However, as described above, since the user Aa does not have the authority to change the setting of the printing rule, the guidance screen T2 for the user Aa is different from the guidance screen T2 for the administrator M as described below. The screen configuration.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a guidance screen T2 notified to the user Aa. As shown in the figure, the guidance screen T2 notified to the user Aa is different from the guidance screen T2 notified to the administrator M described above, and the setting change proposal for changing the printing rule is not displayed. In the guidance screen T2 shown in FIG. 11, a setting change plan for changing the image attribute of the image data D1 is guided so that a printing rule different from the defective printing rule is applied. The illustrated example illustrates a case where a setting change proposal for changing the image attribute of the image data D1 from “color” to “monochrome” is displayed. In addition, as shown in the figure, the printing rule that is currently applied and the printing rule that is applied after the setting change of the image attribute so that the user Aa can specifically grasp the printing rule after the setting change. The screen configuration may be comparable.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram schematically showing processing performed after the image attribute setting change by the user Aa. When the guidance screen T2 is displayed as described above, the user Aa can grasp the workaround. For example, according to the workaround displayed on the guide screen T2, the image attribute of the image data D1 is changed so far. Change from color to monochrome. For example, the user Aa opens the document editing screen and corrects the color description to monochrome description, or if the document editing screen has an attribute change function, the color attribute is changed to the monochrome attribute by using the function. Or change it. Then, the user Aa instructs to print again when the attribute of the document is changed.

  When the print instruction is issued again by the user Aa, the information processing apparatus 3Aa outputs the image data D1 (monochrome) after the attribute change to the print server 2. The print server 2 outputs the image data D1 to the image forming apparatus 4b by applying the printing rule of rule No2 (see FIG. 2) corresponding to the monochrome attribute of the newly input image data D1. As a result, printing output is performed in the image forming apparatus 4b, so that the user Aa can acquire his / her printed matter. Note that the print server 2 may automatically delete the color image data D1 input before the setting change by the user Aa, or may perform color printing again after the image forming apparatus 4a is restored.

  By the way, in the above, the case where the image forming apparatus 4 which is different before and after the setting change proposes to the user a setting change proposal as an output destination is illustrated. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a setting change plan with different output modes in the same image forming apparatus 4 before and after the setting change may be proposed to the user. However, in this case, processing different from the case where the manager M described above is informed of the output mode setting change proposal is performed. That is, when the administrator M is instructed to the output mode setting change proposal, the administrator M has the authority to change the setting of the print rule, so that the inexecutable output mode registered in the print rule can be executed. It is possible to guide a setting change plan for changing to a different output mode. However, since the user does not have such setting change authority, the user cannot perform the same processing as described above. Therefore, in this case, the print server 2 performs a process of guiding the user about a setting change proposal for changing the image attribute of the image data so that a print rule different from the defective print rule is applied.

  For example, like rule Nos. 4 and 5 shown in FIG. 2, in the rule information 8, a plurality of print rules may define the same image forming apparatus 4c (MFPc) as an output destination. In rules No. 4 and No. 5, different output modes are defined corresponding to the image attributes of the image data. In rule No. 4, the output mode is “color printing” corresponding to the image attribute of the image data being “color”, and in rule No. 5, the image attribute of the image data is corresponding to “monochrome”. The output mode is “monochrome printing”. As described above, when a plurality of printing rules define the same image forming apparatus 4 as an output destination, and those printing rules define different output modes corresponding to image attributes of image data, setting By proposing to change the attribute of the image data so that the output mode is different before and after the change, it may be possible to print out without changing the image forming apparatus 4c as the output destination.

  For example, when the user Ca issues an instruction to transmit color image data among the users Ca and Cb belonging to the group C illustrated in FIG. 1, the image data is transmitted from the information processing device 3Ca to the print server 2. Is output. When the communication unit 31 inputs the image data in the print server 2, the rule application unit 32 then specifies a print rule to be applied based on the image data. In this case, since the issuer of the image data is group C and the image data is color, according to the example of the rule information 8 shown in FIG. 2, the rule application unit 32 specifies the print rule of rule No4. .

  At this time, the failure detection unit 34 determines whether or not a print failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4c (MFPc) defined as an output destination in the print rule. When the failure detection unit 34 detects that a print failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4c, the failure detection unit 34 determines whether the image formation device 4c in which the print failure has occurred is an output destination. Further, it is determined whether or not an output mode is defined. Then, when the output mode is defined in the printing rule, the failure detection unit 34 outputs the output according to the printing failure occurring in the image forming apparatus 4c based on the details of the failure information from the image forming apparatus 4c. It is determined whether the output in the mode is not executable. For example, when the print failure is out of color toner, and the output mode is color printing as in rule No. 4, the failure detection unit 34 outputs in the output mode defined in the print rule due to the print failure. Is determined to be infeasible.

  On the other hand, for example, when the print failure occurring in the image forming apparatus 4c is a print failure that does not affect the color print output such as out of monochrome toner, the failure detection unit 34 is defined in the print rule. It is determined that output in the output mode is possible. In this case, the print server 2 determines an output destination and an output mode based on the application result of the printing rule of the rule No4, and causes the image forming apparatus 4c to perform color printing output.

  If output in the output mode specified in the printing rule is impossible, the failure detection unit 34 refers to the rule information 8 and then determines rule No 4 that specifies the image forming apparatus 4c as an output destination. In addition, it is determined whether another print rule that defines the same image forming apparatus 4c as an output destination is registered. In the example of FIG. 2, the failure detection unit 34 detects that the print rule of rule No5 is registered. When the fault detection unit 34 specifies another print rule as described above, the fault detection unit 34 specifies an output mode defined in the other print rule, and can the output in the output mode be executed due to a print fault? Judge whether or not.

  In the example of rule No5, monochrome print output is defined as the output mode, and the print failure in the image forming apparatus 4c is out of color toner, so the failure detection unit 34 can execute monochrome print output. Judge. In this case, the failure detection unit 34 specifies the printing rule of rule No. 5 as an alternative. Next, the failure detection unit 34 specifies the image attribute of the print rule as an alternative. In the example of FIG. 2, the failure detection unit 34 specifies that the image attribute registered in the rule No. 5 as an alternative is “monochrome”.

  The notification unit 36 causes the information processing device 3Ca used by the user Ca to display the guidance screen T2 in which the setting change plan to be changed to the image attribute specified by the failure detection unit 34 is recorded. As a result, the user Ca changes the image characteristics of the image data to monochrome and issues a print instruction again. In that case, since the print rule of rule No. 5 is applied in the print server 2, monochrome print output using monochrome toner is performed in the image forming apparatus 4c. As a result, the user can obtain the printed material from the normal image forming apparatus 4c. Note that there are both a setting change proposal for applying printing rules having different output modes before and after the setting change, and a setting change proposal for applying different printing rules by the output destination image forming apparatus 4 before and after the setting change. When it is detected, either one based on the preset setting may be proposed to the user, or both may be proposed to the user and one setting change plan may be selected.

  FIGS. 13 and 14 are flowcharts showing an example of processing procedures executed in the print server 2. FIG. 13 is a process that starts when the program 18 is started, and FIG. 14 is a process that starts when the image data from the information processing apparatus 3 is received.

  As shown in FIG. 13, when the program 18 is activated, the print server 2 sends a failure information transmission request to all the image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c connected via the network 5 (step S1). The print server 2 repeatedly issues a failure information transmission request at regular intervals until a print failure is detected (NO in step S2).

  When the print server 2 detects any one of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4 (YES in step S2), the print server 2 reads the rule information 8 stored in the storage device 7 (step S3), and the print trouble is detected. In step S4, the image forming apparatus 4 in which the image is generated specifies a print rule as an output destination. Then, the print server 2 extracts a print rule that cannot be printed out due to a print failure from the specified print rules (step S5). This process is a process for identifying a defective print rule among a plurality of print rules that specify the same image forming apparatus 4 as an output destination, such as rules No. 4 and No. 5 shown in FIG. . Next, the print server 2 determines whether there is a workaround (step S6). Specifically, the print server 2 determines whether there is a substitute for the image forming apparatus 4 in which the printing failure has occurred, or is executed in the image forming apparatus 4 in which the printing failure has occurred. It is determined whether or not there is a possible output mode. When there is a workaround (YES in step S6), the print server 2 generates guide screens T1 and T2 including the workaround and transmits the information to the information processing apparatus 3m used by the manager M (step S7). When notifying the user at this timing, the print server 2 transmits guidance screens T1 and T2 including a workaround to the information processing apparatus 3 used by the user. However, since the process here is not a process for determining a workaround based on the input image data, it is different from the guidance screen T2 shown in FIG. 11 that guides the user on a specific workaround based on the input image data. The screen configuration. For example, in this case, the print server 2 generates a guide screen T2 having a screen configuration displaying a list of workarounds corresponding to the defective print rule. As a result, a user who intends to issue a print instruction can select one workaround corresponding to the user and take the workaround.

  When the print server 2 detects acceptance of the setting change proposal by the administrator M (YES in step S8), the print server 2 changes the print rule setting by overwriting and saving the print rule based on the setting change proposal (step S9). Then, the print server 2 waits until a predetermined time elapses (NO in step S10), returns to step S1, and performs the same processing as described above. The predetermined time is a time for preventing notification of the same content from being frequently performed again while the manager M is performing the avoidance measure, and is, for example, about several minutes. On the other hand, if there is no workaround (NO in step S6), the print server 2 generates a guide screen T1 that does not include a workaround, that is, a guide screen T1 that displays “no workaround” and is used by the administrator M. The information is transmitted to the information processing device 3m (step S11). Further, when the administrator M does not accept the rule change such as selecting and operating the cancel button displayed on the guidance screens T1 and T2 (NO in step S8), the print server 2 proceeds to step S9. In this case, the manager M performs the correction work for the printing rule by himself / herself.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 14, a process that starts in response to receiving image data from the information processing device 3 will be described. First, when the print server 2 receives the image data from the information processing apparatus 3, it reads the rule information 8 (step S21), and specifies the group to which the user who issued the image data belongs and the input rule that matches the image attribute. (Step S22). Next, the print server 2 specifies a print rule that matches the input rule, and specifies the image forming apparatus 4 defined as an output destination in the print rule (step S23).

  Next, the print server 2 determines whether or not a printing failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4 serving as an output destination based on the failure information from the image forming apparatus 4 (step S24). When a print failure has occurred in the image forming apparatus 4 that is the output destination (YES in step S24), the print server 2 executes output in the output mode defined in the applied print rule due to the print failure. When it is impossible (YES in step S25), it is determined whether there is a workaround (step S26). For example, the print server 2 determines whether there is an image attribute to which another print rule different from the print rule applied at that time is present.

  If there is a workaround (YES in step S26), the print server 2 generates guide screens T1 and T2 including the workaround and transmits the information to the information processing apparatus 3 used by the user who issued the image data ( Step S27), the process is terminated. On the other hand, if there is no workaround in step S26 (NO in step S26), the print server 2 generates a guidance screen T1 that does not include a workaround and uses the information processing apparatus 3 used by the user who issued the image data. (Step S28), and the process ends.

  If there is no printing failure in the image forming apparatus 4 that is the output destination (NO in step S24), the print server 2 outputs image data to the image forming apparatus 4 that is the output destination (step S29). ), The process is terminated. Here, after transmitting the guidance screens T1 and T2 including the avoidance measures in step S26, the user performs an avoidance measure such as changing the image attribute according to the guidance screens T1 and T2 and instructs the image data transmission again. In step S24, a print rule different from the previously applied print rule is applied, so that no print failure has occurred in the output image forming apparatus 4 (step S24). NO), image data is transmitted to the image forming apparatus 4 (step S29). As a result, even if the avoidance measure by the administrator M is not performed, the user can acquire the printed matter by the user's own avoidance measure without depending on the administrator M. Thus, the process when image data is received ends.

  By the way, in the above, since the printer driver was not installed in the information processing apparatus 3, the case where output setting was not performed in the information processing apparatus 3 was illustrated. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a printer driver may be installed in the information processing apparatus 3, and a print job based on image data may be output to the print server 2 after various output settings have been made.

  That is, in this case, when the information processing apparatus 3 detects a print instruction from the user, the information processing apparatus 3 causes the user to select one of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c. Then, the information processing apparatus 3 executes a printer driver corresponding to the one image forming apparatus 4 selected by the user, and performs output setting for the image forming apparatus 4. Then, the information processing apparatus 3 generates a print job based on the output setting and outputs it to the print server 2.

  When the print server 2 inputs the print job from the information processing apparatus 3, the print server 2 determines one print rule among the plurality of print rules in the same manner as described above. At this time, even if an output setting different from the print rule is set for the print job, the print server 2 ignores the output setting and performs a new output setting according to the print rule. That is, an image forming apparatus 4 different from the image forming apparatus 4 designated as the output destination by the user may be designated as a new output destination, or the image forming apparatus 4 designated as the output destination by the user may be accepted. is there. The same applies to the output mode. Then, the print server 2 outputs a print job to the image forming apparatus 4 serving as an output destination. When the image forming apparatus 4 inputs a print job, the image forming apparatus 4 performs print output based on the print job.

  In addition, when the print server 2 detects a printing failure of the image forming apparatus 4, the print server 2 notifies the printing rule to which the image forming apparatus 4 is an output destination to one or both of the administrator M and the user in the same manner as described above. To do. When notifying the user, since the printer driver is installed in the information processing apparatus 3, the user can change the image attribute relatively easily on the output setting screen. For example, the user only has to change the output setting from the previous color to monochrome on the output setting screen and give a transmission instruction. The user can change the image attribute by editing the document as described above. You do n’t have to.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the storage device 7 of the print server 2 has one of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4 a to 4 c serving as an output destination of image data based on the image data input via the communication unit 31. A plurality of printing rules for determining the image forming apparatus 4 are stored. Further, the print server 2 monitors a printing failure that occurs in any of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c. Then, when a print failure of the image forming apparatus 4 is detected, the print server 2 extracts from the storage device 7 a print rule that defines the image forming apparatus 4 in which the print failure has occurred as an output destination. The printing rule is notified to one or both of the administrator M and the user.

  According to such a configuration, the manager M or the user is notified of the printing rule that defines the image forming apparatus 4 in which the printing failure has occurred as an output destination. The user can take early avoidance measures for the printing rule. As a result, it is possible to avoid waiting for the user for a long time until the image forming apparatus 4 having the printing failure is restored, and thus it is possible to prevent the user's work efficiency from being lowered.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the configuration further includes a rule update unit 37 that changes the setting of the print rule stored in the storage device 7 based on the setting change instruction from the administrator M. According to such a configuration, when the administrator M changes the print rule setting, the print output is performed in the image forming apparatus 4 without a print failure. As a result, the user can acquire his / her printed matter.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the notification unit 36 displays the guidance screens T1 and T2 on the information processing apparatus 3m used by the administrator M, so that the output destination specified in the print rule is set to have a print failure. In this configuration, the manager M is guided through a setting change plan for changing from the image forming apparatus 4 to the image forming apparatus 4 having no printing failure. According to such a configuration, the administrator M does not have to search for specific setting change contents by himself / herself, so the work load is reduced.

  In the present embodiment, at least one of the plurality of printing rules registered in the rule information 8 further defines an output mode at the time of printing output in the image forming apparatus 4 serving as an output destination. Then, the failure detection unit 34 specifies the print failure in the image forming apparatus 4 based on the failure information from the image forming apparatus 4 that is the output destination in the print rule defining such an output mode, When the image forming apparatus 4 cannot output in the above output mode due to the printing fault, another output mode that can output while avoiding the printing fault is specified. Then, the notification unit 36 further notifies the manager M of a setting change proposal to another output mode.

  According to such a configuration, the manager M is notified of the setting change proposal for the output mode that avoids the printing failure, so that the output destination is set to one on condition that the administrator M changes the setting to the output mode. Printing output can be performed without changing from the image forming apparatus 4 to another image forming apparatus. This is convenient because the user can obtain the printed material from the usual image forming apparatus 4.

  In the present embodiment, the failure detection unit 34 monitors whether or not a print failure has occurred in each of the plurality of image forming apparatuses 4a to 4c at regular intervals, and the notification unit 36 includes the failure detection unit 34. In this configuration, the administrator M is notified of a printing rule that defines the image forming apparatus 4 as an output destination at the timing when the occurrence of a failure in the image forming apparatus 4 is detected. According to such a configuration, the administrator M can grasp the occurrence of the failure in real time, and thus can start the improvement measures at the earliest stage.

  Further, in the present embodiment, each of the plurality of printing rules defines one image forming apparatus 4 that is an output destination of the image data corresponding to the image attribute of the image data. Then, the notification unit 36 displays the guidance screens T1 and T2 on the information processing apparatus 3 used by the user via the communication unit 31, so that the image forming apparatus 4 in which no printing failure has occurred becomes the output destination. This is a configuration for notifying a user of a setting change proposal to an image attribute that conforms to a printing rule. According to such a configuration, the image forming apparatus 4 in which no print failure has occurred notifies the user of a setting change proposal to the image attribute that conforms to the print rule as the output destination. It is possible to take an improvement device by itself without depending on M. As a result, for example, it is not necessary to wait until the avoidance measure by the administrator M is completed, and the specific setting change contents can be grasped without being judged by oneself, so that the work load is reduced.

  In the present embodiment, as in rules No 4 and No 5, for example, at least two of the plurality of printing rules define the same image forming apparatus 4c as an output destination and correspond to image attributes of image data. Output modes different from each other. When the failure detection unit 34 detects failure information from the image forming apparatus 4c defined as the same output destination in a plurality of printing rules in which different output modes are defined as in the rules No4 and No5, the failure detection unit 34 detects the failure information. Based on the failure information, the printing failure in the image forming apparatus 4c is specified. Then, the failure detection unit 34 specifies a printing rule of rule No. 5 that is different from the rule No. 4 that defines an output mode that cannot be output due to the printing failure from among the printing rules of rule No. 4 and No. 5. Then, the notification unit 36 notifies the user of a setting change proposal to an image attribute that conforms to the printing rule of rule No. 5 specified by the failure detection unit 34. As a result, the user who has received the notification re-issues the image data after changing to an image attribute that can be printed out while avoiding the printing failure in the image forming apparatus 4c having a printing failure, as usual. This is convenient because the printed material can be obtained from the image forming apparatus 4c.

(Modification)
As mentioned above, although preferred embodiment regarding this invention was described, this invention is not restricted to the thing of the content mentioned above, A various modification is applicable.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the user's workaround is a setting change from color to monochrome is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, a setting change plan for changing the file name or file format may be guided. Alternatively, it is defined that the image forming apparatus 4a (color printing machine) is an output target when the print rule is equal to or smaller than a predetermined page, and the image forming apparatus 4b (monochrome printing machine) is an output target when exceeding a predetermined page. If it is, a setting change proposal for changing the number of characters, the number of lines, or the like so as to be within a predetermined page or beyond the predetermined page may be guided.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, when the image forming apparatus 4a cannot perform color print output due to running out of color toner, the failure detection unit 34 is used as an output destination in the print rule in which the print failure has occurred. In the prescribed image forming apparatus 4a, the case of guiding another output mode (for example, monochrome print output) that can be printed out while avoiding the printing failure is illustrated. As another example, when a bookbinding process such as stapling is defined as an output target of a print rule, printing in the image forming apparatus 4a is caused by the remaining staple needle remaining. If the output is temporarily interrupted, a setting change proposal that does not perform the bookbinding process, such as deleting stapling from the print rule, may be guided.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the image forming apparatus 4 performs the RIP processing of the image data is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the print server 2 may be configured to perform RIP processing of image data. That is, in this case, the print server 2 stores printer drivers corresponding to the image forming apparatuses 4 a to 4 c that can communicate via the network 5. When the print server 2 inputs the image data from the information processing apparatus 3 and determines the image forming apparatus 4 that is the output destination of the image data by applying the printing rule, the print server 2 corresponds to the image forming apparatus 4. Execute the RIP process by executing the printer driver. Then, the print server 2 generates a print job (image data) after the RIP process, and outputs the print job to the image forming apparatus 4 serving as an output destination. In this case, since the RIP process is not performed in the image forming apparatus 4, the processing burden is reduced in the image forming apparatus 4.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the information processing apparatus 3 executes the attribute change of the image data based on the user's instruction operation is exemplified. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Also good. For example, a selection button for selecting whether or not to accept image data attribute change is displayed on the guidance screen T2 for the user. If the attribute change is selected, the print server 2 automatically changes the image attribute of the defective image data from color to monochrome, and then determines a print rule based on the changed image data. . As a result, it is not necessary for the user himself to change the attribute of the image data, and the user does not have to issue a print instruction for the image data a plurality of times.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where notification is performed to both the administrator M and the user is exemplified. In this case, after the avoidance measure by the administrator M is completed, there is a possibility that the user may take an avoidance measure at the time of document creation without knowing that. The user may be notified of completion of changing the print rule setting. This can prevent the user from performing unnecessary avoidance measures.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Print control processing system 2 Print server 3 Information processing apparatus 4 Image forming apparatus 7 Storage device (storage means)
18 Program 31 Communication unit (image data input means, output means)
32 Rule application section (print rule application means)
34 Failure detection unit (failure detection means)
35 Extraction unit (print rule extraction means)
36 Notification section (notification means)
37 Rule update section (print rule update means)

Claims (8)

Image data input means for inputting image data output from the information processing apparatus;
Storage means for storing a plurality of printing rules for determining one image forming apparatus as an output destination of image data among a plurality of image forming apparatuses based on image data input by the image data input means;
A printing rule application unit that applies one printing rule among a plurality of printing rules stored in the storage unit and determines the one image forming apparatus that is an output destination of the image data when inputting image data; ,
Output means for outputting image data to the one image forming apparatus based on a determination result by the print rule applying means;
Fault detection means for detecting faults occurring in any of the plurality of image forming apparatuses;
A print rule extraction unit that extracts a print rule that defines an image forming apparatus in which a failure has occurred as an output destination based on a detection result by the failure detection unit;
A notification means for notifying one or both of an administrator who manages the print rule and a user who uses the information processing apparatus, the print rule extracted by the extraction means;
A print server comprising:   The print server according to claim 1, further comprising a print rule update unit configured to change a setting of a print rule stored in the storage unit based on a setting change instruction from an administrator.   The notification means further notifies the administrator of a setting change proposal for changing the output destination defined in the printing rule from a faulty image forming apparatus to a faultless image forming apparatus. The print server described in. At least one of the plurality of print rules further defines an output mode at the time of print output in the image forming apparatus serving as an output destination,
The failure detection means identifies a failure in the image forming apparatus based on failure information from the image forming apparatus defined as an output destination in the print rule that defines the output mode, and the image is determined by the failure. If the output in the output mode is not possible in the forming apparatus, specify another output mode that can be output while avoiding the failure,
4. The print server according to claim 2, wherein the notification unit further notifies the administrator of a setting change proposal to an output mode based on a specific result obtained by the failure detection unit. The failure detection means monitors whether or not a failure has occurred for each of the plurality of image forming apparatuses at regular intervals.
2. The notification unit according to claim 1, wherein at the timing when the failure detection unit detects the occurrence of a failure in the image forming apparatus, the notification unit notifies the administrator of a print rule defining the image forming apparatus as an output destination. 5. The print server according to any one of 4 to 4. Each of the plurality of printing rules defines one image forming apparatus as an output destination of the image data corresponding to the image attribute of the image data,
6. The notification unit according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus in which no failure has occurred further notifies the user of a setting change proposal to an image attribute that conforms to a print rule as an output destination. A print server according to any one of the above. At least two of the plurality of print rules define the same image forming apparatus as an output destination, and define different output modes corresponding to image attributes of image data,
The failure detection unit specifies a failure in the image forming apparatus based on failure information from the image forming apparatus defined as the same output destination in a plurality of printing rules defining the output mode, and outputs the output mode. A different print rule from the print rule that defines the output mode that cannot be output due to the failure among the plurality of print rules that define
The print server according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit notifies a user of a setting change proposal to an image attribute that conforms to a print rule specified by the failure detection unit. Executed in a print server having storage means for storing a plurality of printing rules for determining one image forming apparatus as an output destination of image data among a plurality of image forming apparatuses based on image data input from an information processing apparatus The print server,
Image data input means for inputting image data output from the information processing apparatus;
A printing rule applying means for applying one printing rule among a plurality of printing rules stored in the storage means and determining the one image forming apparatus as an output destination of the image data when inputting image data;
Output means for outputting image data to the one image forming apparatus based on a determination result by the print rule applying means;
A failure detection means for detecting a failure occurring in any of the plurality of image forming apparatuses;
A printing rule extracting unit that extracts a printing rule that defines an image forming apparatus in which a failure has occurred as an output destination based on a detection result by the failure detecting unit; and
Notification means for notifying one or both of an administrator who manages the printing rule and a user who uses the information processing apparatus, about the printing rule extracted by the extracting means;
A program characterized by functioning as

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