JP2014017592A - Image forming apparatus and image forming method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus that is convenient for use, in which authority is well-managed.SOLUTION: A document feed unit 3 can read documents in different sizes. A storage unit 9 includes a primary folder for each user that stores scanned image data temporarily in a storage folder 92. A character and figure recognition unit 13 discriminates a business card from the image in the image data scanned by means of an OCR and identifies personal specific information. A control unit 8 has an account authentication unit 82 that generates authentication guide information for authenticating execution of a job from the identified personal specific information. The account authentication unit 82 then transmits the authentication guide information to a terminal, and when the authentication guide information is authenticated by the terminal, executes the job.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and an image forming method, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus and an image forming method that are authority-managed.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there are image forming apparatuses such as multifunctional printers (MFPs) whose authority is managed for jobs such as copying and FAX transmission for accounting and security reasons.
In such an image forming apparatus with authority management, a user can execute a job by inputting and authenticating a personal identification number from an operation panel.
However, the authentication operation using such an operation panel is generally complicated, and there is a problem that the convenience for the user is lowered.

Here, referring to Patent Document 1, for a conventional MFP with authority management that does not use authentication on an operation panel, a document reading unit that reads an image of a document and a medium such as a business card that describes user information are read. There is disclosed a technology that includes two reading units, performs authentication from user information on a medium, and executes a job (hereinafter referred to as Conventional Technology 1).
Further, with reference to Patent Document 2, a technique is disclosed in which a reading device that reads an image receives and authenticates an ID number from a wireless card that stores an ID (Identification) number possessed by the user (hereinafter referred to as an ID). Conventional technology 2). Prior art 2 can identify an individual with a wireless card and transmit the read image to a terminal associated with the individual in advance.
Further, with reference to Patent Document 3, a technique is disclosed in which an authentication module that performs an authentication operation in a device operation unit is provided separately from a multifunction peripheral (hereinafter referred to as Conventional Technology 3).

JP 2009-171367 A JP-A-10-190993 JP 2004-249722 A

However, in the prior art 1, it is possible to obtain a business card and the like relatively easily by a person other than the person, and authenticating only with the business card is not sufficient as a strict identity confirmation means. That is, since a job can be executed without any other authentication even by a non-user, there is a problem that the management of business cards and the like is required, and safety is low.
The prior art 2 is a technique in which authentication is completed when authentication is performed using an ID card, and the image is simply transmitted to the terminal. For this reason, there is a problem that job setting or the like can only be performed on the operation panel unit of the multi-function peripheral, or an image transmission job can be performed according to preset settings.
Further, according to the prior art 3, “First, the mobile terminal accesses the multifunction device 100 by designating the URL or IP address of the multifunction device 100. (paragraph [4] of the fourth embodiment of the specification of the prior art 3 [ When the description such as “see [0127]” is referred to, there is a problem in that it takes time to access the MFP by specifying the URL and IP address in the browser of the mobile terminal for authentication.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a condition, and makes it a subject to eliminate the above-mentioned subject.

An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a document reading unit that reads a document of a different size as image data for each page, a storage unit that stores the image data, a page related to a business card from the image data, and the business card Character and graphic recognition means for recognizing personal identification information from the determined page, account authentication means for creating authentication guide information for authenticating execution of a job relating to transmission, storage, or recording of the image data, and the authentication guide Network transmitting / receiving means for transmitting information to a terminal corresponding to the personal identification information, and the account authentication means, when authentication information according to authentication guidance information from the terminal is received from the network transmitting / receiving means, It is characterized by executing a job.
In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the storage unit stores user account information, and the account authentication unit compares the user associated with the personal identification information with the account information, and the user exists in the account information. If not, a guest account is created, and the image data and the job instruction are temporarily stored in the storage means.
In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the account authentication unit uses the personal identification information recognized by the character graphic recognition unit or the personal identification information stored in the account information. Is transmitted.
The image forming apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the account authentication unit changes the instruction of the job upon authentication from the terminal.
The image forming apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the account authentication unit deletes the image data when the authentication fails.
In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the terminal is a telephone, and the account authentication unit performs telephone authentication based on the personal identification information.
The image forming method of the present invention reads a document of a different size as image data for each page, stores the image data, discriminates a page related to a business card from the image data, and personally identifies the page identified as the business card Recognizing information, creating authentication guidance information for authenticating execution of a job relating to transmission, storage, or recording of the image data, and transmitting the authentication guidance information to a terminal corresponding to the personal identification information; When the authentication information in accordance with the authentication guide information from is received, the job is executed.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image forming system that is highly secure and does not require much time for authentication by recognizing personal identification information from a business card and performing authentication at the terminal using the personal identification information.

1 is a system configuration diagram of an image forming system X according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic schematic cross-sectional view showing an internal configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a conceptual diagram of the account information 90 which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart of the business card authentication job execution process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a key map of business card scanning concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a conceptual diagram of the authentication screen which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

<Embodiment>
[Configuration of image forming system X]
First, a system configuration of an image forming system X according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The image forming system X is configured by connecting an image forming apparatus 1, a terminal 200, a telephone 250, an ASP server 300, and the like to a network 100.
The image forming apparatus 1 (information processing apparatus, computer) can transmit and receive various data including voice and FAX signals via the network 100, and can authenticate jobs for each user by authority management. It is a multifunction device and a network scanner.
The network 100 is a communication network that transmits and receives data, voice information of a telephone, and the like such as an intranet, a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network) such as the Internet, an extension telephone network, a mobile phone network, and a PHS network.
The terminal 200 is a device such as a PC (Personal Computer), a PDA (Personal Data Assistant), a smartphone, etc. that can receive e-mails and browse web pages and the like. Further, it is preferable that the terminal 200 can browse an image scanned by the image forming apparatus 1.
The telephone 250 is a device capable of voice calls such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a PHS, an extension telephone, and a fixed telephone. The telephone 250 may have a function capable of browsing a web page or the like.
The ASP server 300 is an ASP (Application Service Provider) server on a so-called “cloud”. The ASP server 300 can upload image data scanned from the image forming apparatus 1 in units of user accounts.

[Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus 1]
Next, the configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a document reading unit 2, a document feeding unit 3, a main body unit 4, a stack tray 5, and an operation panel unit 6.
The document reading unit 2 is disposed on the top of the main body unit 4, and the document feeding unit 3 is disposed on the top of the document reading unit 2. The stack tray 5 is disposed on the recording paper discharge port 41 side on which the main body unit 4 is formed, and the operation panel unit 6 is disposed on the front side of the image forming apparatus 1.

The document reading unit 2 includes a scanner 21, a platen glass 22, and a document reading slit 23. The scanner 21 includes an exposure lamp, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) imaging sensor, and the like, and is configured to be movable in the document transport direction by the document feeder 3. The platen glass 22 is an original table made of a transparent member such as glass. The document reading slit 23 has a slit formed in a direction orthogonal to the document transport direction by the document feeder 3.
The document reading unit 2 can automatically recognize the size of a document such as a business card to A3 one by one and read (scan) an image in this size range.

When reading a document placed on the platen glass 22, the scanner 21 is moved to a position facing the platen glass 22 and reads the document while scanning the document placed on the platen glass 22 to obtain image data. The acquired image data is output to the main unit 4.
When reading the document conveyed by the document feeding unit 3, the scanner 21 is moved to a position facing the document reading slit 23, and the document is conveyed by the document feeding unit 3 through the document reading slit 23. The document is read in synchronization with the operation to acquire image data, and the acquired image data is output to the main body unit 4.

The document feeding unit 3 includes a document placement unit 31, a document discharge unit 32, and a document transport mechanism 33. The originals placed on the original placement unit 31 are sequentially fed out one by one by the original conveyance mechanism 33, conveyed to a position facing the original reading slit 23, and then discharged to the original discharge unit 32. The document feeding unit 3 is configured to be retractable, and the upper surface of the platen glass 22 can be opened by lifting the document feeding unit 3 upward.
Even when a plurality of different size documents such as business cards to A3 sheets are fed, the document feeding unit 3 can feed out the document while correcting the inclination. The document feeder 3 can also be configured to read a business card while it is mounted on a predetermined business card reading sheet or the like.

The main body unit 4 includes the recording unit 7, and includes a paper feeding unit 42, a paper conveyance path 43, a conveyance roller 44, and a discharge roller 45. The paper feed unit 42 includes a plurality of paper feed cassettes 421 that store recording papers of different sizes or orientations, and a paper feed roller 422 that feeds the recording papers one by one from the paper feed cassette 421 to the paper transport path 43. Yes.
The paper feed roller 422, the transport roller 44, and the discharge roller 45 function as a transport unit. The recording paper is conveyed by this conveyance unit. The recording paper fed to the paper transport path 43 by the paper feed roller 422 is transported to the recording unit 7 by the transport roller 44.
Then, the recording paper on which recording is performed by the recording unit 7 is discharged to the stack tray 5 by the discharge roller 45.

The operation panel unit 6 relates to a display unit such as an LCD, a start key, a numeric keypad, operation mode switching such as copying / fax transmission / scanner, printing / transmission / reception of a selected document, transmission, storage, or recording. A button, a touch panel, and the like for giving instructions related to job execution are provided. That is, the operation panel unit 6 detects various job instructions of the image forming apparatus 1 by the user.
In addition, information of each user in the account information 90 can be input / changed by the operation panel unit 6.

  The recording unit 7 includes a photosensitive drum 71, an exposure unit 72, an image forming unit 73, a transfer unit 74, and a fixing unit 75. The exposure unit 72 is an optical unit including a laser device, an LED array, a mirror, a lens, and the like. The exposure unit 72 outputs light or the like based on image data to expose the photosensitive drum 71, and the surface of the photosensitive drum 71 is statically exposed. An electrostatic latent image is formed. The image forming unit 73 is a developing unit that develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 71 using toner, and forms a toner image based on the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 71. The transfer unit 74 transfers the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 71 by the image forming unit 73 to a recording sheet. The fixing unit 75 heats the recording paper on which the toner image is transferred by the transfer unit 74 to fix the toner image on the recording paper.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus 1. The document reading unit 2, document feeding unit 3, transport unit (feed roller 422, transport roller 44, discharge roller 45), operation panel unit 6, and recording unit 7 are connected to the control unit 8 and are connected to the control unit. The operation is controlled by 8. The control unit 8 includes a storage unit 9 (storage unit), an image processing unit 10 (image processing unit), a FAX transmission / reception unit 11 (FAX transmission / reception unit), a network transmission / reception unit 12 (network transmission / reception unit), and a character / graphic recognition unit. 13 (character figure recognition means), a telephone transmission / reception unit 14 (telephone transmission / reception means), and the like are connected.

The control unit 8 is an information processing unit such as a microcomputer including a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like. The ROM stores a control program for controlling the operation of the image forming apparatus 1.
The control unit 8 and the image processing unit 10 read out a control program stored in the ROM and develop the control program in the RAM, thereby controlling the entire apparatus according to predetermined instruction information input from the operation panel unit 6. I do.
The control unit 8 includes a server unit 81 (server unit) and an account authentication unit 82 (account authentication unit).

  The server unit 81 uses an Internet protocol such as a WWW (World Wide Web) server, SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) / POP3 (Post Office Protocol) server, SMB (Server Message Block) server, FTP (File Transfer Protocol) server, or the like. It is a server. The server unit 81 is connected to the image forming apparatus 1, the terminal 200, the telephone 250, the ASP server 300, and the like via the network transmission / reception unit 12 and provides functions related to each protocol. The server unit 81 can also upload a file to the ASP server 300 by using JSP (Java (registered trademark) servlet), CGI (Common Gateway Interface), or the like. In addition to this, the server unit 81 may include a server that calls a program or the like stored in the storage unit 9 of the image forming apparatus 1 or each function, such as a Cron server, a Telnet, or an SSH server.

The account authentication unit 82 refers to the account information 90 in the storage unit 9 based on the character information and graphic information of the business card recognized by the character / graphic recognition unit 13 and identifies the user.
If the user cannot be identified, the account authentication unit 82 creates a guest account. Then, the account authentication unit 82 stores the image data scanned by the document reading unit 2 in the temporary folder of the user. On this basis, the account authentication unit 82 creates authentication guide information such as HTML mail based on the personal identification information acquired from the image data of the business card, and transmits the authentication guide information by the server unit 81 to be authenticated by the user. . Further, the account authentication unit 82 can also perform telephone authentication by the telephone transmission / reception unit 14.
On this basis, when the user is authenticated, the account authentication unit 82 executes a job related to transmission, storage, or recording. That is, the account authentication unit 82 causes each unit to acquire the image file stored in the temporary folder in the user terminal 200 or the telephone 250, upload it to the ASP server 300, send it by FAX, Instruct to perform various jobs such as recording.
The account authentication unit 82 may be provided as a JSP or CGI module or program of the server unit 81.

The storage unit 9 is a storage part using a storage medium such as a semiconductor memory or an HDD (Hard Disk Drive). The storage unit 9 includes image data scanned by the document reading unit 2, image data processed by the image processing unit 10, print document data transmitted from the terminal 200, the telephone 250, and the like, and various types of data stored in the recording medium. File, thumbnail image data, etc. are stored.
The storage unit 9 stores account information 90 and a storage folder 92.

  The account information 90 is a database that stores various information for each user account. In the account information 90, each user can input and register various information of the user from the operation panel unit 6, the terminal 200, the telephone 250, or the like in advance. In the account information 90, a user can be registered as a guest each time a document including a business card is read by the document reading unit 2. Details of the account information 90 will be described later.

The storage folder 92 is a part that stores various data of each user.
The storage folder 92 can include a temporary folder and a storage folder for each user account.
Each user's temporary folder includes scanned image data that is temporary image data, a file related to authentication guidance information (authentication request) such as mail (e-mail), a job type, job ID, and FAX specified by the user. It is possible to store an accompanying data file indicating a destination telephone number, an e-mail address for e-mail transmission, a file for displaying a thumbnail for previewing image data, and the like. Further, the temporary folder can store an access restriction file for authentication, other HTML files, image files, and the like. For this reason, it is desirable that the temporary folder cannot be read from the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 by normal means. Details of the authentication guidance information will be described later.
Further, each user's storage folder stores non-temporary image data read by the document reading unit 2 and image processed by the image processing unit 10, image data read from a recording medium, a print file, and the like. Attached Storage).
In addition to this, the storage folder 92 can also store accompanying data relating to various jobs, which will be described later.

The image processing unit 10 is a control calculation part of a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). The image processing unit 10 is a unit that performs predetermined image processing on image data, and performs various types of image processing such as enlargement / reduction processing, image improvement processing such as density adjustment, gradation adjustment, and the like.
Further, the image processing unit 10 converts the image read by the document reading unit 2 into a file unit of a format such as PDF or TIFF, and stores it as “scanned image data” in the storage folder 92 of the storage unit 9. can do.

  The FAX transmission / reception unit 11 is a part that performs facsimile transmission / reception, and is connected to a normal telephone line, ISDN line, or the like. Further, the FAX transmission / reception unit 11 can store the received FAX image in the storage folder 92 of the storage unit 9. Further, the FAX transmitting / receiving unit 11 can transmit the image data stored in the storage folder 92 of the storage unit 9 by FAX instead of being recorded by the recording unit 7.

The network transmission / reception unit 12 is a network connection part including a LAN board, a wireless transmission / reception unit, a telephone dialer, a coupler, and the like for connecting to the network 100 (FIG. 1).
The network transmission / reception unit 12 can transmit and receive data on a data communication line, and can transmit and receive an audio signal on a voice telephone line.

The character graphic recognition unit 13 is a control calculation part such as a DSP for performing OCR (Optical Character Recognition), optical character recognition and graphic recognition. The character / graphic recognition unit 13 can discriminate between a business card and a document from the image data scanned by the document reading unit 2, and can particularly recognize character information and graphic information of the business card.
The character graphic recognition unit 13 includes, as character information, a name card name, a department in charge, a post, an address, a telephone number, a FAX number, a mobile phone number, an extension number, an account name related to the image forming apparatus 1, an e-mail address, and an ASP server 300. Can recognize account name, homepage address, etc. Further, the character / graphic recognition unit 13 can recognize a company / organization logo, a mark, a one-dimensional / two-dimensional barcode, and the like as graphic information.

The telephone transmission / reception unit 14 makes a call on the telephone line of the network 100 based on the personal identification information such as the user's mobile phone number or extension number recognized by the character / graphic recognition unit 13 and authenticates the user with the telephone. This is the part to be performed. Details of the telephone authentication will be described later.
The telephone transmission / reception unit 14 includes a voice synthesis synthesizer, a wave memory that reproduces PCM voice data, and reproduction means such as a D / A converter, and can reproduce a predetermined message by telephone. The telephone transmission / reception unit 14 also includes a DSP that recognizes the user's push button sound and call voice. In addition, the telephone transmission / reception unit 14 can also perform user voiceprint recognition.
The telephone transmitting / receiving unit 14 may be directly connected to a telephone line separate from the network 100.

  In the image forming apparatus 1, the control unit 8, the image processing unit 10, the character / graphic recognition unit 13, and the telephone transmission / reception unit 14 are integrally formed, such as a CPU with a built-in GPU or a chip-on-module package. It may be.

(Configuration of account information 90)
Here, the details of the account information 90 in the storage unit 9 will be described with reference to FIG.
The account information 90 stores attribute information such as a user ID (account ID, user name), password, e-mail address, temporary folder name, server address, and authority for each account.
The user ID stores the user ID, account name, and the like of the image forming apparatus 1 corresponding to the person name described on the business card. In addition to this, the ID of the user account of the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 may be stored as the user ID. The user ID also stores the user name itself.
As the password, an account password related to the user ID, a personal identification number for telephone authentication described later, and the like are encrypted and stored. Further, the password of the account of the ASP server 300, the password of the user terminal 200 or the telephone 250, the password of the storage folder, and the like can be stored in this password.
The e-mail address is the e-mail address of the user's terminal 200 or telephone 250, SMS (Short Message Service), MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service), chat, messenger or SNS (Social Networking Service) address, etc., that is, authentication guide information such as e-mail. The address for sending is stored. This address is personal identification information related to the transmission of the authentication guide information.
The phone number stores a personal phone number such as a mobile phone number, an extension number, or an IP phone number that is input in advance by a user or read from a business card. This personal telephone number is personal identification information related to telephone authentication. As this telephone number, a telephone number of a user's company, a FAX number, or the like that is not directly related to telephone authentication can be stored.
As the temporary folder name, an address such as a temporary folder (directory) of the storage folder 92 that stores the image data read by the document reading unit 2 of the image forming apparatus 1 is stored.
The server address stores an address indicating the final destination of the read image data. The final destination address includes the address of the storage folder of the user of the image forming apparatus 1, the address and account name of the ASP server 300, the address and account name of the folder of the user terminal 200 and the telephone 250, and the user's address. An address such as a URL of a home page can be used.
The authority includes information related to authority management such as the number of color / monochrome copies that can be made in the user's image forming apparatus 1, FAX transmission / reception disabled, charging information, charging department, image data storage period in a temporary folder / personal folder, and the like. Remember.
In addition to this, the account information 90 can store other necessary information such as a user's address, telephone number, credit card number, transmission / reception destination information, address book, and the like. The account information 90 can also store business card graphic information, barcode information, and business card image data itself.

[Business Card Authentication Job Execution Processing by Image Forming Apparatus 1]
Next, business card authentication job execution processing by the image forming system X according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
The image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment reads a business card together with a document by the document reading unit 2 without inputting a user ID or password from the operation panel unit 6. The image forming apparatus 1 authenticates by transmitting authentication guidance information such as e-mail and receiving authentication information from the user's terminal 200 or the telephone 250 by using personal identification information such as an e-mail address or a telephone number extracted from the business card. Or receiving authentication information by telephone authentication with the user's telephone 250. When the authentication is successful, the image forming apparatus 1 executes various jobs related to transmission, storage, or recording that are instructed by the user. In other cases, the image forming apparatus 1 removes the files in the temporary folder.
This business card authentication job execution processing is realized mainly by the control unit 8 executing a program or the like stored in the storage unit 9 using hardware resources in cooperation with each unit.
Hereinafter, the business card authentication job execution process will be described in detail for each step with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

(Step S100)
First, the document reading unit 2 and the image processing unit 10 perform a scanning process.
Referring to FIG. 6, first, a business card of a user who performs authentication and a document are placed together on the document placement unit 31 of the document feeding unit 3. In the example of FIG. 6, the business card is placed on the top surface, and the business card is first read.
Then, the user instructs the job to be executed on the scanned image data, such as scan, FAX, mail, copy, save folder, upload, etc., on the operation panel unit 6. At this time, the user can also give other instructions such as a fax destination telephone number, a mail address for mail transmission, the number of copies, a sorting method, and the like as a job instruction. However, the user does not need to perform the authentication operation itself on the operation panel unit 6.
When the user's job instruction is detected, the document reading unit 2 reads (scans) the business card and the document page by page.
The document reading unit 2 creates image data that matches each size, and transmits the image data to the image processing unit 10. The image processing unit 10 performs various kinds of image processing on the image data, and temporarily stores them as scanned image data in the storage unit 9. At this time, the image processing unit 10 adds a job ID to the scanned image data, and temporarily stores the accompanying data relating to the user's job instruction and other instructions in the storage unit 9. .
Note that the document reading unit 2 can select only jobs that can be operated according to the “authority” of the user when the operation panel unit 6 performs authentication. For example, in the case of “Guest”, a configuration in which only scanned image data can be acquired and FAX transmission or the like cannot be performed is possible.

(Step S101)
Next, the character / graphic recognition unit 13 performs business card recognition processing.
Specifically, the character / graphic recognition unit 13 recognizes whether or not a business card is included from the image data temporarily stored in the storage unit 9 with reference to the size of each page.
When a business card is included, the character / graphic recognition unit 13 performs optical character recognition, acquires character information and graphic information of the business card, and stores them in the storage unit 9.

(Step S102)
Next, the account authentication unit 82 performs an account information reference process.
The account authentication unit 82 searches the account information 90 for the character information and graphic information of the business card, and specifies the user account. At this time, the account authentication unit 82 can update if there is attribute information that is not stored in the user's account based on character information or graphic information of the user's business card.
If the existing account cannot be identified from the character information or graphic information of the business card, the account authentication unit 82 creates the user account as “guest”. That is, “guest” is designated as the user ID, the authority of the account is stored as a restricted “guest”, and is set to be deleted within a predetermined period.

In addition to this, the account authentication unit 82 acquires personal identification information from the character information and graphic information of the business card, the mail attribute of the user's account, the telephone attribute, or the like.
At this time, the account authentication unit 82 can set so as to give priority to the personal identification information already stored in the account of the user. Thereby, an error in optical character recognition can be avoided.

Thereafter, the account authentication unit 82 moves the scanned image data and accompanying data to a temporary folder of the searched or created user account.
At this time, it is preferable that the account authentication unit 82 is changed to a permission or the like such that GET (acquisition) cannot be performed unless the scanned image data file or the temporary folder itself is authenticated. The account authentication unit 82 can also create an access restriction file such as “.htaccess” and place it in the temporary folder.

It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the account authentication unit 82 preferentially acquires business card character information and graphic information as personal identification information. With such a configuration, it is possible to avoid obtaining the latest updated personal identification information and transmitting the authentication guide information to an incorrect transmission destination or telephone number.
Further, the account authentication unit 82 can also request confirmation from the operation panel unit 6 when updating the attribute information of the identified user account.
Further, the account authentication unit 82 allows the user to browse the result of optical character recognition in the character / graphic recognition unit 13 on the operation panel unit 6, the terminal 200, or the telephone 250, and detects an instruction to correct an error or the like. The account information 90 can also be updated.
In addition, a plurality of guest accounts can be created. In this case, the account authentication unit 82 can obtain a name or the like from a serial number, random ID, character information or graphic information of the user, and use it as a user ID.

(Step S103)
Next, the account authentication unit 82 determines whether or not the personal identification information related to the transmission of authentication guidance information such as an email address has been acquired. If the e-mail address or the like can be acquired, the account authentication unit 82 determines Yes. Otherwise, it is determined as No.
In the case of Yes, the account authentication part 82 advances a process to step S104.
In No, the account authentication part 82 advances a process to step S105.

(Step S104)
The account authentication unit 82 and the server unit 81 perform an email transmission authentication process in which when an email address or the like can be acquired, authentication is performed by sending an email or the like.
First, the account authentication unit 82 creates various mails and messages (hereinafter referred to as mails) that are authentication guide information for authenticating the scanned image data in the temporary folder of the user. For example, the account authentication unit 82 can create an HTML or XML mail that describes a link of an address for accessing the scanned image data via http or FTP. That is, a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) or a URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) indicating scanned image data in the temporary folder of the image forming apparatus 1 can be described. This link can include a user ID and a job ID.
Thereafter, the account authentication unit 82 transmits the created mail or the like to the mail address or the like of the acquired personal identification information. That is, the account authentication unit 82 transmits the transmission guide information to the user terminal 200 or the telephone 250 corresponding to the acquired personal identification information.
When receiving the mail or the like, the user terminal 200 or the telephone 250 accesses the image forming apparatus 1 via the network 100 and performs access authentication. For example, the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 can detect that the user has clicked on a link such as an email and can access the server unit 81 using a WWW browser, an FTP client, or the like.

Here, with reference to FIG. 7, the details of access authentication by mail or the like will be described.
A screen example 500 in FIG. 7 is a screen of the terminal 200 or the WWW browser of the telephone 250 when the transmission guide information link is clicked and accessed to the image forming apparatus 1.
A display column 600 is a column for displaying the creation date and time of scanned image data, the size of the read document, the number of pages, and the like.
A display column 610 is a column for a form or the like in which a user inputs authentication information such as a user ID and a password using a keyboard, a touch panel, or the like. This authentication information can be transmitted to the server unit 81 in an encrypted state using https or the like.
A button 710 is a button for displaying a preview of image data. When the pressing of this button is detected, the server unit 81 transmits a file for displaying a preview thumbnail. The terminal 200 and the telephone 250 can draw this file and allow the user to browse it.
The button 720 is a button for making a selection for changing the job type or uploading to the ASP server 300. In the button 720, a plurality of upload destinations can be designated. Further, when the button 720 is pressed by the user, an account name, a password, a destination address, etc. may be separately input. That is, even after the user instructs “scan” on the operation panel unit 6 and the authentication guidance information is transmitted, “FAX” and other jobs can be specified again on the authentication screen. Also in this case, it is possible to select only jobs that can be operated according to the “authority” of the user.
The button 730 is a button for instructing transmission when input is completed. The terminal 200 and the telephone 250 detect that this button is pressed and transmit authentication information to the server unit 81.
The button 740 is a button for canceling authentication. When this button is pressed, information related to authentication is not transmitted to the server unit 81. In addition, a “clear” button for erasing form writing may be provided.

Note that it may be configured such that the job type itself is selected by the button 720 at the time of access authentication without specifying a job at the time of scanning with the operation panel unit 6 in the above-described scan processing.
Further, at the time of access authentication, the configuration may be such that the authentication is completed by transmitting the authentication information only by the user clicking on a link or the like. Further, as described above, it is possible to configure such that authentication is not required for a predetermined period once access authentication is performed once for the same user without transmitting mail or the like for each job.

Here, when acquiring the encrypted authentication information, the server unit 81 decodes the transmitted authentication information and transmits it to the account authentication unit 82.
When the account authentication unit 82 receives the decrypted authentication information, the account authentication unit 82 refers to the user ID and password of the account information 90 to determine whether or not it is correct. If it is correct, the account authentication unit 82 determines that the authentication is successful. If it is not correct, the account authentication unit 82 determines that the authentication has failed.
Thereafter, the account authentication unit 82 advances the process to step S107.

(Step S105)
If the account authentication unit 82 cannot acquire personal identification information such as an e-mail address, it determines whether or not personal identification information related to telephone authentication, that is, a personal telephone number such as a mobile phone / extension number has been acquired. . The account authentication unit 82 determines Yes when the personal telephone number is acquired. Otherwise, it is determined No.
In the case of Yes, the account authentication part 82 advances a process to step S106.
In No, the account authentication part 82 advances a process to step S107.

(Step S106)
When the personal telephone number is acquired, the account authentication unit 82 uses the telephone transmission / reception unit 14 to perform telephone authentication processing.
In this telephone authentication, for example, the telephone transmitting / receiving unit 14 makes a telephone call to the telephone 250 using the telephone line of the network 100, and is authenticated by a response from the telephone.
For example, the telephone transmission / reception unit 14 calls the user's personal telephone number and outputs a voice message “Please enter the password” with synthetic voice or the like. When a password is input by the user using a push button or the like of the telephone 250, it is transmitted as authentication information. The telephone transmission / reception unit 14 transmits the received authentication information to the account authentication unit 82. At this time, the telephone transmission / reception unit 14 can input a passphrase instead of a personal identification number to perform voice recognition or perform voiceprint recognition.
The account authentication unit 82 refers to the password of the account information 90 password and determines whether or not the user input is correct. If it is correct, the account authentication unit 82 determines that the authentication is successful. If it is not correct, the account authentication unit 82 determines that the authentication has failed.
Thereafter, the account authentication unit 82 advances the process to step S107.

Note that as the telephone authentication, an authentication method in which the FAX transmission / reception unit 11 calls the user's FAX number and transmits an authentication FAX can be executed.
In this case, for each scanned image data, an ID such as a two-dimensional barcode and a signature field are drawn and transmitted by FAX. The user replies with a signature or the like on the received FAX sheet.
When the reply FAX in which such an ID and the user's signature are described is received by the FAX transmission / reception unit 11, it can be recognized by the character / graphic recognition unit 13 and can be authenticated by the account authentication unit 82.

(Step S107)
Next, the account authentication unit 82 determines whether access authentication or telephone authentication by e-mail or the like is successful.
If Yes, that is, if any authentication is successful, the account authentication unit 82 proceeds with the process to step S108.
If No, that is, if both authentications fail, the account authentication unit 82 proceeds with the process to step S109.

For each user in the storage unit 9, setting information regarding which of access authentication by transmission of mail or the like and telephone authentication is to be prioritized can be stored.
In addition, even when authentication by e-mail or telephone authentication fails, a configuration is possible in which a job is executed on an image scanned by a user authenticating from the operation panel unit 6 of the image forming apparatus 1. is there. At this time, if the user is a guest, the scanned image data may be set to be transmitted only to the terminal 200 or the telephone 250.

(Step S108)
If the authentication is successful, the account authentication unit 82 performs job execution processing for executing a job for the scanned image data.
In this job execution process, the account authentication unit 82 instructs each unit in accordance with a user job instruction.
For example, when the user's job instruction is “scan”, the account authentication unit 82 sends image data scanned with respect to the GET method of the WWW browser of the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 or the FTP server to the server unit 81. Instruct to send. At this time, the server unit 81 can also compress, encrypt, or add a password for transmission.
When the job instruction is “FAX”, the account authentication unit 82 instructs the FAX transmission / reception unit 11 to draw the scanned image data and send the fax to the designated telephone number.
When the job instruction is “mail”, the account authentication unit 82 instructs the server unit 81 to transmit the scanned image data to the transmission mail address.
When the job instruction is “copy”, the account authentication unit 82 instructs the recording unit 7 to draw the scanned image data and record it on the recording paper.
When the job instruction is “storage folder”, the account authentication unit 82 moves the scanned image file in the temporary folder to the storage folder. At this time, it may be moved to another user's storage folder.
If the job instruction is “upload”, the account authentication unit 82 uploads the scanned image data to a folder or the like of the designated ASP server 300.
Each unit that receives these instructions executes the instructed job regarding the scanned image data. In that case, it can carry out with reference to accompanying data.
Thereafter, the account authentication unit 82 advances the process to step S109.

(Step S109)
Next, the account authentication unit 82 performs a scan image deletion process when the execution of the job is finished or when the authentication has failed and a predetermined period has elapsed.
Specifically, the account authentication unit 82 deletes the scanned image data and accompanying data stored in the user's temporary folder.
Also, the account authentication unit 82 can delete the guest account itself in the account information 90.
This completes the business card authentication job execution process.

With the configuration described above, the following effects can be obtained.
Further, there are some conventional MFPs with authority management that provide means for easily performing an authentication operation on the operation panel as in the prior art 1, but the level of safety (security) is conversely lowered. Was.
In contrast, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention scans and reads a business card together with a document to be transmitted, and uses the personal identification information such as an e-mail address extracted from the business card to specify the personal identification. The authentication guidance information is transmitted to the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 of the user related to the information, and account authentication is performed from the terminal 200 or the telephone 250, or various jobs are executed by telephone authentication.
For this reason, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment performs authentication without reducing the level of safety by performing account authentication or telephone authentication by mail or the like with the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 having excellent operability. be able to.

Further, the prior art 1 has a problem that the cost increases because the second original reading unit for reading the business card is separately provided.
On the other hand, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention discriminates a business card and a document from a document reading unit 2 that scans in a state where the business card and the document are mixed, and the size of the scanned image data. And a character / graphic recognition unit 13. For this reason, it is not necessary to separately provide a reading means dedicated to a business card, and the cost can be reduced.

Further, the prior art 2 has a problem that the device cannot be set after being authenticated by the wireless card, and the device controllability is poor.
On the other hand, the image forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment can select a job at the time of authentication based on the authentication guide information. Therefore, the user operability can be improved and a plurality of jobs can be specified at the same time.

Further, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment does not need to perform an authentication operation by inputting a user ID or a password on the operation panel unit 6 by authentication guidance information or telephone authentication.
For this reason, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment can provide the same authentication method to multi-function peripherals having various device configurations. In other words, it is possible to eliminate the difference in authentication method due to the difference in operation panel mounted on the multi-function peripheral and the difference in function / operability due to the difference in equipment.

Further, the prior art 3 has a problem that the operability is poor because the URL and the IP address are entered with a browser to access the multifunction device.
On the other hand, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment transmits authentication guidance information so that the user can perform authentication.

In addition, in the prior art 3, since the job and the authentication are separated, it is inconvenient because the user cannot know what job is being authenticated.
On the other hand, the image forming system X of the present embodiment can confirm the job described in the authentication guide information on the terminal 200 or the telephone 250. It is also possible to display a preview on the terminal 200 or the telephone 250. Therefore, user convenience can be improved.

In summary, the image forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes a document feeding unit 3 that reads documents of different sizes, a storage unit 9 that temporarily stores scanned image data, and a business card from the scanned image data. A character / figure recognition unit 13 that discriminates a document and recognizes personal identification information, generates authentication guidance information from the recognized personal identification information, and transmits the authentication guidance information to the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 via the network 100. The job is executed by receiving authentication information from the terminal 200 or the telephone 250 and performing authentication.
Further, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment obtains an e-mail address or the like directly from character recognition such as OCR as a means for recognizing personal identification information from a business card, and the read business card image and the multifunction peripheral device in advance. It is characterized in that a case is selected in which an e-mail address or the like is acquired by collating with registered personal identification information in registered user registration information.
The image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is characterized in that various operations are performed on a job when authenticating from a terminal.
Further, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is characterized by deleting the scanned image data temporarily stored when the authentication fails.

  The image forming system X can also be applied to an information processing apparatus other than the image forming apparatus. In other words, the image forming system X may be configured to use a server that separately performs authentication with a network scanner, a server that is separately connected to the scanner via a USB, or the like.

  Note that the configuration and operation of the above-described embodiment are examples, and it is needless to say that the configuration and operation can be appropriately changed and executed without departing from the gist of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 2 Original reading part 3 Original feeding part 4 Main body part 5 Stack tray 6 Operation panel part 7 Recording part 8 Control part 9 Storage part 10 Image processing part 11 FAX transmission / reception part 12 Network transmission / reception part 13 Character / graphic recognition part 14 Telephone transmission / reception unit 21 Scanner 22 Platen glass 23 Document reading slit 31 Document placement unit 32 Document discharge unit 33 Document transport mechanism 41 Discharge port 42 Paper feed unit 43 Paper transport path 44 Transport roller 45 Discharge roller 71 Photosensitive drum 72 Exposure unit 73 Image forming unit 74 Transfer unit 75 Fixing unit 81 Server unit 82 Account authentication unit 90 Account information 92 Storage folder 100 Network 200 Terminal 250 Telephone 300 ASP server 421 Paper feed cassette 422 Paper feed roller 500 Screen examples 600 and 610 Display fields 710 and 720 , 730, 740 X image forming system

Claims (7)

An original reading means for reading different size originals as image data for each page;
Storage means for storing the image data;
Character and graphic recognition means for determining a page related to a business card from the image data and recognizing personal identification information from the page determined as the business card;
Account authentication means for creating authentication guide information for authenticating execution of a job relating to transmission, storage, or recording of the image data;
Network transmitting / receiving means for transmitting the authentication guidance information to a terminal corresponding to the personal identification information,
The image forming apparatus, wherein the account authentication unit executes the job when authentication information according to authentication guidance information from the terminal is received from a network transmission / reception unit. The storage means stores user account information,
The account authentication means collates a user related to the personal identification information with the account information, and if the user does not exist in the account information, creates a guest account, and stores the image data and the image in the storage means The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a job instruction is temporarily stored. The account authentication means transmits the authentication guide information using either the personal identification information recognized by the character graphic recognition means or the personal identification information stored in the account information. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2. The account authentication means includes
4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an instruction of the job is changed at the time of authentication from the terminal. 5. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the account authentication unit deletes the image data when the authentication fails. The terminal is a telephone;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the account authentication unit performs telephone authentication based on the personal identification information. Read different sized documents as image data for each page,
Storing the image data;
Determining a page related to a business card from the image data, recognizing personal identification information from the page determined as the business card,
Creating authentication guidance information for authenticating execution of a job relating to transmission, storage or recording of the image data;
Transmitting the authentication guidance information to a terminal corresponding to the personal identification information;
The image forming method, wherein the job is executed when authentication information according to authentication guidance information from the terminal is received.

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