JP2016212855A - Information processing system, information processing apparatus, and information processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve convenience of users.SOLUTION: An information processing system includes an information processing apparatus and a server. The information processing apparatus includes a first acquisition unit, a first display unit, a determination request information transmission unit, a determination result information receiving unit, and a first control unit. The first acquisition unit acquires a first screen including a button with a command attached thereto. The first display unit displays the first screen. When the button is pressed, the determination request information transmission unit transmits determination request information for requesting validity determination, to the server, before the command attached to the button is executed. The determination result information receiving unit receives determination result information from the server. The first control unit controls firmware to be updated when the determination result information indicates that an application corresponding to the command is unavailable to the information processing apparatus. A determination unit of the server executes validity determination. A determination result information transmission unit of the server transmits the determination result information to the information processing apparatus.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing system, an information processing apparatus, and an information processing method.

  Conventionally, a mechanism for downloading and installing an application from a Web page provided by a Web server is known.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which an MFP downloads and installs software in conjunction with a distribution server that distributes software.

  However, in the conventional technology, even if an application is downloaded from a Web page and installed in the MFP, firmware that controls the current operation of the MFP (referred to as software that controls the operation of the MFP) corresponds to the application. In some cases, the application cannot be used. In such a case, conventionally, since a service person goes to the installation location of the MFP to update the firmware for controlling the operation of the MFP, the waiting time until the application can be used becomes long. There is a problem that user convenience is low.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide an information processing system, an information processing apparatus, and an information processing method capable of improving user convenience.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the present invention provides an information processing system including an information processing device and a server connected to the information processing device, wherein the information processing device is an application. A first acquisition unit that acquires a first screen including a button to which an instruction to introduce the information into the information processing apparatus is pasted, and control for displaying the first screen acquired by the first acquisition unit And when the button is pressed, an application corresponding to the command can be used in the information processing apparatus before executing the command pasted on the pressed button. A determination request information transmitting unit that transmits to the server a determination request information requesting validity determination to determine whether or not, and a determination result information indicating a result of the validity determination from the server. When the determination result information received by the result information receiving unit and the determination result information receiving unit indicates that the application corresponding to the command cannot be used in the information processing device, the operation of the information processing device is controlled. A first control unit that performs control to update firmware, and when the server receives the determination request information from the information processing device, the determination unit performs the validity determination, and the validity determination A determination result information transmission unit configured to transmit the determination result information indicating the result to the information processing apparatus.

  According to the present invention, user convenience can be improved.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an information processing system. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the MFP. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of the MFP. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions that the MFP according to the first embodiment has. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation screen. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an application list screen. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a URL scheme. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the application server. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the application server. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of correspondence information. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of the second screen. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the first control unit. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the third control unit. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the second control unit. FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining a firmware update procedure. FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining a firmware update procedure. FIG. 17 is a diagram for explaining a firmware update procedure. FIG. 18 is a diagram for explaining a firmware update procedure. FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining a firmware update procedure. FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the application market server. FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions that the firmware distribution server has. FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation procedure of the information processing system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating another example of the application list screen. FIG. 24 is a diagram illustrating an example of a version upgrade screen. FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions that the MFP according to the second embodiment has. FIG. 26 is a diagram illustrating an example of the execution selection screen. FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating an example of a time designation screen. FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation procedure of the information processing system according to the second embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of an information processing system, an information processing apparatus, and an information processing method according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, as an example of the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, a multifunction peripheral (MFP) that is an aspect of the image forming apparatus will be described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Note that a multifunction peripheral is a device having a plurality of different functions such as a copy function, a scanner function, a printer function, and a fax function.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing system 100 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing system 100 includes an MFP 1, an application market server 2, an application server 3, and a firmware distribution server 4, which are connected to each other via a network 8.

  The application market server 2 provides the MFP 1 with an application list screen in which an installation instruction that is an example of an instruction for introducing the application into the MFP 1 is associated with each of a plurality of applications. More specific contents will be described later. In this example, an application that provides a function of acquiring an application list screen from the application market server 2 and displaying it on the MFP 1 (hereinafter, may be referred to as “app market application”), or an application displayed on the application list screen. Among them, an application that provides a function of performing control for introducing an application selected by the user into the MFP 1 (hereinafter, may be referred to as an “installed application”) is installed in the MFP 1. Note that the function of the application market application is realized by using an application for providing the function of the Web browser, and may be collectively referred to as “browser application”. Specific contents of the MFP 1 will be described later.

  The application server 3 performs validity determination (details will be described later) for determining whether or not the application presented from the MFP 1 can be used by the MFP 1. The application server 3 holds the application displayed on the application list screen and distributes the application in response to a request from the MFP 1. The firmware distribution server 4 distributes firmware for controlling the operation of the MFP 1 in response to a request from the MFP 1. More specific contents will be described later.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the MFP 1 will be described with reference to FIG. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the MFP 1 includes a main body 10 capable of realizing various functions such as a copy function, a scanner function, a fax function, and a printer function, and an operation unit 20 that receives a user operation. Note that accepting a user operation is a concept including accepting information (including a signal indicating a coordinate value of a screen) input according to the user operation. The main body 10 and the operation unit 20 are connected via a dedicated communication path 30 so that they can communicate with each other. The communication path 30 may be, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard, but may be of any standard regardless of wired or wireless.

  The main body 10 can perform an operation corresponding to the operation received by the operation unit 20. The main body 10 can also communicate with an external device such as a client PC (personal computer), and can also perform an operation according to an instruction received from the external device.

  First, the hardware configuration of the main body 10 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 10 includes a CPU 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, an HDD (hard disk drive) 14, a communication I / F (interface) 15, a connection I / F 16, and an engine unit 17. These are connected to each other via a system bus 18.

  The CPU 11 comprehensively controls the operation of the main body 10. The CPU 11 controls the overall operation of the main body 10 by executing a program stored in the ROM 12 or the HDD 14 or the like using the RAM 13 as a work area (work area), and the above-described copy function, scanner function, fax function, printer function, etc. Implement various functions.

  The communication I / F 15 is an interface for connecting to the network 8. The connection I / F 16 is an interface for communicating with the operation unit 20 via the communication path 30.

  The engine unit 17 is hardware that performs processing other than general-purpose information processing and communication for realizing a copy function, a scanner function, a fax function, and a printer function. For example, a scanner (image reading unit) that scans and reads an image of a document, a plotter (image forming unit) that performs printing on a sheet material such as paper, and a fax unit that performs fax communication are provided. Further, a specific option such as a finisher for sorting printed sheet materials or an ADF (automatic document feeder) for automatically feeding a document can be provided.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the operation unit 20 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the operation unit 20 includes a CPU 21, a ROM 22, a RAM 23, a flash memory 24, a communication I / F 25, a connection I / F 26, and an operation panel 27, which are a system bus 28. Are connected to each other.

  The CPU 21 comprehensively controls the operation of the operation unit 20. The CPU 21 uses the RAM 23 as a work area (work area) and executes a program stored in the ROM 22 or the flash memory 24 to control the operation of the entire operation unit 20 and information (image) according to the input received from the user. Various functions described later such as display of) are realized.

  The communication I / F 25 is an interface for connecting to the network 8. The connection I / F 26 is an interface for communicating with the main body 10 via the communication path 30.

  Operation panel 27 accepts various inputs in accordance with user operations and displays various types of information (for example, information in accordance with accepted operations, information indicating the operation status of MFP 1, information indicating setting status, etc.). . In this example, the operation panel 27 is configured by a liquid crystal display device (LCD) having a touch panel function, but is not limited thereto. For example, an organic EL display device equipped with a touch panel function may be used. Further, in addition to or instead of this, an operation unit such as a hardware key and a display unit such as a lamp may be provided.

  Next, the software configuration of the MFP 1 will be described. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of the MFP 1. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the main body 10 includes an application layer 101, a service layer 102, and an OS layer 103. The entities of the application layer 101, the service layer 102, and the OS layer 103 are various software stored in the ROM 12, the HDD 14, and the like. Various functions are provided by the CPU 11 executing these software.

  The software of the application layer 101 is application software for operating a hardware resource to provide a predetermined function (in the following description, it may be simply referred to as “application”). For example, examples of the application include a copy application for providing a copy function, a scanner application for providing a scanner function, a fax application for providing a fax function, a printer application for providing a printer function, and the like.

  The software of the service layer 102 is software that is interposed between the application layer 101 and the OS layer 103 and provides an interface for using hardware resources included in the main body 10 for the application. More specifically, it is software for providing a function of accepting an operation request for a hardware resource and arbitrating the operation request. As an operation request received by the service layer 102, a request such as reading by a scanner or printing by a plotter can be considered.

  The interface function by the service layer 102 is provided not only to the application layer 101 of the main body 10 but also to the application layer 201 of the operation unit 20. That is, the application layer 201 (application) of the operation unit 20 can also realize a function using hardware resources (for example, the engine unit 17) of the main body 10 via the interface function of the service layer 102. For example, the interface function of the service layer 102 is provided by WebAPI.

  The software of the OS layer 103 is basic software (operating system (OS)) for providing a basic function for controlling hardware included in the main body 10. The software of the service layer 102 converts a hardware resource use request from various applications into a command interpretable by the OS layer 103 and passes the command to the OS layer 103. Then, when the command is executed by the software of the OS layer 103, the hardware resource performs an operation according to the request of the application.

  Similarly, the operation unit 20 includes an application layer 201, a service layer 202, and an OS layer 203. The application layer 201, the service layer 202, and the OS layer 203 included in the operation unit 20 have the same hierarchical structure as that of the main body 10 side. However, the functions provided by the applications in the application layer 201 and the types of operation requests that can be accepted by the service layer 202 are different from those on the main body 10 side. The application in the application layer 201 may be software for operating a hardware resource included in the operation unit 20 to provide a predetermined function, but mainly includes functions (copy function, scanner function, fax function) included in the main body 10. , A printer function) software for providing a UI (user interface) function for performing operations and display. In this example, the application of the application layer 201 includes a browser application (application market application). The software of the service layer 202 includes an installation application.

  In this embodiment, the software of the OS layer 103 on the main body 10 side and the software of the OS layer 203 on the operation unit 20 side are different from each other in order to maintain the independence of functions. That is, the main body 10 and the operation unit 20 operate independently of each other with different operating systems. For example, Linux (registered trademark) can be used as software for the OS layer 103 on the main body 10 side, and Android (registered trademark) can be used as software on the OS layer 203 on the operation unit 20 side.

  As described above, in the MFP 1 of the present embodiment, the main body 10 and the operation unit 20 operate on different operating systems. Therefore, communication between the main body 10 and the operation unit 20 is communication between processes in a common apparatus. Rather, it is performed as communication between different devices. An operation (command communication) for transmitting information (instruction content from the user) received by the operation unit 20 to the main body 10, an operation for the main body 10 notifying the operation unit 20 of an event, and the like correspond to this. Here, the function of the main body 10 can be used when the operation unit 20 performs command communication with the main body 10. The event notified from the main body 10 to the operation unit 20 includes the execution status of the operation in the main body 10 and the contents set on the main body 10 side.

  In the present embodiment, since the power supply to the operation unit 20 is performed from the main body 10 via the communication path 30, the power control of the operation unit 20 is performed separately from the power control of the main body 10 (independently). Can do).

  Next, functions of the MFP 1 will be described. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions that the MFP 1 has. As shown in FIG. 4, the MFP 1 includes an operation screen display unit 111, a first acquisition unit 112, a first display unit 113, a determination request information transmission unit 114, a determination result information reception unit 115, 2 display units 116, a first control unit 117, and an application introduction control unit 118. For convenience of explanation, FIG. 4 mainly illustrates functions according to the present invention, but the functions of the MFP 1 are not limited to these.

  The operation screen display unit 111 performs control to display an operation screen for performing various operations on the operation panel 27. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation screen, and an icon 5 for starting the application market application is displayed on the operation screen.

  The description of FIG. 4 is continued. The first acquisition unit 112 acquires a first screen including a command for introducing an application into the MFP 1. In the present embodiment, the first acquisition unit 112 acquires, from the app market server 2, an application list screen in which a command (installation command) for installing the application is associated with each of a plurality of applications. In the present embodiment, when the user touches the icon 5, the browser application (first acquisition unit 112) sends a signal requesting an application list screen (hereinafter also referred to as “display request”) to the application market server 2. Send to. And as a response, an application list screen is acquired from the application market server 2.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an application list screen (Web page). In the example of FIG. 6, the application list screen includes, for each of a plurality of applications, explanation information that explains the contents of the application and a button 6 for instructing installation of the application (hereinafter referred to as “install button 6”). Is displayed. In this example, the URL scheme describing the execution procedure of the installation command is pasted on the installation button 6.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the URL scheme pasted on the install button 6 corresponding to the application identified by the ID (application ID) “49354”. The “installer” part in FIG. 7 is a header part of the URL scheme. Hereinafter, the header part of the URL scheme may be referred to as a “scheme part”. A scheme portion “installer” represents information for identifying an application that executes an installation command, and in this example represents an installer installed in the MFP 1. In FIG. 7, the “installApp” portion of “installApp? Id = 49354” is an install command, and the argument of the install command is “id = 49354”. This represents an installation instruction for the application identified by the id “49354”. That is, it is a part representing the specific contents of the instruction. The URL scheme shown in FIG. 7 is information describing the execution procedure of the installation command in the URL format. When the install button 6 to which this URL scheme is pasted is pressed, the installer is activated, and the activated installer is An instruction to install an application identified by the id “49354” is executed.

  The application list screen in the present embodiment can be considered as a screen including a button (install button 6 in this example) to which an instruction to install an application into the MFP 1 (install command in this example) is pasted. Corresponds to the “first screen”.

  The description of FIG. 4 is continued. The first display unit 113 performs control to display the first screen acquired by the first acquisition unit 112. In the present embodiment, the first display unit 113 performs control to display the application list screen acquired by the first acquisition unit 112 on the operation panel 27.

  When the button (install button 6) included in the first screen is pressed, the determination request information transmission unit 114 executes the command before executing the command (install command) pasted on the pressed button. Determination request information for requesting validity determination for determining whether or not an application corresponding to the above can be used in the MFP 1 is transmitted to the application server 3. In the present embodiment, when the browser application accepts pressing of the install button 6 corresponding to any one of the plurality of applications displayed on the application list screen, the browser scheme displays the URL scheme pasted on the install button 6. The OS of the operation unit 20 is notified. The OS of the operation unit 20 confirms the notified URL scheme and broadcasts the URL scheme to each application of the operation unit 20. Then, before the installation application reacts to the broadcast URL scheme and executes the installation command whose execution procedure is indicated by the URL scheme, the application to be installed (the application corresponding to the installation command) is displayed on the MFP 1. Determination request information for requesting validity determination for determining whether or not it can be used is transmitted to the application server 3.

  In this example, pressing the install button 6 means selecting a URL scheme pasted on the install button 6, and means selecting an install command whose execution procedure is indicated by the URL scheme. That is, when the install button 6 included in the application list screen is pressed, the installation application (determination request information transmission unit 114) indicates the execution procedure by the URL scheme pasted on the pressed install button 6. Before executing an installation instruction (installation instruction pasted on the installation button 6), determination request information for requesting validity determination for determining whether or not an application corresponding to the instruction can be used in the MFP 1 is sent to the application server. 3 to send. In this example, the application server 3 corresponds to “server” in the claims.

  The above-described determination request information provides application identification information for identifying an application (installation target application) corresponding to the installation command pasted on the pressed installation button 6 and a function necessary for using the application. Module identification information for identifying a module to be performed, and version information indicating the version value of the module mounted on the MFP 1. A module represents a unit of software for providing a specific function. The version value indicates the attribute of the corresponding module and indicates a large value every time the module is repeatedly changed.

  The determination request information in the present embodiment includes an application ID (an example of application identification information) of an application corresponding to the install command pasted on the pressed install button 6. Further, the determination request information in the present embodiment includes the version of the module identified by the module ID for each of a plurality of module IDs (one example of module identification information) corresponding to a plurality of modules mounted on the MFP 1 one-to-one. Module information in which version information indicating a value is associated is included. However, the form of the determination request information is not limited to this. For example, the determination request information includes the application ID of the application corresponding to the installation command pasted on the pressed installation button 6 (in this example, the application ID included in the URL scheme) and the application identified by the application ID. A module ID for identifying a module for providing a function necessary for using the application, and version information indicating a version value of the module identified by the module ID installed in the MFP 1, A form that does not include a module ID that identifies a module that is not necessary for using the application identified by the ID or version information that indicates a version value thereof may be used.

  Here, the configuration of the application server 3 that performs the above-described validity determination will be described. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the application server 3. Note that the hardware configurations of the application market server 2 and the firmware distribution server 4 are the same as those in FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 8, the application server 3 includes a CPU 301, a ROM 302, a RAM 303, a communication I / F 304, an input device 305, and a display device 306. The CPU 301 comprehensively controls the operation of the application server 3. The ROM 302 is a non-volatile memory that stores various data such as programs. A RAM 303 is a volatile memory that functions as a work area (work area) for various processes executed by the CPU 301. The communication I / F 304 is an interface for connecting to the network 8. The input device 305 is a device that is used for input of an operation by a user, and includes, for example, a mouse or a keyboard. The display device 306 is a device that displays various types of information, and includes, for example, a liquid crystal display device.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions that the application server 3 has. As illustrated in FIG. 9, the application server 3 includes a correspondence information storage unit 311, a determination unit 312, a determination result information transmission unit 313, an application holding unit 314, and an application transmission unit 315. For convenience of explanation, FIG. 9 mainly illustrates functions according to the main part of the present invention, but the functions of the application server 3 are not limited to these.

  The correspondence information storage unit 311 stores correspondence information. The correspondence information provides a function necessary for using the application identified by the application identification information for each of a plurality of pieces of application identification information (in this example, application ID) corresponding to the plurality of applications. Module identification information (module ID in this example) for identifying the module of the module, and the minimum version value of the module identified by the module identification information (minimum version value necessary for using the corresponding application) The lower limit version information shown is information associated with each other. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of correspondence information.

  The description of FIG. 9 is continued. When the determination unit 312 receives the determination request information from the MFP 1, the determination unit 312 performs validity determination. More specifically, the determination unit 312 is identified by the application ID included in the determination request information based on the determination request information received from the MFP 1 and the correspondence information stored in the correspondence information storage unit 311. It is determined whether the application to be used can be used in the MFP 1. Furthermore, the determination unit 312 specifies a combination that matches the combination of the application identification information and the module identification information included in the determination request information from among the combinations of the application identification information and the module identification information included in the correspondence information. When the version value indicated by the lower limit version information associated with the specified combination is greater than the version value indicated by the version information included in the determination request information, the application identification information included in the determination request information described above identifies the version value. It is determined that the MFP 1 cannot be used by the MFP 1. On the other hand, when the version value indicated by the lower limit version information is equal to or smaller than the version value indicated by the version information included in the determination request information, the application identified by the application identification information included in the determination request information is used by the MFP 1. Judge that it is possible.

  The procedure of validity determination in the present embodiment is as follows, but is not limited to this. When the determination unit 312 receives the determination request information from the MFP 1, the determination unit 312 specifies an application ID that matches the application ID included in the determination request information among the plurality of application IDs included in the correspondence information. Then, in the correspondence information described above, the module ID associated with the identified application ID is specified, and the module information included in the determination request information described above (one-to-one with a plurality of modules installed in the MFP 1). A module ID that matches the identified module ID is selected from a plurality of module IDs included in a plurality of corresponding module IDs (information in which version information is associated with each other) (for convenience of explanation, the selected module ID is The version information associated with the selected module ID is selected in the module information (for convenience of explanation, the selected version information is referred to as “selected version information”). Then, among the combinations of the application ID and the module ID included in the above-described correspondence information, the combination that matches the combination of the application ID included in the above-described determination request information and the above-described selected module ID is specified and specified. If the version value indicated by the lower limit version information associated with the combination is larger than the version value indicated by the selected version information, the application identified by the application ID included in the determination request information cannot be used by the MFP 1. judge. On the other hand, when the version value indicated by the lower limit version information is equal to or smaller than the version value indicated by the selected version information, it is determined that the application identified by the application ID included in the determination request information can be used by the MFP 1.

  The determination result information transmission unit 313 illustrated in FIG. 9 transmits determination result information indicating the above-described validity determination result to the MFP 1. The application holding unit 314 holds a plurality of applications. In response to a request from MFP 1, application transmission unit 315 transmits the application held in application holding unit 314 to MFP 1. The above is the configuration of the application server 3.

  In the present embodiment, the functions (determination unit 312, determination result information transmission unit 313, application transmission unit 315, etc.) of each unit of the application server 3 described above are realized by the CPU 301 executing a program stored in the ROM 302 or the like. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, at least a part of the functions of each unit of the application server 3 described above may be realized by a dedicated hardware circuit (semiconductor integrated circuit or the like). Further, the above-described correspondence information storage unit 311 and the above-described application holding unit 314 are realized by the ROM 302, for example. Here, the functions of the determination result information transmission unit 313 and the application transmission unit 315 may be realized by a combination of the CPU 301 that executes the program and the communication I / F 304. For example, the function of the determination result information transmission unit 313 is realized by the CPU 301 controlling the communication I / F 304 so as to transmit the determination result information to the MFP 1. For example, the function of the application transmission unit 315 is realized by the CPU 301 controlling the communication I / F 304 to transmit the application to the MFP 1.

  The description of FIG. 4 is continued. The determination result information receiving unit 115 receives, as a response to the above determination request information, determination result information indicating the result of the above-described appropriateness determination from the application server 3.

  The second display unit 116 includes an application (that is, an application included in the determination request information) in which the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit 115 corresponds to the install command pasted on the pressed install button 6. When the application identified by the ID indicates that the MFP 1 cannot be used, control is performed to display a second screen for accepting an instruction to update the firmware. In the present embodiment, the second display unit 116 performs control to display a second screen as shown in FIG. 11 on the operation panel 27. In this example, the user can instruct updating of the firmware by pressing an “OK” button shown in FIG.

  The description of FIG. 4 is continued. The first control unit 117 uses an application corresponding to the installation command pasted on the pressed install button 6 (the application ID included in the determination request information) as the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit 115. When the identified application) indicates that the MFP 1 cannot be used, control is performed to update the firmware that controls the operation of the MFP 1. In this example, when the first control unit 117 receives an instruction to update the firmware via the above-described second screen, the first control unit 117 performs control to update the firmware.

  In the present embodiment, the first control unit 117 determines that the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit 115 is an application corresponding to the install command pasted on the pressed install button 6 (in the determination request information). If the application identified by the included application ID) cannot be used by the MFP 1, control is performed to introduce the first firmware indicating the latest firmware into the MFP 1. Here, the first firmware is the second firmware indicating the latest version of the operation unit firmware for controlling the operation of the operation unit 20 and the third firmware indicating the latest version of the main unit firmware for controlling the operation of the main body 10. It consists of firmware. Also, as shown in FIG. 12, the first control unit 117 includes a second control unit 120 and a third control unit 130. The second control unit 120 performs control for introducing the second firmware into the operation unit 20. The third control unit 130 performs control for introducing the third firmware into the main body 10.

  For convenience of explanation, before describing the functions of the second control unit 120, the functions of the third control unit 130 will be described. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the third control unit 130. As illustrated in FIG. 13, the third control unit 130 includes a second acquisition unit 131, a decomposition unit 132, an address information transmission unit 133, and a first introduction control unit 134.

  The second acquisition unit 131 includes a package in which the second firmware and the third firmware are integrated (that is, a package in which the latest version of the operation unit firmware and the latest version of the main unit firmware are integrated, In the following description, “the latest package” may be acquired, and the acquired package is stored in the storage unit (HDD 14 in this example). In the present embodiment, the second acquisition unit 131 transmits a package request for requesting the latest version of the package to the firmware distribution server 4 in accordance with an instruction from the instruction unit 121 to be described later. Obtained from the distribution server 4.

  The disassembling unit 132 disassembles the latest version of the package acquired by the second acquiring unit 131 into the second firmware and the third firmware. Various known methods can be used as a method for disassembling the package.

  The address information transmission unit 133 stores address information (information indicating the location of the second firmware in the HDD 14) that can specify an area (storage area) in which the second firmware is stored in the storage unit (HDD 14 in this example). It transmits to the 2nd control part 120.

  The first introduction control unit 134 performs control for introducing the third firmware decomposed by the decomposition unit 132 into the main body 10. In this example, the first introduction control unit 134 performs control to install the third firmware in the main body 10. More specifically, files such as programs and data constituting the third firmware are expanded and necessary settings are made, and files that cannot be modified while the OS is running are set by rebooting the main body 10. .

  Next, functions of the second control unit 120 will be described. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the second control unit 120. As illustrated in FIG. 14, the second control unit 120 includes an instruction unit 121, an address information receiving unit 122, a reading unit 123, and a second introduction control unit 124.

  The instructing unit 121 recognizes the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit 115 described above using an application (an application ID included in the determination request information) corresponding to the installation command pasted on the pressed installation button 6. In the case where it indicates that the application cannot be used in the MFP 1, the third control unit 130 (second acquisition unit 131) is instructed to acquire the latest version of the package.

  The address information receiving unit 122 receives the above address information from the third control unit 130. The reading unit 123 reads the second firmware from the area specified by the address information received by the address information receiving unit 122 in the storage unit (HDD 14 in this example).

  The second introduction control unit 124 performs control for introducing the second firmware read by the reading unit 123 into the operation unit 20. In this example, the second introduction control unit 124 performs control to install the second firmware in the operation unit 20. More specifically, files such as programs and data constituting the second firmware are expanded and necessary settings are made, and the files that cannot be modified while the OS is running are set by restarting the operation unit 20. To do.

  In the present embodiment, the operation unit 20 includes the above-described second control unit 120, and the main body 10 includes the above-described third control unit 130.

  As described above, the first control unit 117 uses the application corresponding to the installation command in which the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit 115 is pasted on the pressed install button 6 in the MFP 1. When it indicates that it cannot be performed, control is performed to introduce the first firmware indicating the latest firmware into the MFP 1. After the control by the first control unit 117 is performed, the determination request information transmission unit 114 retransmits the above-described determination request information to the application server 3, and the above processing is repeated.

  Hereinafter, a firmware update procedure will be described with reference to FIGS. First, as illustrated in FIG. 15, the third control unit 130 (second acquisition unit 131) receives the latest version from the firmware distribution server 4 in accordance with an instruction from the second control unit 120 (instruction unit 121). The package is acquired, and the acquired package is stored in the HDD 14.

  Next, as illustrated in FIG. 16, the third control unit 130 (decomposing unit 132) decomposes the package stored in the HDD 14 into second firmware and third firmware.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 17, the third control unit 130 (first introduction control unit 134) expands files such as programs and data constituting the third firmware and performs necessary settings. At this stage, the main body 10 is not restarted.

  Next, the third control unit 130 instructs the second control unit 120 to introduce the second firmware (instruction to update the operation unit firmware). In this example, the third control unit 130 (address information transmission unit 133) transmits to the second control unit 120 address information that can identify an area in the HDD 14 in which the second firmware is stored. The installation of the second firmware is instructed. The second control unit 120 (reading unit 123) reads the second firmware from the area specified by the address information received from the third control unit 130 in the HDD 14. Then, as shown in FIG. 18, the second control unit 120 (second introduction control unit 124) expands files such as programs and data constituting the second firmware and performs necessary settings. Then, after the settings other than the file that cannot be modified during the OS startup are completed, the operation unit 20 is restarted, and the file that cannot be modified is set during the OS startup. Thereby, the introduction of the second firmware to the operation unit 20 is completed.

  After the restart of the operation unit 20 is completed and the operation unit 20 and the main body 10 are reconnected, as shown in FIG. 19, the third control unit 130 sends the second firmware to the second control unit 120 again. Instruct the introduction of. At this stage, since the introduction of the second firmware to the operation unit 20 has been completed, the second control unit 120 that has received this instruction immediately confirms that the installation of the second firmware has been completed. A response shown is returned to the third control unit 130. Upon receiving this response, the third control unit 130 (first introduction control unit 134) restarts the main body 10 and sets a file that cannot be modified while the OS is running. Thereby, the introduction of the third firmware to the main body 10 is also completed.

  As described above, after the introduction of the first firmware to the MFP 1 is completed, the MFP 1 requests the application server 3 again for the above-described validity determination. That is, after the introduction of the first firmware to the MFP 1 is completed, the determination request information transmission unit 114 transmits the above-described determination request information to the application server 3 again. The module information included in the determination request information in this case is the latest module information (the application ID is the same as the previous time). Similarly to the above, the application server 3 that has received the determination request information performs the above-described validity determination, and transmits determination result information indicating the result to the MFP 1.

  Returning to FIG. 4, the description will be continued. The application introduction control unit 118 includes an application (in this example, an application included in the determination request information) in which the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit 115 corresponds to the installation command pasted on the pressed install button 6. When the application identified by ID indicates that it can be used by the MFP 1, an installation command is executed and control for introducing the application into the MFP 1 is performed.

  Next, an example of functions of the application market server 2 will be described with reference to FIG. As illustrated in FIG. 20, the application market server 2 includes an application list screen holding unit 211 and an application list screen transmission unit 212. For convenience of explanation, FIG. 20 mainly illustrates the functions according to the present invention, but the functions of the app market server 2 are not limited to these.

  The application list screen holding unit 211 holds the above-described application list screen. When receiving the above display request from MFP 1, application list screen transmission unit 212 transmits the application list screen held in application list screen holding unit 211 to MFP 1 as a response.

  In the present embodiment, the function of the application list screen transmission unit 212 included in the application market server 2 described above is realized by the CPU 301 executing a program stored in the ROM 302 or the like. It may be realized by a hardware circuit (semiconductor integrated circuit or the like). The application list screen holding unit 211 is realized by the ROM 302 or an auxiliary storage device such as an HDD. Here, the function of the application list screen transmission unit 212 may be realized by a combination of the CPU 301 that executes the program and the communication I / F 304. For example, the function of the application list screen transmission unit 212 is realized by the CPU 301 controlling the communication I / F 304 to transmit the application list screen to the MFP 1.

  Next, an example of the function of the firmware distribution server 4 will be described with reference to FIG. As illustrated in FIG. 21, the firmware distribution server 4 includes a package holding unit 411 and a package transmission unit 412. For convenience of explanation, FIG. 21 mainly illustrates the functions according to the present invention, but the functions of the firmware distribution server 4 are not limited to these.

  The package holding unit 411 holds the latest version of the package. When the package transmission unit 412 receives the above-described package request from the MFP 1, as a response, the package transmission unit 412 transmits the latest version package held in the package holding unit 411 to the MFP 1.

  In the present embodiment, the function of the package transmission unit 412 included in the firmware distribution server 4 described above is realized by the CPU 301 executing a program stored in the ROM 302 or the like. It may be realized by a circuit (semiconductor integrated circuit or the like). Further, the above-described package holding unit 411 is realized by, for example, the ROM 302 or an auxiliary storage device such as an HDD. Here, the function of the package transmission unit 412 may be considered to be realized by a combination of the CPU 301 that executes the program and the communication I / F 304. For example, the function of the package transmission unit 412 is realized by the CPU 301 controlling the communication I / F 304 to transmit the package to the MFP 1.

  FIG. 22 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of an operation procedure of the information processing system 100 according to the present embodiment. In this example, the main body 10 has a system module for managing programs, and the function of the third control unit 130 described above is provided by this system module. First, when the user touches the icon 5 (see FIG. 5) on the operation screen (step S1), the browser application transmits the above-described display request to the app market server 2 (step S2). And as a response, an application list screen is received from the application market server 2 (step S3), and the received application list screen is displayed on the operation panel 27 (step S4).

  Next, when the user presses the install button 6 of any application on the application list screen (step S5), the browser application notifies the OS of the operation unit 20 of the URL scheme pasted on the install button 6. (Step S6). The OS of the operation unit 20 confirms the notified URL scheme (step S7), and broadcasts the URL scheme to each application of the operation unit 20 (step S8).

  The install application then reacts to this broadcast URL scheme. The installation application requests the above-described module information from the system module of the main body 10 (step S9), and receives the above-described module information from the system module of the main body 10 as a response (step S10).

  Next, the installation application (determination request information transmission unit 114) receives the above-described determination request information including the application ID included in the URL scheme received from the OS of the operation unit 20 and the module information received in step S10. And transmitted to the application server 3 (step S11). The application server 3 that has received the determination request information performs the above-described validity determination (step S12), and transmits determination result information indicating the result to the installation application (step S13).

  When the determination result information received from the application server 3 indicates that the application identified by the application ID included in the determination request information cannot be used in the MFP 1, the installation application (first display unit 113) Control for displaying the screen is performed (step S14). When an instruction to update the firmware is received via the second screen described above (step S15), the installation application (instruction unit 121) sends the system module (second acquisition unit 131) of the main body 10 to the system module. The acquisition of the latest package is instructed (step S16). Upon receiving this instruction, the system module (second acquisition unit 131) transmits the above-described package request to the firmware distribution server 4 (step S17), and acquires the latest package from the firmware distribution server 4 as a response. The acquired latest version of the package is stored in the HDD 14 (step S18).

  Next, the system module (decomposing unit 132) decomposes the latest version of the package acquired in step S18 into the second firmware and the third firmware (step S19). Then, the system module (first introduction control unit 134) expands files such as programs and data constituting the third firmware obtained by the decomposition in step S19 and performs necessary settings (step S20). At this stage, the main body 10 is not restarted.

  Next, the system module instructs the installation application to install the second firmware. As described above, in this example, the system module (address information transmission unit 133) transmits address information that can specify an area in the HDD 14 in which the second firmware is stored to the installation application (step S21). The installation application (reading unit 123) reads the second firmware from the area specified by the address information received from the system module in the HDD 14 (step S22). Next, the installation application (second introduction control unit 124) expands files such as programs and data constituting the second firmware and performs necessary settings (step S23). Then, after the settings other than the files that cannot be modified while the OS is running are completed, the operation unit 20 is rebooted, and the files that cannot be modified while the OS is running are set (step S24). Thereby, the introduction of the second firmware to the operation unit 20 is completed.

  After the restart of the operation unit 20 is completed and the operation unit 20 and the main body 10 are reconnected, the system module of the main body 10 instructs the installation application to introduce the second firmware again (step S25). At this stage, since the installation of the second firmware to the operation unit 20 has been completed, the installation application that has received this instruction immediately sends a response indicating that the installation of the second firmware has been completed. Return to the module (step S26). Upon receiving this response, the system module (first introduction control unit 134) restarts the main body 10 and sets a file that cannot be modified while the OS is running (step S27). Thereby, the introduction of the third firmware to the main body 10 is also completed.

  When the process of step S27 is completed, the system module notifies the installation application that the introduction of the third firmware to the main body 10 is completed (step S28). The installation application that has received this notification requests the application server 3 to determine validity again. More specifically, the install application re-acquires module information from the system module of the main body 10 and identifies the re-acquired module information and the application corresponding to the install command pasted on the pressed install button 6 Determination request information including the application ID (application ID included in the URL scheme pasted on the install button 6 pressed in step S5) is transmitted to the application server 3 (step S29). Similarly to the above, the application server 3 that has received the determination request information performs the above-described validity determination (step S30), and transmits determination result information indicating the result to the installation application (step S31).

  When the determination result information received from the application server 3 indicates that the application identified by the application ID included in the determination request information can be used by the MFP 1, the installation application (application introduction control unit 118) downloads the application to the application. The server 3 is requested (step S32), and the application is downloaded from the application server 3 (step S33). Then, the installation application (application introduction control unit 118) installs the downloaded application in the MFP 1 (step S34).

  As described above, when the install button 6 included in the application list screen is pressed, the MFP 1 can use the application corresponding to the install command pasted on the pressed install button 6 in the MFP 1. Determination request information for requesting validity determination to determine whether or not is sent to the application server 3. The application server 3 that has received the determination request information from the MFP 1 performs the above-described validity determination, and transmits determination result information indicating the result to the MFP 1. When the determination result information received from the application server 3 as a response to the determination request information indicates that the application corresponding to the installation command pasted on the pressed install button 6 cannot be used by the MFP 1, the MFP 1 The firmware for controlling the operation is updated. In other words, in the present embodiment, when the application corresponding to the install command pasted on the pressed install button 6 cannot be used in the MFP 1, the firmware of the MFP 1 is automatically updated. There is no need for a service person to go to the installation location of the MFP to update the firmware of the MFP, and the waiting time of the user is shortened. Therefore, user convenience can be improved.

(Modification of the first embodiment)
In the above embodiment, the installation instruction is described as an example of the instruction for introducing the application into the MFP 1, but the instruction for introducing the application into the MFP 1 is not limited to this. For example, it may be a version upgrade command that instructs to switch to the latest version of the application (in other words, commands to introduce the latest version of the application into the MFP 1).

  For example, as shown in FIG. 23, a button 7 for switching to a screen for instructing version upgrade (hereinafter referred to as “application management button 7”) may be displayed on the application list screen. In this example, when pressing of the application management button 7 is accepted, the MFP 1 (first display unit 113) explains the contents of the application for each version upgradeable application as shown in FIG. And a button 9 for instructing version upgrade of the application (hereinafter referred to as “version upgrade button 9”), and a control to display a version upgrade screen on the operation panel 27. In this example, the URL scheme describing the execution procedure of the upgrade command is pasted on the upgrade button 9. In this example, the upgrade screen can be considered as a screen including an upgrade command that is an example of a command for introducing an application to the MFP 1 and is considered to correspond to the “first screen” in the claims. be able to.

  When the browser application installed in the operation unit 20 accepts pressing of the upgrade button 9, the browser application notifies the OS of the operation unit 20 of the URL scheme pasted on the upgrade button 9. The OS of the operation unit 20 confirms the notified URL scheme and broadcasts the URL scheme to each application of the operation unit 20. The install application then reacts to this broadcast URL scheme. The subsequent operation content is the same as that of the above-described embodiment.

  The aspect of the upgrade screen described above is not limited to this. For example, the upgrade screen displays a button for instructing to upgrade the upgradeable applications in a batch, and the button Alternatively, the URL scheme indicating the execution procedure of the upgrade command for upgrading the applications that can be upgraded at once may be pasted.

  Further, for example, the above-described version upgrade screen is not provided, and the application scheme screen is pasted with explanatory information that describes the contents of the application and a URL scheme that describes the execution procedure of the installation instruction for each application. An installation button 6 and an upgrade button 9 to which a URL scheme describing the execution procedure of the upgrade command is pasted may be displayed.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment will be described. Description of parts common to the above-described first embodiment will be omitted as appropriate. FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the MFP 1 according to the present embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 25, the MFP 1 further includes an execution selection screen display unit 140 and a time reception unit 141. When receiving an instruction to update the firmware via the second screen described above, the time reception unit 141 receives an update time designation indicating the time to update the firmware.

  For example, when the instruction to update the firmware is received via the second screen described above (when the “OK” button in FIG. 11 is pressed), the execution selection screen display unit 140 specifies whether to update the firmware immediately. Control is performed to display on the operation panel 27 an execution selection screen for selecting whether to update the firmware when the specified time is reached. FIG. 26 shows an example of the execution selection screen. The execution selection screen updates the firmware when a button 150 for instructing to immediately update the firmware (instructing immediate execution) and the specified time is reached. A button 151 for instructing to perform (instructing execution of time). When pressing of the button 150 is accepted, the firmware is immediately updated. The specific contents of the firmware update are as described in the above embodiment. On the other hand, when pressing of the button 151 is received (when an instruction to select updating the firmware when the specified time is reached), the execution selection screen display unit 140 displays the firmware as shown in FIG. Control is performed to display a time designation screen on the operation panel 27 for designating the time for updating. In this example, the user inputs a desired time via the time designation screen and presses the “confirm” button 160. As a result, information specifying the update time indicating the time for updating the firmware is input. And the time reception part 141 receives this input information. That is, the time reception unit 141 receives the time designated via the time designation screen as the update time.

  Then, the first control unit 117 performs control to update the firmware when the time indicated by the update time received by the time reception unit 141 is reached. The specific contents of the firmware update are as described in the above embodiment.

  FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating a part of the operation procedure of the information processing system 100 according to the present embodiment that is different from the above-described first embodiment. Here, in step S15 in FIG. 22, the time execution is performed in a state where the execution selection screen is displayed on the operation panel 27 by receiving an instruction to update the firmware via the second screen. It is assumed that pressing of the button 151 for instructing is accepted. That is, it is assumed that the above time designation screen is displayed on the operation panel 27. In step S40 of FIG. 28, the installation application (time reception unit 141) updates the firmware when the user inputs a desired time via the above-described time specification screen and presses the “confirm” button 160. The specification of the update time indicating the time is accepted. Next, the installation application (instruction unit 121) instructs the system module (second acquisition unit 131) of the main body 10 to acquire the latest package when the update time accepted in step S40 is reached ( Step S41). Upon receiving this instruction, the system module (second acquisition unit 131) periodically checks the time (step S42), and if the update time notified from the installation application has been reached, the above-described package request is distributed to the firmware. It transmits to the server 4 (step S43). The system module (second acquisition unit 131) acquires the latest package from the firmware distribution server 4 as a response to the package request transmitted in step S43, and stores the acquired latest version package in the HDD 14 (step S44). . The subsequent operation contents are as described in the first embodiment. In this example, it can be considered that the firmware update is started when the update time is reached.

  In this example, time management is performed on the main body 10 side. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, time management may be performed on the operation unit 20 side. For example, in step S41 described above, the installation application (instruction unit 121) acquires the latest package in the system module (second acquisition unit 131) of the main body 10 when the update time accepted in step S40 is reached. It may be a form instructing this.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment which concerns on this invention was described, this invention is not limited to each above-mentioned embodiment as it is, A component can be deform | transformed and embodied in the range which does not deviate from the summary in an implementation stage. . Moreover, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in each embodiment. Furthermore, constituent elements over different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

  Note that the functions of the respective units of the MFP 1 described above (the operation screen display unit 111, the first acquisition unit 112, the first display unit 113, the determination request information transmission unit 114, the determination result information reception unit 115, and the second display are displayed. Unit 116, first control unit 117, application introduction control unit 118, execution selection screen display unit 140, and time reception unit 141, the CPU (11 or 21) is a storage device (for example, ROM 12, HDD 14, ROM 22, flash memory). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, at least a part of the functions of each unit of the MFP 1 is a dedicated hardware circuit (for example, a semiconductor integrated circuit). It may be realized.

  Here, among the functions of the first acquisition unit 112 described above, the function of transmitting a display request to the app market server 2 and the function of acquiring (receiving) the application list screen from the app market server 2 execute a program. It may be considered that this is realized by a combination of the CPU 21 and the communication I / F 25. For example, when transmitting a display request to the app market server 2, the CPU 21 controls the communication I / F 25 to transmit the display request to the app market server 2. For example, when the application list screen is received from the application market server 2, the communication I / F 25 receives the application list screen from the application market server 2. Then, the communication I / F 25 notifies the CPU 21 of the application list screen received from the application market server 2. Thereby, CPU21 can detect reception of an application list screen. Similarly, the functions of the determination request information transmission unit 114 and the determination result information reception unit 115 are also realized by a combination of the CPU 21 and the communication I / F 25.

  In the above-described embodiment, the main body 10 and the operation unit 20 operate independently of each other with different operating systems. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and for example, the main body 10 and the operation unit 20 operate with the same operating system. Form may be sufficient. Further, for example, a form in which one server in which the above-described application market server 2 and application server 3 are integrated may be provided.

  The program executed in the information processing system 100 (MFP 1, application market server 2, application server 3, firmware distribution server 4, etc.) of the above-described embodiment is an installable format or executable format file and is a CD- The program may be provided by being recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a ROM, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-R, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), a USB (Universal Serial Bus), or the like. It may be configured to be provided or distributed via a network. Various programs may be provided by being incorporated in advance in a ROM or the like.

1 MFP
2 application market server 3 application server 4 firmware distribution server 8 network 10 main body 20 operation unit 100 information processing system 111 operation screen display unit 112 first acquisition unit 113 first display unit 114 determination request information transmission unit 115 determination result information reception Unit 116 second display unit 117 first control unit 118 application introduction control unit 120 second control unit 121 instruction unit 122 address information receiving unit 123 reading unit 124 second introduction control unit 130 third control unit 131 third 2 acquisition unit 132 decomposition unit 133 address information transmission unit 134 first introduction control unit 140 execution selection screen display unit 141 time reception unit 211 application list screen holding unit 212 application list screen transmission unit 311 correspondence information storage unit 312 determination unit 313 Judgment result information Shin portion 314 application holding section 315 application transmitting section 411 package holding portion 412 package transmission unit

JP 2011-237881 A

Claims (18)

An information processing system including an information processing device and a server connected to the information processing device via a network,
The information processing apparatus includes:
A first acquisition unit that acquires a first screen including a button to which an instruction for introducing an application into the information processing apparatus is pasted;
A first display unit that performs control to display the first screen acquired by the first acquisition unit;
When the button is pressed, a validity determination for determining whether or not an application corresponding to the command can be used in the information processing apparatus before executing the command pasted on the pressed button A determination request information transmitting unit for transmitting determination request information for requesting to the server;
A determination result information receiving unit for receiving determination result information indicating the result of the validity determination from the server;
When the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit indicates that an application corresponding to the command cannot be used in the information processing apparatus, control for updating firmware for controlling the operation of the information processing apparatus is performed. A first control unit to perform,
The server
When the determination request information is received from the information processing apparatus, a determination unit that performs the validity determination;
A determination result information transmission unit that transmits the determination result information indicating the result of the validity determination to the information processing apparatus,
Information processing system. The determination request information includes application identification information for identifying an application corresponding to the command, module identification information for identifying a module for providing a function necessary for using the application, and the information processing apparatus. Version information indicating the version value of the module,
The server
The module identification information for identifying a module for providing a function necessary for using the application identified by the application identification information, for each of the plurality of application identification information corresponding one-to-one with a plurality of applications. A correspondence information storage unit that stores correspondence information that associates the lower limit version information indicating the minimum version value of the module identified by the module identification information, and
The determination unit is identified by the application identification information included in the determination request information based on the determination request information received from the information processing apparatus and the correspondence information stored in the correspondence information storage unit. Determining whether an application can be used in the information processing apparatus;
The information processing system according to claim 1. The determination unit specifies a combination that matches a combination of the application identification information and the module identification information included in the determination request information among combinations of the application identification information and the module identification information included in the correspondence information. When the version value indicated by the lower limit version information associated with the specified combination is greater than the version value indicated by the version information included in the determination request information, the application included in the determination request information It is determined that the application identified by the identification information cannot be used by the information processing apparatus.
The information processing system according to claim 2. The determination unit, when the version value indicated by the lower limit version information is equal to or less than the version value indicated by the version information included in the determination request information, the application identified by the application identification information included in the determination request information Is determined to be usable by the information processing apparatus,
The information processing system according to claim 3. The first control unit indicates the latest version of the firmware when the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit indicates that an application corresponding to the command cannot be used in the information processing apparatus. Performing control for introducing the first firmware into the information processing apparatus;
The information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The information processing apparatus includes an operation unit that receives an operation, and a main body that performs an operation according to the operation received by the operation unit,
The first firmware includes: a second firmware indicating the latest version of the operation unit firmware that controls the operation of the operation unit; a third firmware indicating the latest version of the main unit firmware that controls the operation of the main unit; Composed of,
The information processing system according to claim 5. The first controller is
A second control unit that performs control for introducing the second firmware into the operation unit;
A third control unit that performs control for introducing the third firmware into the main body,
The information processing system according to claim 6. The third control unit is
A second acquisition unit that acquires a package in which the second firmware and the third firmware are integrated, and stores the acquired package in a storage unit;
A disassembling unit that disassembles the package acquired by the second acquiring unit into the second firmware and the third firmware;
An address information transmission unit that transmits address information capable of specifying an area in which the second firmware is stored in the storage unit to the second control unit;
A first introduction control unit that performs control to introduce the third firmware into the main body,
The second controller is
An address information receiving unit for receiving the address information from the third control unit;
A reading unit that reads out the second firmware from an area specified by the address information received by the address information receiving unit among the storage unit;
A second introduction control unit that performs control to introduce the second firmware read by the reading unit into the operation unit;
The information processing system according to claim 7. The second control unit obtains the latest version of the package when the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit indicates that an application corresponding to the command cannot be used in the information processing apparatus. An instruction unit for instructing the third control unit
The information processing system according to claim 8. The operation unit includes the second control unit,
The main body has the third control unit,
The information processing system according to any one of claims 7 to 9. After the control by the first control unit is performed, the determination request information transmission unit retransmits the determination request information to the server.
The information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 10. The information processing apparatus includes:
When the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit indicates that an application corresponding to the command cannot be used in the information processing apparatus, an instruction for accepting an instruction as to whether or not to update the firmware A second display unit that performs control to display the second screen;
When the first control unit receives an instruction to update the firmware via the second screen, the first control unit performs control to update the firmware.
The information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 11. The information processing apparatus includes:
When receiving an instruction to update the firmware via the second screen, further comprising a time receiving unit that receives an update time designation indicating a time to update the firmware,
The first control unit performs control to update the firmware when the time indicated by the update time received by the time reception unit is reached.
The information processing system according to claim 12. The information processing apparatus includes:
When an instruction to update the firmware is received via the second screen, an execution selection screen for selecting whether to update the firmware immediately or to update the firmware when a specified time is reached. It further includes an execution selection screen display unit for performing control to display,
The execution selection screen display unit performs control to display a time designation screen for designating a time for updating the firmware when receiving an instruction to select updating the firmware when the designated time is reached. ,
The information processing system according to claim 13. The time receiving unit receives a time designated via the time designation screen as the update time;
The information processing system according to claim 14. The information processing apparatus includes:
When the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit indicates that the application corresponding to the command can be used in the information processing apparatus, application introduction control for performing control to introduce the application into the information processing apparatus Further comprising
The information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 13. An information processing method executed by an information processing system including an information processing device and a server connected to the information processing device via a network,
The information processing apparatus includes:
An acquisition step of acquiring a first screen including a button to which an instruction for introducing an application into the information processing apparatus is pasted;
A first display control step for performing control to display the first screen acquired in the acquisition step;
When the button is pressed, it is determined whether or not the application corresponding to the command operates on the information processing apparatus before executing the command pasted on the pressed button. Determination request information transmitting step for transmitting determination request information for requesting sex determination to the server;
A determination result information receiving step of receiving determination result information indicating the result of the validity determination from the server;
When the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving step indicates that an application corresponding to the command cannot be used in the information processing apparatus, control for updating firmware for controlling the operation of the information processing apparatus is performed. Performing a first control step,
The server
When receiving the determination request information from the information processing apparatus, a determination step for performing the validity determination;
A determination result information transmission step of transmitting the determination result information indicating a result of the validity determination to the information processing apparatus,
Information processing method. An information processing apparatus that can be connected to a server via a network,
A first acquisition unit that acquires a first screen including a button to which an instruction for introducing an application into the information processing apparatus is pasted;
A first display unit that performs control to display the first screen acquired by the first acquisition unit;
When the button is pressed, a validity determination for determining whether or not an application corresponding to the command can be used in the information processing apparatus before executing the command pasted on the pressed button A determination request information transmitting unit for transmitting determination request information for requesting to the server;
A determination result information receiving unit for receiving determination result information indicating the result of the validity determination from the server;
When the determination result information received by the determination result information receiving unit indicates that an application corresponding to the command cannot be used in the information processing apparatus, control for updating firmware for controlling the operation of the information processing apparatus is performed. A first control unit to perform,
Information processing device.

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