JP2018017940A - Consumables management system and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a consumables management system and an image forming apparatus which can increase the degree of freedom for setting the validity of consumables usage by the image forming apparatus.SOLUTION: An MFP of the consumables management system acquires a container ID of an equipped toner container from the toner container (S231), and permits the usage of the toner container by the MFP itself (S236) if the acquired container ID is associated with one of a customer ID of a customer as a user of the MFP itself and a machine ID of the MFP itself and is included in usable items information ("Yes" in S234).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

  The present invention relates to a consumable management system and an image forming apparatus for managing consumables used by an image forming apparatus.

  Conventionally, as an image forming apparatus that uses consumables, the use of consumables is permitted when the identification information of the mounted consumables is managed in advance, while the identification information of the mounted consumables is managed in advance. There is known one that refuses to use consumables when there is no such item (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-211789

  However, since the image forming apparatus described in Patent Document 1 is intended to use regular consumables, whether or not the consumables can be used is set for each user or each image forming apparatus. There is a problem that can not be.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides a consumable management system and an image forming apparatus that can improve the degree of freedom in setting whether or not consumables can be used by an image forming apparatus.

  The consumables management system according to the present invention includes an image forming apparatus that uses consumables, identification information of the consumables that can be used by the image forming apparatus, identification information of a user of the image forming apparatus, and the image forming apparatus. A management server that manages usable product information that is included in association with any one of the identification information; and a usable / unusable determining unit that determines whether or not the consumable can be used by the image forming device. Comprises an item information acquisition means for acquiring identification information of the attached consumable item from the consumable item, and the management server comprises an information change unit for changing the usable item information according to an instruction, The determination unit may determine whether the identification information acquired by the product information acquisition unit is identification information of the user of the target image forming apparatus or identification information of the target image forming apparatus. If it included in the accessible item information associated with one, and permits the use of the consumable by the image forming apparatus of the subject.

  With this configuration, the consumables management system of the present invention changes the setting of whether or not the consumables can be used by the image forming apparatus by changing the usable information managed by the management server. The degree of freedom of setting whether or not the consumable can be used by the forming apparatus can be improved.

  The consumable item management system according to the present invention includes a used item information management unit that manages used item information including identification information of the consumable item used by the image forming apparatus, and the availability determination unit includes the item When the identification information acquired by the information acquisition unit is included in the used product information, the use of the consumable by the image forming apparatus may be permitted.

  With this configuration, the consumables management system according to the present invention enables the image to be used even when the consumables that have been used in the past by the image forming apparatus are mounted on the image forming apparatus, even if the usable article information is not used. Since the use of consumables by the forming apparatus is permitted, it is possible to easily determine whether or not the image forming apparatus can use the consumables.

  In the consumable item management system according to the present invention, the used item information management unit may indicate that the consumable item used cannot be used when the consumable item used by the image forming apparatus becomes unavailable. When the usage information determining unit includes the identification information acquired by the product information acquisition unit in any of the available product information and the used product information, the information is included in the used product information in association with identification information. However, the use of the consumable by the image forming apparatus may be rejected when it is included in the used product information in association with the unusable information.

  With this configuration, the consumable item management system according to the present invention is configured so that, when a consumable item that has been used by the image forming apparatus in the past and becomes unusable is attached to the image forming apparatus, the consumable item identification information is used information. Even if it is included, the use of the consumables by the image forming apparatus is rejected, so that whether or not the consumables can be used by the image forming apparatus can be determined more appropriately.

  The consumable item management system according to the present invention includes consumable state information managing means for managing consumable state information indicating a consumable state of the consumable item used by the image forming apparatus, and the management server responds to the request with the consumable state information managing unit. Information notifying means for notifying status information may be provided.

  With this configuration, the consumables management system of the present invention can notify the consumables manager of the consumables consumption state, so it is easy for the consumables manager to determine whether or not the consumables are in an appropriate state. Can be judged.

  In the consumable item management system of the present invention, the consumable item is a toner container, and the information notifying unit notifies the destination of the consumption state information of the number of printed sheets by the image forming apparatus using the consumable item. Also good.

  With this configuration, the consumable item management system according to the present invention can notify the toner container manager of the number of prints made by the image forming apparatus in addition to the toner container depletion state. This can be determined by the toner container manager in consideration of the number of sheets printed by the image forming apparatus. Therefore, the consumable item management system of the present invention can make the toner container manager more appropriately determine whether or not the toner container is in an appropriate consumption state.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention is an image forming apparatus that uses consumables, the availability determining unit that determines whether or not the consumables can be used by the image forming apparatus, and the identification information of the mounted consumables Product information acquisition means for acquiring from the consumables, wherein the availability determination means includes identification information of the consumables that can be used by the image forming apparatus, identification information of a user of the image forming apparatus, and The identification information acquired by the product information acquisition unit is included in the available product information that is associated with any one of the identification information of the image forming apparatus and managed by the management server, and the identification of the user of the image forming apparatus. When the information is included in association with any one of the information and the identification information of the image forming apparatus, use of the consumable by the image forming apparatus is permitted.

  With this configuration, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the availability setting of consumables is changed by changing the availability information managed by the management server. The degree of freedom of setting can be improved.

  The consumable item management system and the image forming apparatus of the present invention can improve the degree of freedom of setting whether or not the consumable item can be used by the image forming apparatus.

1 is a block diagram of a consumable management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the MFP shown in FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows an example of the available goods information shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of used product information illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the MFP shown in FIG. 1, which is different from the MFP shown in FIG. It is a block diagram of DCA shown in FIG. It is a block diagram of the management server shown in FIG. It is a flowchart of operation | movement of the management server shown in FIG. 7 in the case of registering container ID to usable product information. 3 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 2 when a toner container is attached. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 5 when a toner container is attached. FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the operation of the DCA shown in FIG. 6 when it is requested to determine whether the toner container can be used.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, the configuration of the consumable management system according to the present embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a consumable management system 10 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the consumable management system 10 includes MFPs (Multifunction Peripherals) 20, 30, 40 and 50 as image forming apparatuses, computers 60 and 70 such as PCs (Personal Computers), and MFPs 40 and 50. And a DCA (Data Collection Agent) 80 as a data collection device for collecting data.

  The MFP 20 is connected to a network 11 such as the Internet without going through a DCA such as the DCA 80. In addition to the MFP 20, the consumables management system 10 can include at least one MFP connected to the network 11 without using the DCA as in the MFP 20.

  The computer 60 is connected to the network 11 without going through a DCA such as the DCA 80. The MFP 30 is connected to the computer 60. In addition to the computer 60, the consumables management system 10 can be connected to the network 11 without using the DCA, and can include at least one computer connected to the MFP, similarly to the computer 60.

  The MFP 40 is connected to a network 12 such as a LAN (Local Area Network). In addition to the MFP 40, the consumables management system 10 can include at least one MFP connected to the network 12 as with the MFP 40.

  The computer 70 is connected to the network 12. The MFP 50 is connected to the computer 70. In addition to the computer 70, the consumables management system 10 can include at least one computer connected to the network 12 and the MFP, as with the computer 70.

  The DCA 80 is connected to the network 11 and the network 12. In addition to the DCA 80, the consumables management system 10 can include at least one DCA connected to the network 11 and a network other than the network 11, similarly to the DCA 80. Similarly to the DCA 80, the DCA other than the DCA 80 can be connected to an MFP or a computer to which the MFP is connected via a network other than the network 11.

  The user of the MFP provided in the consumable management system 10 is a person who purchased the MFP from a dealer, that is, a customer of the MFP dealer. The customer enters into a contract with the dealer for maintenance service of the MFP, that is, a maintenance contract with the dealer.

  As the maintenance contract, there is a period maintenance contract such as one year in which a specific period is set to receive a maintenance service for a specific MFP. However, the term maintenance contract may have a contract fee that is too high for a customer who has a small number of printed sheets by the MFP during the contract period. Therefore, the maintenance contract includes a container-type maintenance contract that receives a maintenance service for a specific MFP while the toner container sold by the dealer to the customer is usable.

  When a container-type maintenance contract is concluded between the customer and the dealer, the sales price of the toner container sold from the dealer to the customer is higher than the normal sales price by the contract fee of the container-type maintenance contract. Is set. Here, when a container-type maintenance contract is concluded between the customer and the dealer, the customer uses the toner container other than the container for the container-type maintenance contract in the MFP subject to the container-type maintenance contract. Violates container-type maintenance contracts. Accordingly, the consumable management system 10 has a mechanism that can limit the toner containers that can be used by the MFP of the customer.

  The consumable management system 10 includes a computer 90 such as a PC.

  The computer 90 is connected to the network 11. The computer 90 is used by an MFP dealer provided in the consumables management system 10. In addition to the computer 90, the consumable management system 10 can include at least one computer similar to the computer 90.

  The consumable item management system 10 includes a management server 100 that manages usable item information 27a (see FIG. 2) including a container ID of a toner container that can be used by an MFP. The container ID is identification information that can identify toner containers one by one. For example, the container ID is a serial number. The management server 100 is configured by a PC, for example.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the MFP 20.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, the MFP 20 includes an operation unit 21 that is an input device such as buttons for inputting various operations, and a display unit 22 that is a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) that displays various information. And a scanner 23 that reads an image from a document, a printer 24 that prints an image on a recording medium such as paper, an external facsimile apparatus not shown, and a communication line such as a public telephone line A fax communication unit 25 that is a fax device that performs fax communication, a communication unit 26 that is a communication device that communicates with an external device via the network 11 (see FIG. 1), a semiconductor memory that stores various types of information, Non-volatile storage devices such as HDD (Hard Disk Drive) In a storage unit 27, and a control unit 28 which controls the entire MFP 20.

  A toner container 29 as a consumable can be attached to and detached from the printer 24. The toner container 29 includes a storage unit 29a from which information can be read by non-contact or contact. The storage unit 29a stores a container ID 29b of the toner container 29. In addition to the toner container 29, at least one toner container similar to the toner container 29 may be detachable from the printer 24.

  The printer 24 includes a container ID reading device 24a that, when a toner container such as the toner container 29 is attached, reads information from the storage unit of the attached toner container by non-contact or contact.

  The storage unit 27 can store usable product information 27a.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the usable product information 27a.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the usable product information 27a includes a machine ID as identification information that can identify each MFP, and a customer as identification information that can identify each MFP user, that is, a customer. This is information that associates an ID with a container ID of a toner container that can be used by the MFP. For example, in FIG. 3, the toner container with the container ID “C101” is associated with the MFP with the machine ID “M001”. The toner container with the container ID “C102” is associated with the customer with the customer ID “U001”.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the storage unit 27 can store used product information 27 b including the container ID of the toner container used by the MFP 20.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the used product information 27b.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the used product information 27 b includes the container ID of the toner container used by the MFP 20. For example, the used product information 27b shown in FIG. 4 includes container IDs “C001” and “C002”. In addition, the used product information 27b is associated with unusable information indicating unusable to a toner container that has been consumed and becomes unusable. For example, in the used product information 27b illustrated in FIG. 4, the unusable information is associated with the container ID “C001”. The used product information 27b may include the number of printed sheets executed using the toner container in association with the container ID of the toner container. The information on the number of printed sheets is associated with the container ID by the used product information management unit 28b described later when the toner container is removed or whenever printing processing is executed. When the information on the number of printed sheets exceeds a specific number specified for the toner container, the used product information management unit 28b changes the information to the unusable information.

  2 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory) storing programs and various data, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) used as a work area of the CPU. And. The CPU executes a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 27.

  The control unit 28 executes a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 27 so as to acquire the product ID of the toner container mounted on the printer 24 from the toner container, the product information acquisition unit 28a, and the used product information 27b. Functions as used product information management means 28b for managing the toner and use availability determination means 28c for determining whether the MFP 20 can use the toner container.

  The MFP 30 and the computer 60 shown in FIG. 1 execute the same operation as that of the MFP 20 by cooperating with each other. That is, some of the functions similar to those of the MFP 20 are executed by the MFP 30 and the rest are executed by the computer 60. Therefore, the performance of the MFP 30 may be inferior to that of the MFP 20. For example, the storage unit of the MFP 30 may have a smaller storage capacity than the storage unit 27 of the MFP 20. Further, the communication unit of the MFP 30 only needs to be connected to the computer 60 via a cable such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable, for example. Unlike the communication unit 26 of the MFP 20, communication via the network cannot be performed. May be.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the MFP 40.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the MFP 40 includes an operation unit 41 that is an input device such as buttons for inputting various operations, a display unit 42 that is a display device such as an LCD that displays various information, and an image from a document. Fax communication is performed via a communication line such as a public telephone line such as a scanner 43 that is a reading device, a printer 44 that is a printing device that prints an image on a recording medium such as paper, and an external facsimile apparatus (not shown). A fax communication unit 45 that is a fax device, a communication unit 46 that is a communication device that communicates with an external device via the network 12 (see FIG. 1), and a nonvolatile storage such as a semiconductor memory that stores various types of information. A storage unit 47 that is a device and a control unit 48 that controls the entire MFP 40 are provided.

  A toner container 49 as a consumable item can be attached to and detached from the printer 44. The toner container 49 includes a storage unit 49a from which information can be read by non-contact or contact. The storage unit 49a stores a container ID 49b of the toner container 49. In addition to the toner container 49, the printer 44 can attach and detach at least one toner container similar to the toner container 49.

  The printer 44 includes a container ID reading device 44 a that reads information from a storage unit of the mounted toner container by non-contact or contact when a toner container such as the toner container 49 is mounted.

  The storage unit 47 can store used product information 47 a including the container ID of the toner container used by the MFP 40. Similar to the used product information 27b (see FIG. 4), the used product information 47a includes the container ID of the toner container used by the MFP 40, and is used for a toner container that has been consumed and becomes unusable. Unusable information is associated.

  The control unit 48 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM that stores programs and various data, and a RAM that is used as a work area of the CPU. The CPU executes a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 47.

  The control unit 48 executes a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 47, thereby obtaining product information acquisition means 48a for acquiring the container ID of the toner container attached to the printer 44 from the toner container, and used product information 47a. Functions as used product information management means 48b for managing the toner and use permission determination means 48c for determining whether or not the toner container can be used by the MFP 40.

  Unlike the MFP 20, the MFP 40 does not store usable product information. Therefore, the performance of the MFP 40 may be inferior to that of the MFP 20. For example, the storage unit 47 may have a smaller storage capacity than the storage unit 27 of the MFP 20.

  The MFP 50 and the computer 70 illustrated in FIG. 1 execute the same operation as the MFP 40 by cooperating with each other. That is, some of the functions similar to those of the MFP 40 are executed by the MFP 50 and the rest are executed by the computer 70. Therefore, the performance of the MFP 50 may be inferior to that of the MFP 40. For example, the storage unit of the MFP 50 may have a smaller storage capacity than the storage unit 47 of the MFP 40. Further, the communication unit of the MFP 50 only needs to be connected to the computer 70 via a cable such as a USB cable, and unlike the communication unit 46 of the MFP 40, it may not be possible to perform communication via the network.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the DCA 80.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the DCA 80 stores a communication unit 81 that is a communication device that communicates with an external device via the network 11 (see FIG. 1) or the network 12 (see FIG. 1), and stores various types of information. A storage unit 82 which is a non-volatile storage device such as a semiconductor memory or an HDD, and a control unit 83 which controls the entire DCA 80.

  The storage unit 82 can store usable product information 82a. Similar to the usable product information 27a (see FIG. 3), the usable product information 82a is information that associates a machine ID, a customer ID, and a container ID of a toner container that can be used by the MFP.

  The control unit 83 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM that stores programs and various data, and a RAM that is used as a work area of the CPU. The CPU executes a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 82.

  The control unit 83 functions as an availability determination unit 83a that determines whether the MFP can use the toner container by executing a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 82.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the management server 100.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the management server 100 includes an operation unit 101 that is an input device such as buttons for inputting various operations, a display unit 102 that is a display device such as an LCD that displays various information, a network, 11 (see FIG. 1), a communication unit 103 that is a communication device that communicates with an external device via a communication device 103, a semiconductor memory that stores various types of information, a storage unit 104 that is a nonvolatile storage device such as an HDD, and management And a control unit 105 that controls the entire server 100.

  The storage unit 104 can store usable product information 104a. Similar to the usable product information 27a (see FIG. 3), the usable product information 104a is information that associates a machine ID, a customer ID, and a container ID of a toner container that can be used by the MFP.

  The storage unit 104 can store consumption state information 104b indicating the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP.

  The control unit 105 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM that stores programs and various data, and a RAM that is used as a work area of the CPU. The CPU executes a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 104.

  The control unit 105 executes a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 104, thereby changing the usable product information 104a in accordance with an instruction, and a consumption state information management for managing the consumption state information 104b. It functions as the means 105b and the information notification means 105c for notifying the wear state information 104b in response to the request.

  Next, the operation of the consumable item management system 10 will be described.

  First, the operation of the consumable management system 10 when registering the container ID in the usable product information 104a of the management server 100 will be described.

  The dealer of the MFP registers the container ID of the toner container to be sent to the customer in the usable product information 104a in association with either the machine ID of the customer's MFP or the customer's customer ID. Here, the dealer of the MFP instructs the management server 100 to register the container ID in the usable product information 104 a via the operation unit (not shown) of the computer 90 or the operation unit 101 of the management server 100. When the registration of the container ID in the usable product information 104a is instructed, the information changing unit 105a executes the operation shown in FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart of the operation of the management server 100 when registering a container ID in the usable product information 104a.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the information changing unit 105a registers the container ID in the usable product information 104a in association with either the machine ID of the customer's MFP or the customer's customer ID according to the instruction ( S201). Here, container IDs may be registered one by one, or a plurality of files may be registered simultaneously from files such as CSV (Comma-Separated Values) files.

  Next, the information changing unit 105a determines whether there is an MFP that can communicate without DCA among the MFPs related to the container ID registered in S201 (hereinafter referred to as “related MFP”) (see FIG. S202). Here, the related MFP is an MFP registered in advance as the MFP of the customer with the customer ID associated with the container ID registered in S201, or the MFP with the machine ID associated with the container ID registered in S201. .

  If the information changing unit 105a determines in S202 that there is an MFP that can communicate without DCA among the related MFPs, the information changing unit 105a stores the container ID registered in S201 in the MFP and the machine ID or customer associated with the container ID. The ID is registered (S203). For example, when the MFP 20 is a related MFP, the control unit 28 registers the container ID transmitted from the management server 100 and the machine ID or customer ID associated with the container ID in the usable product information 27a. Similarly, when the MFP 30 is a related MFP, the one that stores usable product information among the MFP 30 and the computer 60 has the container ID transmitted from the management server 100 and the machine ID associated with the container ID. Alternatively, the customer ID is registered in the usable product information.

  The information changing unit 105a determines in S202 that there is no MFP that can communicate without DCA among the related MFPs, or when the process of S203 is completed, there is an MFP that can communicate with DCA among the related MFPs. It is determined whether or not to perform (S204).

  If the information changing unit 105a determines in S204 that there is an MFP that can communicate via DCA among the related MFPs, the information changing unit 105a stores the container ID registered in S201 in this DCA and the machine ID or customer ID associated with this container ID. Are registered (S205). For example, when at least one of the MFPs 40 and 50 is a related MFP, the control unit 83 uses the container ID transmitted from the management server 100 and the machine ID or the customer ID associated with the container ID. Register in 82a.

  The information changing unit 105a determines in S204 that there is no MFP that can communicate via DCA among the related MFPs, or ends the operation shown in FIG.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 20 when the toner container is attached will be described.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 20 when the toner container is attached.

  As shown in FIG. 9, when the toner container is attached, the product information acquisition unit 28a acquires the container ID of the attached toner container via the container ID reading device 24a (S231).

  Next, the availability determination unit 28c determines whether or not the container ID acquired in S231, that is, the acquired container ID is included in the used product information 27b (S232).

  When the availability determination unit 28c determines in S232 that the acquired container ID is included in the used product information 27b, it determines whether or not the unavailable container information is associated with the acquired container ID in the used product information 27b (S233). ).

  If the availability determination unit 28c determines in S232 that the acquired container ID is not included in the used product information 27b, it determines whether the acquired container ID is included in the available product information 27a (S234).

  When it is determined in S234 that the acquired container ID is included in the usable product information 27a, the used product information management unit 28b registers the acquired container ID in the used product information 27b (S235).

  The availability determining unit 28c determines in S233 that the unavailable container information 27b is not associated with the acquired container ID in the used product information 27b, or permits the use of the attached toner container when the processing of S235 is completed. (S236), the operation shown in FIG. Therefore, the control unit 28 performs a toner replenishment operation from the attached toner container.

  The availability determination unit 28c determines in S233 that the unavailable container information is associated with the acquired container ID in the used product information 27b, or determines in S234 that the acquired container ID is not included in the available product information 27a. Then, the rejection of the use of the attached toner container is displayed on the display unit 22 (S237), and the operation shown in FIG.

  The operation of the MFP 20 when the toner container is mounted has been described above, but the same applies to the operation of the MFP 30 and the computer 60 when the toner container is mounted on the MFP 30.

  Next, operations of the MFP 40 and the DCA 80 when a toner container is attached to the MFP 40 will be described.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 40 when the toner container is mounted.

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the toner container is mounted, the product information acquiring unit 48a acquires the container ID of the mounted toner container via the container ID reading device 44a (S261).

  Next, the availability determination unit 48c determines whether or not the container ID acquired in S261, that is, the acquired container ID is included in the used product information 47a (S262).

  When the availability determination unit 48c determines in S262 that the acquired container ID is included in the used product information 47a, the availability determination unit 48c determines whether the acquired container ID is associated with unavailable information in the used product information 47a (S263). ).

  When the availability determination unit 48c determines in S262 that the acquired container ID is not included in the used product information 47a, the availability determination unit 48c requests the DCA 80 to determine whether the installed toner container can be used (S264). Here, the availability determination unit 48 c transmits the acquisition container ID, the machine ID of the MFP 40, and the customer ID of the customer of the MFP 40 to the DCA 80.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart of the operation of the DCA 80 when it is requested to determine whether the toner container can be used.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the availability determining unit 83a determines whether the combination of the acquisition container ID and the machine ID transmitted in S264 or the combination of the acquisition container ID and the customer ID is included in the availability information 82a. Is determined (S301).

  When the availability determination unit 83a determines in S301 that the usable product information 82a includes a combination of the acquisition container ID and the machine ID or a combination of the acquisition container ID and the customer ID, the permission of use of the toner container is given to the MFP 40. This is notified (S302), and the operation shown in FIG.

  When the availability determination unit 83a determines in S301 that neither the combination of the acquisition container ID and the machine ID nor the combination of the acquisition container ID and the customer ID is included in the available product information 82a, the usage determination of the toner container is performed. Rejection is notified to the MFP 40 (S303), and the operation shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the availability determination unit 48c determines whether the determination result requested in S264 has been received from the DCA 80 until it is determined that the determination result requested in S264 has been received from the DCA 80 (S265). .

  When determining in S265 that the determination result requested in S264 has arrived from the DCA 80, the availability determination unit 48c determines whether or not the determination result requested in S264 is permission to use (S266).

  When it is determined in S266 that the result of the determination requested in S264 is permission for use, the used product information management unit 48b registers the acquired container ID in the used product information 47a (S267).

  The availability determining unit 48c determines in S263 that the unavailable container information 47a is not associated with the unavailable container information in the used product information 47a, or permits the use of the attached toner container when the processing of S267 is completed. (S268), the operation shown in FIG. Therefore, the control unit 48 performs a toner replenishment operation from the attached toner container.

  The availability determining unit 48c determines in S263 that the unavailable container information 47a is associated with the unavailable information in the used product information 47a, or determines in S266 that the result of the determination requested in S264 is not permission for use. Then, the rejection of the use of the attached toner container is displayed on the display unit 42 (S269), and the operation shown in FIG.

  The operation of the MFP 40 and the DCA 80 when the toner container is attached to the MFP 40 has been described above, but the same applies to the operation of the MFP 50 and the computer 70 and the DCA 80 when the toner container is attached to the MFP 50. is there.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 20 when the toner container becomes unavailable will be described.

  When the toner container is consumed and becomes unusable, the used product information management unit 28b includes the unusable information in the used product information 27b in association with the container ID of the toner container.

  Although the operation of the MFP 20 when the toner container becomes unavailable has been described above, the operation of the MFP 30 and the computer 60 when the toner container becomes unavailable in the MFP 30 and the toner container become unavailable The same applies to the operations of the MFP 40 and the operations of the MFP 50 and the computer 70 when the toner container becomes unavailable in the MFP 50.

  Next, the operation of the management server 100 when the wear state information 104b is updated will be described.

  The consumption state information management unit 105b periodically acquires the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP from the MFP, computer, or DCA, and updates the consumption state information 104b.

  For example, the consumption state information management unit 105b periodically acquires the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP 20 from the MFP 20 and updates the consumption state information 104b.

  The consumption state information management unit 105b periodically acquires the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP 30 from the computer 60, and updates the consumption state information 104b. Here, the computer 60 can acquire the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP 30 from the MFP 30.

  Further, the consumption state information management unit 105b periodically acquires the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP 40 or 50 from the DCA 80, and updates the consumption state information 104b. Here, the DCA 80 can acquire the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP 40 from the MFP 40. Further, the DCA 80 can acquire from the computer 70 the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP 50. Here, the computer 70 can acquire the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP 50 from the MFP 50.

  The consumption state information management unit 105b can acquire the number of printed sheets by the MFP using the toner container from the MFP, the computer, or the DCA, similarly to the consumption state of the toner container used by the MFP.

  Next, the operation of the management server 100 when notifying the wear state information 104b will be described.

  The MFP dealer can request the management server 100 to notify the wear state information 104b via the operation unit (not shown) of the computer 90 or the operation unit 101 of the management server 100.

  When the notification of the consumption state information 104b is requested, the information notification unit 105c displays the consumption state information 104b and the number of prints made by the MFP using the toner container with a display unit (not shown) of the computer 90 or a management server. 100 display units 102 are notified.

  As described above, the consumable management system 10 changes the setting of whether or not the toner container can be used by the MFP by changing the usable product information 104a managed by the management server 100 (S201). Therefore, the degree of freedom in setting whether or not the toner container can be used by the MFP can be improved.

  When a toner container that has been used by the MFP in the past is attached to the MFP (YES in S232 or YES in S262), the consumable management system 10 uses the MFP even if the usable product information is not used. Since use of consumables is permitted (S236 or S268), it is possible to facilitate the determination of whether or not the consumables can be used by the MFP.

  Note that the MFP may not be able to execute printing when toner is offset inside the toner container. In such a case, the user of the MFP can improve the deviation of the toner inside the toner container by removing the toner container from the MFP and then shaking the toner container. The user of the MFP can execute printing by the MFP by attaching the toner container in which the deviation of the toner inside is improved to the MFP again.

  When a toner container that has been used by the MFP and has become unusable in the past is attached to the MFP (YES in S233 or YES in S263), the consumable management system 10 uses the container ID of the toner container as the usable product information. Even if it is included, since the use of the toner container by the MFP is rejected (S237 or S269), whether or not the toner container can be used by the MFP can be determined more appropriately.

  Since the consumable item management system 10 can notify the toner container manager, that is, the dealer, of the toner container consumption state, the dealer can easily determine whether or not the toner container consumption state is appropriate. . For example, the dealer can consider that there is a possibility that the toner is illegally replenished to the toner container by the customer when the consumption of the toner container is abnormally slow. Further, the dealer can grasp the toner containers that have not been used yet among the toner containers sent to the customer. In addition, since the dealer can grasp the toner container that is assumed to be still usable, if the customer contacts the telephone that the toner is no longer discharged, the inside of the toner container Therefore, it is possible that the toner container is shaken by judging that there is a possibility that the toner is offset in the toner.

  The consumable item management system 10 can notify the toner container manager, that is, the dealer, of the number of prints made by the MFP in addition to the toner container depletion state. The determination can be made in consideration of the number of printed sheets by the MFP. Therefore, the consumable item management system 10 can cause the dealer to more appropriately determine whether or not the toner container is properly consumed. For example, the dealer can consider that there is a possibility that the toner is illegally replenished to the toner container by the customer when the consumption of the toner container is abnormally slow considering the number of printed sheets.

  Since the consumable item management system 10 can manage the toner containers in units of one, it is possible to prevent the toner containers from being illegally transferred between customers. Therefore, the consumables management system 10 can improve the degree of freedom of the toner container sales method, such as changing the price of the toner container according to the contents of the maintenance contract for each customer. Furthermore, it is possible to conclude a periodical maintenance contract for MFPs in one department and a container-type maintenance contract for MFPs in other departments for multiple MFPs of the same customer. .

  Since the consumables management system 10 can collectively manage toner containers by the management server 100, the consumables management system 10 can cooperate with external systems such as CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning).

  The management server 100 is a physical server in the present embodiment, but may be a virtual server.

  The usable product information 27a includes a container ID in association with the machine ID and the customer ID in the present embodiment. However, when the management server 100 notifies the MFP 20 of only one of the container ID associated with the machine ID of the MFP 20 and the container ID associated with the customer ID of the customer who is the user of the MFP 20 in S201, The acceptable product information 27a may not include the machine ID and the customer ID.

  In the present embodiment, the usable product information 82a includes a container ID in association with the machine ID and the customer ID. However, if the management server 100 does not notify the DCA 80 of the container ID associated with the machine ID in S201 and all the users of the MFP that can communicate with the DCA 80 via the network 12 are the same customer, the usable product The information 82a may not include the machine ID and the customer ID.

  The availability determination unit exists in the MFP 20, the MFP 40, and the DCA 80 in the present embodiment, but may exist in the management server 100, for example. The used product information management means exists in the MFP 20 and the MFP 40 in this embodiment, but may exist in the DCA 80 and the management server 100, for example. The consumption state information management means exists in the management server 100 in the present embodiment, but may exist in the MFP 20, MFP 40, DCA 80, for example.

  In the configuration in which the used product information 27b includes the number of printed sheets executed using the toner container in association with the container ID of the toner container, the control unit 28 performs the processing in FIG. You may perform every time or every fixed number of printed sheets. In this case, in S237 shown in FIG. 9, the availability determination unit 28c may employ a display prompting replacement of the toner container as a display for refusing the use of the attached toner container. In the configuration in which the used product information 47a includes the number of printed sheets executed using the toner container in association with the container ID of the toner container, the control unit 48 performs the process of FIG. 10 after the toner container is mounted. May be executed every certain time or every certain number of printed sheets. In this case, in S269 shown in FIG. 10, the availability determination unit 48c may employ a display prompting replacement of the toner container as a display for refusing the use of the attached toner container.

  The consumable of the present invention is a toner container in the present embodiment, but may be a consumable other than the toner container.

  The image forming apparatus of the present invention is an MFP in the present embodiment, but may be an image forming apparatus other than the MFP, such as a dedicated printer.

10 Consumable Management System 20 MFP (Image Forming Apparatus)
27a Usable product information 27b Used product information 28a Product information acquisition means 28b Used product information management means 28c Usability decision means 29 Toner container 29b Container ID
30 MFP (image forming apparatus)
40 MFP (image forming apparatus)
47a Used product information 48a Product information acquisition means 48b Used product information management means 48c Use availability determination means 49 Toner container 49b Container ID
50 MFP (image forming device)
82a Usable product information 83a Usability decision unit 100 Management server 104a Usable product information 104b Consumable state information 105a Information changing unit 105b Consumed state information managing unit 105c Information notifying unit

Claims (6)

An image forming apparatus using consumables;
Managing usable article information including identification information of the consumables that can be used by the image forming apparatus in association with any one of identification information of a user of the image forming apparatus and identification information of the image forming apparatus. A management server,
Using availability determining means for determining whether the consumables can be used by the image forming apparatus,
The image forming apparatus includes product information acquisition means for acquiring identification information of the mounted consumable from the consumable.
The management server includes information changing means for changing the usable product information according to an instruction,
The availability determination unit associates the identification information acquired by the product information acquisition unit with one of the identification information of the user of the target image forming apparatus and the identification information of the target image forming apparatus. And the consumable item management system permits the use of the consumable item by the target image forming apparatus when it is included in the usable item information. Comprising used product information management means for managing used product information including identification information of the consumables used by the image forming apparatus;
The use determination unit permits the use of the consumable by the image forming apparatus when the identification information acquired by the product information acquisition unit is included in the used product information. The consumables management system according to 1. The used product information management means associates unusable information indicating unusable information with the identification information of the consumable when the consumable used by the image forming apparatus becomes unusable. Include in the information
The usability determining means is associated with the unavailable information regardless of whether the identification information obtained by the product information obtaining means is included in the available product information or the used product information. The consumable item management system according to claim 2, wherein, when the consumable item is included in the used item information, use of the consumable item by the image forming apparatus is rejected. A consumable state information management unit for managing consumable state information indicating a consumable state of the consumable used by the image forming apparatus;
The consumable item management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the management server includes an information notification unit that notifies the consumption state information in response to a request. The consumable is a toner container;
5. The consumable item management system according to claim 4, wherein the information notifying unit notifies the destination of the consumption state information of the number of sheets printed by the image forming apparatus using the consumable item. An image forming apparatus that uses consumables,
Availability determination means for determining availability of the consumable by the image forming apparatus;
Product information acquisition means for acquiring identification information of the mounted consumables from the consumables,
The availability determination unit includes identification information of the consumables that can be used by the image forming apparatus in association with any one of identification information of a user of the image forming apparatus and identification information of the image forming apparatus. In the usable product information managed by the management server, the identification information acquired by the product information acquisition unit is one of the identification information of the user of the image forming apparatus and the identification information of the image forming apparatus. An image forming apparatus, wherein the image forming apparatus permits use of the consumable by the image forming apparatus when included in association with each other.

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