JP2020190879A - Image formation system and image formation method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an image formation system and an image formation method capable of preferentially executing a job in accordance with schedule information of a user.SOLUTION: A receiving process unit 151 receives a job. A preference order setting process unit 153 sets a first preference order for a first job on the basis of schedule information D2 of a first user corresponding to the first job received by the receiving process unit 151. An output process unit 155 causes a job executing unit to execute the first job at the order in accordance with the first preference order set by the preference order setting process unit 153.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to an image forming system and an image forming method.

An image forming apparatus capable of accepting a plurality of print jobs and printing the plurality of print jobs in an order according to a priority assigned to each print job is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005-125661

By the way, in the conventional image forming apparatus, if the user does not know the priority printing function or forgets to set the priority printing, the priority printing is not performed. Further, in the conventional image forming apparatus, when priority printing is already set for a plurality of print jobs, even if the user needs urgency on the schedule, the user sets the priority print later. Cannot execute the print job with the highest priority.

An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming system and an image forming method capable of preferentially executing a job according to a user's schedule information.

The image forming system according to one aspect of the present invention includes a reception processing unit, a priority setting processing unit, and an execution processing unit. The reception processing unit receives a job. The priority setting processing unit sets the first priority of the first job based on the schedule information of the first user corresponding to the first job accepted by the reception processing unit. The execution processing unit causes the job execution unit to execute the first job in an order according to the first priority set by the priority setting processing unit.

The image forming method according to another aspect of the present invention includes a reception step, a priority setting step, and an execution step. In the reception step, a job is received. In the priority setting step, the first priority of the first job is set based on the schedule information of the first user corresponding to the first job accepted by the reception step. In the execution step, the job execution unit is made to execute the first job in the order corresponding to the first priority set by the priority setting step.

According to the present invention, there is provided an image forming system and an image forming method capable of preferentially executing a job according to a user's schedule information.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of user information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of schedule information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of conference information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of device information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of job information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of job information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of job information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of job information used in the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure of image forming processing executed by the image forming system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings for the purpose of understanding the present invention. The following embodiments are examples that embody the present invention, and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

[Configuration of image forming system 100]
As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming system 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a server device 1, one or more image forming devices 2, and one or more user terminals (not shown). .. FIG. 1 illustrates four image forming devices 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D. The image forming system 100 is an example of the image forming system of the present invention, and the image forming device 2 is an example of the image forming device of the present invention. The server device 1, each image forming device 2, and each user terminal can communicate with each other via a network N1 such as a telephone line, the Internet, or a LAN.

In the image forming system 100, for example, when a user operates a user terminal to input a desired print job (print instruction), the server device 1 accepts the print job and among a plurality of image forming devices 2. Outputs the print job to a predetermined image forming apparatus 2, and the image forming apparatus 2 executes the print job.

By the way, in the conventional image forming apparatus, if the user does not know the priority printing function or forgets to set the priority printing, the priority printing is not performed. Further, in the conventional image forming apparatus, when priority printing is already set for a plurality of print jobs, even if the user needs urgency on the schedule, the user sets the priority print later. Cannot execute the print job with the highest priority. On the other hand, in the image forming system 100 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to preferentially execute a job according to a user's schedule information.

[Server device 1]
As shown in FIG. 1, the server device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes an operation display unit 11, a communication I / F 12, a storage unit 13, a control unit 15, and the like. The server device 1 manages one or more image forming devices 2. For example, the server device 1 manages device information, job information, and the like of the image forming devices 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D, respectively. The server device 1 is an information processing device such as a personal computer. The server device 1 is not limited to one computer, and may be a computer system in which a plurality of computers operate in cooperation with each other. Further, various processes executed by the server device 1 may be distributed and executed by one or a plurality of processors. Further, the server device 1 may be an image forming device 2.

The operation display unit 11 includes a display unit such as a liquid crystal display that displays information, and an operation unit such as a touch panel and operation buttons that accept user operations.

The communication I / F 12 is a communication interface capable of executing wired or wireless data communication with an external device. For example, the communication I / F 12 performs data communication with the image forming apparatus 2 and the user terminal via the network N1.

The storage unit 13 is a non-volatile storage unit such as a flash memory, a hard disk, or an EEPROM (registered trademark). Various control programs executed by the control unit 15, various data, and the like are stored in the storage unit 13. The control program executed by the control unit 15 includes a job management processing program for causing the control unit 15 to execute the job management process S100 (see FIG. 10) described later.

For example, user information D1, schedule information D2, conference information D3, device information D4, job information D5, and the like are stored in the storage unit 13. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of user information D1, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of schedule information D2, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of conference information D3, and FIG. 5 is an example of device information D4. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of job information D5.

As shown in FIG. 2, the user information D1 includes information indicating a user ID for identifying the user, the name of the user, and the job title of the user for each user who uses the image forming apparatus 2. It has been. The positions include a plurality of positions having different ranks such as "senior manager", "lower manager", and "general employee". Each piece of user information D1 is registered in advance by each user or administrator. Further, each information of the user information D1 is updated such as being changed or deleted as necessary.

As shown in FIG. 3, the schedule information D2 includes information about the schedule (event) of each user who uses the image forming apparatus 2. An "event" is information indicating the type of schedule (event) such as a meeting, going out, or a visitor. The "start date and time" is information indicating the start date and time of the event, and the "end date and time" is information indicating the end date and time of the event. The schedule information D2 shown in FIG. 3 indicates the schedule information regarding the user A (user ID "U001"). For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the schedule information of user A includes the schedule of "Meeting 1" of "April 1, 2019 14:00 to 15:00" and "April 1, 2019 16: The schedule of "going out" from "00 to 17:00" and the schedule of "visitors" from "11:00 to 12:00 on April 5, 2019" are registered. Each information of the schedule information D2 is registered in advance by each user or administrator. For example, when a new event is determined, the user A inputs information about the event on the user terminal. When the control unit 15 acquires the information from the user terminal, the control unit 15 registers the information in the schedule information D2. When the event ends, the control unit 15 may delete the information about the event from the schedule information D2.

As shown in FIG. 4, the conference information D3 includes information about the conference for each conference. The "meeting ID" is identification information for identifying the meeting. The "meeting name" is the name of the meeting, and is the same as the name of the meeting registered in the schedule information D2, for example. The "start date and time" is information indicating the start date and time of the conference, and the "end date and time" is information indicating the end date and time of the conference. The "participant" is the name of a participant (user) who participates in the conference. Each information of the conference information D3 is registered in advance by, for example, the person in charge of the conference. For example, when it is decided to hold a meeting, the person in charge inputs each information about the meeting on his / her user terminal and notifies each participant. When the control unit 15 acquires each information related to the conference, the control unit 15 registers the information in the conference information D3. When each participant obtains the conference holding notification, each participant performs an input operation for registering the conference information in his / her own schedule information D2. When the conference ends, the control unit 15 may delete information about the conference from the conference information D3.

As shown in FIG. 5, the device information D4 includes a device ID (IP address, MAC address, etc.) for identifying the image forming device 2 and a name of the image forming device 2 for each image forming device 2. , Information indicating the current state of the image forming apparatus 2 is included. In FIG. 5, the device ID "P001" corresponds to the image forming device 2A, the device ID "P002" corresponds to the image forming device 2B, the device ID "P003" corresponds to the image forming device 2C, and the device ID "P002". "P004" corresponds to the image forming apparatus 2D. In the "state", the current state (status) of the image forming apparatus 2 such as "printable" and "sleep" is registered. Further, the power-on state, the power-off state, the power state such as online and offline, the communication state, and the like may be registered in the "state". The control unit 15 monitors each image forming device 2 by periodically communicating with each image forming device 2, determines the state of each image forming device 2, and registers the state in the device information D4.

The job information D5 includes information about an incomplete job (that is, a running job and a waiting job). As shown in FIG. 6, the job information D5 includes "reception date and time", "job name", "user ID", "priority", "priority", "output destination device ID", for each job. Contains information about the "situation". The "reception date and time" is information indicating the date and time (date and time) when the job was received. Specifically, it is information on the date and time when the server device 1 receives a job from the user terminal. The "job name" is the name of the job. For example, the control unit 15 registers a name including identification information (number) according to the order in which jobs are received in the "job name". The "user ID" is the user ID of the user corresponding to the job. The user corresponding to the job is a user who requests the execution of the job. For example, when the job is a print job received from the print host device (user terminal) through the communication I / F 14, the control unit 15 uses the user ID received from the print host device together with the print data as the job. It is acquired as the user ID of the user corresponding to. When the job is a job received through the operation display unit 21 of the image forming apparatus 2, the control unit 15 sets the user ID of the user logged in to the image forming apparatus 2 to the user corresponding to the job. Obtained as the user ID of.

The "priority" is information indicating the priority of the job, and either "high" indicating that the priority is high or "low" indicating that the priority is low is registered. As will be described later, the control unit 15 determines the priority of the job based on the schedule information D2, the meeting information D3, the contents of the job, and the like, and registers the job in the “priority”. The "priority" is information indicating the priority of the target job in a plurality of jobs. In the "priority", the order is registered for each image forming apparatus 2 in descending order of priority from the highest order (highest priority). Note that the "priority" may not be set for a job whose "priority" is set to "low". In the example shown in FIG. 6, in the image forming apparatus 2A of the terminal ID "P001", "job 1" is set to the priority "first place", "job 6" is set to the priority "second place", and so on. No priority is set for "Job 4". Further, in the image forming apparatus 2B of the terminal ID "P002", "job 3" is set to the priority "first place", and "job 2" is not set to the priority. As will be described later, the control unit 15 sets the priority of each job based on the schedule information D2 corresponding to the target job, the schedule information D2 corresponding to the other job, and the like, and registers the priority in the “priority”.

The “output destination device ID” is identification information of the image forming device 2 that executes the job, and is the same as the device ID registered in the device information D4, for example. As will be described later, the control unit 15 determines a predetermined image forming device 2 (output destination device) from the plurality of image forming devices 2, and registers the determined device ID of the image forming device 2 as the output destination device ID. To do. The control unit 15 outputs a job to the determined image forming apparatus 2. The “situation” is information indicating the current state of the job in the image forming apparatus 2. The "status" includes "execution" indicating that the image forming apparatus 2 is executing the job, or "waiting" indicating that the job is waiting (waiting in order) in the image forming apparatus 2. be registered. In the example shown in FIG. 6, in the image forming apparatus 2 with the terminal ID "P001", "job 1" is "executing", and "job 6" and "job 4" are "waiting". The job information D5 may include the type of the job (for example, a print job, a scan job, a fax job, a copy job, etc.).

The control unit 15 includes control devices such as a CPU, ROM, and RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various arithmetic processes. The ROM is a non-volatile storage unit in which information such as a control program for causing the CPU to execute various processes is stored in advance. The RAM is a volatile or non-volatile storage unit used as a temporary storage memory (working area) for various processes executed by the CPU.

Specifically, the control unit 15 includes a reception processing unit 151, a determination processing unit 152, a priority setting processing unit 153, a determination processing unit 154, an output processing unit 155, a notification processing unit 156, and the like. The control unit 15 functions as each of these processing units by executing various processing according to the control program. Further, the control unit 15 may include an electronic circuit that realizes a part or a plurality of processing functions of each of these processing units.

The reception processing unit 151 can accept jobs. Specifically, the reception processing unit 151 accepts jobs such as a print job, a scan job, a fax job, and a copy job through the communication I / F14. When the reception processing unit 151 receives the job, the reception processing unit 151 registers the reception date and time, the job name, and the user ID related to the job in the job information D5 (see FIG. 6). The reception processing unit 151 is an example of the reception processing unit of the present invention.

For the job received by the reception processing unit 151, the determination processing unit 152 determines the start date and time of the event included in the schedule information D2, the attributes of the participants of the event (for example, job title), or the content of the document corresponding to the job. The priority is determined based on. Specifically, in the determination processing unit 152, when the current date and time is within a predetermined time until the start date and time of the event, and when the current date and time is past the start date and time of the event, an important person is assigned to the participants of the event. When it is included, or when the document corresponding to the job contains a specific word, it is determined that the priority of the job is higher than the threshold value. The determination processing unit 152 is an example of the determination processing unit of the present invention.

For example, when the user A who participates in the conference 1 gives a print instruction (print job) for the materials used in the conference 1, the current date and time is a predetermined time until the start date and time of the conference 1 "14:00 on April 1, 2019". If it is within (for example, 10 minutes), the determination processing unit 152 determines that the priority of the job is higher than the threshold value. Further, in the above case, when the current date and time is past the start date and time of the conference 1 "14:00 on April 1, 2019", the determination processing unit 152 determines that the priority of the job is higher than the threshold value.

Further, for example, when the user A who is participating in the conference 1 gives a print instruction (print job) of the material used for the conference 1 during the conference, the determination processing unit 152 determines that the priority of the job is higher than the threshold value. To do. The determination processing unit 152 may determine whether or not the user A is participating in the meeting based on the schedule information D2 or the position information of the user A.

Further, for example, when the participants of the conference 1 include participants whose job titles are higher than a predetermined position (for example, lower managers) (senior managers), the determination processing unit 152 sets the priority of the job as a threshold value. Determined to be higher. The title is an example of the attributes of the present invention. The attributes of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned positions. For example, the determination processing unit 152 may determine the priority of the job based on attributes such as age, gender, years of service, working hours, department to which the user is in charge, and job type of the user who instructs the job. Further, the determination processing unit 152 may determine that a user who frequently uses priority printing is an important person, and determine that the priority of the job corresponding to the user is higher than the threshold value.

Further, for example, when the user A who participates in the conference 1 gives a print instruction (print job) of the material (document) used for the conference 1, and the material includes a specific word such as "Confidential", the determination process is performed. The unit 152 determines that the priority of the job is higher than the threshold value.

When the determination processing unit 152 determines that the priority of the job is high, the control unit 15 holds the job as a priority job. On the other hand, when the determination processing unit 152 determines that the priority of the job is low, the control unit 15 holds the job as a non-priority job. Further, when the determination processing unit 152 determines the priority of the job, the determination result (“high” or “low”) is registered in the job information D5 (see FIG. 6).

The priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the job based on the schedule information of the user corresponding to the job accepted by the reception processing unit 151. The priority setting processing unit 153 is an example of the priority setting processing unit of the present invention. Specifically, the priority setting processing unit 153 receives the schedule information D2 of the user corresponding to the target job (corresponding to the first job of the present invention) received by the reception processing unit 151, and the image forming apparatus. Based on the priority of the job being executed or waiting in 2 (corresponding to the second job of the present invention) (corresponding to the second priority of the present invention), the priority of the target job (corresponding to the first of the present invention). (Corresponding to priority) is set.

The priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job based on the start date and time of the event included in the schedule information D2. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, in a state where each information is registered in the job information D5, the user A (an example of the first user of the present invention) has a document immediately before the start date and time of the conference 1 (within the predetermined time). When the print instruction is given, the target job is determined to be a priority job by the determination processing unit 152. In this case, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job based on the priority of other jobs registered in the job information D5. For example, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job higher than the priority of all the waiting jobs in the job information D5. When a job being executed is registered in the job information D5, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job to the order next to the priority (first place) of the job being executed (first place). Set to 2nd place). FIG. 7 shows a state in which the job 7 which is the target job is registered in the job information D5. As shown in FIG. 7, the priority setting processing unit 153 changes the priority of the target job (job 7) to the next order (second place) of the priority (first place) of the running job 1. Set. Further, the priority setting processing unit 153 lowers the priority (second place) (see FIG. 6) of the job 6 set before the job 7 is accepted to the third place (see FIG. 7). When interrupt printing is possible for the running job of the job information D5, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job higher than the priority of the running job (first). It may be set to 1st place).

Further, for example, the start date and time of the event corresponding to the target job (for example, the meeting 1) (the first event of the present invention) is the event corresponding to the other job registered in the job information D5 (for example, the meeting 2) (the present). If it is earlier than the start date and time of the second event of the invention), the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job higher than the priority of other jobs registered in the job information D5. In this way, the priority setting processing unit 153 has a second event corresponding to the case where the start date and time of the first event corresponding to the target job is within a predetermined time from the current date and time or the job registered in the job information D5. When it is earlier than the start date and time of the event, the priority of the target job is set higher than the priority of the job registered in the job information D5.

Further, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets a priority for a job (priority job) whose priority is determined to be higher than the threshold value by the determination processing unit 152. That is, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the priority job based on the schedule information D2. On the other hand, the priority setting processing unit 153 does not set the priority for the job (non-priority job) whose priority is determined by the determination processing unit 152 to be lower than the threshold value. As a result, the non-priority job is excluded from the priority print setting. The priority setting processing unit 153 may set the priority of the non-priority job to the lowest level.

By the way, when the job information D5 includes a plurality of output destination device IDs, the priority setting processing unit 153 may set the priority order of the target job for each image forming device 2 corresponding to the output destination device ID. For example, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job corresponding to the image forming device 2A of the output destination device ID “P001” to “second place” as described above. On the other hand, since the job 2 and the job 3 are both waiting in the image forming apparatus 2B of the output destination device ID "P002", the priority setting processing unit 153 determines the priority of the target job corresponding to the image forming apparatus 2B. Set to "1st place". Further, since the job 5 is being executed in the image forming device 2C of the output destination device ID "P003", the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority of the target job corresponding to the image forming device 2C to "second place". Set to. In this way, the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority for each received target job for each image forming apparatus 2.

The determination processing unit 154 determines the image forming device 2 to which the target job is output, that is, the image forming device 2 for executing the target job, from among the plurality of image forming devices 2. The determination processing unit 154 is an example of the determination processing unit of the present invention. Specifically, the determination processing unit 154 determines the number of running and waiting jobs corresponding to each of the plurality of image forming devices 2, the data amount (capacity) of the target job, and the priority order of the target job. The image forming apparatus 2 of the output destination is determined based on at least one of the priorities of the other jobs registered in the job information D5. In the job information D5 shown in FIG. 7, the device ID “P001” (image forming device 2A) is registered as the image forming device 2 of the output destination of the target job (job 7). For example, the determination processing unit 154 determines the image forming device 2 capable of executing the target job earliest from among the plurality of image forming devices 2 as the output destination image forming device 2 based on the priority of the target job. To do.

Further, for example, when the job information D5 includes a plurality of output destination device IDs, that is, when the priority of the target job is set corresponding to each of the plurality of image forming devices 2, the determination processing unit 154 Determines the image forming apparatus 2 (image forming apparatus 2C having the terminal ID “P003” in FIG. 6) that is executing the low priority job (job 5 in FIG. 6) as the output destination image forming apparatus 2. Good. When there are a plurality of image forming devices 2 executing jobs with low priority (non-priority jobs), the determination processing unit 154 outputs the image forming device 2 capable of executing the target job earliest. It may be determined as the image forming apparatus 2 of.

The determination processing unit 154 may determine the image forming apparatus 2 to execute the target job based on the user's position information, the position information of the conference room, and the like. Further, when the determination processing unit 154 distributes the target jobs to a plurality of image forming devices 2 and executes the target job, the determination processing unit 154 may determine the plurality of image forming devices 2 as the output destination image forming devices 2.

The output processing unit 155 outputs the target job to the image forming apparatus 2 of the output destination determined by the determination processing unit 154, and gives an execution instruction (for example, a print instruction) of the job. That is, the output processing unit 155 targets the job execution unit (for example, the image reading unit 23 of the image forming apparatus 2, the image forming unit 24, etc.) in the order according to the priority set by the priority setting processing unit 153. Run the job. The output processing unit 155 is an example of the execution processing unit of the present invention, and is also an example of the output processing unit of the present invention. For example, the output processing unit 155 outputs the information of the job 7 (print data, user ID), the priority information of each job, and the like to the image forming apparatus 2A, and gives an execution instruction (print instruction).

The notification processing unit 156 notifies the user corresponding to the target job of the identification information of the image forming apparatus 2 determined by the determination processing unit 154. The notification processing unit 156 is an example of the notification processing unit of the present invention. For example, the notification processing unit 156 notifies the user terminal that has transmitted the print instruction of the target job of information such as the device ID and the device name of the image forming device 2 determined by the decision processing unit 154. The user can grasp the image forming apparatus 2 on which the target job is executed by acquiring the identification information.

Here, when the target job is output to the image forming apparatus 2 determined by the determination processing unit 154, the target job is included in the schedule information D2 (see FIG. 3) in the image forming apparatus 2 (see FIG. 3). For example, it may not be completed by the start date and time of the meeting. For example, when the amount of data of the target job is large, the time until the start date and time is short, or when a communication failure occurs, the target job is not completed by the start date and time in the image forming apparatus 2. There is. Therefore, the control unit 15 determines whether or not the target job is completed by the specific date and time included in the schedule information D2 in the image forming apparatus 2 determined by the determination processing unit 154, and if it is determined that the target job is not completed. , The notification processing unit 156 may further notify the user corresponding to the target job of the predetermined first message. The first message is, for example, a message indicating that the target job is not completed by the specific date and time.

Further, when the priority setting processing unit 153 sets the priority corresponding to the target job, the notification processing unit 156 changes the priority of other jobs registered in the job information D5. A predetermined second message may be notified to a user corresponding to the other job (an example of the second user of the present invention). The second message is, for example, a message indicating that the priority of the other job has been lowered. For example, the notification processing unit 156 has lowered the priority of job 6 from "second place" (see FIG. 6) to "third place" (see FIG. 7) to the user who has given the print instruction of job 6. Notify a message indicating.

[Image forming apparatus 2]
As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 2 includes an operation display unit 21, an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) 22, an image reading unit 23, an image forming unit 24, a communication I / F 25, a storage unit 26, and a control unit 27. And so on. Specifically, the image forming apparatus 2 is a multifunction device having a printer function, a scanner function, a copy function, a facsimile function, and the like. The image forming apparatus of the present invention is not limited to a multifunction device, and can be applied to any image forming apparatus such as a copier, a printer, and a facsimile apparatus.

The operation display unit 21 includes a display unit such as a liquid crystal display that displays information, and an operation unit such as a touch panel and operation buttons that accept user operations.

The ADF 22 is an automatic document transporting device that includes a document setting unit, a transport roller, a document retainer, and a paper ejection section, and transports a document to be read by the image reading unit 23.

The image reading unit 23 includes a platen, a light source, a mirror, an optical lens, and a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), and can read an image of a document and output it as image data.

The image forming unit 24 can execute a printing process based on the image data by an electrophotographic method or an inkjet method, and forms an image on the sheet based on the image data. For example, when the image forming unit 24 is an electrophotographic image forming unit, the image forming unit 24 includes a photoconductor drum, a charger, an exposure device, a developing device, a transfer device, a fixing device, and the like.

The communication I / F 25 is a communication interface capable of executing wired or wireless data communication with an external device. For example, the communication I / F 25 performs data communication with the server device 1, another image forming device 2, and the user terminal via the network N1.

The storage unit 26 is a non-volatile storage unit such as a flash memory, a hard disk, or an EEPROM (registered trademark). Various control programs executed by the control unit 27, various data, and the like are stored in the storage unit 26. The control program executed by the control unit 27 includes a job execution processing program for causing the control unit 27 to execute the job execution processing S200 (see FIG. 10) described later. Further, the storage unit 26 stores, for example, job information D6 and the like. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of job information D6. The job information D6 in FIG. 8 shows a state before the job 7 is accepted.

The job information D6 includes information about an incomplete job (that is, a running job and a waiting job) in the corresponding image forming apparatus 2. FIG. 8 shows the job information D6 stored in the storage unit 26 of the image forming apparatus 2A (device ID “P001”). In the job information D6 of FIG. 8, information regarding an incomplete job in the image forming apparatus 2A is registered. As shown in FIG. 8, the job information D6 includes information on "execution order", "reception date and time", "job name", "user ID", "priority", and "status" for each job. It has been. The "priority" is the same as the "priority" of the job information D5 (see FIGS. 6 and 7) stored in the server device 1. The "status" includes "execution" indicating that the image forming apparatus 2A is executing the job, or "waiting" indicating that the job is waiting (waiting in order) in the image forming apparatus 2A. be registered.

The "execution order" is information indicating the execution order of each of a plurality of jobs. In the "execution order", numbers are registered in order from the first executed first to the earliest according to the priority. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the execution order of the job 1 having the highest priority is set to "No. 1", and the execution order of the job 6 having the second highest priority is set to "No. 2". The execution order of job 4 (non-priority job) whose rank is not registered is set to "3" at the end. When the control unit 15 acquires job information (print data, user ID, priority, etc.) output from the server device 1 as described later, the control unit 15 sets the execution order of each job based on the information and " Register in "Execution order". FIG. 9 shows an example of job information D6 updated when a new job 7 is accepted in the state shown in FIG.

The control unit 27 includes control devices such as a CPU, ROM, and RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various arithmetic processes. The ROM is a non-volatile storage unit in which information such as a control program for causing the CPU to execute various processes is stored in advance. The RAM is a volatile or non-volatile storage unit used as a temporary storage memory (working area) for various processes executed by the CPU.

Specifically, the control unit 27 includes an execution order setting processing unit 271 and an execution processing unit 272. The control unit 27 functions as each of these processing units by executing various processes according to the control program. Further, the control unit 27 may include an electronic circuit that realizes a part or a plurality of processing functions of each of these processing units.

When the control unit 27 acquires the priority job for which the priority has been set from the server device 1, the control unit 27 sets the priority (for example, priority print setting) for the priority job. On the other hand, when the control unit 27 acquires a non-priority job for which the priority has not been set, the control unit 27 does not set the priority.

The execution order setting processing unit 271 is based on the priority of the target job (first priority) and the priority of other jobs (running or waiting jobs) (second priority). And the execution order of the other jobs is set. For example, in the state shown in FIG. 8, when the server device 1 newly receives the job 7 and outputs the job 7 information (print data, user ID) and the priority information of each job to the image forming device 2A, an image is displayed. The execution order setting processing unit 271 of the forming device 2A acquires the information and sets the execution order of each job. For example, the execution order setting processing unit 271 sets the execution order of the job 1 to "1st" based on the priority "1st" of the job 1 that is already being executed, and the execution order setting processing unit 271 sets the priority "2nd" of the job 7. The execution order of job 7 is set to "No. 2" based on "", and the execution order of job 6 is set to "No. 3" based on the priority "3rd place" of job 6, which is a non-priority job. Set the execution order of job 4 to the final number "4". When the execution order setting processing unit 271 sets the execution order, the execution order setting processing unit 271 registers the execution order in the job information D6 (see FIG. 9).

The execution processing unit 272 causes the job execution unit (for example, the image reading unit 23, the image forming unit 24, etc.) to execute the job in the order corresponding to the priority set by the priority setting processing unit 153. Specifically, the execution processing unit 272 causes the job execution unit to execute each job in the order of the execution order of each job set by the priority setting processing unit 153. The control unit 27 updates the execution order every time a job is received from the server device 1 to execute the job.

[Image formation process]
Next, an example of the procedure of the image forming process executed by the control unit 15 of the server device 1 and the control unit 27 of the image forming apparatus 2 will be described with reference to FIG. The image forming process includes a job management process S100 executed by the control unit 15 and a job execution process S200 executed by the control unit 27. Here, steps S11, S12, ... Represent the number of the processing procedure (step) executed by the control unit 15, and steps S21, S22, ... Represent the processing procedure (step) executed by the control unit 27. Represents the number of step). The image forming process is started, for example, when a job is submitted. Further, the present invention can be regarded as an invention of an image forming method for executing one or a plurality of steps included in the image forming process.

Further, one or a plurality of steps included in the image forming process described here may be omitted as appropriate. Further, the execution order of each step in the image forming process may be different within a range in which the same effect is produced. Further, here, a case where each step in the image forming process is executed by the control unit 15 and the control unit 27 will be described as an example, but in another embodiment, each step in the image forming process is performed by one processor. May be executed, or each step in the image forming process may be distributed and executed by a plurality of processors.

First, in step S11, the control unit 15 receives jobs (target jobs) such as print jobs, scan jobs, fax jobs, and copy jobs through the communication I / F14. Here, a print job is taken as an example. Step S11 is an example of the reception step of the present invention.

Next, in step S12, the control unit 15 determines the priority of the target job. Specifically, the control unit 15 determines the start date and time of the event included in the schedule information D2 of the user corresponding to the target job, the attributes of the participants of the event (for example, job title), or the document corresponding to the target job. The priority of the target job is determined based on the contents of. For example, the control unit 15 determines that the current date and time is within a predetermined time until the start date and time of the event, the current date and time is past the start date and time of the event, and the participants of the event include important persons. Alternatively, when the document corresponding to the target job contains a specific word, the target job is determined to be a priority job having a high priority. On the other hand, the control unit 15 determines that the current date and time is not within a predetermined time until the start date and time of the event, the current date and time does not exceed the start date and time of the event, and the participants of the event do not include important persons. Alternatively, if the document corresponding to the target job does not include a specific word, the target job is determined to be a non-priority job having a low priority.

Next, in step S13, the control unit 15 determines whether or not the target job is a priority job. When the target job is a priority job (S13: YES), the process proceeds to step S14. On the other hand, when the target job is not a priority job (S13: NO), that is, when the target job is a non-priority job, the process proceeds to step S15.

In step S14, the control unit 15 sets the priority of the target job based on the schedule information of the user corresponding to the target job (priority job). Specifically, the control unit 15 describes the target job based on the schedule information D2 of the user corresponding to the target job and the priority of the job being executed or waiting in the image forming apparatus 2. Set the job priority. The control unit 15 registers the set priority order in the job information D5 (see FIG. 7). Step S14 is an example of the priority setting step of the present invention.

In step S15, the control unit 15 determines the image forming device 2 to which the target job is output, that is, the image forming device 2 for executing the target job, from among the plurality of image forming devices 2. Specifically, the control unit 15 determines the number of running and waiting jobs corresponding to each of the plurality of image forming devices 2, the amount of data (capacity) of the target job, the priority of the target job, and the priority of the target job. The image forming apparatus 2 of the output destination is determined based on at least one of the priorities of the jobs registered in the job information D5 (see FIG. 7). For example, when the priority of the target job is not the first, the control unit 15 sets the target job based on the number of running or waiting jobs higher than the target job and the amount of data of the job. The fastest feasible image forming apparatus 2 is determined as the output destination image forming apparatus 2.

In step S16, the control unit 15 outputs each information including the target job to the image forming apparatus 2 of the determined output destination. For example, the control unit 15 provides image forming device 2A (device ID) with job 7 information (print data, user ID), priority information (see FIG. 7) of each job (job 1, job 6, job 4), and the like. Output to "P001").

When the control unit 27 of the image forming apparatus 2A acquires the information from the server apparatus 1, the control unit 27 executes the job execution process S200 shown below.

In step S21, the control unit 27 determines whether or not the job has been accepted. When the control unit 27 receives the target job (S21: YES), the process proceeds to step S22. The control unit 27 waits until the target job is accepted.

In step S22, the control unit 27 determines whether or not the received target job is a priority job. When the target job is a priority job (S22: YES), the process proceeds to step S23. On the other hand, when the target job is not a priority job (S22: NO), that is, when the target job is a non-priority job, the process proceeds to step S24.

In step S23, the control unit 27 performs priority setting (for example, priority print setting) for the target job. Jobs with priority settings are subject to priority printing and are subject to execution order setting, which will be described later.

Next, in step S24, the control unit 27 executes the target job and the other job in the execution order based on the priority of the target job and the priority of the other job (running or waiting job). To set. The control unit 27 registers the set execution order in the job information D6 (see FIG. 9). The control unit 27 sets the final number (for example, No. 4) of the non-priority job (for example, job 4) in the execution order.

Finally, in step S25, the control unit 27 causes the job execution unit (for example, the image reading unit 23, the image forming unit 24, etc.) to execute each job in the order of the set execution order. Step S25 is an example of an execution step of the present invention. When the job is executed, the control unit 15 updates the job information D5, and the control unit 27 updates the job information D6. Further, the control unit 27 notifies the user of the target job and the user whose priority (execution order) has been changed of various messages (the first message and the second message). When a new job is accepted, the control unit 15 and the control unit 27 repeat the above-mentioned processing.

As described above, according to the image forming system 100 according to the present embodiment, the priority order and the execution order of the jobs corresponding to the user are set based on the schedule information of the user. Therefore, it is possible to execute the job preferentially according to the schedule information of the user.

Here, in the present embodiment, the user information D1, the schedule information D2, the conference information D3, the device information D4, and the job information D5 are stored in the storage unit 13 of the server device 1, and the job information D6 is stored in the image forming device 2. As stored in Part 26, the invention is not limited to this. For example, in other embodiments, some or all of this information may be stored in a data server communicatively connected to the server device 1 or the image forming device 2.

As another embodiment, the image forming system 100 is, for example, when the target job is not completed by the specific date and time (for example, the start date and time of the meeting) included in the schedule information D2 (see FIG. 3) in the image forming apparatus 2. The following processing may be executed. For example, when the control unit 15 of the server device 1 determines that the target job is not completed by the start date and time in the image forming device 2 determined as the output destination of the target job, the device information D4 (see FIG. 5). ) Is switched to the printable state of the sleep-state image forming apparatus 2D (device ID “P004”), and the output destination image forming apparatus 2 is determined. Then, the control unit 15 outputs the information regarding the target job to the determined image forming apparatus 2D.

The image forming system of the present invention may be composed of the server device 1 and the image forming device 2, may be composed of the server device 1 alone, or may be composed of the image forming device 2 alone. For example, the image forming apparatus 2 may have the function of the server apparatus 1. Specifically, each image forming apparatus 2 may further include each processing unit of the server apparatus 1, user information D1, schedule information D2, conference information D3, apparatus information D4, and job information D5.

1: Server device 2: Image forming device 15: Control unit 21: Operation display unit 23: Image reading unit 24: Image forming unit 27: Control unit 100: Image forming system 151: Reception processing unit 152: Judgment processing unit 153: Priority Rank setting processing unit 154: Decision processing unit 155: Output processing unit 156: Notification processing unit 271: Execution order setting processing unit 272: Execution processing unit

Claims (12)

The reception processing department that accepts jobs and
A priority setting processing unit that sets the first priority of the first job based on the schedule information of the first user corresponding to the first job accepted by the reception processing unit.
An execution processing unit that causes the job execution unit to execute the first job in an order according to the first priority set by the priority setting processing unit.
An image forming system comprising. The priority setting processing unit is based on the schedule information and the second priority of the second job that is being executed by the job execution unit or is scheduled to be executed by the job execution unit. Set priorities,
The image forming system according to claim 1. The priority setting processing unit sets the first priority based on the start date and time of the event included in the schedule information.
The image forming system according to claim 2. When the start date and time of the first event corresponding to the first job is within a predetermined time from the current date and time or earlier than the start date and time of the second event corresponding to the second job, the priority setting processing unit In addition, the first priority is set higher than the second priority.
The image forming system according to claim 3. For the job accepted by the reception processing unit, a determination to determine the priority based on the start date and time of the event included in the schedule information, the attributes of the participants of the event, or the content of the document corresponding to the job. Equipped with a processing unit
The priority setting processing unit sets the first priority for the first job, which is the job whose priority is determined to be higher than the threshold value by the determination processing unit.
The image forming system according to any one of claims 2 to 4. The determination processing unit determines that the current date and time is within a predetermined time until the start date and time of the event, the current date and time is past the start date and time of the event, the participants of the event include important persons, or , When the document corresponding to the job contains a specific word, it is determined that the priority of the job is higher than the threshold value.
The image forming system according to claim 5. Further, an execution order setting processing unit for setting the execution order of the first job and the second job based on the first priority and the second priority is provided.
The execution processing unit causes the job execution unit to execute the first job and the second job in the order of the execution order set by the execution order setting processing unit.
The image forming system according to any one of claims 2 to 6. The plurality of images are based on the number of the second jobs corresponding to each of the plurality of image forming devices, the amount of data of the second jobs, and at least one of the first priority and the second priority. A determination processing unit that determines the image forming apparatus to which the first job is output from among the image forming apparatus,
An output processing unit that outputs information about the first job to the image forming apparatus determined by the determination processing unit, and
The image forming system according to any one of claims 2 to 7. A notification processing unit for notifying the first user corresponding to the first job of the identification information of the image forming apparatus determined by the determination processing unit is further provided.
The image forming system according to claim 8. The notification processing unit further sends a predetermined first message when the first job is not completed by the specific date and time included in the schedule information in the image forming apparatus determined by the determination processing unit. Notify user,
The image forming system according to claim 9. Further, when the priority setting processing unit sets the first priority corresponding to the first job, the notification processing unit changes the second priority of the second job. Notify the second user corresponding to the second job of a predetermined second message,
The image forming system according to claim 9 or 10. The reception step that accepts jobs and
A priority setting step for setting the first priority of the first job based on the schedule information of the first user corresponding to the first job accepted by the reception step, and
An execution step in which the job execution unit executes the first job in an order corresponding to the first priority set by the priority setting step, and an execution step.
Image forming method including.

Images