JP4828717B2 - Billing management system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a billing management system in which a client manages a usage fee for using an image forming apparatus via a network with a billing server, and in particular, when a failure occurs in the billing server or the network, The billing management system can perform billing management smoothly and accurately even when the power of the peripheral device is turned off immediately before processing the information and notifying the billing server of the billing information.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, in order to allow an unspecified number of users to use a copying machine, a coin rack is provided in the vicinity of the copying machine so that the user can copy only the amount of money inserted into the coin rack (charging device). Often to do. A large number of such copiers are arranged at convenience stores. Specifically, when a user inserts a coin into a coin rack, a detection signal of the inserted coin is notified to the copier, and the amount of coins inserted. The copying machine is controlled so that the copying operation is possible.
[0003]
As described above, when a copier is used as a stand-alone, it is efficient to arrange a coin rack or the like in the vicinity of the copier. However, when this copier is connected to a network, charging is performed on the network. It is desirable to manage.
[0004]
For this reason, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-134057 discloses a network system that charges a peripheral device such as a printer / scanner in a network environment. In charging by this network system, charging management is performed by notifying the server of job information as a basis for charging from the peripheral device at the end of the job.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, even if this conventional technique is used, when the accounting server goes down due to a failure or the like, job information cannot be notified from the peripheral device during that time, so that accurate accounting management cannot be performed. In addition, if the peripheral device is turned off immediately before printing is completed and job information is notified, job information is not notified to the accounting server, and in this case also, there is a problem that accurate accounting management cannot be performed. .
[0006]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and when a failure or the like occurs in the billing server, or immediately before the peripheral device processes a client job and notifies the billing server of information related to billing It is an object of the present invention to provide a billing management system capable of performing billing management smoothly and accurately even when the power of the computer is turned off.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, a billing management system according to the invention of claim 1 is a billing management system in which a client uses a billing server to manage a usage fee using an image forming apparatus via a network. A plurality of alternative servers connected to the network and acting as a charge management by the charge server, wherein the image forming apparatus stores storage means for storing priorities of the substitute servers, and a plurality of the alternatives based on the priorities Determining means for determining any one of the alternative servers among the servers, and in parallel with the processing of the job received from the client to the billing server when the billing server is operating When the page corresponding to the job is processed In parallel with the processing of the job received from the client to the determined alternative server when the accounting server is inactive and the accounting server is inactive When the page corresponding to the job is processed Send information related to the billing The alternative server includes a storage unit that stores information relating to charging received from the image forming apparatus, a determination unit that determines whether or not the charging server is started at a specified time, and the charging server is started. A transfer means for transferring information related to the charge stored in the storage means to the charge server when it is determined that It is characterized by that.
[0008]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the alternative server that performs the charge management by the charge server is provided, and the image forming apparatus transmits information related to the charge to the charge server when the charge server is in operation. If the billing server is not in operation, billing information is sent to the alternative server, so even if a billing server failure occurs, billing management is performed smoothly and accurately. Can be done.
[0010]
this Claim 1 According to the invention, a plurality of alternative servers that perform charging management by the charging server is provided, and the image forming apparatus charges the alternative server according to a predetermined priority when the charging server is not operating. Therefore, even if a failure occurs in a certain alternative server, billing management can be continuously performed.
[0014]
this Claim 1 According to the invention, the image forming apparatus sequentially notifies the charging server or the alternative server of information related to charging during the processing of the job received from the client. Even if the power is turned off immediately before processing and notifying information related to charging to the charging server, charging management can be performed accurately.
[0020]
this Claim 1 According to the invention, the alternative server stores the information related to the accounting received from the image forming apparatus, and transfers the stored information relating to the accounting to the accounting server. Therefore, it is possible to perform billing management accurately.
[0022]
this Claim 1 According to the invention, when it is determined that the billing server has started, information related to billing is transferred to the billing server, so that the alternative server side performs a leading check on the billing server activation. Can do.
[0024]
this Claim 1 According to this invention, since information related to billing is transferred to the billing server at a designated time designated in advance, it is possible to reduce the burden on the activation check on the alternative server side.
[0025]
Also, Claim 2 The billing management system according to the invention of claim 1 In the invention, the billing server comprises start notification means for performing start notification to the alternative server at start-up, and the transfer means includes: If information related to accounting is received from the image forming apparatus after transmitting information related to accounting in response to the activation notification, the information received Information related to billing is transferred to the billing server.
[0026]
this Claim 2 According to the invention, the accounting server sends an activation notification to the alternative server at the time of activation, and when the activation server receives the activation notification, the alternative server transmits information related to the accounting to the accounting server. It is possible to reduce the processing load on the alternative server side by requesting information related to accounting on the server side.
[0028]
this Claim 2 According to the invention, when information related to billing is received from the image forming apparatus after transmitting information related to billing in response to the activation notification, the information related to billing is transferred to the billing server. Therefore, even when information related to charging is received from the image forming apparatus after the activation notification, accurate charging management can be performed without any information loss.
[0029]
Also, Claim 3 The billing management system according to the invention of Claims 1-2 In the invention, the alternative server further includes a deleting unit that deletes the information related to the charging from the storage unit when the transfer unit succeeds in transferring the information related to the charging to the charging server. It is characterized by that.
[0030]
this Claim 3 According to the invention, when the alternative server succeeds in transferring the information related to the charging to the charging server, the information related to the corresponding charging is deleted from the stored data. It is possible to avoid the situation of redundant transfer, thereby reducing the memory capacity and improving the processing efficiency.
[0031]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Exemplary embodiments of a charge management system according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0032]
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a system configuration of a billing management system according to the first embodiment. As shown in the figure, in the charging system 1, a client PC 3, a peripheral device 4, a charging server 5, and an alternative server 6 are connected to a network (Ethernet) 2.
[0033]
The client PC 3 is a computer that requests the peripheral device 4 to process a job related to the peripheral device 4 such as a printer print job or a scanner reading job. The peripheral device 4 is a peripheral device including all devices used for image formation such as a printer, a scanner, a copy, and a facsimile (FAX), and receives a job from the client PC 3 and performs processing.
[0034]
The billing server 5 is a server device that performs billing management related to the use of the peripheral device 4 by the user of the client PC 3. Specifically, when the peripheral device 4 processes a job received from the client PC 3, the peripheral device 4 The job information is collected from the job information, and billing management is performed based on the job information.
[0035]
The alternative server 6 is a spare server that performs billing management in place of the billing server 5 when a failure occurs in the billing server 5. Here, for convenience of explanation, a case will be described in which this alternative server 6 acts only for the accounting server 5, but even if this alternative server 6 acts for the file server and mail server as well as the accounting server 5. I do not care.
[0036]
As described above, in this billing management system, in addition to the billing server 5, the alternative server 6 is provided as a substitute for the billing server 5, so that even when a billing server 5 fails, the billing server 5 continues. Thus, accurate billing management can be performed.
[0037]
Next, the configuration of the peripheral device 4 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the peripheral device 4 shown in FIG. Here, a case where the peripheral device 4 is a multifunction peripheral is shown. As shown in the figure, the peripheral device 4 includes a system control unit 40, a LAN / WAN communication control unit 41, a job notification unit 42, a print processing unit 43, a FAX processing unit 44, and a scanner processing unit 45.
[0038]
The system control unit 40 is a control unit that performs basic control (memory management and the like) of the entire peripheral device 4. The LAN / WAN communication control unit 41 is a control unit that controls communication through the network 2. Specifically, the LAN / WAN communication control unit 41 receives a job such as a print request from the client PC 3. Performs communication control and communication control when notifying job information.
[0039]
The job notification unit 42 is a processing unit that stores the IP addresses of the accounting server 5 and the alternative server 6 and notifies the accounting server 5 or the alternative server 6 of job result information. Specifically, job information is notified to the billing server 5 when the billing server 5 is in operation, and job information is reported to the alternative server 6 when the billing server 5 is down. .
[0040]
In the present embodiment, the case where one alternative server 6 is provided is shown. However, when a plurality of alternative servers are provided, the IP address of each alternative server is given priority as shown in FIG. The job is stored in the job notification unit 42 together with the rank. Then, after confirming sequentially the alternative servers to which the job result information is to be notified based on this priority, the job result information is notified to the corresponding alternative server. If the job result information cannot be notified to all the alternative servers, the job result information is stored in the storage unit in the system control unit 40. The job result information stored in the storage unit in the system control unit 40 is returned to the accounting server 5 or the alternative server in response to a request from the restored accounting server 5 or each alternative server.
[0041]
In addition, the job notification unit 42 does not notify the job information when the processing of each of the processing units 43 to 45 is completed, but sends the job information to the accounting server 5 or the alternative server 6 in parallel with the job processing. Notice. This is because even if the power of the peripheral device 4 is turned off just before the job processing is finished and the job information is notified, the accounting management can be performed accurately. For example, when the print processing unit 43 sequentially prints a plurality of pages for each page, job information is sequentially notified to the accounting server 5 or the alternative server 6 when each page is processed.
[0042]
The print processing unit 43 is a processing unit that performs print processing of a job related to printing received from the client PC 3. For example, when a print job described in a page description language is received, the print data in the print job is displayed. The data is converted into bitmap data, and the converted bitmap data is printed on printing paper using a printer engine. When the processing for one page is completed, the job notification unit 42 is notified of this.
[0043]
The FAX processing unit 44 is a processing unit that processes a FAX job received from the client PC 3. Specifically, when a job for transmitting a document is received, the document placed on the document table is optically processed. Control for reading, processing for compressing and encoding read data, control for transmitting compressed data, and the like are performed. The FAX processing unit 44 also notifies the job notification unit 42 of the fact at the time when the FAX transmission or FAX reception for one page is completed.
[0044]
The scanner processing unit 45 is a processing unit that processes a scan job received from the client PC 3. Specifically, the scanner processing unit 45 performs control such as optically reading a document placed on a document table. The scanner processing unit 45 also notifies the job notification unit 42 every time a single document is read.
[0045]
Next, a process for notifying the billing server 5 or the alternative server 6 of job information when the peripheral device 4 shown in FIG. 1 processes a print job will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for notifying the billing server 5 or the alternative server 6 of job information when the peripheral device 4 shown in FIG. 1 processes a print job.
[0046]
As shown in the figure, when the peripheral device 4 receives the print job of the client PC 3 by the LAN / WAN communication control unit 41 (step S401), the print processing unit 43 performs processing of the first page of this print job. Perform (step S402). Specifically, development into a bitmap and page printing are performed.
[0047]
The print processing unit 43 outputs job information to the job notification unit 42 every time this page processing is completed. The job notification unit 42 that has received the job information checks whether the job information can be notified to the billing server 5 or the alternative server 6 (step S403), and if it can be notified (step S403). (Yes), the job information is notified to the accounting server 5 or the alternative server 6 (step S404). Specifically, when the job information can be notified to the accounting server 5, the job information is preferentially notified to the accounting server 5, and the job information is sent to the accounting server 5 due to the failure of the accounting server 5 or the like. If the notification cannot be made, the job information is notified to the alternative server 6.
[0048]
On the other hand, when the job information cannot be notified to the billing server 5 and the alternative server 6 (No in step S403), the job information is stored in the memory (step S405). The job information stored in the memory is transmitted to the server when a request is subsequently received from the billing server 5 or the alternative server 6. Therefore, each server 5 and 6 needs to request job information from the peripheral device 4 when recovered from a failure or the like.
[0049]
Thereafter, it is confirmed whether or not there is an unprocessed page in the print job (step S406). If there is an unprocessed page (Yes in step S406), the process proceeds to step S402 and the same process is performed for the next page. When all the pages have been processed (No at step S406), the process ends.
[0050]
Next, centralized management of information (job information) related to charging by cooperation between the charging server 5 and the alternative server 6 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of the alternative server 6 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the alternative server 6 includes a system control unit 60, a LAN / WAN communication control unit 61, a job information management unit 62, and a billing server cooperation unit 63.
[0051]
The system control unit 60 is a control unit that performs basic control (memory management and the like) of the entire alternative server 6, and the LAN / WAN communication control unit 61 is a control unit that controls communication through the network 2, The LAN / WAN communication control unit 61 performs communication control when receiving job information from the peripheral device 4, communication control when transferring job information to the accounting server 5, and the like.
[0052]
The job information management unit 62 is a management unit that manages job information received from the peripheral device 4. That is, when the billing server 5 is down due to a failure or the like, the peripheral device 4 transfers the job information to the alternative server 6, and the job information management unit 62 uses the job information used for billing management. Manage.
[0053]
The billing server cooperation unit 63 is a processing unit that performs cooperation processing with the billing server 5, and specifically transfers job information stored in the job information management unit 62 to the billing server 5. The reason for performing such transfer is to retain all of the job information before the failure, the information of the job in the failure, and the job information after the failure recovery so that the accounting server 5 performs accounting management without omission.
[0054]
Although not shown here, if the charging server 5 is provided with the charging management function unit of the charging server 5 and it takes time to recover the failure of the charging server 5, the alternative server 6 continues to manage the charging. You can also
[0055]
Next, the processing procedure of the alternative server 6 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the alternative server 6 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the alternative server 6 monitors whether or not the accounting server 5 is activated via the LAN / WAN communication control unit 61 (step S601).
[0056]
If it is activated (Yes at Step S601), job information is acquired from the job information management unit 62 (Step S602), and the job information is transferred to the accounting server 5 by the accounting server cooperation unit 63 (Step S602). In step S603, the transferred job information is deleted from the job information management unit 62 (step S604).
[0057]
In this way, the alternative server 6 stores job information when the accounting server 5 is down, and operates to transfer the job information when the accounting server 5 is restored. For this reason, the accounting server 5 can also acquire the job information at the time of down, so that the accounting management can be performed without omission.
[0058]
Incidentally, the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 shows a case where the activation of the accounting server 5 is always checked. However, if the activation of the accounting server 5 is always checked, the processing load increases. For this reason, it is possible to check the activation of the accounting server 5 only at the designated time.
[0059]
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure when the activation of the accounting server 5 is checked only at the designated time. As shown in the figure, the alternative server 6 confirms whether or not it is the designated time (step S701), and if it is the designated time (Yes in step S701), whether or not the accounting server 5 is activated. Is monitored via the LAN / WAN communication control unit 61 (step S702).
[0060]
If it is activated (Yes at Step S702), job information is acquired from the job information management unit 62 (Step S703), and the job information is transferred to the charging server 5 by the charging server cooperation unit 63 (Step S703). In step S704, the transferred job information is deleted from the job information management unit 62 (step S705).
[0061]
As described above, in the first embodiment, when the accounting server 5 is down, the alternative server 6 receives job information from the peripheral device 4 on behalf of the accounting server 5, and the alternative server 6 returns to the accounting server 5 after the accounting server 5 returns. Since the job information is transferred to the billing server 5, it is possible to perform accurate billing management without omission even when a failure occurs in the billing server 5.
[0062]
By the way, in the first embodiment, the alternative server 6 performs the activation check of the accounting server 5 in an initiative manner, but the activation server 5 can also notify the activation. Therefore, in the second embodiment, a case will be described in which the charging server 5 side performs the activation notification in an initiative manner.
[0063]
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the alternative server 6 according to the second embodiment. As shown in the figure, when the accounting server 5 recovers from a failure or the like, the accounting server 5 notifies the alternative server 6 of an activation notification. If the alternative server 6 receives the activation notification from the charging server 5 (step S801), the job information is acquired from the job information management unit 62 (step S802), and the charging server cooperation unit 63 causes the charging server 5 to execute a job. The information is transferred (step S803), and the transferred job information is deleted from the job information management unit 62 (step S804).
[0064]
In this way, if the activation notification is sent from the server 5 to the alternative server 6 when the accounting server 5 is activated, the processing load on the alternative server 6 side can be reduced.
[0065]
However, if the alternative server 6 notifies the charging server 5 of the job information and then receives the job information from the peripheral device 4, the alternative server 6 transfers the job information to the charging server 5 until the next activation notification is received. I can't.
[0066]
That is, even if the accounting server 5 is activated, if the job information cannot be notified from the peripheral device 4 to the accounting server 5 for some reason, the accounting server notifies the user at the time of accounting aggregation. As a result, an appropriate charge amount cannot be charged.
[0067]
For this reason, it is desirable that the accounting server 5 and the alternative server 6 cooperate in order to cope with such a case. Therefore, a charging management system capable of notifying the charging server 5 of job information received from the peripheral device 4 even after the alternative server 6 notifies the charging server 5 of job information will be described.
[0068]
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the alternative server 6 that can notify the charging server 5 of the job information received from the peripheral device 4 even after the job information is notified to the charging server 5. As shown in the figure, when the alternative server 6 receives an activation notification from the accounting server 5 (step S901), the alternative server 6 shifts to a transfer mode in which job information is transferred to the accounting server 5 (step S902).
[0069]
Then, job information is acquired from the job information management unit 62 (step S903), the job information is transferred to the charging server 5 by the charging server cooperation unit 63 (step S904), and the transferred job information is transferred to the job information management unit. It deletes from 62 (step S905).
[0070]
Thereafter, the alternative server 6 waits to receive job information from the peripheral device 4 (step S906). If job information is received from the peripheral device 4 (Yes in step S906), the job is sent to the billing server 5 with respect to the job. The information is transferred (step S907), and if the transfer is successful (Yes at step S908), the process proceeds to step S906.
[0071]
On the other hand, when the transfer fails (No at Step S908), the processing of Steps S907 to S909 is repeated until it fails N times, and when it fails N times (Yes at Step S909), job information is accumulated. The process proceeds to the accumulation mode (step S910).
[0072]
As described above, in the second embodiment, the billing server 5 is configured to lead the activation notification, so that the processing load on the alternative server 6 can be reduced. In particular, since the alternative server 6 can transfer the job information even after receiving the activation notification, it is possible to eliminate the omission of the job information and perform accurate accounting management.
[0073]
In the present embodiment, for convenience of explanation, the job information is notified to the billing server 5 or the alternative server 6 every time the peripheral device 4 processes one page. However, the present invention is limited to this. It is also possible to notify job information every time several pages are processed.
[0074]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the alternative server that performs the charge management by the charge server is provided, and the image forming apparatus charges the charge server when the charge server is in operation. If the accounting server is inactive and the accounting server is inactive, the accounting server is configured to transmit the accounting information to the alternative server. In addition, billing management can be performed accurately.
[0075]
Also, Claim 1 According to the invention, a plurality of alternative servers that perform charging management by the charging server is provided, and the image forming apparatus charges the alternative server according to a predetermined priority when the charging server is not operating. Since the information related to is transmitted, even if a failure occurs in a certain alternative server, billing management can be continuously performed.
[0077]
Also, Claim 1 According to the invention, the image forming apparatus is configured to sequentially notify the charging server or the alternative server of information related to charging during the processing of the job received from the client. Even if the power is turned off immediately before processing and notifying information related to charging to the charging server, charging management can be performed accurately.
[0080]
Also, Claim 1 According to the invention, the alternative server stores the information related to the charge received from the image forming apparatus and transfers the stored information related to the charge to the charge server. Therefore, it is possible to perform billing management accurately.
[0081]
Also, Claim 1 According to the invention, when it is determined that the billing server is activated, information related to billing is transferred to the billing server, so that the alternative server side performs a leading check on the billing server activation. Can do.
[0082]
Also, Claim 1 According to the invention, since the information related to the charging is transferred to the charging server at the specified time specified in advance, the burden related to the activation check on the alternative server side can be reduced.
[0083]
Also, Claim 2 According to the invention, the billing server is configured to notify the alternative server at the time of start-up, and when the start-up notification is received, the substitute server transmits information related to the billing to the billing server. It is possible to reduce the processing load on the alternative server side by requesting information related to accounting on the server side.
[0084]
Also, Claim 2 According to the invention, when information related to billing is received from the image forming apparatus after transmitting information related to billing in response to the activation notification, the information related to billing is transferred to the billing server. With this configuration, even when information related to charging is received from the image forming apparatus after the activation notification, accurate charging management can be performed without any loss of information.
[0085]
Also, Claim 3 According to the invention, when the alternative server succeeds in transferring the information related to charging to the charging server, the information related to the corresponding charging is deleted from the stored data. It is possible to avoid the situation of redundant transfer, thereby reducing the memory capacity and improving the processing efficiency.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a system configuration of a charge management system according to a first embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a peripheral device illustrated in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a table included in the peripheral device illustrated in FIG. 1;
4 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for notifying job information to a charging server or an alternative server when the peripheral device shown in FIG. 1 processes a print job. FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of an alternative server shown in FIG. 1;
6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the alternative server shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for checking the activation of the accounting server only at a designated time.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of an alternative server according to the second embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of an alternative server capable of notifying the accounting server of job information received from a peripheral device even after the job information is notified to the accounting server.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Billing management system
2 network
3 Client PC
4 Peripheral devices
5 Billing server
6 Alternative server
40 System controller
41 LAN / WAN communication controller
42 Job notification section
43 Print processing section
44 FAX processing section
45 Scanner section
60 System controller
61 LAN / WAN communication controller
62 Job Information Management Department
63 Billing Server Cooperation Department

Claims (3)

In a billing management system in which a client manages a usage fee for using an image forming apparatus via a network with a billing server,
A plurality of alternative servers connected to the network and acting as a charge management by the charge server;
The image forming apparatus includes:
Storage means for storing priorities of alternative servers;
Determining means for determining any one of the plurality of alternative servers based on the priority, and
When the billing server is in an operating state, information related to billing is transmitted to the billing server when a page corresponding to the job is processed in parallel with the processing of the job received from the client, and the billing server When the page corresponding to the job is processed in parallel with the processing of the job received from the client to the determined alternative server when is in a non-operating state, information related to the billing is transmitted ,
The alternative server includes storage means for storing information relating to the charge received from the image forming apparatus;
Determining means for determining whether or not the charging server is activated at a specified time;
Transfer means for transferring information relating to the charge stored in the storage means to the charge server when it is determined that the charge server is activated;
An accounting management system characterized by that. The billing server includes a boot notification unit that sends a boot notification to the alternative server at the time of booting, and the transfer unit transmits billing information in response to the boot notification and then performs billing from the image forming apparatus. 2. The charging management system according to claim 1 , wherein when the information is received, the information related to the received charging is transferred to the charging server. The alternative server further includes a deletion unit that deletes the information related to the charging from the storage unit when the transfer unit succeeds in transferring the information related to the charging to the charging server. The charge management system according to claim 1 .

Images