JP5263438B2 - Charge calculation system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a charge calculation system capable of properly charging a fee per toner change. <P>SOLUTION: In a charge calculation system, an image forming device 100 and a fee calculation server 200 are connected to each other via a network. The image forming device 100 includes identification information reading means for reading identification information of an expendable items mounted to the device and transmission means for transmitting the identification information of the current expendable item read by the identification information reading means and a device identification number of the image forming device to the fee calculation server. The fee calculation server 200 includes reception means for receiving the identification information of the current expendable item and the device identification number of the image forming device and charging form creation means for creating a charging form to charge a fee per expendable item on the basis of the relation between identification information per expendable item of the image forming device and identification information of the expendable item received by the reception means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2013,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a charge calculation system, a charge calculation server, and a charge calculation method for calculating a charge for consumables of devices.

  For an image forming apparatus such as a printer, toner and paper are treated as consumables. For this reason, it is necessary for the user to purchase consumables as appropriate, but it is a cumbersome paperwork for the user to always prepare an appropriate number of stocks. For example, if there are a plurality of image forming apparatuses in the office, one spare toner cartridge may be stocked for each one. However, if the same model is used, the toner cartridges are also common, so stock one by one. Is unnecessary. However, if only one stock is stored in a plurality of image forming apparatuses, it is not possible to cope with a case where a plurality of image forming apparatuses run out of toner almost simultaneously. On the other hand, stocking a large amount of toner cartridges is a pre-payment for expenses, and the stocked toner cartridges may be wasted when changing the model of the image forming apparatus. There is a request to want. In particular, when the image forming apparatus is colored, it is necessary to stock toner cartridges for each color, so that the cost for stocking cannot be ignored.

  In this regard, a system that charges only for consumables that are actually used can be considered (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 stores information for specifying a product to be delivered to a service recipient, and a management table that records the usage status of the product by the service recipient as needed. A system is disclosed that calculates the charge amount charged to the service recipient by reading the number of distribution items that can be recognized as being.

  However, the system disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a problem that the system becomes complicated and causes an increase in cost.

  By the way, in recent years, with the enhancement of service shops, a customer engineer (hereinafter referred to as CE) at a service shop can deliver consumables to the user almost immediately after the user contacts. In addition, the service store and the manufacturer of the image forming apparatus (including the toner) are not integrated and are often separate companies. In this case, the manufacturer of the image forming apparatus concludes a contract with the service store for entrusting a service for providing the user with replacement of consumables to the service store.

  In such a situation, every time a service store provides a service, the manufacturer often charges the manufacturer for a maintenance fee according to the content of the service (not only toner replacement but also other consumables and maintenance). For this reason, the manufacturer pays the service store an amount corresponding to the content of the maintenance performed by the CE.

  However, when charging for an intangible service of performing maintenance, it is confirmed between the service store, the user, and the manufacturer that the service was indeed performed, when it was performed, or how it was performed. It was difficult.

  For this reason, it is conceivable to charge for consumables such as tangible toner including intangible services. However, the service store's desire to collect charges early after the provision of services remains unchanged.

  Therefore, it is conceivable that a service store requests payment from the manufacturer when a tangible object called a toner cartridge is mounted. However, the number of toner cartridges exchanged by one service store is enormous, and every time one toner cartridge is replaced, if the service store requests payment from the manufacturer, incorrect calculation of payment amounts such as omission of calculation or multiple addition There is a problem that occurs.

  In this respect, the cited document 1 assumes periodic charging on a monthly basis, and does not consider charging for each toner replacement. Also, in Cited Document 1, no consideration is given to a service store that cannot implement the system.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a fee calculation system capable of accurately executing charging for each toner replacement.

In view of the above problems, the present invention provides a charge calculation system in which an image forming apparatus and a charge calculation server are connected via a network, and the image forming apparatus reads identification information of attached consumables. The identification information of the toner cartridge that is the current consumable product read by the reading unit, the identification information reading unit, the identification information of the past toner cartridge of the same color as the toner cartridge, and the device identification information of the image forming apparatus wherein a transmission means for transmitting the billing server, wherein the charge calculation server, the identification information of the current of the toner cartridge, the identification information of the past of the toner cartridge of the same color, and, above the image forming apparatus receiving means for receiving the device identification information, the identification information of the past of the toner cartridge of the image forming apparatus, the receiving hands Has but based on the relationship between the identification information and identification information of the past of the toner cartridge of the same color of the current of the toner cartridge received, an accounting form generation means for generating a billing form for charging toner cartridge unit, the It is characterized by that.

  It is possible to provide a fee calculation system capable of accurately executing charging for each toner replacement.

It is an example of a schematic block diagram of a charge calculation system. 1 is an example of a hardware configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus. It is an example of the hardware block diagram of a charge calculation server. It is an example of a functional block diagram of a charge calculation system. It is a figure which shows an example of the historical data memorize | stored in the historical data storage part. It is a figure which shows an example of the accounting data memorize | stored in accounting data DB. It is an example of the flowchart figure which shows the operation | movement procedure of a charge calculation system. (Example 2) which is an example of the schematic block diagram of a fee calculation system. It is a figure which shows an example of a summary sheet. It is an example of the hardware block diagram of PC connected with the scanner apparatus. It is an example of the functional block diagram of a charge calculation system (Example 2). It is a figure which shows an example of the log | history data memorize | stored in the log | history data storage part described in the XML format. An example of the flowchart figure which shows the operation | movement procedure of a charge calculation system is shown (Example 2). It is an example of the flowchart figure which shows the modification of the procedure of a charge calculation server among the procedures of FIG.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a schematic configuration diagram of a fee calculation system 400 of the present embodiment. First, an outline will be described.
(1) A customer engineer (hereinafter referred to as “CE”) of a service store attaches toner to the image forming apparatus 100 of the user. The image forming apparatus 100 reads the serial number of the toner cartridge from the IC chip disposed on the toner and stores it.
(2) The image forming apparatus 100 transmits the mounting history data to the fee calculation server 200 via the network 300 (assuming that the fee calculation server 200 belongs to the manufacturer). The mounting history data includes at least the serial number of the toner cartridge 11 and the device identification number of the image forming apparatus 100.
(3) The fee calculation server 200 determines the toner cartridge 11 that has not been charged in the past from the serial number, and pays the fee for only the toner cartridge 11 that has not been charged in the past to the service store.

  Therefore, the service store can collect the service fee every time the toner cartridge 11 is installed. Further, the manufacturer or user can confirm the fact of replacement of the toner cartridge 11 from the mounting history data. In addition, since the replacement of the toner cartridge is managed by the unique serial number of the toner cartridge, calculation omission and multiple addition do not occur even if the number of mounted toner cartridges 11 is large.

  The image forming apparatus 100 may have any name such as an MFP (Multi Function Peripherals), a printer, a scanner, or a FAX apparatus. In this embodiment, the toner cartridge 11 that is a consumable part of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus 100 will be described as an example. However, in the ink jet type image forming apparatus 100, ink becomes a consumable part.

  In addition, in actuality, accessories are also used when the toner cartridge is replaced (these are collectively referred to as a kit), but in this embodiment, it is assumed that the charge for the toner cartridge 11 is charged.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of a hardware configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus 100. The image forming apparatus 100 includes a CPU 51, a ROM 52, a RAM 53, an external I / F 54, a communication card 55, a panel control unit 56, a scanner engine control unit 57, a plotter engine control unit 58, and a FAX engine control unit 59 connected by an internal bus. And a storage device 61.

  The CPU 51 controls the entire image forming apparatus 100 by executing a program stored in the storage device 61 or the ROM 52 using the RAM 53 as a working memory. The external I / F 54 is an interface for mounting a cable such as a USB or a storage medium 50. The storage medium 50 is a flash memory such as a USB memory, an optical storage medium such as a CD-ROM, or the like.

  The communication card 55 is called a LAN card or an Ethernet (registered trademark) card, and transmits packet data (mainly mounting history data in this embodiment) to the charge calculation server 200 via the network 300 according to an instruction from the CPU 51. In addition, packet data is received from the fee calculation server 200.

  The panel control unit 56 displays a UI on the operation panel 62 and accepts operations of UI soft keys and hardware keys. The scanner engine control unit 58 receives reading conditions such as resolution set by the user from the operation panel 62, and controls the scanner engine 63 based on the reading conditions. The scanner engine 63 optically scans a document placed on the contact glass, A / D converts the reflected light, performs image processing, and outputs digital data having a predetermined resolution (hereinafter referred to as image data). Generate.

  The plotter engine control unit 58 receives printing conditions such as the number of prints set by the user from the operation panel 62, and controls the plotter engine 64 based on the printing conditions. The plotter engine 64 includes, for example, a tandem type photosensitive drum, modulates a laser beam based on the image data and the PDL data received from the fee calculation server 200, and scans the photosensitive drum to form a latent image. The image for each page, developed by attaching toner to the latent image, is transferred to a sheet with heat and pressure.

  The FAX engine control unit 59 receives transmission conditions such as a destination (FAX number, e-mail address, etc.) set by the user, and controls the FAX engine 65 based on the transmission conditions. The FAX engine 65 is connected to the network 300 via a communication card and connected to a public communication network via a communication procedure corresponding to, for example, T.37 and T.38 standards or an NCU (Network Control Unit), for example, G3. The image data is transmitted and received according to the communication procedure corresponding to the G4 standard. Even if image data is received when the image forming apparatus 100 is powered off, the plotter engine 64 can be activated to print the image data on paper.

  The storage device 61 is a rewritable nonvolatile memory such as an HDD or a flash memory. The storage device 61 stores a history management program 66 executed by the CPU, font data, image data, and PDL data. The history management program 66 may be stored in the storage device 61 at the time of shipment of the image forming apparatus 100, or may be stored in the storage medium 50 after shipment of the image forming apparatus 100 or a server (not shown) on the network 300. May be distributed.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of a hardware configuration diagram of the fee calculation server 200. The fee calculation server 200 includes a CPU 71, a ROM 72, a RAM 73, an external I / F 74, a communication device 75, an input device 76, a display control unit 77, and a storage device 78, which are mutually connected by a bus. The CPU 71 reads the charge calculation program 81 from the storage device 78 and executes it using the RAM 73 as a working memory.

  The RAM 73 is a working memory (main storage memory) for temporarily storing necessary data, and the ROM 72 stores BIOS, initially set data, and programs.

  The external I / F 74 is an interface for mounting a cable such as a USB cable or a portable storage medium 80.

  The communication device 75 is called a LAN card or an Ethernet (registered trademark) card, and transmits packet data to the image forming apparatus 100 according to an instruction from the CPU 71. The communication device 75 transmits packet data from the image forming apparatus 100 (mainly mounting history in this embodiment). Data).

  The input device 76 is a user interface that accepts various user operation instructions such as a keyboard and a mouse. A touch panel or a voice input device can be used as the input device. The display control unit 77 controls the drawing of the display 79 with a predetermined resolution, number of colors, and the like based on screen information instructed by the fee calculation program 81. The display 79 is an FPD (Flat Panel Display) such as liquid crystal or organic EL.

  The storage device 78 is a nonvolatile memory such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a flash memory, and stores a fee calculation program 81. The storage medium 80 is a non-volatile memory such as an SD card or a USB memory, for example. The fee calculation program 81 is distributed in a state recorded in the storage medium 80 or downloaded from a server (not shown).

  FIG. 4 shows an example of a functional block diagram of the fee calculation system 400. The image forming apparatus 100 includes a mounting detection unit 12, a serial reading unit 13, a mounting history data transmission unit 15, a history data update unit 14, and a history data storage unit 16. The mounting detection unit 12, the serial reading unit 13, the mounting history data transmission unit 15, and the history data update unit 14 are realized mainly by the CPU executing the history management program 66.

The CE removes the toner cartridge that has run out of toner and installs a new toner cartridge 11 in the image forming apparatus 100. The mounting detection unit 12 detects the mounting of the toner cartridge 11. In the case of the color image forming apparatus 100, the toner color of the mounted toner cartridge 11 is also detected by the mounting detection unit 12. Any detection method may be used, such as a switch that is turned on when the toner cartridge 11 is mounted, a weighing scale that detects that the toner weight exceeds a threshold value, or a switch that the CE operates when the toner cartridge 11 is mounted. Any information such as input information may be used.

  The serial reading unit 13 reads the serial number of the toner cartridge 11 from the toner cartridge 11. An IC chip is embedded or attached to the toner cartridge 11. Alternatively, a barcode may be attached. The serial number of the toner cartridge 11 is stored in the IC chip. The serial number is a number that guarantees uniqueness, and enables the toner cartridge 11 to be specified.

  Note that the serial reading unit 13 periodically reads the serial number (for example, when the power is turned on), so that the mounting of the toner cartridge 11 can be detected because the serial number has changed. In this case, the mounting detection unit 12 is not necessary.

  The history data update unit 14 updates the history data stored in the history data storage unit 16. The mounting history data transmission unit 15 transmits the mounting history data to the charge calculation server 200. This will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of history data stored in the history data storage unit 16. The history data storage unit 16 has, for example, the storage device 61 as an entity. “Kn (n: 0, 1, 2,...)” In the first column from the left of the history data indicates the mounting history of the black toner cartridge 11. “K0” is the serial number of the current toner cartridge 11, “K1” is the serial number of the toner cartridge 11 replaced with “K0”, and “K2” is the serial number of the toner cartridge 11 replaced with “K1”. “K3” indicates the serial number of the toner cartridge 11 replaced with “K2”, and “K4” indicates the serial number of the toner cartridge 11 replaced with “K3”.

  “1006111234” to “100211234” in the second column from the left indicate the installation date and time of each of the toner cartridges “K0” to “K4”. For example, “10” means 2010, “0611” means June 11, and “1234” means 12:34.

  “0808NJ25008542” to “0808NJ25008546” in the third column from the left are a part of the serial number of each of the toner cartridges “K0” to “K4”, and “003552” to “003556” in the fourth column are the remaining part. Means each. By dividing into two, if either one can be managed, only one of them can be processed. In this embodiment, no particular distinction is made, and either one or both of the third and fourth rows is called a serial number.

  For example, when the black toner cartridge 11 is mounted, the history data update unit 14 in FIG. 4 deletes the serial numbers associated with “K4” and sets the serial numbers “K0 to K3” respectively. Update the serial number to “K1-K4”. Typically, “K0 to K4” in the leftmost column is left as it is, and the mounting date and time and serial number of K0 to K4 are shifted down by one line. Then, the history data updating unit 14 registers the serial number read by the serial reading unit 13 in association with “K0”.

  Further, the history data updating unit 14 registers the date and time of the calendar held (counted) by the CPU as the mounting date and time in the second column from the left in association with “K0”. By doing so, the latest (current) serial number can be registered for each color while the past four serial numbers are stored.

  Then, the mounting history data transmission unit 15 transmits at least the serial number of the mounted toner cartridge 11 to the charge calculation server 200. Here, if only the serial number of the mounted toner cartridge 11 is transmitted, it becomes impossible to charge when a communication error or the like occurs. Therefore, preferably, the mounting history data transmission unit 15 transmits a plurality of serial numbers. In this embodiment, for example, all the toner cartridges of the same color as the mounted toner cartridge 11 (five in the drawing) and the date and time of mounting of the toner cartridge 11 or all the toner cartridges stored in the history data storage unit 16 are used. 11 serial number and installation date and time are transmitted. In this way, even if a plurality of serial numbers are transmitted, the fee calculation server 200 checks the already charged serial number, so there is no redundant charge.

  The mounting history data transmission unit 15 transmits the device identification number that identifies the image forming apparatus 100 that is the transmission source, and the mounting date and time to specify the mounting date and time, together with the serial number, to the charge calculation server 200. The mounting history data has these three data. The device identification number is stored in the ROM 52 of the image forming apparatus 100.

  The fee calculation server 200 will be described. The fee calculation server 200 includes a duplicate billing determination unit 21, a drafting unit 22, a billing data registration unit 23, and a billing data DB 24. The duplicate billing determination unit 21, the drafting unit 22, and the billing data registration unit 23 are realized mainly by the CPU 71 executing the fee calculation program 81.

  The duplicate charging determination unit 21 refers to the charging data DB 24 and identifies the toner cartridge 11 that has not been charged yet among the toner cartridges 11 of the received mounting history data. This will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of billing data stored in the billing data DB 24. In the charging data, the serial number of the past toner cartridge 11 associated with the device identification number is registered. In the rightmost column, charging presence / absence information indicating whether or not the toner cartridge 11 has already been charged is registered. “Done” indicates that the user has been charged, and “none” indicates that the user has not been charged.

  The charging data DB 24 stores serial numbers of the past several years or several tens to several hundreds of toner cartridges 11. For each color, duplication can be determined by registering more serial numbers than the number of serial numbers included in the mounting history data.

  The duplicate charging determination unit 21 extracts serial numbers included in the mounting history data one by one, and determines whether or not the same serial number exists in the charging data DB 24. You may determine whether it is the same including not only the serial number but also the date and time. When the same serial number is found, it is determined whether or not the billing presence / absence information is “completed”. If the billing presence / absence information is “already”, the duplicate billing determination unit 21 charges the toner cartridge 11 of that serial number. (It is not charged for the second time.)

  If the same serial number is found and the charge presence / absence information is not “completed”, the duplicate charge determination unit 21 determines to charge the toner cartridge 11 of that serial number. In this embodiment, since the charge calculation server 200 charges each time the toner cartridge 11 is installed, this situation is unlikely to occur. However, the presence / absence information of charging can cope with, for example, a charging method in which the charge calculation server 200 charges after the serial number of the mounting history data is once stored in the charging data DB 24.

When the same serial number is not found, the duplicate billing determination unit 21 sends the serial number to the drafting unit 22 and requests to generate a billing form. The drafting unit 22 generates a billing form for each toner cartridge 11. The billing form is printed or sent as electronic data to the service store, manufacturer, and user.
The service store can request the manufacturer to pay the fee including the service amount attached to the toner cartridge 11 by the billing form. The manufacturer confirms that the toner cartridge 11 has been replaced based on the billing form and that the accompanying service has been provided, and pays the fee.
The manufacturer can request the user to pay a fee for the service associated with the toner cartridge 11 based on the billing form. The user confirms that the toner cartridge 11 has been replaced based on the billing form and that the accompanying service has been provided, and pays the fee.

  Further, the charging data registration unit 23 registers the serial number and the mounting date / time of the toner cartridge 11 that has not been registered in the charging data DB 24. In this embodiment, since the charge calculation server 200 charges each time the toner cartridge 11 is mounted, the charging data registration unit 23 further associates the serial number and the mounting date and time with the charging presence / absence information of “one”. Register the record. The oldest record may be deleted.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of a flowchart showing the operation procedure of the fee calculation system 400. The procedure of FIG. 7 is started repeatedly, for example, every cycle time, or is started by mounting the toner cartridge 11.

  The mounting detection unit 12 monitors the new mounting of the toner cartridge 11 (S10), and when the mounting is detected, requests the serial reading unit 13 to read the serial number (Yes in S10).

  The serial reading unit 13 reads the serial number from, for example, an IC chip of the attached toner cartridge 11 (the toner cartridge 11 of the attached color when there is each color) (S20). The serial reading unit 13 notifies the history data update unit 14 of the serial number and requests to update the history data storage unit 16.

  The history data update unit 14 updates the history data storage unit 16 (S30). That is, the serial number associated with “(any of C, M, Y, K) 4” in the history data storage unit 16 is deleted, and “(any of C, M, Y, K) 0 (C / M / Y / K) 3 ”serial numbers correspond to“ (C / M / Y / K any) 1 to (C / M / Y / K any) 4 ” Then register.

  Further, the history data updating unit 14 registers the serial number read by the serial reading unit 13 in association with “(any of C, M, Y, and K) 0”. Further, the history data update unit 14 registers the calendar date and time in the history data storage unit 16 in association with “(any of C, M, Y, and K) 0” as the mounting date and time. When the history data update unit 14 updates the history data storage unit 16, the history data update unit 14 requests the mounting history data transmission unit 15 to transmit the mounting history data.

  Note that the history data update unit 14 may determine whether or not the same serial number is already registered in the history data storage unit 16 before registering the serial number of the toner cartridge 11 that has been detected to be mounted. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the history data storage unit 16 from being updated when the toner cartridge 11 once mounted due to a repair or the like is mounted again.

  The mounting history data transmission unit 15 reads out the device identification number from the ROM 52 and all the mounting date / time and serial number of the same color as the mounted toner cartridge from the history data storage unit 16, and the mounting history data via the communication card. Is transmitted to the charge calculation server 200 (S40).

  Moving to processing of the charge calculation server 200, the charge calculation server 200 receives the mounting history data by the communication device 75 (S110). The charge calculation server 200 requests the duplication charge determination unit 21 to determine duplication using the reception of the mounting history data as a trigger.

  First, the duplicate billing determination unit 21 extracts one serial number included in the mounting history data (S120). Note that the duplicate charge determination unit 21 identifies the image forming apparatus 100 by the device-specific number included in the mounting history data.

  Then, the duplicate charging determination unit 21 determines whether or not the same serial number is already registered in the charging data DB 24 (S130).

  If the same serial number is not registered in the billing data DB 24 (No in S130), the duplicate billing determination unit 21 requests the billing data registration unit 23 to register the mounting history data and requests the drafting unit 22 for drafting. . The process proceeds to step S140.

  When the same serial number is registered in the charging data DB 24 (Yes in S130), the duplicate charging determination unit 21 determines whether the charging presence / absence information of the serial number in the charging data DB 24 that is the same as the mounting history data is “completed”. (S170).

  If it has not been charged (Yes in S170), the duplicate billing determination unit 21 requests the drafting unit 22 to generate a billing chart, and the process proceeds to step S150.

  If the charge has already been made (No in S170), the duplicate charge determination unit 21 determines that the charge for the toner cartridge 11 with the serial number specified in step S120 has already been completed, and does nothing.

  In step S140, the billing data registration unit 23 registers the serial number specified in step S120, the mounting date and time, and the “presence” billing presence / absence information in the billing data DB 24 (S140).

  Next, the drafting unit 22 drafts a billing form for each toner cartridge 11 (S150).

  The duplicate billing determination unit 21 determines whether or not all the serial numbers of the mounting history data have been processed (S160). If the mounting history data includes unprocessed serial numbers (No in S160), The processing after step S120 is repeated.

  As described above, the fee calculation system 400 according to the present embodiment charges each time the toner is installed, so there is no problem later whether or not the service is actually performed, and the service store charges the fee early. Can be recovered. Even if the charge is made for each toner, it is determined whether or not the toner cartridge 11 has been charged in the past, so that it is possible to prevent double charging.

  The first embodiment has been described on the assumption that the image forming apparatus 100 and the fee calculation server 200 are connected via the network 300. However, some users may prefer to use the image forming apparatus 100 without being connected to the network 300, and communication via the network 300 may be difficult due to some kind of communication system failure (hereinafter simply referred to as “only”). "They are not connected").

  In the present exemplary embodiment, a fee calculation system 400 that allows the image forming apparatus 100 to charge each time the toner cartridge 11 is mounted without transmitting the mounting history data to the fee usage server 200 will be described.

FIG. 8 is an example of a schematic configuration diagram of the fee calculation system 400 of the present embodiment. In FIG. 8, the same parts as those of FIG. An outline will be described.
(1) The CE of the service store attaches toner to the image forming apparatus 100 of the user. The image forming apparatus 100 reads the serial number of the toner cartridge from the IC chip arranged in the toner cartridge 11 and stores it.
(2) The image forming apparatus 100 prints a summary sheet. The summary sheet includes at least the serial number of the toner cartridge, the device identification number of the image forming apparatus 100, and SUM data. The summary sheet is read by the scanner device 500 connected to the fee calculation system 400.
(3) A PC (Personal Computer) 600 connected to the scanner device 500 performs OCR processing on the image data read by the scanner device 500, and the serial number of the toner cartridge 11, the device identification number of the image forming device 100, and the SUM data. Is converted to text data.
(4) The fee calculation server 200 uses the SUM data obtained from the serial number of the text data and the SUM data included in the text data, so that the summary sheet is accurately read and the serial number is correctly OCR. It is determined whether or not processing has been performed, and billing processing is started only when it is correct.

  When the image forming apparatus 100 and the fee calculation server 200 are not connected via the network 300, a summary sheet is issued and OCR processing is performed, whereby electronic data can be input to the fee calculation server 200. . The quality of image data at the time of reading and the uncertainty of OCR processing (hereinafter referred to as “reading error”) can be compensated by SUM data.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a summary sheet. The summary sheet has a device information column 31, a mounting history data column 32, and a bibliographic information column 33. The device information column 31 includes items of “device identification number”, “SV code”, and “output date” of the summary sheet. The “SV code” is a code for identifying a service store.

  The bibliographic information column 33 includes “company name / base name” representing a user name, “phone number” as a contact information, and “person in charge name” of the image forming apparatus 100.

  The mounting history data column 32 has the same information as the history data storage unit 16 of the first embodiment, but differs in that it includes SUM data. In the mounting history data column 32, SUM data of serial numbers is described for each color. In this embodiment, the SUM data of the mounting date / time is described for each color.

  An example of a SUM data calculation method will be described. For example, when the serial number of the black (K0 to K4) toner cartridge 11 is “003552”, “003553”, “003554”, “003555”, and “003556”, the image forming apparatus 100 adds the same digits and adds The last digit of the result is the SUM data for that digit. For example, “0” which is the last digit of the value “20” obtained by adding the first digits “2”, “3”, “4”, “5” and “6” of the serial number is the SUM data.

  As will be described later, this calculation is also performed by the fee calculation server 200, so that it is possible to confirm that the summary sheet has been read correctly and that the correct OCR processing has been executed. Further, by obtaining SUM data for each color, it is possible to easily identify the serial number in which a reading error has occurred.

  In the figure, SUM data is also obtained for each color with respect to the mounting date and time. By verifying the SUM data even when the fee calculation server 200 is attached, it is possible to easily detect a reading error of the summary sheet. When the charge calculation server 200 manages the date and time of mounting without using the date and time of mounting the summary sheet (for example, when using the date and time of receiving text data, the “output date”, the date and time of OCR processing, etc.) There is no need to obtain SUM data.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of a hardware configuration diagram of the PC 600 connected to the scanner device 500. The functions of the scanner device 500 are the same as those of the scanner engine control unit 57 and the scanner engine 63 of the image forming apparatus 100, and thus description thereof is omitted.

  The PC 600 is connected to the scanner device 500 and the charge calculation server 200 via the network 300 or directly. Further, the PC 600 and the fee calculation server 200 may be integrated, the scanner device 500 may be integrated with the PC 600, or the scanner device 500, PC 600, and the fee calculation server 200 may be integrated.

  The PC 600 includes a CPU 601, a ROM 602, a RAM 603, an external I / F 604, a communication device 605, an input device 607, a display control unit 608, and a storage device 609 that are connected to each other via a bus. In each block, description of the same block as the fee calculation server 200 is omitted.

  An OCR program 620 executed by the CPU 601 is stored in the storage device 609 of the PC 600. The OCR program 620 may be stored in the storage device 609 when the PC 600 is shipped, or may be distributed from a server (not shown) on the network 300 after being stored in the storage medium.

  The CPU 601 reads the OCR program 620 from the storage device 609 and executes it using the RAM 603 as a working memory. The OCR program 620 is a program for converting the description content of the summary sheet into text data such as characters, numbers, symbols, etc. from the density of the image data. Therefore, the PC 600 can transmit the text data extracted from the summary sheet to the fee calculation server 200.

  FIG. 11 shows an example of a functional block diagram of the fee calculation system 400. In FIG. 11, the same parts as those in FIG. The image forming apparatus 100 newly includes a SUM data calculation unit 41 and a summary sheet printing unit 42.

  The SUM data calculation unit 41 calculates the SUM data of the history data stored in the history data storage unit 16. Old SUM data is overwritten. For example, every time the history data update unit 14 updates the history data stored in the history data storage unit 16, the SUM data calculation unit 41 calculates SUM data.

  Specifically, the SUM data calculation unit 41 calculates the SUM data of the serial number and the mounting date / time for each color. The history data update unit 14 registers the calculated SUM data in the history data storage unit 16.

The summary sheet printing unit 42 prints the summary sheet on a recording member such as paper.
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of history data stored in the history data storage unit 16 described in the XML format. By storing in XML format, editing becomes easy. By applying an XSLT style sheet (table.xsl file in the figure) stored in advance to the history data, the history data can be expressed in a table format. The summary sheet printing unit 42 sends the tabular history data generated in this way to the plotter engine control unit 58 to request printing.

  The user goes to the scanner device 500 with the summary sheet. The scanner device 500 includes an operation panel 43, a scanner engine 44, and an image data transmission unit 45. Since the operation panel 43, the scanner engine 44, and the communication card 46 have the same functions as those of the image forming apparatus 100, description thereof is omitted.

  When the user places the summary sheet on the scanner device 500 and executes reading, the scanner engine 44 generates image data such as Tiff format and stores it in the storage device. The image data transmission unit 45 transmits image data to the PC 600 via the communication card 46.

  The PC 600 includes an OCR processing unit 47 and a text data transmission unit 48. The OCR processing unit 47 performs OCR processing on the image data and converts the image data into text data. This text data includes all information of the summary sheet, that is, mounting history data. The text data transmission unit 48 transmits the text data to the fee calculation server 200 via the communication device 605.

  The fee calculation server 200 newly includes a SUM data verification unit 49. The SUM data verification unit 49 verifies the SUM data based on whether or not the SUM data of the text data matches the SUM data calculated from the serial number of the text data.

  The SUM data verification unit 49 extracts the current and past four serial numbers for each color from the text data. Then, the same digits are added together, and the SUM data is calculated by a calculation method in which the lower one digit of the addition result is the SUM data of the digit. This is performed for all of C, M, Y, and K, and stored in the RAM 73.

  Then, the SUM data verification unit 49 extracts the SUM data of each color from the text data, and compares it with the SUM data of each color stored in the RAM 73 for each color. The SUM data verification unit 49 performs the same calculation for the attachment date and time of the text data, and determines whether or not it matches the SUM data of the text data for each color. If the serial number and the SUM data of the installation date / time match for all colors, it may be that there is no reading error, and therefore the same processing as in the first embodiment is executed.

  That is, the duplicate charging determination unit 21 refers to the charging data DB 24 and identifies the toner cartridge 11 that has not been charged yet among the toner cartridges 11 of the received text data.

  The drafting unit 22 generates a billing form for each toner cartridge. The charging data registration unit 23 registers the serial number and mounting date and time of the toner cartridge 11 that has not been registered in the charging data DB 24.

  If one of the four colors does not match the SUM data, a reading error has occurred. In this case, it is preferable that the SUM data verification unit 49 notifies the PC 600 of an error message. Based on the error message, the user reads the summary sheet again with the scanner device 500, visually compares the text data with the summary sheet, and operates the input device 607 to correct the text data. Thereby, the PC 600 can generate text data equal to the description of the summary sheet.

  Further, when there are up to three colors that do not match the SUM data, by using the SUM data of the mounting date and time, the mounted toner cartridge 11 is specified, and the toner cartridge 11 is not a color in which a reading error has occurred. Depending on the condition, the billing process can also proceed. This procedure will be described later.

  FIG. 13 shows an example of a flowchart showing the operation procedure of the fee calculation system 400. In FIG. 13, the same procedure as in FIG. 7 will be described briefly.

  The mounting detection unit 12 monitors the new mounting of the toner cartridge 11 (S10), and when the mounting is detected, requests the serial reading unit 13 to read serial data (Yes in S10). In this embodiment, one summary sheet is printed for each attached toner cartridge. After the toner cartridge 11 is mounted, the CE operates the operation panel 62 to cause the image forming apparatus 100 to print the summary sheet. Alternatively, the history data update unit 14 may request the SUM data calculation unit 41 to calculate SUM data after the history data is updated.

  Thus, the mounting of one toner cartridge 11 serves as a trigger for printing one summary sheet. Even if a plurality of toner cartridges 11 are mounted at the same time, it is preferable to print as many summary sheets as the number of mounted toner cartridges 11.

  The serial reading unit 13 reads out the serial number from, for example, an IC chip of the mounted toner cartridge 11 (the toner cartridge of the mounted color when there is each color) (S20).

  The history data update unit 14 updates the history data storage unit 16 (S30). When the history data is updated, the history data update unit 14 requests the SUM data calculation unit 41 to calculate SUM data.

  The SUM data calculation unit 41 calculates the SUM data of the serial number and the mounting date / time for each color (S32). The SUM data calculation unit 41 notifies the history data update unit 14 of the completion of the calculation, and the history data update unit 14 registers the calculated SUM data in the history data storage unit 16. The history data update unit 14 requests the summary sheet printing unit 42 to print the summary sheet.

  The summary sheet printing unit 42 reads the history data in the XML format from the history data storage unit 16, and requests the plotter engine control unit 58 to launch the tabular history data generated by applying the XSL style sheet (S42). . As a result, the plotter engine 64 prints the summary sheet.

  Next, the processing of the scanner device 500 is performed. When the user operates the operation panel of the scanner device 500 and designates the IP address of the PC 600 stored in advance to read the summary sheet, the scanner engine 44 of the scanner device 500 reads the summary sheet (S210). Thereby, image data of the summary sheet is generated and stored in the RAM or the like.

  When the image data is generated, the image data transmission unit 45 transmits the image data stored in the RAM to the PC 600 designated by the IP address via the communication card 46 (S220).

  Next, the processing of the PC 600 is performed. When the user operates the input device 607 of the PC 600 or receives image data, the OCR processing unit 47 of the PC 600 performs OCR processing on the image data (S310). Thereby, the image data of the summary sheet is converted into text data and stored in the RAM 603 or the like.

  When the text data is generated, the text data transmission unit 48 sends the text data to the charge calculation server 200 via the communication device 606 when the user operates the PC 600 or automatically when the text data is generated. (S320).

  Next, the processing of the fee calculation server 200 is performed. The fee calculation server 200 receives the text data through the communication device 75 (S112).

  The SUM data verification unit 49 triggered by the receipt of the text data, the SUM data of the serial number of the text data and the SUM data of the installation date and time all match the SUM data calculated by the SUM data verification unit 49, respectively. It is determined whether or not (S114). In this flowchart, SUM data with a total of four serial numbers and SUM data with a total of four mounting dates are verified.

  When the calculated value of the serial number SUM data and the SUM data of the text data, the calculated value of the SUM data of the attachment date and time, and the SUM data of the text data do not all match (No in S114), the summary sheet is read. Since there is a possibility that a mistake has occurred, the SUM data verification unit 49 transmits an error message to the PC 600 (S116). Thereby, the user can grasp | ascertain that it is necessary to correct text data again.

  When the eight SUM data of the serial number and the installation date / time all match (Yes in S114), the SUM data verification unit 49 requests the duplicate billing judgment unit 21 to determine duplication. The subsequent processing is the same as in the first embodiment.

  First, the duplicate charge determination unit 21 extracts one serial number included in the text data (S120). The duplicate billing determination unit 21 identifies the image forming apparatus 100 based on the device-specific number included in the text data.

  Then, the duplicate charging determination unit 21 determines whether or not the same serial number is already registered in the charging data DB 24 (S130).

  If the same serial number is not registered in the billing data DB 24 (No in S130), the duplicate billing determination unit 21 requests the billing data registration unit 23 to register the mounting history data and requests the drafting unit 22 for drafting. . The process proceeds to step S140.

  When the same serial number is registered in the charging data DB 24 (Yes in S130), the duplicate charging determination unit 21 determines whether the charging presence / absence information of the serial number in the charging data DB 24 that is the same as the mounting history data is “completed”. (S170).

  If it has not been charged (Yes in S170), the duplicate billing determination unit 21 requests the drafting unit 22 to generate a billing chart, and the process proceeds to step S150.

  If the charge has already been made (No in S170), the duplicate charge determination unit 21 determines that the charge for the toner cartridge 11 with the serial number specified in step S120 has already been completed, and does nothing.

  In step S140, the charging data registration unit 23 registers the mounting date / time and the “presence” charging presence / absence information associated with the serial number specified in step S120 in the charging data DB 24 (S140).

  Next, the drafting unit 22 drafts a billing form for each toner cartridge 11 (S150).

  The duplicate billing determination unit 21 determines whether or not all the serial numbers of the mounting history data have been processed (S160). If the mounting history data includes unprocessed serial numbers (No in S160), The processing after step S120 is repeated.

  As described above, the SUM data is described in the summary sheet, and by verifying that the serial number and the installation date / time are correct, even if the image forming apparatus 100 and the fee calculation server 200 are not connected, Charges can be made without causing multiple addition.

<Modification>
FIG. 14 is an example of a flowchart showing a modification of the procedure of the fee calculation server 200 in the procedure of FIG. The processing up to step S114 is the same as in FIG.

  If the serial number and the SUM data of the date and time do not all match (No in S114), there is a possibility that a reading error of the summary sheet has occurred. In order to determine whether charging is difficult due to the reading error, the SUM data verification unit 49 determines whether one or more SUM data of the serial number match (S410). This is because there is a possibility of charging if even one of the SUM data of the serial number matches.

  If one or more SUM data of the serial number do not match (No in S410), that is, if all four SUM data of the serial number do not match, the SUM data verification unit 49 transmits an error message to the PC 600 ( S116).

  When one or more SUM data of the serial number match (Yes in S410), the SUM data verification unit 49 specifies the four date / time of text data attachment so that the serial number of the attached toner cartridge 11 can be specified. It is determined whether or not all the SUM data matches the four SUM data obtained by calculation by the SUM data verification unit 49 (S420).

  If all of the SUM data of the mounting date / time does not match (No in S420), the serial number of the mounted toner cartridge 11 cannot be specified, so the SUM data verification unit 49 transmits an error message to the PC 600 (S116).

  When the SUM data of the mounting date / time all match (Yes in S420), the SUM data verification unit 49 identifies the latest mounting date / time among the current mounting date / time of each color of the text data, and is associated with the mounting date / time. A serial number is specified (S430). For example, when the date and time of K0 is newer than C0, M0, and Y0, the SUM data verification unit 49 specifies the serial number associated with K0.

  Then, the SUM data verification unit 49 determines whether or not the SUM data in which the identified serial number is included in the addition result matches the SUM data obtained by calculation (S240). By doing so, it can be determined with high accuracy that there is no reading error in the serial number and the mounting date and time of the mounted toner cartridge 11.

  If the SUM data does not match (No in S440), it is unknown whether the OCR process of the serial number of the mounted toner cartridge 11 has been successful, so the SUM data verification unit 49 transmits an error message to the PC 600 (S116). .

  If the SUM data matches (Yes in S440), the process proceeds to step S130, and the duplicate billing determination unit 21 determines whether or not the serial number specified in step S430 is already registered in the billing data DB 24 (S130). ). The subsequent processing is the same as in FIG.

  Therefore, unlike the procedure of FIG. 13, even if the serial number and the SUM data of the mounting date / time do not all match in step S114, the reading of the serial number of the mounted toner cartridge 11 (trigger for printing the summary sheet) is erroneous. Confirming that there is no, it becomes possible to charge.

  As described above, the fee calculation system 400 according to the present exemplary embodiment can charge each toner cartridge 11 by reading the summary sheet even when the image forming apparatus 100 is not connected to the network 300.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Toner cartridge 12 Mounting detection part 13 Serial reading part 14 History data update part 15 Mounting history data transmission part 16 History data storage part 21 Duplicate charge determination part 22 Draft part 23 Charge data registration part 24 Charge data DB
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 41 SUM data calculation part 42 Summary sheet printing part 45 Image data transmission part 47 OCR processing part 48 Text data transmission part 49 SUM data verification part 100 Image forming apparatus 200 Charge calculation server 300 Network 400 Charge calculation system

JP 2002-099836 A

Claims (7)

A charge calculation system in which an image forming apparatus and a charge calculation server are connected via a network,
The image forming apparatus includes:
Identification information reading means for reading identification information of the mounted consumables;
The charge calculation server stores the identification information of the toner cartridge that is the current consumable product read by the identification information reading unit, the identification information of the past toner cartridge of the same color as the toner cartridge, and the device identification information of the image forming apparatus. Transmission means for transmitting to
The charge calculation server
The identification information of the current of the toner cartridge, the identification information of the past of the toner cartridge of the same color, and a receiving means for receiving the device identification information of the image forming apparatus,
Based on the relationship between the identification information of the past of the toner cartridge, and the identification information and identification information of the past of the toner cartridge of the same color of the current of the toner cartridge received by the reception unit of the image forming apparatus, toner cartridge units Charging form generation means for generating a charging form for charging;
A charge calculation system characterized by comprising:   2. A fee calculation system according to claim 1, further comprising billing data storage means for storing identification information for each consumable of the image forming apparatus. Before Symbol image forming apparatus,
Further comprising the identification information of the current of the toner cartridge, the identification information of the past of the toner cartridge, the identification information storage unit that stores an association date and time information is color information and preparative toner cartridge is mounted in the toner cartridge,
The charge calculation system according to claim 2, wherein: The transmitting means transmits the date and time information of the toner cartridge stored in the identification information storage means together with the current identification information of the toner cartridge and the identification information of the past toner cartridge of the same color .
The charge calculation system according to claim 3, wherein: The image forming apparatus further comprises a mounting history storage means for storing placement history of toner over the cartridge,
It said mounting history storage unit stores the identification information of the current of the toner cartridge, the identification information of the toner cartridge which is replaced by the current of the toner cartridge, the information of the toner cartridge which is substituted by the substituted toner cartridge,
The charge calculation system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein The fee server stores whether or not the same identification information as the identification information of the current toner cartridge and the identification information of the past toner cartridge of the same color received by the receiving unit is stored in the charging data storage unit. A determination means for determining
The charge calculation system according to claim 2 or 3, wherein The billing data storage means stores billing presence / absence information indicating whether or not billing for the current toner cartridge and the past toner cartridge of the same color has been completed, and the identification information of the current toner cartridge, the past of the same color. Storing the identification information of the toner cartridge and the date and time information on which the toner cartridge is mounted in association with each other;
The determination means has the same identification information as the identification information of the current toner cartridge received by the receiving means or the identification information of the past toner cartridge of the same color stored in the charging data storage means, Based on the charge presence / absence information, the presence / absence of charge of the toner cartridge related to the same identification information is determined. When the charge is already completed, no duplicate charge is made. When the charge is not charged, the charge form generation unit generates the charge form. Request,
The fee calculation system according to claim 6, wherein:

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