JP5482297B2 - License management system, license management method and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a license management system, a license management method, and a program.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known a license management system that enables a customer to acquire a license for using an application and use an application installed in an image processing apparatus. Normally, in a license contract, a predetermined license period is specified, and if the customer desires to extend the license period, the license is renewed by paying a fee before the end of the specified license period.

  Here, as a method for updating, there is a method in which the image processing apparatus requests a license update to the license management apparatus. In addition, as a charging form, there is a sales model called pay-per-use that charges according to the usage volume, usage period, and the like. Further, as a measure to stop the use, there is already known a method for stopping the use of the application of the image processing apparatus on the customer side when payment of the use fee of the application cannot be confirmed.

  In this regard, for the purpose of automating license update, a technique has been proposed in which the update timing of an application license is determined and license update is automatically requested (for example, Patent Document 1). Specifically, in the method of Patent Document 1, a period and timing for automatically updating a license are set as setting information, and an expiration date, an upper limit number of prints, and the like are held in advance as license information. Automatically update licenses based on

  However, in the method of Patent Document 1, since the customer's payment status is confirmed after the expiration of the license period is detected, the license can be updated only at the timing when the license period expires. In addition, there is a problem that the use of the application cannot be stopped during the license period.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to provide a license management system, a license management method, and a program that can update a license and stop using an application at an arbitrary timing.

In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, a license management system according to the present invention includes a management device that manages the usage status of software installed in an image processing device, and a license management server that holds a license. The management device includes a storage unit that stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated with each other; and A request for stopping a license of software installed in an image processing apparatus, a stop request receiving unit for receiving a stop request including the software identification information of the software, and the management device when receiving the stop request The device identification information associated with the software identification information from the information A request for changing the extension period of the license to be acquired and updated, and a change request transmitting unit for transmitting a change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server; A request to update the license of the software, the update request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information, the image processing device identified by the acquired device identification information An update request transmission unit for transmitting to the license management server via the license management server, the license management server receiving the change request from the management device, and the device identification information and the software identification information included in the change request And a change request receiving unit that stores the information in the storage unit as stop information in association with each other, and the image processing apparatus When an update request is received, it is determined whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information, and the device identification information and the software identification information are When it is determined that it is included in the stop information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined as a period shorter than a period specified in advance as the update period, and the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information. An extension period determining unit that determines the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the extension period is not included, and a license transmission unit that transmits the license for which the extension period has been determined to the image processing apparatus. It is characterized by that.

The license management method according to the present invention is a license management method executed by a license management system including a management device that manages the usage status of software installed in an image processing device and a license management server that holds a license. The management device stores, in the storage unit, management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated with each other, and the management A request for stopping a license of software installed in the image processing apparatus, the stop request receiving step for receiving a stop request including the software identification information of the software; and the management apparatus receiving the stop request Is received from the managed device information. A request for acquiring the device identification information associated with the identification information and changing an extension period of the updated license, the change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information. A change request transmission step for transmitting to the license management server; and a request for updating the license of the software by the management apparatus, the update request including the acquired apparatus identification information and the received software identification information. An update request transmission step of transmitting to the license management server via the image processing apparatus identified by the acquired apparatus identification information, the license management server receiving the change request from the management apparatus, Stop information associated with the device identification information and the software identification information included in the change request A change request receiving step for storing in the storage unit, and when the license management server receives the update request from the image processing device, the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are: When it is determined whether or not it is included in the stop information, and it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, an extension period of a license to be updated is designated in advance as an update period. An extension period determining step for determining the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the apparatus identification information and the software identification information are not included in the stop information. And the license management server transmits a license for which the extension period is determined to the image processing apparatus. And a step.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program connected to a management device that manages a use status of software installed in an image processing device and a license management server that holds a license. A storage step for storing management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated; and software in which the management device is installed in the image processing device A stop request receiving step of receiving a stop request including the software identification information of the software, and when the management device receives the stop request, the management device information Obtaining the device identification information associated with the software identification information; A request for changing the extension period of the license to be updated, a change request transmitting step for transmitting a change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server; and the management The image processing in which an apparatus is a request to update the license of the software, and the update request including the acquired apparatus identification information and the received software identification information is identified by the acquired apparatus identification information An update request transmission step for transmitting to the license management server via a device; the license management server receives the change request from the management device; and the device identification information and the software identification information included in the change request. A change request receiving step for storing the information as stop information in association with the storage unit; and When the license management server receives the update request from the image processing device, the license management server determines whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information, When it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, an extension period of the license to be updated is determined as a period shorter than a period specified in advance as an update period, and the device identification information And the software identification information are not included in the suspension information, the extension period determining step for determining the extension period as the designated period, and the license management server determines the extension period. The license is transmitted as a license transmission step for transmitting the license to the image processing apparatus.

Also, the license management system according to the present invention, a license management to retain the intermediary device connected via a network to an image processing apparatus, a management apparatus for managing usage of software installed in the image processing apparatus, the license A storage unit that stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated with each other And a request to stop the license of the software installed in the image processing apparatus, the stop request receiving unit receiving the stop request including the software identification information of the software, and when receiving the stop request, Corresponding to the software identification information from the managed device information A request for changing the extension period of the license to be updated is acquired, and a change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information is transmitted to the license management server. A change request transmission unit, and an update request transmission unit that transmits a request for updating the license of the software, the update request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information, to the mediation device; The update device includes an update request transmission / reception unit that receives the update request and transmits the received update request to the license management server, and the license management server receives the change request from the mediation device. And the device identification information included in the change request is associated with the software identification information as stop information. When the change request receiving unit to be stored in the storage unit and the update request are received from the image processing device, whether or not the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information If it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the suspension information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined to be shorter than the period specified in advance as the update period. And an extension period determining unit that determines the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are not included in the stop information, and the extension period is determined. And a license transmission unit that transmits the license to the image processing apparatus.

Also, the license management method according to the present invention, a license management to retain the intermediary device connected via a network to an image processing apparatus, a management apparatus for managing usage of software installed in the image processing apparatus, the license A license management method executed by a license management system including a server, wherein the management device stores, in a storage unit, software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device. A storing step of storing the associated managed device information; and a request for stopping the license of the software installed in the image processing apparatus by the management apparatus, the request including the software identification information of the software A stop request receiving step, and the management device The device identification information associated with the software identification information is acquired from the management device information, and the acquired device identification information is a request to change the extension period of the license to be updated. A change request transmission step for transmitting a change request including the received software identification information to the license management server, and the management apparatus is a request to update the license of the software, and the acquired device identification information And an update request transmission step for transmitting to the mediation device an update request including the received software identification information, and the mediation device receives the update request and transmits the received update request to the license management server. Update request transmission / reception step, and the license management server sends the change request from the intermediary device. A change request receiving step in which the device identification information included in the change request is associated with the software identification information and stored in the storage unit as stop information; and the license management server receives the update from the image processing device. When the request is received, it is determined whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information, and the device identification information and the software identification information are When it is determined that the information is included in the information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined as a period shorter than the period specified in advance as the update period, and the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information An extension period determining step for determining the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the extension period is not The sense management server includes a license transmission step of transmitting the license for which the extension period is determined to the image processing apparatus.

The program according to the present invention, a mediation apparatus connected via a network to an image processing apparatus, a management apparatus for managing usage of software installed in the image processing apparatus, a license management server that holds the license A storage step in which the management device stores management device information in which the management device associates the software identification information for identifying the software with the device identification information for identifying the image processing device in a storage unit; The management device is a request to stop the license of the software installed in the image processing device and receives a stop request including the software identification information of the software; and the management device includes: When the stop request is received, the software is obtained from the management device information. A request for acquiring the device identification information associated with the service identification information and changing the extension period of the updated license, the change including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information A change request sending step for sending a request to the license management server; and a request for updating the license of the software by the management device, the update including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information An update request transmission step for transmitting a request to the mediation device; an update request transmission / reception step in which the mediation device receives the update request and transmits the received update request to the license management server; and the license management server Receives the change request from the intermediary device, and the device identification information included in the change request A change request receiving step of associating the software identification information and storing it in the storage unit as stop information; and the device included in the update request when the license management server receives the update request from the image processing device It is determined whether or not identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, and when it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, the license to be updated When the extension period is determined to be shorter than the period specified in advance as the update period, and it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are not included in the stop information, the extension period is specified. An extension period determining step for determining the extension period, and the license management server includes a license for which the extension period has been determined. And a license transmission step of transmitting the license to the image processing apparatus.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to update the license and stop using the application at an arbitrary timing.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the license management system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the software management server 400. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of billing apparatus 600. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the management apparatus 500. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of management device information. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the license management server 300. FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the mediation apparatus 200. FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram illustrating a procedure of license update processing by the license management system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of license update determination processing by the device 100. FIG. 10 is a block diagram of the configuration of the license management system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a software configuration diagram of the multifunction peripheral 100. FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram of a license update process performed by the license management system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a hardware configuration diagram of the multifunction peripheral 100.

  Exemplary embodiments of a license management system, a license management method, and a program according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following embodiments, the image processing apparatus according to the present invention is a device that represents a multi-function peripheral (MFP) having at least two functions among a copy function, a printer function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function. Although an applied example is shown, it is not limited to this.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the license management system according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the license management system includes an intermediary device 200, a license management server 300, a software distribution server 400, a management device 500, and a plurality of devices 100a, 100b, 100c (hereinafter simply referred to as unspecified devices). Device 100) is connected via a network 80 such as the Internet. A firewall 90 is provided between the network 80 and the plurality of devices 100.

  The firewall 90 detects and blocks unauthorized access by monitoring data flowing through the boundary with the outside so that a third party who has entered the remote management system through an external network such as a public line or the Internet does not perform the unauthorized operation. .

  The software distribution server 400 is a server device that stores software components that are software packages of various applications executed in the device 100 and distributes the software components to the device 100 via the mediation device 200.

  The license management server 300 receives a license (usage right) of a software component of an application provided from the software distribution server 400 and installed in the device 100 and a license (usage right) of a function executed in the device 100. It is a device managed through

  The billing device 600 is a device that detects unpaid amount of money charged by the customer (hereinafter referred to as a usage fee) and notifies the management device 500 when it is detected. Specifically, it is confirmed whether or not the usage fee has been paid on the due date. If the usage fee has not been paid, a request for stopping the license (hereinafter referred to as a license stop request) is transmitted to the management apparatus 500.

  The management device 500 is a device that manages the usage status of the software distributed by the software distribution server 400 in the device 100. Specifically, the management device 500 causes the device 100 to update the license according to the confirmation result of the payment of the usage fee by the charging device 600.

  The mediation apparatus 200 is an apparatus that mediates processing performed between the management apparatus 500 and the license management server 300 and the device 100. Specifically, the intermediary device 200 collects device information, which is the status of software installed in the device from the device 100, at regular intervals, and transmits the device information and a device ID for identifying the device to the management device 500. To do.

  Further, the intermediary device 200 requests and receives the license to be updated from the license management server 300. Further, the intermediary device 200 transmits a license update request to the device 100 together with the license, and causes the device 100 to update the license.

  The device 100 is a device having a plurality of functions such as copying, faxing, and printers, and is connected to each other via a local network such as a LAN (Local Area Network). In the remote management system of the present embodiment, three devices 100a, 100b, and 100c are connected, but the configuration is not limited to this, and one, two, or four or more devices are connected. It is good. The device 100 includes an application installation control unit that performs uninstallation after determining whether or not a component installed in the device 100 can be uninstalled based on information acquired from the management apparatus 200.

  In order to realize remote management, the license management system according to the present embodiment has a function of transmitting and receiving processing requests and responses to methods of applications to be mounted on each apparatus by RPC (Remote Procedure Call). In order to realize RPC, protocols such as SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) and FTP (File Transfer Protocol) can be used.

  Next, details of the software distribution server 400 will be described. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the software distribution server 400. As shown in FIG. 2, the software distribution server 400 mainly includes a communication unit 401 and an HDD 410.

  The HDD 410 stores software components that are software installation packages and software information corresponding to the software components. Here, the software information is information including a product ID of a software, a product key, dependent software, and the like.

  The communication unit 401 receives a software information acquisition request from the mediation device 200 or the device 100, and transmits the software information of the product ID specified by the acquisition request to the mediation device 200 or the device 100. Further, the communication unit 401 receives a software request from the mediation device 200, acquires the designated software component from the HDD 410, and distributes it to the mediation device.

  Next, details of billing apparatus 600 will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of billing apparatus 600. As shown in FIG. 3, the billing apparatus 600 mainly includes a communication unit 601, a detection unit 602, a license suspension request transmission unit 603, and an HDD 610.

  The communication unit 601 obtains usage fee payment information for each device from a portal site (not shown) and stores it in the HDD 610. Here, in the payment information, a customer ID for identifying a customer, a product ID for identifying an application used by the device, a due date, and the presence / absence of payment are associated. The HDD 610 stores payment information.

  The detection unit 602 refers to the payment information and detects the unpaid device 100 for which the usage fee has not been paid on the due date. The license suspension request transmission unit 603 transmits a license suspension request for the device 100 whose fee has not been paid to the management apparatus 500 when the detection unit 602 detects that the fee has not been paid. Here, the license stop request includes a customer ID and a product ID.

  Next, details of the management apparatus 500 will be described. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the management apparatus 500. As shown in FIG. 4, the management apparatus 500 mainly includes a communication unit 501, a license stop request reception unit 502, a license change request transmission unit 503, a license update request transmission unit 504, and an HDD 510.

  The HDD 510 stores management device information. Here, the management device information is information in which a customer ID for identifying a customer is associated with a device ID. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of management device information. As shown in FIG. 5, customer IDs “A000001” to “A000004” are registered as managed device information. The customer ID is associated with a product ID and a device ID. For example, the device ID associated with the customer ID “A000001” and the product ID “SH000001” is “NRS3 000001”.

  The communication unit 501 transmits / receives data and requests to / from the charging device 600, the license management server 300, and the mediation device 200.

  The license stop request receiving unit 502 receives a license stop request including a customer ID and a product ID from the charging apparatus 600. For example, the license suspension request receiving unit 502 receives a license suspension request including the customer ID “A000001” and the product ID “SH000001”.

  In this embodiment, the license stop request receiving unit 502 is configured to transmit a license stop request from the charging apparatus 600, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the license suspension request receiving unit 502 may be configured such that the management device 500 directly receives an input of a license suspension request, or may be configured to receive a license suspension request from another device. As a result, the license can be stopped not only when the usage fee is not paid but also when the device 100 is detected to enter the unauthorized network.

  When the license change request transmission unit 503 receives the license stop request by the license stop request receiving unit 502, the license change request transmission unit 503 refers to the management device information and acquires the device ID associated with the customer ID included in the license stop request. For example, when receiving the license stop request including the customer ID “A000001” and the product ID “SH000001”, the license change request transmission unit 503 acquires the device ID “NRS3000001” from the management device information illustrated in FIG. . The license change request transmission unit 503 transmits to the license management server 300 a request for changing the extension period of the license including the device ID and the product ID (hereinafter referred to as a license change request).

  Also, the license change request transmission unit 503 receives a license change success notification from the license management server 300 in response to the transmission of the license change request via the communication unit 501. Here, the success notification of the license change is a notification indicating the end of storage of the device ID and product ID by the license management server 300.

  When the license change request transmission unit 503 receives a success notification from the license management server 300, the license update request transmission unit 504 transmits a license update request (hereinafter referred to as a license update request) to the mediation apparatus 200. The license update request transmitted here is a request to update the license with a short license period in order to stop the license, and specifically, a request to stop the license.

  For example, the license update request transmission unit 504 refers to the management device information and acquires the device ID associated with the customer ID included in the license stop request. The license update request transmission unit 504 transmits a license update request including the device ID to the mediation apparatus 200. For example, when the license update request transmission unit 504 receives a license stop request including the customer ID “A000001” and the product ID “SH000001”, the license update request transmission unit 504 includes the device ID “NRS3 000001” acquired from the management device information in FIG. A license update request is transmitted to the mediation apparatus 200.

  Next, details of the license management server 300 will be described. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the license management server 300. As shown in FIG. 6, the license management server 300 includes a communication unit 301, a license change request receiving unit 302, a license update request receiving unit 303, an extension period determining unit 304, a license transmitting unit 305, and an HDD 310. Prepare mainly.

  The HDD 310 stores license information and license stop information. Here, the license information is information related to the use permission of the application to the device 100, and includes a device ID, a product ID, a license period, a license extension period, and the like. The license period is a license period designated at the time of contract.

  The license extension period is a license period that is extended at the time of renewal (hereinafter referred to as the license extension period), and is defined to stop the use of the application and the normal period that indicates the license period specified at the time of the contract. There is a short period. Specifically, the short period can be set in units of hours or days, for example, one day can be set.

  The communication unit 301 transmits / receives data and requests to / from the management device 500, the mediation device 200, and the software distribution server 400.

  The license change request receiving unit 302 receives a license change request from the management apparatus 500, and combines the device ID and product ID included in the license change request and stores them in the HDD 310 as license stop information. When the license change request receiving unit 302 stores the device ID and product ID in the HDD 310, the license change request receiving unit 302 transmits a license change success notification to the management apparatus 500.

  The license update request receiving unit 303 receives a request for updating a license including a device ID and a product ID (hereinafter referred to as a license update request) from the mediation apparatus 200.

  When the license update request receiving unit 303 receives the license update request, the extension period determining unit 304 confirms whether the combination of the device ID and the product ID included in the license update request is registered in the license stop information. When the extension period determination unit 304 confirms that the combination of the device ID and product ID included in the license update request is registered in the license suspension information, the extension period determination unit 304 determines that the license extension period is a short period and is not registered. If it is confirmed, it is determined as the normal period.

  The license transmission unit 305 transmits the license in which the license extension period determined by the extension period determination unit 304 is set to the mediation apparatus 200.

  Next, details of the intermediary device 200 will be described. FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the mediation apparatus 200. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the mediation apparatus 200 mainly includes a communication unit 201, a license update request transmission / reception unit 202, a license transmission / reception unit 203, and an HDD 210.

  The HDD 210 stores management device information. Here, the management device information stored in the HDD 210 is the same as that shown in FIG. The communication unit 201 transmits / receives data and requests to / from the device 100, the management apparatus 500, and the license management server 300.

  Upon receiving a license update request from the management apparatus 500, the license update request transmission / reception unit 202 transmits a license update request to the device 100 and the license management server 300.

  The license transmission / reception unit 203 receives a license from the license management server 300 and transmits the received license to the device 100.

  Next, license update processing by the license management system of the first embodiment configured as described above will be described. FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram illustrating the flow of the license update process according to the first embodiment.

  The billing apparatus 600 transmits a license stop request to the management apparatus 500 (step S1). Here, the license stop request includes a customer ID and a product ID. Upon receiving the license stop request, the management device 500 refers to the management device information and identifies the device ID that is the license stop target from the customer ID and product ID included in the license stop request (step S2). The management device 500 transmits a license change request to the license management server 300 (step S3). Here, the license change request includes a device ID and a product ID.

  Upon receiving the license change request, the license management server 300 stores the device ID and product ID included in the license change request in the HDD 310 as license stop information (step S4). After storing the stop information in the HDD 310, the license management server 300 transmits a license change success notification to the management server 500 (step S5).

  When the management server 500 receives the license change success notification from the license management server 300, the management server 500 transmits a license update request to the mediation apparatus 200 (step S6). Here, the license update request is a request to stop the license. The mediation device 200 transmits a license update request to the device 100 (step S7). The device 100 transmits a license transmission request for updating to the mediation apparatus 200 (step S8).

  The mediation apparatus 200 transmits a license update request to the license management server 300 (step S9). The license management server 300 determines the license extension period (step S10). Here, since the license management server 300 stores the device ID and the product ID in step S4, it determines that the license extension period is a short period (step S10).

  The license management server 300 transmits a license in which the license extension period is set to a short time to the mediation apparatus 200 (step S11). The mediation apparatus 200 transmits a license in which the license extension period is set to a short time to the device 100 (step S12). When the device 100 that has received the license renews the license whose license extension period is set to a short period, the application that is not paid for the short period of time cannot be used.

  Next, a procedure for license update processing by the license management server 300 will be described. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the procedure of license update processing by the license management server 300.

  The license update request receiving unit 303 receives a license transmission request from the mediation apparatus 200 (step S21). The extension period determination unit 304 refers to the license suspension information for the device ID and product ID included in the license transmission request, and determines whether a license suspension request has been received (step S22). Specifically, the extension period determining unit 304 confirms whether or not the license suspension information includes a set of device ID and product ID included in the license suspension request. If the extension period determining unit 304 determines that a license stop request has not been received (step S22: No), the extension period determining unit 304 determines the license extension period as a normal period (step S23).

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the license stop request has been received (step S22: Yes), the extension period determination unit 304 determines the license extension period in a short time (step S24). Specifically, the extension period determination unit 304 determines the license extension period in a short period of time when it is confirmed that the license suspension information includes a set of device ID and product ID included in the license suspension request. . The license transmission unit 305 transmits the license in which the license extension period determined by the extension period determination unit 304 is set to the mediation apparatus 200 (step S25).

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when an unpaid usage fee is detected, the device is updated to a license whose license extension period is set within a short period of time. You can stop using it.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the license extension period is updated to a short time for the device at an arbitrary timing, not only when an unpaid usage fee is detected, but also when a problem occurs. You can immediately update the license and stop using the application.

(Embodiment 2)
In the first embodiment, a license update request is received from the management apparatus 500 via the mediation apparatus 200, a license update request is transmitted to the license management server 300, and a license is received from the license management server 300. . On the other hand, in the second embodiment, the device 100 directly performs various transmissions / receptions with the management device 500 and the license management server 300 without going through the mediation device 200.

  FIG. 10 is a network configuration diagram of the license management system according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the management device 500, the software distribution server 400, the license management server 300, the charging device 600, and the device 100 are connected to the network 80. The intermediary device is not provided.

  Here, the configuration of management apparatus 500, software distribution server 400, license management server 300, and charging apparatus 600 is the same as that of the first embodiment. However, the management apparatus 500 transmits a license update request directly to the device 100. In addition, the license management server 300 transmits the license directly to the device 100.

  Next, the device 100 will be described. FIG. 11 is a software configuration diagram of the device 100 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 11, the device 100 includes a monochrome laser printer (B & W LP) 101, a color laser printer (Color LP) 102, an HDD 103, hardware resources 104 such as a scanner, a facsimile, and a memory, a network interface (I). / F) 105 and a software group 110 including a platform 120 and an application 130.

  The platform 120 interprets a processing request from an application and generates a hardware resource acquisition request, and a system resource manager that manages one or a plurality of hardware resources and arbitrates the acquisition request from the control service. (SRM) 123 and a general-purpose OS 121.

  The control service is formed of a plurality of service modules, and includes an SCS (system control service) 122, an ECS (engine control service) 124, an MCS (memory control service) 125, an OCS (operation panel control service) 126, and an FCS. (Fax Control Service) 127, NCS (Network Control Service) 128, NRS (New Remote Service) 129, and Application Install Control Service 131. The platform 120 has an application program interface (API) that enables a processing request to be received from the application 130 using a predefined function.

  The general-purpose OS 121 is a general-purpose operating system such as UNIX (registered trademark), and executes the software of the platform 120 and the application 130 in parallel as processes.

  The process of the SRM 123 performs system control and resource management together with the SCS 122. The SRM123 process uses hardware resources such as engines such as a scanner unit and printer unit, memory, HDD file, and host I / O (Centro I / F, network I / F, IEEE 1394 I / F, RS232C I / F, etc.). Arbitration is performed according to the request from the upper layer to be used, and execution control is performed.

  Specifically, the SRM 123 determines whether the requested hardware resource is available (whether it is not used by another request), and if it is available, the requested hardware resource is used. Tell the upper layer that it is possible. In addition, the SRM 123 performs use scheduling of hardware resources in response to a request from an upper layer, and directly executes the request contents (for example, paper conveyance and image forming operation by the printer engine, memory allocation, file generation, etc.). .

  The process of the SCS 122 performs application management, operation unit control, system screen display, LED display, resource management, interrupt application control, and the like.

  The process of the ECS 124 controls the engine of the hardware resource 104 including a black and white laser printer (B & W LP) 101, a color laser printer (Color LP) 102, a scanner, a facsimile, and the like.

  The MCS 125 process acquires and releases an image memory, uses a hard disk device (HDD), compresses and decompresses image data, and the like.

  The FCS 127 process includes facsimile transmission / reception using PSTN / ISDN network from each application layer of the system controller, registration / quotation of various facsimile data managed by BKM (backup SRAM), facsimile reading, facsimile reception printing, and fusion transmission / reception. Provides an API to do.

  The NCS 128 process is a process for providing a service that can be commonly used for applications that require network I / O. Data received from the network side according to each protocol is distributed to each application, and data from the application. Mediation when sending to the network side.

  In the present embodiment, the NCS 128 process receives an install request and an uninstall request together with application and license information. Further, the process of the NCS 128 notifies the management apparatus 200 of installation completion information when the application installation based on the installation request is successful. On the other hand, when the application installation based on the installation request fails, the management apparatus 200 is notified of the installation incomplete information. Further, when the application based on the uninstall request is successfully uninstalled, the NCS 128 process notifies the management apparatus 200 of uninstallation completion information. On the other hand, if the uninstallation of the application based on the uninstallation request has failed, the management apparatus 200 is notified of uninstallation incomplete information.

  The process of the OCS 126 controls an operation panel (operation panel) serving as information transmission means between the operator (user) and the main body control. The OCS 126 obtains a key press (or touch operation) from the operation panel as a key event, and operates according to a request from the application 130 or the control service and a part of the OCS process that transmits a key event function corresponding to the obtained key to the SCS 122. A drawing function for drawing and outputting various screens on the panel, a function for controlling the operation panel, and the like are composed of pre-registered OCS library portions. The OCS library is mounted by being linked to each module of the application 130 and the control service. The OCS 126 may be configured to operate as a process, or the OCS 126 may be configured as an OCS library.

  The application installation control service 131 performs application installation processing based on the received application and license information based on the installation request received by the NCS 128 process. In addition, the application installation control service 131 performs an application uninstall process based on the received license information based on the uninstall request received by the NCS 128 process.

  The process of the NRS 129 has a function related to device remote management via the network and a scheduler function such as data conversion when data is transmitted and received via the network.

  The application 130 includes a printer application 111 that is a printer application having a page description language (PDL), PCL, and postscript (PS), a copy application 112 that is a copy application, and a fax application 113 that is a facsimile application. A scanner application 114 as a scanner application, a network file application 115 as a network file application, a process inspection application 116 as a process inspection application, and a WEB server for a client terminal such as a PC connected to the Internet It has a WEB application 117 that operates as an (http server) and displays various screens on a WEB browser that operates on a client terminal.

  Each process of the application 130 and each process of the control service realize user services related to image forming processing such as copying, printers, scanners, and facsimiles while performing inter-process communication by calling functions, sending return values thereof, and sending and receiving messages. doing.

  As described above, the device 100 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of applications 130 and a plurality of control services, all of which operate as processes. In each of these processes, one or a plurality of threads are generated and parallel execution is performed in units of threads. The control service provides a common service to the application 130. For this reason, a large number of these processes perform a parallel operation and a parallel operation of threads to perform inter-process communication with each other. User services related to image forming processing such as copying, printers, scanners, and facsimiles are provided.

  In addition, in the device 100, a third party such as a customer of the device 100 or a third vendor can develop and install the external application 172 in the application layer above the control service layer. The external application 172 is an application received from the management apparatus 500 and is installed by the application installation control service 131.

  In the device 100 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of application 130 processes and a plurality of control service processes are operating. However, the application 130 and the control service process may each have a single configuration. Is possible. Each application 130 can be added or deleted for each application. That is, as described above, the external application 172 can be installed and can be uninstalled.

  Next, license update processing by the license management system of the second embodiment configured as described above will be described. FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram illustrating the flow of the license update process according to the second embodiment.

  The processing from step S31 to step S35 is the same as that from step S1 to step S5 of the license update processing of the first embodiment described in FIG. In step S36, the management apparatus 500 transmits a license update request to the device 100 (step S36). Upon receiving the license update request, the device 100 transmits a license update request to the license management server 300 (step S37). Here, the license update request includes a device ID and a product ID.

  Step S38 is the same as step S10 of the license update process of the first embodiment. In step S39, the license management server 300 transmits a license in which the determined license extension period is set to the device 100. When the device 100 that has received the license renews the license whose license extension period is set to a short period, the application that is not paid for the short period of time cannot be used.

  Thus, in this embodiment, in addition to the same effects as in the first embodiment, the device 100 directly transmits and receives various data and requests to and from the management apparatus 500 and the license management server 300. Time can be shortened.

  In the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the license stop request received by the management apparatus 500 is not limited to the charging apparatus 600.

  FIG. 13 is a hardware configuration diagram of the device 100 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 13, the device 100 has a configuration in which the controller 10 and an engine unit (Engine) 60 are connected by a PCI (Peripheral Component Interface) bus. The controller 10 is a controller that controls the entire device 100 and controls drawing, communication, and input from an operation unit (not shown). The engine unit 60 is a printer engine that can be connected to a PCI bus, and is, for example, a monochrome plotter, a one-drum color plotter, a four-drum color plotter, a scanner, or a fax unit. The engine unit 60 includes an image processing part such as error diffusion and gamma conversion in addition to a so-called engine part such as a plotter.

  The controller 10 includes a CPU 11, a north bridge (NB) 13, a system memory (MEM-P) 12, a south bridge (SB) 14, a local memory (MEM-C) 17, and an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). 16 and a hard disk drive (HDD) 103, and the north bridge (NB) 13 and the ASIC 16 are connected by an AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) bus 15. The MEM-P 12 further includes a ROM 12a and a RAM 12b.

  The HDD 103 stores a device ID for identifying the device 100 and a component installed in the device 100.

  The CPU 11 performs overall control of the device 100, has a chip set composed of the NB 13, the MEM-P 12, and the SB 14, and is connected to other devices via the chip set.

  The NB 13 is a bridge for connecting the CPU 11 to the MEM-P 12, SB 14, and AGP 15, and includes a memory controller that controls reading and writing to the MEM-P 12, a PCI master, and an AGP target.

  The MEM-P 12 is a system memory used as a memory for storing programs and data, a memory for developing programs and data, a memory for drawing a printer, and the like, and includes a ROM 12a and a RAM 12b. The ROM 12a is a read-only memory used as a program / data storage memory, and the RAM 12b is a writable / readable memory used as a program / data development memory, a printer drawing memory, or the like.

  The SB 14 is a bridge for connecting the NB 13 to a PCI device and peripheral devices. The SB 14 is connected to the NB 13 via a PCI bus, and a network interface (I / F) unit and the like are also connected to the PCI bus.

  The ASIC 16 is an IC (Integrated Circuit) for image processing applications having hardware elements for image processing, and has a role of a bridge for connecting the AGP 15, PCI bus, HDD 103, and MEM-C 17. The ASIC 16 includes a PCI target and an AGP master, an arbiter (ARB) that is the core of the ASIC 16, a memory controller that controls the MEM-C 17, and a plurality of DMACs (Direct Memory) that perform rotation of image data by hardware logic. Access controller) and a PCI unit that performs data transfer between the engine unit 60 via the PCI bus. An FCU (Facsimile Control Unit) 30, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) 40, and an IEEE 1394 (the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 1394) interface 50 are connected to the ASIC 16 via a PCI bus. The operation display unit 190 is directly connected to the ASIC 16.

  The MEM-C 17 is a local memory used as a copy image buffer and a code buffer, and the HDD 103 is a storage for storing image data, programs, font data, and forms.

  The AGP 15 is a bus interface for a graphics accelerator card proposed for speeding up graphics processing. The AGP 15 speeds up the graphics accelerator card by directly accessing the MEM-P 12 with high throughput. .

  The management device 500 of the present embodiment includes a control device such as a CPU, a storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory), an external storage device such as an HDD and a CD drive device, and a display device. And a display device such as a keyboard and a mouse, and has a hardware configuration using a normal computer.

  The license management program executed by the management apparatus 500 of the present embodiment is a file in an installable or executable format, such as a CD-ROM, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-R, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), or the like. The program is provided by being recorded on a computer-readable recording medium.

  Further, the license management program executed by the management apparatus 500 of this embodiment may be provided by being stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and downloaded via the network. In addition, the license management program executed by the license management server 200 according to the present embodiment may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet.

  Further, the license management program according to the present embodiment may be provided by being incorporated in advance in a ROM or the like.

  The license management program executed by the management apparatus 500 of the present embodiment has a module configuration including the above-described units (license stop request receiving unit, license change request transmitting unit, license update request transmitting unit). As hardware, a CPU (processor) reads out and executes a license management program from the storage medium, whereby the above-described units are loaded onto the main storage device, and a license stop request receiving unit, a license change request transmitting unit, and a license update request transmitting Are generated on the main memory.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Apparatus 200 Mediation apparatus 201, 301, 401, 501 Communication part 202 License update request transmission / reception part 203 License transmission / reception part 210, 310, 410, 510 HDD
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 300 License management server 302 License change request reception part 303 License update request reception part 304 Extension period determination part 305 License transmission part 400 Software distribution server 500 Management apparatus 502 License stop request reception part 503 License change request transmission part 504 License update request transmission part 600 Billing device 602 detection unit 603 license stop request transmission unit

JP 2006-235963 A

Claims (8)

A license management system comprising a management device that manages the usage status of software installed in an image processing device, and a license management server that holds a license,
The management device
A storage unit that stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated;
A request to stop the license of the software installed in the image processing apparatus, and a stop request receiving unit that receives a stop request including the software identification information of the software;
When the stop request is received, the device identification information associated with the software identification information is acquired from the management device information, and the request for changing the extension period of the license to be updated is obtained. A change request transmission unit for transmitting a change request including device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server;
A request to update the license of the software, the update request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information, via the image processing device identified by the acquired device identification information An update request transmitter for transmitting to the license management server,
With
The license management server
A change request receiving unit that receives the change request from the management device, associates the device identification information included in the change request with the software identification information, and saves the information as stop information in a storage unit;
When the update request is received from the image processing apparatus, it is determined whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information, and the device identification information and the When it is determined that the software identification information is included in the suspension information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined as a period shorter than a period specified in advance as the update period, and the device identification information and the software identification information are determined. Is determined not to be included in the stop information, the extension period determining unit that determines the extension period to the specified period,
A license transmission unit for transmitting the license for which the extension period is determined to the image processing apparatus;
A license management system comprising: The license management system further comprises a billing device that charges for the use of the software,
The charging device is
A detection unit for detecting unpaid payment of the software usage fee;
A stop request transmitter for transmitting the stop request further including customer identification information for identifying a customer who has licensed the software when the unpaid is detected;
With
The management device
The storage unit stores the customer identification information as the management device information in association with the software identification information and the device identification information,
The stop request receiving unit receives the stop request from the charging device;
The change request transmission unit acquires the device identification information associated with the customer identification information and the software identification information included in the stop request from the management device information, and sends the change request to the license management server. Sending,
The license management system according to claim 1. A mediating apparatus connected via a network to an image processing apparatus, a management apparatus for managing usage of software installed in the image processing apparatus, a license management system comprising a license management server holding the license ,
The management device
A storage unit that stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated;
A request to stop the license of the software installed in the image processing apparatus, and a stop request receiving unit that receives a stop request including the software identification information of the software;
When the stop request is received, the device identification information associated with the software identification information is acquired from the management device information, and the request for changing the extension period of the license to be updated is obtained. A change request transmission unit for transmitting a change request including device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server;
An update request transmitting unit that transmits a request for updating the license of the software, the update request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information, to the mediation device;
With
The intermediary device is:
An update request transmission / reception unit that receives the update request and transmits the received update request to the license management server;
With
The license management server
A change request receiving unit that receives the change request from the intermediary device, associates the device identification information included in the change request with the software identification information, and saves the information as stop information in a storage unit;
When the update request is received from the image processing apparatus, it is determined whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information, and the device identification information and the When it is determined that the software identification information is included in the suspension information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined as a period shorter than a period specified in advance as the update period, and the device identification information and the software identification information are determined. Is determined not to be included in the stop information, the extension period determining unit that determines the extension period to the specified period,
A license transmission unit for transmitting the license for which the extension period is determined to the image processing apparatus;
A license management system comprising: The license management system further comprises a billing device that charges for the use of the software,
The charging device is
A detection unit for detecting unpaid payment of the software usage fee;
A stop request transmitter for transmitting the stop request further including customer identification information for identifying a customer who has licensed the software when the unpaid is detected;
With
The management device
The storage unit stores the customer identification information as the management device information in association with the software identification information and the device identification information,
The stop request receiving unit receives the stop request from the charging device;
The change request transmission unit acquires the device identification information associated with the customer identification information and the software identification information included in the stop request from the management device information, and sends the change request to the license management server. Sending,
The license management system according to claim 3. A license management method executed in a license management system including a management device that manages the usage status of software installed in an image processing device and a license management server that holds a license,
A storing step in which the management device stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated with each other in a storage unit;
A stop request receiving step for receiving a stop request including the software identification information of the software, wherein the management device is a request to stop a license of software installed in the image processing device;
When the management device receives the stop request, the management device acquires the device identification information associated with the software identification information from the managed device information, and changes the extension period of the updated license. A change request transmitting step for transmitting a change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server;
The management device is a request for updating the license of the software, and the update request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information is identified by the acquired device identification information. An update request transmitting step for transmitting to the license management server via an image processing device;
The license management server receives the change request from the management device, a change request receiving step of storing the device identification information and the software identification information included in the change request in association with each other and storing them as stop information in a storage unit;
When the license management server receives the update request from the image processing device, the license management server determines whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information; When it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined to be shorter than a period specified in advance as an update period, and the device identification An extension period determining step for determining the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the information and the software identification information are not included in the stop information;
A license transmission step in which the license management server transmits the license for which the extension period is determined to the image processing apparatus;
A license management method comprising: A computer connected to a management device that manages the usage status of software installed in the image processing device and a license management server that holds a license;
A storing step in which the management device stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated with each other in a storage unit;
A stop request receiving step for receiving a stop request including the software identification information of the software, wherein the management device is a request to stop a license of software installed in the image processing device;
When the management device receives the stop request, the management device acquires the device identification information associated with the software identification information from the managed device information, and changes the extension period of the updated license. A change request transmitting step for transmitting a change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server;
The management device is a request for updating the license of the software, and the update request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information is identified by the acquired device identification information. An update request transmitting step for transmitting to the license management server via an image processing device;
The license management server receives the change request from the management device, a change request receiving step of storing the device identification information and the software identification information included in the change request in association with each other and storing them as stop information in a storage unit;
When the license management server receives the update request from the image processing device, the license management server determines whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information; When it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined to be shorter than a period specified in advance as an update period, and the device identification An extension period determining step for determining the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the information and the software identification information are not included in the stop information;
A license transmission step in which the license management server transmits a license for which the extension period has been determined to the image processing apparatus;
Program to function as. A mediating apparatus connected via a network to an image processing apparatus, a management apparatus for managing usage of software installed in the image processing apparatus, is executed by the license management system comprising a license management server holding the license License management method,
A storing step in which the management device stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated with each other in a storage unit;
A stop request receiving step for receiving a stop request including the software identification information of the software, wherein the management device is a request to stop a license of software installed in the image processing device;
When the management device receives the stop request, the management device acquires the device identification information associated with the software identification information from the managed device information, and changes the extension period of the updated license. A change request transmitting step for transmitting a change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server;
An update request sending step for sending an update request to the mediating device, wherein the management device is a request to update the license of the software, and includes the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information;
An update request transmission / reception step in which the intermediary device receives the update request and transmits the received update request to the license management server;
The license management server receives the change request from the mediation device, and associates the device identification information included in the change request with the software identification information and stores the change request in a storage unit as stop information;
When the license management server receives the update request from the image processing device, the license management server determines whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information; When it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined to be shorter than a period specified in advance as an update period, and the device identification An extension period determining step for determining the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the information and the software identification information are not included in the stop information;
A license transmission step in which the license management server transmits the license for which the extension period is determined to the image processing apparatus;
A license management method comprising: A mediating apparatus connected via a network to an image processing apparatus, a management apparatus for managing usage of software installed in the image processing apparatus, a computer connected to the license management server holding the license,
A storing step in which the management device stores management device information in which software identification information for identifying the software and device identification information for identifying the image processing device are associated with each other in a storage unit;
A stop request receiving step for receiving a stop request including the software identification information of the software, wherein the management device is a request to stop a license of software installed in the image processing device;
When the management device receives the stop request, the management device acquires the device identification information associated with the software identification information from the managed device information, and changes the extension period of the updated license. A change request transmitting step for transmitting a change request including the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information to the license management server;
An update request sending step for sending an update request to the mediating device, wherein the management device is a request to update the license of the software, and includes the acquired device identification information and the received software identification information;
An update request transmission / reception step in which the intermediary device receives the update request and transmits the received update request to the license management server;
The license management server receives the change request from the mediation device, and associates the device identification information included in the change request with the software identification information and stores the change request in a storage unit as stop information;
When the license management server receives the update request from the image processing device, the license management server determines whether the device identification information and the software identification information included in the update request are included in the stop information; When it is determined that the device identification information and the software identification information are included in the stop information, the extension period of the license to be updated is determined to be shorter than a period specified in advance as an update period, and the device identification An extension period determining step for determining the extension period as the designated period when it is determined that the information and the software identification information are not included in the stop information;
A license transmission step in which the license management server transmits a license for which the extension period has been determined to the image processing apparatus;
Program to function as.