JP5909166B2 - Device information management server, device information management method, device information management program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention provides a device information management server, a device information management method, and device information management for managing a device by obtaining information from another device that has communicated with the device when the device information cannot be acquired by the device main body. Regarding the program.

  With the spread of information technology, local area networks are now being built in some ordinary homes and many offices. A user uses a device capable of general-purpose processing such as a personal computer or a smartphone to control and use a device that provides a special function such as a printing machine or an indoor unit that is connected to be communicable.

  When using a device such as a printing press, there is a high demand for acquiring information on the operation status of the device in order to avoid a failure. In addition, more efficient operation is required from the viewpoint of economic and environmental considerations. For this purpose, for example, collection and analysis of information such as printing frequency, printing amount, and printing settings are indispensable. For example, if there are many copies of the same content and it is not necessary to print in multiple colors, introducing a gestester toner printer instead of a color printer will greatly increase the resources and costs per sheet. Can be reduced. Not only that, but by using the information, not only the user who normally uses the device, but also the remote support operator who has never used the device has the advantage of being able to grasp the device status at a glance. .

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for preventing the alarm notification process from being suppressed by apparently canceling the alarm regarding the consumables of the printing device by causing the printing device to perform polling constantly. (Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2012-68758

  According to the method disclosed in Patent Document 1, obstacles attributed to the consumables of the printing apparatus can be avoided, and by analyzing the acquired information, it is possible to analyze the cause of the large consumption and to reduce the consumption. You can take measures to reduce it.

  On the other hand, in general homes and small offices, it is often necessary to use inexpensive and low-functional equipment, and such equipment has information management functions as described in Patent Document 1. In most cases, you cannot expect to be equipped. Therefore, in particular, when one device is easily used from many devices through a network, it is difficult to collect information about the device if the device itself does not have a function of storing information about the operation status.

  Therefore, even if the inventor of the present invention cannot acquire information from the device itself, it collects a communication record stored in another device that has communicated with the device via a server, thereby relating to the device. We focused on the point that information can be acquired.

  In the case where the device does not have a function related to information collection, etc., the present invention obtains information about the device by obtaining information not from the device itself but from another device that has communicated with the device. Device information management server, device information management method, and device information management program are provided.

  The present invention provides the following solutions.

The invention according to the first feature is one or more user terminals that are communicably connected to an appliance in the same local area network, and a device information management server that is communicably connected,
Management information receiving means for receiving, from the user terminal, management information including at least information relating to the operating status of the appliance and product information relating to the model number and model of the appliance;
Management information storage means for storing management information received by the management information receiving means in a storage unit in association with an identifier for specifying the electrical appliance;
And said product information, said on the basis of the operational status of the appliances, and maintenance cost calculation means for calculating the maintenance costs of the appliance in a given period,
A device information management server is provided.

According to the first aspect of the invention, the one or more user terminals that are communicably connected to the appliances in the same local area network, and the device information management server that is communicably connected are the user terminal A management unit that receives management information including at least information related to an operation status of the electrical appliance and product information related to a model number and a model of the electrical appliance, and associates the received management information with an identifier for identifying the electrical appliance; It is stored in, and the product information, the based on the operational status of the appliances, calculates the maintenance costs of the appliance in a given period.

  The invention according to the first feature is the category of the device information management server, but the same effect and effect are exhibited in the category of the device information management method and the device information management program.

  The invention according to the second feature is the device according to the first feature, wherein the management information received from the user terminal includes a record relating to communication contents performed between the user terminal and the electrical appliance. An information management server is provided.

  According to the invention according to the second feature, the device information management server according to the invention according to the first feature is performed between the user terminal and the appliance in the management information received from the user terminal. Includes a record of communication content.

According to a third aspect of the invention, the electrical appliance is an image forming apparatus,
Management information visualization means for extracting and visualizing the management information stored by the management information storage means for each predetermined period;
A device information management server according to either the first or second feature is provided.

According to the invention according to the third feature, the appliance information management server according to the first feature or the second feature, wherein the electrical appliance is an image forming apparatus, stores the stored management information at predetermined intervals. Extract and visualize.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, the electrical appliance is an image forming apparatus,
The management information received from the user terminal includes the printing amount of the image forming apparatus,
Network print amount calculation that calculates all print amount data in the network by adding all management information received from user terminals in the same network regardless of the identifier for identifying the appliance Means,
A device information management server according to any one of the first to fourth features is provided.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the electrical appliance is an image forming apparatus, and the management information received from the user terminal includes any one of the first to the fourth including the print amount of the image forming apparatus. The device information management server according to the above feature adds all the management information received from the user terminals in the same network regardless of the identifier for specifying the electrical appliance, so that all printing in the network can be performed. Calculate the quantity data.

The invention according to the fifth aspect includes an appliance, and a device information management server that is communicably connected to a user terminal that is communicably connected to the electrical appliance.
Receiving, from the user terminal, management information including at least information on the operating status of the appliance and product information on a model number and model of the appliance;
Storing the received management information in a storage unit in association with an identifier for identifying the appliance;
Calculating said product information, said on the basis of the operational status of the appliances, the maintenance costs of the appliance in a given period,
A device information management method is provided.

The invention according to the sixth aspect includes an appliance and a device information management server connected to be communicable with a user terminal that is communicably connected to the appliance,
Receiving, from the user terminal, management information including at least information related to the operating status of the electrical appliance and product information relating to the model number and model of the electrical appliance;
Storing the received management information in a storage unit in association with an identifier for identifying the appliance;
Calculating said product information, said on the basis of the operational status of the appliances, the maintenance costs of the appliance in a given period,
Provide a device information management program for executing

  According to the present invention, when a device does not have a function related to information collection or the like, when acquiring device information, the device obtains information not from the device itself but from another device that has communicated with the device. Device information management server, device information management method, and device information management program can be provided.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an outline of the device information management system 1. FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram showing a system configuration of the device information management system 1. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of the device information management system 1. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure of operation information storage processing executed by the user terminal 10 and the electrical appliance 50. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a management information storage process executed by the user terminal 10 and the device information management server 200. FIG. 6 is an example of the management information table of the management information database 250. FIG. 7 shows an example of the operation status of the visualized image forming apparatus. FIG. 8 is an example of the operation status of the image forming apparatus visualized as a graph.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This is merely an example, and the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to this.

  The outline of the present invention will be described. In the device information management system 1, when the electrical appliance 50 does not have a function of storing information related to the operation status, the user terminal that is in the same local area network as the electrical appliance 50, not from the electrical appliance 50, and performs communication By obtaining information from 10a and the user terminal 10b, the device information management server 200 acquires information about the electrical appliance 50 without contributing to the electrical appliance 50 and contributes to the management thereof.

[Outline of Device Information Management System 1]
Here, based on FIG. 1, the outline | summary of the apparatus information management system 1 which is suitable embodiment of this invention is demonstrated.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an outline of the device information management system 1. The device information management system 1 includes user terminals 10a and 10b, an appliance 50, and a device information management server 200. Here, the electrical appliance 50 is a target of device information management, and the user terminals 10a and 10b are intended to exhibit the functions of the electrical appliance 50 through communication. The device information management server 200 includes a management information database 250.

  First, the user terminal 10a receives a user instruction, and transmits a packet including a command and data content for causing the electrical appliance 50 to perform its function (step S01). The user terminal 10a stores the protocol of the packet, and specifically, a driver for communicating with the electrical appliance 50 is installed. In the present embodiment, the user terminal 10a stores information related to a packet transmitted to the electrical appliance 50 by the support software for operating the driver, and an execution result that is a result of the electrical appliance 50 performing the function, and refers to it retrospectively. It shall be possible. Therefore, it is assumed that the communication can be stored regardless of what kind of software the electric appliance 10a uses the electric appliance 50 from. In this embodiment, the electrical appliance 50 is an image forming apparatus, and the packet includes document and image data in addition to print settings such as a color mode and a print speed. Examples of the execution result include a success signal indicating that printing has been successful, and an error log in which printing has failed due to lack of toner or paper.

  Similarly to the user terminal 10a, the user terminal 10b receives a user instruction and transmits a packet including a command and data contents for causing the electrical appliance 50 to perform its function (step S02). The user terminal 10b also stores information related to the packet transmitted to the electrical appliance 50 and the execution result of the electrical appliance 50 performing its function. The communication between the user terminals 10a and 10b and the electric appliance 50 may be communication using no packet unit in addition to communication using a USB terminal or Bluetooth, regardless of wired or wireless. Communication over the network is excluded.

  Next, the device information management server 200 that manages the electrical appliance 50 sends electrical appliances to the user terminal 10a that has communicated with the electrical appliance 50 at regular time intervals or at a predetermined timing when information needs to be updated. A management information transmission request including information relating to the operation status of 50 is made (step S03). Upon receiving the transmission request, the user terminal 10a transmits the stored management information of the electrical appliance 50 to the device information management server 200 (step S04).

  Similarly, the device information management server 200 sends an information transmission request to the user terminal 10b (step S05), and the user terminal 10b transmits the stored management information of the appliance 50 to the device information management server 200 (step S05). S06).

  The device information management server 200 stores the information transmitted as described above in the management information database 250 provided in the device information management server 200 (step S07). Storage in the management information database 250 may be performed collectively as in the present embodiment, or may be performed sequentially each time information is received. Further, the user terminal 10a may transmit the management information every time the function of the electrical appliance 50 is exhibited without waiting for a request from the device information management server 200.

  By repeating the reception of information as described above, the appliance information management server 200 can collect information on the appliance 50 even if the appliance 50 itself does not have a function of storing information. The device information management server 200 analyzes the information using a specific algorithm or provides the information to an operator who performs remote support, thereby contributing to avoidance of a failure and efficient operation. As is clear from FIG. 1, in collecting information as described above, there is no direct communication between the appliance 50 and the device information management server 200, and it is only possible to collect information on the appliance 50. However, it can be said that this is the effect of the present invention.

  In this embodiment, the electrical appliance 50 is an image forming apparatus, that is, a so-called printing machine in order to give a specific example. However, the device type of the electrical appliance 50 is not limited thereto. It can be said that the essence of the present invention is that information can be collected from another terminal that communicates with the electric appliance 50 regardless of what function the electric appliance 50 has and exhibits.

[System Configuration of Device Information Management System 1]
FIG. 2 is a system configuration diagram of the device information management system 1 which is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The device information management system 1 includes user terminals 10a and 10b (hereinafter simply referred to as “10” unless otherwise specified), appliances 50a and b (hereinafter simply referred to as “50” unless otherwise specified), a router 100, A local area network (LAN) 101, a device information management server 200, and a public network 3 (Internet network, third generation, fourth generation communication network, etc.).

  The user terminal 10 is communicably connected to the device information management server 200 via the public line network 3. The user terminal 10 and each electrical appliance 50 are connected via a LAN 101. The communication in the device information management system 1 may be wireless communication or wired communication. In order for the user terminal 10 to connect to the public line network 3, communication is possible via a network device such as the router 100. Note that the user terminal 10 is a terminal used with movement of a smartphone or the like, and may not always be able to communicate with the LAN 101.

  The user terminal 10 may be a general information terminal that is used by a user to exhibit the functions of the electrical appliance 50. The user terminal 10 may be, for example, white goods such as a refrigerator, a washing machine, in addition to a network device such as a mobile phone, a smartphone 10b, a composite printer, a television 10a, a router or a gateway, and a computer 10c. It may be a general information appliance such as a telephone, a netbook terminal, a slate terminal, an electronic book terminal, an electronic dictionary terminal, a portable music player, and a portable content playback / recording player.

  The electrical appliance 50 is a home or business electrical appliance capable of performing data communication. For example, in addition to a personal computer 50c, a television 50b, a telephone, and a computer, a mobile phone, a portable information terminal, and a netbook terminal Slate terminals, electronic book terminals, portable music players, audio components, content playback / recording players, printers, FAX machines, copiers, scanners, MFPs (multifunctional peripheral devices, multifunction printers), etc. Including white goods such as refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers / dryers, electric fans, air conditioners, electric heaters, rice cookers, microwave ovens, electric lighting, servers, routers 50a, gateways, NAS (Network Attached Storage), etc. .

  The device information management server 200 is a device information management server that collects information from the user terminal 10 and manages the electrical appliance 50, and has functions to be described later.

[Description of each function]
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the functional blocks of the electrical appliance 50, the device information management server 200, and the user terminal 10 and the relationship between the functions.

  The user terminal 10 includes a central processing unit (CPU), a random access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), and the like as a control unit, and a WiFi (Wireless Fidelity compatible), for example, compliant with IEEE 802.11. A device or a wireless device compliant with the IMT-2000 standard such as a third generation mobile communication system is included (may be a wired LAN connection).

  Furthermore, the user terminal 10 includes a display unit that outputs and displays data and images controlled by the control unit as an output / input unit, and also includes a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, and the like that receive input from the user or supporter. In addition, the user terminal 10 includes a data storage unit using a hard disk or a semiconductor memory as a storage unit.

  In the user terminal 10, when the control unit reads a predetermined program, the execution request transmission module 11, the operation information storage module 12, and the operation information transmission module 13 are cooperated with the communication unit, the output / input unit, and the storage unit. Realize.

  Similarly, the electrical appliance 50 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like as a control unit, and an IMT-2000 standard such as a WiFi compatible device compliant with IEEE 802.11 or a third generation mobile communication system as a communication unit. A wireless device or the like conforming to the above (including a wired LAN connection).

  In the electrical appliance 50, the execution request receiving module 51 and the function execution module 52 are realized by the control unit reading a predetermined program in cooperation with the communication unit.

  Similarly, the device information management server 200 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like as a control unit, and includes, for example, a WiFi compatible device that conforms to IEEE 802.11 (may be wired) as a communication unit. In addition, the device information management server 200 includes a data storage unit such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory as the storage unit 201. In addition, the device information management server 200 includes a management information database 250 in the storage unit 201.

  When the control unit of the device information management server 200 reads a predetermined program, the management information receiving module 202 and the management information visualization module 203 are realized in cooperation with the communication unit and the storage unit.

[Operation information storage processing]
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure of operation information storage processing executed by the user terminal 10 and the electrical appliance 50. The operation information storage process will be described.

  First, the execution request transmission module 11 of the user terminal 10 receives an instruction from the user and transmits an execution request to the electrical appliance 50 (step S11). This execution request refers to information necessary for demonstrating the function of the electrical appliance 50. For example, when the electrical appliance 50 is an image forming apparatus, it is a print instruction and its data content, and when it is an air conditioner Indicates information on power on / off, operation switching, and temperature setting.

  The execution request reception module 51 of the electrical appliance 50 receives the execution request from the user terminal 10 (step S12), and the function execution module 52 of the electrical appliance 50 performs a function based on the received execution request (step S13). . Demonstrating functions refers to executing functions provided in the electrical appliance 50, such as printing and starting operation.

  Next, the execution request reception module 51 transmits the execution result that has performed the function to the user terminal 10 (step S14). The execution result may include information on the success / failure of the performance of the function, the time required for the performance of the function when the function is successful, and detailed information such as the cause when the function fails.

  The execution request transmission module 11 receives the execution result from the electrical appliance 50 (step S15), and the operation information storage module 12 of the user terminal 10 stores the execution result in the storage unit of the user terminal 10 as the operation information of the electrical appliance 50. Store (step S16). Here, the stored operation information may include information on the transmitted execution request. Note that the management information and the operation information include the same information, but when handled by the user terminal 10, it is referred to as operation information of the appliance 50, and when handled by the device information management server 200, the management information and the operation information relate to the appliance 50. This is called management information.

  The above is the procedure of operation information storage processing executed by the user terminal 10 and the appliance 50.

[Management information storage process]
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a management information storage process executed by the user terminal 10 and the device information management server 200. The management information storing process will be described.

  First, the management information receiving module 202 of the device information management server 200 transmits a management information transmission request to the user terminal 10 (step S21). Here, the management information is significant information for managing the electrical appliance 50 to be managed, and refers to information related to the operating status of the electrical appliance 50, information related to data transmission / reception, product information, and the like.

  The operation information transmission module 13 of the user terminal 10 accepts a transmission request (step S22), reads the operation status of the electrical appliance 50 stored in the storage unit of the user terminal 10 (step S23), and sends it to the device information management server 200. (Step S24). Here, the operation information transmission module 13 includes information related to transmission / reception of data transmitted / received to / from the electrical appliance 50 and electrical appliances included in the driver for recognizing the electrical appliance 50 as information related to the operational status to be transmitted. 50 product information may be included.

  The management information receiving module 202 receives the transmitted information regarding the operating status (step S25) and stores it as management information in the management information table of the management information database 250 provided in the device information management server 200 (step S26).

  FIG. 6 is an example of the management information table of the management information database 250. An appliance ID for identifying the appliance 50 to be managed, a user terminal ID that has received the management information, an information acquisition date that is the date at which the information was acquired or the acquired information was stored in the user terminal The operation status of each electrical appliance 50 is stored in association with each other. In the illustrated example, the number of prints including black and white and color of PR-01 that is an image forming apparatus, the number of ON / OFF times of AC-00 that is an air conditioner, and an average set temperature are stored. Note that FIG. 6 shows an operation state in which statistical processing has already been performed, but in the case of an image forming apparatus, detailed information such as detailed settings for each printing, printing contents, and printing time are displayed. All may be memorized.

  Here, by extracting information related to a specific electrical appliance 50 from the management information table, when the electrical appliance 50 has no function of storing information, or without directly communicating with the electrical appliance 50, the electrical appliance 50 Information about the operating status can be acquired.

  After receiving and storing the management information as described above from the user terminal 10 one or more times, the management information visualization module 206 of the device information management server 200 visualizes the management information at a predetermined timing. (Step S27). The visualization refers to all calculations that process the management information into a format that can be grasped by the user, and does not include display on the display unit. As an algorithm for processing the management information, an algorithm stored in advance in the storage unit of the device information management server 200 may be read and used.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of the operation status of the visualized image forming apparatus. After clearly indicating the electrical appliance ID 61 of the image forming apparatus, the operation status 63 in a predetermined period is displayed together with the product information 62 of the image forming apparatus. Further, in addition to the ID 64 of the user and the user terminal having a large number of printed pages as information significant for management, the running cost 65 for a predetermined period calculated based on the product information 62 and a predetermined parameter is displayed. Good.

  FIG. 8 is an example of the operation status of the image forming apparatus visualized as a graph. The operating status is visualized as a graph 66. The device information management server 200 may provide the visualized management information in an API format, or may function as an HTTP server and output it. The information contributes to more advanced management of the electrical appliance 50 by referring to the administrator of the electrical appliance 50 or an operator who performs remote support for the electrical appliance 50.

  The above is the procedure of device management information storage processing executed by the user terminal 10 and the device information management server 200.

  The means and functions described above are realized by a computer (including a CPU, an information processing apparatus, and various terminals) reading and executing a predetermined program. The program is provided in a form recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a flexible disk, CD (CD-ROM, etc.), DVD (DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, etc.), for example. In this case, the computer reads the program from the recording medium, transfers it to the internal storage device or the external storage device, stores it, and executes it. The program may be recorded in advance in a storage device (recording medium) such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, or a magneto-optical disk, and provided from the storage device to a computer via a communication line.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these embodiment mentioned above. The effects described in the embodiments of the present invention are only the most preferable effects resulting from the present invention, and the effects of the present invention are limited to those described in the embodiments of the present invention. is not.

  1 device information management system, 10 user terminal, 50 electrical appliance, 200 device information management server, 250 device information management database

Claims (6)

One or more user terminals communicably connected to electrical appliances in the same local area network, and a device information management server communicably connected,
Management information receiving means for receiving, from the user terminal, management information including at least information relating to the operating status of the appliance and product information relating to the model number and model of the appliance;
Management information storage means for storing management information received by the management information receiving means in a storage unit in association with an identifier for specifying the electrical appliance;
And said product information, said on the basis of the operational status of the appliances, and maintenance cost calculation means for calculating the maintenance costs of the appliance in a given period,
A device information management server comprising:   The apparatus information management server according to claim 1, wherein the management information received from the user terminal includes a record relating to a content of communication performed between the user terminal and the appliance. The electrical appliance is an image forming apparatus,
Management information visualization means for extracting and visualizing the management information stored by the management information storage means for each predetermined period;
The device information management server according to any one of claims 1 and 2. The electrical appliance is an image forming apparatus,
The management information received from the user terminal includes the printing amount of the image forming apparatus,
Network print amount calculation that calculates all print amount data in the network by adding all management information received from user terminals in the same network regardless of the identifier for identifying the appliance Means,
The device information management server according to any one of claims 1 to 3. To one or more user terminals that are communicably connected to electrical appliances in the same local area network, and to a device information management server that is communicably connected,
Receiving, from the user terminal, management information including at least information on the operating status of the appliance and product information on a model number and model of the appliance;
Storing the received management information in a storage unit in association with an identifier for identifying the appliance;
Calculating said product information, said on the basis of the operational status of the appliances, the maintenance costs of the appliance in a given period,
A device information management method comprising: To one or more user terminals that are communicably connected to electrical appliances in the same local area network, and to a device information management server that is communicably connected,
Receiving, from the user terminal, management information including at least information related to the operating status of the electrical appliance and product information relating to the model number and model of the electrical appliance;
Storing the received management information in a storage unit in association with an identifier for identifying the appliance;
Calculating said product information, said on the basis of the operational status of the appliances, the maintenance costs of the appliance in a given period,
Device information management program to execute

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