JP6460029B2 - Job reservation system and job reservation method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a job reservation system and a job reservation method for reserving a job to be executed by an image forming apparatus (MFP, Multifunction Peripheral).

  Conventionally, when a print job is reserved and executed by an image forming apparatus, only reservation data such as a print data file name and a print end date is transmitted in advance from a PC (Personal Computer) as a host computer. It has been performed to store in the storage unit (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In the image forming apparatus of Patent Document 1, reservation data from a PC is recorded in a print reservation recording unit, and a reservation is received. When printing is actually output, a print data transmission request is issued to the PC.

  As a result, print data is transmitted from the PC, and print output is performed by the image forming apparatus. As described above, since the image forming apparatus acquires print data at the time of actual print output, it is not necessary to store the print data by itself from the time of reservation to the time of print output.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-234881

  However, in the technique of Patent Document 1, job reservation cannot be accepted in a state where the power of the image forming apparatus is off or in an offline state where the network connection is cut off, and convenience for the user is impaired.

  In view of the circumstances as described above, an object of the present invention is to provide a job reservation system and a job reservation method capable of performing job reservation even in an offline state where communication with an image forming apparatus is not possible.

  In order to achieve the above object, a job reservation system according to an aspect of the present invention includes a network-connected management server and one or more image forming apparatuses managed by the management server, wherein the management server includes: A first communication unit capable of communicating via the network, a reserved job database capable of storing reservation information that is information of a job reserved and executed in any one of the one or more image forming apparatuses, and a user terminal A job reservation management unit that stores the instructed contents as the reservation information in the reserved job database when the selection of the image forming apparatus that executes the job and the reservation of the job are instructed. In each of the above image forming apparatuses, the second communication unit capable of communication via the network, the storage unit, and the own apparatus are online. When in, and a job execution management unit attempting to acquire the reservation information about the own device from the management server. Therefore, job reservation can be performed even in an offline state where communication with the image forming apparatus is not possible.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the job reservation system according to an aspect of the present invention, when the job execution management unit acquires the reservation information as a result of the acquisition, the storage unit stores the acquired reservation information. The contents of the acquired reservation information are confirmed, and when the time when the job is reserved is reached, the job may be executed.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the job reservation system according to an aspect of the present invention, when the job execution management unit cannot acquire the reservation information as a result of the acquisition, the job execution management unit is already stored in the storage unit. If there is the reservation information, the reservation information stored in the storage unit may be deleted.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the job reservation method according to an aspect of the present invention, the job reservation management unit of the management server is any of one or more image forming apparatuses managed by the management server from the user terminal. When selection of an image forming apparatus for executing a reserved and executed job and reservation of the job are instructed, the instructed content is stored as reservation information in a reserved job database, and the job execution management unit of the image forming apparatus However, when the self-device comes online, it tries to acquire the reservation information related to the self-device from the management server.

  As described above, according to the present invention, job reservation can be performed even in an offline state where communication with the image forming apparatus is not possible.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a job reservation system 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram in case the management server 10 is comprised by a general computer. 1 is a configuration diagram schematically showing a configuration of an image forming apparatus 20. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of job reservation information reserved in the image forming apparatus 20. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a job reservation setting screen used when a job is reserved in the image forming apparatus 20. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the cancellation screen of a job reservation used when canceling the already reserved job. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing related to job reservation in processing in the job reservation system 1. FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing related to execution of a reserved job among processing in the job reservation system 1. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing relating to cancellation of a reserved job among the processing in the job reservation system 1. It is a block diagram in case the management server 10 is comprised by a general computer. 1 is a configuration diagram schematically showing a configuration of an image forming apparatus 20. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing related to job reservation when offline among processing in the job reservation system 1. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has not yet arrived because the image forming apparatus 20 is online. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has already passed since the image forming apparatus 20 is online. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing related to job cancellation when offline in the processing of the job reservation system 1. FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the image forming apparatus 20 is online and there is no job reservation to be acquired.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment>
[overall structure]
First, the overall configuration of the job reservation system according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a job reservation system 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  The job reservation system 1 includes a management server 10 and one or more image forming apparatuses 20 managed by the management server 10.

  The management server 10, the image forming apparatus 20, and the PC 30 (user terminal) used by the user to access the management server 10 are connected via a network.

  In order to reserve a job to be executed in any one of the image forming apparatuses 20 connected to the network, the user accesses the management server 10 using the PC 30 and executes the job. Specify a time and reserve a job.

  At the reserved time, the job is executed in the image forming apparatus 20 for which the job is reserved, and the execution result is notified to the user via the management server 10.

  The overall configuration of the job reservation system according to the first embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[Management Server Configuration]
Next, the configuration of the management server 10 will be described. The management server 10 may be configured by dedicated hardware or software, or may be configured by a general computer. FIG. 2 shows a configuration diagram when the management server 10 is configured by a general computer.

  As shown in the figure, the management server 10 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 11, a read only memory (ROM) 12, a random access memory (RAM) 13, an operation input unit 14, a communication unit 15, a display unit 16, and A storage unit 17 is provided, and these blocks are connected via a bus 18.

  The ROM 12 stores a plurality of programs and data such as firmware for executing various processes. The RAM 13 is used as a work area for the CPU 11 and temporarily holds an OS (Operating System), various applications being executed, and various data being processed.

  The storage unit 17 is, for example, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a flash memory, or other nonvolatile memory. The storage unit 17 stores an OS, various applications, various data, and a reserved job DB (database) 17a.

  The reserved job DB 17 a is a database that stores reservation information that is information on jobs that are reserved for execution in the image forming apparatus 20 under the management of the management server 10.

  The communication unit 15 is connected to a network for exchanging information with the image forming apparatus 20 and the PC 30.

  The CPU 11 develops a program corresponding to an instruction given from the operation input unit 14 among the plurality of programs stored in the ROM 12 or the storage unit 17 in the RAM 13, and the display unit 16 and the storage unit according to the expanded program. 17 is appropriately controlled.

  The operation input unit 14 is, for example, a pointing device such as a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel, and other operation devices.

  The display unit 16 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, an EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, a plasma display, or the like.

  Next, functional blocks realized by executing a program in the CPU 11 will be described.

  A functional block realized in the CPU 11 of the management server 10 is a job reservation management unit 11a.

  The job reservation management unit 11a reserves a job to be executed by the selected image forming apparatus 20 with respect to the image forming apparatus 20 according to an instruction from the user, or registers the reserved job in the reserved job DB 17a. The user cancels the reservation based on the cancel instruction of the job reservation from the user.

  The configuration of the management server 10 has been described above.

[Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus]
Next, the configuration of the image forming apparatus 20 will be described. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram schematically showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 20.

  The image forming apparatus 20 includes a control unit 21. The control unit 21 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, a dedicated hardware circuit, and the like, and governs overall operation control of the image forming apparatus 20.

  The control unit 21 is connected to the document reading unit 22, the image processing unit 23, the image memory 24, the image forming unit 25, the operation unit 26, the display unit 26a, the facsimile communication unit 27, the communication unit 28, the storage unit 29, and the like. . The control unit 21 performs operation control of each of the above connected units, and transmission / reception of signals or data to / from each unit.

  The control unit 21 performs operation control on each function such as a scanner function, a print function, a copy function, and a facsimile transmission / reception function in accordance with a job execution instruction input from the user through the operation unit 26 or a network-connected PC. Controls the drive and processing of the mechanisms necessary to execute.

  Further, the control unit 21 has a job execution management unit 21a. The job execution management unit 21a is a functional block realized by the CPU executing a program loaded from the ROM or the like to the RAM.

  The job execution management unit 21a reserves a job instructed from the management server 10 and stores it in the storage unit 29 as reservation information 29a (described later). When the execution time of the reserved job arrives, the reserved job is executed and the execution result is returned to the management server 10.

  In addition, when an instruction to cancel a reserved job is received from the management server 10, the job execution management unit 21a deletes the reservation information 29a for the job to be canceled from the storage unit 29 and cancels the job.

  The document reading unit 22 reads an image from a document.

  The image processing unit 23 performs image processing on the image data of the image read by the document reading unit 22 as necessary. For example, the image processing unit 23 performs image processing such as shading correction in order to improve the quality after the image read by the document reading unit 22 is formed.

  The image memory 24 is an area for temporarily storing data of a document image obtained by reading by the document reading unit 22 and temporarily storing data to be printed by the image forming unit 25.

  The image forming unit 25 forms an image such as the image data read by the document reading unit 22.

  The operation unit 26 includes a touch panel unit and operation key units that receive instructions from the user regarding various operations and processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 20. The touch panel unit includes a display unit 26a such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) provided with a touch panel.

  The facsimile communication unit 27 includes an encoding / decoding unit, a modulation / demodulation unit, and an NCU (Network Control Unit) (not shown), and performs facsimile transmission using a public telephone line network.

  The communication unit 28 includes a communication module such as a LAN board, and transmits / receives various data to / from devices in the local area such as the management server 10 and the PC 30 via the LAN connected to the communication unit 28.

  The storage unit 29 stores a document image read by the document reading unit 22. The storage unit 29 is a large-capacity storage device such as an HDD. The storage unit 29 stores reservation information 29a that is information related to a reserved job.

  The configuration of the image forming apparatus 20 has been described above.

[About job reservation information]
Next, an example of job reservation information reserved in the image forming apparatus 20 will be described. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of job reservation information reserved in the image forming apparatus 20.

  Examples of job types reserved in the image forming apparatus 20 include “image forming apparatus firmware upgrade” and “printing”.

  Each type of job, depending on whether there is a job reservation, waits until the reservation time, as shown in the figure with “schedule reservation”, and is executed at the reservation time, and “no schedule reservation” in the figure As described above, there are some that are executed immediately by the image forming apparatus 20.

  For example, in the job type “image forming apparatus firmware upgrade”, the reservation information includes three types of information: “job type information”, “time information”, and “file download destination URL (Uniform Resource Locator)”.

  “Job type information” refers to the four job types illustrated on the left side of the figure, and “Time information” refers to the time at which the reserved job starts to be executed. The “URL” indicates a location where data necessary for executing a job is downloaded.

  Note that the “file upload destination URL” in the reservation information of the job type “report acquisition” indicates a place to upload in order to submit a report on the status of the image forming apparatus 20 and the like.

  Note that the download destination URL and the upload destination URL of the file or the like may be paths indicating the storage unit 17 in the management server 10.

  The example of job reservation information reserved in the image forming apparatus 20 has been described above.

[Job reservation setting screen]
Next, an example of a job reservation setting screen used when reserving a job in the image forming apparatus 20 will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a job reservation setting screen used when a job is reserved in the image forming apparatus 20.

  In the example shown in the figure, 13:08 on October 15, 2015 is designated as the job start time.

  In addition, a retry is executed when the job execution fails, the waiting time until the retry is set to 10 minutes, and the retry is specified only once.

  The example of the job reservation setting screen used when reserving a job in the image forming apparatus 20 has been described above.

[About cancel job reservation screen]
Next, an example of a job reservation cancel screen used when canceling an already reserved job will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a job reservation cancel screen used when canceling a job that has already been reserved.

  In the example shown in the figure, the job reservation check box whose task name is “Test1” is selected by being checked. In this state, when the “cancel job” button at the upper left is clicked, the job reservation is performed. Is canceled.

  The example of the job reservation cancel screen used when canceling an already reserved job has been described above.

[Processing flow (Job reservation)]
Next, of the processes in the job reservation system 1, the flow of processing related to job reservation will be described. FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of processing related to job reservation in the processing in the job reservation system 1.

  First, the user accesses the management server 10 from the PC 30 and selects the image forming apparatus 20 that he / she wants to reserve execution of a job (step S1).

  Next, the user inputs information necessary for job reservation (step S2).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11a of the management server 10 receives information necessary for job reservation execution from the user, and transmits it as reservation information to the target image forming apparatus 20 (step S2.1). At this time, the job reservation management unit 11a stores the reservation information in the reservation job DB 17a.

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a of the image forming apparatus 20 that has received the reservation information stores the received reservation information (step S2.1.1) and confirms the contents of the reservation information (step S2.1.2). ).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a transmits a job reservation completion notification to the management server 10 (step S2.2).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11a transfers the received job reservation completion notification to the PC 30 (step S2.3).

  In the foregoing, the flow of processing related to job reservation among the processing in the job reservation system 1 has been described.

[Flow of processing (execution of reserved job)]
Next, a flow of processing related to execution of a reserved job among the processing in the job reservation system 1 will be described. FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of processing related to execution of a reserved job among the processing in the job reservation system 1.

  First, the job execution management unit 21a of the image forming apparatus 20 for which a job is reserved starts preparation for executing the reserved job at the reserved time (step S3).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a downloads a file (job file) necessary for job execution from the management server 10 that is the file download destination URL as necessary (step S3.1).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a executes the job (step S3.2).

  Next, if there is a file to be uploaded by executing the job according to the type of job, the file is transmitted to the management server 10 which is the file upload destination URL (step S4).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a transmits a job execution completion notification to the management server 10 (step S5).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11a transfers the received job execution completion notification to the PC 30 (step S5.1).

  Note that the user may appropriately check the job result with respect to the management server 10 (step S6), and the job reservation management unit 11a may return the result each time.

  The flow of processing related to execution of a reserved job among the processing in the job reservation system 1 has been described above.

[Flow of processing (execution of reserved job)]
Next, of the processes in the job reservation system 1, a process flow related to cancellation of a reserved job will be described. FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing relating to cancellation of a reserved job among the processing in the job reservation system 1.

  First, the user accesses the management server 10 from the PC 30 and selects a job reservation to be canceled from the job reservations registered in the reservation job DB 17a (step S11).

  Next, an instruction to cancel the reservation of the job selected by the user is issued (step S12).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11a of the management server 10 transmits a cancel instruction to the image forming apparatus 20 having the target reservation job (step S12.1). The job reservation management unit 11a deletes the target reservation job from the reservation job DB 17a.

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a of the image forming apparatus 20 that has received the cancel instruction confirms the cancel instruction (step S12.1.1).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a deletes the reservation information 29a that is the object of the cancel instruction from the storage unit 29 (step S12.1.2).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21a transmits a job cancellation completion notification to the management server 10 (step S12.2).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11a transfers the received job cancellation completion notification to the PC 30 (step S12.3).

  Note that the user may appropriately check the job result with respect to the management server 10 (step S13), and the job reservation management unit 11a may return the result each time.

  The flow of processing related to canceling a reserved job among the processing in the job reservation system 1 has been described above.

  The first embodiment has been described above.

<Second Embodiment>
Next, a second embodiment will be described. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that job reservation and cancellation are possible even when the management server 10 cannot communicate with the image forming apparatus 20 such as when the image forming apparatus 20 is turned off or the network is disconnected. This is a possible point.

  In the following description, only parts different from the first embodiment will be described, and description of the same parts will be omitted.

[Management Server Configuration]
Next, the configuration of the management server 10 will be described. The management server 10 may be configured by dedicated hardware or software, or may be configured by a general computer. FIG. 10 shows a configuration diagram when the management server 10 is configured by a general computer.

  As shown in the figure, the management server 10 includes a CPU 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, an operation input unit 14, a communication unit 15 (first communication unit), a display unit 16, and a storage unit 17. They are connected via a bus 18.

  The storage unit 17 is, for example, an HDD, a flash memory, or other nonvolatile memory. The storage unit 17 stores an OS, various applications, various data, and a reserved job DB (database) 17a.

  The reserved job DB 17 a is a database that stores reservation information that is information on jobs that are reserved for execution in the image forming apparatus 20 under the management of the management server 10.

  Next, functional blocks realized by executing a program in the CPU 11 will be described.

  A functional block implemented in the CPU 11 of the management server 10 is a job reservation management unit 11b.

  The job reservation management unit 11b is different from the job reservation management unit 11a of the first embodiment in that the target image forming apparatus 20 is online when processing is performed on the managed image forming apparatus 20. It is a point which judges whether it is offline or is switched, and the content of a process is switched by the judgment result.

  When the target image forming apparatus 20 is online, the processing is the same as in the first embodiment.

  If the target image forming apparatus 20 is off-line, the target image forming apparatus 20 is not processed, and the processing is limited to the reserved job DB 17a.

  For example, when a new job is reserved when the image forming apparatus 20 is offline, only the reservation information 29a is registered in the reservation job DB 17a. When canceling a reserved job, the reservation information 29a is simply deleted from the reservation job DB 17a.

  The configuration of the management server 10 has been described above.

[Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus]
Next, the configuration of the image forming apparatus 20 will be described. FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram schematically showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 20.

  The image forming apparatus 20 includes a control unit 21. The control unit 21 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, a dedicated hardware circuit, and the like, and governs overall operation control of the image forming apparatus 20.

  The control unit 21 includes a document reading unit 22, an image processing unit 23, an image memory 24, an image forming unit 25, an operation unit 26, a display unit 26a, a facsimile communication unit 27, a communication unit 28 (second communication unit), and a storage unit. 29 and the like. The control unit 21 performs operation control of each of the above connected units, and transmission / reception of signals or data to / from each unit.

  The control unit 21 includes a job execution management unit 21b. The job execution management unit 21b is a functional block realized by the CPU executing a program loaded from the ROM or the like to the RAM.

  The job execution management unit 21b differs from the job execution management unit 21a of the first embodiment in that, in addition to the function of the job execution management unit 21a, when the image forming apparatus 20 comes online, the management server 10 On the other hand, the management server 10 is checked for the presence or absence of a job reserved for execution on the own apparatus.

  Note that the online state here refers to a case where the power of the image forming apparatus 20 that was turned off is turned on, or a case where a network that has been disconnected for some reason is reconnected. In the following description, the case where the power is turned on will be described.

  When the job execution management unit 21b comes online, the job execution management unit 21b checks the management server 10 for the presence of a reserved job. When the new job is reserved, the reserved execution time has not yet arrived. Reserves the job.

  If the new job is reserved and the reserved execution time has already passed, the job execution management unit 21b immediately executes the job.

  The job execution management unit 21b goes to check whether there is a reserved job in the management server 10 when it comes online, and reserves it in the storage unit 29 of its own device even though there is no job reserved in the management server 10. If there is information 29a, the reservation information 29a is deleted.

  The configuration of the image forming apparatus 20 has been described above.

[Processing flow (offline job reservation)]
Next, of the processes in the job reservation system 1, the flow of processing related to job reservation when offline will be described. FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of processing related to job reservation when offline in the processing of the job reservation system 1.

  First, the user accesses the management server 10 from the PC 30 and selects the image forming apparatus 20 that he / she wants to reserve execution of a job (step S21).

  Next, the user inputs information necessary for job reservation (step S22).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11b of the management server 10 receives information necessary for job reservation execution from the user, confirms that the selected image forming apparatus 20 is offline, and uses the reservation job DB 17a as reservation information. (Step S22.1).

  The flow of processing related to job reservation when offline among the processing in the job reservation system 1 has been described above.

[Flow of processing (when it is online. Part 1)]
Next, the flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has not yet arrived because the image forming apparatus 20 is online will be described. FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has not yet arrived because the image forming apparatus 20 is online.

  First, the image forming apparatus 20 enters an online state when the power is turned on (step S31).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b acquires the reservation information 29a from the management server 10 in order to confirm whether or not there is a reservation job for the own apparatus (step S32).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b that has acquired the reservation information stores the acquired reservation information (step S33), and confirms the content of the reservation information (step S34).

  Alternatively, after confirming the content of the reservation information, the job execution management unit 21b may issue a reservation completion notification, and the job reservation management unit 11b may transfer the reservation completion notification to the user's PC 30.

  The processing flow in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has not yet arrived has been described.

[Processing flow (online, part 2)]
Next, the flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has already passed since the image forming apparatus 20 is online will be described. FIG. 14 is a sequence diagram for explaining a flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has already passed since the image forming apparatus 20 is online.

  First, the image forming apparatus 20 enters an online state when the power is turned on (step S31).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b acquires the reservation information 29a from the management server 10 in order to confirm whether or not there is a reservation job for the own apparatus (step S32).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b that has acquired the reservation information stores the acquired reservation information (step S33), and confirms the content of the reservation information (step S34). At this point, it is recognized that the job reservation time has already passed.

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b immediately starts preparation for executing the reserved job (step S35).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b downloads a file (job file) necessary for job execution from the management server 10, which is the file download destination URL, as necessary (step S35.1).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b executes the job (step S35.2).

  Next, if there is a file to be uploaded by executing the job according to the type of job, the file is transmitted to the management server 10 which is the file upload destination URL (step S36).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b transmits a job execution completion notification to the management server 10 (step S37).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11b transfers the received job execution completion notification to the PC 30 (step S37.1).

  Note that the user may appropriately check the job result with respect to the management server 10 (step S38), and the job reservation management unit 11b may return the result each time.

  The processing flow in the job reservation system 1 when the execution time of the acquired job reservation has already passed since the image forming apparatus 20 is online has been described.

[Processing flow (offline job reservation)]
Next, of the processes in the job reservation system 1, the process flow related to job cancellation when offline will be described. FIG. 15 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of processing relating to job cancellation when offline, among the processing in the job reservation system 1.

  First, the user accesses the management server 10 from the PC 30, and selects a job reservation to be canceled from the job reservations registered in the reservation job DB 17a (step S51).

  Next, an instruction to cancel the reservation of the job selected by the user is issued (step S52).

  Next, the job reservation management unit 11b of the management server 10 receives a cancel instruction from the user, confirms that the image forming apparatus 20 with the target reservation job is offline, and deletes the target reservation job from the reservation job DB 17a. (Step S52.1).

  In the foregoing, the flow of processing related to job cancellation when offline in the job reservation system 1 has been described.

[Processing flow (Online. Part 3)]
Next, the flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the image forming apparatus 20 is online and there is no job reservation to be acquired will be described. FIG. 16 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of processing in the job reservation system 1 when the image forming apparatus 20 is online and there is no job reservation to be acquired.

  First, the image forming apparatus 20 enters an online state when the power is turned on (step S61).

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b acquires reservation information 29a from the management server 10 in order to confirm whether or not there is a reservation job for the own apparatus (step S62). Here, it is assumed that there is no job reservation to be acquired and the reservation information 29a cannot be acquired.

  Next, the job execution management unit 21b that could not acquire the reservation information deletes the reservation information 29a stored in the storage unit 29 even though it could not be acquired (step S63). The job related to the reservation information 29a deleted from the storage unit 29 is not executed.

  Note that the user may appropriately check the job result with respect to the management server 10 (step S64), and the job reservation management unit 11b may return the result each time.

  Alternatively, after the reservation information is deleted, the job execution management unit 21b may issue a job cancellation completion notification, and the job reservation management unit 11b may transfer the job cancellation completion notification to the user's PC 30.

  The processing flow in the job reservation system 1 when the image forming apparatus 20 is online and there is no job reservation to be acquired has been described above.

  The second embodiment has been described above.

[Additional notes]
As described above, the job reservation system 1 according to the present invention includes the management server 10 and one or more image forming apparatuses 20 managed by the management server 10 connected to the network. Reservation job database 17a capable of storing reservation information 29a, which is information of a job reserved and executed by any one of the first communication unit 15 capable of communication via the network and the one or more image forming apparatuses 20. When the selection of the image forming apparatus 20 that executes the job and the reservation of the job are instructed from the user terminal 30, the job reservation is stored in the reserved job database 17a as the reservation information 29a. A management unit 11b, and each of the one or more image forming apparatuses 20 can communicate via the network. Includes a second communication unit 28, a storage unit 29, when the own device is online, and a job execution management unit 21b to attempt to acquire the reservation information 29a about its own device from the management server.

  In addition, this invention is not limited only to the above-mentioned embodiment, Of course, various changes can be added within the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Job reservation system 10 ... Management server 11 ... CPU
11a ... Job reservation management unit 11b ... Job reservation management unit 12 ... ROM
13 ... RAM
14 ... Operation input unit 15 ... Communication unit 16 ... Display unit 17 ... Storage unit 17a ... Reserved job DB
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 18 ... Bus 20 ... Image forming apparatus 21 ... Control part 21a ... Job execution management part 21b ... Job execution management part 22 ... Document reading part 23 ... Image processing part 24 ... Image memory 25 ... Image formation part 26 ... Operation part 26a ... Display Unit 27 ... Facsimile communication unit 28 ... Communication unit 29 ... Storage unit 29a ... Reservation information 30 ... PC

Claims (2)

A network-connected management server, and one or more image forming apparatuses managed by the management server,
The management server is
A first communication unit capable of communicating via the network;
A reserved job database capable of storing reservation information that is information of a job reserved and executed in any one of the one or more image forming apparatuses;
A job reservation management department, and
Each of the one or more image forming apparatuses includes:
A second communication unit capable of communication via the network;
A storage unit;
A job execution management unit, and
The job reservation management unit of the management server
When the user terminal is instructed to select the image forming apparatus that executes the job and to reserve the job, if the selected image forming apparatus is confirmed to be offline, the instructed content of the job is displayed. Stored in the reserved job database as reservation information, the reservation information includes at least the execution time of the job,
The job execution management unit of the selected image forming apparatus is
As a result of trying to acquire the reservation information related to the own device from the management server when the device is online, when the reservation information is acquired, the acquired reservation information is stored in the storage unit,
If the execution time included in the acquired reservation information has not arrived, wait until the execution time,
The job reservation management unit of the management server
When canceling the reservation of the job stored in the reserved job database is selected from the user terminal, the user terminal confirms that the image forming apparatus that executes the selected job is offline again. Delete the reservation information of the selected job from the reserved job database;
The job execution management unit of the selected image forming apparatus is
When the self-apparatus comes back online, as a result of trying to acquire the reservation information about the self-apparatus from the management server, the reservation information of the job is deleted from the reserved job database due to cancellation of the reservation of the job. When the reservation information of the selected job is not acquired,
A job reservation system that deletes the reservation information of the job selected to be canceled from the storage unit and does not execute the job from which the reservation information has been deleted. Management server
When the user terminal is instructed to select an image forming apparatus to execute a job and to reserve the job, it is confirmed that the selected image forming apparatus is offline. Stored in the reserved job database as information, the reservation information includes at least the execution time of the job,
The selected image forming apparatus is
When the own device is online, as a result of trying to acquire the reservation information about the own device from the management server, when the reservation information is acquired, the acquired reservation information is stored in the storage unit,
If the execution time included in the acquired reservation information has not arrived, wait until the execution time,
The management server is
When canceling the reservation of the job stored in the reserved job database is selected from the user terminal, the user terminal confirms that the image forming apparatus that executes the selected job is offline again. Delete the reservation information of the selected job from the reserved job database;
The selected image forming apparatus is
When the self-apparatus comes back online, as a result of trying to acquire the reservation information about the self-apparatus from the management server, the reservation information of the job is deleted from the reserved job database due to cancellation of the reservation of the job. When the reservation information of the selected job is not acquired,
A job reservation method that deletes reservation information of the job selected to be canceled from the storage unit and does not execute the job from which the reservation information has been deleted.

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