JP6720127B2 - Information processing apparatus, information processing apparatus control method, and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, a control method of the information processing device, and a program.

In order to print from the mobile terminal, the user needs to select the printing device on the screen of the mobile terminal. Therefore, the mobile terminal searches for the printing device and displays it on the screen. As a means for searching for a printing device from a mobile terminal, there is a method of determining the order of connection requests of a plurality of printers based on the magnitude of the strength of a search signal for a plurality of printers, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-242242. The mobile terminal receives, for example, Bluetooth (registered trademark) Advertisement, and adds the sender's printing device to the printer list in descending order of radio field intensity. The user selects one printing device from the printer list displayed on the mobile terminal and gives an instruction to execute the printing process.

JP, 2013-162381, A

Printing using a short-range wireless such as BlueTooth has a slower communication speed than when using a wireless LAN. Therefore, there is a method of switching the wireless LAN to transmit print data after searching for a printer by short-range wireless communication. However, the printer searched for by the short-distance wireless communication may not be able to perform wireless LAN communication even if the short-distance wireless communication can be used. For example, there are reasons such as when the wireless LAN is off, a printer failure, and a different subnet. In this case, when the printer found by the short-distance wireless communication actually tries to print, printing cannot be performed, and a troublesome operation such as redoing from selecting the printer is necessary.
An object of the present invention is to display a printing device capable of transmitting print data on a selection screen of the printing device in a mobile terminal.

Therefore, the information processing apparatus of the present invention includes a search unit for searching for an image processing apparatus based on a Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy advertisement packet transmitted by the image processing apparatus, and information included in the advertisement packet. Based on the second wireless communication, based on the second wireless communication, the second wireless communication different from the short-range wireless communication is used to determine whether or not it is possible to communicate with the searched image processing apparatus. If the image processing apparatus has been determined by the determination means that it is possible to communicate, search result display means for displaying, it was useful as, there are a plurality of judgment image processing apparatus that can communicate with the determining means, the plurality image processing apparatus is displayed as a search result, wherein Rukoto.

According to the present invention, a printing device capable of transmitting print data can be displayed on the selection screen of the printing device in the mobile terminal.

It is a figure which shows an example of the system configuration of an information processing system. It is a figure which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of MFP. It is a figure which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of a portable terminal. 6 is a diagram (part 1) illustrating an example of a search screen according to the first embodiment. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the registered device list screen. 6 is a diagram (part 2) illustrating an example of a search screen according to the first embodiment. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a device state list. It is a flow chart which shows an example of information processing of a personal digital assistant. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a search screen according to the second embodiment.

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

<Embodiment 1>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of an information processing system. In FIG. 1, the mobile terminal 101, the MFP 102, and the access point 103 can communicate with each other through corresponding communication media. The configuration shown in FIG. 1 is merely an example of a general configuration. Therefore, the mobile terminal 101 used by a general user may be another information device. Further, the MFP 102 having the configuration shown in FIG. 1 is not limited to the MFP having the configuration shown in FIG. Although only one MFP is shown in FIG. 1 for simplification of description, it is assumed that the information processing system includes a plurality of MFPs. The MFP is an example of an image processing apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the MFP 102.
The MFP 102 includes a CPU 201 that executes a program stored in a ROM 202 or a hard disk (HDD) 213, for example, and the CPU 201 collectively controls each device connected to the system bus 216.
The RAM 203 functions as a main memory, a work area, etc. of the CPU 201. The operation unit controller 208 controls various buttons provided on the MFP 102 or the operation panel 209, the display 211, and the like. The disk controller 212 controls the HDD 213.
The network I/F 207 bidirectionally exchanges data with other network devices or file servers via the network 220. When operating in the infrastructure mode, the wireless communication module 206 connects to the network 220 via an access point and bidirectionally exchanges data with other network devices or file servers. When operating in the soft AP mode, the wireless communication module 206 can operate the MFP as an access point and directly perform wireless communication connection with the mobile terminal.
The printer 214 is a printing unit for paper realized by an electrophotographic method. The printing method need not be an electrophotographic method.
The scanner 215 is an image reading unit for reading an image printed on paper. In many cases, the scanner 215 is equipped with an ADF (auto document feeder) as an option so that a plurality of originals can be automatically read.
The HDD 213 may also be used as a temporary storage location for images in some cases.
The MFP 102 can exchange data with various peripheral devices via the non-contact type IC card reader/writer 204 and the Bluetooth I/F 205.
The functions of the MFP 102 are realized by the CPU 201 executing processing based on a program stored in the ROM 202 or the HDD 213.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the mobile terminal 101. Although the mobile terminal 101 of the present embodiment is assumed to be a device such as a smartphone or a tablet PC, it may be another device as long as it is an information processing device capable of transmitting print data and the like to the MFP.
The CPU 307 reads the program stored in the ROM 308 and executes various processes for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 101. The ROM 308 stores the program. The RAM 309 is used as a main memory of the CPU 307 and a temporary storage area such as a work area. The HDD 310 stores various data such as photographs and electronic documents.
The operation panel 301 has a touch panel function capable of detecting a user's touch operation, and displays various screens provided by the OS and the email transmission application. The user can input a desired operation instruction of the user to the mobile terminal 101 by inputting a touch operation on the operation panel 301. The mobile terminal 101 may include a hardware key. In this case, the user can also input an operation instruction to the mobile terminal 101 using this hardware key.
The speaker 302 and the microphone 303 are used when the user makes a call with another mobile terminal or a fixed telephone. The camera 304 captures an image in accordance with an image capturing instruction from the user. The picture taken by the camera 304 is stored in a predetermined area of the HDD 310.
The mobile terminal 101 can exchange data with various peripheral devices via the non-contact type IC card communication I/F 305, the Bluetooth I/F 306 wireless communication I/F, and the wireless LAN communication I/F. Bluetooth is an example of short-range wireless communication. In the present embodiment, Bluetooth is used for description, but other short-range wireless communication, such as ZigBee, may be used. The wireless LAN is an example of wireless communication used for transmitting print data.
The CPU 307 executes the process based on the program stored in the ROM 308 or the HDD 310, thereby realizing the function of the mobile terminal 101 or the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 described later.

Next, the screen of the mobile terminal 101 will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a search screen 420 for searching and displaying an MFP using BlueTooth. In the screen title 421, a title indicating that it is a search screen using BlueTooth is displayed. In the network name 422, a mark indicating that searching is performed with BlueTooth is displayed. In the search result list 423, the MFPs searched by BlueTooth and found are displayed in a list. In the search using BlueTooth, the information that can be acquired by Advertise is limited. Therefore, the CPU 307 displays the device name of the MFP among the device names and MAC addresses of the MFPs that can be acquired on the screen. Further, in the example of FIG. 4, the CPU 307 displays the device names of the MFPs from the top of the list in order from the MFP with the shortest distance based on the distance from the mobile terminal 101 among the plurality of found MFPs. There is. When it is detected that the user has selected a device name of an arbitrary MFP from the search result list 423, the CPU 307 displays a registered device list screen of FIG. 5 described later on the operation panel 301.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the registered device list screen 405. In the screen title 401, a title indicating that the device list is registered by the user is displayed. In the network name 402, the network name of the wireless LAN is displayed, indicating which network is currently connected. In the registered device list 403, the MFPs selected by the user in FIG. 4 and registered are displayed in a list. The registered MFP displays the attribute information such as the device name and the IP address of the MFP, the detailed information of which has already been acquired using the incomplete LAN.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the search screen 470 in which the display of the search screen 420 of FIG. 4 is changed. For example, the CPU 307 operates the search screen as shown in FIG. 6 instead of the search screen as shown in FIG. 4 when the setting file stored in the HDD 310 or the like is set to narrow down the printers to be displayed. Display on panel 301. For example, in the screen title 471, a title indicating that it is a search screen using BlueTooth is displayed. A title indicating that the search screen uses BlueTooth is displayed in the network name 472. In the search result list 473, the MFP closest to the plurality of MFPs found by searching with BlueTooth is displayed. The CPU 307 calculates the distance from the mobile terminal 101 based on the BlueTooth radio field intensity. In the present embodiment, the CPU 307 narrows down the number of MFPs to be displayed to one using the distance between the mobile terminal 101 and the MFP. However, the condition for narrowing down to one is the most recently used MFP or the usage history. It may be a condition of the MFP or the like. Further, the number to be narrowed down is not limited to one, but may be limited to the number set in the setting file or the like. The CPU 307 can set and change the conditions and the like of the setting file stored in the HDD 310 and the like according to the information input through the operation panel 301, the microphone 303, and the like.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a device status list 601 showing the status of the MFP. The device status list 601 is stored in the RAM 309, the HDD 310, or the like. The device status list 601 includes a printer name 602, a wireless LAN ON/OFF status 603, a printer status 604, and a subnet 605. The CPU 307 determines that communication is possible when all the following conditions are met. That is, the CPU 307 points to the same network as the network currently used by the subnet 605 when the wireless LAN status 603 is ON and the printer status 604 is not a failure in the device status list 601. If yes, it is determined that communication is possible. In the case of the example of the device status list 601, the CPU 307 determines that DeviceA, DeviceB, and DeviceD are communicable MFPs.

Next, information processing of the mobile terminal 101 when an operation for displaying the search screen 420 is performed will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. When an operation to display the search screen is performed, the CPU 307 starts a scan by BlueTooth in step S551. In step S552, the CPU 307 determines whether the BlueTooth Advertisement has been received. For example, when the CPU 307 does not receive the BlueTooth Advertisement within a predetermined time (No in S552), the CPU 307 ends the process of the flowchart illustrated in FIG. On the other hand, when the CPU 307 receives the Advertise of BlueTooth (Yes in S552), the CPU 307 proceeds to S553. In step S553, the CPU 307 analyzes the information of Advertise. In step S554, the CPU 307 determines whether the Advertisement includes the communication availability information based on the analysis result. The communication availability information is, for example, ON (enabled)/OFF (disabled) information of the wireless LAN. The CPU 307 creates the device state list 601 shown in FIG. 7 by communicating with the image forming apparatus. When the communication availability information is included (Yes in S554), the CPU 307 proceeds to S557, and when the communication availability information is not included (No in S554), the CPU 307 proceeds to S555. In step S557, the CPU 307 determines whether communication is possible based on the information in the device status list 601 as described above. If the CPU 307 determines that communication is possible (Yes in S557), the process proceeds to S558, and if it is determined that communication is not possible (No in S557), returns to S552. In step S558, the CPU 307 adds the information of the processing target MFP to the printer list on the search screen and displays the processing target MFP in a selectable manner. At this time, when a condition for narrowing down the number is set in the setting file or the like, the CPU 307 displays a search screen 470 for a printer with a small number in the printer list according to the condition, as shown in FIG. indicate. On the other hand, the CPU 307 displays the printer search screen 420 as shown in FIG. 4 based on the printer list when the condition for narrowing down the number is not set in the setting file or the like. After S558, the CPU 307 returns to S552 and receives the Advertise of the next MFP. On the other hand, in step S555, the CPU 307 starts GATT communication with the MFP. In step S556, the CPU 307 analyzes the received information and acquires communication availability information. The communication availability information is, for example, ON (enabled)/OFF (disabled) information of the wireless LAN. As described above, the CPU 307 creates the device status list 601 shown in FIG. 7 by communicating with the image forming apparatus. After that, the process advances to step S557, and the CPU 307 determines whether or not communication is possible based on the information in the device status list 601.

According to the processing of the present embodiment, the MFP searched by BlueTooth cannot communicate because the MFP cannot communicate, and the troublesome operation of selecting the MFP again can be eliminated, and the user's registration operation of the MFP can be smoothly performed.

<Embodiment 2>
In the first embodiment, the processing for displaying the MFPs that can communicate in the search using BlueTooth on the search screen as shown in FIG. 4 has been described. That is, in the first embodiment, the mobile terminal does not display the MFPs that cannot communicate with each other on the search screen. However, the mobile terminal may change the display of the communicable MFP and the incommunicable MFP on the search screen using BlueTooth, and display all of them. The processing will be described in this embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a search screen 450 for searching and displaying an MFP using BlueTooth. In the screen title 451, a title indicating that it is a search screen using BlueTooth is displayed. In the network name 452, a mark indicating that the search is performed by BlueTooth is displayed. In the search result list 453, the MFPs searched by BlueTooth and found are displayed in a list. In the search using BlueTooth, the CPU 307 of this embodiment changes the display method of the list depending on the communicable state of the MFP acquired by Advertise or GATT. The CPU 307 displays the MFPs in the communicable state as usual, that is, the MFPs are selectably displayed in the list. On the other hand, the CPU 307 displays the MFP in the communication disabled state, for example, in gray, and makes the MFP unselectable and displays it in the list. At the same time, the CPU 307 lists the reason why the MFP in the communication disabled state cannot communicate. Gray display (or gray out) is an example of displaying with the MFP unselectable. For example, the CPU 307 may display the MFP in the communication disabled state in the list in a state where it cannot be selected together with an object indicating that it cannot be selected. May be displayed in.

According to the processing of the present embodiment, it is possible to determine whether the MFP searched by BlueTooth is communicable, and the user can select the MFP in the printable state. Further, even in the case of an MFP that cannot communicate, the reason for that can be understood, so that it becomes possible to eliminate the communication failure, and the operability for the user can be improved.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention supplies a program that implements one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus via a network or a storage medium. Then, it can be realized by a process in which one or more processors in the computer of the system or apparatus read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above in detail, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments.

As described above, according to each of the above-described embodiments, the MFP that can transmit the print data can be displayed on the selection screen of the MFP in the mobile terminal.

101 mobile terminal 102 MFP
103 Access point 301 Operation panel 307 CPU

Claims (13)

Searching means for searching the image processing device based on the Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy advertisement packet transmitted by the image processing device;
Determination means for determining whether or not it is possible to communicate with the searched image processing device using second wireless communication different from the Bluetooth Low Energy , based on information included in the advertisement packet,
Display means for displaying, as a search result, the image processing device determined by the determination means to be communicable using the second wireless communication;
Have a,
When said judging means communicatively a is determined as the image processing apparatus is more, the search result as the information processing apparatus a plurality image processing apparatus is characterized Rukoto appears. When the determination unit cannot determine whether or not it is possible to communicate with the searched image processing device using the second wireless communication, based on the information included in the advertisement packet, Performing GATT communication with the image processing apparatus, and determining whether or not communication with the searched image processing apparatus is possible using the second wireless communication based on the information acquired by the GATT communication. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: The display means displays, as the search result, the image processing device determined by the determination means to be communicable using the second wireless communication, and is communicable using the second wireless communication. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the image processing apparatus determined by the determination unit is not displayed as the search result otherwise. The display unit determines, by the determination unit, that the display unit is not communicable by using the second wireless communication with the image processing device that is determined by the determination unit that the communication is possible by using the second wireless communication. 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processing apparatus is displayed as a list in a display form that allows a user to identify whether or not the image processing apparatus can communicate using the second wireless communication. .. 5. The display unit rearranges and displays the image processing devices displayed as the search result based on the radio field intensity of a Bluetooth Low Energy advertisement packet transmitted by the image processing device. The information processing apparatus according to any one of 1. Program for causing a computer to function as each unit of the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. A method of controlling an information processing device, comprising:
A search step of searching for an image processing device based on a Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy advertisement packet transmitted by the image processing device;
A determination step of determining whether or not it is possible to communicate with the searched image processing apparatus using a second wireless communication different from the Bluetooth Low Energy , based on the information included in the advertisement packet,
A display step of controlling the image processing device determined in the determination step to be communicable using the second wireless communication so as to be displayed as a search result;
Only including,
A method of controlling an information processing device , wherein when there are a plurality of image processing devices determined to be communicable in the determination step, a plurality of image processing devices are displayed as the search result . An information processing apparatus that communicates with an image forming apparatus,
Receiving means for receiving a packet transmitted from the image forming apparatus by the first communication method;
Display means for displaying a screen for selecting an image forming apparatus used as an output destination of print data;
Using the information contained in the packet received from the image forming apparatus, an attempt is made to obtain further information from the image forming apparatus that is the transmission source of the packet, and based on the information obtained as a result of the attempt to obtain the information, Control means for displaying differently on the screen an object for selecting the image forming apparatus of the transmission source of the packet as an output destination;
Have
An information processing apparatus, wherein a second communication method different from the first communication method is used for transmitting print data to an image forming apparatus selected as an output destination via the screen. A second communication method different from the first communication method on the screen is the image forming apparatus that is the transmission source of the packet, and is based on information obtained as a result of attempting to acquire the packet. If there is an image forming apparatus that is determined to be unable to communicate with the image forming apparatus that is the transmission source of the packet, an object for notifying that there is an image forming apparatus that cannot communicate is displayed,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the object for selecting and the object for notifying displayed on the screen are displayed in different display modes. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the object for notification displayed on the screen is displayed in a grayed out state. The packet transmitted by the first communication method, Bluetooth information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that an advertisement packet (R). A method for controlling an information processing device capable of communicating with an external device according to a first communication method and a second communication method different from the first communication method,
A reception control step of receiving the packet of the first communication method transmitted from the image forming apparatus,
A display control step of displaying a screen for selecting an image forming apparatus as an output destination,
In the display control step, using the information included in the packet received from the image forming apparatus, an attempt is made to obtain further information from the image forming apparatus that is the transmission source of the packet, and a result obtained by trying to obtain the information is obtained. Based on the information that is displayed, an object that selects the image forming apparatus that is the transmission source of the packet as the image forming apparatus that is the output destination is displayed on the screen, and the object is selected as the output destination through the screen. The method for controlling an information processing apparatus, wherein the second communication method is used for transmitting print data to the image forming apparatus. A computer of an information processing device capable of communicating with an external device by a first communication method and a second communication method different from the first communication method,
An acquisition step of acquiring a packet transmitted from the image forming apparatus, which is received by the information processing apparatus in the first communication method,
A display control step of displaying a screen for selecting an image forming apparatus as an output destination,
Is a program for executing
In the display control step, using the information included in the acquired packet, an attempt is made to acquire further information from the image forming apparatus that is the transmission source of the packet, and based on the information obtained as a result of the attempt to acquire the information. Then, on the screen, it is different whether or not to display an object for selecting the image forming apparatus of the transmission source of the packet as the image forming apparatus of the output destination,
A program using the second communication method for transmitting print data to an image forming apparatus selected as an output destination via the screen.

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