WO2022031319A1

WO2022031319A1 - Update network information of image formation apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2022031319A1
Application number: PCT/US2021/014300
Authority: WO
Inventors: Youn Seo; Gyuwan HYUN; Yongwon KWON
Original assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
Priority date: 2020-08-06
Filing date: 2021-01-21
Publication date: 2022-02-10
Also published as: KR20220018275A

Abstract

An example operation method of a terminal includes identifying a communication connection state between a first image forming apparatus registered in the terminal and the terminal, requesting identifying information of an image forming apparatus in a case where it is identified that the communication connection state is a disconnected state, updating network information based on an identification that first identifying information received as a response matches first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus, and performing a communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal based on the updated network information.

Description

UPDATE NETWORK INFORMATION OF IMAGE FORMATION APPARATUS

BACKGROUND

[0001] A driver for an image forming apparatus may be installed in a user's terminal. A user may use an image forming apparatus in a case where a driver for the image forming apparatus is installed in a terminal and a communication connection state between the image forming apparatus and the terminal is a connected state.

[0002] The terminal may identify the communication connection state between the image forming apparatus and the terminal using an internet protocol (IP) address, a host name, a universal serial bus (USB) cable connection, etc. In a case where it is identified that the communication connection between the image forming apparatus and the terminal is lost, the user may request the image forming apparatus to communicate with the terminal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0003] FIG. 1 illustrates an example process of updating network information by using identifying information of an image forming apparatus in a case where a communication connection between the image forming apparatus and a terminal is disconnected due to a change in network information of the image forming apparatus.

[0004] FIG. 2A is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that registers information used to search for an image forming apparatus and update network information of the image forming apparatus.

[0005] FIG. 2B is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that updates network information using identifying information of an image forming apparatus and performs communication between the image forming apparatus and the terminal in a case where a communication connection between the image forming apparatus and the terminal is disconnected. [0006] FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that updates network information based on a result of identifying that identifying information in an identifying information response and registration-identifying information stored in the terminal match.

[0007] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that performs a communication connection between an image forming apparatus and a terminal based on sharing information in a case where identifying information in an identifying information response and registration-identifying information stored in the terminal do not match.

[0008] FIGS. 5A to 5C are diagrams illustrating an example of performing a communication connection between an image forming apparatus and a terminal using identifying information of the image forming apparatus in a case where network information of the image forming apparatus is changed.

[0009] FIGS. 6A to 6C are diagrams illustrating an example of performing a communication connection between an image forming apparatus and a terminal using identifying information and sharing information of the image forming apparatus in a case where network information of the image forming apparatus is changed.

[0010] FIGS. 7A to 7C are diagrams illustrating an example method of a terminal in a case where an image forming apparatus to be connected to the terminal is determined based on sharing information and the determined image forming apparatus is already connected to the terminal.

[0011] FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of an image forming apparatus that transmits network information and identifying information to a terminal in a case where network information of the image forming apparatus is different from previous network information.

[0012] FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of an image forming apparatus that transmits identifying information and network information of the image forming apparatus to a terminal.

[0013] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a terminal according to an example.

[0014] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating instructions stored in a computer- readable storage medium according to an example. [0015] FIG. 12 is a block diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an example.

[0016] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating instructions stored in a computer- readable storage medium according to an example.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] Hereinafter, examples will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those of ordinary skill in the art may easily implement the present disclosure. However, the present disclosure may be implemented in various different forms and is not limited to the examples described below.

[0018] An "image forming apparatus" may be any kind of apparatus capable of performing an image forming operation, such as a printer, a scanner, a fax machine, a multi-function printer (MFP), a display apparatus, and the like. Further, the image forming apparatus may be a two-dimensional (2D) image forming apparatus or a three-dimensional (3D) image forming apparatus. The image forming operation performed in the image forming apparatus may be an operation related to printing, copying, scanning, faxing, storage, transmission, coating, and the like.

[0019] A "terminal" may be an apparatus that receives a user's command and displays information processed according to the user's command. For example, the terminal may be an electronic apparatus such as a computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a laptop, a smart phone, a mobile phone, and the like.

[0020] A program for controlling the image forming apparatus may be installed in the terminal. For example, the program for controlling the image forming apparatus may be a driver for the image forming apparatus. For example, in a case where image forming apparatuses of different models are used in the terminal, drivers for the respective image forming apparatuses are installed.

[0021] In a state in which a communication connection state between the image forming apparatus and the terminal is a connected state, the user can request an image forming operation from the image forming apparatus using the terminal and obtain operation results for the image forming operation from the image forming apparatus. However, in a case where an internet protocol (IP) address or a host name of the image forming apparatus is changed, the communication connection between the terminal and the image forming apparatus is interrupted or lost. In this case, the user could establish the communication connection between the image forming apparatus and the terminal by re-installing the program that controls the image forming apparatus or manually changing program settings.

[0022] Since the IP address or host name of the image forming apparatus may be changed according to an event occurring in the image forming apparatus or the terminal, the terminal may search for an image forming apparatus whose communication connection with the terminal has been disconnected using identifying information of the image forming apparatus and perform a communication connection between the image forming apparatus and the terminal by updating network information of the image forming apparatus whose communication connection with the terminal has been disconnected.

[0023] FIG. 1 illustrates an example process of updating network information by using identifying information of an image forming apparatus in a case where a communication connection between the image forming apparatus and a terminal is disconnected due to a change in network information of the image forming apparatus.

[0024] An image 110 of FIG. 1 shows that a communication connection state between a terminal 10 and an image forming apparatus 20 is a connected state. The terminal 10 may store network information and registration-identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20. The image forming apparatus 20 may store network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20. Here, the network information stored in the terminal 10 and the network information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be the same, and the registration-identifying information stored in the terminal 10 and the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be the same.

[0025] For example, the network information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be information used to connect the terminal 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 to each other for communication, or to identify the communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the image forming apparatus 20. For example, the network information of the image forming apparatus 20 may include IP address information, host name information of the image forming apparatus 20, and the like.

[0026] For example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be information used to identify the image forming apparatus 20. In addition, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be information that does not change according to an event occurring in the image forming apparatus 20. For example, the registration-identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 registered in the terminal 10.

[0027] An image 120 of FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a process in which a communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 becomes a disconnected state as the IP address information of the image forming apparatus 20 is changed.

[0028] For example, the IP address of the image forming apparatus 20 may be changed from 192.168.219.100 to 192.168.219.120. Since the IP address of the image forming apparatus 20 stored in the terminal 10 is 192.168.219.100, the communication connection between the terminal 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 whose IP address has been changed may be disconnected.

[0029] In the case where the terminal 10 detects that the communication connection state between the image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state, the terminal 10 can search for the image forming apparatus 20 by using the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20. For example, the terminal 10 may request identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 from the image forming apparatus 20, and may receive identifying information from the image forming apparatus 20. Here, the identifying information may be AAABBBCCC. The terminal 10 may identify whether the image forming apparatus 20 that transmitted the identifying information is the image forming apparatus 20 previously registered in the terminal 10 by identifying that the registration-identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 stored in the terminal 10 matches the received identifying information. The terminal 10 may request the changed IP address information from the image forming apparatus 20 and may receive the changed IP address information from the image forming apparatus 20.

[0030] Referring to an image 130 of FIG. 3, the terminal 10 may update the IP address information based on the changed IP address information. For example, the terminal 10 may update the IP address information from 192.168.219.100 to 192.168.219.120. The terminal 10 may perform a communication connection between the image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10 based on the changed IP address information. As shown in the image 130 of FIG. 3, the IP address information stored in the terminal 10 and the IP address information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be the same, and the registration-identifying information stored in the terminal 10 and the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 may be the same.

[0031] FIG. 2A is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that registers information used to search for an image forming apparatus and update network information of the image forming apparatus.

[0032] Referring to FIG. 2A, the terminal 10 may install a driver for an image forming apparatus in operation 201 . For example, the driver for the image forming apparatus may be a program used in the terminal 10 to control the image forming apparatus. For example, the driver for the image forming apparatus may be used to transmit data for an image forming operation from the terminal 10 to the image forming apparatus, identify the communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the image forming apparatus, set functions of the image forming apparatus, and the like. After the driver for the image forming apparatus is installed in the terminal 10, the terminal 10 may request an image forming operation from the image forming apparatus. The terminal 10 may install a driver for an image forming apparatus on a network belonging to the terminal 10. In a case where the models (e.g., types, brands, etc.) between a plurality of image forming apparatuses are different from each other, the terminal 10 may install drivers for the respective image forming apparatuses. [0033] In operation 202, the terminal 10 may set an automatic search and update function for an image forming apparatus. For example, the automatic search function for an image forming apparatus may be a function for the terminal 10 to automatically search for an image forming apparatus on a network to which the terminal 10 belongs in a case where the communication connection state between the image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is a disconnected state. Through the automatic search function, the terminal 10 may search for an image forming apparatus whose driver is previously installed in the terminal 10. In an example, the update function may be a function of updating network information of an image forming apparatus. For example, the network information may include the IP address information and the host name information of the image forming apparatus.

[0034] In operation 203, the terminal 10 may obtain identifying information of the image forming apparatus and store the obtained identifying information. For example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus may include information that can uniquely identify the image forming apparatus. For example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus may include information that does not change due to an event occurring in the image forming apparatus or an event occurring in an external environment. For example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus may include unique information, such as serial number information, media access control (MAC) address information of the image forming apparatus, and the like. In another example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus may include information that is not unique information such as hostname information, device name information, and the like. In an example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus may be information generated in the image forming apparatus to uniquely distinguish the image forming apparatus.

[0035] As an example, the terminal 10 may request identifying information of the image forming apparatus through a predetermined port of the image forming apparatus. The terminal 10 may receive the identifying information of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus and store the identifying information as registration-identifying information. The terminal 10 may determine whether the image forming apparatus is a previously registered image forming apparatus by comparing the registration-identifying information with the identifying information received from the image forming apparatus.

[0036] In operation 204, the terminal 10 may obtain sharing information of the image forming apparatus and store the obtained sharing information. For example, the sharing information of the image forming apparatus may be information used to determine an image forming apparatus that replaces the image forming apparatus. For example, the sharing information of the image forming apparatus may be information shared in common between an image forming apparatus that can replace another image forming apparatus whose communication connection is disconnected and the other image forming apparatus whose communication connection is disconnected. For example, the sharing information of the image forming apparatus may be model information of the image forming apparatus and group information denoting information that is equally applicable between the image forming apparatuses.

[0037] As an example, the terminal 10 may request the sharing information of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus. The terminal 10 may receive the sharing information of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus and store the sharing information as registration-sharing information. The terminal 10 may determine whether it is an image forming apparatus that replaces the image forming apparatus by comparing registrationsharing information with the sharing information received from the image forming apparatus.

[0038] FIG. 2B is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that updates network information using identifying information of an image forming apparatus and performs communication between the image forming apparatus and the terminal in a case where a communication connection between the image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is disconnected.

[0039] Referring to FIG. 2B, the terminal 10 may identify a communication connection state between a first image forming apparatus registered in the terminal 10 and the terminal 10 in operation 210.

[0040] For example, the terminal 10 may monitor the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on a preset period or an event occurring in the terminal 10. In an example, the preset period may be set by the user. For example, the preset period may be 15 minutes.

[0041] For example, the event occurring in the terminal 10 may include an event of requesting an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus in the terminal 10, an event of activating a search operation for an image forming apparatus in the terminal 10, and an event of performing a boot operation in the terminal 10. For example, in a case where a command for requesting a first image forming operation using the first image forming apparatus is received in the terminal 10, the terminal 10 may identify the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10. [0042] In operation 220, in a case where the communication connection state is identified as a disconnected state in the terminal 10, the terminal 10 may request the identifying information of the image forming apparatus through a preset port of the image forming apparatus on the network to which the terminal 10 belongs.

[0043] For example, in a case where network information of the first image forming apparatus is changed, the communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 may be disconnected. For example, in a case where the power is switched to the ON state when an image forming operation in performed in the first image forming apparatus, the IP address of the first image forming apparatus may be changed. Also, in a case where the first image forming apparatus is initialized, the host name of the first image forming apparatus may be changed. In a case where the IP address information of the first image forming apparatus is changed or the host name is changed, the terminal 10 cannot perform communicating with the first image forming apparatus using the IP address information or host name previously registered in the terminal 10.

[0044] In a case in which the IP address information of the first image forming apparatus is changed or the host name is changed such that the terminal 10 cannot perform communicating with the first image forming apparatus using the IP address information or host name previously registered in the terminal 10, the terminal 10 may perform an operation of searching for the first image forming apparatus in order to retry the communication connection with the first image forming apparatus. In this case, the terminal 10 may use the identifying information of the first image forming apparatus to search for the first image forming apparatus among image forming apparatuses on the network to which the terminal 10 belongs.

[0045] As an example, in a case where, in the terminal 10, it is identified that the communication connection state between the image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state and the automatic search operation of the image forming apparatus is in an active state, the terminal 10 may automatically request identifying information of an image forming apparatus on the network through a preset port of each of a plurality of image forming apparatuses.

[0046] For example, the identifying information of the first image forming apparatus may denote information that is used to distinguish the first image forming apparatus from a second image forming apparatus and does not change according to an event occurring in the first image forming apparatus. For example, first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus may denote information registered in the terminal 10 as identifying information of the first image forming apparatus.

[0047] In operation 230, based on the result of identifying that the first identifying information in an identifying information response matches the first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus, the terminal 10 may update the network information to be used in a case where an image forming operation is requested. Here, the identifying information response may be received as a response of the identifying information of the image forming apparatus.

[0048] For example, in a case where the first identifying information matches the first registration-identifying information, terminal 10 may identify an image forming apparatus that transmitted the identifying information response as the first image forming apparatus, request the network information from the image forming apparatus that transmitted the identifying information response, and receive first network information from the image forming apparatus that transmitted the identifying information response. The terminal 10 may update the network information for the first image forming apparatus based on the first network information. An example process of updating network information of a first image forming apparatus based on current information of parameters for parameters used when a terminal requested an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus will be described below with reference to FIG. 3.

[0049] In operation 240, the terminal 10 may perform a communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on the updated network information. In a case where the communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is completed, the terminal 10 may request an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus and transmit data or information for the image forming operation to the first image forming apparatus.

[0050] FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that updates network information based on a result of identifying that identifying information in an identifying information response and registration-identifying information stored in the terminal match.

[0051] In operation 310, the terminal 10 may identify whether the first identifying information in the identifying information response matches the first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus.

[0052] For example, in a case where the first identifying information matches the first registration-identifying information, the terminal 10 may determine that the image forming apparatus that transmitted the first identifying information is the first image forming apparatus. In order to update the changed network information of the first image forming apparatus, the terminal 10 may obtain parameter information on a previous parameter used when the terminal 10 requested the first image forming operation to the first image forming apparatus and perform an operation after operation 310.

[0053] For example, in a case where the first identifying information does not match the first registration-identifying information, the terminal 10 may perform an operation according to an example operation method shown in FIG. 4. On the other hand, in a case where the first identifying information matches the first registration-identifying information, the terminal 10 may identify whether the previous parameter used when the terminal 10 requested the image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus is an IP address in operation 320. In a case where the previous parameter is an IP address, the terminal 10 may update the IP address information of the first image forming apparatus based on a first IP address used when receiving the first identifying information in operation 340. Thereafter, according to operation 240, the terminal 10 may perform communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on the updated IP address information.

[0054] On the other hand, in a case where the previous parameter is not an IP address, the terminal 10 may identify whether the previous parameter used when the terminal 10 requested an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus is the host name in operation 330. In a case where the previous parameter is the host name, the terminal 10 may update host name information of the first image forming apparatus based on the changed host name of the first image forming apparatus in operation 350. Thereafter, according to operation 240, the terminal 10 may perform communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on the updated host name information. In a case where the previous parameter is not the host name, the terminal 10 may perform an operation according to an example operation method shown in FIG. 4.

[0055] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of a terminal that performs a communication connection between an image forming apparatus and a terminal based on sharing information in a case where identifying information in an identifying information response and registration-identifying information stored in the terminal do not match.

[0056] Referring to FIG. 4, the terminal 10 may determine a second image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus based on sharing information on the first image forming apparatus in operation 410. Here, the sharing information on the first image forming apparatus may be information used to determine an image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus.

[0057] For example, the image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus may be an image forming apparatus that provides the same functions as the first image forming apparatus. In addition, the image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus may be an image forming apparatus capable of performing an image forming operation requested of the first image forming apparatus. For example, an image forming apparatus having the same model information as the first image forming apparatus may be the image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus.

[0058] For example, the sharing information for the first image forming apparatus may include model information of the first image forming apparatus and group information in which another image forming apparatus is classified into the same group as the first image forming apparatus according to a preset criterion. For example, the preset criterion may be a criterion for classifying an image forming apparatus that provides the same function as the first image forming apparatus or has the same location information as the first image forming apparatus into the same group as the first image forming apparatus.

[0059] In operation 420, the terminal 10 may identify whether a communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state. In a case where the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is identified as the connected state, the terminal 10 may guide a second image forming operation to be performed using the second image forming apparatus in operation 450.

[0060] In a case where it is identified that the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state, the terminal 10 may obtain second network information of the second image forming apparatus in operation 430. For example, the second network information of the second image forming apparatus may include IP address information and host name information of the second image forming apparatus.

[0061] In operation 440, the terminal 10 may perform communication connection between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on the second network information. In a case where the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is the connected state, the terminal 10 may guide a second image forming operation to be performed using the second image forming apparatus in operation 450.

[0062] For example, in a case where an image forming operation using the first image forming apparatus is requested in the terminal 10, the terminal 10 may guide the image forming operation to be performed using the second image forming apparatus. For example, the terminal 10 may display information denoting the disconnected state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 and information denoting that the second image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus that can replace the first image forming apparatus.

[0063] FIGS. 5A to 5C are diagrams illustrating an example of performing a communication connection between an image forming apparatus and a terminal using identifying information of the image forming apparatus in a case where network information of the image forming apparatus is changed.

[0064] FIG. 5A is a diagram illustrating that a communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the first image forming apparatus 20 is the connected state. The terminal 10 may store network information of the image forming apparatus and registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus 20. For example, the terminal 10 may store first IP address information 511 and first registration-identifying information 512 of the first image forming apparatus 20.

[0065] The first image forming apparatus 20 may store IP address information 513 used for communication connection between the first image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10. In addition, the first image forming apparatus 20 may store identifying information 514 denoting information that is used to distinguish the first image forming apparatus 20 from other image forming apparatuses and does not change according to an event occurring in the first image forming apparatus 20.

[0066] In a case where the communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the first image forming apparatus 20 is the connected state, the terminal 10 may request an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus 20, and may transmit data or information used for the image forming operation to the first image forming apparatus 20. In this case, the first IP address information 511 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the IP address information 513 of the first image forming apparatus 20. In addition, the first registration-identifying information 512 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the identifying information 514 of the first image forming apparatus 20.

[0067] FIG. 5B is a diagram for explaining a process of updating IP address information of the first image forming apparatus 20 by using identifying information of the first image forming apparatus 20 in the terminal 10 in a case where the IP address of the first image forming apparatus 20 is changed.

[0068] For example, the terminal 10 may monitor the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10 based on a preset period or an event occurring in the terminal 10. For example, the preset period may be determined based on a user's input. For example, an event occurring in the terminal 10 may include an event of requesting an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus 20 in the terminal 10, an event of activating a search operation for an image forming apparatus in the terminal 10, an event of performing a boot operation in the terminal 10, and the like.

[0069] In a case where the IP address information (513 of FIG. 5A) of the first image forming apparatus 20 is changed to the IP address information 521 , since the first IP address information 511 stored in the terminal 10 and the IP address information 521 of the first image forming apparatus 20 are different from each other, the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10 may be the disconnected state. In this case, the identifying information 514 of the first image forming apparatus 20 is unchanged. The terminal 10 may detect that the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state and perform an operation for switching the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10 into the connected state.

[0070] In operation 501 , the terminal 10 may request the identifying information of the first image forming apparatus 20 from the first image forming apparatus 20. In operation 502, the first image forming apparatus 20 may transmit an identifying information response including the identifying information 514 of the first image forming apparatus 20 to the terminal 10.

[0071] In operation 503, the terminal 10 may identify whether the identifying information 514 in the identifying information response transmitted from the first image forming apparatus 20 matches registration-identifying information 512 of the first image forming apparatus 20 stored in the terminal 10. In a case where the identifying information 514 and the registration-identifying information 512 match, the terminal 10 may identify the image forming apparatus that transmitted the identifying information response as the first image forming apparatus 20.

[0072] In operation 504, the terminal 10 may request changed IP address information of the first image forming apparatus 20 from the first image forming apparatus 20. In operation 505, the first image forming apparatus 20 may transmit the changed IP address information 521 of the first image forming apparatus 20 to the terminal 10. In operation 506, the terminal 10 may update the IP address information. For example, the terminal 10 may update the first IP address information 511 stored in the terminal 10 to second IP address information 522 based on the received IP address information 521. Here, IP address information

521 is the same as second IP address information 522.

[0073] FIG. 5C is a diagram illustrating that a communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the first image forming apparatus 20 is a connected state as IP address information of the first image forming apparatus 20 is updated in the terminal 10. In this case, the second IP address information

522 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the IP address information 521 of the first image forming apparatus 20. In addition, the first registration-identifying information 512 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the identifying information 514 of the first image forming apparatus 20.

[0074] The terminal 10 monitors the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10, based on the preset period or an event occurring in the terminal 10. In a case where the communication connection state is detected as the disconnected state, the terminal 10 automatically updates the network information of the first image forming apparatus 20, so that it is possible to prevent a failure in the communication connection between the first image forming apparatus 20 and the terminal 10. In addition, even if the network information of the first image forming apparatus 20 is changed, the user can reduce an inconvenience of re-installing or modifying the driver for the first image forming apparatus 20.

[0075] FIGS. 6A to 6C are diagrams illustrating an example of performing a communication connection between an image forming apparatus and a terminal using identifying information and sharing information of the image forming apparatus in a case where network information of the image forming apparatus is changed.

[0076] FIG. 6A is a diagram illustrating that a communication connection state between the terminal 10 and a first image forming apparatus 20-1 is the connected state. The terminal 10 may store network information of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , and registration-identifying information and registrationsharing information of the first image forming apparatus 20-1. For example, the terminal 10 may store first IP address information 611 , first registration-identifying information 612, and first registration-sharing information 613 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 .

[0077] The first image forming apparatus 20-1 may store IP address information 614 used for communication connection between the first image forming apparatus 20-1 and the terminal 10. In addition, the first image forming apparatus 20-1 may store identifying information 615 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1. In addition, the first image forming apparatus 20-1 may store sharing information 616 used to determine an image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus 20-1. For example, the sharing information 616 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 may include model information of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 and group information in which another image forming apparatus is classified into the same group as the first image forming apparatus 20-1 according to a preset criterion.

[0078] An image forming apparatus having the same sharing information as the sharing information 616 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 may be determined as an image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus 20-1 .

[0079] In a case where the communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the first image forming apparatus 20-1 is the connected state, the terminal 10 may request an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , and may transmit data or information used for the requested image forming operation to the first image forming apparatus 20-1. In this case, the first IP address information 611 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the information 614 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1. In addition, the first registration-identifying information 612 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the identifying information 615 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1. In addition, the first registration-sharing information 613 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the sharing information 616 of the first image forming apparatus 20- 1.

[0080] FIG. 6B is a diagram for explaining a process of updating the IP address information of the image forming apparatus by using the identifying information and sharing information of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 in the terminal 10 in a case where the IP address of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 is changed.

[0081] For example, in a case where the first image forming apparatus 20- 1 is replaced with a second image forming apparatus 20-2, the terminal 10 cannot perform a communication connection with the second image forming apparatus 20-2 by using the first IP address information 611 stored in the terminal 10. For example, since the second image forming apparatus 20-2 is a different apparatus from the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , the second image forming apparatus 20-2 has IP address information 621 different from the IP address information (614 of FIG. 6A) of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 and has identifying information 622 different from the identifying information (615 of FIG. 6A) of the first image forming apparatus 20-1. For example, the second image forming apparatus 20-2 may be the same model as the first image forming apparatus 20-

1. In this case, the sharing information 616 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2 is the same as the sharing information 616 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1. The terminal 10 may detect that the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus 20-1 and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state, search for an image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus 20-1 or the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , and perform an operation to switch the communication connection state between the searched image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 to the connected state. [0082] In operation 601 , the terminal 10 may request identifying information of an image forming apparatus from an image forming apparatus on a network to which the terminal 10 belongs. Since the first image forming apparatus 20-1 has been replaced with the second image forming apparatus 20-

2, the first image forming apparatus 20-1 may not receive a request for identifying information from the terminal 10, and the second image forming apparatus 20-2 may receive a request for identifying information from the terminal 10. In operation 602, the second image forming apparatus 20-2 may transmit an identifying information response including identifying information 621 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2 to the terminal 10.

[0083] In operation 603, the terminal 10 may identify that the identifying information 621 in the identifying information response from the second image forming apparatus 20-2 does not match the registration-identifying information 612 stored in the terminal 10. In this case, the terminal 10 may detect that the second image forming apparatus 20-2 that transmitted the identifying information response is not the first image forming apparatus 20-1 .

[0084] In operation 604, the terminal 10 may request sharing information of the second image forming apparatus 20-2 from the second image forming apparatus 20-2. In operation 605, the second image forming apparatus 20-2 may transmit the sharing information 616 of the second image forming apparatus 20- 2 to the terminal 10. In operation 606, the terminal 10 may identify that the sharing information 616 received from the second image forming apparatus 20-2 matches sharing information 613 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 stored in the terminal 10. The terminal 10 may determine that the second image forming apparatus 20-2 is an image forming apparatus that can replace the first image forming apparatus 20-1 .

[0085] In operation 607, the terminal 10 may request IP address information and identifying information from the second image forming apparatus 20-2. In operation 608, the second image forming apparatus 20-2 may transmit the IP address information 621 and the identifying information 622 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2 to the terminal 10. In operation 609, the terminal 10 may update the IP address information and the identifying information. For example, the terminal 10 may update the first IP address information 611 stored in the terminal 10 to second IP address information 623 based on the received IP address information 621 . Further, the terminal 10 may update the first registrationidentifying information 612 stored in the terminal 10 to second registrationidentifying information 624 based on the received identifying information 622.

[0086] FIG. 6C is a diagram illustrating an example in which, as the IP address information and identifying information of the second image forming apparatus 20-2 that replaces the first image forming apparatus 20-1 are updated in the terminal 10, the communication connection state between the terminal 10 and the second image forming apparatus 20-2 is the connected state. In this case, the IP address information 623 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the IP address information 621 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2. In addition, the second registration-identifying information 624 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the identifying information 622 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2. In addition, the registration-sharing information 613 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the sharing information 616 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2.

[0087] In a case where, due to reasons such as the first image forming apparatus 20-1 communicatively connected to the terminal 10 being replaced with the second image forming apparatus 20-2, the network information and registration-identifying information of the image forming apparatus stored in the terminal 10 become different from the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus capable of being communicatively connected to the terminal 10, the terminal 10 may search for an alternative image forming apparatus using the sharing information of the image forming apparatus and update the network information and identifying information of the searched image forming apparatus. In that case, the communication connection between the image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 may be continuously maintained. [0088] FIGS. 7A to 7C are diagrams illustrating an example method of a terminal in a case where an image forming apparatus to be connected to the terminal is determined based on sharing information and the determined image forming apparatus is already connected to the terminal.

[0089] FIG. 7A is a diagram illustrating that a communication connection state between a plurality of image forming apparatuses on a network to which the terminal 10 belongs and the terminal 10 is the connected state. The terminal 10 may store information used to perform a communication connection operation between the plurality of image forming apparatuses and the terminal 10. For example, the terminal 10 may store management information including IP address information, registration-identifying information, and registration-sharing information for each of the plurality of image forming apparatuses. For example, the terminal 10 may store first management information 711 for the first image forming apparatus 20-1 and management information 712 for the second image forming apparatus 20-2.

[0090] Each image forming apparatus may store information including IP address information, identifying information, and sharing information. For example, the first image forming apparatus 20-1 may store information 713 including IP address information, identifying information, and sharing information of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 . The second image forming apparatus 20-2 may store information 714 including IP address information, identifying information, and sharing information of the second image forming apparatus 20- 2.

[0091] In a case where the communication connection state between the terminal 10, the first image forming apparatus 20-1 and the second image forming apparatus 20-2 is the connected state, the terminal 10 may request an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus 20-1 or the second image forming apparatus 20-2 and transmit data or information used in the image forming operation to the image forming apparatus that will perform the image forming operation. In this case, the management information 711 for the first image forming apparatus 20-1 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the information 713 of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , and the management information 712 for the second image forming apparatus 20-2 stored in the terminal 10 is the same as the information 714 of the second image forming apparatus 20-2.

[0092] Referring to FIG. 7B, in a case of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 being replaced with a third image forming apparatus 20-3, the terminal 10 cannot perform a communication connection with the third image forming apparatus 20-3 by using the IP address information stored in the terminal 10. The terminal 10 may determine an image forming apparatus to be connected to the terminal 10 based on the registration-sharing information stored in the terminal 10 and control communication connection so that an image forming operation can be performed in the determined image forming apparatus.

[0093] For example, the third image forming apparatus 20-3 may be a different model from the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , or a group to which the third image forming apparatus 20-3 belongs may be different from a group to which the first image forming apparatus 20-1 belongs. The terminal 10 may obtain IP address information, identifying information, and sharing information of the third image forming apparatus 20-3 and compare the obtained IP address information, identifying information, and sharing information with the IP address information, registration-identifying information, and registration-sharing information stored in the terminal 10. As a result of the comparison, the terminal 10 may identify that information 721 of the third image forming apparatus 20-3 and the management information 711 and 712 stored in the terminal 10 are different.

[0094] The terminal 10 may determine an image forming apparatus to be connected to the terminal 10 based on the registration-sharing information in the management information 711 for the first image forming apparatus 20-1. For example, the registration-sharing information in the management information 711 for the first image forming apparatus 20-1 may be the same as the sharing information of the second image forming apparatus 20-2. In a case where an image forming operation using the first image forming apparatus 20-1 is requested in the terminal 10, the terminal 10 may guide the image forming operation to be performed using the second image forming apparatus 20-2. For example, in a case where the terminal 10 receives a request for a color printing operation using the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , the terminal 10 may display a message guiding a color printing operation to be performed in the second image forming apparatus 20-2 providing the same function as the first image forming apparatus 20-1 .

[0095] As an example, as shown in FIG. 7C, the terminal 10 may display a message 730 of "The OOO image forming apparatus disconnected from the terminal 10 provides the same color printing function as the previously connected YYY image forming apparatus. Do you want to print using the YYY image forming apparatus?"

[0096] Even if the network information, identifying information, and sharing information of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 are changed, the terminal 10 guides the image forming operation to be performed in the image forming apparatus having the same registration-sharing information as the sharing information of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 , so that the user can reduce the inconvenience of re-installing a driver for the newly replaced third image forming apparatus 20-3.

[0097] That is, in a case where the network information of the image forming apparatus is changed, the terminal 10 may perform an operation as described with reference to FIGS. 5A to 5C.

[0098] In addition, in a case where the model of the third image forming apparatus 20-3 is the same as the model of the first image forming apparatus 20- 1 or the group to which the third image forming apparatus 20-3 belongs is the same as the group to which the first image forming apparatus 20-1 belongs, the terminal 10 may perform operations as described with reference to FIGS. 6A to 60.

[0099] In addition, in a case where the model of the third image forming apparatus 20-3 is different from the model of the first image forming apparatus 20-1 and the group to which the third image forming apparatus 20-3 belongs is the same as the group to which the image forming apparatus registered in the terminal 10 belongs, the terminal 10 may perform operations as described with reference to FIGS. 7A to 7C.

[00100] FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of an image forming apparatus that transmits network information and identifying information to a terminal in a case where network information of the image forming apparatus is different from previous network information.

[00101] Referring to FIG. 8, the image forming apparatus 20 may obtain network information to be used in a case of receiving a request for an image forming operation from a terminal based on a preset period or an event occurring in the image forming apparatus 20 in operation 810.

[00102] In operation 820, in a case where the network information does not match the previous network information stored in the image forming apparatus 20, the image forming apparatus 20 may transmit (for example, broadcast) the network information and the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the terminal.

[00103] As an example, in a case where the network information is obtained in the image forming apparatus 20, the image forming apparatus 20 may identify whether the automatic search function for the image forming apparatus 20 is activated in the terminal. In a case where the automatic search function for the image forming apparatus 20 is allowed, the image forming apparatus 20 may identify whether the network information does not match the previous network information stored in the image forming apparatus 20. In a case where the network information does not match the previous network information, the image forming apparatus 20 may transmit the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to a terminal on the network to which the image forming apparatus 20 belongs. The terminal may receive the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 and may add or update the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20.

[00104] FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of an image forming apparatus that transmits identifying information and network information of the image forming apparatus to a terminal.

[00105] Referring to FIG. 9, the image forming apparatus 20 may receive a request for identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 from a first terminal through a preset port of the image forming apparatus 20 in operation 910. For example, the image forming apparatus 20 may set whether to allow the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 in a terminal. For example, the image forming apparatus 20 may set, based on a user input, whether to allow the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 in the terminal.

[00106] In a case where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is activated in the image forming apparatus 20, the image forming apparatus 20 may prepare to transmit the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 through the preset port. For example, the image forming apparatus 20 may generate a task or thread to respond to the request for the identifying information and control the task or thread to monitor whether the request for the identifying information is received from the preset port. In a case where the request for the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 is received, the image forming apparatus 20 may transmit the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the first terminal in operation 920.

[00107] On the other hand, in a case where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is deactivated in the image forming apparatus 20, the image forming apparatus 20 may delete the task or thread to stop a monitoring operation to identify whether the request for the identifying information is received through the preset port.

[00108] In addition, in a state where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is activated, in a case where the image forming apparatus 20 receives a request for sharing information from the first terminal, the image forming apparatus 20 may transmit the sharing information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the first terminal.

[00109] On the other hand, in a state where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is deactivated, even if the image forming apparatus 20 receives the request for the sharing information from the first terminal, the image forming apparatus 20 may not transmit the sharing information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the first terminal.

[00110] In operation 930, the image forming apparatus 20 may receive a request for network information from the first terminal as it is determined that the driver for the image forming apparatus 20 has been previously installed in the first terminal. In operation 940, the image forming apparatus 20 may transmit the network information to the first terminal.

[00111] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a terminal according to an example. [00112] Referring to FIG. 10, the terminal 10 may include a communication unit 1010, a user interface unit 1020, a memory 1030, and a processor 1040. However, the illustrated components may not be essential components. The terminal 10 may be implemented by more components than the illustrated components, and the terminal 10 may be implemented by fewer components than the illustrated components. Hereinafter, examples of the components will be described.

[00113] The communication unit 1010 may communicate with an external device. For example, the communication unit 1010 may be wired or wirelessly connected to a network to perform communication with the external device. Here, the external device may be an image forming apparatus, a server, an electronic device, and the like.

[00114] The user interface unit 1020 may include an input unit for receiving an input for controlling an operation of the terminal 10 from a user and an output unit for displaying information such as a result of the operation of the terminal 10 or a state of the terminal 10. For example, the user interface unit 1020 may include an operation panel for receiving a user input, a display panel for displaying an image, and the like.

[00115] For example, the input unit may include devices capable of receiving various types of user input, such as a keyboard, a physical button, a touch screen, a camera, a microphone, and the like. In addition, the output unit may include, for example, a display panel, a speaker, and the like. However, the user interface unit 1020 is not limited thereto and may include a device supporting various input/output.

[00116] The memory 1030 may store software or programs. For example, the memory 1030 may store a program related to an operation of the terminal 10 that automatically updates network information of an image forming apparatus searched using identifying information of the image forming apparatus in a case where communication connection between the image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is lost due to a change in IP address or host name.

[00117] The processor 1040 may execute a program stored in the memory 1030, read data or files stored in the memory 1030, or store new files in the memory 1030. The processor 1040 may execute instructions stored in the memory 1030.

[00118] In an example, the processor 1040 may install a driver for the image forming apparatus. After the driver of the image forming apparatus is installed in the terminal 10, the processor 1040 may request an image forming operation from the image forming apparatus in the terminal 10. The processor 1040 may install a driver for a plurality of image forming apparatuses on a network belonging to the terminal 10. In a case where the models between the image forming apparatuses are different from each other, the processor 1040 may install drivers for the respective image forming apparatuses.

[00119] The processor 1040 may set an automatic search and update function for an image forming apparatus. For example, the automatic search function for an image forming apparatus may be a function for the terminal 10 to automatically search for an image forming apparatus on a network to which the terminal 10 belongs in a case where the communication connection state between the image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is a disconnected state. That is, through the automatic search function, the processor 1040 may search for an image forming apparatus whose driver is previously installed in the terminal 10. For example, the update function may be a function of updating network information of an image forming apparatus. For example, the network information may be the IP address information and the host name information of the image forming apparatus.

[00120] The processor 1040 may obtain the identifying information of the image forming apparatus and store the obtained identifying information. For example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus may be serial number information, media access control (MAC) address information, and the like of the image forming apparatus. For example, the identifying information of the image forming apparatus may be information generated by the image forming apparatus to uniquely distinguish the image forming apparatus.

[00121] As an example, the processor 1040 may request identifying information of the image forming apparatus from a preset port of the image forming apparatus through the communication unit 1010. The processor 1040 may receive the identifying information of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus through the communication unit 1010, and store the identifying information in the memory 1030 as registration-identifying information. The processor 1040 may determine whether the image forming apparatus is a previously registered image forming apparatus by comparing the registrationidentifying information with the identifying information received from the image forming apparatus.

[00122] The processor 1040 may obtain sharing information of the image forming apparatus and store the obtained sharing information. For example, the sharing information of the image forming apparatus may be information used to determine an image forming apparatus that replaces the image forming apparatus. For example, the sharing information of the image forming apparatus may be model information of the image forming apparatus and group information denoting information that is equally applicable between the image forming apparatuses.

[00123] As an example, the processor 1040 may request sharing information of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus through the communication unit 1010. The processor 1040 may receive the sharing information of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatus through the communication unit 1010 and store the sharing information in the memory 1030 as registration-sharing information. The processor 1040 may determine whether it is an image forming apparatus that replaces the image forming apparatus by comparing registration-sharing information with the sharing information received from the image forming apparatus.

[00124] The processor 1040 may monitor the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on a preset period or an event occurring in the terminal 10. Here, the preset period may be set by the user.

[00125] For example, an event occurring in the terminal 10 may include an event of requesting an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus in the terminal 10, an event of activating a search operation for an image forming apparatus in the terminal 10, an event of performing a boot operation in the terminal 10, and the like. For example, in a case where a command for requesting a first image forming operation using the first image forming apparatus is received in the terminal 10, the processor 1040 may identify the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10.

[00126] In a case where the communication connection state is identified as a disconnected state in the terminal 10, the processor 1040 may request the identifying information of the image forming apparatus through a preset port of the image forming apparatus on the network to which the terminal 10 belongs.

[00127] For example, in a case where network information of the first image forming apparatus is changed, the communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 may be disconnected. For example, in a case where the IP address information of the first image forming apparatus is changed or the host name is changed, the processor 1040 cannot perform communicating with the first image forming apparatus using the IP address information or host name previously registered in the terminal 10. Accordingly, the processor 1040 may perform an operation of searching for the first image forming apparatus in order to retry the communication connection with the first image forming apparatus.

[00128] In this case, the processor 1040 may use the identifying information of the first image forming apparatus to search for the first image forming apparatus among image forming apparatuses on the network to which the terminal 10 belongs.

[00129] As an example, in a case where it is identified, in the terminal 10, that the communication connection state between the image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state and the automatic search operation of the image forming apparatus is in an active state, the processor 1040 may automatically request identifying information of the image forming apparatuses on the network through the preset port of each of the image forming apparatuses. [00130] Based on the result of identifying that the first identifying information in an identifying information response matches the first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus, the processor 1040 may update the network information to be used in a case where an image forming operation is requested. Here, the identifying information response may be received as a response of the identifying information of the image forming apparatus.

[00131] For example, in a case where the first identifying information matches the first registration-identifying information, the processor 1040 may identify the image forming apparatus that transmitted the identifying information response as the first image forming apparatus. The processor 1040 may request network information from the image forming apparatus that transmitted the identifying information response through the communication unit 1010 and receive first network information from the image forming apparatus that transmitted the identifying information response. The processor 1040 may update the network information for the first image forming apparatus based on the first network information.

[00132] In order to update the changed network information of the first image forming apparatus, the processor 1040 may obtain parameter information on a previous parameter used when the terminal 10 requested the first image forming operation to the first image forming apparatus.

[00133] For example, in a case where the previous parameter used when the terminal 10 requested the image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus is an IP address, the processor 1040 may update IP address information of the first image forming apparatus based on the first IP address used when receiving the first identifying information.

[00134] For example, in a case where the previous parameter used when the terminal 10 requested the image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus is the host name, processor 1040 may update the host name information of the first image forming apparatus based on the changed host name of the first image forming apparatus.

[00135] The processor 1040 may perform a communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on the updated network information. In a case where the communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is completed, the processor 1040 may request an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus through the communication unit 1010 and transmit data or information for the image forming operation to the first image forming apparatus. [00136] On the other hand, in a case where the identifying information in the identifying information response does not match the registration-identifying information stored in the terminal 10, the processor 1040 may determine a second image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus based on the sharing information for the first image forming apparatus. Here, the sharing information on the first image forming apparatus may be information used to determine an image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus.

[00137] For example, the image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus may be an image forming apparatus that provides the same functions as the first image forming apparatus. In addition, the image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus may be an image forming apparatus capable of performing an image forming operation requested of the first image forming apparatus. For example, an image forming apparatus having the same model information as the first image forming apparatus may be the image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus.

[00138] For example, the sharing information for the first image forming apparatus may include model information of the first image forming apparatus and group information in which another image forming apparatus is classified into the same group as the first image forming apparatus according to a preset criterion. For example, the preset criterion may be a criterion for classifying an image forming apparatus that provides the same function as the first image forming apparatus or has the same location information as the first image forming apparatus into the same group as the first image forming apparatus.

[00139] The processor 1040 may identify whether the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is the disconnected state. In a case where the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is identified as the connected state, the processor 1040 may guide a second image forming operation to be performed using the second image forming apparatus.

[00140] In a case where the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is identified to be the disconnected state, the processor 1040 may obtain second network information of the second image forming apparatus. For example, the second network information of the second image forming apparatus may include IP address information and host name information of the second image forming apparatus.

[00141] The processor 1040 may perform communication connection between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on the second network information. In a case where the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 is the connected state, the processor 1040 may guide a second image forming operation to be performed using the second image forming apparatus.

[00142] For example, in a case where an image forming operation using the first image forming apparatus is requested in the terminal 10, the processor 1040 may guide the image forming operation to be performed using the second image forming apparatus. For example, the user interface unit 1020 may display information denoting the disconnected state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 and information denoting that the second image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus that can replace the first image forming apparatus.

[00143] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating instructions stored in a computer- readable storage medium according to an example.

[00144] Referring to FIG. 11 , a computer-readable storage medium 1100 may store instructions related to example operations of the terminal 10 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10. For example, the computer-readable storage medium 1100 may store instructions 1110 for identifying a communication connection state between a first image forming apparatus registered in the terminal 10 and the terminal 10, instructions 1120 for requesting identifying information of an image forming apparatus through a preset port of the image forming apparatus on a network to which the terminal 10 belongs in a case where the communication connection state is identified as the disconnected state, instructions 1130 for updating network information based on the result of identifying that first identifying information in an identifying information response matches first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus, and instructions 1140 for performing a communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal 10 based on the updated network information.

[00145] FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating of an image forming apparatus according to an example.

[00146] Referring to FIG. 12, the image forming apparatus 20 may include a communication unit 1210, a user interface unit 1220, a memory 1230, and a processor 1240. However, the illustrated components may not be essential components. The image forming apparatus 20 may be implemented by more components than the illustrated components, and the image forming apparatus 20 may be implemented by fewer components than the illustrated components. Hereinafter, examples the components will be described.

[00147] The communication unit 1210 may communicate with an external device. For example, the communication unit 1210 may be wired or wirelessly connected to a network to perform communication with the external device. Here, the external device may be a terminal, a server, or the like.

[00148] The user interface unit 1220 may include an input unit for receiving an input for controlling an operation of the image forming apparatus 20 from a user and an output unit for displaying information such as a result of the operation of the image forming apparatus 20 or a state of the image forming apparatus 20. For example, the user interface unit 1220 may include an operation panel for receiving a user input, a display panel for displaying a screen, and the like.

[00149] The memory 1230 may store software or programs. For example, the memory 1230 may store a program related to an example operation of the image forming apparatus 20 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10.

[00150] The processor 1240 may execute a program stored in the memory 1230, read data or files stored in the memory 1230, or store new files in the memory 1230. The processor 1240 may execute instructions stored in the memory 1230.

[00151] The processor 1240 may obtain network information to be used in a case of receiving a request for an image forming operation from a terminal based on a preset period or an event occurring in the image forming apparatus 20.

[00152] In a case where the network information does not match previous network information stored in the image forming apparatus 20, the processor 1240 may transmit the network information and the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the terminal through the communication unit 1210. For example, the communication unit 1210 may broadcast the network information and the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the terminal.

[00153] As an example, in a case where the processor 1240 obtains the network information, the image forming apparatus 20 may identify whether the automatic search function for an image forming apparatus 20 is activated in the terminal. In a case where the automatic search function for an image forming apparatus 20 is allowed, the processor 1240 may identify whether the network information does not match the previous network information stored in the image forming apparatus 20. In a case where the network information does not match the previous network information, the processor 1240 may transmit network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the terminal on the network to which the image forming apparatus 20 belongs. The terminal may receive the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 and may add or update the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20.

[00154] The processor 1240 may receive a request for the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 through the preset port of the image forming apparatus 20 from a first terminal. For example, the processor 1240 may set whether to allow automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 in a terminal. For example, the processor 1240 may set whether to allow automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 in the terminal based on a user input.

[00155] In a case where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is activated, the processor 1240 may prepare to transmit the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 through the preset port. For example, the processor 1240 may generate a task or thread to respond to the request for the identifying information and control the task or thread to monitor whether the request for the identifying information is received from the preset port. In a case that a request for the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 is received, the processor 1240 may transmit the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the first terminal through the communication unit 1210.

[00156] On the other hand, in a case where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is deactivated in the image forming apparatus 20, the processor 1240 may delete the task or thread to stop a monitoring operation to identify whether the request for the identifying information is received through the preset port.

[00157] In addition, in a state where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is activated, in a case where the image forming apparatus 20 receives a request for sharing information from the first terminal, the processor 1240 may transmit the sharing information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the first terminal through the communication unit 1210.

[00158] On the other hand, in a state where the automatic search for the image forming apparatus 20 is deactivated, even if the image forming apparatus 20 receives the request for the sharing information from the first terminal, the processor 1240 may not transmit the sharing information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the first terminal.

[00159] The processor 1240 may receive a request for network information from the first terminal through the communication unit 1210, as it is determined that the driver for the image forming apparatus 20 has been previously installed in the first terminal. The processor 1240 may transmit the network information to the first terminal through the communication unit 1210.

[00160] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating instructions stored in a computer- readable storage medium according to an example.

[00161] Referring to FIG. 13, a computer-readable storage medium 1300 may store instructions related to an example operation of the image forming apparatus 20 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10. For example, the computer-readable storage medium 1300 may store instructions 1310 for obtaining network information to be used in a case of receiving a request for an image forming operation from a terminal based on a preset period or an event occurring in the image forming apparatus 20, instructions 1320 for transmitting the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to the terminal in a case where the network information does not match previous network information stored in the image forming apparatus 20, instructions 1330 for transmitting identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 to a first terminal as a request for the identifying information of the image forming apparatus 20 is received from the first terminal through a preset port of the image forming apparatus 20, and instructions 1340 for receiving a request for the network information from the first terminal and transmitting the network information to the first terminal as it is identified that a driver for the image forming apparatus 20 has been previously installed in the first terminal.

[00162] The above described example operation methods of the terminal 10 and the image forming apparatus 20 may be implemented in the form of a non- transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions or data executable by a computer or processor. The operation method may be written as a program executable by a computer and implemented in a general-purpose digital computer that operates such a program using a non-transitory computer- readable storage medium. Such non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may include read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), flash memory, compact disk (CD), CD-ROMs, CD-Rs, CD+Rs, CD-RWs, CD+RWs, DVD-ROMs, DVD-Rs, DVD+Rs, DVD-RWs, DVD+RWs, DVD-RAMs, BD-ROMs, BD-Rs, BD-R LTHs, BD-REs, magnetic tapes, floppy disks, magnetooptical data storage devices, optical data storage devices, hard disks, solid-state disk (SSD), and any other device that is able to store the instructions or software and any associated data, data files, and data structures and provide the instructions or software and any associated data, data files, and data structures to processor or computer so that the processor or computer can execute the instructions.

[00163] Although examples have been described above, various modifications and variations may be made from the above description. Suitable results may be achieved even if the described techniques are performed in a different order, and/or even if components in a described system, architecture, device, or circuit are combined in a different manner, and/or replaced or supplemented by other components or their equivalents.

[00164] Therefore, the scope of the disclosure is defined not by the detailed description, but by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

38 WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. An operation method of a terminal, the operation method comprising: identifying a communication connection state between a first image forming apparatus registered in the terminal and the terminal; requesting identifying information of an image forming apparatus in a case where it is identified that the communication connection state is a disconnected state; updating network information based on an identification that first identifying information received as a response matches first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus; and performing a communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal based on the updated network information.

2. The operation method of claim 1 , wherein the requesting of the identifying information of the image forming apparatus includes automatically requesting identifying information of an image forming apparatus on the network through a preset port of each of the image forming apparatus in a case where it is identified that the communication connection state is the disconnected state and an automatic search operation of the image forming apparatus is in an active state.

3. The operation method of claim 1 , wherein the identifying information of the first image forming apparatus includes information to distinguish the first image forming apparatus from a second image forming apparatus, and wherein the first registration-identifying information of the first image forming apparatus includes information registered in the terminal as identifying information of the first image forming apparatus.

4. The operation method of claim 1 , wherein the updating of the 39 network information comprises: obtaining first network information of the image forming apparatus that transmitted the first identifying information in a case where the first identifying information matches the first registration-identifying information; and updating the network information for the first image forming apparatus based on the first network information.

5. The operation method of claim 4, wherein the obtaining of the first network information includes obtaining parameter information on a previous parameter used in a case where the terminal requested the first image forming apparatus to perform a first image forming operation.

6. The operation method of claim 5, wherein the updating of the network information for the first image forming apparatus based on the first network information comprises: in a case where the previous parameter is an internet protocol (IP) address of the first image forming apparatus, updating IP address information of the first image forming apparatus based on a first IP address used in response to receiving the first identifying information; or in a case where the previous parameter is a host name of the first image forming apparatus, updating host name information of the first image forming apparatus based on a changed host name of the first image forming apparatus.

7. The operation method of claim 1 , wherein the identifying of the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal includes monitoring the communication connection state between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal based on a preset period or an event occurring in the terminal, and wherein the event occurring in the terminal includes an event of requesting an image forming operation from the first image forming apparatus in the terminal, an event of activating a search operation for an image forming apparatus in the terminal, or an event of performing a boot operation in the terminal. 40

8. The operation method of claim 1 , further comprising, in a case where the first identifying information does not match the first registrationidentifying information, performing a communication connection between a second image forming apparatus communicatively connected to the network and the terminal based on sharing information for determining an image forming apparatus that replaces the first image forming apparatus.

9. The operation method of claim 8, wherein the sharing information includes model information of the first image forming apparatus or group information in which another image forming apparatus is classified into the same group as the first image forming apparatus according to a preset criterion.

10. The operation method of claim 8, wherein the performing of the communication connection between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal based on the sharing information comprises: determining the second image forming apparatus based on the sharing information; obtaining second network information of the second image forming apparatus in a case where the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal is the disconnected state; and performing a communication connection between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal based on the second network information.

11. The operation method of claim 10, further comprising guiding a second image forming operation to be performed by the second image forming apparatus in a case where the communication connection state between the second image forming apparatus and the terminal is a connected state.

12. A terminal comprising: a communication unit to communicate with an external device; a user interface unit; a processor; and a memory to store instructions executable by the processor, wherein the processor is to execute the instructions to: identify a communication connection state between a first image forming apparatus registered in the terminal and the terminal; request identifying information of an image forming apparatus in a case where it is identified that the communication connection state is a disconnected state; update network information based on an identification that first identifying information received as a response matches first registrationidentifying information of the first image forming apparatus; and perform a communication connection between the first image forming apparatus and the terminal based on the updated network information.

13. An image forming apparatus comprising: a communication unit; a user interface unit; a processor; and a memory to store instructions executable by the processor, wherein the processor is to execute the instructions to: obtain network information based on a preset period or an event occurring in the image forming apparatus; and transmit the network information and identifying information of the image forming apparatus to a terminal in a case where the network information does not match previous network information stored in the image forming apparatus.

14. The image forming apparatus of claim 13, wherein the processor is further to execute the instructions to: transmit the identifying information of the image forming apparatus to a first terminal based on a request for the identifying information of the image forming apparatus received from the first terminal through a preset port of the image forming apparatus; and receive a request for the network information from the first terminal and transmit the network information to the first terminal in a case where it is identified that a driver for the image forming apparatus has been previously installed in the first terminal.

15. The image forming apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor is further to execute the instructions to: receive, through the user interface unit, a user input to allow an automatic search for the image forming apparatus in the terminal; and prepare to transmit the identifying information of the image forming apparatus through the preset port of the image forming apparatus.