WO2022185985A1 - Image forming device and information processing device - Google Patents

Image forming device and information processing device Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2022185985A1
WO2022185985A1 PCT/JP2022/007107 JP2022007107W WO2022185985A1 WO 2022185985 A1 WO2022185985 A1 WO 2022185985A1 JP 2022007107 W JP2022007107 W JP 2022007107W WO 2022185985 A1 WO2022185985 A1 WO 2022185985A1
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Prior art keywords
image forming
forming apparatus
organizational
image
site
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PCT/JP2022/007107
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French (fr)
Japanese (ja)
Inventor
亮祐 加藤
経介 福島
重中 金光
康史 塚本
明彦 伊ヶ崎
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京セラドキュメントソリューションズ株式会社
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Publication of WO2022185985A1 publication Critical patent/WO2022185985A1/en

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    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
    • G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
    • G06F3/12—Digital output to print unit, e.g. line printer, chain printer
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N1/00—Scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, e.g. facsimile transmission; Details thereof

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an image forming system and an information processing device.
  • a portable terminal device emulates and displays an operation screen of an image forming apparatus, and when an operation on the operation screen is detected, generates a command corresponding to the operation, transmits the command to the image forming apparatus, When the image forming apparatus receives the command, the image forming apparatus executes a process corresponding to a similar operation on the operation screen displayed on the image forming apparatus (see, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-100003).
  • a user uses an image forming device located at an organizational base such as an office on a daily basis, but due to remote work, etc., a location other than the organizational base where the image forming device is located (remote base) ), by emulating the operation screen on the terminal device as described above, the user can execute various processes with the same operational feeling as when the user is at the organizational base.
  • an organizational base such as an office on a daily basis, but due to remote work, etc., a location other than the organizational base where the image forming device is located (remote base)
  • the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to obtain an image forming system and an information processing apparatus that can execute many jobs with the same operational feeling at a remote site.
  • An image forming system includes an image forming apparatus at an organizational site, an image forming apparatus at a remote site, and an information processing apparatus at the remote site. Then, the information processing device (a) emulates and displays an operation screen of the image forming device of the organizational base, (b) detects a user operation on the operation screen, and (c) specifies an operation screen by the user operation.
  • An information processing apparatus is an information processing apparatus at a remote site that is remote from an organizational site, and includes: a communication control unit; (a) emulating and displaying an operation screen of an image forming apparatus at the organizational site; (b) detecting a user operation on the operation screen; (c) identifying a job specified by the user operation; and identifying a second process that can be executed by the image forming apparatus at the organizational site; (e) using the communication control unit to transmit a first partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the remote site; and an operation screen emulator for transmitting a partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the organizational base.
  • FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the invention.
  • FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the user terminal device 21 in FIG.
  • FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 emulated in the user terminal device 21 shown in FIG.
  • FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 22 in FIG. 1.
  • FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 11 in FIG. 1.
  • FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating job execution in the image forming system shown in FIG.
  • FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the invention.
  • the image forming system shown in FIG. Each has a user terminal device 21, an image forming device 22, a router 23, and a local network 24, and VPN communication ( virtual private network communication).
  • VPN communication virtual private network communication
  • the organizational site 1 is the office of the company
  • the remote site 2-i is the home of the employee (user) of the company.
  • the image forming apparatus 22 at the remote site 2-i is of a different model from the image forming apparatus 11 at the organizational site 1 and has more resources (software functions such as applications, internal devices, etc.) than the image forming apparatus 11 at the organizational site 1. In many cases, devices with fewer hardware functions) are used.
  • the image forming apparatus 11 is a printer, a multifunction device, or the like connected to the local network 15, and executes a job (print job, scan-to-job, etc.) requested by the user.
  • the terminal device 12 is a personal computer or the like connected to the local network 15 and transmits a job request to the image forming device 11 via the local network 15 .
  • the server 13 is connected to the local network 15 and has functions such as a file server and an active directory server.
  • the router 14 is a communication device that has a VPN server function and connects the local network 15 and the wide area network 3 .
  • the local network 15 is a wired LAN (Local Area Network), a wireless LAN, or the like.
  • the user terminal device 21 is connected to the local network 24 and is an information processing device used by a user who is an organization member, such as a personal computer or a mobile terminal device.
  • the image forming apparatus 22 is a printer, multi-function peripheral, etc., connected to the local network 24, and executes a job (print job, scan-to-job, etc.) requested by the user.
  • the router 23 is communication equipment that connects the local network 24 and the wide area network 3 .
  • the local network 24 is a wired LAN, wireless LAN, or the like.
  • FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the user terminal device 21 in FIG.
  • the user terminal device 21 includes an input device 31, a display device 32, a storage device 33, a communication device 34, and an arithmetic processing device 35.
  • the input device 31 is a device such as a hard key or touch panel that detects user operations and outputs information indicating user operations.
  • the display device 32 is a device such as a liquid crystal display that displays various information to the user.
  • the input device 31 and the display device 32 may be built in the user terminal device 21, or may be connected to the user terminal device 21 as external devices.
  • the storage device 33 is a rewritable non-volatile storage device such as a hard disk or flash memory, and stores programs and data.
  • the communication device 34 is a device that is connected to the local network 24 and performs data communication with other devices via the local network 24 .
  • the arithmetic processing unit 35 includes a computer that executes various programs, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), etc., and the computer, ASIC, etc. operates as various processing units.
  • the arithmetic processing unit 35 operates as a communication control unit 41 , a VPN processing unit 42 , a driver 43 and an operation screen emulator 44 .
  • the communication control unit 41 controls the communication device 34 connected to the local network 24 within the remote site 2-i, and performs data communication according to a predetermined communication protocol.
  • the VPN processing unit 42 uses the communication control unit 41 to set up a VPN communication path with the organizational base 1 via the router 23 .
  • the communication control unit 41 transmits and receives packets encapsulated by the VPN protocol (VPN method) of the VPN communication channel using lower-layer communication protocols (TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)/IP (Internet Protocol), etc.).
  • VPN protocol VPN method
  • TCP Transmission Control Protocol
  • IP Internet Protocol
  • Ethernet frames that transfer IP packets on the virtual network are transferred over HTTPS over TCP/IP on the real network.
  • the VPN processing unit 42 executes decapsulation processing and decryption processing of packets received through the VPN communication channel, and executes encryption processing and encapsulation processing of packets to be transmitted through the VPN communication channel.
  • the driver 43 is a driver of the image forming apparatus 22, generates a job request (such as a print request) according to the user's operation on the input device 31, and transmits the job request to the image forming apparatus 22 through the communication device 34. .
  • the operation screen emulator 44 (a) emulates the operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 of the organization base 1 and displays it on the display device 32, (b) detects a user operation on the operation screen with the input device 31, and ( c) specifying the job specified by the user operation; (e) transmitting a first partial job request for executing the first process to the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i to execute the second process; A second partial job request is sent to the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 .
  • FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 emulated in the user terminal device 21 in FIG.
  • an emulated operation screen 101 is displayed on the display device 32 of the user terminal device 21 .
  • the operation screen 101 includes a plurality of icons corresponding to a plurality of jobs, and when a user operation of pressing an icon is detected, the operation screen emulator 44 selects the job corresponding to the icon as the job specified by the user operation. Identify as
  • VPN processing unit 42 the driver 43, and the operation screen emulator 44 are collectively installed in the user terminal device 21 by an installer provided by the vendor of the image forming apparatuses 11 and 22, for example.
  • FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 22 shown in FIG.
  • the image forming apparatus 22 shown in FIG. 4 includes a storage device 51, an operation panel 52, an arithmetic processing device 53, a printing device 54, an image reading device 55, a communication device 56, and the like.
  • the storage device 51 is a non-volatile rewritable storage device such as flash memory.
  • the storage device 51 stores programs and data.
  • the operation panel 52 is arranged on the front side of the upper surface of the housing of the image forming apparatus 22, and includes a display device 52a such as a liquid crystal display, and an input device 52b such as hard keys and a touch panel.
  • the display device 52a displays various screens to the user, and the input device 52b receives user operations input by the user.
  • the arithmetic processing unit 53 is a computer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit), ROM (Read Only Memory), and RAM (Random Access Memory), and loads programs stored in the ROM and the storage device 51 into the RAM. It operates as various processing units by being executed by the CPU. Arithmetic processing unit 53 operates as controller 61 , communication control unit 62 , and partial job processing unit 63 .
  • CPU Central Processing Unit
  • ROM Read Only Memory
  • RAM Random Access Memory
  • the printing device 54 prints the target image (original image, etc.) on printing paper based on the image data.
  • the image reading device 55 optically reads a document image from a document and generates image data of the document image.
  • the communication device 56 is connected to the local network 24 and performs data communication with the user terminal device 21, the router 23, and the like.
  • the controller 61 controls the internal devices such as the printing device 54, the image reading device 55, and the communication device 56 according to user operations on the operation panel 52 and job requests received from the user terminal device 21 through the communication device 56, job.
  • the communication control unit 62 controls the communication device 56 to perform data communication according to a predetermined communication protocol.
  • the partial job processing unit 63 (a) accepts the first partial job request received from the user terminal device 21, and (b) accepts the first partial job request. Execute the process.
  • FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 11 shown in FIG.
  • the image forming apparatus 11 shown in FIG. 5 includes a storage device 71, an operation panel 72, an arithmetic processing device 73, a printing device 74, an image reading device 75, a communication device 76, a facsimile device 77, and the like.
  • Storage device 71, operation panel 72, arithmetic processing device 73, printing device 74, image reading device 75, and communication device 76 are the storage device 51, operation panel 52, arithmetic processing device 53, printing device 54, and image reading device, respectively. 55 , and communication device 56 . Note that the functions of both may be different.
  • the display device 72a and the input device 72b are devices similar to the display device 52a and the input device 52b, respectively.
  • controller 81, the communication control unit 82, and the partial job processing unit 83 are processing units similar to the controller 61, the communication control unit 62, and the partial job processing unit 63, respectively.
  • the partial job processing unit 83 (a) accepts the second partial job request received from the user terminal device 21, and (b) accepts the second partial job request. Execute the process.
  • the image forming device 11 of the organizational site 1 and the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i are provided with image reading devices 55 and 75, respectively. Further, the image forming device 11 of the organizational site 1 has a facsimile device 77, but the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i does not have a facsimile device. Further, the image forming device 11 at the organizational site 1 has a character recognition function, but the image forming device 22 at the remote site 2-i does not have a character recognition function. Therefore, for example, in a facsimile transmission job, the above-described first processing includes image reading processing using the image reading device 55 (and image processing such as color conversion and resolution conversion from the read color image to a monochrome image).
  • the second process includes facsimile transmission of the image read in the first process using facsimile device 77 .
  • the above-described first processing includes image reading processing using the image reading device 55, and the second processing uses the above-described character recognition function. This includes character recognition processing of images.
  • the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i does not have a large-capacity data storage (such as the storage device 51 described above) such as a hard disk drive or SSD (Solid State Drive) for storing user data
  • a large-capacity data storage such as the storage device 51 described above
  • the first processing described above uses the image reading device 55.
  • An image reading process is included, and the second process includes writing an image data file of the image read in the first process using the large-capacity data storage of the image forming apparatus 11 . That is, in the second process, the image data file is stored in the document box in the large-capacity data storage of the image forming apparatus 11 .
  • this image data file may be a data file of reusable image data.
  • Reusable image data is image data that has not been subjected to image quality adjustment or resolution adjustment (for example, full color at the highest resolution such as 600 dpi).
  • image quality adjustment or resolution adjustment for example, full color at the highest resolution such as 600 dpi.
  • the information may be saved together with the image data file, and the image quality and resolution may be adjusted at the time of output.
  • the above-described second processing is performed by extracting data from image forming apparatus 11 from the mass data storage.
  • An image data file acquisition process is included, and the first process described above includes an image print process based on the image data file. That is, in the case described above, the second process is executed after the first process, but in the case of a box-to-print job, after the second process, a second process based on the processing result (image data file) of the second process is executed. 1 process is executed.
  • FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating job execution in the image forming system shown in FIG.
  • the operation screen emulator 44 uses the VPN processing unit 42, the communication control unit 41, and the communication device 34, via the local network 24, the router 23, and the wide area network 3 (the above-mentioned VPN communication A screen data request is sent to the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 (step S1).
  • the controller 81 uses the communication control unit 82 and the communication device 76 to generate the image.
  • the screen data of the operation screen of the forming device 11 is transmitted to the user terminal device 21 via the VPN communication path (step S2).
  • the operation screen emulator 44 receives the screen data using the VPN processing unit 42, the communication control unit 41, and the communication device 34, and based on the screen data, displays the image of the organizational site 1.
  • An operation screen obtained by emulating the operation screen of the forming apparatus 11 is displayed on the display device 32 as shown in FIG. 3, for example (step S3).
  • the operation screen emulator 44 detects a user operation on the operation screen with the input device 31, it identifies the job specified by the user operation, and in the job, the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i and a second process executable by the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 (step S4).
  • the operation screen emulator 44 uses the communication control unit 41 and the communication device 34 to transmit the first partial job request for executing the first process to the remote site 2-i via the local network 24. It is transmitted to the image forming apparatus 22 (step S5).
  • the partial job processing unit 63 executes the first process specified by the first partial job request. is executed by the controller 61 or an internal device (step S6). Then, partial job processing unit 63 transmits the processing result of the first process (including the image data of the read image when the first process is image reading processing) to communication control unit 62 and communication device 56. and transmits it to the user terminal device 21 via the local network 24 (step S7).
  • the operation screen emulator 44 receives the processing result of the first process using the communication control unit 41 and the communication device 34.
  • the VPN processing unit 42 Using the communication control unit 41 and the communication device 34, a second partial job request for executing the second process is sent to the image forming device of the organization site 1 via the local network 24, the router 23, and the wide area network 3. 11 (step S8).
  • the processing result of the first processing is included in the second partial job request.
  • the partial job processing unit 83 processes the second partial job request specified by the second partial job request. 2 processing is executed by the controller 81 or an internal device (step S9). Then, the partial job processing unit 83 includes the processing result of the second process (that is, the job execution result, and if the second process is a facsimile transmission process, the data indicating whether the transmission is successful or not, and the second process). is character recognition processing, text data files obtained by character recognition processing, office application type data files such as WORD and EXCEL) are transmitted using communication control unit 82 and communication device 76.
  • the operation screen emulator 44 of the user terminal device 21 uses the VPN processing section 42, the communication control section 41, and the communication device 34 to receive the processing result of the second processing.
  • the user can use the operation screen emulator 44 of the user terminal device 21 to operate the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i where the user is located with the same operational feeling as the operation panel 72 of the image forming device 11. can be used to make the system execute the job.
  • the partial job processing unit 63 accepts the first partial job request, and if the process specified by the partial job request does not require the resources of the organizational base 1, The processing is executed using the internal device of the image forming apparatus 22 without accessing the . On the other hand, if the process specified by the partial job request is a process that requires the resources of the organizational base 1, the partial job processing unit 63 sends the partial job request to the organizational base 1 via the VPN communication path relayed by the user terminal device 21. resources to perform its work.
  • the user terminal device 21 at the remote site 2-i (a) emulates and displays the operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 at the organizational site 1, and (b) Detecting a user operation on the operation screen, (c) identifying a job specified by the user operation, and (d) executing a first process in the job in the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i. , and a second process that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational site 1, (e) transmitting a first partial job request to the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i, and transmitting a second partial job request to the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 .
  • the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i (a) accepts the first partial job request, and (b) upon accepting the first partial job request, executes the above-described first process,
  • the image forming apparatus 11 (a) accepts the second partial job request, and (b) upon accepting the second partial job request, executes the second process described above.
  • the resources of the image forming apparatus 22 at the remote site 2-i where the user is located are used, so the user can execute many jobs at the remote site 2-i with the same operational feeling.
  • the present invention is applicable, for example, to an image forming system.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
  • Multimedia (AREA)
  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
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Abstract

A user terminal device (21) of a remote site (2-i): emulates and displays an operating screen of an image forming device (11) of an organization site (1); detects a user operation on the operating screen; identifies a job designated by the user operation; identifies, in the job, first processing that can be performed by an image forming device (22) of the remote site (2-i), and a second processing that can be performed by the image forming device (11) of the organization site (1); transmits a first partial job request for performing the first processing to the image forming device (22) of the remote site (2-i); and transmits a second partial job request for performing the second processing to the image forming device (11) of the organization site (1).

Description

画像形成システムおよび情報処理装置Image forming system and information processing device
　本発明は、画像形成システムおよび情報処理装置に関するものである。 The present invention relates to an image forming system and an information processing device.
　あるシステムでは、携帯端末装置が、画像形成装置の操作画面をエミュレートして表示し、その操作画面に対する操作を検出すると、その操作に対応するコマンドを生成し、その画像形成装置へ送信し、画像形成装置は、そのコマンドを受信すると、当該画像形成装置で表示される操作画面に対する同様の操作に対応する処理を実行する（例えば特許文献１参照）。 In one system, a portable terminal device emulates and displays an operation screen of an image forming apparatus, and when an operation on the operation screen is detected, generates a command corresponding to the operation, transmits the command to the image forming apparatus, When the image forming apparatus receives the command, the image forming apparatus executes a process corresponding to a similar operation on the operation screen displayed on the image forming apparatus (see, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-100003).
特開２０１７－２２８８７２号公報JP 2017-228872 A
　上述のシステムでは、エミュレートされた操作画面に対する操作により指定された処理は、すべて、その操作画面に対応する画像形成装置で実行されている。 In the system described above, all the processing specified by the operation on the emulated operation screen is executed by the image forming apparatus corresponding to that operation screen.
　ユーザーが、オフィスなどの組織拠点に配置されている画像形成装置を日常的に使用しているが、リモートワークなどで、その画像形成装置の配置されている組織拠点とは別の拠点（リモート拠点）にいる場合、上述のように端末装置で操作画面をエミュレートすることで、ユーザーは、組織拠点にいるときと同様の操作感で各種処理を実行することができる。 A user uses an image forming device located at an organizational base such as an office on a daily basis, but due to remote work, etc., a location other than the organizational base where the image forming device is located (remote base) ), by emulating the operation screen on the terminal device as described above, the user can execute various processes with the same operational feeling as when the user is at the organizational base.
　しかしながら、ユーザーは、リモート拠点にいる場合、組織拠点に配置されている画像形成装置を直接的に操作することはできないため、組織拠点に配置されている画像形成装置を直接的に操作するときの同様の操作感で実行可能な処理（ジョブ）が制限される。 However, when a user is at a remote site, he or she cannot directly operate the image forming apparatus located at the organizational site. Processes (jobs) that can be executed with the same operational feeling are limited.
　本発明は、上記の問題に鑑みてなされたものであり、リモート拠点において同様の操作感で多くのジョブを実行できる画像形成システムおよび情報処理装置を得ることを目的とする。 The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to obtain an image forming system and an information processing apparatus that can execute many jobs with the same operational feeling at a remote site.
　本発明に係る画像形成システムは、組織拠点の画像形成装置と、リモート拠点の画像形成装置と、前記リモート拠点の情報処理装置とを備える。そして、前記情報処理装置は、（ａ）前記組織拠点の画像形成装置の操作画面をエミュレートして表示し、（ｂ）前記操作画面に対するユーザー操作を検出し、（ｃ）前記ユーザー操作により指定されたジョブを特定し、（ｄ）前記ジョブにおいて、前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第１処理、および前記組織拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第２処理を特定し、（ｅ）第１部分ジョブ要求を前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置に送信し、第２部分ジョブ要求を前記組織拠点の画像形成装置に送信する。前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、（ａ）前記第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）前記第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、前記第１処理を実行し、前記組織拠点の画像形成装置は、（ａ）前記第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）前記第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、前記第２処理を実行する。 An image forming system according to the present invention includes an image forming apparatus at an organizational site, an image forming apparatus at a remote site, and an information processing apparatus at the remote site. Then, the information processing device (a) emulates and displays an operation screen of the image forming device of the organizational base, (b) detects a user operation on the operation screen, and (c) specifies an operation screen by the user operation. (d) identifying, in said job, a first process that can be executed by an image forming apparatus at said remote site and a second process that can be executed by an image forming apparatus at said organizational site; ) sending a first partial job request to the remote site image forming apparatus and sending a second partial job request to the organizational site image forming apparatus; The image forming apparatus at the remote site (a) receives the first partial job request, and (b) executes the first process upon receiving the first partial job request, and the image forming apparatus at the organizational site (a) accepting the second partial job request; and (b) upon accepting the second partial job request, executing the second process.
　本発明に係る情報処理装置は、組織拠点から遠隔にあるリモート拠点の情報処理装置であり、通信制御部と、（ａ）前記組織拠点の画像形成装置の操作画面をエミュレートして表示し、（ｂ）前記操作画面に対するユーザー操作を検出し、（ｃ）前記ユーザー操作により指定されたジョブを特定し、（ｄ）前記ジョブにおいて、前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第１処理、および前記組織拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第２処理を特定し、（ｅ）前記通信制御部を使用して、第１部分ジョブ要求を前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置に送信し、第２部分ジョブ要求を前記組織拠点の画像形成装置に送信する操作画面エミュレーターとを備える。 An information processing apparatus according to the present invention is an information processing apparatus at a remote site that is remote from an organizational site, and includes: a communication control unit; (a) emulating and displaying an operation screen of an image forming apparatus at the organizational site; (b) detecting a user operation on the operation screen; (c) identifying a job specified by the user operation; and identifying a second process that can be executed by the image forming apparatus at the organizational site; (e) using the communication control unit to transmit a first partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the remote site; and an operation screen emulator for transmitting a partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the organizational base.
　本発明によれば、リモート拠点において同様の操作感で多くのジョブを実行できる画像形成システムおよび画像形成装置が得られる。 According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an image forming system and an image forming apparatus that can execute many jobs with the same operational feeling at a remote site.
　本発明の上記又は他の目的、特徴および優位性は、添付の図面とともに以下の詳細な説明から更に明らかになる。 The above or other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description together with the accompanying drawings.
図１は、本発明の実施の形態に係る画像形成システムの構成を示すブロック図である。FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the invention. 図２は、図１におけるユーザー端末装置２１の構成を示すブロック図である。FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the user terminal device 21 in FIG. 図３は、図１におけるユーザー端末装置２１においてエミュレートされた画像形成装置１１の操作画面の一例を示す図である。FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 emulated in the user terminal device 21 shown in FIG. 図４は、図１における画像形成装置２２の構成を示すブロック図である。FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 22 in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 図５は、図１における画像形成装置１１の構成を示すブロック図である。FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 11 in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 図６は、図１に示す画像形成システムにおけるジョブ実行について説明するシーケンス図である。FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating job execution in the image forming system shown in FIG.
　以下、図に基づいて本発明の実施の形態を説明する。 Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.
　図１は、本発明の実施の形態に係る画像形成システムの構成を示すブロック図である。図１に示す画像形成システムは、組織拠点１において、画像形成装置１１、端末装置１２、サーバー１３、ルーター１４、およびローカルネットワーク１５を備え、１または複数のリモート拠点２－１～２－Ｎのそれぞれにおいて、ユーザー端末装置２１、画像形成装置２２、ルーター２３、およびローカルネットワーク２４を備え、広域ネットワーク３（インターネットなど）を介して組織拠点１と各リモート拠点２－ｉとの間のＶＰＮ通信（バーチャルプライベートネットワーク通信）を実行する。 FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the invention. The image forming system shown in FIG. Each has a user terminal device 21, an image forming device 22, a router 23, and a local network 24, and VPN communication ( virtual private network communication).
　例えば、組織拠点１は、企業のオフィスであり、リモート拠点２－ｉは、企業の従業員（ユーザー）の自宅である。リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２には、組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１とは異なる機種であって組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１に比べてリソース（アプリケーションなどのソフトウェア機能や内部デバイスなどのハードウェア機能）の少ない装置が使用されることが多い。 For example, the organizational site 1 is the office of the company, and the remote site 2-i is the home of the employee (user) of the company. The image forming apparatus 22 at the remote site 2-i is of a different model from the image forming apparatus 11 at the organizational site 1 and has more resources (software functions such as applications, internal devices, etc.) than the image forming apparatus 11 at the organizational site 1. In many cases, devices with fewer hardware functions) are used.
　画像形成装置１１は、ローカルネットワーク１５に接続されている、プリンター、複合機などであって、ユーザーにより要求されたジョブ（プリントジョブ、スキャントゥジョブなど）を実行する。端末装置１２は、ローカルネットワーク１５に接続されている、パーソナルコンピューターなどであって、ローカルネットワーク１５を介して、ジョブの要求を画像形成装置１１へ送信する。サーバー１３は、ローカルネットワーク１５に接続されており、ファイルサーバー、アクティブディレクトリサーバーなどといった機能を有する。ルーター１４は、ＶＰＮサーバー機能を有し、ローカルネットワーク１５と広域ネットワーク３とを接続する通信機器である。 The image forming apparatus 11 is a printer, a multifunction device, or the like connected to the local network 15, and executes a job (print job, scan-to-job, etc.) requested by the user. The terminal device 12 is a personal computer or the like connected to the local network 15 and transmits a job request to the image forming device 11 via the local network 15 . The server 13 is connected to the local network 15 and has functions such as a file server and an active directory server. The router 14 is a communication device that has a VPN server function and connects the local network 15 and the wide area network 3 .
　なお、ローカルネットワーク１５は、有線ＬＡＮ（Local Area Network）、無線ＬＡＮなどである。 The local network 15 is a wired LAN (Local Area Network), a wireless LAN, or the like.
　ユーザー端末装置２１は、ローカルネットワーク２４に接続されており、組織メンバーであるユーザーの使用する情報処理装置であり、パーソナルコンピューターや携帯端末装置などである。画像形成装置２２は、ローカルネットワーク２４に接続されている、プリンター、複合機などであって、ユーザーにより要求されたジョブ（プリントジョブ、スキャントゥジョブなど）を実行する。ルーター２３は、ローカルネットワーク２４と広域ネットワーク３とを接続する通信機器である。 The user terminal device 21 is connected to the local network 24 and is an information processing device used by a user who is an organization member, such as a personal computer or a mobile terminal device. The image forming apparatus 22 is a printer, multi-function peripheral, etc., connected to the local network 24, and executes a job (print job, scan-to-job, etc.) requested by the user. The router 23 is communication equipment that connects the local network 24 and the wide area network 3 .
　なお、ローカルネットワーク２４は、有線ＬＡＮ、無線ＬＡＮなどである。 The local network 24 is a wired LAN, wireless LAN, or the like.
　図２は、図１におけるユーザー端末装置２１の構成を示すブロック図である。 FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the user terminal device 21 in FIG.
　図２に示すように、ユーザー端末装置２１は、入力装置３１、表示装置３２、記憶装置３３、通信装置３４、および演算処理装置３５を備える。 As shown in FIG. 2, the user terminal device 21 includes an input device 31, a display device 32, a storage device 33, a communication device 34, and an arithmetic processing device 35.
　入力装置３１は、ユーザー操作を検出し、ユーザー操作を示す情報を出力する、ハードキー、タッチパネルなどといった装置である。表示装置３２は、ユーザーに対して各種情報を表示する、液晶ディスプレイなどといった装置である。なお、入力装置３１および表示装置３２は、ユーザー端末装置２１に内蔵されていてもよいし、外部装置としてユーザー端末装置２１に接続されていてもよい。 The input device 31 is a device such as a hard key or touch panel that detects user operations and outputs information indicating user operations. The display device 32 is a device such as a liquid crystal display that displays various information to the user. The input device 31 and the display device 32 may be built in the user terminal device 21, or may be connected to the user terminal device 21 as external devices.
　記憶装置３３は、ハードディスク、フラッシュメモリーなどといった書換可能な不揮発性の記憶装置であって、プログラムやデータを記憶している。 The storage device 33 is a rewritable non-volatile storage device such as a hard disk or flash memory, and stores programs and data.
　通信装置３４は、ローカルネットワーク２４に接続されており、ローカルネットワーク２４を介して他の装置との間でデータ通信を行う装置である。 The communication device 34 is a device that is connected to the local network 24 and performs data communication with other devices via the local network 24 .
　演算処理装置３５は、各種プログラムを実行するコンピューター、ＡＳＩＣ（Application Specific Integrated Circuit）などを備え、そのコンピューター、ＡＳＩＣなどで、各種処理部として動作する。ここでは、演算処理装置３５は、通信制御部４１、ＶＰＮ処理部４２、ドライバー４３、および操作画面エミュレーター４４として動作する。 The arithmetic processing unit 35 includes a computer that executes various programs, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), etc., and the computer, ASIC, etc. operates as various processing units. Here, the arithmetic processing unit 35 operates as a communication control unit 41 , a VPN processing unit 42 , a driver 43 and an operation screen emulator 44 .
　通信制御部４１は、リモート拠点２－ｉ内のローカルネットワーク２４に接続された通信装置３４を制御し、所定の通信プロトコルでデータ通信を行う。 The communication control unit 41 controls the communication device 34 connected to the local network 24 within the remote site 2-i, and performs data communication according to a predetermined communication protocol.
　ＶＰＮ処理部４２は、通信制御部４１を使用してルーター２３を介して組織拠点１との間でＶＰＮ通信路を設定する。 The VPN processing unit 42 uses the communication control unit 41 to set up a VPN communication path with the organizational base 1 via the router 23 .
　つまり、通信制御部４１は、ＶＰＮ通信路のＶＰＮプロトコル（ＶＰＮ方式）でカプセル化されているパケットを下層の通信プロトコル（ＴＣＰ（Transmission Control Protocol）／ＩＰ（Internet Protocol）など）で送受信する。例えば、ＳｏｆｔＥｔｈｅｒＶＰＮの場合、仮想ネットワーク上のＩＰパケットを転送するイーサーネットフレームが、実際のネットワークのＴＣＰ／ＩＰ上のＨＴＴＰＳで転送される。 In other words, the communication control unit 41 transmits and receives packets encapsulated by the VPN protocol (VPN method) of the VPN communication channel using lower-layer communication protocols (TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)/IP (Internet Protocol), etc.). For example, in the case of SoftEtherVPN, Ethernet frames that transfer IP packets on the virtual network are transferred over HTTPS over TCP/IP on the real network.
　具体的には、ＶＰＮ処理部４２は、ＶＰＮ通信路で受信したパケットのデカプセル処理および復号処理を実行し、ＶＰＮ通信路で送信すべきパケットの暗号化処理およびカプセル化処理を実行する。 Specifically, the VPN processing unit 42 executes decapsulation processing and decryption processing of packets received through the VPN communication channel, and executes encryption processing and encapsulation processing of packets to be transmitted through the VPN communication channel.
　また、ドライバー４３は、画像形成装置２２のドライバーであって、入力装置３１に対するユーザー操作に従ってジョブ要求（プリント要求など）を生成し、通信装置３４で、そのジョブ要求を画像形成装置２２に送信する。 Further, the driver 43 is a driver of the image forming apparatus 22, generates a job request (such as a print request) according to the user's operation on the input device 31, and transmits the job request to the image forming apparatus 22 through the communication device 34. .
　操作画面エミュレーター４４は、（ａ）組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１の操作画面をエミュレートして表示装置３２に表示し、（ｂ）その操作画面に対するユーザー操作を入力装置３１で検出し、（ｃ）そのユーザー操作により指定されたジョブを特定し、（ｄ）そのジョブにおいて、当該リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２で実行可能な第１処理、および組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１で実行可能な第２処理を特定し、（ｅ）第１処理を実行させるための第１部分ジョブ要求を当該リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２に送信し、第２処理を実行させるための第２部分ジョブ要求を組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１に送信する。 The operation screen emulator 44 (a) emulates the operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 of the organization base 1 and displays it on the display device 32, (b) detects a user operation on the operation screen with the input device 31, and ( c) specifying the job specified by the user operation; (e) transmitting a first partial job request for executing the first process to the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i to execute the second process; A second partial job request is sent to the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 .
　図３は、図１におけるユーザー端末装置２１においてエミュレートされた画像形成装置１１の操作画面の一例を示す図である。例えば図３に示すように、ユーザー端末装置２１の表示装置３２において、エミュレートされた操作画面１０１が表示される。操作画面１０１は、複数のジョブに対応する複数のアイコンを含み、アイコンを押下するユーザー操作が検出されると、操作画面エミュレーター４４は、そのアイコンに対応するジョブを、ユーザー操作により指定されたジョブとして特定する。 FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 emulated in the user terminal device 21 in FIG. For example, as shown in FIG. 3 , an emulated operation screen 101 is displayed on the display device 32 of the user terminal device 21 . The operation screen 101 includes a plurality of icons corresponding to a plurality of jobs, and when a user operation of pressing an icon is detected, the operation screen emulator 44 selects the job corresponding to the icon as the job specified by the user operation. Identify as
　なお、ＶＰＮ処理部４２、ドライバー４３、および操作画面エミュレーター４４は、例えば、画像形成装置１１，２２のベンダーによって提供されるインストーラーによって一括してユーザー端末装置２１にインストールされる。 Note that the VPN processing unit 42, the driver 43, and the operation screen emulator 44 are collectively installed in the user terminal device 21 by an installer provided by the vendor of the image forming apparatuses 11 and 22, for example.
　図４は、図１に示す画像形成装置２２の構成を示すブロック図である。図４に示す画像形成装置２２は、記憶装置５１、操作パネル５２、演算処理装置５３、プリント装置５４、画像読取装置５５、通信装置５６などを備える。 FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 22 shown in FIG. The image forming apparatus 22 shown in FIG. 4 includes a storage device 51, an operation panel 52, an arithmetic processing device 53, a printing device 54, an image reading device 55, a communication device 56, and the like.
　記憶装置５１は、フラッシュメモリーなどの不揮発性の書換可能な記憶装置である。記憶装置５１には、プログラムやデータが記憶される。 The storage device 51 is a non-volatile rewritable storage device such as flash memory. The storage device 51 stores programs and data.
　操作パネル５２は、画像形成装置２２の筐体の上面前側などに配置され、液晶ディスプレイなどの表示装置５２ａ、およびハードキー、タッチパネルなどの入力装置５２ｂを備える。表示装置５２ａは、ユーザーに対して各種画面を表示し、入力装置５２ｂは、ユーザーにより入力されるユーザー操作を受け付ける。 The operation panel 52 is arranged on the front side of the upper surface of the housing of the image forming apparatus 22, and includes a display device 52a such as a liquid crystal display, and an input device 52b such as hard keys and a touch panel. The display device 52a displays various screens to the user, and the input device 52b receives user operations input by the user.
　演算処理装置５３は、ＣＰＵ（Central Processing Unit）、ＲＯＭ（Read Only Memory）、およびＲＡＭ（Random Access Memory）を有するコンピューターであって、ＲＯＭや記憶装置５１に記憶されているプログラムをＲＡＭにロードしてＣＰＵで実行することにより、各種処理部として動作する。演算処理装置５３は、コントローラー６１、通信制御部６２、および部分ジョブ処理部６３として動作する。 The arithmetic processing unit 53 is a computer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit), ROM (Read Only Memory), and RAM (Random Access Memory), and loads programs stored in the ROM and the storage device 51 into the RAM. It operates as various processing units by being executed by the CPU. Arithmetic processing unit 53 operates as controller 61 , communication control unit 62 , and partial job processing unit 63 .
　プリント装置５４は、画像データに基づき対象画像（原稿画像など）をプリント用紙にプリントする。画像読取装置５５は、原稿から原稿画像を光学的に読み取り、その原稿画像の画像データを生成する。 The printing device 54 prints the target image (original image, etc.) on printing paper based on the image data. The image reading device 55 optically reads a document image from a document and generates image data of the document image.
　通信装置５６は、ローカルネットワーク２４に接続され、ユーザー端末装置２１、ルーター２３などとデータ通信を行う。 The communication device 56 is connected to the local network 24 and performs data communication with the user terminal device 21, the router 23, and the like.
　コントローラー６１は、操作パネル５２に対するユーザー操作や通信装置５６によりユーザー端末装置２１から受信されたジョブ要求に従って、プリント装置５４、画像読取装置５５、通信装置５６などの内部装置を制御して、要求されたジョブを実行する。 The controller 61 controls the internal devices such as the printing device 54, the image reading device 55, and the communication device 56 according to user operations on the operation panel 52 and job requests received from the user terminal device 21 through the communication device 56, job.
　通信制御部６２は、通信装置５６を制御して、所定の通信プロトコルでデータ通信を行う。 The communication control unit 62 controls the communication device 56 to perform data communication according to a predetermined communication protocol.
　部分ジョブ処理部６３は、（ａ）ユーザー端末装置２１から受信された第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、その第１部分ジョブ要求により指定された第１処理を実行する。 The partial job processing unit 63 (a) accepts the first partial job request received from the user terminal device 21, and (b) accepts the first partial job request. Execute the process.
　図５は、図１に示す画像形成装置１１の構成を示すブロック図である。 FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 11 shown in FIG.
　図５に示す画像形成装置１１は、記憶装置７１、操作パネル７２、演算処理装置７３、プリント装置７４、画像読取装置７５、通信装置７６、ファクシミリ装置７７などを備える。 The image forming apparatus 11 shown in FIG. 5 includes a storage device 71, an operation panel 72, an arithmetic processing device 73, a printing device 74, an image reading device 75, a communication device 76, a facsimile device 77, and the like.
　記憶装置７１、操作パネル７２、演算処理装置７３、プリント装置７４、画像読取装置７５、および通信装置７６は、それぞれ、記憶装置５１、操作パネル５２、演算処理装置５３、プリント装置５４、画像読取装置５５、および通信装置５６と同様の装置である。なお、それぞれ、両者の機能は異なっていてもよい。表示装置７２ａおよび入力装置７２ｂは、それぞれ、表示装置５２ａおよび入力装置５２ｂと同様の装置である。 Storage device 71, operation panel 72, arithmetic processing device 73, printing device 74, image reading device 75, and communication device 76 are the storage device 51, operation panel 52, arithmetic processing device 53, printing device 54, and image reading device, respectively. 55 , and communication device 56 . Note that the functions of both may be different. The display device 72a and the input device 72b are devices similar to the display device 52a and the input device 52b, respectively.
　また、コントローラー８１、通信制御部８２、および部分ジョブ処理部８３は、それぞれ、コントローラー６１、通信制御部６２、および部分ジョブ処理部６３と同様の処理部である。 Also, the controller 81, the communication control unit 82, and the partial job processing unit 83 are processing units similar to the controller 61, the communication control unit 62, and the partial job processing unit 63, respectively.
　部分ジョブ処理部８３は、（ａ）ユーザー端末装置２１から受信された第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、その第２部分ジョブ要求により指定された第２処理を実行する。 The partial job processing unit 83 (a) accepts the second partial job request received from the user terminal device 21, and (b) accepts the second partial job request. Execute the process.
　この実施の形態では、組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１およびリモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２は、それぞれ、画像読取装置５５，７５を備えている。また、組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１は、ファクシミリ装置７７を備えているが、リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２は、ファクシミリ装置を備えていない。さらに、組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１は、文字認識機能を備えているが、リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２は、文字認識機能を備えていない。したがって、例えば、ファクシミリ送信ジョブにおいて、上述の第１処理は、画像読取装置５５を使用した画像読取処理（および、読み取られたカラー画像からモノクロ画像への色変換や解像度変換などの画像処理）を含み、第２処理は、ファクシミリ装置７７を使用した、第１処理で読み取られた画像のファクシミリ送信処理を含む。また、例えば、スキャントゥＯＣＲジョブにおいて、上述の第１処理は、画像読取装置５５を使用した画像読取処理を含み、第２処理は、上述の文字認識機能を使用した、第１処理で読み取られた画像の文字認識処理を含む。 In this embodiment, the image forming device 11 of the organizational site 1 and the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i are provided with image reading devices 55 and 75, respectively. Further, the image forming device 11 of the organizational site 1 has a facsimile device 77, but the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i does not have a facsimile device. Further, the image forming device 11 at the organizational site 1 has a character recognition function, but the image forming device 22 at the remote site 2-i does not have a character recognition function. Therefore, for example, in a facsimile transmission job, the above-described first processing includes image reading processing using the image reading device 55 (and image processing such as color conversion and resolution conversion from the read color image to a monochrome image). The second process includes facsimile transmission of the image read in the first process using facsimile device 77 . Further, for example, in a scan-to-OCR job, the above-described first processing includes image reading processing using the image reading device 55, and the second processing uses the above-described character recognition function. This includes character recognition processing of images.
　また、リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２が、ハードディスクドライブ、ＳＳＤ（Solid State Drive）などの、ユーザーデータを格納する大容量データストレージ（上述の記憶装置５１など）を備えておらず、組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１が、そのような大容量データストレージ（上述の記憶装置７１など）を備えている場合、スキャントゥボックスジョブにおいて、上述の第１処理は、画像読取装置５５を使用した画像読取処理を含み、第２処理は、画像形成装置１１の大容量データストレージを使用した、第１処理で読み取られた画像の画像データファイルの書込処理を含む。つまり、第２処理では、画像形成装置１１の大容量データストレージにおける文書ボックスに画像データファイルが格納される。なお、この画像データファイルは、リユーザブル画像データのデータファイルでもよい。リユーザブル画像データは、画質調整や解像度調整などを行われていない（例えば６００ｄｐｉなどの最高解像度でフルカラーの）画像データである。文書ボックスに保存されたリユーザブル画像データについては文書ボックスからの出力時にも画質調整や解像度調整などを行うことができるため、ジョブ要求において画質や解像度が設定されていても、その画質や解像度の設定情報を、画像データファイルとともに保存しておき、出力時に、その画質調整や解像度調整などを行うようにしてもよい。 In addition, the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i does not have a large-capacity data storage (such as the storage device 51 described above) such as a hard disk drive or SSD (Solid State Drive) for storing user data, If the image forming apparatus 11 at site 1 is equipped with such a large-capacity data storage (such as the storage device 71 described above), in the scan-to-box job, the first processing described above uses the image reading device 55. An image reading process is included, and the second process includes writing an image data file of the image read in the first process using the large-capacity data storage of the image forming apparatus 11 . That is, in the second process, the image data file is stored in the document box in the large-capacity data storage of the image forming apparatus 11 . Note that this image data file may be a data file of reusable image data. Reusable image data is image data that has not been subjected to image quality adjustment or resolution adjustment (for example, full color at the highest resolution such as 600 dpi). For reusable image data saved in a document box, you can adjust the image quality and resolution even when outputting from the document box. The information may be saved together with the image data file, and the image quality and resolution may be adjusted at the time of output.
　また、その場合、（スキャントゥボックスジョブなどで）画像形成装置１１に保存された画像データファイルに基づくボックストゥプリントジョブにおいて、上述の第２処理は、画像形成装置１１の大容量データストレージからの画像データファイルの取得処理を含み、上述の第１処理は、その画像データファイルに基づく画像のプリント処理を含む。つまり、上述の場合では、第１処理の後に、第２処理が実行されるが、ボックストゥプリントジョブの場合では、第２処理の後に、第２処理の処理結果（画像データファイル）に基づく第１処理が実行される。 Also, in that case, in a box-to-print job based on an image data file stored in image forming apparatus 11 (such as in a scan-to-box job), the above-described second processing is performed by extracting data from image forming apparatus 11 from the mass data storage. An image data file acquisition process is included, and the first process described above includes an image print process based on the image data file. That is, in the case described above, the second process is executed after the first process, but in the case of a box-to-print job, after the second process, a second process based on the processing result (image data file) of the second process is executed. 1 process is executed.
　次に、上記システムの動作について説明する。図６は、図１に示す画像形成システムにおけるジョブ実行について説明するシーケンス図である。 Next, the operation of the above system will be explained. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating job execution in the image forming system shown in FIG.
　ユーザー端末装置２１では、操作画面エミュレーター４４は、ＶＰＮ処理部４２、通信制御部４１、および通信装置３４を使用して、ローカルネットワーク２４、ルーター２３、および広域ネットワーク３を介して（上述のＶＰＮ通信路を介して）、画面データ要求を組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１に送信する（ステップＳ１）。 In the user terminal device 21, the operation screen emulator 44 uses the VPN processing unit 42, the communication control unit 41, and the communication device 34, via the local network 24, the router 23, and the wide area network 3 (the above-mentioned VPN communication A screen data request is sent to the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 (step S1).
　組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１では、コントローラー８１は、通信制御部８２および通信装置７６を使用して、その画面データ要求を受信すると、通信制御部８２および通信装置７６を使用して、当該画像形成装置１１の操作画面の画面データを、上述のＶＰＮ通信路を介してユーザー端末装置２１に送信する（ステップＳ２）。 In the image forming apparatus 11 at the organizational site 1, when receiving the screen data request using the communication control unit 82 and the communication device 76, the controller 81 uses the communication control unit 82 and the communication device 76 to generate the image. The screen data of the operation screen of the forming device 11 is transmitted to the user terminal device 21 via the VPN communication path (step S2).
　ユーザー端末装置２１では、操作画面エミュレーター４４は、ＶＰＮ処理部４２、通信制御部４１、および通信装置３４を使用して、その画面データを受信し、その画面データに基づいて、組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１の操作画面をエミュレートした操作画面を例えば図３に示すように表示装置３２に表示する（ステップＳ３）。 In the user terminal device 21, the operation screen emulator 44 receives the screen data using the VPN processing unit 42, the communication control unit 41, and the communication device 34, and based on the screen data, displays the image of the organizational site 1. An operation screen obtained by emulating the operation screen of the forming apparatus 11 is displayed on the display device 32 as shown in FIG. 3, for example (step S3).
　その後、操作画面エミュレーター４４は、入力装置３１で、その操作画面に対するユーザー操作を検出すると、そのユーザー操作により指定されたジョブを特定し、そのジョブにおいて、当該リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２で実行可能な第１処理、および組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１で実行可能な第２処理を特定する（ステップＳ４）。 After that, when the operation screen emulator 44 detects a user operation on the operation screen with the input device 31, it identifies the job specified by the user operation, and in the job, the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i and a second process executable by the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 (step S4).
　そして、操作画面エミュレーター４４は、通信制御部４１、および通信装置３４を使用して、ローカルネットワーク２４を介して、第１処理を実行させるための第１部分ジョブ要求を当該リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２に送信する（ステップＳ５）。 Then, the operation screen emulator 44 uses the communication control unit 41 and the communication device 34 to transmit the first partial job request for executing the first process to the remote site 2-i via the local network 24. It is transmitted to the image forming apparatus 22 (step S5).
　その画像形成装置２２では、部分ジョブ処理部６３は、通信制御部６２、および通信装置５６を使用して、第１部分ジョブ要求を受信すると、その第１部分ジョブ要求により指定された第１処理を、コントローラー６１や内部装置などに実行させる（ステップＳ６）。そして、部分ジョブ処理部６３は、その第１処理の処理結果（第１処理が画像読取処理である場合には、読取画像の画像データを含む）を、通信制御部６２、および通信装置５６を使用して、ローカルネットワーク２４を介してユーザー端末装置２１に送信する（ステップＳ７）。 In the image forming apparatus 22, when the partial job processing unit 63 receives the first partial job request using the communication control unit 62 and the communication device 56, the partial job processing unit 63 executes the first process specified by the first partial job request. is executed by the controller 61 or an internal device (step S6). Then, partial job processing unit 63 transmits the processing result of the first process (including the image data of the read image when the first process is image reading processing) to communication control unit 62 and communication device 56. and transmits it to the user terminal device 21 via the local network 24 (step S7).
　ユーザー端末装置２１では、操作画面エミュレーター４４は、通信制御部４１、および通信装置３４を使用して第１処理の処理結果を受信し、第１処理の処理結果を受信すると、ＶＰＮ処理部４２、通信制御部４１、および通信装置３４を使用して、ローカルネットワーク２４、ルーター２３、および広域ネットワーク３を介して、第２処理を実行させるための第２部分ジョブ要求を組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１に送信する（ステップＳ８）。その際、第２処理において第１処理の処理結果が必要である場合には、第２部分ジョブ要求に第１処理の処理結果が含められる。 In the user terminal device 21, the operation screen emulator 44 receives the processing result of the first process using the communication control unit 41 and the communication device 34. Upon receiving the processing result of the first process, the VPN processing unit 42, Using the communication control unit 41 and the communication device 34, a second partial job request for executing the second process is sent to the image forming device of the organization site 1 via the local network 24, the router 23, and the wide area network 3. 11 (step S8). At that time, if the processing result of the first processing is required in the second processing, the processing result of the first processing is included in the second partial job request.
　組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１では、部分ジョブ処理部８３は、通信制御部８２および通信装置７６を使用して、第２部分ジョブ要求を受信すると、その第２部分ジョブ要求により指定された第２処理を、コントローラー８１や内部装置などに実行させる（ステップＳ９）。そして、部分ジョブ処理部８３は、その第２処理の処理結果（つまり、ジョブ実行結果であって、第２処理がファクシミリ送信処理である場合には、送信成否を示すデータを含み、第２処理が文字認識処理である場合には、文字認識処理で得られたテキストデータファイル、ＷＯＲＤ、ＥＸＣＥＬなどのオフィスアプリケーション型式のデータファイルなどを含む）を、通信制御部８２および通信装置７６を使用して、ローカルネットワーク１５、ルーター１４、および広域ネットワーク３を介してユーザー端末装置２１に送信する（ステップＳ１０）。ユーザー端末装置２１の操作画面エミュレーター４４は、ＶＰＮ処理部４２、通信制御部４１、および通信装置３４を使用して、その第２処理の処理結果を受信する。 In the image forming apparatus 11 of the organization site 1, when the partial job processing unit 83 receives the second partial job request using the communication control unit 82 and the communication device 76, the partial job processing unit 83 processes the second partial job request specified by the second partial job request. 2 processing is executed by the controller 81 or an internal device (step S9). Then, the partial job processing unit 83 includes the processing result of the second process (that is, the job execution result, and if the second process is a facsimile transmission process, the data indicating whether the transmission is successful or not, and the second process). is character recognition processing, text data files obtained by character recognition processing, office application type data files such as WORD and EXCEL) are transmitted using communication control unit 82 and communication device 76. , the local network 15, the router 14, and the wide area network 3 to the user terminal device 21 (step S10). The operation screen emulator 44 of the user terminal device 21 uses the VPN processing section 42, the communication control section 41, and the communication device 34 to receive the processing result of the second processing.
　このようにして、ユーザーは、ユーザー端末装置２１の操作画面エミュレーター４４を使用して、画像形成装置１１の操作パネル７２と同様の操作感で、ユーザーのいるリモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２を利用して当該システムにジョブを実行させることができる。 In this way, the user can use the operation screen emulator 44 of the user terminal device 21 to operate the image forming device 22 of the remote site 2-i where the user is located with the same operational feeling as the operation panel 72 of the image forming device 11. can be used to make the system execute the job.
　なお、画像形成装置２２では、部分ジョブ処理部６３が、第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、その部分ジョブ要求により指定された処理が組織拠点１のリソースを必要としない処理であれば、組織拠点１にアクセスせずに、画像形成装置２２の内部装置を使用して、その処理を実行する。一方、その部分ジョブ要求により指定された処理が組織拠点１のリソースを必要とする処理であれば、部分ジョブ処理部６３は、ユーザー端末装置２１により中継されるＶＰＮ通信路を介して組織拠点１のリソースを使用して、その処理を実行する。 In the image forming apparatus 22, the partial job processing unit 63 accepts the first partial job request, and if the process specified by the partial job request does not require the resources of the organizational base 1, The processing is executed using the internal device of the image forming apparatus 22 without accessing the . On the other hand, if the process specified by the partial job request is a process that requires the resources of the organizational base 1, the partial job processing unit 63 sends the partial job request to the organizational base 1 via the VPN communication path relayed by the user terminal device 21. resources to perform its work.
　以上のように、上記実施の形態によれば、リモート拠点２－ｉのユーザー端末装置２１は、（ａ）組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１の操作画面をエミュレートして表示し、（ｂ）その操作画面に対するユーザー操作を検出し、（ｃ）そのユーザー操作により指定されたジョブを特定し、（ｄ）そのジョブにおいて、当該リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２で実行可能な第１処理、および組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１で実行可能な第２処理を特定し、（ｅ）第１部分ジョブ要求を当該リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２に送信し、第２部分ジョブ要求を組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１に送信する。当該リモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２は、（ａ）その第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、上述の第１処理を実行し、組織拠点１の画像形成装置１１は、（ａ）その第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、上述の第２処理を実行する。 As described above, according to the above embodiment, the user terminal device 21 at the remote site 2-i (a) emulates and displays the operation screen of the image forming apparatus 11 at the organizational site 1, and (b) Detecting a user operation on the operation screen, (c) identifying a job specified by the user operation, and (d) executing a first process in the job in the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i. , and a second process that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational site 1, (e) transmitting a first partial job request to the image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i, and transmitting a second partial job request to the image forming apparatus 11 of the organizational base 1 . The image forming apparatus 22 of the remote site 2-i (a) accepts the first partial job request, and (b) upon accepting the first partial job request, executes the above-described first process, The image forming apparatus 11 (a) accepts the second partial job request, and (b) upon accepting the second partial job request, executes the second process described above.
　これにより、ユーザーのいるリモート拠点２－ｉの画像形成装置２２のリソースが使用されるため、ユーザーは、リモート拠点２－ｉにおいて同様の操作感で多くのジョブを実行できる。 As a result, the resources of the image forming apparatus 22 at the remote site 2-i where the user is located are used, so the user can execute many jobs at the remote site 2-i with the same operational feeling.
　なお、上述の実施の形態に対する様々な変更および修正については、当業者には明らかである。そのような変更および修正は、その主題の趣旨および範囲から離れることなく、かつ、意図された利点を弱めることなく行われてもよい。つまり、そのような変更および修正が請求の範囲に含まれることを意図している。 Various changes and modifications to the above-described embodiments are obvious to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of its subject matter and without diminishing its intended advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the claims.
　本発明は、例えば、画像形成システムに適用可能である。 The present invention is applicable, for example, to an image forming system.

Claims (5)

  1. 　組織拠点の画像形成装置と、
    　リモート拠点の画像形成装置と、
    　前記リモート拠点の情報処理装置とを備え、
    　前記情報処理装置は、（ａ）前記組織拠点の画像形成装置の操作画面をエミュレートして表示し、（ｂ）前記操作画面に対するユーザー操作を検出し、（ｃ）前記ユーザー操作により指定されたジョブを特定し、（ｄ）前記ジョブにおいて、前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第１処理、および前記組織拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第２処理を特定し、（ｅ）第１部分ジョブ要求を前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置に送信し、第２部分ジョブ要求を前記組織拠点の画像形成装置に送信し、
    　前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、（ａ）前記第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）前記第１部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、前記第１処理を実行し、
    　前記組織拠点の画像形成装置は、（ａ）前記第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付け、（ｂ）前記第２部分ジョブ要求を受け付けると、前記第２処理を実行すること、
    　を特徴とする画像形成システム。     an image forming device at an organizational base;
    an image forming device at a remote base;
    and an information processing device at the remote base,
    The information processing device (a) emulates and displays an operation screen of the image forming device at the organizational base, (b) detects a user operation on the operation screen, and (c) displays the image specified by the user operation. (d) identifying a first process executable by the image forming apparatus at the remote site and a second process executable by the image forming apparatus at the organizational site in the job; (e) sending a first partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the remote site and sending a second partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the organizational site;
    The image forming apparatus at the remote site (a) accepts the first partial job request, and (b) upon accepting the first partial job request, executes the first process,
    (a) accepting the second partial job request; and (b) upon accepting the second partial job request, executing the second process;
    An image forming system characterized by:
  2. 　前記組織拠点の画像形成装置および前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、それぞれ、画像読取装置を備え、
    　前記組織拠点の画像形成装置は、ファクシミリ装置を備え、
    　前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、ファクシミリ装置を備えておらず、
    　前記ジョブは、ファクシミリ送信ジョブであり、
    　前記第１処理は、前記画像読取装置を使用した画像読取処理を含み、
    　前記第２処理は、前記ファクシミリ装置を使用した、前記第１処理で読み取られた画像のファクシミリ送信処理を含むこと、
    　を特徴とする請求項１記載の画像形成システム。     The image forming apparatus at the organizational site and the image forming apparatus at the remote site each include an image reading device,
    The image forming device at the organizational base includes a facsimile device,
    The image forming apparatus at the remote base does not have a facsimile machine,
    the job is a facsimile transmission job;
    The first process includes an image reading process using the image reading device,
    the second processing includes facsimile transmission processing of the image read in the first processing using the facsimile device;
    2. The image forming system according to claim 1, characterized by:
  3. 　前記組織拠点の画像形成装置および前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、それぞれ、画像読取装置を備え、
    　前記組織拠点の画像形成装置は、文字認識機能を備え、
    　前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、文字認識機能を備えておらず、
    　前記ジョブは、スキャントゥＯＣＲジョブであり、
    　前記第１処理は、前記画像読取装置を使用した画像読取処理を含み、
    　前記第２処理は、前記文字認識機能を使用した、前記第１処理で読み取られた画像の文字認識処理を含むこと、
    　を特徴とする請求項１記載の画像形成システム。     The image forming apparatus at the organizational site and the image forming apparatus at the remote site each include an image reading device,
    The image forming device at the organizational base has a character recognition function,
    The image forming apparatus at the remote site does not have a character recognition function,
    the job is a scan-to-OCR job;
    The first process includes an image reading process using the image reading device,
    the second processing includes character recognition processing of the image read in the first processing using the character recognition function;
    2. The image forming system according to claim 1, characterized by:
  4. 　前記組織拠点の画像形成装置および前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、それぞれ、画像読取装置を備え、
    　前記組織拠点の画像形成装置は、大容量データストレージを備え、
    　前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置は、大容量データストレージを備えておらず、
    　前記ジョブは、スキャントゥボックスジョブであり、
    　前記第１処理は、前記画像読取装置を使用した画像読取処理を含み、
    　前記第２処理は、前記第１処理で読み取られた画像の画像データファイルを前記大容量データストレージに書き込む処理を含むこと、
    　を特徴とする請求項１記載の画像形成システム。     The image forming apparatus at the organizational site and the image forming apparatus at the remote site each include an image reading device,
    The image forming device at the organizational base includes a large-capacity data storage,
    The image forming apparatus at the remote site does not have a large-capacity data storage,
    the job is a scan-to-box job;
    The first process includes an image reading process using the image reading device,
    wherein the second process includes a process of writing an image data file of the image read in the first process to the large-capacity data storage;
    2. The image forming system according to claim 1, characterized by:
  5. 　組織拠点から遠隔にあるリモート拠点の情報処理装置において、
    　通信制御部と、
    　（ａ）前記組織拠点の画像形成装置の操作画面をエミュレートして表示し、（ｂ）前記操作画面に対するユーザー操作を検出し、（ｃ）前記ユーザー操作により指定されたジョブを特定し、（ｄ）前記ジョブにおいて、前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第１処理、および前記組織拠点の画像形成装置で実行可能な第２処理を特定し、（ｅ）前記通信制御部を使用して、第１部分ジョブ要求を前記リモート拠点の画像形成装置に送信し、第２部分ジョブ要求を前記組織拠点の画像形成装置に送信する操作画面エミュレーターと、
    　を備えることを特徴とする情報処理装置。     In an information processing device at a remote location that is remote from an organizational location,
    a communication control unit;
    (a) emulating and displaying an operation screen of the image forming apparatus at the organizational base; (b) detecting a user operation on the operation screen; (c) specifying a job specified by the user operation; d) specifying, in the job, a first process executable by the image forming apparatus at the remote site and a second process executable by the image forming apparatus at the organizational site; an operation screen emulator for transmitting a first partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the remote site and transmitting a second partial job request to the image forming apparatus at the organizational site;
    An information processing device comprising:
PCT/JP2022/007107 2021-03-04 2022-02-22 Image forming device and information processing device WO2022185985A1 (en)

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Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2010055256A (en) * 2008-08-27 2010-03-11 Konica Minolta Business Technologies Inc Control apparatus, workflow control program, and workflow control method
JP2011066714A (en) * 2009-09-17 2011-03-31 Konica Minolta Business Technologies Inc Image forming system
JP2020166492A (en) * 2019-03-29 2020-10-08 コニカミノルタ株式会社 Test apparatus, test method and computer program

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2010055256A (en) * 2008-08-27 2010-03-11 Konica Minolta Business Technologies Inc Control apparatus, workflow control program, and workflow control method
JP2011066714A (en) * 2009-09-17 2011-03-31 Konica Minolta Business Technologies Inc Image forming system
JP2020166492A (en) * 2019-03-29 2020-10-08 コニカミノルタ株式会社 Test apparatus, test method and computer program

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