PATENT ABSTRACT
Document processing devices and account manager systems are presented which verify validity of pairings of installed consumables and document processing devices for permissive enablement of document processing functionality based on validity of the pairings.

PATENT DESCRIPTION
[0001]    The present disclosure is generally related to operation and management of document processing devices such as printers, scanners, copiers, combination scanner-printer-copier machines, and the like in accordance with customer accounts. 
         [0002]    The disclosures of the following U.S. Patents and Patent Applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties: U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/364,224, entitled “METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TRANSMITTING PROOF OF PAYMENT FOR “PAY-AS-YOU-GO” MULTI-FUNCTION DEVICES”, and filed Feb. 2, 2009; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/424,820, entitled “METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING CONTRACT-FREE ‘PAY-AS-YOU-GO’ OPTIONS FOR UTILIZATION OF MULTI-FUNCTION DEVICES”, and filed Apr. 16, 2009; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/424,858, entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SELECTIVELY CONTROLLING THE USE OF FUNTIONALITY IN ONE OR MORE MULTIFUNCTION DEVICES AND SUBSIDIZING THEIR USE THROUGH ADVERTISEMENTS”, and filed Apr. 16, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 6,940,613, entitled “SYSTEM FOR MANAGING REPLACEABLE MODULES IN A DIGITAL PRINTING APPARATUS”, and issued Sep. 6, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,076,076, entitled “PREPAID PRINT CARD SYSTEM AND METHOD”, and issued Jun. 13, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 5,563,999, entitled “FORMS AUTOMATION SYSTEM”, and issued Oct. 8, 1996; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007/0094148, entitled “METHOD OF LICENSING FUNCTIONALITY AFTER INITIAL TRANSACTION”, and published Apr. 26, 2007; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0125397, entitled “LICENSING METHOD FOR USE WITH AN IMAGING DEVICE”, and published Jul. 1, 2004; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0153415, entitled “METHOD OF LICENSING FUNCTIONALITY AFTER INITIAL TRANSACTION”, and published Aug. 5, 2004. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Document processing devices are often employed in networked systems in business and academic sites providing users the option of sending a given print job to one of several devices for processing. Organizations employing multiple document processing devices desire options for financing and tracking printer utilization, and may prefer to pay for print services and related devices and materials based on usage rather than paying up front for equipment and consumable accessories. With respect to consumable products, such as toner cartridges, solid ink products, and other user-replaceable items that are consumed in document processing operations, various forms of cost/pricing programs have been developed to accommodate the needs of customers, including so-called “toner in” and the “toner out” programs. Toner in programs typically include leasing of printers by customers, in which the manufacturer or retailer ships consumable items under provisions of the equipment lease so that the customer receives replenishment consumables as needed. Some toner in programs are referred to as “metered” programs in which document processing devices are leased and all the consumables are provided automatically. For “toner out” programs, the customer leases document processing devices and buys toner or other consumables from some source, independent of the equipment lease. In some cases, the same consumable products are used for pre-paid programs as are used for “toner in” as well as “toner out” programs. Consumables provided to the customer based on a pre-paid credit account are intended to be used only by devices within that plan or compatible plans, and allowing such consumables to migrate to products not participating in a closed supply program could prevent or inhibit the pricing structures and other benefits of such programs. Hold-back provisions for cancelled lease programs can be tied to return of unused consumables by the customer, but these techniques do not ensure complete customer compliance. Thus, manufacturers and resellers desire the ability to prevent unauthorized usage of consumables obtained under a toner in program as part of an equipment lease program in devices for which the manufacturer receives no payment (or reduced payment) for consumable items. 
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION 
       [0004]    Document processing devices and account manager systems are provided in which the devices generate a transaction code when a new or replenishment consumable is installed, with the code indicating a pairing of the installed consumable with the device, and the code is verified by the account manager prior to enabling all or some document processing functions. This technique can be employed to prevent or mitigate customer usage of consumables obtained outside a pre-arranged supply agreement by first verifying the validity of a pairing between a specific device and a particular consumable. 
         [0005]    A document processing device is provided, which includes one or more components that perform document processing operations using one or more consumables, as well as a programmable processing element, such as a microprocessor, controller, etc. that operates in response to installation of a consumable to selectively disable or restrict at least one document processing function and to generate a transaction code based in whole or in part on consumable and device ID information. In response to receipt of a validation determination from an external account manager system indicating validity of the transaction code, the programmable processing element of the device selectively enables at least one previously disabled document processing function. In certain embodiments, the programmable processing element reads the consumable ID information from a memory of the consumable or obtains the consumable ID information from the user via a device user interface, and the device may indicate invalidity of a transaction code to the user via the user interface. The consumable ID information in certain embodiments includes a consumable identity, a consumable type, a geographical indicator indicating a geographical region from which the consumable was purchased, and/or a program participation indicator indicating whether the consumable was obtained under a pre-paid account. 
         [0006]    In certain embodiments, moreover, the consumable ID information includes a program participation indicator and the memory stores a remaining print unit value indicating an amount of print units currently available to enable the document processing device to perform the one or more document processing operations. In these embodiments, the programmable processing element determines a job cost print unit value for performing a document processing operation associated with a given document processing job and selectively decrements the remaining print unit value according to the determined job cost print unit value unless the consumable ID information does not indicate that the consumable was obtained under a pre-paid account, in which case the document processing device at least partially refrains from decrementing the remaining print unit value for a given document processing job. 
         [0007]    In accordance with further aspects of the disclosure, a method is provided for operating a document processing device. The method includes storing device ID information indicating an identity and/or type of the document processing device, and in response to installation of a consumable in a device, selectively disabling or restricting one or more document processing functions and generating a transaction code based in whole or in part on consumable ID information and the device ID information. The method further includes selectively enabling at least one previously disabled document processing function in response to receipt of a validation determination (e.g., valid or not) from an account manager system indicating validity of the transaction code. Certain embodiments of the method further include reading the consumable id information from a memory of the consumable, or obtaining the consumable ID information via a user interface. In certain embodiments, moreover, the method includes selectively indicating the invalidity determination to a user via the user interface in response to receipt of a validity determination from the account manager system. The method may further include sending the transaction code to the account manager system via a communication interface. Certain embodiments of the method may also include storing a remaining print unit value indicating the amount of print units currently available to enable the document processing device to perform one or more document processing operations, as well as determining a job cost print unit value for performing a document processing operation associated with a given document processing job. In these embodiments, the method also includes determining whether the consumable was obtained under a prepaid account, and if so, selectively decrementing the remaining print unit value according to the determined job cost print unit value. If the consumable was not obtained under a prepaid account, these embodiments include at least partially refraining from decrementing the remaining print unit value in association with performance of a given document processing job. 
         [0008]    In other aspects of the disclosure, an account manager system is provided for managing prepaid usage of one or more document processing devices configured to allow customer initiated operation based on available print units applied to the device. The account manager system includes a server coupled with the network to communicate and exchange data with one or more customer networks, and a data store operatively coupled with the server to store account information for customer accounts, where the account information for individual accounts includes device ID information indicating an identity of a document processing device registered to the account. The system further includes an account management component that receives a transaction code indicating a pairing of a particular consumable with a particular document processing device, where the account management component determines whether the particular transaction code is valid or not and sends a validation indication to the document processing device if the particular transaction code is valid. In certain embodiments, the account management component is further operative to determine the identity of the particular consumable from the transaction code, and in other embodiments the account management component determines the identity of the consumable based at least partially on account information. In some embodiments, the account management component determines whether the particular transaction code is valid or not based in whole or in part on whether or not the particular consumable was obtained under a prepaid account. 
         [0009]    In other aspects of the disclosure, a method is provided for managing prepaid usage of at least one document processing device configured to allow consumer initiated operation based on available print units applied to the device. The method includes storing account information in a data store for a plurality of accounts, with individual accounts being associated with a corresponding customer, where the account information for individual accounts includes device ID information indicating an identity of a document processing device registered to the account. The method further includes receiving a transaction code that indicates a pairing of a particular consumable with a particular document processing device, and using a computer processor to determine whether the transaction code is valid or not. The method further includes sending a validation indication to the particular document processing device if the transaction code is valid using the computer processor. In certain embodiments, the method further includes determining the identity of the particular consumable from the transaction code, and/or based at least partially on account information. In certain embodiments, moreover, the method also includes determining whether the particular transaction code is valid or not based at least partially on whether or not the particular consumable was obtained under a prepaid account. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]    The present subject matter may take form in various components and arrangements of components, and in various steps and arrangements of steps. The drawings are only for purposes of illustrating preferred embodiments and are not to be construed as limiting the subject matter. 
           [0011]      FIG. 1  is a system diagram illustrating an exemplary commercial environment with an account manager and various resellers and customer sites networked in which one or more aspects of the present disclosure may be implemented; 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a system diagram illustrating further details of an exemplary customer networked computing environment with a plurality of user computers with printer device management agents, and with a plurality of printer, scanner, copier, and multi-function type document processing devices that may be managed according to various techniques of the present disclosure; 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram illustrating exemplary account information stored in the account manager system of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a schematic diagram illustrating further details of an exemplary document processing device registered to an account managed by the account manager system of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0015]      FIG. 5  is a schematic diagram illustrating another embodiment of the account information stored in the account manager system of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0016]      FIG. 6  is a schematic diagram illustrating another embodiment of the document processing device; 
           [0017]      FIG. 7  is a flow diagram illustrating exemplary operation of a customer document processing device; 
           [0018]      FIG. 8  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process for buying and applying credits to one or more document processing devices; 
           [0019]      FIG. 9  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process for updating account information in the account manager system of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0020]      FIG. 10  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process for converting previously applied print units to account credits and for transferring print units from one document processing device to another in a customer account; 
           [0021]      FIG. 11  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process for a user to perform printing operations on a public device registered to a vendor account using credits from the user&#39;s account via the account management system and techniques of the disclosure; 
           [0022]      FIG. 12  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process in which the account manager system automatically adds account credits and applies device print units for a returned and/or installed consumable product; 
           [0023]      FIG. 13  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process in which a document processing device reads the identity from an installed consumable and notifies the account manager system which establishes a device/consumable association used to initiate one or more automatic refund actions; 
           [0024]      FIG. 14  is a flow diagram illustrating another exemplary process in which a document processing device writes a device identity into a customer replacement unit monitoring (CRUM) memory of an installed consumable for later use in initiating automatic refund actions when the consumable is returned; 
           [0025]      FIG. 15  is a flow diagram illustrating another exemplary process in which the account manager system initiates shipment of replacement consumables based on monitored consumable levels and performs automatic refund actions based on shipment and/or return of replaced consumables; 
           [0026]      FIG. 16  is a flow diagram illustrating another exemplary process in which the account manager initiates automatic consumable replacement actions based on inferred association of returned consumable with a document processing device identified based on total print units used information; and 
           [0027]      FIG. 17  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary method for validating consumable usage in a document processing device registered to an account managed by the account manager system of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0028]    Referring now to the drawings,  FIG. 1  shows a networked commercial environment  2  with one or more networks  10  interconnecting a server  100  with one or more resellers  200  and customers  300 , where access to an account manager system  104  implemented in the server  100  is accomplished via a portal  102 . The server  100  can include a single computer processor or multiple processing elements, and the server  100  may be implemented as a single integrated processor-based structure including memory or may be implemented in distributed fashion including multiple structures, some of which are processor-equipped. The account manager system  104  can be any suitable combination of processor-based hardware, logic, processor-executed software, firmware, or combinations thereof, and may be implemented in a unitary platform (e.g., server  100 ) or in distributed fashion across multiple processor-equipped devices. In the embodiments, the reseller(s)  200  and customer(s)  300  include reseller and customer networks, respectively, with computers at the reseller(s)  300  and customer(s)  300  being equipped with agent software programs (e.g., customer agents  360  in  FIG. 1 ) operative to allow authorized, secure, encrypted communication between authorized reseller/customer personnel and the account manager system  104  through access via the portal  102 . Moreover, the customer agents  360  provide for operation and management tasks between customer document processing devices  320  registered to a customer account and the account management system  104  via the portal  102 , and also allow customer to use the agent  360  to communicate with one or more processing devices  320  coupled to a customer network  302 . The customer network  302  may include any form of electronic communication network(s) by which the devices  320  can communicate directly or indirectly with the customer computers  330  and/or with the account manager system  104 , including without limitation dedicated networks, internet connections, and may include connection of one or more devices  320  with the account manager system  104  via telephony networks (wired and/or wireless or combinations thereof). Thus, the network connection of the devices  320  includes situations in which a primary network connection is inoperative (“network down” condition) with recovery or alternative communications means (e.g., telephone line connection to the devices  320 ) being provided as an alternative for communication between the devices  320  and the account manager system  104  for validation or other steps. 
         [0029]    Referring also to  FIG. 2 , an exemplary distributed customer computing environment is illustrated, including two exemplary logical device groups  310   a  and  310   b,  each including one or more computing devices  330 , some of which are equipped with agent components  360 . In the illustrated environment, the computers  330  are selectively authorized to print or initiate other document processing operations via the devices  320  or predefined subsets of the devices  320 , for example, by appropriate password entry &amp; verification via the customer&#39;s network  302  and associated network elements and/or by access/usage control features implemented in the devices  320  themselves. The individual groups  310  also include one or more document processing devices  320 . The illustrated customer computers  330  and device  320  are operatively coupled via a customer network  302  which may be any suitable form of communications network or interoperative networks. In addition, one or more print servers  50  are coupled with the network  302 , where certain portions of the network  302  may be interconnected by cabling or one or more portions may be wireless, and where one or more exemplary computers  330   d  and  330   e  are illustrated in  FIG. 2  with operative communicative coupling to the network  302  being implemented using a wireless network transceiver interface component  340 . Any number of user computers may be operatively coupled to the network  302 , including without limitation desktop computers  330   a  and  330   b,  laptop computers  330   d  and  330   e,  and any number of document processing devices  320  may be coupled with the network  302 . Different forms of document processing devices  320  are networked together in this example to provide the user computers  330  with a broad range of document processing options available for a given print job or other task. One or more of the devices  320 , moreover, are registered to one or more customer accounts and are operable via the network  302  or by users actuating on-board controls (e.g., buttons, keypads, etc.) for copying and scanning operations and other tasks. The document processing devices  320  may include one or more managed consumables  322  ( FIG. 1  and  FIG. 4  below) such as non-print media items or materials consumed by the device during document processing operations, including without limitation toner, ink, a replaceable fuser module/component, replaceable imaging units, waste toner bins, transfer belt, or the like. 
         [0030]    The exemplary document processing devices  320  shown in  FIG. 2  include relatively low throughput externally fed color as well as black and white desktop printers  320   a  and  320   b,  respectively, intermediate speed drawer fed color and black and white printers  320   c - 320   e,  high volume color as well as black and white printer/scanner/copier (i.e., multi-function) devices  320   f - 320   h,  a desktop combination printer/scanner/copier  320   i  and a combination printer and facsimile machine  320   j . Document processing devices  320  may include any device operable to perform one or more document processing functions, including without limitation printers, scanners, copiers, combination scanner-printer-copier machines, and the like. In  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the customer network  302  and the external network  10  can be arranged in any suitable configuration for example star, ring, bus, tree, mesh, etc. or combinations thereof, and may be a wired network, a wireless network, or combinations thereof, wherein the illustrated customer network  302  of  FIG. 2  provides one or more wireless nodes  340  for connectivity for portable laptop computers  330   d  and  330   e  through various WiFi or other wireless means. 
         [0031]    The devices  320 , moreover, are configured to allow normal customer/user initiated operation based on available print units applied to the device  320  in accordance with a customer account administered via the account manager system  104 , and may optionally be authorized by the account particulars to perform at some low level of functionality even when the applied print units are depleted as discussed further below. By this device functionality, all or at least certain aspects of the actual or expected cost of document processing operation of a given device can be attributed to the customer based on usage, including the initial device cost, cost of consumables  322 , costs for servicing (e.g., repairing, troubleshooting, etc.), costs for access to customer support, and other associated costs, rather than being paid up front by the customer. 
         [0032]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , usage of the devices  320  is managed via these prepaid accounts by the system  104  using various account information  110  stored in a data store operatively coupled with the server  100 , where the data store can be external or internal to the server  100  or combinations of internal and external storage. The account information  110  is stored for a plurality of accounts, for example, a first account for management of prepaid devices  320  of the first device group  310   a  in  FIG. 2  and a second account for devices  320  of the second group  310   b,  and account information is also stored for multiple different customers, including those customers or ‘vendors’ that register so-called ‘public’ devices  320  as discussed further below in connection with  FIG. 11 . 
         [0033]    As best shown in  FIG. 3 , the account information  110  for individual accounts includes general account information  111   a  (e.g., account owner name, address, billing information, authorized users, etc.), a credits used value  111   b , for instance, indicating the number of credits that have been previously applied to devices  320  to date from account inception, or in a given predefined period (e.g., year-to-date, etc.), and an available credits value  111   c  indicating an amount of account credit units currently available to the account for which the corresponding customer has previously paid and which can be applied to one or more devices  320  by customer-initiated request. The available credits information  111   c  in certain embodiments includes two or more values indicating credits available for different departments or organizational entities within a given customer enterprise. The account information  110  in this embodiment also includes credit transfer information  111   d  and reduced functionality permission information  111   e  (described further below in connection with  FIG. 3 ). 
         [0034]    The account information  110  for a given account also includes current pricing information  112  including at least one conversion factor for converting account credits available to the account to print units for specific document processing devices  320  registered to the account. The current pricing information  112  for individual accounts in this embodiment includes device type pricing information  112   a  including at least one price factor  112   a   1  for each specific document processing device type for converting account credits to print units, and at least one print unit price modifier  112   a   2  for each of a plurality of different specific document processing device types for increasing the print unit price if a given customer account provides for including one or more additional cost factors for consumables, service, and support in the print unit price. The pricing information  112  also provides customer specific pricing information  112   b  including discount information  112   b   1  and modifier flags  112   b   2  indicating applicability of one or more of the print unit price modifiers  112   a   2  for the given customer account. 
         [0035]    In some embodiments, different discount information  112   b   1  can be provisioned in the account information  110  for specified document processing devices  320  obtained by a given customer from different resellers  200  and/or for specified document processing devices  320  obtained in different locations or regions, thereby providing reseller flexibility in offering discount incentives to select customers on a global or locality basis. Program provisions can be associated with specific account numbers prior to a reseller offering the accounts for sale to end-customers  300 , for example, where the account particulars include account pricing (conversion rates for converting credits into print units), print unit valuation equivalent to typical print images based on coverage, color content, etc., inclusions of service, supplies and media, various incentives, etc. The pre-established account particulars can be associated with a device  320  upon account initiation prior to delivery to the customer  300 . In addition, promotional incentives like time frame duration and/or number of printed images can be managed in concert with product usage information associated with and tracked by a customer account, for instance, by tracking use debits and credit balance payments and various particulars of image content. 
         [0036]    Account credits are a global currency, which may, but need not, be tied to one or more official government monetary currency value (e.g., N credits per U.S. dollar, etc.) thereby allowing customers to purchase credits for their account(s) using any form of legal payment (e.g., payment obtained and verified electronically via financial institutions, credit organizations, etc.) or direct monetary payments, whether in Dollars, Euros, Yen, etc., with the account manager system  104  being operative to obtain current exchange rate information and make any necessary conversions from a given legal currency payment amount to an account credit amount. Print units, on the other hand, are valued for a given device type and possibly other factors, in terms of units per account credit on a transactional basis at the time of a user request to apply account credits to a particular document processing device, with the valuation being in terms of document processing operations, for instance, one print unit per monochrome page printed by a device  320 , 5 print units per printed color page, where a processed ‘page’ as used herein is a single side of a printed media sheet (or a single page of a multi-page document or print job being scanned or operated on by a device  320 ), such that a device  320  consumes one print unit for printing monochrome images, text, etc., on a single side of an output sheet, consumes  5  print units for printing color images, text, etc. on a single side of a printable medium, and consumes  2  print units to print monochrome images, text, etc. on both sides of a printable media sheet in one example. The application of credits to devices  320 , moreover, may be done with respect to integer and/or fractional credits and print units. For example, the customer may specify a given amount of account credits (in whole credits or fractions thereof) to be ‘applied’ to a device  320 , and the account manager system may present the customer with the number of converted print units for that device  320 , and the device may be adapted to accept fractional print unit amounts or the account management system may perform rounding to provide only integer print unit amounts, with any fractional values being retained as fractional credits in the customer account. 
         [0037]    As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the account information  110  also includes registered device information  114  with device subaccount information  115  for a plurality of device subaccounts individually associated with a particular document processing device  320  registered by the customer to the account. The device subaccount information  115  for individual device subaccounts includes a device serial number  115   a  to identify devices  320  registered to the account, a device mode indicator  115   b  (e.g., including a value indicating toner out, a value indicating whether or not the corresponding device  320  is managed by the system  104 , etc.), a remaining print unit value  115   c  indicating the amount of print units previously applied by the customer to the particular document processing device  320  and currently available to enable the particular document processing device  320  to perform document processing operations, at least one current page price ratio (CPPR) value  115   d  indicating the number of applied available print units the particular document processing device  320  will consume to print a color page, a total applied print units value (TAPU)  115   e,  and a total print unit used (TPUU) value  115   f  indicating the total number of print units used by the corresponding document processing device  320 . In addition, the device subaccount information  115  includes registered consumable(s) information  115   g  including consumable information  116  for one or more consumable individual components  322  operatively associated with the particular document processing device  320  with a consumable serial number or other identifier  117 , and a remaining print units value  118  in one example. 
         [0038]    In operation, a customer can request an estimate of remaining pages for a specific device  320  registered to the customer&#39;s account via an agent  360  and the portal  102 , and the account manager system  104  in one embodiment will provide the remaining print units count value  118  in response. In certain implementations, the customer can use the agent to directly obtain this count value from the device itself via the agent  360  and the customer network  302  (e.g., the device  320  will report the current remaining print units value  323   e  from its internal data in memory  323  as shown in  FIG. 4 ). In certain embodiments, the account manager system  104  may provide the customer with an estimate of the number of remaining mono and color pages printable, for example, by analyzing historical print data (color vs. mono printing) for the particular device  320  and use this in conjunction with the CPPR value  115   d  to estimate the number of mono and color pages for the customer. The account information  110  can thus accommodate multiple accounts for multiple customers  300 , each associated with multiple document processing devices  320  of an unlimited number of different device types, where the devices can have one or more identified consumables  322  for management by the account manager system. 
         [0039]    Referring also to  FIGS. 4 and 7 , an exemplary document processing device  320  is shown in  FIG. 4  with a processor-equipped controller  321  and a memory  323 , where the device  320  is programmed or provided with suitable processor-executed software, firmware, logic, etc. to controllably provide document processing functions such as printing, faxing, scanning, or combinations thereof and to implement the print unit consumption features of a device registered to an account managed by the account manager system  104 . In the illustrated example, a communications interface  326  provides for interfacing the device  320  with the customer network for communicative exchange of data, information, print jobs, etc. with other networked devices, computers, etc., including user computers  330  and agents  360  thereof, and with the account manager system  104  via the portal  102 . The device  320  in certain embodiments includes a user interface  329  operative to receive inputs from and provide outputs to, a user associated with the customer  300 . In addition, the device  320  includes one or more document processing components or systems, such as one or more print engines  325 , a scanner  328 , media supply  324 , and consumable(s)  322 , and other such devices (e.g., scanners, sheet feeders, etc., not shown). The memory  323  in this example stores program code and processor-executable instructions for implementing the device functionality, as well as local data to support this operation, including the current device mode information  323   a  (e.g., corresponding to the mode information  115   b  in the account information  110  in  FIG. 3 ), one or more current page price ratio value(s) (CPPR)  323   b  (corresponding to the CPPR value(s)  115   d ), a TAPU value  323   d  (corresponding to TAPU value  115   e ), a TPUU value  323   d  (corresponding to TPUU  115   f ), consumable information  323   f  obtained from processing elements of the consumable(s)  322  via the controller  321  (corresponding to consumable information  116  in  FIG. 3 ), and a device identification (ID) information  323   g,  such as a device serial number, type, etc., where the customer agent  360  operates when possible to obtain information from the device  320  (while device  320  is connected to the network  302 ), and updates the account information of the account manager system  104  accordingly. 
         [0040]      FIG. 7  illustrates exemplary operation of the document processing device  320  in a process  400 , in which the device  320  is initialized or registered at  402  to one or more customer accounts by the customer  300  or by a reseller  200 , and one or more print units are applied to the device  320  by the customer via a customer agent  360 . The example of  FIG. 7  is illustrated and described in the context of a printing operation, but similar operation is provided for any other form or type of customer/user-requested document processing operation by a device  320 . At  404 , the device  320  receives a print job from the customer network  302  (alternatively print job may be part of a copy operation initiated at the device  320  itself, or a print job could be provided by a computer  330  connected to the device  320  even if the device  320  is currently not connected to the network  302 ). At  405 , in one embodiment, the device  320  optionally selects an appropriate current page price ratio (CPPR) from a stack  119  ( FIG. 6  below) of page price ratio (PPR) values  119   a  according to the current value of the total print units used (TPUU)  323   d  and according to a threshold value TPUU TH    119   b  in the stack  119 . At  406 , the device  320  in one embodiment determines the cost for performing the job in terms of print units according to the coverage and color content on a page-by-page basis using CPPR value(s)  323   b  ( FIG. 4 ), and a determination is made at  408  as to whether the remaining print units (value  323   e  in  FIG. 4 ) is less than a threshold. In other implementations, the device  320  may determine the job cost based on color content for the entire job (i.e., page cost determined to be ‘color’ for each page if at least one page of the job uses color). 
         [0041]    As shown in  FIG. 3 , the device subaccount information  115  for individual device subaccounts in certain embodiments may include a plurality of different current page price ratios  115   d  indicating the ratio of the number of applied available print units particular document processing device  320  will consume to print a color page vs. that of a monochrome page, which correspond to different page coverage levels for color pages of documents to be processed. Moreover, the device  320  likewise maintains a corresponding plurality of CPPR values  323   b  as shown in  FIG. 4 . In this manner, the account manager system  104  authorizes a specific document processing device  320  to determine page coverage levels for a given color page of a given print job and to consume a corresponding number of available print units to print the given color page according to the corresponding current page price ratio  115   d  chosen based on the coverage. The CPPR selection for coverage differences can be done in some embodiments on a page-by-page basis. In other embodiments, the device  320  may be configured to determine an average coverage level for all or a subset of the pages of a given jobs and select the corresponding CPPR  115   d  for the entire job. Moreover, the account manager system  104  may provide the devices  320  with multiple pairs of page price ratio (PPR) values  119   a  and corresponding threshold values (TPUU TH )  119   b  with each pair corresponding to a different page coverage value, as shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . In certain embodiments, CPPR may be applied based on printing over a time period, such as days or weeks, or be based on attainment of cumulative totals for a number of pages or jobs. 
         [0042]    Returning to  FIG. 7 , if the required number of print units is available (NO at  408 ), the print job is processed by the device  320  at  410 , and the process  400  returns to await the next document processing task/job at  404 . If, however, the remaining number of print units is below the threshold (YES at  412 ), the device  320  reports the remaining print units (value  323   e  in  FIG. 4 ) to the user (e.g., via an on-board display and/or via a print driver employed in submission of the print job), and reports the remaining print unit value  323   e  to an agent  360  via the customer network  302  if currently connected thereto. At  414 , the print job is processed by the device  320  (if possible using remaining print units), and the value  323   e  is decremented according to the cost of the processed job. Otherwise, a determination is then made at  416  as to whether any print units are left in the device  320  (e.g., whether the value  232   e  has reached zero). If the device is depleted (YES at  416 ), the device  320  notifies the agent  360 , which then notifies the account manager system  104  of the empty status of the device  320 , and the account manager system  104  may optionally allow the device  320  to perform at a predetermined reduced level of functionality at  418  (e.g., only print monochrome, only print small jobs, only perform faxing and scanning, etc.) according to the reduced functionality information  111   e  ( FIG. 3 ). At any point, moreover, authorized customer personnel may apply additional print units to the device at  420  via an agent component  360  and the account manager system  104 , after which the unit returns to normal operation. In this manner, the operations of the devices  320  are controlled by the selective application of print units, without which the device  320  will not print (other than the optional account provisions for reduced functionality operation with account-specified restrictions). 
         [0043]      FIG. 8  illustrates an exemplary process  500  by which the account management component  106  of the manager system  104  ( FIG. 1 ) adds credits to an account at  510  and applies print units to a device  320  at  520  upon corresponding request(s) from a customer of a specified account via an authorized agent  360  and the portal  102 . In the illustrated process  500 , the customer and/or agent  360  are notified at  502  that a particular device  320  has no remaining print units (or that the print unit level is below a threshold value, as discussed in  FIG. 7  above). At  504 , the customer employs the agent  360  to access the device  320  through the customer network  302 , and obtains the remaining print unit count (e.g., value  323   e  in  FIG. 4 ) from the device  320 . At  508 , the customer agent  360  accesses the account manager system  104  via the network  10  and the portal  102 , updates the corresponding customer account with the remaining print count value (e.g., value  115   c  in  FIG. 3  above), and obtains the corresponding account information  110  for informing the customer of the current account status, such as currently available credits that can be applied to the empty device, current pricing information, etc. 
         [0044]    At  510 , the account manager system  104 , upon customer credit purchase or ‘buy’ request via the agent  360  and portal  102 , selectively adds credits to the specified account at a current rate and add a number corresponding to a paid amount of new credits to the available credits value  111   c  for the specified account if and when the payment for such by the customer is verified. In this example, the agent  360  requests the addition at  512  via the portal  102 , and arranges payment, such as via an electronic third party payment mechanism, not shown. At  514 , when the account manager system  104  is able to verify the customer payment, it adds available credits to the corresponding customer account, and thus increments the value  111  c in the account information  110 . 
         [0045]    At  520 , the account management component  106 , upon a request from the customer via the authorized agent  360  and the portal  102 , applies print units to a specified document processing device  320  associated with the specified account by converting a number of credits currently available to the specified account into a number of print units according to the specified document processing device  320  and the current pricing information  112  for the specified account at the time of the request. In this example, the customer requests application of print units at  522  to the device using available account credits. At  524 , the account manager system  104  converts account credits to print units using the current pricing information  112 , and updates the total applied print units (TAPU) value  115   e  in the corresponding device subaccount information  115 . In one embodiment, account manager system  104  updates a stack  119  ( FIG. 5  below) at  525  with a new pair of page price ratio (PPR) and threshold values TPUU TH    119   a  and  119   b,  respectively, by setting the new TPUU TH  to the pervious TAPU value (i.e., the total applied print units (TAPU) value before the current application of further print units). The account manager system  104  sends a message at  526  to the device to add the applied print units (via the agent  360 ). The device  320  then updates its internal remaining print unit count value  323   e  and its total applied print units (TAPU) values at  528 . In this regard, it is noted that the valuation of the print unit cost is done at the time of application of print units to devices  320 , and not when credits are initially bought by the account holder, whereby the system  104  is operative to track sales transactions at the appropriate time when the customer actually purchases the value of the prospective document processing services, which may include consumable, service, support, and other cost factors. 
         [0046]    It is further noted that the interaction of the account management component  106  of the system  104 , the agent components  360  on the customer computers  330 , and the devices  320  can be implemented using multiple messages for requests, confirmations, authorizations, data exchanges, value updates, and other tasks, and the messages can be created and transmitted via any suitable network protocols, etc., and where the messaging is preferably controlled by appropriate authorization, password permission control, encryption, and other techniques to prevent uncontrolled print unit creation without authorization by the account manager system  104 , and to guard against unauthorized access to the account information  110 . In an alternative implementation, the concept of print unit deficiency notice may be supplemented or supplanted by an arrangement to use a low or out print unit threshold to trigger an automatic purchase of additional print units. 
         [0047]    Referring also to  FIGS. 5 and 6 , the account manager system  104  and the devices  320  in certain embodiments implement an adaptive form of page price ratio adjustment to accommodate changes in the relative cost of printing color versus monochrome pages for a given device  320 . For example, a ratio of three (3) may apply for a given document processing device  320  (e.g., according to the device type, the customer account parameters negotiated with the reseller  200 , customer region, etc.) at an initial period of time, and this ratio may thereafter change to two (2). The change in the page price ratio may be a negotiated customer-specific arrangement, such as a discount for color printing in a given year or other time period after a certain threshold number of print units are used by that device (e.g., TPUU value  323   d  in the device memory  323 , value  115   f  in the corresponding device subaccount information  115 ). In another example, the ratio may change to reflect changes in consumable costs, such as a decrease in color toner cost, with savings passed on to the customer. In order to accommodate such potential changes while minimizing large potential swings in the costs experienced by the customer, the account manager system  104  correlates the ratio with applied print units at the time these are applied to a given device  320 , and the device  320  will use the ratio correlated with specific print units as these are expended in performing document processing operations. Thus, for a given device having a large number of print units remaining unused when a page price ratio change occurs, the new ratio will not be applied to the previously applied print units. 
         [0048]    To implement this approach, the account manager system  104  and the devices  320  maintain corresponding information stacks  119 , where the device subaccount information  115  for a given device  320  in the account manager system  104  includes a stack  119  as shown in  FIG. 5 , and the device memory  323  also stores a corresponding stack  119  as shown in  FIG. 6 . As described above and shown at  525  in  FIG. 8 , each time new print units are applied to a given device  320 , the account manager system  104  constructs and sends a message to the device  320  (via the portal  102  and corresponding customer agent  360 ), including a new stack entry having a page price ratio (PPR)  119   a  that is set to the present value of the CPPR  115   d  at the time the print units are applied. The account manager system  104  also sets a threshold TPUU TH    119   b  in the stack to the previous total applied print units (TAPU) value  115   e  of the device subaccount information  115 . The system  104  then increases the TAPU value  115   e  to reflect the application of new print units for that device  320  and sends one or more messages to the device  320  to provide the stack entry pair PPR  119   a  and TPUU TH    119   b  to the device  320  and to authorize the increase in the device&#39;s remaining pint units value  323   e  for the application operation. The device  320 , in turn, updates its stack  119  with the new entry pair PPR  119   a  and TPUU TH    119   b  and increases its remaining print units value  323   e  in the memory  323 . 
         [0049]    During printing or other document processing in this embodiment, (as discussed above and shown at  405  in  FIG. 7 ) the device  320  compares the present value of the total print units used (TPUU)  323   d  to the threshold entries  119   b  in the stack  119  and sets its current page price ratio (CPPR) value  323   b  to the PPR  119   a  corresponding to the highest threshold TPUU TH    119   b  that is less than or equal to the present TPUU value  323   d  in the memory  323 . In this manner, the device  320  consumes print units using the page price ratio applicable at the time the expended print units were applied to the device  320 , and only uses the next subsequent PPR when the TPUU reaches or exceeds the corresponding threshold TPUU TH    119   b.    
         [0050]    Referring also to  FIG. 9 , the account management component  106  is further operative to update the account information  110  of a customer account via a process  600 . In one embodiment, the updating is periodic, such as daily or hourly, although aperiodic updates are possible, such as through customer initiation at any time, and the updates could be initiated based on other criteria, for example, number of prints, credit balance, etc. In practice, the customer agent component  360  can poll devices  320  connected at a given time to the customer network  302  (although the devices  320  need not be connected to the network  302  to perform document processing operations), and to obtain the device account information, and then forward the gathered data, in whole or in part, to the account manager system  104  via the portal  102 . At  602  in  FIG. 9 , an update is initiated by a predefined periodic update time being reached or by initiation from a customer via an agent  360 . At  604 , the agent  360  obtains current remaining print unit count value information from devices  320  registered to an account, and the agent  360  updates the system  104  with the values and other data via the portal  102  at  606 . The account manager system  104  thus receives updated remaining print unit value(s)  115   c  for one or more document processing device(s)  320  from a customer via the authorized agent  360  and the portal  102 , and updates the registered device information  114  of the account information  110  for the specified account for the document processing device  320 . 
         [0051]    Referring also to  FIG. 10 , a process  700  is illustrated for converting previously applied print units to account credits and for transferring print units from one document processing device  320  to another in a customer account. In one implementation, the account management component  106  directly converts print units from a first device  320  to print units for the second device  320  using the current pricing information associated with those two devices  320 , generally as a single transaction from the customer&#39;s perspective, with the first device&#39;s print unit count  323   e,    115   c  value being reduced and the second device&#39;s value  323   e,    115   c  being increased accordingly without modifying the account credit value  111   c . Alternatively, a first transaction is used to transfer print units from the first device and convert these into account credits, and then a second transaction converts account credits and applies print units to the second device, where this form of implementation is illustrated in the embodiment of  FIG. 10 . At  702 , the customer employs an agent  360  to access a first device  320  via the customer network  302  and obtains the remaining print unit count from this device at  704 . At  706 , the customer uses the agent  360  to transfer print units from the first device  320  to a second device  320  registered to the account. At  708 , the agent  360  accesses the account manager system  104  via the portal  102  to initiate the print unit transfer. Any number of devices may be involved in print unit or account credit transfers, as example, from one device split for transfer at some desired ratio to two other devices or credits taken from two devices and applied to a third or to the general account so credits may be later allocated to one or more devices as desired. 
         [0052]    At  712 , the account manager system  104  converts a number of print units previously applied to the specified first device  320  into a number of account credits available to the specified account according to the specified document processing device  320  and the current pricing information  112  for the specified account at the time of the requested transfer, updating the corresponding available account credits and authorizing the agent  360  to reduce the first device&#39;s remaining print unit value  323   e  (an also updating the print unit value  115   c  in the stored account information  110 ). At  714 , the account manager system  104  applies print units to the specified second device  320  according to the customer request by converting converted account credits into a number of print units for the second device according to the current pricing information ( 112 ) for the specified account at the time of the request, and the corresponding values and account data  110  are updated, with the agent  360  being authorized to apply the print units to the second device. At  716 , the agent  360  updates the first and second devices  320 , and the devices  320  update their internal count values at  718 . 
         [0053]    Referring also to  FIG. 11 , an exemplary process  800  is shown for a user to perform printing operations on a public device  320  registered to a vendor account using credits from the user&#39;s account via the account management system  104 . This process is implemented via the account manager system  104 , with the account management component  106  allowing a user at  802  to establish a user account and to add credits to the user account (e.g.,  510  in  FIG. 8  above) via a user-authorized agent  360  and a portal  102 . At  804 , a vendor is allowed to register a particular document processing device  320  to a vendor account as a public device  320  via a vendor-authorized agent  360  and the portal  102 . The user at  806  connects to the vendor public device  320  via a vendor network. In one situation, the vendor is a print/copy service with a wireless network in their lobby, and with one or more printers, copiers, fax machines, or other document processing devices  320  designated for public use (by registered users) and registered to the vendor&#39;s account. A user, such as a business traveler, having a registered user account with the manager system  104  enters the vendor site with a laptop computer, and accesses the vendor&#39;s wireless network and discovers one or more printers available to print a job for the user. At  808 , the user submits a print job to a selected vendor printer device  320  (a public device), and an agent component  360  on the laptop computer connects to the account manager system  104  via a portal  102  to request usage of the vendor&#39;s public device  320 . 
         [0054]    The account manager system  104  receives the request at  810 , and applies available print units at  812  to the public device  320  (associated with the vendor&#39;s account) via a vendor-authorized agent  360  operatively coupled with the public device  320 , and the manager system  104  converts a number of credits currently available to the user account into a number of print units according to the public device  320  and the current pricing information  112  for the vendor account at the time of the request. The vendor device  320  then prints the user&#39;s job at  814 , and the account manager system debits the user&#39;s account credits at  816  according to the number of print units used by the vendor public device  320 , based on the pricing information established in the vendor&#39;s account. 
         [0055]    The disclosed methods and account manager systems thus facilitate accounting, provisioning, and controlled usage of a variety of different devices  320  associated with an account, allowing pricing for printing, scanning, faxing, support etc. to be tailored according to the type of service or product model, as well as selective inclusion of costs for consumables  322 , service, and support according to specific accounts established for different customers, and for different locations or regions, and any other account-specific factors arranged by a manufacturer implementing the account management system  104  and/or by a reseller  200 . The architecture, moreover, allows pricing changes to be made easily by simply updating the account credit-to-print unit conversion information (pricing information  112 ) at the management system data store. The system  104  also facilitates transfers of prepaid print units from one device to another as well as from a device  320  back to a customer account, thereby enhancing a customer&#39;s ability to manage printing devices and users. The customer is also able to selectively include various print unit pricing options, including service, consumables, and/or support, which can vary with the device age and the amount of usage within a given time period, thereby providing better adaptability for valued customers. The plan terms and provisions, moreover, are easily altered by changes to the stored account information  110  by agreement with specific customers. The system also allows consumables, such as toner cartridges, to be transferred from one device  320  to another, with the receiving unit reading the consumable identifier (e.g., serial number) and updating the management system account information accordingly. Moreover, the systems and methods disclosed above allow a specific device  320  to operate at predetermined reduced functionality levels if the device print units become depleted, for instance, where the printer is disconnected from the network  302 , thereby allowing the customer to maintain operation until more print units can be applied via the account manager system  104 . 
         [0056]    Referring also to  FIGS. 12-16 , certain embodiments of the account manager system  104  advantageously provide automated or semiautomatic refunds for customers who return spent consumable products  322  used in or with the document processing devices  320 , including without limitation toner, toner or ink cartridges, ink, replaceable fuser modules/components, replaceable imaging units, waste toner bins, transfer belt, or other non-print media items or materials consumed by the device  320  during document processing operations. In conventional return/refund programs, the customer is asked to return empty toner cartridges or other spent consumable items to the manufacturer or reseller  200 , and upon receipt thereof, the customer is sent a refund payment or is provided with a coupon usable to purchase further products from the manufacturer/reseller. In practice, however, customers have not consistently complied with such programs. In order for manufacturers or resellers to successfully implement a recycling provision of a consumable product lease arrangement, fuller customer participation is facilitated by the account manager system  104 . In this regard, the account manager system  104  is configured in certain embodiments to initiate refunds by automatic addition of credits to the customer account, and in certain cases, to also perform direct application of print units to the specific document processing device  320  from which a returned consumable product  322  came. Thus, while manufacturers and resellers  200  cannot realistically force customers to return consumables  322  designated as part of a recycling provision of a product lease or consumable purchase program, the automated refund aspects of the account manager system  104  can provide an effective incentive for customer compliance beyond that possible in conventional programs. The system  104  thus facilitates materials reclaim and socially responsible expended item disposal or recycling for consumables  322  provided as part of the prepaid program as well as for externally sourced consumables. 
         [0057]    One exemplary process  900  is shown in  FIG. 12 , in which the account manager system  104  automatically adds account credits and if possible, applies device print units as a credit or refund incentive for a returned and/or newly installed consumable product  322 . At  910 , the account manager system  104  verifies that a replacement consumable  322  has been installed into, or that a replaced consumable  322  has been returned from, a document processing device  320  registered to a customer account. The account manager system may verify the association of an installed/returned consumable  322  with a particular customer account by any suitable means or techniques, and various techniques may be used to potentially associate a returned consumable  322  with a particular document processing device  320 , several of which are illustrated and described in greater detail in connection with  FIGS. 13-16 . 
         [0058]    If the identity of the source device  320  (device ID) is known (YES at  912 ), the account manager system  104  is programmed to automatically add account credits to the associated customer account at  920  (e.g., increasing the available credits value  111   c  in the account information  110  for that customer account in  FIG. 3 ), and to automatically apply print units at  930  to the identified document processing device  320  (an apply operation similar to that described at  524 - 528  in  FIG. 8  above, without requiring customer action). In certain embodiments, the return refund can be performed as a single operation to apply a full or partial refund amount directly as applied print units without first adding account credits. 
         [0059]    In the example shown in  FIG. 12 , the account manager system  104  converts account credits (e.g., those added at  920 ) to print units at  932  using the current pricing information  112  ( FIG. 3 ), and updates the total applied print units (TAPU) value  115   e  in the corresponding device subaccount information  115 . In one embodiment, account manager system  104  updates the stack  119  at  933  with a new pair of page price ratio (PPR) and threshold values TPUU TH    119   a  and  119   b , respectively, ( FIG. 5 ) by setting the new TPUU TH  to the pervious TAPU value (i.e., the total applied print units (TAPU) value before the current application of further print units). At  934 , the account manager system  104  sends a message to the device  320  to add the applied print units (via the agent  360 ). At  936 , the device  320  updates its internal remaining print unit count value  323   e  ( FIG. 4 ) and its total applied print units (TAPU). As in the user-requested print unit application described above, the valuation of the print unit cost is done at the time of application of print units to the device  320 , and the system  104  tracks the refund transaction. In certain embodiment, moreover, the account manager system  104  sends an email at  937  to notify the customer of the application of print units to the particular document processing device  320 . 
         [0060]    In situations where the customer identity is known, but the source device  320  is unknown (NO at  912 ), the account manager system  104  can be configured to either add account credits and notify the customer or to notify the customer and provide a means for the customer to initiate addition of account credits for the refund amount. In one example ( 940  and  942  in  FIG. 12 ), the account manager system  104  automatically adds the refund amount of account credits to the associated customer account at  940  by increasing the available credits value  111   c  in the account information  110  ( FIG. 3 ), and may send an email to the customer at  942  with a notification that credits have been added. In this regard, the emails sent to the customer at  937  and  942  preferably include an indication of the type of consumable  322  that was returned and the amount of credits applied (as well as the identity of the device  320  to which print units were added at  937 ) in order to provide timely information that will encourage/reinforce the customer&#39;s actions in returning used consumable products  322  to the manufacturer/reseller. 
         [0061]    In another example ( 946  and  948  in  FIG. 12 ), if the customer identity is known but the specific source device  320  is unknown (NO at  912 ), the account manager system  104  sends an email to the customer indicating that the returned consumable  322  has been received (and/or a new consumable  322  has been installed), and providing a promotion code for a given amount of account credits. The email may provide a website link or instructions for the customer to access the account manager system  104  (e.g., via an agent  360  on a customer computer  330  and the portal  102  in  FIGS. 1 and 2  above), and the customer then uses the agent  360  at  948  to initiate addition by the account manager system  104  of the refund amount of account credits by entering the promotion code. As noted in the process  900  of  FIG. 2 , the account manager system  104  may be configured to initiate one or more automatic or semi-automatic consumable refund actions, such as adding account credits, applying print units, etc., at various times, including without limitation when a replacement consumable  322  is installed into a device  320 , when the consumable  322  is received at a return center, or both. For example, in one implementation, a partial refund may be provided when the product  322  is initially installed, and the remainder of the refund may be provided when the spent consumable  322  is returned. 
         [0062]    Referring also to  FIG. 13 , the consumable product  322  in some instances may include onboard electronics with readable and/or writable memory, such as a customer replaceable unit monitoring (CRUM) memory  322   c  ( FIG. 4 ), to facilitate determination by the account manager system  104  of an association between a specific device  320  and a returned/installed consumable  322 .  FIG. 13  shows a process  950  in which a customer installs a consumable product  322  into a document processing device  320  at  951 . At  952 , the device  320  reads a consumable identity (e.g., serial number or other identifying information) from the CRUM memory  322   c  of the installed consumable product  322  (e.g., upon initial consumable installation or anytime thereafter). Alternatively, such information can be entered into the device  320  by the customer via a device user interface or via agent application  360  on a customer computer  330  ( FIG. 1  above). The device  320  may store the consumable identity (ID) in its internal memory at  952  as consumable information  323   f  ( FIG. 4 ). At  953 , the device  320  forwards the consumable ID to the account manager system  104  for storage in the account information  110  (via an agent  360  and the portal  102 ), and the account manager  104  stores the consumable ID  117  in the corresponding device subaccount information ( FIG. 3 ) at  954 . At this point, the account manager system  104  has an established association between a specific document processing device  320  and a specific consumable product  322  via the account information  110 . At some point in time, the customer returns the consumable  322  at  955  to the manufacturer or a reseller  200 . At the return center, the consumable identity is read at  956 , and the return center (e.g., the manufacturer or reseller  200  or other return site having network access to the account manager system  104 ) updates the account manager system  104  with the identity of the received consumable product  322 . At  957 , the account manager  104  uses the received consumable ID to index the account information to ascertain the identity of the associated device  320  and initiates one or more automatic refund actions as outlined above (e.g., adding account credits and possible applying print units). 
         [0063]    Referring to the process  960  in  FIG. 14 , in another implementation, the consumable product  322  includes a writable memory and the device  320  into which the consumable is installed at  961  writes its identity (the device&#39;s identity) into the consumable memory (CRUM) at  962  for use in initiating automatic refund actions when the consumable is returned or at installation or both. In one implementation of this scenario, when the account manager system  104  determines that a consumable level is low for a given device  320  (e.g., through monitoring of the TPUU values  115   f  in  FIG. 3 ), a replacement consumable product  322  is shipped to the customer, for example, along with a return envelope for the used consumable for return shipment. Once the consumable  322  is returned to a recycling center at  963 , the CRUM data can be scanned and the serial number (identity) of the received consumable product  322  is sent to the account manager system  104  at  964 . At  965 , the account manager system  104  initiates one or more automatic refund actions based on the identified source device  320  and the known consumable identity. 
         [0064]    Referring now to  FIG. 15 , the account manager system  104  may employ the account information  110  ( FIG. 3 ) in a process  970  for initiating refund actions for consumable products  322  that do not include onboard electronic memories. In this regard, serial numbers or other identity information can be tracked by the system  104  along with other customer registration information so that the automatic or semiautomatic refund credit process may be applied to recycle items that have a serial number but do not include a CRUM or other means of positive correlation to the document processing device  320  that the consumable  322  was associated with. Serial number information of such recycled consumables  322  can be linked in the system  104  to the device  320  for which they were initially sent to be used such that when a customer returns the consumable  322 , credit is provided to the corresponding customer account. 
         [0065]    At  971  in  FIG. 15 , the account manager system  104  monitors one or more consumable levels (e.g., toner level(s)) for one or more devices  320  registered to an account, such as through reports forwarded from the monitored devices  320  and corresponding updates to the account information  110 . For example, the devices  320  report updates to the TPUU (total print units used) value that are stored as values  115   f  in the device subaccount information  115  for the devices  320  ( FIG. 3 ). The account manager system  104  can track these values, in conjunction with knowledge or estimation of the TPUU value at which a particular consumable  322  was installed in the device  320  and known capacity values of the consumable  322  (e.g., number of print units possible per consumable product  322 ), and determine when a particular document processing device  320  needs or will soon need a replacement consumable  322 . At  972 , the account manager system  104  automatically initiates shipment of replacement consumables  322  based on monitored consumable levels to the customer for a particular device  320  (with or without corresponding email or other notice of shipment). The replacement consumable  322  is shipped in certain embodiments along with a return label, carton, and/or promotion code identifying the consumable/device association. At the time of the shipment, in one embodiment, the account manager system  104  automatically performs one or more automatic refund actions at  973  for all or a portion of the refund value, which can be addition of account credits and possibly automatic application of print units as discussed above. At some point, the customer returns the replaced consumable product  322  at  974 . When the consumable  322  is received at a return center at  975 , the identity of the source device  320  is read from the return label, carton and/or from the promotion code, and the account manager system  104  is updated (e.g., via the portal  102 ) with the device identity information. At  976 , the account manager system  104  uses the customer account and source device identity information to initiate one or more automatic refund actions. 
         [0066]      FIG. 16  illustrates another exemplary process  980  in which the account manager initiates automatic consumable replacement actions based on inferred association of returned consumable  322  with a document processing device  320  identified based on total print units used TPUU information  115   f  of the account information  110  ( FIG. 3 ). At  981  in  FIG. 16 , the customer returns a consumable product  322 , and the return center updates the account manager system  104  at  982  with the returned consumable type and customer information from the corresponding shipping information. Knowing the customer identity, the account manager system  104  infers the identity of the source document processing device  320  at  983  from which the consumable  322  was returned based at least partially on tracking of the TPUU information  115   f  ( FIG. 3 ) for one or more devices  320  registered to the customer&#39;s account. For example, if it is known that the returned consumable device has a print unit capacity of X print units, the account manager system  104  can ascertain from the account information  110  the registered device subaccount(s)  115  for which the TPUU has changed by X units since shipment of a previous replacement consumable of the same type to infer the source device identity. Using this inference, the account manager system initiates one or more automatic refund actions, including adding credits to the corresponding customer account, and optionally sending a notification email to the customer and/or applying print units to the presumed source device  320 . 
         [0067]    The automatic or semi-automatic provision of account credits and/or print unit application for returned consumables  322  advantageously encourages customer participation in consumable return/recycling programs since customers readily see the benefit for return compliance in their account credit and/or print unit balance, particularly when the account manager system  104  provides a timely email notification. Moreover, these techniques provide lower administration costs for the manufacturer/reseller  200  compared with conventional monetary compensation or coupon programs or returned consumable products, since a customer account already exists that can simply be credited by an amount determined by contractual return/refund provisions and/or as modified by special enhanced refund offers (e.g., limited-time, customer-specific, region-specific, or other special offers, etc.). From the customer&#39;s perspective, participation is encouraged by lower operation costs associated with the office equipment and the customer can track their recycle participation by device  320  and/or department  310 . 
         [0068]    Turning now to  FIG. 17 , the account manager system  104  and the document processing devices  320  provide control and tracking of consumable usage via a transaction or validation code generated by the document processing devices  320  in response to installation of new or replenishment consumables  322 , which is then provided to the account manager system  104  for validation.  FIG. 17  illustrates an exemplary process  1000  for device operation and consumable usage management in which a customer  300  installs a new or replacement consumable  322  into a registered device  320  at  1002 . At  1004 , the device  320  disables and/or restricts one or more document processing functions, and obtains consumable ID information from either the consumable  322  and/or from the customer  300  at  1006 . In one example, when the consumable  322  is installed into the device  320 , the device  320  reads the ID information  322   id  from a CRUM memory  322   c  of the consumable  322  ( FIG. 4  above). Any functional or operational impact of the restriction/disablement at  1004  may not be noticed by the user in a normal consumable replacement process when an approval is issued prior to the customer resuming use, particularly for consumables  322  having internal CRUM memory devices  322   c  from which the consumable ID information  322   id  is obtained for automatic generation of the transaction code by the device  320 . The consumable ID information  322   id  in certain embodiment includes one or more of a consumable identity, a consumable type, a geographical indicator which indicates a geographical region from which the consumable  322  was purchased, and/or a program participation indicator indicating whether the consumable  322  was obtained under a prepaid account. The consumable ID information  322   id  in one example could include a serial number providing a globally unique identification of that particular consumable product  322 , which may be supplemented with a code that represents the market the consumable  322  was intended to be used in. In this regard, a valid geographic indicator in certain embodiments is indicative of the location of the imaging device  322  for which the consumable product  322  is destined when shipped, and may but need not always represent the geographic location of purchase, for instance, where the consumable  322  was automatically shipped to a customer  300  based on anticipated depletion of a consumable supply for a particular device  320 . Moreover, there may be multiple prepaid account indicators for different types of accounts, in which embodiments the applicable indicator for the registered account will be considered in the validation process. 
         [0069]    In another example, the consumable  322  may not include a CRUM memory  322 C, and the device  320  prompts the customer/user (e.g., via the user interface  329  in  FIG. 4  above) to enter one or more pieces of consumable identification information into the device  320 , and/or the customer  300  may enter such consumable ID information into the device  320  via an agent  360  operating on a customer computer  330   a  ( FIG. 4  above). For example, the customer may obtain consumable ID information from packaging and/or shipping invoices received with the consumable item  322 , which is then used by the device  320  at  1008 . 
         [0070]    The device  320  generates a transaction code at  1008  based at least partially on the consumable ID information  322   id  associated with the installed consumable  322 , and also on the device ID information  323   g  ( FIG. 4  above). In this regard, since the device  320  is registered to the customer account, the account manager system  104  also includes device serial number information  115   a  ( FIG. 3  above), and the device  320  itself either stores device ID information  323   g  in its internal memory  323  as shown in  FIG. 4 , and/or the device  320  may prompt the customer/user via the user interface  329  to enter the device ID information  323   g,  for example, from a nameplate or label on the device  320  itself. With the consumable ID information and the device ID information, the device  320  generates the transaction code at  1008  using any suitable algorithm or technique by which a code can be constructed to uniquely identify a pairing of a particular installed consumable product  322  with a particular document processing device  320 . At  1010  the device  320  sends the transaction code to the account manager system  104  and awaits approval or rejection of the transaction code. 
         [0071]    In certain embodiments, the device  320  automatically sends the transaction code to the account manager system  104  via established network connections (e.g., networks  302 ,  10 , portal  102  in  FIG. 1 ), and the in certain situations, for instance where one or more network connections are inoperative, the transaction code validation process can be securely accomplished with manual steps. For example, the device  230  may render the generated transaction code (e.g., as a code string displayed on the device user interface  320  in  FIG. 4  above, which may be rendered via menu selection, with/without password/authorization entry protection). In this case, the customer/user obtains the transaction code from the interface  329  and provides the transaction code by any suitable means to the account manager system  104  for validation (e.g., verbally by telephone to an operator at the account manager site or via another acceptable method). The account manager system  104  then verifies the transaction code (accept/reject) and provides a validation code string for verbal or other conveyance to the customer/user who inputs the validation string into the document processing device  320  manually via the user interface  329 . The device  320  determines from the entered string whether or not the transaction code was accepted. Thus, even absent a communication link allowing automatic handshake on the validation process, the transaction code generated by the device  320  can be conveyed by any acceptable means to the account manager system  104  and the validation determination is provided to the device  320  manually. 
         [0072]    At  1020 , the device  320  awaits an approved/rejected response from the account manager system  104 . If the transaction code is approved, the process  1000  proceeds to  1030  where the device  320  enables all or a subset of document processing functionality according to the approval received from the account manager system  104 . Thus, one or more of the previously disabled document processing functions are re-enabled at  1030  once the account manager system  104  has indicated to the device  320  that the consumable  322  is accepted for use in the device  320 . In other situations, only a subset of the previously disabled document processing operation functionality may be re-enabled at  1030 , for example, where the account manager system  104  separately prompts the customer to verify the origin of the consumable device  322 , and/or determines that the consumable  322  was obtained from a legitimate source, even though the consumable  322  was not obtained through the prepaid program account. 
         [0073]    If the transaction code is rejected at  1020 , the process  1000  proceeds to  1040  where the device  320  remains fully or partially disabled pending subsequent transaction code approval code from the account manager system  104  and/or pending installation of a different consumable  322  into the device  320 . In such a case, a determination is made at  1042  as to whether a subsequent approved response is received from the account manager system  104 , in which case (YES at  1042 ) the process  1000  proceeds to  1030  as described above, with the device  320  enabling all or a subset of document processing functionality that was previously disabled according to the account manager system approval. Otherwise (NO at  1042 ), a determination is made at  1044  as to whether a new consumable  322  has been installed in the device  320 , and if so (YES at  1044 ), the process  1000  returns to  1006  as described above for generation of another transaction code and submission thereof to the account manager system  104  for validation. 
         [0074]    In certain embodiments, the above described functionality of the document processing device  320  is implemented in whole or in part using the microprocessor  321  or other controller or programmable processing element of the device  320 . The controller  321 , moreover, may be configured or otherwise programmed to indicate receipt of a rejected transaction code to the user via the user interface  329  ( FIG. 4 ). This might prompt the customer to separately contact the account manager system  104  (e.g. via a customer computer  330   a  and an agent  360  as shown in  FIG. 4 ) for follow-up regarding the nature of the invalidity determination and/or for other remedial actions in order to resume document processing functionality. 
         [0075]    In general, the process  1000  provides an automated or semi-automatic mechanism by which consumable usage may be tracked and monitored with the devices  320  communicating transaction codes to the account manager system  104  via the communications interface  326  ( FIG. 4 ), the customer network  302 , the portal  102 , and the server  100 . In some embodiments, the consumable ID information  322   id  further includes a program participation indicator indicating whether the consumable  322  was obtained under a prepaid account. Since the memory  323  in the device  320  includes a remaining print value  323   e  indicating the number of print units currently available to enable document processing device operations, the processing element  321  continues as described above to determine a job cost print unit value for performing a given document processing operation for document processing jobs (e.g. at  406  in  FIG. 7  above) and generally operates to selectively decrement the remaining print value  323   e  according to determined job cost print unit values as document processing jobs are preformed. 
         [0076]    In certain embodiments, the programmable processing element  321  of the document processing device  320  is configured if the consumable ID information  322   id  does not indicate that the consumable  322  was obtained under the prepaid account, to refrain in whole or in part from decrementing the remaining print unit value  323   e  in association with at least one document processing operation for a given document processing job. In this manner, the device  320  accommodates situations in which the customer may be operating the device  320  in a mixed mode with a portion of toner consumable  322  provided through the account program, with other toner consumable(s)  322  being obtained outside the program. The device  320  accommodates such a mixed mode by stopping the print unit decrementing, and/or by decrementing print units at a slower rate for usage of a particular toner cartridge consumable  322  that was identified as not being obtained through the account program. In this regard, the device  320  may operate to track how much black, cyan, yellow, and/or magenta toner consumable  322  is used for a given document processing job (for example as determined as part of the job cost estimate by the device  320 ), and the device  320  decrements allocated print units at a rate that corresponds to the amount of toner in consumable  322  actually used in processing a given document job. In this manner, the customer is charged print units only for consumable products  322  obtained via the account program, and the account manager system  104  thus facilitates continued document processing operation for the customer while tracking the usage of non program consumables  322  present in the registered devices  320 . In this regard, consumables  322  may include any form of material, component, etc. that is replaceable in a document processing device  320  such as toner, and may be without limitation a fusing unit, imaging unit, transfer roller, and so forth. 
         [0077]    In other situations, the selective validation/authorization functionality of the account manager system  104  can be used to control document processing device operation by selectively reducing the number of print units available to a given printer device  320  to zero or to some other threshold value in order to effectively disable the device  320  as a control mechanism. In this regard, the devices  320  are generally already configured to stop working (in whole or in part) when their applied remaining print units value  323   e  ( FIG. 4 ) goes to zero or some other predefined value, and the account manager system  104  can use this device operation as a control mechanism to prevent and/or inhibit the use of non program consumable products  322  within the devices  320 . It is further noted that the consumable ID information obtained by the device  320  may be constructed so as to include a flag or other indicator of whether or not the consumable  322  was initially shipped by a manufacturer in accordance with a particular prepaid program account. In this fashion, the handshaking between the device  320  and the account manager system  104  may include this information directly or indirectly in the generated transaction code and/or the validation thereof in order to facilitate timely authorization from the account manager system  104  upon installation of a new consumable  322  into a given document processing device  320 . 
         [0078]    The process  1000  of  FIG. 17  is further useful in identifying and controlling unauthorized usage of program consumables  322  when one or more prepaid accounts are terminated. In this regard, a customer  300  may initially participate in a prepaid program for one or more document processing devices  320 , but at some point may determine that document processing usage no longer justifies the continued participation in the program. In many such situations, consumable products  322  within one or more devices  320  will have significant remaining useful life (e.g., the consumable  322  is not yet depleted). In this case, the customer may chose to refrain from returning the unused consumable  322  to the program operator/manufacturer, and may instead attempt to install non-depleted consumables  322  into another document processing device  320  that remains active in the prepaid program. In this situation, the device  320  into which the consumable  322  is installed will ascertain the consumable ID information (e.g. from a CRUM memory  322   c  in the consumable  322 ) generate a transaction code, and forward this to the account manager system  104 . 
         [0079]    The account manager system  104 , in turn, will note the invalid pairing of the consumable  322  with the program device  320 , and will notify the customer of the unauthorized attempted usage of the consumable  322 . At this point, moreover, the account manager system  104  can advantageously notify the customer  300  that the installed consumable  322  was formerly part of the prepaid program, and indicate to the customer (e.g. via the user interface  329  of the device  320  and/or via an agent  360  on a customer computer  330 ) return processing instructions, which may remind the customer that hold back provisions of the previously decommissioned program account participation may be refunded to the customer upon return of the consumable item  322  to the manufacturer/reseller. Thus, the above described process  1000  provides a feedback mechanism to further encourage customer participation in proper consumable return programs, even when all or a portion of a customer account has been terminated. An alternative to return of one or more consumables  322  with remaining life is for a customer to provide payment for the unused portion of life remaining, in which case, upon validation of the arrangement, provision would be made for the consumable product  322  to maintain functionality via the account manager system  104  which would thereafter validate pairing of the ‘purchased’ consumable  322  with a device  320 . 
         [0080]    In accordance with further aspects of the present disclosure, a non-transitory computer readable medium or media is provided, such as a computer memory, a memory within the server  100  or other computer-accessible memory such as a CD-ROM, floppy disk, flash drive, database, server, computer, etc. which has computer executable instructions for performing one or more of the processes disclosed above. 
         [0081]    The above described examples are merely illustrative of several possible embodiments of the present disclosure, wherein equivalent alterations and/or modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon reading and understanding this specification and the annexed drawings. In particular regard to the various functions performed by the above described components (assemblies, devices, systems, circuits, and the like), the terms (including a reference to a “means”) used to describe such components are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, to any component, such as hardware, processor-executed software or firmware, or combinations thereof, which performs the specified function of the described component (i.e., that is functionally equivalent), even though not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure which performs the function in the illustrated implementations of the disclosure. In addition, although a particular feature of the disclosure may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several embodiments, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application. Also, to the extent that the terms “including”, “includes”, “having”, “has”, “with”, or variants thereof are used in the detailed description and/or in the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising”. It will be appreciated that various of the above-disclosed and other features and functions, or alternatives thereof, may be desirably combined into many other different systems or applications, and further that various presently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives, modifications, variations or improvements therein may be subsequently made by those skilled in the art which are also intended to be encompassed by the following claims.