Patent Publication Number: US-2022236927-A1

Title: Information processing apparatus

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/158,722, filed Jan. 26, 2021, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     Embodiments described herein relate generally to an information processing apparatus. 
     BACKGROUND 
     In the related art, if a failure occurs during execution of printing from an information processing apparatus such as a laptop computer or a desktop personal computer to an image forming apparatus such as a multi-functional peripheral (MFP), a service person or a user himself or herself collects information related to the occurrence of the print failure to analyze the cause of the failure. Then, it is necessary to report the print failure as a print failure report to the service person or an administrator, which is complicated. In order to eliminate such complications, there is a demand for a mechanism capable of efficiently generating and reporting the print failure report. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of an MFP; 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of a PC; 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a destination setting screen; 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an information setting screen; 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic view illustrating an example of a print screen; 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a property screen; 
         FIG. 8  is a flowchart illustrating a control procedure of a printer driver in the PC; 
         FIG. 9  is a flowchart illustrating a control procedure of a language monitor in the PC; and 
         FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating a control procedure of a port monitor in the PC. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     According to an embodiment, an information processing apparatus includes an input interface, a communication interface, and a processor. The input interface receives settings related to a print failure report. The communication interface communicates with an image forming apparatus and a destination of the print failure report included in the settings. The processor selectively executes a print mode for transmitting designated print data of a print object to the image forming apparatus and a report mode for transmitting print data for reporting including print log information to the destination based on the setting. 
     Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition, in this embodiment, when the printing is executed from a personal computer (PC) to the MFP and a print failure occurs on the PC, a print failure report is generated and reported. 
       FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an information processing system  1  according to an embodiment. The information processing system  1  includes a plurality of MFPs  10 , a plurality of PCs  20 , and a management server  30 . The MFP  10  is an example of an image forming apparatus. The PC  20  is an example of an information processing apparatus. The management server  30  is configured with one or a plurality of computers and manages, for example, the print log information and the like of the PC  20 . A communication network  2  connects the MFP  10 , the PC  20 , and the management server  30  in a wired or wireless manner. For example, the Internet may be used as a part of the communication network  2 . 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of the MFP  10 . The MFP  10  includes a scanner  11 , a printer  12 , a control system  13 , an operation panel  14 , and a communication interface  15 . The scanner  11 , the printer  12 , the operation panel  14 , and the communication interface  15  are connected to the control system  13 . 
     The scanner  11  is a device that optically reads an image of a document in response to an operation instruction from the control system  13  and converts the image into image data. The scanner  11  outputs the image data of the read document to the control system  13 . 
     The printer  12  prints an image based on the image data supplied from the control system  13  on a sheet in various print conditions designated by the control system  13 . The printer  12  may be, for example, an electrophotographic printer or may be an inkjet printer, a thermal transfer printer, or the like. 
     The control system  13  controls the overall operations of each unit such as the scanner  11 , the printer  12 , the operation panel  14 , and the communication interface  15 . In addition, the control system  13  executes various types of processing such as image processing. 
     The operation panel  14  is a user interface. The communication interface  15  is an interface for performing data communication with an external device via a network such as the communication network  2 . The communication interface  15  receives the designated print data transmitted from the PC  20 . The designated print data is, for example, a file name of an image, an ID of the image, raster data of the image, data expressing the image in a page description language, or the like. 
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of the PC  20 . The PC  20  includes a processor  21 , a main memory  22 , an auxiliary storage device  23 , a communication interface  24 , an input interface  27 , and a system transmission line  28 . The input interface  27  includes an input device  25  and a display device  26 . The system transmission line  28  includes an address bus, a data bus, a control signal line, and the like. The PC  20  connects the processor  21 , the main memory  22 , the auxiliary storage device  23 , the communication interface  24 , and the input interface  27  to the system transmission line  28 . The PC  20  is configured with the processor  21 , the main memory  22 , the auxiliary storage device  23 , and the system transmission line  28  connecting the processor  21 , the main memory  22 , and the auxiliary storage device  23 . 
     The processor  21  corresponds to the central part of the computer. The processor  21  controls each unit to realize various functions of the PC  20  according to an operating system or an application program. The processor  21  is, for example, a central processing unit (CPU). In addition, the processor  21  includes various units including a printer driver  211 , a spooler  212 , a language monitor  213 , and a port monitor  214 . The auxiliary storage device  23 , which is a non-temporary computer-readable storage medium, stores programs corresponding to these units. The processor  21  executes a program corresponding to each unit stored in the auxiliary storage device  23  to implement a function of each unit. The processor  21  selectively executes the print mode and the report mode based on the settings related to the print failure report stored in the auxiliary storage device  23  by the function of each unit. In addition, the settings related to the print failure report, the print mode, and the report mode will be described in detail later. 
     The main memory  22  corresponds to a main memory portion of the computer. The main memory  22  stores the operating system or application program read from the auxiliary storage device  23 . In addition, in some cases, the main memory  22  may store data necessary for the processor  21  to execute a process for controlling each unit. 
     The auxiliary storage device  23  is a non-temporary computer-readable storage medium and corresponds to an auxiliary storage portion of the computer. For example, an electric erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or the like can be the auxiliary storage device  23 . The auxiliary storage device  23  stores the operating system, the application program, data used by the processor  21  for performing various processes, data generated by the processes of the processor  21 , and the like. The auxiliary storage device  23  stores the settings related to the print failure report received through the input device  25 . 
     The communication interface  24  is a network interface for performing data communication with an external device via a network such as the communication network  2 . The communication interface  24  communicates with the MFP  10  and the destination of the print failure report. The communication interface  24  transmits a print job including the designated print data of the print object and print setting conditions to the MFP  10  in response to the execution of the print mode. In addition, the communication interface  24  transmits the print data for reporting corresponding to the print failure report to the destination of the print failure report in response to the execution of the report mode. 
     The input device  25  is a device that functions as an input interface capable of inputting data or instructions to the PC  20 . For example, the input device  25  is a keyboard, a touch panel, a mouse, a track pad, or the like. The input device  25  receives settings related to the print failure report input through the screen displayed on the display device  26 . 
     The display device  26  is a device capable of displaying various screens under the control of the processor  21 . For example, the display device  26  is a liquid crystal display (LCD), an electroluminescence (EL) display, a plasma display, or the like. The display device  26  displays a screen for receiving settings related to the print failure report. 
     The printer driver  211  generates the print job including the designated print data of the print object and the print setting conditions selected by the user and controls a print operation of the printer  12  of the MFP  10 . The print setting conditions are, for example, a name of the MFP  10  that identifies the MFP  10  executing the printing, the size of the print sheet, the number of sheets of print, a print orientation, and the like. In addition, the printer driver  211  receives an instruction operation of print setting conditions or the like by the user through the input device  25  and the display device  26 . The spooler  212  temporarily stores the print job generated by the printer driver  211  in the main memory  22  and sequentially transmits the print job to the language monitor  213 . The language monitor  213  bi-directionally communicates with the MFP  10  to monitor the state of the printer  12 . The language monitor  213  transmits the print job to the port monitor  214  according to the state of the printer  12 . The port monitor  214  relays various data including the designated print data between the printer driver  211  and the MFP  10 . The port monitor  214  transmits the designated print data included in the print job to the MFP  10 . In addition, the port monitor  214  receives the state of the printer  12  from the MFP  10  and supplies the state of the printer  12  to the language monitor  213 . 
     Before starting the operation of the information processing system  1  according to the embodiment, the user inputs settings related to the print failure report in advance through the input device  25  on the screen provided to the user through the display device  26  by the printer driver  211 , and the input device  25  receives the input settings, and the auxiliary storage device  23  stores the received settings. The settings related to the print failure report include the destination of the print failure report, the information to be included in the print failure report, and the information designating whether or not to report the failure. For example, the user inputs the destination of the print failure report in advance on a destination setting screen  100  (see  FIG. 4 ) displayed on the display device  26  through the input device  25 , and the input device  25  receives the input destination. The destination of the print failure report is, for example, a uniform resource locator (URL) indicating a location on the network  2 . 
     In addition, the user selects or inputs information to be included in the print failure report in advance on an information setting screen  200  (see  FIG. 5 ) displayed on the display device  26  through the input device  25 . The input device  25  receives the selection or input of the information to be included in the print failure report and the auxiliary storage device  23  stores the received information. The information included in the failure report is, for example, the print log information of the printer driver  211 , the information of the application program, the information of the operating system, other information related to the PC  20 , or a combination thereof. The information of the application program is, for example, a version of the program, an application state of an updated program, and the like. The information of the operating system includes a version of the system, an application state of an updated program, and the like. Other information related to the PC  20  includes, for example, a login user name, an IP address, domain participation, and the like. 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the destination setting screen  100 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the destination setting screen  100  includes an input column  101  for inputting a destination of the print failure report and a check box  102  for expressing the consent for handling personal information and the like. For example, the user inputs a URL for specifying a storage location of a failure report on the management server  30  in the input column  101  through the input device  25 . The input device  25  receives the input and the auxiliary storage device  23  stores the received information. In addition, the destination setting screen  100  includes an OK button  103  for instructing the input confirmation and a Cancel button  104  for instructing the input cancellation. The OK button  103  is enabled if the destination of the print failure report is input in the input column  101  and a check is entered in the check box  102 . In addition, the content of the text data displayed in  FIG. 4  is an example. 
     If the user inputs the OK button  103  on the destination setting screen  100 , the auxiliary storage device  23  stores the data on the destination setting screen  100 . 
       FIG. 5  is a schematic view illustrating an example of the information setting screen  200 . As illustrated in  FIG. 5 , the information setting screen  200  includes a check box  201  for selecting information to be included in the print failure report. The user enters a check in the check box  201  of the desired information. In addition, the information setting screen  200  includes an OK button  202  for instructing the input confirmation and a Cancel button  203  for instructing the input cancellation. In addition, the content of the text data displayed in  FIG. 5  is an example. 
     If the user inputs the OK button  202  of the information setting screen  200 , the auxiliary storage device  23  stores the data of the information setting screen  200 . 
     Herein, it is assumed that a similar print failure occurs repeatedly if the user executes printing from the PC  20  to the MFP  10 . In the embodiment, the print failure is the fact or the like that, for example, although a certain amount of toner is present in a toner cartridge included in the MFP  10 , a toner image is not fixed on a print medium because some print failure occurred on the PC  20 . Then, if a similar print failure is expected to occur the next time during the printing, the user considers changing the settings related to the print failure report before executing the print. The user calls a print screen  300  (see  FIG. 6 ) through the input device  25 , and the printer driver  211  displays the print screen  300  on the display device  26 . 
       FIG. 6  is a schematic view illustrating an example of the print screen  300 . As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , the print screen  300  is a screen for allowing the MFP  10  to execute a print process based on the designated print data of the print object. The print screen  300  includes a print execution button  301  for instructing print execution, a driver designation button  302  for designating the printer driver  211 , and a call button  303  for a property screen  400  (refer to  FIG. 7 ). The user selects the call button  303  through the input device  25  to call the property screen  400  and the printer driver  211  displays the property screen  400  on the display device  26 . 
       FIG. 7  is a schematic view illustrating an example of the property screen  400 . As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , the property screen  400  includes items  401  for designating the print setting conditions, a check box  402  for requesting transmission of the print failure report, a failure transmission destination setting button  403 , and a failure information selection button  404 . The failure transmission destination setting button  403  is a button for calling the destination setting screen  100 . The failure information selection button  404  is a button for calling the information setting screen  200 . In addition, the property screen  400  includes an OK button  405  for instructing the input confirmation of the items  401  and the check box  402  and a Cancel button  406  for instructing the input cancellation. If the user desires to transmit the print failure report, the user enters a check in the check box  402 . After that, the user inputs the print execution button  301  displayed on the print screen  300 . In addition, the content of the text data displayed in  FIG. 7  is an example. 
     If the user designates the items  401  on the property screen  400  and enters a check or no check in the check box  402  and then, inputs the OK button  405 , the auxiliary storage device  23  stores the data of the property screen  400 . 
       FIG. 8  is a flowchart illustrating an information processing procedure executed by the printer driver  211  of the PC  20 .  FIG. 9  is a flowchart illustrating an information processing procedure executed by the language monitor  213  of the PC  20 .  FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating an information processing procedure executed by the port monitor  214  of the PC  20 . Hereinafter, the operation of the information processing system  1  will be described with reference to these flowcharts. The operation described below is an example. The procedure is not particularly limited as long as similar results can be obtained. 
     As ACT 1, the printer driver  211  of the PC  20  waits for the input of the print execution button  301  through the input device  25 . If the print execution button  301  was input, the printer driver  211  determines YES in ACT 1, and the process proceeds to ACT 2. 
     As ACT 2, the printer driver  211  confirms whether or not a check is entered in the check box  402  for requesting transmission of the print failure report based on the data of the property screen  400  stored in the auxiliary storage device  23 . The check box  402  is information that designates whether or not to report a failure, that is, mode designation information that designates any one of the print mode and the report mode. The check box  402  in which no check is entered designates the print mode, and the check box  402  in which a check is entered designates the report mode. If a check is not entered in the check box  402 , the printer driver  211  determines NO in ACT 2, that is, determines to execute the print mode and the process proceeds to ACT 3. The print mode is a mode in which the MFP  10  is allowed to execute a print process based on the designated print data. 
     As ACT 3, the printer driver  211  executes the print mode and transmits a normal print job to the language monitor  213  through the spooler  212 . The normal print job includes the designated print data of the print object on the print screen  300  through the input device  25  and the data related to the items  401  of the print setting conditions designated on the property screen  400 . With the above, the printer driver  211  ends the information processing of the procedure illustrated in the flowchart of  FIG. 8 . 
     If a check is entered in the check box  402 , the printer driver  211  determines YES in ACT 2, that is, determines to execute the report mode and the process proceeds to ACT 4. The report mode is a mode for transmitting the print data for reporting including the print log information and the like based on the designated print data to the destination. In addition, the print log information and the like are print log information, information of the application program, information of the operating system, other information related to the PC  20 , or a combination thereof. The print log information includes, for example, information included in the designated print data of the print object that was printed, date and time, information as to whether the printing succeeded or failed, and the like. The information included in the designated print data is, for example, a file name of the image included in the designated print data or an ID of the image. As ACT 4, the printer driver  211  sets the output flag of the print log information ON and executes the report mode. The output flag is information indicating whether or not the print log information and the like are permitted to be output to the management server  30 . If the output flag is ON, the print log information and the like can be output. If the output flag is OFF, the print log information and the like cannot be output. 
     As ACT 5, the printer driver  211  collects information to be included in the print failure report based on the data of the information setting screen  200  stored in the auxiliary storage device  23 . As ACT 6, the printer driver  211  adds the information collected in the process of ACT 5 to the print log information. 
     As ACT 7, the printer driver  211  transmits the print job for reporting to the language monitor  213  through the spooler  212 . The print job for reporting includes the designated print data of the print object on the print screen  300 , the data related to the items  401  of the print setting conditions designated on the property screen  400 , and the print log information and the like. 
     With the above, the printer driver  211  ends the information processing of the procedure illustrated in the flowchart of  FIG. 8 . 
     As ACT 11, the language monitor  213  of the PC  20  waits for the reception of the print job from the spooler  212 . If the print job is received, the language monitor  213  determines YES in ACT 11 and the process proceeds to ACT 12. 
     As ACT 12, the language monitor  213  confirms whether or not the received print job is a print job for reporting. If the print job is not a print job for reporting, that is, the print job is a normal print job, the language monitor  213  determines NO in ACT 12 and the process proceeds to ACT 13. 
     As ACT 13, the language monitor  213  transmits the normal print job to the port monitor  214 . With the above, the language monitor  213  ends the information processing of the procedure illustrated in the flowchart of  FIG. 9 . 
     If the print job is a print job for reporting, the language monitor  213  determines YES in ACT 12 and the process proceeds to ACT 14. As ACT 14, the language monitor  213  generates the print data for reporting. That is, the print data for reporting generated by the language monitor  213  is data obtained by adding print log information and the like included in the print job for reporting from the printer driver  211  to the designated print data included in the same job. 
     As ACT 15, the language monitor  213  transmits the print job for reporting to the port monitor  214 . That is, the print job for reporting transmitted in ACT 15 includes the print data for reporting generated by the process of ACT 14 and the data related to the items  401  of the print setting conditions designated on the property screen  400 . With the above, the language monitor  213  ends the information processing of the procedure illustrated in the flowchart of  FIG. 9 . 
     As ACT 21, the port monitor  214  of the PC  20  waits for the reception of the print job from the language monitor  213 . 
     If the print job is received, the port monitor  214  determines YES in ACT 21 and the process proceeds to ACT 22. 
     As ACT 22, the port monitor  214  confirms whether or not the received print job is a print job for reporting. For example, a print job includes identification information indicating a normal print job or a print job for reporting. If it is determined that the print job is not a print job for reporting, that is, the print job is a normal print job, based on the identification information, the port monitor  214  determines NO in ACT 22 and the process proceeds to ACT 23. 
     As ACT 23, the port monitor  214  transmits the print data included in the normal print job to the MFP  10  via the communication network  2 . That is, the port monitor  214  instructs the MFP  10  to print the print data. With the above, the port monitor  214  ends the information processing of the procedure illustrated in the flowchart of  FIG. 10 . 
     In the case of a print job for reporting, the port monitor  214  determines YES in ACT 22 and the process proceeds to ACT 24. As ACT 24, the port monitor  214  transmits the print data for reporting included in the print job for reporting to the management server  30  via the communication network  2  based on the data of the destination setting screen  100  stored in the auxiliary storage device  23 . That is, the port monitor  214  instructs the management server  30  to report the print failure report to the administrator or the service person. With the above, the port monitor  214  ends the information processing of the procedure illustrated in the flowchart of  FIG. 10 . 
     As is clarified from the above description, the PC  20  as an information processing apparatus includes the input interface  27 , the communication interface  24 , and the processor  21 . The processor  21  functions as the printer driver  211 , the spooler  212 , the language monitor  213 , and the port monitor  214 . The input interface  27  receives the settings related to the print failure report. The communication interface  24  communicates with the MFP  10  as an image forming apparatus and the management server  30  as a destination of the print failure report. 
     The PC  20  selectively executes the print mode and the report mode by the port monitor  214  executing the process of ACT 23 or ACT 24 of  FIG. 10 . 
     Therefore, in the case of the PC  20 , if the settings related to the print failure report are performed on the destination setting screen  100 , the information setting screen  200 , and the property screen  400  (when the transmission is designated with a check in the check box  402 ), the print data for reporting to which the print log information and the like included in the print failure report are added is transmitted to the destination of the print failure report. Therefore, it is not necessary for the user or the service person to generate the print failure report and the print failure report can be efficiently generated and reported. For this reason, the burden on the user or the service person is reduced. In addition, if the print failure report is not set (when the transmission is not designated by a check in the check box  402 ), the print data is printed as normal. Therefore, the user can select whether or not to transmit the print failure report and select the information to be included in the print failure report with simple input. By setting whether or not to transmit the print failure report, it is possible to prevent information leakage against the user&#39;s intention. 
     Although the embodiment of the information processing apparatus has been described above, the embodiment is not limited thereto. 
     In the above-described embodiment, the case where the image forming apparatus is the MFP  10  is exemplified. The image forming apparatus is not limited to the MFP  10 . For example, the image forming apparatus may be a copier, a printer, or the like. 
     In the above-described embodiment, the case where the OK button  405  and the Cancel button  406  are displayed on the property screen  400  is exemplified. For example, along with the OK button  405  and the Cancel button  406 , a Transmit button for requesting transmission of the print failure report may be displayed. That is, the OK button  405  may be distinguished as instructing the input confirmation of the print setting conditions or the like, and the Transmit button may be distinguished as instructing the input confirmation of the check box  402 . In this case, the Transmit button may be enabled if a check is entered in the check box  402 . 
     In addition, as another example, the processor  21  may determine whether or not the print failure report needs to be transmitted and execute the report mode based on the determination result. For example, the printer driver  211 , the language monitor  213 , and the port monitor  214  monitor the occurrence of a failure during the execution of the print process. If any of the printer driver  211 , the language monitor  213 , and the port monitor  214  detects a failure in the execution of the print process, the processor  21  determines to transmit the print failure report and executes the report mode. The printer driver  211  detects a print failure from an error of a set value included in the print setting conditions. The language monitor  213  and the port monitor  214  detect a print failure from a time over of the process. If the processor  21  detects the failure in the execution of the print process based on predetermined designated print data, the processor  21  executes the report mode and transmits the print data for reporting including the print log information and the like based on the predetermined designated print data to the destination. As a result, it is possible to automate the process from the occurrence of the failure to the transmission of the print failure report. 
     Furthermore, the processor  21  may count the detection of the print failure and execute the report mode if a count value exceeds a threshold value. In addition, the processor  21  may count the detection of the print failure by type and execute the report mode if any of the count values for each type exceeds the threshold value. After executing the report mode, the processor  21  resets the count value. 
     Furthermore, the input interface  27  may output information related to confirmation of intention to receive the execution instruction of the report mode if a failure is detected in the execution of the print process. That is, if a failure is detected, the display device  26  displays a confirmation button for confirming the intention to transmit the print failure report; and if the input device  25  detects the selection of the confirmation button, the processor  21  executes the report mode. Accordingly, it is possible to confirm the user&#39;s intention to transmit the print failure report in addition to automating the process from the occurrence of the failure to the transmission of the print failure report. 
     While certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of invention. Indeed, the novel apparatus and methods described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the apparatus and methods described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the inventions. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the inventions.