Patent ID: 8379245

Claim:
A copy management system including a copying device and an output device, said output device outputting a print image having information embedded therein to control said copying device for copying, said output device including: an information generator for generating list information having a plurality of pieces of identification information identifying a plurality of persons authorized to copy the information-embedded print image on said copying device or a group of persons authorized to copy the information-embedded print image on said copying device; a first image generator for generating an original print image based on original information containing at least one of a letter, a character, a figure, a symbol and a mark, and a combination of at least two of the letter, character, figure, symbol and mark; a second image generator for encoding the list information to convert the list information to a specific code and for embedding the specific code in the original print image to generate a code-embedded print image corresponding to the information-embedded print image; and a printer for outputting the code-embedded print image; said copying device including: an information input unit for receiving and accepting at least one of information about a person doing a copying operation on said copying device and information about a group to which the person doing the copying operation belongs, as copying identification information that identifies information indicating allowance for copying; an input unit for receiving the code-embedded print image to generate an input image; an information acquirer for acquiring the specific code embedded in the code-embedded print image from the input image and for decoding the specific code to acquire the list information from the specific code decoded; a copying determiner for comparing the plurality of pieces of identification information, included in the acquired list information, with the copying identification information, and determining allowance/non-allowance in accordance with a result of the comparison; and a copier, responsive to the allowance for copying from said copying determiner, for copying the code-embedded print image.